Skype launches a lite version of Skype™ client that can be downloaded to Android-powered and Java-enabled cell phones. The lite version of Skype is now available for the T-Mobile G1™ and is expected to work on other future Android-powered devices. The ‘thin’ client also works on more than 100 Java-enabled phones from Nokia, LG, Samsung, Motorola, and Sony Ericsson.
German researchers have found out they were wrong saying that regular cell phone use leads to a type of cancer called melanoma of the eye. A repeated study with 1600 people hasn’t given any results confirming the existence of a link between regular cell phone use and the occurrence of the disease.
A tiny radio transmitter is built in a small tag working in the range of 100 meters from a cell phone. This simple device and your cell phone will help you to find lost keys, purses and so on. The Nokia Locate Sensor works in the following way. Special software should be installed on your cell phone enabling it to “see” the tag and show its location by an arrow on the display. It should be mentioned that a single phone supports 100 tags at once. However, it is not clear yet how to find what you really want to, and not a purse instead of keys for instance. The location tag can also keep an eye on your cell phone so that you’ll never leave it somewhere. To use the Nokia Locate Sensor in this way you should place it in your pocket and set the acceptable distance between the tag and your phone. Once you go too far from your cell phone, you hear an alarm, and the application disables the handset until it reenters your close vicinity. So far, there is no information of whether the Nokia Locate Sensor is just a prototype or a device ready for shipping. ...
According to unofficial sources, Motorola is going to fire some of its handset division staff this week. And the scale is really large – the layoffs may amount to 50% of the handset division staff, other divisions being unaffected. Besides, we have learned that Motorola is planning to reduce the number of new phones to just a dozen per year.
Nokia.mobi, the popular mobile Internet site, has launched a new section called Here and Now that provides the latest world news, celebrity buzz, music, downloads and information on Nokia products and services. Nokia.mobi is bookmarked in every new Nokia device and is accessed by millions of people across the globe. The director of Nokia.mobi says that by providing quality content from Reuters and Rollingstone.com, the new section allows people to get more out of mobile services in general. Nokia.mobi is also a great launchpad for mobile advertising campaigns and is already popular with brand advertisers including Universal Pictures, BMW, and American Express.
Today Motorola announced two new mobile devices: MOTO™ W233 Renew and MOTOSURF™ A3100. MOTO™ W233 Renew is the world’s first mobile phone made from 100% recyclable plastics comprised of recycled water bottles. The package size is reduced by 22 percent and the box and all of the materials inside are printed on 100% post-consumer recycled paper. Renew will first be available at T-Mobile USA in Q1 2009. As for MOTOSURF™ A3100 it is a high-speed touch tablet with a customizable home screen. The phones will debut this week at the CES in Las Vegas.
Clevertexting, an Indian company, has created a predictive text input system that works without any dictionaries unlike T9 for instance. Faster typing is achieved by a virtual keyboard with shifting letters that change their position when you type a message. The system predicts the next letter you need and places it near your right or left thumb that increases typing speed.
CrunchGear says that Palm is presenting its new slider smartphone with a large touchscreen display and full QWERTY keyboard, running under Nova operating system. As expected, the new phone functionally resembles iPhone and as for the capabilities of the operating system and supported software, there will be a great speech about them at CES this Thursday.
In an event held today in Nanjing Nokia unveiled the new Nokia 6208c aimed at the Chinese market. The touch screen of the 6208c is optimized to write Chinese characters with a pen, and the stylus attached to the back of the phone resembles bamboo slips and works with the large color display perfectly. Added to the Chinese language support, the Nokia 6208c features a number of different languages and characters. The new device has a stainless steel back cover, 3.2 MP camera with 4x digital zoom, dual LED flash, and supports microSD cards up to 8GB. The Nokia 6208c is expected to start shipping in select markets in the first half of 2009.
LG Electronics reports that during the first five weeks 150 thousand KP500 phones were sold. According to the latest data, 6-7 thousand phones are sold daily and their number is expected to increase. The cell phone LG KP500 is so popular not only because of its attractive price and perfect functionality so far met only in Premium class cell phones, but also because of its practical user interface.
LG KS660 seems to hit the market of China, Korea, Russia and its several satellites. As for the US market, the manufacturer is not thinking about it yet. Americans are upset about it, and hope that LG will change their decision and release the phone to the international market. The fact that KS660 is given so much attention can be explained not only by dual SIM support, but also by a 5 MP camera with autofocus and flash, 3” WQVGA display, and a stylus.
