Samsung SGH-i718

Date Announced	First Quarter 2007
Date Released	Coming Soon
Mode	GSM Quad 850 / 950 / 1800 / 1900
Dimensions	109 x 58 x 13.5 mm
Battery Type	Lithium-Ion (1200 mAh)
Battery Life	?
Weight	109 grams
Form Factor	Bar
Phone book	Dynamic Memory

Display Type	65536 color, TFT Touchscreen , (240 x 320 pixels)
Expansion Slot	Yes (TransFlash / microSD Card slot)
Form Factor	Bar
Games	Yes
Operating System	Microsoft Window Mobile 5.0 for Pocket PC
Polyphonic Ringtones	Yes (40 chords, MP3 Support)
Processor	Intel XScale PXA270 416MHz
Vibrating Alert	Yes

Connectivity

Bluetooth	Yes (v2.0)
EDGE	No
E-Mail client	Yes

Bluetooth	Yes (v2.0)
EDGE	No
E-Mail client	Yes
GPRS	Yes
HSCSD	No
Headset Jack	No
Instant Messaging	Yes
Infrared (IR)	No
Java Apps (J2ME)	Yes (MIDP 2.0)
MMS	Yes
Synchronization	Yes
SMS	Yes
USB	Yes
WAP	Yes (2.0)
Wi-Fi (802.11b)	No

Organiser Functions

Internet Browser	Yes (xHTML)
Onboard Memory	55 MB
Picture ID	Yes
Voice Memo	Yes

Special Functions

Camera	Yes (2 MP, 320 x 240 pixels)
Flashlight	Yes
FM Radio	No
GPS	No
Mp3 Player	Yes
Streaming Multimedia	Yes
Video Recording	Yes

READ MORE - Samsung SGH-i718

General

Network

UMTS / GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900

Size	Dimensions	105 x 49 x 15.5 mm, 74 cc
	Weight	115 g

Display	Type	TFT, 16M colors
	Size	240 x 320 pixels
		- Five-way scroll key - Downloadable themes

Ringtones	Type	Polyphonic
	Customization	Download
	Vibration	Yes

Memory	Phonebook	Yes
	Call records	Yes
	Card slot	microSD (TransFlash), hotswap
		- 50 MB shared memory

Data	GPRS	Class 32
	HSCSD	Yes
	EDGE	Class 32, 296 / 177.6 kbits
	3G	Yes, 384 kbps
	WLAN	Wi-Fi 802.11b/g, VoIP over WLAN
	Bluetooth	Yes, v1.2
	Infrared port	Yes
	USB	Yes, Pop-Port

Features	OS	Symbian OS 9.1, Series 60 UI
	Messaging	SMS, MMS, Email, Instant Messaging
	Browser	WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML
	Games	Yes + Java downloadable
	Colors	Red, Black
	Camera	2 MP, 1600x1200 pixels, video(CIF)
		- Java MIDP 2.0 - Push to talk - MP3/AAC/MPEG4 player - Office applications - T9 - Voice command/memo - PIM including calendar, to-do list and printing - Integrated handsfree

Battery		Standard battery, Li-Ion 1000 mAh
	Stand-by	Up to 265 h
	Talk time	Up to 6 h

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Siemens S75

As a mobile office and music system in one, the S75 amalgamates a number of different talents. With the built-in organizer, you always have all your appointments and tasks fully under control – both in your hectic working life and during diverse leisure activities. Important data can be saved quickly and simply onto your PC either by USB or wirelessly via Bluetooth. The newly designed address book has a particularly clear layout displaying all contacts stored on both your SIM card and in the telephone. It also shows immediately whether your calling partner is currently available for instant messaging online.

Do you have large numbers of messages, appointments and calls? Now you can always keep track of them on the large, resplendent telephone display (262,000 colors) in the unified inbox. Apart from emails, text messages and such like, it also contains the numbers of incoming calls and notifies you of important appointments.

Mobile musical appreciation for discriminating listeners: While on the move, you always have an excellent music center in your pocket with the S75. At the touch of a button, the multimedia mobile plays not only MP3 music, but also music in the particularly spacesaving AAC formats. As you are listening to your favorite songs, you can update your appointments diary, access emails, write an MMS or chat via instant messaging.

Finding your way around even the largest music collection is child’s play – all your music is automatically sorted by artist, album and style. Up to 10 hours of CD-quality music fit on the 128 MB RS multimedia card that comes with the S75, as well as in the 20 MB phone memory. Whether you want to stream or download music or video clips – you can do any of these simply and quickly with the mobile using an EDGE/GPRS cellular connection. Rich sound is guaranteed by the stereo headphones supplied with the S75.

The Headset Bluetooth Stereo HHB-750 (original accessories) with integrated display is the ideal complement to the S75. As well as allowing you to enjoy music in superb sound quality, it also enables you to talk comfortably handsfree without any cable connection to the telephone a nd operate the telephone’s music functions by remote control. Together with the folding active hi-fi speakers of the Mobile Music Set IMS-700 (original accessories), the S75 turns into a mobile stereo system guaranteed to get every party swinging. You can capture the most beautiful moments with the built-in 1.3 megapixel digital camera with digital zoom and photolight. Then you can send off the photographs directly to a photo printer via Bluetooth without cumbersome wires. And if you wish, you can also take your own video clips when the mood takes you.

Specifications :

Date Announced Second Quarter 2005
Date Released Third Quarter 2005
Mode GSM Triband 900 / 1800 / 1900
Dimensions 103 x 47 x 19 mm
Battery Type Lithium Ion, 820 mAh
Battery Life 300 mins talktime, 300 hours standby time
Weight 99 grams
Form Factor Bar
Phone book Dynamic Memory
Display Type 2,62,000 colors, TFT (132 x 126 pixels)
Expansion Slot Yes, RS-MMC (1 Gb)
Form Factor Bar
Games Yes
Polyphonic Ringtones Yes (MIDI, MP3 and AAC support)
Vibrating Alert Yes
Connectivity
Bluetooth Yes
EDGE Yes (384 kbps)
E-Mail client Yes
Bluetooth Yes
EDGE Yes (384 kbps)
E-Mail client Yes
GPRS Yes, Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots)
Instant Messaging Yes
Infrared (IR) Yes
Java Apps (J2ME) Yes (Midp ver 2.0)
MMS Yes
Synchronization Yes
SMS Yes
USB Yes
WAP Yes
Organiser Functions
Internet Browser Yes
Onboard Memory 20 Mb, 128 Mb RS MMC Card
Picture ID Yes
Voice Dialling Yes
Voice Memo Yes
Special Functions
Camera Yes (1.3 MP, 1280x960 pixels, video, flash)
FM Radio No
GPS No
Mp3 Player Yes
Streaming Multimedia Yes (MPEG 4)
Video Recording Yes

READ MORE - Siemens S75

Samsung F700

General Network HSDPA / GSM 900 / GSM 1800 / GSM 1900
Announced 2007, February
Status Coming Soon
Size Dimensions 104 x 50 x 16.4mm
Weight
Display Type TFT touchscreen, 256K colors
Size 240 x 440 pixels, 2.78 inches
- QWERTY Keyboard
Ringtones Type Polyphonic, MP3
Customization Download
Vibration Yes

Memory Phonebook Yes, Photocall
Call records 30 dialed, 30 received, 30 missed calls
Card slot microSD (TransFlash)
Data GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
HSCSD No
EDGE Yes
3G HSDPA, 7.2 Mbps
WLAN No
Bluetooth Yes
Infrared port No
USB Yes
Features Messaging SMS, EMS, MMS, Email, Instant Messaging
Browser WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML
Games Yes
Colors Black
Camera 5 MP, 2592х1944 pixels, autofocus, flash, video; secondary videocall camera
- Java MIDP 2.0
- H.264/H.263/MPEG4 player
- MP3/AAC/AAC+ player
- Organiser
- Document viewer
- Built-in handsfree
Battery Standard battery, Li-Ion
Stand-by
Talk time

READ MORE - Samsung F700

LG Chocolate 3G (KU800)

After having sold a reported 4 million units of the original Chocolate phone (KG800) worldwide, it didn't come as a surprise when LG announced it was introducing a 3G version of its popular slider. Called the Chocolate 3G (KU800), the new handset also features several upgrades over its predecessor, among them a higher-resolution 2-megapixel camera and expandable memory card slot.

Upside:
One of the key reasons for the success of the original Chocolate lay with its clean yet sexy design, which the Korean company has retained in the 3G edition. Thus like its predecessor, the new KU800 comes in a sleek slider form factor complete with by now familiar glossy piano black finish and buttonless touchpad navigation keys. Interestingly, the new Chocolate 3G is a mite smaller, though it's also become marginally thicker and heavier.
There are some distinct cosmetic differences between the KG800 and the new KU800. For starters, the primary camera is now at the rear rather than hidden within the sliding section. This being 3G, a second VGA camera sits beside the phone speaker for 3G video calls. The microSD card slot on the left edge is certainly a welcomed addition as the 128MB onboard memory on its predecessor was simply insufficient for storing images and music. The irony is that the use of the microSD card is capped at 1GB for the phone. Music lovers who want to carry more MP3s on the Chocolate or users who aim to store videos may chafe at this limitation.

Battery capacity has been increased from 800mAh to 1,000mAh, probably to handle the increased power load due to added features such as 3G, video calls and microSD card slot.

Downside:
While 3G is a useful feature to have, particularly if you plan to travel to Korea and Japan, we wonder if LG should have gone with the faster HSDPA standard instead, considering that rival Samsung has already introduced several new models with the new technology. There's also the omission of an FM tuner and A2DP Bluetooth stereo support which are increasingly standard features on handsets these days.

Our biggest gripe, though, has to lie with the touchpad navigation controls. In our hands-on with the KU800, these were still not as easy to use or intuitive as regular buttons.

Outlook:
LG's 3G makeover will doubtless appeal to the fashion-conscious set, though time will tell if the KU800 has sufficient weapons in its arsenal to repeat the success of the older KG800. The Chocolate 3G is slated to ship in February for about S$638 (US$405.90) without contract.

SPECIFICATIONS :

Phone type Triband
Networks GSM 900, GSM 1800, GSM 1900
Connectivity options 3G, GPRS, WAP, Java, Bluetooth, USB
Calling Features Speakerphone
Form factor Slider
Dimensions (W x D x H) 94.6 x 45.6 x 17 mm
Weight w/battery 99 g
Primary display type TFT
Secondary display type None
Secondary display resolution x pixels
Interchangeable covers? No
Available colours Black
LCD display size 2-inch; QVGA (176 x 220-pixel)
Color LCD? Yes
Primary Display Color 18 bit
Operating system Others
Battery type(s) supported Rechargeable 1000mAh Lithium-polymer battery
Max. talktime (in hours) 3.3 hours
Max. standby time (in hours) 200 hours
Internal memory 64 MB
Expansion slot(s) TransFlash / microSD

Included accessories Stereo earphones handsfree with wired music playback remote, 512MB microSD card, USB data cable, AC adapter, screen cleaner, CD and user manuals.

Additional functions Touchpad navigation (digital touch sensor); second VGA camera for 3G video calls.
MMS? Yes
Predictive text input? Yes
Ringtone composer? No
Polyphonic? Yes
Built-in vibrate alert? Yes
Game Supports Java MIDP 2.0
Built-in digital camera? Yes

READ MORE - LG Chocolate 3G (KU800)

Sony ericsson W710

What's better than a Walkman music player by your side while running in the park? Well, there is one and that is to have a Walkman phone and a pedometer in an all-in-one pack. Well, you've guessed it; it's the Sony Ericsson W710, the latest Walkman mobile phone from Sony Ericsson. The clamshell sports a 2 megapixel camera, a Memory Stick Micro memory card slot, a FM radio, and a set of nice fitness applications to store your results and to calculate how many calories you have burned on the track that day. It's a highly attractive combination that makes the first steps for Sony Ericsson on the mobile sports track. We'll see how it keeps up there.
Key features:

* 2 megapixel camera
* M2 memory card slot (comes with a 512MB card)
* FM radio with RDS
* Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE support
* Bluetooth support with A2DP
* Great music player
* Pedometer
* Sports applications
* Multi-tasking
* Sports-oriented accessories

Main disadvantages:

* Low resolution display
* Camera has no autofocus
* Records video in ancient QCIF (176 x 144 pixels) resolution only

Sony Ericsson W710 is one of those rare sport-oriented mobiles that have begun to emerge on the market recently. They seem to have a market niche of their own and though they are few in numbers, they are beginning to gain popularity. Several manufacturers already have recognized the need for those kinds of mobile phones. The truth is that as we begin to see the mobile phone as an indispensable part of our everyday lives, it would develop more and more to cover a broader part of our everyday technological needs.

When we are speaking of sports, the other recent phone that first comes to mind is most definitely the Nokia 5500 Sport. But we won't compare the two phones as we don't perceive them as direct competitors. First, Nokia 5500 has a dust and splash resistant body, and furthermore it is based on the Symbian OS and thus it offers more versatile and expandable software capabilities. In the same time, it costs more. So they are not really direct competitors since they are targeted at different customer groups.

The first sport-oriented handsets in fact were the ones with a body with increased resistance to moisture and dust. This is not the case with Sony Ericsson W710 although it features some sporty design solutions.

As it happens often in the mobile world, the W710 in fact has a twin - it is the Sony Ericsson Z710. Sony Ericsson tends to keep up their budget-oriented Z-series of clamshells and Sony Ericsson Z710 is one of its latest additions. The two handsets are practically identical except for the added Walkman features to the W710 such as the MegaBass equalizer preset and the TrackID function, as well as the sports features such as the pedometer and calories counter.

The Sony Ericsson W710 would be offered in two color combinations - a grey/white one and a violet/white one. The one we got to test was the grey/white one.

The retail package should include a 512MB Memory Stick Micro card, a sports Sony Ericsson HPM-65 stereo headset, a sports belt/armband clip, an armband and a USB data cable card but as we have always said - the contents of the retail package are market and country dependant.
Sporty all around

Seeing W710 for the first time left us with an impression of cheap white plastic combined with unpretentious grey rubber - nothing fancy, really. Opening the clamshell, made things better, since the white plastic seemed glossy from the inside of the clam, while the grey plastic covering the insides felt and looked nice.
When it comes to dimensions, well… There's nothing impressive in that department too. The W710 is a rather fatty fellow with a width of 24.5 mm - but despite the size, it still doesn't fit into the heavyweight category with its 101 g which is a somewhat normal weight these days.

The front of the Sony Ericsson W710 is dominated by the large monochrome external display which can fit a lot of information for the user. The Walkman logo sits right beneath it and the grey rubber on both sides accommodates the dedicated music keys.
In fact, speaking of those side music keys they tend to resemble a lot the ones incorporated into the Nokia 5300 Xpress Music. Maybe because of the similar color combination (white/grey) we just couldn't help the feeling that these two are as if made by one and the same designer team.

A look at the left side reveals that they are not the only side keys though. There we also see a dual volume key and the camera shortcut key. Placing the camera key on the left side hinted us from the very beginning that the camera is not made to shoot in landscape mode.

An interesting element is the one under the side music keys - the one designated with the Memory Stick Micro logo. Although it resembled a memory card slot cap a lot it turned out it's a dummy cap after all and it only designates where the memory card is located. To gain access to it you have to remove the back cover.
Speaking of a camera, this one is located on the usual place for all clamshells - in the upper portion of the external cover.
The right side of the W710 incorporates only the Infrared port and a hardware keylock for the dedicated music keys. It's a nice feature and it does a good job in preventing unwanted press of those.
The Sony Ericsson doesn't have a dedicated standard audio jack. Instead it uses the proprietary Sony Ericsson Fast Port for connecting the charger, the headphones and the USB cable. Don't get disappointed though, you would still be able to use your favorite headphones with it since the headset supplied in the retail kit has a standard audio jack connector just for the purpose. The top of the W710 doesn't feature any keys at all but it does feature an important design element that we are so used to see in the Z-series line-up - an external loop antenna which can be used for strip fastening.

The back of the Sony Ericsson W710 is bare with the exception of the loudspeaker grill which is styled in orange. The cover is made of the same white pearl shiny plastic that we see when the clamshell is opened. As expected from a sports oriented mobile, the cover has a rather secure locking mechanism which is opened with a slide.

Beneath the cover we can see the standard Sony Ericsson BST-37 Li-Polymer battery with a capacity of 900 mAh. According to the manufacturer it should provide power for up to the impressive 350 hours of standby time and up to 10 hours of talk time. Unfortunately, we couldn't test the phone's battery life since we used the phone heavily during our tests and thus the battery life we experienced was not indicative for the real-life performance of the phone. Beneath the battery lies the SIM card bed which features the regular locking mechanism seen on almost all Sony Ericsson mobiles.
The Sony Ericsson W710 has a rather nice keypad that would suit the taste of every messaging fan. The navigation D-pad is precise enough while the alphanumeric keys have a rather positive feedback while typing. Beside the usual key arrangement, the keypad also features a dedicated Walkman key. The keypad has a dim orange backlighting which is unpleasantly uneven but does its job in the dark.

READ MORE - Sony ericsson W710