SE Announces New Walkman Handset, BT Mobile Speaker

Building on an array of innovative launches in 2008, Sony Ericsson has announced two new products in its mobile music range hoping to offer their customers the most state-of-the art mobile music experience.

The W705 Walkman phone and Wireless Home Audio System MBS-900 were recently unveiled in conjunction with the MTV Europe Music Awards where Sony Ericsson is one of the main sponsors.

"Combining premium design and best-in-class sound quality with super-fast access to a host of digital content whether it be from PlayNow arena or via the web, we really are offering the most feature-rich mobile music experience available today," said Ben Padley, Head of Global Music Marketing at Sony Ericsson.




Using Wi-Fi to connect to broadband hot spots, consumers can use their W705 to go online for the best songs or most popular YouTube video clips or stream tunes wirelessly to the MBS-900 speaker via Bluetooth. The handset comes equipped with audio features that include Clear Bass and Clear Stereo. The W705 also includes popular Walkman features such as the music recognition application TrackID and SenseMe and an FM radio. Also available on the W705 is SE’s PlayNow arena. The handset’s metal finish combines with its 2.4-inch large screen in an elegant and compact slider for a professional feel. It has a 3.2 megapixel camera and an accelerometer for auto rotating between vertical and horizontal mode.

To compliment the W705 is the 2.1 Wireless Home Audio System MBS-900 that connects wirelessly to your mobile phone through Bluetooth (A2DP and AVRCP profile)and aims at providing users with crystal-clear sound through its dual speaker and sub-woofer system. It can be controlled via the handset and also comes equipped with built in touch controls, an FM radio and an auto mute for when you’re receiving a call. The MBS-900 has a 3.5 inch Line-In socket and a monochrome OLED display to view track names etc.




Also announced was the W705u Walkman. UMA enables users to seamlessly roam between the mobile network and local area networks thanks to GSM/Wi-Fi dual capabilities. The W705u is exclusive to the operator Orange in markets where Orange is present.

The W705 and W705u (exclusive to Orange) support GSM/GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900 and UMTS/HSPA 900/2100. W705 will be available in selected markets from Q1 2009 in the colors Luxury Silver and Passionate Red. W705u (exclusive to Orange) will be available from Q1 2009. The Wireless Home Audio System MBS-900 will be available from Q1 2009. No official pricing has been announced.

LG Reveals New Entry Level Clamshell

LG is in the news again with the release of yet another handset. Their latest offering - the LG KP152 - is an entry level clamshell with a rather stylish form factor directed at emerging markets.




Its features as you can assume from it being an entry-level handset are minimal. The phone is equipped with an integrated FM radio and a VGA camera with GPRS connectivity for the net. Its dimensions according to reports are - 88 x 47 x 17.3 millimeters.




The KP152's estimated price is somewhere around Rs. 4,900 ($100) and will be available in red and black.

Vertu Launches 3 New Editions Of Ferrari Phones

Vertu has announced the release of three new editions to the Vertu stable of handcrafted, Ferrari branded, mobile phones.




The Vertu Ascent Ti Ferrari Nero will comprise of 2009 limited edition handsets in sleek black leather, while the Vertu Ascent Ti Ferrari Rosso and Giallo will be produced in vibrant red and yellow respectively. Each edition is available worldwide.

Vertu and Ferrari have worked closely to enable the material and design cues from the cars to be integrated seamlessly into the Vertu Ascent Ti.

Frank Nuovo, chief of design for Vertu said, "The original design for the Ascent Ti was heavily influenced by the dynamic power of luxury sports cars and working closely with Ferrari has enabled us to progress this vision. The new Vertu Ascent Ti Ferrari editions are the definitive automotive-inspired handsets – bold, balanced and with the unmistakable character of the Prancing Horse."

The Vertu 'V' logo is accompanied by the Ferrari Cavallino, that appears on the front and back of the phone. As with all Ferrari phones by Vertu, the Ascent Ti Ferrari editions use the same leather and stitching as the latest Ferrari car interiors. The battery cover mirrors the distinctive bonnet detailing and on the handsets, the sides of the Ascent Ti are sculpted to reflect the louvers, found on various Ferrari cars.

The handset is made using a sapphire crystal screen and a chassis built from high grade titanium that gives the Ascent Ti its distinctive name. 'Ti' is the chemical symbol for Titanium, a non-corrosive element with the highest strength-to-weight ratio of any metal.

The new collection of sounds features recordings of original Ferrari engine sounds taken from the F430 and the 612 Scaglietti.

In addition, the renowned songwriter and musician, Dave Stewart has also blended these unique engine sounds into his musical selection of ringtones composed exclusively for the Vertu Ascent Ti Ferrari collection.

Alberto Torres, President, Vertu said, "Ferrari and Vertu share a passion for design and an uncompromising attitude to craftsmanship – we are thrilled to see the signature elements of the legendary Ferrari's created in Maranello, Italy, being meticulously handcrafted into the Vertu Ascent Ti Ferrari handset at our workshop in England."

BenQ R45 Joybook Launched

BenQ has launched the R45 Joybook in India.

The 14.1" widescreen laptop powered by a 2.0 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, features an extra-bright 200 nits. Its patented UltraVivid technology enhances display quality of all applications ranging from video to multimedia.

The BenQ R45 Joybook is also equipped with the nVIDIA GeForce 8400M G distinct graphics, with the ability to produce digital video via the integrated HDMI interface (High Definition Multimedia Interface). It also has two 1.5W speakers with smart noise suppression and echo cancellation along with an integrated microphone for high quality video calls and other audio and visual applications and an integrated 2-megapixel webcam with power buttons.

BenQ R45 Joybook is available with all BenQ authorized dealers for Rs. 47,000.

Spice Launches Touchscreen Mobile With Finger Swipe Tech

Spice Mobiles has announced the launch of their Spice S-930, which incorporates finger swipe technology in a touch screen interface. The handset looks quite neat with its candy bar form factor and metallic finish.

Following in the footsteps of the iPhone, the S-930 has a 'Swipe to Unlock' feature for unlocking the display. The same technology can also be utilized for viewing images and other features. The handset comes equipped with a 2MP camera with webcam support and a free 1GB memory card. Memory can be increased up to 2GB. Other features include an MP3 player, integrated FM radio with recording and Bluetooth with A2DP.

Exclusive VAS offerings like Opera Mini and Thomsons Reuters are also part of the handset's application make up.

Priced at Rs. 7, 999, the Spice S-930 could give Motorola's MOTOYUVA A810 a serious run for it's money.

India to Get iPhone 3G on August 18

So after much digging, we've got information on the official date for the India launch of the iPhone 3G.
Vodafone will launch the iPhone 3G first on the 18th of August. Pricing and other essentials are still unknown. But worry not, we at Tech2 will keep you posted. You'll know as soon as we do.

Samsung Launches 8MP Camera Phone

It’s official! Samsung's 8 megapixel camera phone that we saw floating around earlier this month, has been officially announced, say reports. This quad-band GSM handset called the i8510 INNOV8, as in ‘Innovate’, runs on a Symbian S60 smartphone OS (3rd edition Feature Pack 2).


The i8510 is equipped with a 2.8-inch QVGA display that supports 16 million colors and a resolution of 240 x 320 pixels and an accelerometer for automatically adjusting the screen orientation. It comes with a whopping 16 GB and 8 GB of onboard memory so space is not going to be an issue. It will also support external memory via microSD. Other features also include TV out, DivX playback, FM radio with RDS and it's also DLNA compatible. The handset will also be equipped with 128MB of RAM and a 3D graphics accelerator so gaming should be a real ‘blast’.


This monster is a fully equipped device featuring inbuilt GPS (A-GPS support also) capabilities, Wi-fi, Bluetooth with A2DP and of course USB 2.0 connectivity as well as 3G with HSDPA support. The i8510 also comes with a geotagging feature for the 8MP auto focus camera that also has an LED flash (WHAT?!!! No xenon???). The camera also has other features like face and smile recognition and an auto panorama mode.

Media capabilities include stereo speakers, 3D surround sound effect and DNSe 2.0. Thankfully the i8510 has a standard 3.5mm audio jack and not one of Samsung’s multi utility proprietary ports.

The handset will hit Europe first and should be priced at approximately Rs. 51,000 (780 Euro).

Palm Centro Now Available in Onyx Black

Palm, Inc. has unveiled a new version of their Palm Centro smartphone in a stylish onyx black color. The handset is also still available in glacier white. I think the onyx black Centro will show users that the handset isn’t just an affordable handset with decent functionality but one that has a certain amount of flair and fashion sense as well.

The Palm Centro also includes the following features and capabilities – a 2.2 inch touch screen with a 320 x 320 pixel resolution, a full QWERTY keyboard, one-touch speakerphone activation, conference calling, and Bluetooth wireless connectivity. The Centro allows users to have conversations in a chat-style view, just like Instant Messaging. Email functionality includes Microsoft Direct Push Technology that gives users access to their corporate email, as well as the ability to automatically update work calendars and accept or decline meeting invites on the go. Some versions of the handset will also come preloaded with the Google Maps application.

Media functionality includes Pocket Tunes on Centro that lets users “sideload” songs and manage music, audio books and videos. Users can also shoot pictures or videos with the built-in digital camera and share them with friends.

The Palm Centro smartphone is available at a retail price of Rs. 13,990 (inclusive of tax) and will be distributed through Ingram, the national distributor for the product, and will be available at IT retail stores in Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Calcutta, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Pune and Chandigarh.

Motorola Launches Ferrari Edition V9 in India

Motorola has announced the launch of the 3G MOTORAZR V9 Ferrari Special Edition in India. We heard about this handset a while back and personally, although the price is way out of my league I’m happy that Motorola decided to launch the handset in the Indian market so quickly. The MOTORAZR V9 Ferrari comes with 2 large color screens, internal and external and employs Motorola’s CrystalTalk technology which should deliver call clarity even in noisy environments. The handset also supports USB 2.0 and stereo Bluetooth.

"The MOTORAZR2 V9 Ferrari Special Edition represents Motorola's passion for innovation and design, and is the first co-branded Motorola mobile phone for the Indian consumer" said Faisal Siddiqui, Director, Product & Solutions, India & SWA, Motorola Mobile Devices. "MOTORAZR2 V9 Ferrari is a true object of desire for the car racing enthusiast and helps make a differentiated style statement. Calling all Ferrari fans to go to a MOTOSTORE or a premium store near you and experience the MOTORAZR2 V9 Ferrari."

The mark of the Ferrari is depicted in the MOTORAZR V9 by the metallic finish with black vacuum, the flag quadriculada and the details in red. This special series of MOTORAZR V9 Ferrari includes exclusive content such as screensavers, wallpapers and ringtones. The handset also comes with an integrated 2 megapixel digital camera with 8x zoom, wireless broadband with 3G HSDPA, EDGE/GPRS Class 10 & 12, video streaming, video capture and playback. You can use MOTO BACKUP, MOTO SETUP and MOTO TEXT to store your contacts and messages.

The V9 Ferrari Special Edition is available at MOTOSTOREs, MOTOSTORE Lites and select premium retail outlets across the country at a price of Rs. 21,840 (MRP). It comes with a 2GB memory card, an exclusive signature Ferrari leather case and a stereo headset. The MOTORAZR V9 Ferrari Special Edition was available exclusively for the first week at The MobileStore outlets in India.