Camera Phones Plaza

If you’re acquainted with everything that happens on the market as far as the realm of mobile phones is concerned, then I’m sure you already know about the fact that Sprint announced the availability of the HTC Touch Pro together with Touch Diamond a month ago, but we got to the day when we finally know the official launch date. This is no more, no less than the continuing of HTC’s long tradition of working together with Sprint to bring cutting edge products like the Touch Diamond and Touch Pro to market.

Therefore, HTC Corporation, a global leader in mobile phone innovation and design, launched three days ago the HTC Touch Pro for Sprint. Bringing a beautiful new angle to business productivity, the HTC Touch Pro uses styling and functionality similar to the recently launched HTC Diamond and introduces a variety of business-enhancements that make getting work done on-the-go quick and easy.

The Touch Pro is equipped with a 2.8-inch VGA touchscreen, a 3.2 megapixel camera with camcorder function, autofocus, flash and video calling, an internal memory of 512 MB flash, 288 MB RAM, microSD support (SD 2.0 compatible) that can expand memory up to 16 GB, a slide-out five-row QWERTY keyboard and Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional OS.

On the other hand, Touch Pro measures 4.17 x 2.05 x 0.70 inches and weighs 5.3 ounces. It supports CDMA 2000 1X/EVDO Rev.A/1xRTT and IS-95A/B voice or data and dual band 800/1900 MHz. The handset also features Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP, Wi-Fi and GPS/aGPS function.

“People have already shown a tremendous initial response to the HTC Touch Diamond for Sprint, and we are pleased to also offer the HTC Touch Pro as another choice to customers”, said Jason Mackenzie, vice president for HTC America. “The HTC Touch Pro is the perfect device for those who demand the ease of use of TouchFLO 3D and the styling of the HTC Touch Diamond, but also crave a more powerful mobile business experience”.

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The HTC Touch Pro helps people create the perfect equilibrium between their professional and personal lives in ways that matter most to them. Based on the strong feature set found on the HTC Touch Diamond, the HTC Touch Pro adds a five-row, slide-out QWERTY keyboard for easy data entry, expandable storage capabilities with a microSD card slot (1 GB card included) and a business card scanner application to automatically capture and convert business card information to the contact list using the built-in 3.2 MP camera/camcorder. Not to mention the Windows Mobile 6.1, the OS that allows users to have access to security and device management capabilities demanded by many business customers. “The HTC Touch Pro marks the addition of yet another robust Windows Mobile device for our portofolio and demonstrates our commitment to delivering the best wireless technology today”, said Kevin Packingam, Sprint senior vice president of Product and Technology Development. “Combined with worry-free pricing and exclusive Sprint content, the HTC Touch Pro delivers an unparalleled user experience – all on Sprint’s Now Network”.



Using HTC’s intuitive TouchFLO 3D interface, Sprint customers will be able to directly arrange their favorite contacts, photos, weather and music. On the other hand, the HTC Touch Pro for Sprint provides a mobile Internet experience that uses the Sprint Mobile Broadband Network. Beyond the lightning-fast connectivity, customers can also interact with their device in new ways, meaning they can zoom and pan Web sites and automatically view optimized content that has been specially created to fit the display. Using gravity-sensor technology, turning the device sideways automatically rotates the Web page view from a portrait to landscape view.

Customers purchasing devices at Sprint retail locations can get the most out of their phone by having it personalized just for them before they leave the store. With Ready Now, Sprint retail associates work with new or existing customers to explain, set up and demonstrate the features and applications of their new phone. This program is a first in the industry, as no other wireless company offers a similar customer experience.

The HTC Touch Pro is prices at $299.99 with a two-year subscriber agreement, after a $100 mail-in-rebate and a $25-or-higher data add-on or Everything plan with data. Customers will be able to purchase the device in select national retailers beginning the week of October 26 and in all Sprint sales channels, including online at www.sprint.com, 1-800-Sprint1 and Sprint Stores, on November 2.

(Source Sprint)

Samsung Highnote, one of the latest additions to Sprint high-end cell phone line, is to be launched together with the Samsung Rant, considered to be the Best Cell Phone at this year’s CTIA Wireless IT & Entertainment Conference, both featuring the innovative One Click user interface with customizable menus, awarded as the Best Overall Product at CTIA 2008.

Unlike Rant, which is optimized for intensive texting, Highnote comes with cool and powerful music features, and a distinctive one is the sliding stereo speaker at the top of the handset.
It is actually a dual-slider cell phone, revealing the speaker at the top and a dial pad at the bottom, while colored in blue or red.

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Enabled with Sprint’s Mobile Broadband Network it provides high-speed Internet connectivity for web browsing and downloads over-the-air, while the telecommunication network gives the user access to its Sprint Music Store, Sprint Navigation and other useful services.



There is a built-in 2MP camera with video recording capability and night shot mode, so you to be able to capture images on the go and record funny moments, as well as a 3.5-mm headphone jack, stereo Bluetooth technology with audible caller ID, up to 8GB memory, and speaker-independent voice recognition.

Samsung Highnote dual-slider cell phone measures 1.9 x 4 x 0.6 inches at 3.5 ounces and powers from a standard Li-Ion battery for up to 5.6 hours of continuous talk time. It sports a 2-inch TFT display with a resolution of 176 x 220 pixels and 262K colors, on which you can manage different productivity applications including turn-by-turn directions, 10 million points of interest to browse through, Live Search for directory information and interactive maps, Wireless Backup for your contacts information, and others.



It is mainly a music phone, so it comes first with an advanced music player capability, allowing you to browse the web and compose messages while listening to the background music. Next it gives you access to 150 radio channels and to Sprint’s Music Store with tons of songs available for purchase and download at a price of 99 cents each.

CTIA Wireless is a non-profit organization representing all the wireless communication fields including cellular, personal communication services and enhanced specialized mobile radio.
This year at CTIA Wireless IT & Entertainment Conference, Sprint had a big success with its latest cell phone releases, winning 2 prestigious awards. Sprint One Click user interface won Best Overall Product at CTIA, while Samsung Rant received the Best Cell Phone at CTIA Award.



What is One Click? –It’s a new user interface provided by Sprint on its cell phones, featuring easy navigation and characteristics found usually in smartphones. The interface has customizable home screen and content such as text messaging, Google search, Sprint Navigation, email, favorite Web sites, music, and call log. In addition, users can add shortcuts to their favorite websites to access them in one-click directly from the home screen. The menu has a carousel style and you can scroll through the applications reading instant information about each feature available.

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According to Sprint, this interesting user interface which you’ll see in the following video posted on YouTube by PhoneScoop, is available on 3 phones: Samsung Rant awarded as Best Cell Phone, Samsung Highnote and LG Lotus, a cool cell phone we wrote about a few days ago.

Awards were decided based on the following criteria: top forward-thinking devices, applications and services with innovative design and utility, capable to enhance communication for customers and business users.
Sprint will add One Click on Sanyo Katana Eclipse later this fall.



"Proving that you don't need a smartphone to have a smart interface, Sprint's new One Click menu system makes it dead simple to access everything from your text messages and e-mail to Sprint's navigation and music services," wrote Mark Spoonauer, LAPTOP editor-in-chief. "We love the carousel-style UI, and that you don't have to dig through sub-menus to get what you want, including You Tube. The UI not only saves time, it will encourage Sprint customers to take full advantage of all the carrier's services, making the Simply Everything plan that much sweeter."



The award-winning Samsung Rant as Best Cell Phone sports a side-sliding full QWERTY keyboard, access to Sprint Navigation, Sprint Music Store and Sprint TV, and features a built-in 2MP camera with video recording, stereo Bluetooth, up to 8GB memory, voice recognition, Sprint Picture Mail, background music mode, audio caller ID, email, web browsing and instant messaging.



It is a practical handset coming in black or red, measuring 4.5 x 2.1 x 0.7 inches at 4.58 ounces, sporting a 2.1-inch TFT display of 262K colors, and providing up to 5.6 hours of talk time.
It will be available in October at Sprint for $49.99 with a 2-year contract and a $50 mail-in rebate.

During New York City Fashion Week, the fashion designer Christian Siriano, known as the winner of season IV of the Project Runway reality show, unveiled an elegant scarf designed especially for the new LG Lotus cool cell phone that you see in these nice images. The partnership with LG Mobile resulted in a unique designer cell phone with powerful features including multimedia applications. Coming in textured purple and satin black, LG Lotus fashionable phone won a Red Dot Design Award for its original look. Even if it comes in a small form factor, it has a QWERTY keyboard for intensive typing supporting email, Instant Messaging and other communication tools.



"Fashion is so important because it helps convey individual personalities," said Ehtisham Rabbani, vice president of product strategy & marketing for LG Mobile Phones. "Similarly, we believe mobile phones have the same ability and have become a fashion accessory within their own right. We are very excited to partner with Christian Siriano and look forward to seeing his unique accessory inspired by the LG Lotus on the runway at Fashion Week."

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The accessory I was telling you about is a pewter grey silk jersey scarf, and Siriano likes to say: "The scarf I designed for the new LG Lotus is absolutely fabulous and is the ultimate accessory to what I consider the accessory you can't leave home without – your mobile phone. I based my concept for the scarf on the Lotus' unique square shape. The scarf absolutely reflects my vision as a designer and I hope this sparks a trend of wearing your phone in a more fashionable way."



Now let’s see the other features of LG Lotus, a cool cell phone that will be available exclusively at Sprint with Sprint Navigation for GPS-enabled turn-by-turn directions and 10 million points of interest, Sprint TV, Sprint Radio, Sprint Music Store access and others.



The clamshell integrates stereo Bluetooth, a built-in 2MP camera with camcorder functionality, Wireless Backup saving contact list in case the handset is lost or stolen, music player with external controls, microSD card slot for up to 12GB storage capacity, background music playback support while surfing the web, SMS Voice, access to corporate and customer email, and a 900mAh battery providing up to 5.5 hours of talk time.
LG Lotus’ external display measures 2.1 inches and it’s a TFT of 65K colors, with a resolution of 176 x 220 pixels, enough to clearly display incoming calls and message alerts, while the main display is a 2.4-inch TFT of 262K colors and 240 x 320 pixels.

Details about price and availability were not made public yet by the telecommunication company.

By the end of this year, if you’ll be one of Sprint’s customers, you’ll have the chance to get the new BlackBerry Curve 8350i phone with built-in Wi-Fi module and Group Connect capability that allows you to start instant conversations with up to 21 subscribers simultaneously, via Push-to-Talk.

"Smart phones in general, and BlackBerry products in particular, have become more important to both business people and consumers lately," said David Chamberlain, Principal Analyst with analyst firm In-Stat. "The BlackBerry Curve 8350i with PTT capability rounds out Sprint's options to fill communications needs of many industries particularly those in the blue-collar segment of construction, field services, transportation and manufacturing."

Sprint will announce the price and exact availability date for the new BlackBerry phone later this year, but from the press release we found out about all its features, so let’s see which they are.

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First of all, BlackBerry Curve 8350i uses the iDEN technology developed by no other than Motorola, the inventor of cell phones. This technology enabled trunked radio and cellular telephone, gathering several users in a spectral space, in a larger number compared to 2-way radio systems. This is done via a speech compression method and Time Division Multiple Access standard.
In addition to iDEN, the new BlackBerry phone works with the Nextel Direct Connect push-to-talk service, so you to be able to get in contact with multiple users at the same time.



"Sprint is the undisputed leader in push-to-talk services, and with the launch of the new BlackBerry Curve 8350i smartphone, we are keeping our promise of expanding the Nextel Direct Connect capabilities and options for our customers," said Danny Bowman, president of Nextel Direct Connect. "The BlackBerry Curve 8350i will be very attractive for business customers who need instant, convenient push-to-talk services to communicate now with employees, customers and suppliers but also want the capabilities of a high-end smartphone."

Like all the other models, the new BlackBerry phone, Curve 8350i, features multimedia player, wireless connectivity, Internet browsing, email, Instant Messaging, multi-tasking, GPS, A-GPS, a built-in 2MP camera with 5x digital zoom, slash and video recording, as well as Office document management, speakerphone, microSD memory slot, Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP profile, and a 1400mAh battery for long talk time.