LG Rumor Available

Sprint today announced the upcoming availability of the LG Rumor, an affordable wireless phone with a full QWERTY slide keyboard for easy text, email and instant messaging. Operating on the Sprint Vision network, the Rumor provides quick access to instant messaging services including AIM, MSN and Yahoo! as well several popular social networking communities, including Facebook and Xanga.

Available in two color options, white with silver or black with blue, the Rumor offers one touch access to messaging through a softkey from the idle screen and it automatically populates the messaging menu when the slider is opened. It also provides easy access to Sprint Mobile eMail to check and send mail from multiple accounts through familiar providers including Yahoo! AOL, Gmail and Microsoft Live.

Sprint offers a variety of messaging options beyond text including Voice (SM)S, which allows customers to record a voice message and send it to any mobile phone, email address, or landline phone just like a text message, and text to landline, which allows Sprint subscribers to send a text message to a landline phone where it is automatically converted to a voice message.

To personalize the text messaging experience, the Rumor offers the ability to assign "text tones" to address book entries for audible identification of text message senders. Preloaded with Sprint Navigation, Rumor by LG provides full-feature GPS navigation including voice and on screen turn-by-turn driving directions and more than 10 million business listings.

The Rumor offers essential features including a 1.3-megapixel camera/camcorder with a 2x digital zoom, Bluetooth technology and an MP3 player. It works with Sprint Music Manager, available through an easy software download, to give users the power to quickly transfer unprotected songs from a PC to the handset and manage songs on a PC through an intuitive interface. Music-lovers will also value the Rumor's microSD memory card slot with 4 GB card capability.

Samsung Beat Music Phone - T539

Samsung Beat, an affordable new music clamshell offering mobile music features.

Out of the box the Samsung Beat comes with everything users need to enjoy a robust music experience, including a 1 GB memory card with preloaded music, a wired stereo headset and a USB cable for side-loading music from a computer. The Beat's enhanced music capabilities include dedicated external music controls, stereo speaker and stereo Bluetooth technology.

The Samsung Beat features include:
- MP3 player supports MP3, WMA, AAC and AAC+
- 1 GB microSD card included; support for up to 2 GB of expandable memory
- Stereo Bluetooth
- Integrated 1.3-megapixel camera with 4X zoom and video capture/recorder
- Multiple messaging options (SMS, EMS, MMS), AOL, ICQ, Yahoo!, Windows Live Messaging
- Speaker independent voice recognition
- GSM/GPRS/EDGE, Quad-Band: 850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz
- Dimensions: 3.54" x 1.8" x 0.7", 2.7 ounces

Samsung, Bang & Olufsen Serenata Music Phone Showcased

Samsung Electronics and audio product maker Bang & Olufsen today unveiled their latest joint music-mobile phone, Serenata, which holds 4 GB of songs and has a number of other music features similar to the iPhone.

Serenata is a music mobile phone focusing on sound quality. Bang & Olufsen's expertise in concept development, user interface experience, acoustic sound capabilities and design skills together with Samsung's leadership in mobile phone technology, engineering and quality have realized a new way of combining unique music and mobile experiences for consumers.

Serenata represents an innovative approach to a personal music player. Two companies' technology and design bring the experience of digital music to quite another level for music fans on the move.

Serenata features a built-in stereo speaker system which delivers outstanding sound quality. Equipped with a built-in hi-fi speaker and outstanding bass system, the phone delivers high quality sound without any distortion. With this state-of-art technology, mobile phone users can enjoy various kinds of music from pop and rock to jazz and classic in the same way they would through their hi-fi system at home. Users can listen to the opera in a music quality as if they were there themselves through the integrated loudspeaker system or through the dedicated stereo EarSet 3.

Combining only top-performing speaker components with ingenious acoustic principles and Bang & Olufsen-patented ICEpower amplification, the Serenata gets the world's best acoustic performance. The focus has been to provide authentic music performance, with emphasis on playback of "uncompressed" music. Besides handling lossless, Serenata also handles playback in various formats, including MP3, WMA, and AAC.

As a dedicated music phone, Serenata brings special ringtones for the users who want to have unique and sophisticated sounds designed by Bang & Olufsen. The sound achieved from a triangle, wind chimes, various types of glass and different types of woods will offer beautiful sounds to match any situation.

Mobile Phone - Motorola RIZR Z6tv Slider Announced

Motorola RIZR Z6tv, a slider phone equipped with VCAST Mobile TV, VCAST Music and Video, available on October 5.

The RIZR Z6tv provides entertainment lovers 24-hour access to broadcast-quality full-length TV shows through VCAST Mobile TV. VCAST Mobile TV offers programming for TV viewers including the "Late Show with David Letterman," "24" and "Dora the Explorer." The service offers live shows and mobile television content from CBS Mobile, Comedy Central, ESPN Mobile TV, Fox Mobile, MTV, NBC 2GO, NBC News2GO, and Nickelodeon. VCAST Mobile TV customers can enjoy fast channel surfing, view upcoming programs on the program guide and access parental control features.

Beyond VCAST Mobile TV, the RIZR Z6tv can access Get It Now applications, such as VZ Navigator which helps customers access location information to more than 14 million points of interest. For customers who are musically inclined, VCAST Music is sure to keep customers connected to their favorite music while on-the-go, allowing them to enjoy over-the-air full-track downloads from a library of more than 2.1 million songs. The RIZR Z6tv is also equipped with Bluetooth stereo headset support for music, creating a wireless mobile music experience. Other features of the RIZR Z6tv include:

- Integrated digital audio player and support of MP3 and WMA music files
- Built-in 2.0-megapixel camera with video capture and playback
- Landscape and portrait modes available for TV, video or camera capture
- Location-based services-capable
- Text, picture and video messaging capabilities
- Display: 2.0-inch 240 x 320 px TFT (65K-colors)
- Memory: Over 50 MB internal and optional external microSD expansion slot
- 2.5mm headset jack
- Weight: 3.7 ounces
- Battery: 940 mAh

Mobile Phone Sidekick LX Debuted

The next evolutions of the T-Mobile Sidekick family, the Sidekick LX. Launching this fall, the Sidekick LX features a number of enhancements over its predecessors. The Sidekick LX, designed by Sharp, boasts a thinner, smoother profile; a large, pristine WQVGA screen that incorporates high-definition LCD technology and iconic swivel display; a camera with flash; multimedia messaging; and mood lights that let users set specific light settings for various communication alerts, whether a text message, phone call, email, etc.

"T-Mobile Sidekick customers are an amazingly loyal and enthusiastic group that are passionate about their phones and being the hub of their social circle," said Jeff Hopper, vice president of marketing, T-Mobile USA. "The new Sidekick LX is a true upgrade that this group will love, with new features that our customers have been craving. The Sidekick Nation promotion also gives our customers - who already send us fun and creative videos about the Sidekick - an outlet to show off how much they love their device."

The Sidekick LX will be available in a midnight blue or espresso brown finish on October 17th for existing T-Mobile customers and to the general public on October 24th. For new customers who want to ensure they are among the first to have a Sidekick LX, reservation cards will be available at T-Mobile-owned retail stores across the U.S. beginning September 26th through October 17th.

BlackBerry Mobile Phone Curve 8320 Makes Wi-Fi Calls

Wi-Fi-enabled BlackBerry Curve 8320, the first BlackBerry handset available in the U.S. that supports T-Mobile HotSpot @Home over a Wi-Fi connection and great in-home mobile coverage.

Available in titanium or pale gold finishes, the BlackBerry Curve 8320 features RIM's smallest and lightest full-QWERTY handset design. The BlackBerry Curve 8320 provides advanced multimedia capabilities including a 2.0-megapixel camera, a music and video player, a 3.5mm stereo headset jack and a microSD card slot for expandable memory storage. Access to personal and corporate email accounts and fast web browsing over the powerful BlackBerry platform, Wi-Fi connectivity and T-Mobile's robust nationwide EDGE network. Key features of the BlackBerry Curve 8320 from T-Mobile include:

- Impressively small and lightweight design at 4.2" x 2.4" x 0.6" and approximately 3.9 oz.
- Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g) connectivity for expanded coverage, as well as faster Web browsing and file downloading
- Support for T-Mobile HotSpot @Home add-on plan
- Enabled for T-Mobile's myFaves so customers can stay in touch with those who matter most with quick, one-click access via instant message, email, or by calling or texting their five favorite contacts from the home screen
- Popular instant messaging clients: AOL, Yahoo! Windows Live, Google and ICQ
- 2.0-megapixel camera with 5x digital zoom, built-in flash, self-portrait mirror and full-screen viewfinder
- Advanced media player with search capabilities, full-screen video playback, stereo Bluetooth support (A2DP/AVRCP), 3.5mm full-size stereo headset jack and dedicated volume controls
- supports MP3, AAC, WAV, WMA audio and MPEG4, H.263 and WMV video formats
- Roxio Media Manager for BlackBerry (included with BlackBerry Desktop Manager software), which allows customers to easily search for media files on their computers, view and organize them, create MP3 music files from CDs, add audio tags, create playlists and automatically copy or convert pictures, music and videos for optimal playback
- High-performance HTML browser for visiting favorite Web sites while on the go
- Incredibly intuitive user interface with an easy-to-use trackball, dedicated 'menu' and 'escape' keys, and context-sensitive menus that make navigation feel instinctive and fast
- Full QWERTY keyboard for easy text entry - Large, ultra-bright 320 x 240 px color display for vibrant imagery
- Innovative light-sensing technology that automatically optimizes the screen, trackball and keyboard lighting for indoor, outdoor and dark environments
- Email and memo spell-checking available in various languages including English, French, Italian, German and Spanish
- Premium phone features with Speaker Independent Voice Recognition (SIVR) for Voice Activated Dialing (VAD), dedicated 'send', 'end' and 'mute' keys, noise-cancellation technology to offset background noise, a low-distortion speakerphone for hands-free conversations, and Bluetooth support for hands-free use with headsets, car kits and Bluetooth peripherals
- Intuitive call management features such as smart dialing, conference calling, speed dialing and call forwarding
- Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE/Wi-Fi network support for international roaming
- BlackBerry Maps, a mapping application that provides customers with driving directions
- Built-in Handango InHand catalog of additional software applications available for download
- Support for polyphonic, MP3 and MIDI ringtones
- Expandable memory storage via microSD expansion slot
- Ultra-thin, high-capacity, removable battery that further extends the exceptional battery life for which BlackBerry smartphones are known
- BlackBerry Internet Service support allowing access to up to 10 supported email accounts, including most popular ISP email accounts such as Yahoo!, AOL and Gmail
- BlackBerry Enterprise Server support tightly integrated with IBM Lotus Domino, Microsoft Exchange, and Novell GroupWise, and featuring IT policy controls for IT departments to manage usage and deployments.

Samsung, Giorgio Armani Team Up on Mobile Phone

Samsung Electronics said today it has agreed to develop new premium electronic products with Italian luxury goods designer Giorgio Armani. Under the business tie-up the two firms would jointly develop mobile phones, flat-screen televisions and other electronic products, it said in a statement.

Armani plans to unveil a mobile phone model on September 24 at his show for Giorgio Armani womenswear for spring and summer 2008, joining several other designers who have already tapped this market.

The Armani-Samsung phone will be the size of a credit card and 10.5 millimeters thick, the companies said in a statement. "We make as much of a personal statement with the mobile phones that we carry or the televisions that we have in our living rooms as we do with the shoes and bags we wear or the furnishings we choose," Armani said in the statement.