Archive for September 29th, 2009

Speculation surrounding the Samsung SGH-T939, aka Behold 2, has been building since the device was certified by the WiFi Alliance in July 2009.  Today, the Behold 2 passed through the FCC, suggesting that the device may soon hit US shores.

According to the device’s test report, the Behold 2 will feature 850/1900 GSM, along with HSPA.  Other connectivity options include WiFi and Bluetooth.

According to Androidcentral.com, the Behold 2 will run Android, and sport a 3.2” OLED touchscreen.

M3 Mobile passed their MM3 portable data collection terminal through the FCC today.  This quad-band device runs on Windows Mobile and features a barcode scanner, WiFi, GPS, Bluetooth and a camera.

The MM3 seems like a valuable device for the industrial crowd.  However, I take exception to some of the photoshopped pics in MM3’s user manual.

Granted, I like the first pic, below, of what seems to be Anne Hathaway holding an MM3 – let’s forget the fact that there are probably few girls who would actually use the MM3 while wearing a ripped halter with midriff showing.

But, the second pic is totally unnecessary.  I don’t see how a pic of a shirtless, tattooed guy holding the MM3 made its way into the user manual to begin with, let alone how this picture helps me to understand how to use the device.

The line between digital photo frames and netbooks continues to blur.  Case in point, eStarling’s Connected Touchscreen Frame.

Powered by an AMD Geode LX processor, the Connected Touchscreen Frame does much more than display pictures.  With WiFi, you can use this device to access Picasa, Gmail, Flickr, Facebook and RSS feeds.  Other features include video playback and weather updates.

The eStarling Connected Touchscreen Frame has an undisclosed amount of internal memory, and an SD card slot for additional storage.

Wanlida Group Co., a contract manufacturer in Xiamen Fujian, China, passed a netbook through the FCC today.  Called the PC-98902, this netbook boasts your standard suite of features, including a 1.6 GHz Atom processor, webcam and WiFi.

External photos of the PC-98902 show no branding, so it’s unclear who will actually sell this notebook in the US.  When it does appear stateside, however, the bright orange PC-9802 will be tough to miss.

Two weeks ago, HP unveiled their ENVY line of notebooks, and today HP passed the ENVY through the FCC.  The most striking feature of the ENVY line is an unmistakable resemblance to Apple’s flagship MacBook Pro notebook.

Whether you like HP’s move to crib Apple’s design, you have to respect what the ENVY has under it’s hood.  According to Engadget, the 13 inch version will sport Intel’s new Core i7 processor, a Radeon HD 4830 graphics card with 1GB of VRAM, and space for dual SSD drives.

HP’s FCC filing reveals, among other things, the materials used for various parts of the ENVY.  Much of the notebook’s body will be magnesium, including the cover, bottom and keyboard surface.  The touchpad is made of glass, while the keypad itself features plastic keys similar to a Mac.

The ENVY’s six cell battery has a slim design, with a footprint nearly as long and wide as the ENVY itself.  Unlike the MacBook, however, the ENVY’s battery is removable.

It’s interesting that HP went this route with their ENVY line.  The ENVY’s design is stunning, but the similarity to the MacBook gives it the feeling of a knock-off.

Vertu makes luxury phones with luxury prices.  Their models range in price from four to six figures, some of which have luxury features like real gold accents.

The RM-389V is the latest in Vertu’s line of luxury devices.  Manufactured by parent company Nokia, the RM-389V has a clam shell design with leather accents on the front and back cover.  The device has two screens, one inside and one outside, along with still and video cameras, a flash, Bluetooth, and a media player.

As with other Vertu devices, the RM-389V has a concierge button that puts you into contact with Vertu’s concierge service.  A year of concierge service is included with the price of the phone, and you can use this resource to book things like restaurant or travel reservations 24/7.

Vertu operates its own stores worldwide, including the United States, so it’s likely that we will see the RM-389V (probably with a more marketing friendly name) in the US.

Stereo Bluetooth has been big ever since the iPhone 3.0 update enabled A2DP.  Sony Ericsson has been making stereo Bluetooth devices for a while, and it seems like their slick devices will benefit from a new market of iPhone users.

The Sony Ericsson MH110 is a thin device that is tiny enough to be clipped to your shirt pocket.  The manual claims this device will give you 8 hours of battery life, but of course real work usage may prove different.

The best feature on the MH110 in my opinion is what appears to be a 3.5mm jack (top right).  This will enable you to use any standard headset, as opposed to other Sony Ericsson models that had Sony’s pair of buds hardwired into the device.  A universal jack also allows you to replace headphones when they break – a key deficiency of other models.

Sagem Wireless’ PHIL GSM mobile passed through the FCC today.  In Europe, Sagem OEMs this phone to Vodafone, where it’s known as the Vodafone 540.

The Sagem PHIL is a tri-band device that will work in the United States.  Perhaps that means the PHIL will make its way to a US carrier, or at least a US retailer.  The FCC approval process doesn’t seem to be worth the effort if Sagem intends to only sell the PHIL in Europe.

Either way, the PHIL is just your basic feature phone.  It has a camera, video camera, contact book, SMS and FM radio.  Under the hood, the PHIL is powered by a TI processor.

Who wants to run cable across their house, especially when lengthy HDMI cables will cost  you an arm and a leg?  Enter the itrio HD-W100TB/TW, a wireless video streaming device for consumers.

While itrio is not the first to market with a video streaming device, they have a pretty complete package here.  Just connect the transmitter to your video output, whether it be HDMI, composite, or D-Sub, then connect the receiver to your TV, and you’re set.  The included IR blaster allows you to control your media device remotely as well.

The HD-W100TB/TW receiver and transmitter use your WiFi network to communicate.  Alternatively, you can use the LAN – a better option if your house is already wired.

The main barrier here is price – similar devices have cost over $1,000, so it will be interesting to see how much the HD-W100TB/TW costs when it comes to market.

Baby monitor technology has been a quiet beneficiary of improved wireless technology.  Safety 1st’s True View system is a prime example, providing users with live streaming color video of their babies on a tiny handheld unit.

The True View camera has night vision capabilities, along with audio.  The parent unit sports a simple four button interface and a small color screen.  In addition to color video streaming, this device allows you to monitor changes in sound levels, to see if your baby is crying.  Best of all, the parent unit has rechargeable batteries so you don’t need to worry about buying new AAAs.