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Till next year, Barcelona.
(Credit: Kent German/CNET Networks)We're all slowly making our way back to the States and back to our regular schedules now that the Mobile World Congress show has come to an end, but before we completely close the door on GSMA 2009, we wanted to take a moment to reflect on what was (and wasn't) revealed at the show. After all, MWC often lays the groundwork for what we'll see in mobile space in the upcoming year.
For all intents and purposes, Microsoft provided the most news at MWC, as the company previewed the latest version of its mobile operating system and its partners unveiled upcoming devices. Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer was in Barcelona to deliver a keynote address on opening day, during which he showed off Windows Mobile 6.5. He also participated in a panel about openness and innovation in the mobile market.
The big news: Windows Mobile 6.5.
(Credit: Microsoft)The revamped OS brings a handful of enhancements, such as an application store, a back-up and restore service, and an improved mobile Web browser. While welcome additions, it didn't particularly move the mark on innovation and, even worse, Windows Mobile 6.5 won't be released till the second half of 2009 and by then, who knows what Microsoft's competitors will have done.
Still, we were pretty excited about some of the upcoming devices that are set to run Windows Mobile 6.5. First, LG revealed the LG-GM730 and went one step further by committing to making Windows Mobile the primary operating system for its smartphones--a promise that would increase the number of Windows phones available in 2009 tenfold.
Acer also announced its entry into the smartphone space and held a press conference to reveal not one, but eight devices to debut in 2009 (with more to be announced in Q4), all running Windows Mobile. Despite joining the Open Handset Alliance, Garmin-Asus took the wraps off its second Nuvifone model, the M20, which will run Windows Mobile (and we finally got a chance to check out the Nuvifone G60). Meanwhile, longtime Windows Mobile partner HTC introduced its next-generation devices, the HTC Touch Pro2 and the HTC Touch Diamond2. The two smartphones will actually run Windows Mobile 6.1 when they ship during Q2, but the company said they will be upgradeable to Windows Mobile 6.5.
HTC also made another announcement that stole some of the spotlight away from Microsoft. The company, along with European carrier Vodafone, debuted the Android-powered HTC Magic on the second day of the show. It's the first Android device for Vodafone. HTC plans to bring the smartphone to market by spring. The HTC Magic features a 3.2-inch HVGA touch screen and trackball navigator, but doesn't have a slide-out QWERTY keyboard like the T-Mobile G1. The quad-band smartphone will offer support for Google's various applications as well as access to the Android Market, and includes a Webkit browser, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, HSDPA/WCDMA (900/2100MHz), and a 3.2-megapixel camera.
The HTC Magic is the first Android phone for Vodafone.
(Credit: Andrew Lim/CNET UK)CNET U.K.'s Andrew Lim got a good hands-on look at the Magic at the show, and we also got a peek at it while visiting the HTC booth. While giving us a demo, the company representative was very clear to say that the Magic was not the T-Mobile G2, which brings up our next point. As much as the Magic was news, the general lack of Google Android announcements was also news in itself. Sure, Huawei said it plans to launch Android handsets later this year, but it's doubtful we'll see those in the States. Plus, we didn't see the T-Mobile G2. Samsung delayed its Android phones until the second half of the year. All in all, a disappointment for Android fans.
Per its usual fashion, Sony Ericsson kicked off the GSMA World Congress by holding a standing-room only (that's a hint, Sony Ericsson, to give us chairs next time) event the night before the show began. The Idou quickly emerged as one of the most talked-about devices in Barcelona. Though still a concept phone, the Idou's expansive display, attractive interface, and multimedia-heavy features look promising. Sony Ericsson will officially launch the device later this year, at which point it'll change the name, so we'll be watching. The company also unveiled a new Walkman phone, the W995, which, to our surprise, has a 3.5mm headset jack and a nifty kickstand. Also at Sony Ericsson, we had the chance to check out the C903 Cyber-shot and W395 Walkman, which Sony Ericsson launched the week before GSMA began.
In addition, Samsung unveiled four media-friendly devices of its own. The Samsung Omnia HD and Ultra Touch focus on video, while the Beat DJ and Beat Disc major in music. All of the phones offer touch screens, but the Omnia HD and Beat DJ stand out for their unique interfaces and designs. Samsung revealed a release date and pricing for T-Mobile's Samsung Memoir and showed, albeit rather carefully, its Solar-powered Blue earth phone. We could look, but not touch.
The Nokia N86 sports an 8-megapixel camera.
(Credit: Bonnie Cha/CNET Networks)Nokia didn't make too much of a splash, despite having one of the biggest and most crowded booths on the show floor. The Finnish company took the wraps off the new E75 and the E55. Though both are smartphones, only the E75 offers a full keyboard. Its slider design is appealing and the feature set is functional. The E55 is a bit trimmed down and it offers just a SureType-esque keyboard. Nokia also sneaked in the 8-megapixel camera-toting Nokia N86 on the second day. The Nokia 5630 Xpress Music sat next to the E55 and E75 in Nokia's booth, so we checked it out as well.
Meanwhile, Moto was almost a no-show at GSMA. It had a bright booth in a prime location, but it offered only phones we've seen before, like the bling-worthy Aura. ZTE stepped in with its own solar-powered phone, the Coral-200-Solar, and LG offered the conversation piece GD900, which offers a never-before-seen (at least to us) transparent keypad.
Overall, we'd have to say Mobile World Congress 2009 was a quieter show than last year's, but obviously, it was still chock full of news. You can catch up on all the show's news, photos, and videos in our full coverage of GSMA 2009. And don't forget, the CTIA 2009 spring show is just around the corner (April 1-3) where there will be more North America-specific news, and once again, we'll make the trek to Las Vegas to bring you all the details.
One of the cool (and painful) things about GSMA Mobile World Congress is that you get to see some of the best mobile devices available around the world. I say painful because often these products aren't available in the United States and probably never will be, unless you find them online and buy them unlocked for a hefty price.
If you're a glutton for punishment or just plain curious, then take a look at these international Windows Mobile smartphones that I saw while touring the Microsoft booth.
The GMSA Mobile World Congress show in Barcelona could have been a great place for Google to demonstrate progress establishing Android in the industry, but instead the open-source operating system showed only a slightly larger toehold.
Google has high hopes for Android, which the company launched in an effort to spur smartphone development, mobile use of the Web, and new search advertising. Although Android certainly isn't vaporware, and Google's clout makes the effort a serious challenge to other operating systems, so far Android's potential exceeds its real-world presence.
HTC's Magic is the second Android-powered phone to hit the market.
(Credit: HTC)The biggest Android news from the show was the debut of the HTC Magic. This new Android model is the second Android model from the Taiwanese company; the first, HTC's Dream, is better known as the T-Mobile G1.
... Read moreI'm sure I'm just setting myself up for disappointment one of these days, but I've come to expect big things from HTC at trade shows, whether it be CTIA or Mobile World Congress. The company has consistently delivered some of the hottest product announcements at these events, so can you blame a girl for thinking such thoughts?
Thankfully, I wasn't disappointed at GSMA Mobile World Congress 2009 (well, maybe a little, but I'll get to that in a bit) as HTC debuted several new handsets. The Taiwanese smartphone manufacturer kicked off the show by debuting the HTC Touch Diamond2 and the HTC Touch Pro2, which replace the Touch Diamond and Touch Pro.
HTC Magic
(Credit: Bonnie Cha/CNET Networks)I stopped by HTC's booth on Wednesday to have a look at both smartphones, and I was impressed with the design improvements and enhanced technologies. The Touch Diamond2 probably wowed me more than the Pro2 because of its extremely thin and solid design. The device doesn't feel as plasticky with its brushed metal face and sides. Also, I can't tell if it's the sleeker design, but the screen pops out that much more and grabs your attention.
HTC has also worked on the user interface, providing a new Start screen where you can easily access your applications. It's also customizable and features more user-friendly icons. The touch-sensitive toolbar is a cool little feature. I didn't think it'd make that much of a difference but it definitely makes it easier to zoom in and out on Web pages and e-mails.
The Touch Pro2 is a monster, and I don't necessarily mean that in a bad way. It's bigger than the Touch Pro (4.5 inches tall by 2.3 inches wide by 0.6 inch thick versus 4 inches tall by 2 inches wide by 0.7 inch thick) but again solidly built. The navigation buttons along the bottom are smaller than I like, but that's a relatively minor complaint.
... Read more
LG Arena
(Credit: Bonnie Cha/CNET Networks)LG had a rather action-packed Mobile World Congress, making several product announcements including the high-end LG Arena multimedia phone and choosing Windows Mobile as the primary operating system for its smartphones. As a result, the company's booth was buzzing with a steady stream of visitors, and we stopped by ourselves to take a look at some of the company's offerings.
The one thing I came away with is that LG loves its touch screens. Everywhere I turned, there was a touch screen staring back at me. Not that I'm complaining, but it got to the point where the phones were almost indiscernible to me. It would have been nice to see a little variation in LG's design.
The biggest crowd pleaser was, not surprisingly, the LG Arena. It was a battle to get some hands-on time with the phone, and I can understand why. The Arena's S-Class 3D user interface makes quite impression. The cube layout and Elastic Lists and Reel Scrolling make it quite fun to use the phone, and certainly takes full advantage of the touch-screen capabilities. To be honest, though, I'm still on fence about whether the user interface is really helpful or all style and no substance. I mean I can see some advantages of the UI (the Reel Scrolling feature really comes in handy for going through photos and other files), but does it make phone navigation that much easier? I have yet to see it.
To be fair, I only had a few minutes with the device so I reserve the right to change my mind when we actually get to review the phone. Featurewise, the LG Arena is impressive with a 5-megapixel camera, 8GB of internal memory, Wi-Fi, 3G support, and more. Let's just hope it makes it way to the States.
The LG-GM730 smartphone was also at the booth, but unfortunately, it seemed as if all of the display models were frozen or not fully functioning, so I didn't really get a good feel for it. Still, I'm happy to see that the company is committed to developing more smartphones, though I know there are certainly some strong feelings about the choice of Windows Mobile as the chief operating system.
To get a closer look at these handsets and LG's other products, check out our hands-on photo gallery.
Palm showed off its UMTS version of the Palm Pre.
(Credit: Bonnie Cha/CNET Networks)Once again, Palm had a presence at GMSA Mobile World Congress 2009, but unlike last year, the company's pavilion was buzzing with visitors and journalists from around the world trying to get a glimpse at...what else? The Palm Pre.
Disappointingly, Palm didn't make any major announcements at the show, namely a GSM version of the smartphone, but did have a bit of news. The company has joined Adobe's Open Screen Project and promised to bring Flash 10 Player to its Web OS devices by the end of the year. We asked Palm if it would be included on the Pre, and, unfortunately, it will not since the Pre is slated for release during the first half of 2009 and Flash 10 won't be available until the second half.
During my meeting with Palm, I asked about whether we'd see a GSM version of the Pre in the United States. Not surprisingly, the representatives skirted around the question, saying that there's been a lot of interest and they are meeting a number carriers and other interested parties. The company did show a UMTS model of the smartphone at GSMA (pictured above), which pretty much indicates that there will a GSM version. PreCommunity even got a photo and video of the Pre with a Vodafone SIM card in it. (By the way, it was a little ridiculous that Palm wouldn't even let anyone take photos or touch the device without having a company representative have at least one hand on the phone. I mean, really?)
I don't doubt that there will be a GSM Palm Pre; the bigger questions are when and with which carrier. Will AT&T pick it up, even though it already has the iPhone? Is T-Mobile a good fit for the Pre? Or will Palm offer it unlocked? Any thoughts on this?
Nokia N86
(Credit: Bonnie Cha/CNET Networks)On Monday, CNET UK heard rumblings about a Nokia N86 8-megapixel camera phone but we found it odd that we hadn't seen it at Mobile World Congress. After all, we had attended Nokia's press conference, gone to a one-on-one meeting, and no one ever said a word about the N86.
Well, it seems the Nokia N86 was so special that it deserved a separate announcement aside from the Nokia E55 and Nokia E75 and was officially unveiled on the second day of GSMA 2009. The highlight feature of the N86 is its 8-megapixel camera. Nokia N series models, including the Nokia N95 and the Nokia N85, have been equipped with 5-megapixel cameras for a long while now, and with competitors (e.g., Samsung Memoir) coming out with 8-megapixel camera phones, it's nice to see an upgrade.
The N86 8MP features a Carl Zeiss Tessar lens for panoramic pictures and variable aperture to help you get better pictures in super-bright or low-light environments. There is also a dual-LED flash and the camera phone claims to have a fast mechanical shutter that should reduce motion blur.
Photos can be geotagged, thanks to the integrated GPS, and of course, you can upload them to Nokia's Ovi service or Flickr. The N86 also has video-out capabilities, so you can show off your pictures on a larger TV or computer screen. There's 8GB of onboard memory for storing photos and other media files, which can be expanded through the microSD slot (accepts up to 16GB cards).
Other highlights of the Symbian S60 phone include a 2.6-inch, scratch-resistant OLED display, stereo Bluetooth support, Wi-Fi, e-mail support, an FM transmitter, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. Full specs are here. The Nokia N86 8MP is expected to ship in Q2 for around 375 Euros (around $472 U.S.).
Qualcomm
(Credit: Qualcomm)BARCELONA--It looks like mobile chipmaker Qualcomm and handset maker Nokia have finally buried the hatchet.
On Tuesday, the companies, which were once entangled in a bitter legal battle, announced at the GSMA Mobile World Congress 2009 here that they would collaborate on developing technologies for 3G smartphones sold for the North American market.
The new devices will use Nokia's S60 software, which uses the Symbian OS, and advanced chipsets from Qualcomm that use its Mobile Station Modem technology. The first mobile devices to come out of this collaboration are expected in mid 2010, the companies said. And they will be compatible with technology being developed by the new Symbian Foundation.
Nokia's CEO, Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo, touted the partnership during a keynote speech at GSMA MWC on Tuesday morning in which he talked about the need for more collaboration.
"We need to be open to change," he said. "We have to work with competitors and our partners in different ways than we have done in the past."
Indeed, the pairing is somewhat surprising considering the two companies' litigious past. For three years, the companies were in a battle over patent licenses and royalty rights. The companies ended up suing each other and finally settled their legal differences in July 2008. As part of the agreement, Nokia agreed to pay Qualcomm back-royalties, plus royalties going forward. Financial terms of the deal were never released publicly.
Nokia N86
(Credit: Bonnie Cha/CBS Interactive)The Nokia N86 8MP made its official debut on the second day of GSMA 2009. Take a look at our hands-on photo gallery.
Toshiba TG01
(Credit: Crave UK)If you thought the iPhone's screen was large, wait till you see the 104mm (4.1-inch) 800x480-pixel face on Toshiba's TG01--a phone our friends over at Crave UK just spent 20 minutes coating in finger grease.
The TG01 was first announced two weeks ago and features a 1GHz CPU from Qualcomm. It will start rolling out sometime this year, but you can get a sneak peak with our gallery below.
