3 Italia has launched a new addition to its X-Series line of devices – LG U960. The 3G (HSDPA) and DVB-H enabled device packs tons of features such as 2.2″ QVGA screen, 2 MP camera with 2x digital zoom for taking photos, front-facing VGA camera for video calls, stereo Bluetooth (A2DP) support, and the standard microSD memory slot. As for the Internet services which play an important role in the X-Series offering, 3 is bundling LG’s multimedia phone with all the popular web-based email solutions like Hotmail, Gmail, and Yahoo! Mail; as well as support for Windows Live Messenger, Skype (iSkoot?), E-bay auctions, Yahoo! One Search, and Flickr. In addition, X-Series subscribers can access various mobile TV channels like RAI 1 and 2, Sky (Sport, Cinema Tg24 and Vivo), 3’s own channels like La 3 Live, La 3 Sport, Boing and major sports events like Series A and B, UEFA and Champions League soccer matches, Volleyball and Basketball games, as well as adult entertainment through Penthouse and Playboy channels.

Sounds quite compelling. I especially like the U960’s rotating screen, although we’ve already seen it on some LG’s phone in Verizon (NYSE: VZ)’s VCAST offering.

[Via: Unwired View]

First it was Orange and now it is 3, the operators are making their voices heard. They don’t want to let go of their income. Will Nokia (NYSE: NOK) step up their advertising and try to push consumers to buy unlocked handsets?

[Via: Talk 3G]

The Hutchison’s 3 network in UK just added Nokia (NYSE: NOK) N95 to its offering. Potential customers of the operator’s X-Series plans are now able to get the Nokia’s flagship “multimedia computer” from free to £299, depending on the price plan they pick. Plus, with all the X-Series plans come an array of applications and services like Skype, Mobilcast, Sling Player and Orb, which actually make you feel all the benefits of a 3G network.

Speaking of applications, roughly at the same time, 3 decided to offer yet one more free addon to its subscribers. Yes, it’s ShoZu, the application which allows instant sharing of photos and video with friends by uploading them to any of the popular content sharing services or to a social network directly from your handset.

I really find 3’s strategy to be very forward thinking. That being said, I hope other carriers across the globe will also figure out how we want to access advanced services — without limitations of course!

[Via: AllAboutSymbian, SymbianOne]

This just might be the worst phone we’ve ever seen. Not just in terms of design and form-factor, but also in terms of nonsensically ripping off trademarks. Of course it’s from China, but that’s not the point. This thing might be the result of knock-off artists having run out of ideas (well, things to copy, really).

We can’t be the only ones offended by this phone? As the pictures show, this thing is both a flip-phone and a candybar, but the execution of the design is piss-poor. It’s like these guys just fused two phones together, and it’s got the girth to back that up – we’re going to call this design a brick-phone.

And, as if the designers of this phone hadn’t screwed up badly enough, they covered it in faux gold and fake diamonds – straight tacky. Then there’s the RAZR-esque keypad, but then again, everyone’s taken design cues from the RAZR’s keypad. Oh, and don’t forget the dual branding – apparently this thing is used on both 3 and T-mobile (NYSE: DT)’s networks.

Who cares about the specs, they don’t matter. Just hit the link for more pics of this monstrosity.

Read the full article »

Sure, having an HSDPA (High Speed Downlink Packet Access) 3G network is nice and all, but only being able to pull down super-fast data just feels a little lop-sided. A real complete 3G network needs to serve up data on HSDPA as well as HSUPA (High Speed Uplink Packet Access) protocols. It seems the Brits got it right on this one. According to SMS Text News, UK GSM carriers Vodafone (NYSE: VOD), 3, and T-mobile (NYSE: DT) have confirmed plans to complement their HSDPA 3G networks with HSUPA, by year end. Orange also has plans to roll out their own HSUPA network in 2008. O2 (NYSE: TEF) is the only UK carrier with no HSPA aspirations.

We gotta hand it to those Brits, they may drive on the wrong side of the road, but they make up for it with high-speed data on both sides of the stream. All while Americans are hurting for a reliable, widespread HSDPA network. We need 4G!

[Via: All About Symbian]

Smartphones become a heck of a lot smarter once you start installing applications that can help you achieve your daily routine more efficiently. The problem has always been finding said applications. 3 has just launched a website called neXt that is kind of like Digg.com for mobile apps. What makes this even more interesting is that there is also a mobile website, 3next.mobi, which users can also use to find applications on the go.

This is absolutely brilliant and I applaud the people at 3 for trying something radically different. I’ve been advocating that handset makers themselves should be making this sort of platform, but 3 decided they were not going to wait any longer.

The S60 Online Marketing department could learn a thing or two from this. Imagine making a website where you can browse for applications based on what is most popular among the world and among your friends. If you see something you like you click “Install” and next time you open the Download! client it reminds you to download the application you were checking out on the desktop earlier that day.

[Via: All About Symbian]

Bellissimo! 3, the European operator that is pushing people to use their mobile in whatever way they want, has just launched in Italy with none other than the Nokia N95! As much as I like what 3 is trying to do I’m going to have to recommend that people buy an unlocked or unbranded headset.

[Via: SMS Text News]

Following the launch of X-Series in UK, Australia, Hong Kong, Sweden and Danmark – Hutchison Whampoa Group’s mobile media company 3 has announced the roll-out of its all-inclusive offer in Italy.

3’s X-Series plans offer consumers unlimited data transfer, and include preinstalled applications for VoIP calls (Skype client), instant messaging, and other apps for accessing different web services (i.e. Yahoo To Go). To further sweeten the deal, 3 Italia chose the best handsets available on the market – to offer its customers the complete usage experience. Read the full article »

X-Series from 3 subscribers are benefiting from the carrier’s unlimited plans. Still, at the moment they can only select Symbian-based handsets, Nokia N73 or Sony Ericsson W950i, as their device of choice. However, it seems that 3 is working to add some Windows Mobile love to its premium offering. According to MoDaCo, Hutchison (owner of the 3 networks) will launch Motorola Q 9h in the coming months. That’s a QWERTY equipped device added to the offering. Wondering will they add more Windows Mobile smartphones afterwards. What do you think?

Operator 3 in the UK, already known for its forward thinking business moves, announced that in April it will launch a free, ad-supported video streaming service. The new service will display ads powered by Rhythm NewMedia’s technology, and will be available via Planet 3 portal.

The content itself will include animation, films, gossip and other short videos. Furthermore, the platform will deliver ads specific to various user profiles (i.e. targeting), and will limit the number of times each video is served to the individual user. Brand advertising clients that have confirmed for the launch of the service include Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) and Unilever.