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The Gigabyte G-Smart t600 is an interesting device - I’ve had one for a couple of weeks, and so thought I would share some thoughts:

The packaging of the device is good (as with the MS800), and included the mains charger, extra stylus, and stereo headphones/hands-free. Not as loaded as with the MS800, but serviceable nonetheless

The device is solidly constructed - I am really getting to like the build quality of Gigabyte devices, it seems they have spent some time making sure that it feels good in the hand, and there is no creakage!

On-device, we are running WinMo 6 Pro O/S, again with some Gigabyte-specific trimmings - the most interesting of these is the DVB-T tuner application - yes, I said that right, DVB-T!

This device, in theory at least, is equipped with a Multi-standard (Mobile) TV receiver - now here’s the big downside….. in my testing, I could not get the tuner to work at all, despite scanning ALL the DVB-T frequency blocks available in the application. Call me disappointed, I was really looking forward to this.

Specs-wise, there is a pretty good selection:

The screen seems perhaps just a tad small, but other than that, the device is pleasureable to use. Much like it’s business-oriented stablemate, the MS800, the device is available independently through Gigabyte’s resellers, as oppose to through Operators. If you would like a UK list of resellers, go here. If you want to check out the t600 on Gigabyte’s website, go here.

Man, I would have loved to see DVB-T reception up and working……..

Ben

Recently I have had chance to have “extreme possession” of the MS800 device from Gigabyte (labelled under the “G-Smart” brand). Below are some brief highlights, pointer to the specs, and the G-Smart website itself:

Initial impressions were that the G-Smart devices come in a professionally put-together set of packaging. Included are in-car charger, USB cable, spare pointer, instructions, wired stereo headset, and multi-country component mains charger - a nice set of accessories. A case wouldn’t have got amiss, but it’s not a showstopper

The device itself is well-made - nice construction, and plenty of time and effort obviously spent avoiding the serious “creak” problems that many plastic-bodied devices have:

The O/S is WinMo 6 Pro - on top of this G-Smart have layered their “Smart Touch UI”, which is another attempt to make a finger-based input possible, rather than using a Stylus:

This isn’t entirely a success - whilst it is quite well-integrated with the traditional Win Homescreen, when you are utilising the carousel, it doesn’t react as accurately as you might expect. Compared to a certain “i” device, it’s not in the same league.

On the upside however, it’s fitted with a SiRF Star III GPS system, has HSDPA, a 2.8″ screen, 2MP camera, and also Mini-USB, Bluetooth 2.0, and WLAN b+g. Oh, and a Micro SD slot!

So overall then, I would see this as a nice business device - it’s understated, has a good suite of functions, and is well-built. Unfortunately it is not currently carried by any of the Operators in the UK, which means you’ll need to buy it outright. Speaking of which, you can find the list of stores carrying the MS800 here.

If you want to check out the Gigabyte website, you can go here.

The Unwired has got a really nice, detailed review on the Gigabyte t600 device, which was been mentioned on IntoMobile a few times now. Whilst not having UMTS or GPS (which we are coming to expect as standard on high-end smartphones now), it does have a fully functional DVB-T tuner….

DVB-T I hear you say? Yes, indeed. This means that it is capable of picking up unencrypted Digital Terrestrial TV (DTT) signals. More than that, Gigabyte have been kind enough to include a software tuner utility, so that channels can be scanned and selected!

If this kind of device interests you, then go on over to The Unwired and have a read through - there are some great accompanying pics to go with the words too. I can’t help but think that for all the momentum around DVB-H, that including a simple DVB-T tuner in handsets does get round a lot of the network/infrastructure/device/costs issues that DVB-H currently has - and for that reason it gets a big thumbs-up from me!

Now, if I can just get my contact at Gigabyte to send me one…!

[Via: The Unwired]

Gigabyte has unveiled three new Windows Mobile smartphones at this year’s Computex show in Taipei, Taiwan. All devices mentioned run Smart Touch graphic user interface on top of Microsoft’s mobile OS, to make things easier for the users.

Let’s briefly go through each one of the phones announced, shall we:

• First comes the GSmart MS802, the device that is clearly a successor of the earlier MS800 model. It runs Windows Mobile 6 Professional, and among other things packs a 520 MHz CPU, WiFi, Bluetooth, and 3.5G support. Additionally, EDGE version will also be released and will be called GSmart MW702.
• Then goes the GSmart MS808 model designed with mobile TV in mind. This baby supports virtually every mobile TV standard out there — including DVB-T, DVB-H, T-DMB, and ISDB-T. There’s also GPS on-board, 3.5G support, Marvell’s PXA310 624 MHz, 2.8-inch touchscreen, and Windows Mobile 6.1.
• Finally, there’s the 2008 Taiwan Excellence Silver Award Winner - GSmart MS820, and its EDGE version - MW720. It’s powered by a 520 MHz CPU, and also sports a 2.8-inch touchscreen, and a 3 megapixel camera. Windows Mobile 6.1 is running the show.

Unfortunately, we’re still waiting for Gigabyte to update it’s English language site with the new smartphones information. In the meantime, Unwired View’s article helped us in preparation of this article. And so was the press release, which follows right after jump.

Read the full article

Giga-Byte recently announced a newly developed user interface for its GSmart Windows Mobile smartphones called “Smart Touch”. The thumb-friendly UI is quite intuitive and flexible, but few icons located at the bottom of the screen make us think they borrowed an idea or two from Apple.

Smart Touch allows users to add up to 16 most frequently used apps as shortcuts on standby screen. Four icons are visible at once and the rest of them are accessible by swiping across the screen. The center of the screen is reserved for a large clock, and there’s an icon for quick access to the user’s Today screen. Naturally, users can customize the look and feel of Smart Touch by changing theme, colors or even use their own images for the background.

Finally, if you’re interested to try out the new GSmart’s UI, you’ll have to wait for “after May” when the company will officially release it to the general public. One thing we’re not sure, though, is whether it will work on other, non GSmart-made, Windows Mobile smartphone. We certainly hope it will as the demo bellow looks promising. Enjoy!

[Via: the::unwired]

I’m not actually sure what’s GIGA-BYTE strategy when it comes to Europe, but they seem to struggle to push their phones in a big way. Lately they’ve announced the launch of the GSmart t600 Windows Mobile smartphone on French MVNO Neuf Cegetel.

We don’t have any information about the pricing yet, but we know one thing - the GSmart t600 is one great device. There’s the 2.6-inch VGA touchscreen, 2 megapixel camera, WiFi, Bluetooth, 520 MHz CPU, DVB-T digital TV receiver, microSD memory expansion slot and whole lot more. Windows Mobile 6 Professional is running the show…

Finally, it’s important to add the GSmart t600 will be available as a bundle Neuf’s service plan, under the commercial name of TWIN TNT.

[Via: the::unwired]

Who: Gigabyte

What: G-Smart MS800

Specs: 520 MHz Marvel CPU, Windows Mobile Version Unknown (probably 6.1), 2 megapixel camera, 2.8 inch QVGA touch screen, SiRF III power GPS, 1300 mAh battery, quadband GSM/EDGE, 7.2 Mbps HSDPA on the 2100 MHz band, 116 × 59 x 14.95 mm, 130 grams, FM Radio

When: Announced at MWC, street date unknown.

Price: Unknown

Reminder: I reported about the G-Smart lineup a while ago, this is 1 of 3 devices in that series.

[Via: Unwired View]

Gigabyte will unveil their Gsmart line of products at the upcoming Mobile World Congress in February. Three devices, two of them Windows Mobile powered, will be introduced with features ranging from HSDPA to TV (DVB-T, DVB-H, T-DMB) and GPS. Gigabyte’s never been popular, at least in Europe, so I don’t know why they’re even trying … but good game to them anyhow.

[Via: The Unwired]

Following from my post yesterday about the multiple Mobile TV standards, today I thought we might take a short tour de force of Mobile TV handsets - with specific reference to the DVB-H standard….

Read the full article

Just before the New Year, GIGA-BYTE Communications launched its GSmart i350 Windows Mobile 6 smartphone in Italy. What’s significant about this all-in-one device is that aside from such goodies as WiFi, Bluetooth 2.0, microSD memory slot, and the built-in SiRF III GPS receiver, it also packs the full 2.6″ VGA (640×480) touchscreen!

The bad thing — there’s always the downside — is the somewhat last yearish 2 MP camera with autofocus, as well as only 64 MB of RAM. Marvell’s powerful PXA270 CPU at 520 MHz should provide users with enough processing power, though.

Finally let’s talk about the availability and pricing. In case you live in Italy and dig the GSmart i350, you’ll have to call Gigabyte’s distributor for Italy, Brightpoint, which is currently selling the device for 499 Euro.

[Via: the::unwired]