The Joint Innovation Lab (JIL) announced that LG, RIM, Samsung and Sharp will support the JIL widget specification in future mobile handsets from the first quarter of 2010. As a result, developers will be able to make a single widget that works across multiple platforms and devices. On the other hand, end users will have more widgets available for download.
Other JIL member companies include large carriers like China Mobile (NYSE: CHL), SOFTBANK (OTCPK: SFTBF), Verizon (NYSE: VZ) Wireless and Vodafone (NYSE: VOD), which have a combined user base of more than 1 billion.
Commenting on the announcement, JIL’s CEO Peters Suh said: “The decision of LG, RIM, Samsung and Sharp to incorporate the JIL widget specifications in their future product roadmap is proof of the tremendous potential that JIL offers both to developers and customers. All four companies are innovation leaders and this is another strong affirmation of both JIL strategy and its robust technical specifications.”
Sharp Aquos Shot SH006: 12 megapixel camera, Wi-Fi, GPS, transfer and view Blu-Ray movies
Casio Exilim Keitei CA004: 8 megapixel camera with face detection, autofocus, and VGA video recording
Sharp SH004: 8 megapixel camera with noise reduction and low-light filter; low-power mode and call noise-cancellation
Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE) Bravia U1: 5 megapixel camera with autofocus and image stabilization; transfer and view Blu-Ray movies; waterproof
Kyocera (NYSE: KYO) SA001: 3.2 megapixel camera with image stabilization; 14.7mm thin closed
Toshiba (OTCPK: TOSBF) T003: 3.2 megapixel camera with autofocus, face detection, and image stabilization; waterproof
Sharp SH005: 5 megapixel camera with autofocus and image stabilization; transfer and view Blu-Ray movies; waterproof
Sony Ericsson S002: 3.2 megapixel camera with autofocus; GSM support
Sony Ericsson Urbano Barone: 5 megapixel camera with autofocus and image stabilization; large keys for the elderly; transfer and view Blu-Ray movies
Kyocera Mobile Easy K004: 2 megapixel camera with autofocus; easy-to-use UI
Kyocera Mamorino: Security-centric, helps parents keep tabs on kids; waterproof
Oh yeah, and the vast majority have WVGA displays and infrared support. Man, it’s a whole other universe over in Japan. The Bravia-branded phone is pretty slick, and the only other time we’ve seen optical zoom on a 12 megapixel cameraphone was on the Samsung W880. Overall, a solid winter lineup from KDDI – I just wish we had something comparable over here.
The latest development in the T-Mobile (NYSE: DT) Sidekick server crash saga should give burned Sidekick users a little pick-me-up. TechCrunch is reporting on a fresh (unconfirmed) rumor from inside Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) that all lost Sidekick data might not be as lost as once thought. According to a Microsoft insider, engineers in the Danger division (which is responsible for the Sidekick backend) are incubating hopes of recovering all the lost data. If the rumor pans out, and Danger engineers can pull it off, T-Mobile will be able to triumphantly tell it’s Sidekick customers that their little Sidekick “snafu” has been completely fixed!
The rumor is totally unconfirmed at this point. But, remember, T-Mobile recently announced that they might be able to restore data to a portion of its Sidekick fleet. In fact, some users have been seeing data coming back online. That has to mean Danger has been making some headway since they initially announced that all Sidekick data was “almost certainly” completely lost in the server crash.
For the sake of Sidekickers with major data loss, we hope this rumor has legs.
T-Mobile isn’t taking its Sidekick outage lightly. The Sidekick carrier has been hard at work trying to get Sidekick service back in full working order, and it seems they were successful in restoring at least some Sidekick users’ data. After being told by T-Mobile (NYSE: DT) and Microsoft’s Danger division that Sidekick data was likely lost forever, some users were pleasantly surprised to see some of their lost data show up again on their Sidekick handsets.
As for the rest of the Sidekick camp with permanent data loss, T-Mobile has announced that they will be sending out $100 T-Mobile gift cards over the next 14 days. The gift cards can be used on any T-Mobile products or phone bills, in addition to the free month of service that T-Mobile is giving to every Sidekick user.
For what it’s worth, T-Mobile hopes “that for the majority of our customers, personal content can be recovered.”
After agesofrumours surrounding Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT)’s “Project Pink” and its links to Zune, we now have some pictures of the devices in question. The Pure and the Turtle will be made by Sharp and aimed squarely at the youth market, a forte Microsoft can claim since acquiring the desiginer of the Sidekick, Danger. Zune services and an app store will also be found on the Turtle and Pure, but little else one the specification-front is known. If you take a close look at those screens, it’s difficult to spot any signs of Windows Mobile, but it’s hard to imagine Microsoft using anything else. As for carrier, we had heard Verizon was sniffing around a Zune phone… What do you guys think? Zune Pass-compatible phones for a youth market sound like they could do pretty dang well.
Japan’s NEC and Sharp plan to export their handsets to other countries. Both companies were already present on markets outside of the Land of the rising Sun, but have struggled to gain any significant marketshare.
Now due to sliding decline in handset sales in Japan, Nec and Sharp are revising their strategy and plan to expand overseas.
According to a Reuters article, NEC hopes to export at least 1 million phones for an average price of $300. Sharp, on the other end, intends to release smartphones in Europe, and has a goal to sell a total of 4 million devices.
We’re certainly pro-competition and are looking forward to see some of those sexy high-end phones from Japan being available in Europe and the U.S…
Solar-powered cellphones are still rare these days. But, that may soon change, if Sharp has anything to say about it. Sharp has announced that their thinnest mobile phone solar panel is now available to cellphone manufacturers around the world to use in future hardware. The LR0GC02 Solar Panel module comes in at just 0.8mm thick, helping it secure the title of “World’s thinnest solar panel.”
Sharp hopes to make solar-powered cellphones more convenient by slimming down the solar panel itself. But, all that thinness comes at a price, the LR0GC02 Solar Panel is only capable of outputting some 300 mW of power. That’s not nearly enough to power a smartphone on its own, but it could be used to keep a traditional Li-ion battery topped-off when in sunlight.
If you’re still trying to imagine what a 0.8mm thick panel looks like, try imagining a 100µm thick piece of dust and then shave off 20µm. Better now? Good.
Japanese carrier Softbank (OTCPK: SFTBF) is showing off a lot of new phones at their summer show, but the most eye-catching so far is the Sharp Aquos Shot 933SH featuring a beeft 10 megapixel camera with LED flash and smile detection. It’s not quite 12 megapixels, but damn is it close. Besides, most folks would be willing to drop 2 megapixels in favour of being able to crank their ISO up to 12800. Prying ourselves away from the camera bit, the 933SH also has a 3.3″ touch LCD screen, 16 GB of internal memory, and if that fills up too quickly with the GARGANTUAN pictures you’ll be taking, microSDHC support is also available. It’s times like this that the language barrier doesn’t seem that big of a hurdle for moving to Japan. Really, honest. Just gimmie the phone.
The Sidekick LX (2009) is T-Mobile (NYSE: DT)’s first HipTop offering to boast full 3G data connectivity. With a 3.2-megapixel camera (with video recording), all sorts of video support, high-res 3.2-inch display and GPS hardware in tow, the Sidekick LX is just about the highest-tech Sidekick to ever hit market. And, it looks like some lucky T-Mobile customers are getting their Sidekick LX-fix a bit early. T-Mobile’s official Sidekick LX launch isn’t kicking-off until May 13th, but these latest unboxing pics prove that some units have already shipped out.
This latest unboxing follows what may have been the worst handset unboxing video that we’d ever laid eyes on. Unfortunately, there’s no video this time around, but if that means less creepy-girl-with-creepy-eyes staring us down, we’re totally fine with that.
HipTop3 has a full unboxing gallery for you to drool over. Why don’t you go check them out?
Sometimes you just need a good laugh. If now is one of those times, go ahead and take a gander at the video below. What you’ll see is likely one of the worst handset unboxing videos of all time – in other words, worst…video…EVAR!
The cellphone unboxing ritual is a sacred thing. Mobile enthusiasts can live vicariously through the eyes of those lucky enough to put hands on just-released hardware. Unfortunately, when the unboxing ritual falls into the hands of a couple PR reps trying to hype the new device, we’re left feeling violated and a little confused.
The Joint Innovation Lab (JIL) announced that LG, RIM, Samsung and Sharp will support the JIL widget specification in future mobile handsets from the first quarter of 2010. As a result, developers will be able to make a single widget that works across multiple platforms and devices. On the other hand, end users will have more widgets available for download.
The latest development in the T-Mobile (
T-Mobile isn’t taking its 
