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LG, RIM, Samsung and Sharp to support JIL widgets

Dusan Belic — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 13:40:33 +0000

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.”

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Bundle of New Phones Coming to Japan from KDDI

Simon Sage — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 17:48:55 +0000

Thirteen impressive new phones are coming down the pipe for Japanese service provider KDDI. Here’s the breakdown:

Casio Exilim Keitei CA003: 12 megapixel camera with 3x optical zoom, autofocus, image stablizer, and 20 images/second rapid shot
Sharp Aquos Shot SH003: 12 megapixel camera, FM transmitter, transfer and view Blu-Ray movies
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.

[KDDI via MobileCrunch]

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Rumor: Microsoft To Revive T-Mobile’s Lost Sidekick Data?

Will Park — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 06:45:57 +0000

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.

[Via: TechCrunch]

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T-Mobile: Sidekick data partially restored, $100 gift cards on the way

Will Park — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 18:13:40 +0000

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.”

Fingers crossed! Especially for heavy business users.

[Via: T-Mobile]

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Microsoft’s Project Pink Zune-Phones Leaked: Turtle and Pure

Simon Sage — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 13:33:05 +0000

After ages of rumours 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.

[via Gizmodo]

http://www.intomobile.com/2008/04/15/microsoft-completes-danger-acquisition-danger-integrated-into-premium-mobile-experiences-division.html

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NEC, Sharp to bring its phones outside of Japan

Dusan Belic — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 12:06:13 +0000

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…

[Via: Unwired View]

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Sharp announces world’s thinnest mobile phone solar panel

Will Park — Tue, 26 May 2009 23:44:17 +0000

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.

[Akihabara via: Pocket-lint]

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Sharp Announces Flip with 10 Megapixel Camera

Simon Sage — Tue, 19 May 2009 16:24:10 +0000

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.

[via Akihabra]

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Sidekick LX 2009 gets early unboxing!

Will Park — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 17:27:52 +0000

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?

[Via: HipTop3]

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Worst Sidekick LX unboxing video… EVAR

Will Park — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 00:53:09 +0000

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 Sidekick LX 2009 is a great handset indeed. The new T-Mobile (NYSE: DT) Sidekick LX features all kinds of video capabilities, a 3.2-megapixel camera, QWERTY keyboard, gloriously high-resolution display and integrated GPS – so you know HipTop fans won’t be disappointed. Too bad you can’t tell from this video…

[Via: PhoneDog]

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T-Mobile Sidekick LX 2009 video capability details

Will Park — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 01:34:47 +0000

T-Mobile (NYSE: DT) may not have let loose the details (or at least not the nitty gritty details) of their T-Mobile Sidekick LX 2009, or rather the Sidekick LX, but that doesn’t mean we don’t already have the juicy down-low on the upcoming HipTop’s video capabilities. Thanks to a little tech-sleuthing by MobileCrunch, we now know that the T-Mobile Sidekick LX 2009 (we refuse to refer to it as the redundantly confusing Sidekick LX) will feature full video capabilities and a high-resolution display.

The Sidekick LX 2009 will apparently be capable of recording video in either 320×240 or 176×144 resolution, using the MP4 format. A 1GB microSD memory card should hold anywhere between 15.5 and 17 hours of video recordings. But, perhaps more importantly, the Sidekick LX 2009 will apparently do video playback with ease. We’re expecting the new Sidekick LX 2009 to improve on the original Sidekick LX’s video-playback by adding support for H.263, H.264, 3GPP and MPEG-4 video playback! Needless to say, the upcoming Sidekick LX 2009, which will be unveiled tomorrow in NYC, will be the media-powerhouse of the Sidekick lineup.

More, live from NYC, tomorrow!

[Via: MobileCrunch]

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KDDI Gets Eco-Friendly Water-Resistant, Solar-Powered Phone

Simon Sage — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 13:40:15 +0000

Japan’s KDDI is getting on the eco-bandwagon by introducing a solar-powered, waterproof handset manufactured by Sharp. With only 10 minutes in the sun, you can squeeze out one minute of talk time and two hours of standby. KDDI beats Samsung’s Blue Earth to the market, but not ZTE’s Coral. Still, it’s a slick-looking handset, and combined with waterproofing, it’s potentially a great choice for the outdoorsy types, although some extra ruggedization would make it even more ideal for self-sufficiency. Expect more eco-friendly phones from KDDI’s Green Road Project lineup this summer.

[KDDI via CrunchGear]

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T-Mobile memo confirms T-Mobile Sidekick LX 2009 with 3G

Will Park — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 18:24:32 +0000

There’s nothing better than finding a leaked internal document that confirms previous rumors. The latest rumor to get the confirmation-hammer dropped on its head is the speculation that T-Mobile (NYSE: DT) is preparing a 3G-capable Sidekick for 2009. An internal T-Mobile memo has been sent out to T-Mobile employees, notifying them to start preparing for the Sidekick LX 2009. The memo confirms what we’ve been waiting for – a new media-friendly Sidekick with full 3G support on T-Mobile AWS 3G network!

The new Sidekick LX 2009 will apparently keep with T-Mobile’s redundantly confusing naming convention. The most recent Sidekick 2008 had been confusingly launched as the “Sidekick,” and so T-Mobile will be releasing this 3G-capable Sidekick LX 2009 as the “Sidekick LX.” Why T-Mobile wouldn’t want to differentiate the new Sidekick LX from previous generations isn’t clear, but it’s sure to make for some muddled Google (NSDQ: GOOG) searches.

The T-Mobile Sidekick LX (2009) sports a 3.2-megapixel camera, GPS (Live Search), larger display, QWERTY keyboard and integrated support for YouTube, Facebook, MySpace and Twitter. Suffice it to say that the new generation of HipTop-wielding hipsters (sorry, couldn’t resist) will be surfing around all kinds of social networks and consuming all kinds of media. And, all over a 3G data connection, no less!

T-Mobile is expected to make an official announcement on April 17, so sit tight. We’ll know more tomorrow.

T-Mobile memo:

Get Ready for the New Sidekick LX

T-Mobile is preparing to launch the thinnest Sidekick ever, with blazing fast 3G connectivity for customers to connect with friends quickly and easily. The new Sidekick LX will come equipped with GPS enabled Live Search, a 3.2 megapixel camera, and free bundled social networking applications including Facebook, My Space, and Twitter. Customers will also be able to watch and download You Tube videos directly from the device. The new Sidekick LX comes equipped with the features that customers love including a full QWERTY keyboard and an enhanced swivel screen that is larger and sharper than any other Sidekick.

Additional information regarding launch dates, pricing and availablility will be available on the Retail Communication Home Page on April 17.

Action Steps
Check the Retail Communication Home Page on April 17 for additional information regarding the Sidekick LX launch

[Via: HipTop3]

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T-Mobile’s brewing something for April 21

Will Park — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 01:31:34 +0000

T-Mobile’s got something brewing in their test kitchens. The No. 4 US wireless carrier has scheduled some sort of press event for April 21 in New York City. With all sorts of possible product launches looming on T-Mobile (NYSE: DT)’s horizon, we can’t wait to see what T-Mobile has in store for us on April 21.

The good money’s on the new Android OS-powered HTC Magic launching in a couple weeks, possibly alongside the Cupcake development update for Android (the update that should bring an on-screen keyboard to the T-Mobile G1). The HTC Magic has already been green-lighted by the FCC for duty on T-Mobile’s network, and there’s some talk about the Magic being named the “G3,” which bodes well for a near-term launch. But, you’re guess is as good as ours.

There’s also the possibility that T-Mobile is preparing to launch the just-spotted 3G Sidekick in the US. The upcoming Sidekick will finally bring HipTop fans into the 3G-age with support for 3G connectivity on T-Mobile’s still-developing 3G network.

And, as far as the remotest of chances go, we may see HTC’s Touch Pro2 or Touch Diamond2 getting some press-time on April 21. We wouldn’t hold our breath for this one, though…

What do you think? Magic? Cupcake? Sidekick 3G? One of the new Touch handsets from HTC? Sound off in the poll below!

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FCC unveils Sidekick with T-Mobile 3G support!

Will Park — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 20:03:22 +0000

Fans of the HipTop will be happy to hear that Sharp has just passed a new Sidekick through the FCC’s labs. Known internally as the Sharp PV300 (which falls in line nicely with the PV-XXX designation assigned to Sidekicks), the FCC has apparently blessed this new Sidekick handset for the US. The Sharp PV300 has been confirmed to support T-Mobile (NYSE: DT)’s 3G network on the 1700Mhz AWS frequency band, making a new 3G-capable T-Mobile Sidekick likely for release sometime this year.

Details are slim at the moment. Stay tuned for more on T-Mobile’s upcoming 3G Sidekick!

FCC

[Via: EngadgetMobile]

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NTT DoCoMo to release 22 (!) phones by March

Simon Sage — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 21:42:14 +0000

Holy crap. Who does that? Seriously! Twenty-two handsets in one batch? That’s just crazy-talk. Well, it’s not really one batch – these phones will be released between now and March in Japan through NTT DoCoMo (NYSE: DCM), but that is still one helluva release schedule. Here’s the whole lineup, broken into subcategories, with release dates.

Style series

F-02A: December 2008
N-02A: November to December 2008
N-03A: November 2008
P-02A: January to March 2009
P-03A: December 2008 to January 2009
SH-02A: December 2008 to January 2009

Prime series

F-01A: November 19, 2008 (fixed)
F-03A: January to March 2009
L-01A: November to December 2008
N-01A: November 2008
P-01A: November 2008
SH-01A: November 2008
SH-03A: December 2008

Smart series

F-04A: February to March 2009
N-04A: January to March 2009
P-04A: February to March 2009
P-05A: February to March 2009

Pro series

HT-01A: November to December 2008
HT-02A: December 2008 to January 2009
SH-04A: February to March 2009
BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM)® Bold™: February to March 2009
NOKIA (NYSE: NOK) E71: February to March 2009

Given they’re mostly plain flips with the odd slider thrown in for flavour, the Pro series is looking especially nice with the HTC Touch Diamond, Touch Pro, BlackBerry Bold, Nokia E71 and Touch Pro knock-off from Sharp.On the whole, it’s a pretty crazy lineup, and must be some kind of record, somewhere.

[via DoCoMo]

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T-Mobile brings Sidekick iD back from the dead

Will Park — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 20:07:25 +0000

T-Mobile (NYSE: DT)’s current Sidekick offerings have traditionally catered to the younger, hipper demographic looking for stylish, messaging-oriented handsets that don’t break the bank. To that end, the new Sidekick 2008 represents a marriage of functionality and style by combining many of the features of the flagship Sidekick LX with the swappable cover plates of the Sidekick iD.

But, it seems that T-Mobile still sees a need for a lower-end HipTop product to round-out their Sidekick portfolio. So, to fill the entry-level gap left by the Sidekick iD’s demise, T-Mobile has apparently brought the low-cost Sidekick back from its gadget-grave. The Sidekick iD debuted early last year to little fanfare and was quickly relegated to the depths of stockrooms in T-Mobile stores nationwide. Now, thanks to a little voodoo that brings dead and forgotten handsets back to life, T-Mobile is once again offering the entry-level Sidekick iD to Sidekick fans on a seriously limited budget.

T-Mobile is offering their T-Mobile Sidekick iD for $50 when purchased with a new two-year contract. There’s no denying that the $50 price-point is as entry-level as you can get before giving the handset away for free, but considering the Sidekick iD’s original $100 asking price, we’d think T-Mobile would do well to offer the Sidekick iD as a free-with-contract handset.

[Via: HipTop3]

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Softbank’s Sharp Aquos Fulltouch 931SH slider does high-resolution touchscreen in style

Will Park — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 01:17:39 +0000

These days, a touchscreen smartphone in your pocket (or in your hand) shows the world that you know what’s what in the mobile space and you’re not afraid to sit on the always-moving edge of high-technology. And, if you’re lucky enough to be rocking a smartphone with a VGA or WVGA touchscreen display, you’re probably resting easy knowing that you’re near or at the top of the mobile phone food chain.

That is, unless you live in Japan. Enter Softbank (OTCPK: SFTBF)’s Sharp AQUOS FullTouch 931SH touchscreen handset with a 3.8-inch 1024 x 480 display!

Those crazy engineers at Sharp have one-upped themselves with their latest AQUOS-branded high-resolution display handset. Known for their sleekly styled and feature-packed mobile phones, Sharp has a habit of making us drool with AQUOS cellphones boasting contrast, color saturation, and pixel densities that we can only dream of in The States.

The Softbank’s Sharp AQUOS FullTouch 931SH handset boasts an amazingly high-resolution, AQUOS-branded display with pixel-counts that darn near rival those on sub-notebooks. That’s right, this feature-phone packs in an impressive 1024 x 480 pixel display that should make pictures taken with the handset’s 5.2 megapixel camera look mighty fine. Of course the Sharp AQUOS FullTouch 931SH packs in Japanese handset staples like a 1-Seg TV tuner, Bluetooth 2.0, media player, microSD card slot, accelerometer, and a web-browser that’ll put the 3G data connection to good use.

As you’ve probably already guessed, the Sharp AQUOS FullTouch 931SH isn’t going to finding a home anywhere outside of Japan, or outside of Softbank’s network, for that matter. Now, short of moving to Japan, we can only hope that handset makers will bring WVGA-trumping touchscreen displays to the rest of the world!

Jump the break and take a look at a gallery’s worth of Sharp AQUOS FullTouch 931SH pics.

[Via: Engadget Mobile]

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NTT DoCoMo working on HSUPA handset

Simon Sage — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 15:48:59 +0000

Japanese carrier NTT DoCoMo (NYSE: DCM) is working with Fujitsu (OTCPK: FJTSY), Sharp and Reneas to make an HSUPA-compatible handset for a 2010 release. The SH-Mobile G4 will boast 5.7 Mbps uplink speeds, which is quite the jump from our current 384kbps. HSUPA is the Yin to HSDPA’s Yang – offering upload speeds that match download. HSDPA is considerably more widespread, but by enabling faster upload speeds, stuff like transmitting live streaming mobile video can become more popular and, for those existing services, higher quality.

Samsung was the first to bring this kind of handset to market with the SCH-M470, but more networks are supporting the technology, and accordingly many more phones will be following. It’s generally easy to think of mobile data usage as a one-way street, but with HSUPA and other high-speed uplink networks gathering steam, I think we’ll have some very interesting doors opening. What do you think – is mobile video the biggest thing to gain from faster upload speeds, or are there other, more impressive possibilities?

[via DoCoMo]

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Sharp 9225H looks like a sub-netbook

Ben Robinson — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 10:22:45 +0000

The Sharp 9225H

According to Mobile Today, who in turn spotted an article on AVing, Sharp has announced a soon-to-launch device called the 9225h. It looks like a sub-sub-netbook/Mobile/palmtop – though I’m sure there’s a more concise term for it!

In some respects, it looks not dissimilar to the Nokia (NYSE: NOK) E90, but I would imagine Sharp are looking to cash in on the netbook trend, at least to some extent. Apparently there is a 3.5 inch screen, camera, TV tuner, and microSDHC slot.

Given the phone was spotted at the CEATEX show, and the device vendor, expect to see this over in Japan, followed (maybe, just maybe) by some other countries – time will tell …..

[Via: Mobile Choice / Original story via: AVing]

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