Monday, October 05, 2009

Samsung Behold II Hits T-Mobile, Pairs Android with TouchWiz Interface [Cellphones]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/e24bFtdsJxk/samsung-behold-ii-hits-t+mobile-pairs-android-with-touchwiz-interface

Wow, another T-Mobile Android phone (Sprint's HTC Hero is the only Android-handset on another carrier). The Behold II has a 3.2-inch AMOLED touchscreen, 5-megapixel camera, and TouchWiz UI (now with 3D cube menu for quick access to multimedia).

Those multimedia features include music, photos, videos, the Web, YouTube, and Amazon MP3 for music downloads. The phone's other key specs include 3G, Wi-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth, microSD card expandable memory (up to 16GB), and support for Google services and Exchange ActiveSync.

With a completely new OS compared to the original Behold (and even the upgraded Memoir), it's kind of strange that Samsung kept the Behold name. Especially when it resembles the Android powered Samsung Galaxy. Still, there you have it. T-Mobile hasn't gone into pricing, but did say the Behold II would arrive "before the start of the holidays."




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Samsung Behold II Hits T-Mobile, Pairs Android with TouchWiz Interface [Cellphones]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/e24bFtdsJxk/samsung-behold-ii-hits-t+mobile-pairs-android-with-touchwiz-interface

Wow, another T-Mobile Android phone (Sprint's HTC Hero is the only Android-handset on another carrier). The Behold II has a 3.2-inch AMOLED touchscreen, 5-megapixel camera, and TouchWiz UI (now with 3D cube menu for quick access to multimedia).

Those multimedia features include music, photos, videos, the Web, YouTube, and Amazon MP3 for music downloads. The phone's other key specs include 3G, Wi-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth, microSD card expandable memory (up to 16GB), and support for Google services and Exchange ActiveSync.

With a completely new OS compared to the original Behold (and even the upgraded Memoir), it's kind of strange that Samsung kept the Behold name. Especially when it resembles the Android powered Samsung Galaxy. Still, there you have it. T-Mobile hasn't gone into pricing, but did say the Behold II would arrive "before the start of the holidays."




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Toshiba's Cell-Powered REGZA 55X1 LCD TV Can Record and Display 8 Channels At Once [HDTVs]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/pmYJ9mNh3lU/toshibas-cell+powered-regza-55x1-lcd-tv-can-record-and-display-8-channels-at-once

Toshiba's first TV with the PS3 Cell processor it helped develop has seriously kick-ass specs. For starters: The 55-incher's LED backlighting divides the 240Hz display into 512 individually controlled areas, and has a dynamic contrast ratio of 5,000,000:1.

The Cell processor also provides self-congruency for improved image quality at the edge of the picture, enhanced color and brightness balance, and a super-high luminance of 1250cd/m². A 7-speaker sound bar is attached underneath the display, and network functionality includes DLNA support, and an HD Web browser based on Opera.

The Cell chip is housed in an external box about the site of an older Blu-ray player. That's also where a 3TB hard disk is installed to allow the TV to time-shift up to 26 hours of programs from up to 8 channels simultaneously. (1TB of storage is reserved for longer-term recordings). Another neat visual trick: the 55X1 can show eight channels on screen at the same time—and step through each without the delay common with rival HDTVs.

The TV is on show at CEATEC (Japan's version of CES), and will go on sale there in December for 1 Million Yen (about $11,115). Toshiba hopes to sell about 1,000 models a month before the 55X1 arrives in the U.S sometime in 2010.

Toshiba also gave some insight into its future plans for CELL processor-based TVs. It talked about using the chip in a range of concepts, including a 3D TV, and a 4K x! 2K mode l that upconverts 1080p to 3840 x 2160. Holy crap. More please. [Toshiba via Impress AV Watch]




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AT&T touts Opera-powered full web browsing with new phones from Samsung and Pantech

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/05/atandt-touts-opera-powered-full-web-browsing-with-new-models-from/

AT&T wants you to know that you don't need a smartphone just to get a rich, full web experience from your handset -- theoretically, anyway -- with the introduction of four new models from longtime partners Samsung and Pantech alongside a new featurephone browser. First up from Samsung comes the Flight (pictured left), billed as a "next-generation messaging device" on account of its full QWERTY portrait slide paired with a full touchscreen up top; it'll be available next month for $99.99 on contract after rebate -- that is, if you didn't buy it on Craigslist already. That silvery slate in the middle that's more likely to be catching your eye is the Mythic, rocking TouchWiz on a 3.3-inch display along with AT&T Mobile TV, making it a fitting successor to the Eternity and big brother to the Solstice; like the Flight, it swings onto retail next month, but you'll be paying a stiffer $199.99 on contract after $50 rebate.

Turning our attention to the Pantech side of the table, we've got the Reveal (pictured right) that lets you have it both ways with a numeric keypad up top twined with a QWERTY slider underneath. It's 3G-capable, AT&T Navigator-equipped, and available for your enjoyment on October 18 in red and blue. Finally, the Impact (not pictured) has an OLED touchscreen up front, but when the texting gets hot and heavy, the phone opens up to reveal a second display along with a QWERTY keyboard. It'll be available in pink and blue, though neither pricing nor availability are being announced just yet.

Gluing everything together is AT&T's new mobile browser, described as "a rich hybrid experience that gives you a HTML experience similar to your PC browser at home" that "works really well on a feature phone." Additionally, users visiting att.net from their PCs will be able to send bookmarks to their phones' mobile portals -- kind of a neat trick, especially when you're trying to minimize the number of URLs you have to mash out on an on-screen keyboard. Of course, featurephone browsers have a reputation for generally sucking, so considering that AT&T bills its new line of devices as "full web browsing phones," it'll be interesting to see how close they actually come to delivering on the claim; it's said the phones use "advanced data compression from Opera Software," which we're thinking is very likely some variation of Opera Turbo -- not a bad start.

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AT&T touts Opera-powered full web browsing with new phones from Samsung and Pantech originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 05 Oct 2009 00:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HTC Pure and Tilt 2 bring Windows Mobile 6.5 to AT&T

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/05/htc-pure-and-tilt-2-bring-windows-mobile-6-5-to-atandt/

Long-rumored versions of HTC's ubiquitous Touch Diamond2 and Touch Pro2 have finally been made official for AT&T -- but perhaps more notably, they mark AT&T's very first forays into the WinMo 6.5 arena as Microsoft officially unleashes the latest version of its mobile platform on the world this week. The Pure (pictured left) is a particularly heavy rework of the Diamond2's industrial design, shedding the square metal-adorned shell for a glossy black plastic one while carrying over the 3.2-inch WVGA display and 5 megapixel autofocus camera. Meanwhile, the Tilt 2 resurrects the Tilt name -- dormant since AT&T's version of the TyTN II made way for the Fuze last year -- bringing a 3.6-inch WVGA display, full QWERTY keyboard with tilt-up display (hence the name), full duplex speakerphone, and a 3.2 megapixel cam. The Pure will be the first on shelves, available already (ahead of Microsoft's official release on Tuesday, interestingly) for $149.99 on contract after a $50 rebate; the Tilt2 comes "in the following weeks" for $299.99 after $50 rebate.

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HTC Pure and Tilt 2 bring Windows Mobile 6.5 to AT&T originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 05 Oct 2009 00:01:00 EST. Please see our terms fo! r use of feeds.

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