Mobile Digest

Nokia 2626 mobile phone for 'emerging markets'

From what I understand, the new Nokia 2626 announced today is aimed more at emerging markets, so I'm not sure if or when we'll see the phone in the UK.

It's a dualband EGSM phone based on the Series 40 user interface. It has a 128x128 pixel display able to show 65,000 colours, has a one-touch FM radio, Nokia Xpress Audio Messaging, Voice Recorder, MMS, IM, MP3 ringtones, an email client, JAVA, WAP browser, and built-in handsfree speaker.

It comes in a choice of five body colours: Fiery Red, Spatial Blue, Energetic Copper, Elegant White, and Navy Blue.

Dimensions are 104 mm x 43 mm x 18 mm (L x W x H) and it weighs 91g. It has a talk time of up to 3 hours and standby of up to 12 days.

Its suggested retail price is €75, available from early 2007.

Nokia

Nokia 6290 smartphone announced

Nokia's announcement of new mobile phones continues with the Nokia 6290 smartphone which they say is "advanced technology made brilliantly simple"

It seems to be aimed at the professional. Dimensions are 94 mm x50 mm x 20.8 mm (L x W x H), weighing 115g. This smartphone is based on the world’s leading smartphone software S60 on Symbian OS.

It features a digital camera with 4x digital zoom, integrated flash, and serial shooting of 15 shots, 2.2" QVGA 16.7m colour screen, rich email functionality including Office attachments, MP3 music player with stereo surround sound, and two way video calling.

It promises an ergonomic keypad, fast access keys and intuitive menu structure, plus a Setup Wizard to guide users through the process of establishing their specific email, MMS functions as well as operator-specific settings.

It comes with 50MB of memory and a microSD card slot for expansion. It's GPRS, EGPRS and WCDMA enabled, as well as Bluetooth.

The Nokia 6290 phone has a talk-time of up to 3.5 hours and a standby battery time of up to 10 days.

It should be available in the first quarter of 2007, exact pricing and availability to be confirmed, but RRP is around €325.

Nokia

Nokia 6086 GSM/UMA camera phone

Nokia's announcement today of four new mobile phones includes the Nokia 6086.

It's a UMA (Unlicensed Mobile Access) handset designed to allow its users to stay in touch whatever their environment. It's a quad-based GSM and UMA camera phone with a classic design, large keypad and intuitive user interface. Dimensions are 92 mm x 46 mm x 23 mm (L x W x T), and weighing 84 grams.

It features a camcorder and video player, Bluetooth synchronisation, VGA camera with 4x digital zoom, 6MB user memory expandable via microSD card, and up to 5 hours of talk time and 10 days of standby.

Nokia say that the UMA technology will benefit mobile operators, allowing them to deliver voice and data services to their subscriber base over WLAN, decreasing their costs related to network deployment and increasing mobile service availability.

Apparently Orange will be one of the first to offer the 6086 and added to their Unik offer launched back in September.

“Our Unik offer combines the best of fixed and mobile within a single handset, allowing customers to use one phone to meet all their needs - with one number, one address book, one voice mail and one bill,” says Yves Maitre, Vice President, Devices, Orange. “Already customers can choose from the largest range of UMA phones. The addition of the Nokia 6086 strengthens our Unik offer and builds on the strong tradition we have of working with Nokia to combine cutting edge technology with exceptional ease of use.”

Estimated price €200, and available from early 2007.

Nokia

Nokia 6300 thin and compact monoblock mobile

Amongst Nokia's new phones announced today is the stylish Nokia 6300, a thin and compact mobile phone with some decent specifications.

Size wise, it's just 13.1mm thick, 106.mm high and 43.6mm wide, with a stainless steel design, and weighs in at 91 grams.

It comes with a 2 megapixel digital camera with 8x digital zoom, able to take 1280x960 resolution still images and 176x144 videos.

It has a 2-inch QVGA screen able to display 16.7m colours at 320x240 resolution.

It synchronises with a PC via USB, has a standard memory of 135MB and able to be expanded to 2GB using microSD cards. It's an MP3 player and FM radio, has voice dialling, voice commands and voice recording, and an integrated hands-free speaker. Communications wise it has GPRS, EGPRS, and Bluetooth.

Talk time is up to 3.5 hours and standby of up to 14 days.

It should be available in the first quarter of 2007, exact pricing and availability to be confirmed, but RRP is around €250.

Nokia

Nokia announce four new mobile phones: 6300, 6290, 6086, 2626

Nokia today announced four new mobile phones which will be hitting world markets in the first quarter of 2007. Here's an overview of the four handsets, with links to more detailed descriptions and pictures for each phone:

Nokia 6300

The Nokia 6300 is a mid-range model, less than 13.1mm thick with a stainless steel frame that will add strength as well as design interest. It sounds as if it will be curvy, and have a decent range of features. Retail cost of the phone will be around €250 - of course deals and availability will vary.

Nokia 6290

The Nokia 6290 is a smartphone combining the power of the S60 3rd edition and 3G that promises to be easy to use and attractively designed. Features include multiple alarms, quick cover access keys, and an interactive world travel application. Estimated price €325.

Nokia 6086

The Nokia 6086 is a quad-band GSM and UMA-enabled camera phone in a classic design, large keypad and intuitive user menu. Estimated price €200.

Nokia 2626

The Nokia 2626 is being aimed at emerging world markets. It will come in a range of bold colours including Fiery Red and Spatial Blue, and include an FM radio. Estimated price €75.

More details to follow.

Parrot MK6000 - hands-free mobile phone car kit with streaming audio capability

Parrot has unveiled the MK6000, which it claims is the first hands-free mobile phone car kit with streaming audio.

The MK6000 sits on your dashboard. To operate, start your car, pair your Bluetooth-enabled smartphone or other MP3 device with the MK6000 and your music can be heard over your car’s stereo system. In addition to audio streaming, the new MK6000 features two other innovations - ‘beamforming’ technology for improved voice quality while phoning and a text-to-speech synthesis function that will read the phone book listings to you.

The MK6000 has a one-button user interface that controls all the music functions such as play, fast forward, and track selection. The unit also allows you to to make calls, take calls and check voicemail without touching your mobile phone, as well as muting the music when a call is made or received.

The MK6000 will be available in the UK from early 2007, priced at £124.99

Parrot website

Nokia reveals worldwide mobile gaming habits

Nokia have done some research into people who play games on their mobile phones. A diverse group of 1800 people from China, Germany, India, Spain, Thailand and the United States were asked about their gaming habits.

80% of those interviewed play at least once a week, with 34% playing every day. The average length of play is 28 minutes, but highest in India (39 minutes), the US (31 minutes) and Thailand (29 minutes)

Games are played as much on the move (61%) as at home (62%), and 56% play whilst waiting for something else to happen.

Oh look, here's a surprise: The Nokia-sponsored survey showed that 63% of respondents preferred 'the richer experience of Nokia's next generation mobile games offering over existing Java 2D and Java 3D games offerings.'

Good gameplay (83%), replayability (79%) and game genre (78%) are key motivators when considering which mobile games to purchase. Graphical quality (84%) and using the phone for other purposes while downloading (78%) were found to be the most important features when deciding to play Nokia's next generation mobile games.

Worldwide gaming trends show that connecting people, either as teammates or as opponents, is becoming an increasingly important part of what consumers want from their mobile gaming experience. Globally, 45% play multiplayer games on their mobile phones at least once a month. India tops with over half (56%) playing at least once a week and one in four playing everyday.

Not only do players want to defeat their foes, they also want to share game demos with their friends (62%). Additionally, a large majority (79%) would trial games sent by friends.

"These research results further validate that consumers are looking to the next generation of mobile gaming to meet their gaming needs," says Jaakko Kaidesoja, director, games, multimedia, Nokia. "Consumers are demanding great graphics, great content and great game play and we have listened. Next year, we intend to deliver superior mobile gaming experiences which will include great looking, involved and connected games that are easy to find, manage and play."

Mobile adult content market to grow to $3.3bn by 2011

Juniper Research suggests that demand from the well-developed European market will propel the mobile adult content market from its current level of $1.4bn to over $3.3bn by the year 2011.

Here's a shock revelation: sex sells, and is pretty persistent. Mobile is the latest channel for the distribution of adult content, thanks to the increasingly rapid roll out of 3G services incorporating enhanced mobile video and graphics capabilities.

By 2011, video-based services will account for over 70% of mobile adult content market revenue.

Bruce Gibson, Research Director at Juniper Research, said: "The mobile channel will provide a different way of presenting adult content to traditional delivery channels and will reach new audiences. Mobile is about fun and instant gratification. I think the biggest opportunity is at the casual and “softer” end of the adult market –- lads in pubs sharing a video clip after a few pints and people looking for a bit of fun when they have spare time to kill, etc. - not the hard core stuff.”"

So there you go, more sex on your mobile.

Mobilesift.co.uk mobile comparison site launches

Another day, another comparison website launches. I really think someone ought to launch a website comparison comparison website, but there you go.

The latest service to launch is MobileSift which allows you to find, compare and buy mobile phones online. Andy James considers that existing comparison sites fail to provide essential information.

"Choosing the best mobile phone deal is easy, providing you have all the relevant information to make an informed decision", says James. "Mobilesift offers this essential information in the form of buyers' guides, faqs, tips and 'key features".

Mobilesift compares the latest mobile phone handsets, including Nokia, Motorola, LG, Sony Ericsson, Samsung and other brands. Users can compare the best deals for pay-monthly contract or pay-as-you-go mobile phones.

Mobilesift.co.uk

Sony Ericsson opens first retail store in London

Sony Ericsson has today officially opened its first retail store, which you'll find in Kensington High Street, London.

The store covers 3,500 square feet, with the focal point being a central bar that runs the length of the store, which allows potential purchasers to try out "live" handsets - so you can snap away with one of the Cybershot or listen to a few tunes on the Walkman handsets. Which might be a good way of keeping warm and busy when the cold weather kicks in.

There's also specially trained staff to talk you through the latest kit - and of course, you can buy it, along with accessories and cards for your handset, via a deal with Carphone Warehouse, which is running the store. Other stores in "key cities" are to follow.

Sony Ericsson website

October text stats show we're more in love with SMS

Despite all the latest gizmos and attachments for mobile phones, latest statistics show that we're still a nation of text addicts.

October set a new record, with 3.8 billion texts sent, with texts rising steadily month-on-month since May.

It's up 27% on October last year, and up 100 million from last month.

In August, the Mobile Data Association predicted that 40 billion texts would be sent this year, and these stats suggest that will be surpassed.

Google slams mobile operators that block its content

A Google senior executive has laid into mobile operators around the world, accusing some of them of blocking access to certain Internet applications (yes, including Google's own)

Chris Sacca, head of special initiatives at Google, said on Monday that certain mobile operators had lobbied the search giant, asking it to stop people accessing Google Mobile Maps. Oh yeah, that's going to happen.

"They're inserting themselves in between you and an application that you want. I think that has scary, scary implications," said Sacca.

He also hit out at operators claiming to provide unlimited Net access but then blocking hungry applications like VoIP and streaming video. I'm sure they'll just claim some 'fair use' policy.

"VoIP is not a service. It's a technology which provides only one thing — cheaper calls — and we can provide cheaper calls very easily by cutting prices,” Bobby Rao, Vodafone corporate strategy director, told journalists and analysts on Wednesday.“We think the best way to offer people cheaper calling plans is to offer them cheaper calling plans... The value customers are looking for is not VoIP,” Rao added.

Yep, I think you're missing some of the point, here, Bobby.

iPhone will sport mini OS X?

The latest rumours surrounding Apple's much anticipated 'iPhone' is that it will contain a stripped-down version of Apple's next OS X operating system - codenamed 'Leopard'.

Well, provided the other bits of the rumour stack up into a real product, that's not particularly surprising. After all, could you imagine Apple putting Windows XP, Palm OS or Symbian onto its own smartphone? I don't think so (mind you, how many people said Apple would never go to Intel...)

Now, that would be a tasty phone if you're already a fan of what OS X provides. Truly mobile communication with iChat, appointments on iCal, a full Mail app. Of course, it wouldn't get a full Leopard in there - the processing power and storage space wouldn't be big enough - but it's an appealing thought.

Vertu's millionaire-friendly Signature Duo handset

I tend to use the number of marks and scratches on my handset as an indicator of when I need to upgrade my phone. But there's no chance of doing that with the extremely flash Vertu Signature Duo, as it's got a scratch-proof screen.

You can find out all about the handset at Brandish, but before you nip down to the local phone shop, it's worth noting that the scratch-proof screen is down to it being made of sapphire, the body is made of stainless steel and titan and the phone comes equipped with a concierge service to sort out your every need at any hour.

Now, if you want to find out how much all this costs, head over to Brandish, where you'll also find many more great items worthy of your hard-earned cash.

Iqua's stylish CPW-603 Bluetooth wireless headset

We covered the Iqua Bluetooth car kit earlier this week, but if you're on the look out for something a bit more personal, the Finnish firm has a solution for that too - the CPW-603 Bluetooth wireless headset.

The emphasis here is style - aimed at the fashion-conscious, the CPW-603 is available in pearl white, charcoal and pink, each with the same minimalist styling. It's also lightweight, fits in either ear and promises crystal-clear sound from any brand of Bluetooth phone.

It's also straightforward to use - one button allows you to switch a call between phone and headset, redial or end the call. And there's voice activated dialling, along with support for VoIP calls when used with your PC.

The CPW-603 costs £29.99 exclusively from Carphone Warehouse.

Carphone Warehouse website

T-Mobile offers first non-PDA mobile broadband handset - Samsung Z560

T-Mobile has launched the first non-PDA HSDPA (3G broadband) mobile phone in the UK - the Samsung Z560, offering connection speeds four times faster than traditional 3G. And even better - you can attach it to your PC and use it as a high-speed modem.
 
Using T-Mobile's Web 'n' Walk service, you get high-speed web access and email on the lightweight (98g) device, along with a 2 megapixel camera, MP3 player with 3D stereo sound, 30MB of internal memory, video streaming, video calling and up to one hour's video recording.

A basic Web 'n' Walk package for the handset is £7.50 per month. However, if you want to hook it up to your laptop, other plans give you that option. Opting for Web 'n' Walk Plus gives you the option of high-speed web browsing on your laptop, aling with instant messaging for £12.50 per month. Or if you want to make some free calls, the Web 'n' Walk Max package adds VoIP calling for a total of £22.50 per month.

The Samsung Z560 costs from free on a T-Mobile pay monthly price plan and is available now.

T-Mobile website

My Oxbow - surfer brand meets Sagem mobile phone

Sagem seems well up for the co-branded handset. Following on from its Roland-Garros tennis handset and its England World Cup phone, the company has launched My Oxbow - a collaboration with the surfing label, creating a handset in one of Oxbow's designs.

So, for a surfer-friendly phone, I'm guessing you'd expect a wacky (but watertight) handset? Guess again, this is just a standard Sagem my400v handset with VGA camera. However, it does offer extra surfer content as part of the Vodafone Live service, including weather for surfing, places to stay, information relating to Oxbow (including the latest gear and events) and dedicated downloads.

But before all you surfer dudes dash out for one, note this is only currently available in France. But if successful, something similar is likely to head over to the UK.

Sagem website

Ealing patients to receive health and appointment information by text message

Ealing Primary Care Trust has announced that patients across its 22 surgeries will soon receive GP appointment reminders and health information by SMS text messages on their mobile phones, making it the largest scheme in UK primary care.

It will utilise the Orange mobile network and iPLATO Patient Care Messaging service, which assures confidentiality and security across a multi-lingual and ethnically diverse population.

Working in conjunction with existing patient booking systems, the plan is that it will free up time currently spent contacting patients and so provide a better overall care service.

It's also believed that important health information, for example about the flu jab, has a better response rate when sent by text.

For a National Health Service strapped for cash, another advantage is that it could save over £240m per year if adopted across England.

Keith Martin, Service Development Manager at Ealing PCT, said, "Mobile patient services have proven that they are cost effective and scalable and are, therefore, the way forward in Ealing. We have a diverse population of 360,000 patients registered with GPs in the borough and many already use mobiles to run their daily lives. Ealing PCT chose iPLATO for its long experience in UK primary care. Patient Care Messaging is functional and secure. It improves service without adding extra work for healthcare staff and integrates seamlessly with existing systems used by GPs to book appointments and clinics.”

It follows news earlier in the month that the Royal Free Hospital is using SMS messaging for confidential appointments.

Virgin Mobile extend mobile ticketing with free tickets to The Automatic gig

Virgin Mobile has extended its partnership with ActiveMedia Technology and FlyTxt to develop its mobile ticketing strategy, enticing its mobile customers by giving away 300 free tickets to "The Automatic" sell-out concert this Sunday, 26th November, at the Carling Academy, Islington.

This mobile ticket giveaway follows the recent launch of Q Jump, a mobile loyalty campaign that enables Virgin Mobile customers to jump to the front of the queue using mobile ticketing technology.

This is an interesting experiment (by the way, if there's any freebies left, Virgin Mobile customers can text the number of tickets they want to 26666 on a first-come-first-served basis - good luck!). It's not exclusive mobile ticketing (like Nokia's Guns n' Roses gig) - more like a bolt-on to traditional ticketing - but if successful could lead to more virtual tickets being sent out in this way (though being free, results could be just a little biased).

Manchester City FC are also trying mobile ticketing, and it looks like a use of technology that will continue to grow.

Virgin Mobile

Iqua miniUFO - the saucer-shaped handsfree kit for the car

Still using your mobile phone on the road? Well, you obviously know it's illegal, so if you want to keep your licence clean and yourself fine-free, you should look at something like the Iqua miniUFO - a Bluetooth device for accessing your calls handsfree on the road.

Mount the miniUFO on the sun visor or dash-board of your car and you get up to up to 10 hours talk time and 450 hours standby time. Sound quality is good, thanks to "cutting-edge" noise suppression and echo cancellation techniques. Four simple buttons cover the main functions (if you're not on the move) or you can activate by voice if your phone supports it.

Other functions include mute, call waiting, conference, the ability to switch easily between phone and handsfree, and LEDs to indicate your Bluetooth is active, your call status and if your battery is low.

It's available now, priced around £40.

Find out more

E-Ten Glofiish M700 pocket PC with sliding keyboard and Wi-Fi

E-Ten has announced the imminent arrival of the Glofiish M700 - a pocket PC/communicator with neat sliding QWERTY keyboard and Wi-Fi connectivity.

For some people, a full keyboard will probably be enough to make this worthy of a second look, esepcially if you like to send numerous sms and email messages or edit documents on the move. And with that keyboard sliding, it means less bulk in your bag. Software is Windows Mobile 5.0, so everything you'd expect there, including push email and use of a full Microsoft Office suite.

The M700 supports GSM, GPRS and EDGE, plus Wi-Fi connectivity if you're in range of a network. There's also GPS via an embedded SiRF Star III chipset and a range of E-Ten software, including several phone and messaging tools, camera and image editing software and an FM tuner.

The Glofiish M700 should be available by mid-December from Expansys, price to be confirmed.

Expansys website

TWIG Discovery gadget combines mobile phone with GPS sat-nav

The TWIG Discovery is an all-in-one mobile phone and handheld satellite navigation / GPS unit which means that if you want personal navigation features you need only carry around one gadget with you and still get much of your mobile's functionality.

Whilst you can get navigation software for mobiles and smartphones, Finnish manufacturer Benefon claim this as the first of its kind, combining GPS satnav with phone in a single handset.

Not only can it be used to find your way around the place, including places of interest, but it will also allow you to find your other TWIG-wielding friends, and plot a path to them.

There's an alert button which allows your GPS location and address to be sent by SMS or email to ten preset contacts, instantly letting them know where you are.

Though the hardware doesn't yet sport the niftier features of mobiles (camera, Java, etc.) its main purpose is in navigation and location of other people, and at this it sounds very capable.

The TWIG Discovery will retail for £330 and is available from their website.

TWIGWorld

Sony Ericsson Newsflash exhibition - the best cameraphone images of the year

With improved cameras on our phones, we're all equipped to capture the images that make the news. If you're in doubt, check out Newsflash - an exhibition of cameraphone images that captured a moment.

Sponsored by Sony Ericsson and held at London's Air Gallery, Newsflash features images taken by the British public that demonstrate how cameraphones are playing an increasingly prominent role in photo-journalism - from such extremes as a bird’s eye view of a burning church to Jenson Button’s first F1 win.

The exhibition also features cameraphone images taken by sporting pundits, including James Allen (Formula1), Nasser Hussain (cricket), Gaby Logan (football), Kenny Logan (rugby), Matthew Hoggard (cricket), Suzi Perry (motorcycle racing), Steve Backley (athletics), Robbie Earle (football), Annabel Croft (tennis) and Kelly Sotherton (athletics). And it features the best images discovered as part of the Sony Ericsson/Times competition to find the Cameraphone Photographer of the Year 2006, the winner of which was Ms Machmann-Morck, from Norway, who took the picture featured here of a fire at the Royal Academy.

Sony Ericsson Newsflash runs from 13 - 17 December 2006 at the Air Gallery, 32 Dover Street, London, W1S 4NE. Admission os free.

Sony Ericsson website

T-Mobile launches Sidekick 3 in UK

T-Mobile has announced the arrival of a new Sidekick - Sidekick 3 - featuring instant messenger and email, a built-in camera, MP3 player and net access via its Web'n'Walk service.

It's probably best to label the Sidekick 3 as a communicator than a mobile phone. Yes, it's a phone, but its strengths probably lie in what else it can do. First, swivel open the screen and get full web access using T-Mobile's Web'n'Walk, along with a full keyboard to key in the addresses and a trackball to move around the page.

Add to that email, instant messenger, calendar/diary functions, 1.3 megapixel camera (with the option of storing images online) and for the first time, an MP3 player. Internal memory is just 64MB, but you can boost this via miniSD (a 64MB card is included).

It should be in stores in December, price not confirmed, but likely to depend on your contract.

T-Mobile website

3 teams up with Groove Mobile for mobile music services

Mobile provider 3 and Groove Mobile have announced that they're joining forces to power a new mobile music service on 3 UK's network. It will see Groove bring its award-winning music service to 3, which is ranked number one in the UK's mobile music download market.

The service will offer full-track music downloads to mobile handsets, access to multiple charts, the download of high-quality album art, and exclusive content.

The music service allows users who purchase music over the air to get their track delivered to their handset, and get a copy of their track online. They can then play it on their laptop or PC, transfer it onto an MP3 player, or burn it to CD. They can also purchase the track on their PC and then download it free of charge to their mobile. Also, in the event that a customer loses/deletes a track, they are able to re-download the track up to 3 times, free of charge (unlike iTunes).

3UK's Marketing Director, Graeme Oxby says "3UK's mobile music service powered by Groove Mobile will enable our customers to download music simultaneously from their phone to their PC and vice versa. It will bring online music purchasing for both home and mobile into one seamless experience. Once again this will demonstrate 3's leadership in this market and give a fabulous experience for our customers."

3

Pitch brings social networking to mobiles for free

Pitch have today launched a new mobile entertainment community, funded entirely by advertising revenue and so free for its users. Features include instant messaging, photo and video upload and sharing, and an 'exciting new online community'.

Yes, it all sounds very MySpace, and that's exactly who they seem to be targeting. Pitch's creators say that MySpace could lose its chance in the increasingly popular mobile space - a space that they're keen to dominate

The service gives users their own unique PitchTag, allows them to build their own mobile home page, and gives them an inbox for sending and receiving messages. They can take part in real-time group chat, and create and join interest groups. Pitch members can upload and share as many pictures and videos as they like, through the unlimited Pitch Albums feature.

The service works primarily over WAP, and Pitch say that the user only pays for data charges and so instant communication is significantly cheaper than sending a text through a network operator. Users must elect to receive up to 3 ads per week.

Pitch CEO Lourens de Beer commented: "Web-based social networking is being embraced worldwide as the ultimate next-generation lifestyle tool, with a myriad of different applications and creative opportunities for individuals to express themselves and their opinions, interacting with each other in a unique space. For the first time, Pitch brings all the benefits of personalised social networking to the mobile handset, a medium perfectly-suited to this phenomenon. The mobile phone has taken next step in becoming the ultimate and indispensable social communication tool."

Pitch TV

HTC launches P4350 smartphone

HTC has launched its 7th smart device in the last 5 months, this time the P4350 smartphone, which is likely to reach Europe by the end of the year, courtesy of Vodafone.

The P4350 is just 17mm thick, weighs 168g and features a semi-automatic sliding full QWERTY keypad, a 2.8-inch colour display with touchscreen, 200MHz processor, 5-way navigation for easy operation, 128MB ROM and 64MB RAM and a microSD slot for file storage. The quad-band device supports GSM/GPRS and EDGE, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth 2.0.

Software is Windows Mobile 5.0 - that means push email, net browsing and synchronisation with Microsoft Outlook Calendar, Contacts and Pocket MSN, plus the Microsoft Office suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint and the ability to view PDF documents).

No specific word on a UK launch, but the P4350 will also be available under the Vodafone brand in Germany and the Netherlands from December 2006.

HTC website

Apple iPhone to sport 2 megapixel camera?

We love Apple rumours, and particularly Apple iPhone rumours. I think we're all expecting some kind of iPhone to be revealed early next year, but the latest buzz is that it will contain a 2.0 megapixel camera on board.

Certainly it's unusual to get a fashionable mobile phone these days without a built-in camera, but Digital Inspiration are asking whether a pretty low-res camera on the iPhone will really be that much of a sell, given that Nokia is already on 3.2 megapixels, and this could be doubled in mid-2007.

Maybe the pull is the hype, more than the exact specifications. After all, even Apple fanboys (yes that includes me) know that the iPod isn't the most feature-rich of all digital music players... but it is Apple.

I'll be a lot happier when we actually get some official word on this iPhone...

Welcome in 2007 at the intercontinental Nokia New Year's Eve party

Nokia are planning an extravagant send-off to 2006, and welcoming in of 2007, by co-ordinating a worldwide New Year's Eve party spanning five cities, connecting up millions of music lovers in the process.

Starting at Hong Kong's Ocean Terminal, then travelling west through Mumbai's Andheri Stadium, the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Ipanema Beach in Rio de Janeiro and finally New York, the party will be beamed via TV and the Internet for those not lucky enough to be there in person (oh yeah, and what happened to London?).

The party is being orchestrated by Harvey Goldsmith CBE, who produced both Live Aid and Live8.

"Living up to our promise of 'Connecting People', Nokia New Year's Eve aims to connect millions of people from around the world through music and mobility," says Jo Harlow, Senior Vice President of Marketing for Nokia (like how she got the slogan in there). "Nokia New Year's Eve leverages the power of television, the internet, live events and the world's most exciting music artists to get people talking, sharing and celebrating on one incredible night."

Yes, those music artists. Expected performers include The Black Eyed Peas and the Scissor Sisters. Jake Shears of the Scissor Sisters was mercifully less corporate: "We're damn thrilled to be playing Nokia's world wide music party. It should be a helluva good time."

Global attendance is expected to top 1.3 million, with a combined TV and Internet audience of 150 million. That's some party.

3 launches MPOPs - Top Of The Pops for mobiles

3 is to launch its own version of Top Of The Pops for mobiles, going under the name MPOPs and hosted by ex-TOTP host Reggie Yates (pictured) and guests.

Launching in December, the show will go out live and weekly on a Friday afternoon to 3's users, initially for a run of seven shows. Each week, the presenters will run through the top selling tracks of the week, with an exclusive preview video, interview or behind the scenes gig clip just before the number one track is announced.

Viewers will be offered instant downloads of the tracks featured, including videos and realtones as well as competitions. According to Morgan Holt, Director of Media Innovation at 3: "The Top of the Pops’ audience hasn’t disappeared - they simply aren’t sitting in front of the TV anymore. So instead of having to sit around waiting for the audience, we’re taking a chart show to them. But we’ve adapted the chart show format for the mobile generation - MPops is shorter and punchier than its TV predecessors."

3 website

Yahoo on Flickr Mobile plans

Present at this morning's X-Series launch from 3 was Yahoo, which is one of the initial partners for 3's mobile broadband service. I had a quick chat with Geraldine Wilson, who's vice president of Connected Life for Yahoo Europe.

At the start, X-Series won't mean a big change to what Yahoo is actually offering to 3 users – it's already offering its Yahoo Go application through the operator, giving users access to email, web search, instant messaging and their Yahoo Photos accounts. However, she says that the important thing about X-Series is that its flat-fee pricing will help popularise this kind of application, because users won't be worrying about how much they're spending on data charges while using it.

More excitingly, she said that proper mobile integration with Flickr is coming in January, presumably also via the Go application. Flickr has signed deals with handset manufacturers like Nokia already to help people upload pics from their phones, but with no data charges on something like X-Series, people will upload many more pics. Roll on January.

Oh, also Wilson said that the other advantage of something like X-Series is the possibilities it opens for mobile advertising - particularly richer ads involving pictures (and presumably video). Once people aren't paying for data by the kilobyte, they're less likely to get angry at effectively having to pay to download ads. That's the theory, anyway.

3's X-Series monthly price? "Less than home broadband"

One thing conspicuous by its absence from this morning's X-Series launch were any firm pricing details. Of course, 3 did say that you'll pay one monthly flat fee for unlimited (albeit with fair-use restrictions) use of all its services, including messaging, browsing and slinging your TV to your phone. But no actual figures.

We sniffed around at the event, including talking to some 3 people, and the consensus was that you'll pay "a bit less than home broadband" for X-Series. Which by our reckoning means £15-20 per month, although this would presumably be on top of your regular monthly tariff covering voice calls, texts, video calls etc.

If true, this is mighty tempting, although we can't help thinking it'd be nice to use all these nifty internet services through a handset with a flip-out keyboard and big wide-screen. Read our other X-Series launch coverage here and here, by the way.

YouTube on your mobile phone - thanks to the Orb and 3's X-Series

Yep we were a bit cynical about it too, but one of the big stories from today's 3 X-Series launch is that subscribers will be able to watch YouTube vids on their mobile. Apparently the Orb software, which will be pre-installed on X-Series mobiles, allows the user to remote control their home PC. So the big news is that you'll be able to watch YouTube vids, stream music stored on your hard drive and more and you won't have to pay mega expensive bandwidth charges to the network as, after a payment of £15-20, it will all be free.

More on the launch here and word for word transcription of the day Yahoo, Google and Microsoft made sweet mobile love together is here.

Check 3 UK's X-Series out for yourself

We've been live-blogging from 3's X-Series launch event this morning, but the official website has just gone live. Click here to have a nose around it, there's a webcast happening right now, details of both launch handsets and the services, and even a strange blog of "mobile internet musings from 3 people on the go", which is inviting your comments. Feel free to suggest they give Ashley and Stuart from Tech Digest a couple of free X-Series phones as we leave the event. Well, it's worth a try.

Check out our launch coverage, and key quotes.

ROK launches Yamgo - extreme Sports mobile TV

If you can't get all your kicks from Shiny's Nollie (that's an extreme sports site for girls), you can watch some on your mobile phone via ROK.

Yamgo is joining ROK TV, a service we've covered in the past, which offers a range of free channels to your GPRS mobile for free. Apart from the data charges obviously. Yamgo TV offers instant access to extreme sport videos 24 hours a day - mini films and action covering everything from snowboarding and skateboarding, through to hangliding, rock climbing and cliff-jumping. For full details of programming, visit the Yamgo website.

For details of the ROK TV service and how to view it on your mobile, via Wi-Fi mobile or on your PC, visit the ROK website.

X-Series from 3 - flat-fee broadband internet and data-hungry services on your mobile handset

Hutchison, the people behind the 3 network, has announced the  X-Series from 3, partnering with Skype, Sling Media, Yahoo!, Nokia, Google, eBay, Microsoft, Orb and Sony Ericsson to offer what it boldly describes as "the true power of broadband internet over the mobile."

What that means in reality is flat-fee pricing for a range of data-hungry services from a compatible handset - those being (at time of launch) the Nokia N73 and Sony Ericsson W950i Walkman phone. Hutchison hopes the flat-fee will appeal to anyone put off data services by fear of the hefty bill at the end of the month - although as yet, we don't know what that monthly figure will actually be.

Heading those services is Skype - you can make and receive unlimited Skype calls with Skype PC users anywhere in the world, along with other Skype 3 mobile customers. There's also the option of using a Slingbox (hardware not included) to watch terrestrial TV, Freeview, cable, and satellite TV on your handset, as well as controlling your home personal video recorder (PVR). Orb offers you access to digital content on your home PC (music files, digital photos, videos etc), with an interface speciifically designed for X-Series handsets.

There's also the option of instant messaging via Windows Live Messenger or Yahoo! Messenger to another X-Series handset or a PC, along with web browsing via Google or Yahoo! search engine. And if you like eBay, there's real-time bidding on there too.

The flat-fee will be on top of your 3 subscription, there is the usual "fair usage" clause and some services (Orb and Slingbox ) will initially be charged at a higher price point. The X-Series from 3 will be lanched in the UK on December 1st 2007. We should have more detail on this later today, after the official press conference.

3 website

Apple Rumour? 12 million iPhones ordered

A Chinese newspaper is reporting that Apple has inked a 12 million unit contract with Foxconn to manufacture their iPhone.

As we've said before, the rumour is that Steve Jobs will announce the much awaited iPhone at the Macworld Expo in January next year.

Other rumours include a 15 inch MacBook which could also appear in January.

(Via Reg Hardware)

Alcatel's budget OT-E801 music phone

Alcatel has launched the OT-E801 music phone with SD card slot, available on pre-pay for under £40.

The dual-band phone is aimed at the "stylishly young". The rubberised handset is available in black and white and features dedicated music control keys and SD card slot. A Sandisk 128MB card is offered with the handset (around 50 music tracks), but you can boost storage to 2GB (nearer 800 tracks). Music transfer is drag 'n' drop via USB.

The handset offers around 9 hours talktime and 270 hours in standby. There's around 6 hours music time with one charge. No video or camera, but there are 2 games included.

The OT-E801 is available now on the high street, price starting at £39.99.

Alcatel website

Nokia to launch music download service with key independent record shops

Nokia will tomorrow launch a new music download site which will let users buy tracks from 40 of the world's most influential record stores, including London's Puregroove records, New York's Fat Beats, Chicago's Reckless, Berlin's Hard Wax, Tokyo's Mona Records, and Rio de Janeiro's Modern Sound.

Users can sign up to musicrecommenders.com free, and receive personalised recommendations every month. The site will also offer artist interviews, city music guides compiled by the independent record stores, and background on the stores themselves. Recommended tracks from any of the 40 stores will cost 89p.

As an added bonus, David Bowie will be contributing exclusively to the service every month and sharing his personal music recommendations.

"Waking up to a new sound or new band is something that makes my day just that bit more exciting,” said David Bowie. “Unfortunately, so much music goes unheard, especially things that don’t bow to the mainstream. Music Recommenders help navigate the undiscovered music that is out there.”

"We wanted a music service which offered music fans the chance to explore new music from all corners of the world that most of us would never normally get to hear. We've recruited the most knowledgeable people, from the best record shops around the world, whose day jobs are to listen to thousands of tracks every week and recommend the best." explained David Roberton of Nokia.

a href="http://musicrecommenders.com/">MusicRecommenders.com opens tomorrow.

T-Mobile launches MDA Compact III mobile with GPS

T-Mobile has announced the launch of its MDA Compact III mobile device with a built-in GPS satellite receiver, and they claim it makes dedicated sat-nav systems redundant.

It comes with CoPilot Live 6 satellite navigation software (as long as you sign up to particular Flext plans), and features turn-by-turn voice instructions, street mapping and powerful route calculation, for use both in-car and on foot.

Users with web'n'walk can get free real-time traffic alerts and avoidance, delivered directly to the CoPilot via the T-Mobile GPRS network.

All the other functions you'd expect from a modern mobile device are there too - tap the screen and you get access to making calls, Internet surfing, checking emails, downloading music and listening to radio. The web browser is based on Microsoft's Windows Mobile 5.0.

The MDA Compact III has a large touch screen, easily switchable from landscape to portrait mode. It also has an integrated 2 megapixel camera and Bluetooth.

It will be available from T-Mobile stores and online from this Thursday, 16th November and will cost £59.99 when purchased on the Flext 35 tariff plus web’n’walk (£42.50 per month).

T-Mobile

Royal Free Hospital uses SMS text messaging for confidential appointments

The Royal Free Hospital in north west London has started using SMS text messaging to allow patients to quickly and anonymously arrange appointments at their Sexual Health Clinic.

Under new Government legislation, these clinics are required to offer patients an appointment within 48 hours, but understandably many patients did not want to visit or phone the centre during office hours, and were often held in a call queuing system if when they tried to phone. Not ideal.

The new system lets people automatically book appointments out of hours. At the end of each day, the system is fed a current list of free appointment slots. Patients can then text a dedicated number from their mobile phones, and they receive a reply with a choice of three appointments within the next 48 hours. Once the patient has responded with their choice, their mobile phone number is used as a temporary patient number, and they receive one more message with a confirmation booking reference, which is then confirmed when the patient attends the clinic. Messages can be used for other data such as postcode, gender, and date of birth, and a different patient phone number can be given out for each unique clinic or service.

It sounds like a great use of modern technology that saves money, improves accuracy, and helps patients make quick and private appointments whenever it suits them.

Go fishing with Discovery on your mobile phone

Fishing and technology - not words that sit well together. But the Discovery Real Time channel hopes to change all that with the launch of Discovery Mobile - 'Fishing Tackled' - a range of fishing content for mobiles, including video tutorials from top angler Matt Hayes.

The WAP-enabled service can be accessed by anyone with a mobile phone and features the best of the channel's fishing output, along with hints and tips on catching a whopper. If you're heading down to the bank, 'Fishing Tackled' also features an exclusive weather service with real time updates across the UK. And if the fish aren't biting, there's some arcade-style games designed too, along with animated fishy screensavers.

To access the service, enter discoverymobile.co.uk into your WAP browser. Or if you have 02's i-mode service, you can access it there.

Discovery Channel

One Minute Review: Sony Ericsson W850i

Ashley takes a look at the new Walkman phone from Sony Ericsson, with a low level of excitment. We can only assume all the Blu-ray activity tired him out. It's available now from the usual suspects, with prices varying on contract. Check out the specs <a href="http://www.sonyericsson.com/spg.jsp?cc=global&lc=en&ver=4001&template=pp1_1_1&zone=pp&lm=pp1&pid=10447">here</a>.
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O2 gets exclusive on James Bond Casino Royale silver K800i Cyber-shot camera phone

Just in time for the movie release, O2 has announced it has an exclusive on the James Bond Casino Royale silver K800i Cyber-shot camera phone we featured some weeks back.

The silver K800i has the same specifications as the standard handset - 3.2 megapixel camera with dedicated shutter button, auto red eye reduction, PictBridge, video/image stabiliser function, BestPic and Picture Blogging. Plus a two-inch QVGA 262K TFT display, 64MB internal flash memory, Bluetooth, full HTML browsing, video recording and playback and music player.

As a bonus, O2 is offering a three DVD pack of GoldenEye, The Man With The Golden Gun, and Goldfinger, some Casino Royale playing cards and a chance to win a holiday. The handset also includes Bond wallpapers, music ringtones and the full video movie trailer.

The handset is available now, but will only be available until the end of January. Price dependent on contract.

O2 website

Freddie Flintoff on your phone! How the Ashes are going mobile

Hurrah for England, we're going to stuff the Aussies in the Ashes. Well, I can hope. But the Ashes are significant this year not JUST because of England's imminent historic whitewashing of Ricky, Shane and chums (am I tempting fate yet?). It's also the first Ashes to have its own 'mobishow'.

What's that when it's at home? A made for mobile TV show called Ashes Down Und