New Samsung I7500

Besides HTC, Samsung is also coming up with its own andriod-powered mobile phone, the Samsung I7500.



It looks somewhat similar to the HTC Magic, only that it comes in a black colour. But since most of the Samsung phones are also sleek and pretty, I suppose they might score higher in the looks department than HTC.

Again, there is not much information released on this phone but we do have some basic information like connectivity. There's 3G, HSDPA, HSUPA, GPS, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, GPRS/GSM, USB, and EDGE.

It also comes equipped with a 5 megapixel camera as well as a 3.5mm headphone jack that allows for use of personal earphones other than the phone's version. It also has a built-in 8GB storage as well as a microSD card slot so overall it's quite a well-rounded phone.

Oh, these phones better come quick then we can have a real look at their functions.

New HTC Magic

Whoa, andriod phones are starting to invade the mobile phone market and the newest model from HTC is the MTC Magic.




It looks so much better than its predecessor, the HTC Dream. So far not much details are known about this phone except that it doesn't come with a slide out keyboard like the HTC Dream.

Based on looks, it sure wins over the HTC Dream anytime but iPhone is still way too sleek for its competitors to catch up to it in terms of the looks.

So far reports are saying that the phone will be selling in Europe but no releases has been announced for Asia yet. By the time that release comes, Apple will probably have released its third version of its hugely popular iPhone, which is slated for an update this July.

HTC Maple, a Blackberry lookalike?

According to CNET, a HTC smartphone is supposedly due to be released and for now, is codenamed as HTC Maple.

Upon the first look, RIM's Blackberry comes to mind as the designs are very similar. See illustrations below for references:

HTC Maple

Blackberry Bold

Judging from the pictures, the 2 phones certainly look alike. Whether HTC will market this phone in Asia is still unknown but it would be interesting to see how its phone will fare against the Blackberry, the king of business phones.

Even my company is using Blackberry for all its managerial staffs and above, which in my opinion is a waste as our company is a statutory board, not a private-owned entity.

Nonetheless, let's see how the mobile phone sector will heat up with this new entrant.

HTC Touch HD Only Exclusive to Starhub

I was so happy when I read in the papers that HTC Touch HD will be coming to Singapore this month.

Yet to my dismay, this new phone is an exclusive item specially sold by Starhub. Since I have a Singtel mobile phone contract, I am unable to purchase this new baby to replace my Nokia N95 8GB.

Looks like this is going to be the mobile operators latest strategy to lock in new customers, by selling phones that are not offered by other competitors. Yes, it's convenient for the companies and those new customers. But what about the existing customers? Does that mean we are penalised for NOT changing our mobile operator?

All these exclusive thingies are not doing us justice. Already in the US, AT&T practice this with the iPhone. Or maybe the party who's truly at fault is actually Apple.

Damn stupid Apple. It wants to earn big bucks and through all these exclusive deals, it ensures that Apple fans will be lured and tied to one of their desired operators, i.e. one who would pay them, Apple, the most premium fees for selling the iPhone.

I guess that's when the trend of selling exclusive phones kicks in for all mobile operators. This is so unfair to us, especially if we don't feel like changing our operators since we are comfortable with them.

Life sucks, doesn't it?

=(

HTC Touch HD comes to Singapore!

According to CNET's Crave, the HTC Touch HD will be coming to Singapore and Starhub will offer the phone in November this year. The rest of the authorized distributors will offer the phone from December this year.







I just flipped through the Saturday's The Straits Times and to my disappointment, there was no advert for the Touch HD yet. According to the website, the phone will be priced at $1,388 and will be categorized as a premium phone.

Oh boy. I hope the telcos will cut the price down reasonably enough. If the reviews of the phone are very good, I might just buy it to replace my current Nokia N95 8GB. Will the Touch HD be a successful iPhone killer? Stuff.TV has put the Touch HD and the iPhone side by side for a picture comparison. See below:




Only time will tell.

If it fails to beat the iPhone, then it's not a big problem to me since I'm sure there are still good virutes about the Touch HD. There's the generous screen with its 3.8-inch WVGA display touchscreen. Plus multiple wireless connectivity options that makes this baby absolutely a techie's dream. The gorgeous design also helps to increase the droolicious factor for this baby.

The only thing that might, a huge MIGHT at that, be a deal-breaker for me would be the keyboard. See illustrations from Stuff.TV below:




The setup of the keyboard is, unfortunately, not a QWERTY version but a conventional one. How well the screen will survive on my heavy SMS usage will be a constant question in my mind. I have not yet tried a touchscreen phone and have no idea how good or how bad the keyboard will interfere with the mobile experience. I hope everything is not as complicated as it may sounds. I just want a phone that works and works well.

So far, it's still early days yet and there are other soon-to-be released models by other phone makers and it remains to be seen who will eventually win the consumers' heart, and also my pocket money. Hahaha!

Here Comes Google's Android Phone

The mobile phone market is abuzz with news on an upcoming model which will feature Google's most anticipated Android mobile platform. Pictures of the phone, T-Mobile G1, can be found on CNET Asia's website and I have posted some of them here for easy reference.




















The phone is produced by HTC, the same phone maker for the HTC Touch HD as well. Looks like this company reaching out for the skies and I am eagerly waiting for both phones to arrive to our Singapore shores. However, the T-Mobile G1 seems a bit too bulky and hopefully the commercial set will be slightly smaller.

If the Android turns out to be a huge success, it could be a serious contender for the Apple's iPhone as well. That would truly be an eye-opener and only good can come out of this competition.

Now we only have 1 thing to do.

That is, Wait.

Gorgeous HTC Touch HD Phone

I had just came across a really gorgeous phone on the Internet, the HTC Touch HD. It's really, really pretty and some pictures are attached below for easy reference:


















The pictures are from CNET Asia, which estimates that the phone will launch around November. That's around 1 month's time and I can't wait to get my hands on a commercial set. I'm interested to see how this phone can measure up to Apple's iPhone or will it get blown away by Apple?

The only thing that's not shown in the pictures is the keyboard for text input. Will it be those pc keyboard prototype or will it be modelled after conventional number pad for mobile phone? That would either make or break this phone as I'm more inclined towards the pc keyboard type as I tend to sms more often.

Whatever it is, I shall have to wait patiently for November's arrival.

=)