Picture of the day: Audi TT coupe phone

The mobile phone market can boast of a pretty good number of handsets applying car theme: remember the Hammer by Fly, Ferrari and Porsche phones. This time we have another interesting handset, in addition to car design it kept the form.

The device is packed in the popular Audi TT coupe form. It looks like a car toy from the top, make it upside down to reveal a real mobile phone with a 2” touchscreen (260K colors) and the support of MP3, MP4 and other formats. I’d note a 1.3-megapixel camera on the car hood. Unfortunately, we don’t have the info on the price of the model or where to buy it.

Unknown BenQ S7 got iF Design Award China 2007

The International Forum Design site has posted pictures and the short description of an unknown mobile phone BenQ S7. It got iF Design Award China 2007 in “Communication & Entertainment”. This is a candy bar handset packed in the metallic shell. According to the source, it is designed for business users. The source mentions the support of 3G networks, GPS and multimedia functionality (no details). The picture gives us a hint that the device has two cameras – one on the rear panel and the frontal camera for video calls. Other specs might be unveiled at the official announcement. BenQ hasn’t disclosed any info on the model so far.

Mobile device concept with USB-port by Vincent Palicki

Vincent Palicki has introduced a mobile device concept, which might have been released by Sony Ericsson. Unlike other such concepts this one looks quite real and resembles current SE handsets. The device is packed in a candy bar form-factor, equipped with a big display, a camera and stainless steel buttons. The phone can play music (there are player buttons at side), video and work with e-mail. The Vincent Palicki concept stands out for a full-value USB-port. So you can use the standard flash drive. This function might be in handy, it’s only the matter of convincing the manufacturer.

Samsung SCH-U900 debuted on Verizon Wireless

The American operator Verizon Wireless has announced online sales of the FlipShot phone (Samsung SCH-U900). Packed in the clamshell form it has a 3-megapixel camera. The top cover can be revolved for a more convenient camera use. The device is already available at the operator’s site for $199.99 on a two-year service plan. The users can get the FlipShot in black color now and in red color later.

The specs of Verizon Wireless FlipShot:

• Main display – 240x320 pixels, 260K colors
• External display – 128x96 pixels
• 3-megapixel camera with auto focus and digital zoom
• Bluetooth (stereo)
• microSD-slot
• PictBridge support (direct print from the phone)
• Web 2.0
• Dimensions – 95.5x46.5x18.5 mm

Amazon Kindle: paper books go to the past

Amazon has introduced an e-book reader called Kindle. Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos noted that paper books remain the last analog fortress in the digital world affecting the shift to the new technologies. The online giant is aimed at altering the situation and expects that the device will enjoy the commercial success. The Kindle applies e-ink technology, the display is monochrome (the color version is currently under development). The product weighs about 290 g and has a pencil width. The Kindle can store up to 200 books and the SD slot enhances the storage capacity to 1000 books. It lasts for several days to a week on a single charge, the full charge takes 2 hours.

In addition Amazon has launched the Kindle Store online, which currently holds up to 90000 materials, including newspapers, magazines and popular blogs in future. The access to it is provided via EV-DO technology. Sprint is offering the service in the US without insisting on service plans and monthly fees. Besides the Kindle is shipped with the e-dictionary and the Wikipedia access, and will be available at $399.

Lenovo i909 handset for gamers

Lenovo has introduced the i909 mobile phone for the Chinese market. It is meant for gamers. A peculiar thing about it is that you can plug a game-pad to the phone. In addition the device includes the emulator for the popular NES console.

Other features are quite standard: this is a candy bar with a numeric keypad and a 2.4” (QVGA, 262K colors) display, a 2-megapixel camera, a microSD slot and a media player. Lenovo i909 measures 11.4x50.2x15.5 mm. Currently the device is available in China only.

Philips Xenium 9@9k – battery life record

According to some Internet source, another Philips Xenium is about to be launched – the 9@9k. This handset stands out for a record long battery life on a single charge – about two months standby and 17 hours talk time. Other specs remain quite standard, even simple.

The device features GSM/GPRS (900/1800/1900 MHz) networks, a 1.8 240x320x65K color display, a VGA-camera, a microSD-slot, an FM-radio and Bluetooth interface. It measures 108x48x14 mm.

Nokia N82 smartphone officially introduced

Eventually a long-awaited Nokia N82 smartphone got official. The vendor positions the smartphone as a multimedia device optimized for photo capture, navigation and Internet browsing. The smartphone really has powerful features. To top it all the developer has implemented a new 3D multimedia menu in Nokia N82. There is the support of automatic screen orientation (switching between portrait and landscape). Naturally it supports Ovi services, including Nokia Music Store, N-Gage and Nokia Maps. The sales of Nokia N82 have already started on main world markets. The price makes up some €450.

The specs of Nokia N82:

• Networks - WCDMA 2100 MHz (HSDPA), EGSM 900, GSM 850/1800/1900 MHz (EGPRS)
• Platform - S60 3rd edition, Feature Pack 1
• Display – 2.4” 240x320 pixels, 16.7M colors
• Camera - 5-megapixel with Carl Zeiss (Tessar) lens, auto focus, xenon flash and video capture in MPEG-4 with VGA and up to 30 fps
• Frontal CIF-camera for video calls
• Built-in media player (MP3/AAC/eAAC/eAAC+/WMA/M4A, OMA DRM 2.0/1.0 and WMDRM, MPEG4, AVC/H.264, H.264, H.263, RV)
• Stereo FM-radio (87.5-108 MHz)
• Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP
• Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g
• A-GPS with preinstalled Nokia Maps and free maps download
• Java MIDP 2.0, CLDC 1.1
• 3.5-mm jack
• TV-out
• 100 MB of onboard memory
• microSD-slot
• Battery - 1050 mAh
• Talk time – up to 190 minutes (WCDMA), up to 260 minutes (GSM)
• Standby time – up to 210 hours (WCDMA), up to 225 hours (GSM)
• Video call time – up to 120 minutes
• Video time – up to 200 minutes (VGA, 30 fps)
• Music time – up to 10 hours
• Video capture – up to 110 minutes (VGA, 30 fps)
• Photo capture – up to 290 images (with flash)
• Dimensions – 112x50.2x17.3 mm
• Weight - 114 g