HANDSETS

Motorola Aura

Is it a watch or is it a handset? Not sure to be honest – Motorola seems to be concentrating on the idea that it is circular, like a watch, so should be referred to as a watch. It is admittedly a beautiful piece of work, but maybe it’s a bit much for a device that is a simple quad-band, non-3G, non-WiFi, non-GPS handset with a lowly two megapixel camera. Maybe the idea is that its simplicity makes it timeless, like… a watch?

However, the marketing schpiel is worth sharing. How about: “Technical precision and mechanical excellence are met with a Swissmade main bearing and more than 200 parts that create a seamless opening for the handset”? Oh, and don’t forget that: “Its form recalls the timeless beauty of luxury watches.” Lovely.

If your customer has a handset that does all the real work and just wants something pretty to take to the opera/tea with the Queen, maybe this is for them, pieced at a mere $1999.00. (Ed says: If anyone wants to buy me a Christmas present…..?)

Samsung Tobi

Samsung Electronics has launched the Samsung Tobi, a mobile phone designed primarily for the safety of children, and for the peace of mind of their parents. This handset is designed to be fun, tough and with safety features for kids built into the design, including SOS calls and message options.

The buy is of course aimed at those with the cash; parents. Part of that involves an educational programme from Samsung Mobile for children and their parents, building awareness around the issue of children’s safety. An excellent idea, well done Samsung.

As well as being available in pink or blue, this little stocking filler is made using non-toxic paints and non-allergenic materials and is environmentally friendly, constructed using recyclable and biodegradable bio-plastics made from corn by-products. (So when the kids get bored with it they can feed it to the hamster.)

The Samsung Tobi slider phone is also packed with the multimedia features, including an MP3 player, 1.3 Megapixel camera, Bluetooth messaging, and edu-tainment games including free trial versions of Brain Challenge and Tetris. Battery is included.

Nokia E63

Nokia has announced the latest addition to its Eseries range, the Nokia E63, designed for people who need to manage their business and personal lives equally well. Building on the success of the Nokia E71, the company’s flagship messaging device, the Nokia E63 brings the QWERTY keyboard form factor to a broader audience at an affordable price that should suit the low to mid market when it hits the UK in early January.

Although it really isn’t a hit in the sexy stakes, looks like a remote control and is only available in blue or red for those that don’t like their handsets in subtle shades, this device has the ability to switch modes with a single key press, switching from a view of corporate mail, appointments and intranet data, to a personal mode with a picture of friends, personal email and shortcuts to favorite hobby blogs or websites. The Nokia E63 also includes Files on Ovi, a service where people can get remote access to their PC files even when their computer is offline.

HP iPaq Data Messenger and Voice Messenger

HP has released two new handsets, the iPaq Data Messenger and the iPaq Voice Messenger. The higher spec Data handset is all about – you’ve guessed it – data. It has a slide-out QWERTY keyboard, HSDPA up to 7.2Mbps downlink, and runs Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional edition versus the Voice handset’s Standard Edition. The Data has a 2.81 inch diagonal display, while the Voice has a slightly smaller 2.4 inch version on its non-sliding, pretty normal design. Both have a 3.1 megapixel camera with flash, both support WiFi and Bluetooth, both have 128 megabits of memory and … the Data is heavier by 53 grams.

Neither of these handsets are going to set pulses racing, but they do contain all the software required for work and play. The work-focused Data includes: Opera version 9.5 Browser; Microsoft Office Mobile, including Outlook Mobile for push email; real time streaming support; Google Maps and Google Search; Windows Live for instant messaging; Windows Media Player Mobile for audio and video playback; and Microsoft Internet Sharing.

Whereas the play-orientated Voice has more of a social slant on its software, including: intelligent predictive text input; threaded chat and text messaging; Snapfish Upload for photos; Jetcet PDF; and ArcSoft Media Player for real time streaming.