HTC HD2 doesn't qualify for a Windows Phone 7 upgrade

Bad news for the HTC HD2 owners: your beloved WinMo smartphones does not qualify for a Windows Phone 7 upgrade. The reason is more than ridiculous but you can't do anything to change the situation: the HD2 packs five hardware buttons instead of only 3.

Yeap, the HTC HD2 has a zippy 1GHz Snapdragon processor, a huge capacitive touchscreen display of high resolution and lots of other goodies but according to a Microsoft representative the HD2 "doesn't qualify because it doesn't have the three buttons [layout]".

According to another MS spokesman, the reason for HD2 to skip the upgrade to Microsoft's latest OS for mobile devices is actually the lack of some hardware components.

Well, Microsoft remain silent on the actual full hardware requirements for Windows Phone 7 OS so speculations are abundant.

Source : gsmarena

LG LG9400 Maxx brings 1 GHz goodness to South Korea

The LG KM900 Arena is getting a replacement - the LG LG9400 Maxx (A.K.A. Arena Maxx). It's launching in South Korea for LG Telecom but if we're lucky and eat our vegetables it just might head out to the rest of the world.

LG LG9400 Maxx (it first leaked as LU9400 so, the LG LG bit might be a typo) is not an "Arena" anymore, but it still is a feature phone with an S-Class user interface, which was upgraded from the previous versions we've seen.

It may surprise you, but at the center of the LG LG9400 Maxx is a Snapdragon CPU running at 1GHz. It's a Qualcomm QSD 8650 chipset rather than the QSD8250 found on Nexus One or the LG GW820 eXpo. QSD 8650 is available in CDMA and GSM flavors, which gives us hope we'll see the Maxx outside Korea with proper 2G/3G GSM support.

The Maxx boasts a 3.5" touchscreen and an optical track pad, Wi-Fi, GPS and HD video decoding as well as T-DMB TV (a Korean mobile TV standard). The LG LG9400 Maxx is equipped with a 5-megapixel camera.

LG will release the LG LG9400 Maxx for SK Telecom and KT soon, but we have neither exact date nor price.

Source : gsmarena

Tethering made easy: SIMFi is a SIM card with built-in Wi-Fi router

Some mobile phones can do Wi-Fi tethering, others need to connect to the PC Suite for Internet sharing and some just can't do it, period. But what if the SIM card in the phone could do it all by itself? Sagem Orga and Telefonica have come up with such a SIM card, dubbed SIMFi.

SIMFi is compatible with existing phones but acts as a Wi-Fi router that any device can connect to. The Wi-Fi gadgetry is integrated into the card itself, but we guess you'd still need a phone with good 3G connectivity to source the data connection in the first place.

More information should be revealed at the MWC next week and hopefully some nagging questions about SIMFi will be answered, like how good a Wi-Fi radio have they managed to fit into the SIM card form-factor and what kind of strain that will put on the phone's battery.

Anyway, this has the potential to become highly popular for customers with solid data plans. Get a SIMFi card with a data plan and you can use it both for your phone and laptop/netbook with no hassle - no moving the card back and forth between the phone and modem or worry about PC Suites or tethering hacks.

HTC HD2 owners are probably smiling right now, their phone came with a Wi-Fi Router app preinstalled. But SIMFi will work on feature phones too, which is a pretty big advantage.

Source : gsmarena

Firefox Mobile 1.0 finally lands on Nokia N900 and N810

Mozilla released the final version of Firefox mobile web browser. It's only available for the Maemo platform and currently N900 and N810 are the only devices to make use of it. The browser comes with the well known Awesome bar and Weave bookmark syncing.

If you own Nokia N900 or N810 you are welcomed to download and install the new Mozilla Firefox 1.0 web browser. Its key features include tabbed browsing, the Awesome "address" bar, download and password managers, local-based browsing, add-on support, pop-up blocker, automatic updates, and easy Weave syncing of bookmarks and passwords.

While most of the features speak for themselves, the Awesome bar and Weave sync may need explanation for the Firefox uninitiated. The Awesome bar is actually a smart address bar - when you start typing an address it will start offering you suggestions based on your current history. The Weave sync will allow you to sync your desktop browser's history, bookmarks, open tabs, etc.

The mobile Firefox is supposed to have optimized memory management, which will spare you some RAM.

The only bad news about it is that the mobile Firefox won't be making its way to another platform anytime soon. Sigh!

Source : gsmarena

Acer neo Touch is the first Snapdragon device

Key features:

* 3.8" 65K-color resistive TFT touchscreen, WVGA 480 x 800 pixels
* Windows Mobile 6.5 with Acer Homescreen, Contacts, Agenda and Gallery
* Qualcomm Snapdragon 1GHz processor, 256MB RAM, 512MB ROM (300MB user available)
* 5 megapixel auto focus camera with LED flash, geotagging, image stabilizer
* VGA video recording @ 30fps
* Quad-band GSM support
* Tri-band 3G with HSDPA (7.2Mbps) and HSUPA (5.76 Mbps) support
* Wi-Fi with DLNA technology
* Built-in GPS with A-GPS functionality
* microSD card slot (up to 32GB)
* FM radio with RDS
* Bluetooth and USB v2.0
* 3.5mm standard audio jack, TV-out functionality
* Ambient light sensor, proximity sensor for screen auto turn-off
* Accelerometer sensor for automatic UI rotation
* Smart dial
* Office document editor (but no PDF viewer)
* Full Flash support in the web browser (IE)
* Top-notch audio output quality

Main disadvantages:

* Not enough user interface customization
* No camera lens cover
* Poor photo and video quality
* microSD slot is under the back cover
* No DivX/XviD video support out-of-the-box
* No navigation software, even Google Maps is not preinstalled
* No active stylus
* High-gloss body panels are a fingerprint magnet
* Poor ringing volume

The neoTouch is the first Snapdragon device we're reviewing but the bigger debut is Acer themselves. Since February 2009 - when they made headlines at the Barcelona WMC - Acer have released 4 handsets all in all that have no corresponding entry in the Eten glofish lineup. (It was the acquisition of Eten that put Acer on the mobile phone map.) And we're looking at one of them making a strong claim to challenge the big ones in the PocketPC game.

Source : gsmarena.com

Linux First ELSE will be available in the second quarter of 2010

The First ELSE runs on Access Linux Platform, a newly-introduced mobile OS that is the foundation of its Else Intuition OS. The main difference between this smartphone from the rest is its revolutionary and futuristic-looking user interface. The main menu, called sPlay, appears like a fan that your right thumb simply hold, drag, and release to access different sections without changing the main screen, as this video clearly explains.
It may be a concern for those who are used to using their cell phones with their left thumbs since the control buttons are on the right side of the bezel, so it may take quite a while to learn navigating the menu with their right thumbs.

Meanwhile, hardware specs include a 3.5-inch screen with 854 x 480 resolution, a 5-megapixel camera, 3.5mm audio, 16GB of internal storage, and built-in GPS.

The First ELSE will become available beginning the second quarter of 2010.

Source : gadget.com

LG prepare Android phone for Indonesia

LG Mobile is now beginning to see the market opportunity of Google Android. Having previously claimed not interested to market-based mobile operating system Android, Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications today Indonesia has said it plans to bring the mobile variant of the Fatherland.

Even so, according to Pringgodigdo Usun, General Manager of Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications Indonesia, it was not realized in the near future. Possible new Motorola Android phone will be bringing her in early next year.

"Google's new Android becoming known by the market in Indonesia. Thus, new possibilities will we Boyong here early next year, "he said after launching Usun LG GW300 in Jakarta, October 20, 2009.

Furthermore, Usun said, the plan was not influenced by competitors' initiatives, Samsung Electronics Indonesia, which some time ago had announced it would launch a variant of the same phone.

"I think Motorola is also seeing the same market opportunities, but not by joining in their tracks who want to launch Android phone. HTC much earlier in Indonesia, "he said.

In the near future, Motorola express cooperation will bring some parties, most likely telecommunications operator, to help marketing and adding value to its Android phone.

"We also need to educate the market about Android to power more optimal serapnya in the market. May take setahunan. Even if a good speech, be faster than that, "said Usun.

Globally, LG Mobile has introduced a variant of Android-based phone, the Sony Ericsson and LG Etna GW620.

• Source: VIVAnews.Com