Mobile Phone News

Filed under: Handsets, Nokia

Besides the RAZR, few handsets have milked longevity like Nokia’s 8800 slider — first introduced in April 2005 (spied in March). Unlike RAZR, however, the 8800 somehow manages not to annoy… too much. The latest Carbon Arte model brings 3G, a 3.2 megapixel camera, 4GB of flash memory, and OLED display with anti-fingerprint coating. Fine, but it’s the rocket-esque carbon fiber, titanium, and stainless steel materials that help push the price tag to €1,100 (that’s about $1,600) before taxes and of course, carrier subsidies. Expected to brazenly appear in the smoking dens of Europe’s finest gentlemens’ clubs sometime in Q3.

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Tags: April 2005, Arte, Carbon Fiber, Euro 1, Europe, Fingerprint, Flash Memory, Gentlemens Clubs, Handsets, Longevity, Moon, Nbsp, Nokia, Price Tag, Q3, Slider, Smoking, Stainless Steel Materials, Subsidies, Titanium

Filed under: Culture, Handsets, Nokia, Misc

Germany wanted $6.2 million in research subsidies back from Nokia, and in addition to the “tens of millions” that the company has already relinquished after the highly-disputed Bochum plant closing, it’ll be coughing up another €1.3 million ($2.04 million) to hopefully close the door on the matter. Said payment will be addressed to North Rhine-Westphalia, which was Truly angry after the handset maker decided to hack 2,300 jobs from Germany and relocate operations to Romania for “decrease labor costs.” The sum in this place is in addition to the €20 million “Growth for Bochum” foundation that the outfit started, but apparently that show of goodwill didn’t really change the hearts of those already bitter.

[Via PhoneScoop, image courtesy of Reuters]

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Tags: Culture, Euro 1, German State, Germany, Goodwill, Hack, Handsets, Hearts, Jobs, Nbsp, Nokia, North Rhine Westphalia, Reuters, Romania, Subsidies, Tens

Filed under: Handsets, T-Mobile, Apple, OS X

There’s still plenty of emerging details and news on the iPhone 3G kicking around, but in this place’s what you need to know from the minor bits floating around over the past few days:

• Jobs also told NYT that Apple’s acquisition of PA Semi was, in fact, intended to reduce Apple’s reliance on third-party chip makers. Specifically, he said, “PA Semi is plan to do system-on-chips for iPhones and iPods.” So, guess that’s that.
• Per the feature showing up missing on a number of Apple’s international iPhone 3G product pages, iLounge compiled a list of carriers which may or may not planning on implementing visual voicemail. Vodafone in Europe, for example, will not have it at launch, and will delay its rollout until later this year.
• A video of a new iPhone beta build running on live hardware shows videos at this time in portrait or landscape modes, and includes video playlists. We’ll take it.
• Although DT’s iPhone page reads differently, German paper Welt has it that that T-Mobile Germany will be selling it for €1 — so basically free, not unlike O2’s iPhone 3G launch in the UK.

[Thanks to everyone who sent these in]

Read - Jobs mentions PA Semi plans
Read - Visual voicemail support varies from carrier to carrier
Read - Beta build with portrait-mode video
Read - DT releasing it for €1 (see also their iPhone page)

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Tags: 3g, Apple Chips, Apple Os X, Chip Makers, Days Jobs, Euro 1, German Paper, iphone, Iphones, Ipods, Landscape Modes, Launch, Minor Bits, Nyt, Portrait Mode, Rollout, T Mobile, Uk Thanks, Video Features, Voicemail