Dr. Augustine Fou's Online Scrapbook

Friday, October 03, 2008

Nokia Comes With Music officially launches October 16, 5310 XpressMusic eats first

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/409420612/

The 5800 XpressMusic is stealing the lion's share of the spotlight today, but the first S60 5th Edition handset out there actually isn't the first to get hooked up with Nokia's all-you-can-eat Comes With Music service. That honor will instead go to the lowly 5310 XpressMusic candybar, which will get access to about 2 million track downloads when it hits Carphone Warehouse in the UK in prepaid form for £130 (about $228) on October 16, a day earlier than rumored. Other models will have to wait, though Comes With Music versions of the N95 8GB and 5800 are both planned.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Nokia 5800 XpressMusic hands-on

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/409407829/

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

She's arrived at last, the 5800 XpressMusic, Nokia's tardy entry into the (modern) touchscreen phone space, and we've gotten some quality face time with the device. Appropriately nicknamed the Tube, the device has a number of Nokia peculiarities that could appeal to certain sensibilities, but probably won't be taking a big bite out of existing touchphone market share -- at least in the S60-phobic United States. Let's dig in, shall we?

Gallery: Nokia 5800 XpressMusic hands-on

Continue reading Nokia 5800 XpressMusic hands-on

Perma link | Email this | Comments

The Nokia 5800 XpressMusic

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/409407830/

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

While it may not be Nokia's first touchscreen phone (anyone out there remember the 7710?), the 5800 XpressMusic is certainly the first to come out of Finland with a mainstream appeal. What we've alternately known as the "Tube" throughout much of its development cycle is the first production device to run S60 5th Edition -- the fourth major overhaul of Nokia's ubiquitous smartphone platform since 2002 and the first to support fingers, styli, and high-res displays. Speaking of high-res displays, the 5800 comes equipped with an impressive 3.2-inch 640 x 360 resistive touchscreen to go along with its 3.2-megapixel autofocus cam, Carl Zeiss optics, dual LED flash, GPS, WiFi, 3.5mm jack, and a microSD slot with support for 16GB cards. It'll be available in three versions -- European HSDPA, North American HSDPA, and GSM only -- and ships this quarter in black, red, and blue for €279 (about $392) unlocked with an 8GB card thrown in for good measure. Music fans with voracious appetites for new tunes might want to hold out, though, for the Comes With Music-equipped version that follows on "early next year" at a to-be-announced price.

Gallery: The Nokia 5800 XpressMusic

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

BIOTRONIK gets go-ahead for GSM-based implant monitoring system

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/409451383/

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets, Wireless

The folks at BIOTRONIK have been trying to make medical implants behave a little more like cellphones for some time now, and it looks like they're still keeping at it, with the EU recently green-lighting its latest home monitoring system that lets physicians keep tab on patients at home. As with its other systems, this one relies on the GSM network to send vital information to the patient's physician (with a base station acting as a go-between), but it now boasts an "intelligent traffic light system" that promises to let physicians quickly monitor the status of a number of different patients, and even customize the alerts via the web if they like. The system also promises to work with a whole range of different implants, including pacemakers, implantable cardioverter defibrillators, and cardiac resynchronization therapy devices, and the company expects it to be widely available in early 2009, though a lucky few will be able to start using it this month.

[Via MedGadget]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Verizon prices Motorola Krave ZN4 at $149.99

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/409451354/

Filed under: Cellphones

For those of you who firmly believe that Verizon plus Motorola plus touchscreen equals pure, unadulterated bliss, heads up: we have a bit of information that might be of interest to you. phoneArena has scored a screen shot of what appears to be some promotional material for Moto's upcoming MING-esque doohickey, the Krave ZN4 -- and it looks like we'll be shelling out about $150 on a two-year contract for the honor of carrying one in our knockoff Louis Vuitton backpacks. Not a bad price for a phone clearly designed to rest toward the upper end of Verizon's non-smartphone lineup, we suppose, and we'll admit that it's looking better in this dolled-up promo shot than it was last time we saw it. Separately, they've landed pricing for the Moto VU204, a basic flip that's probably not going to turn as many heads as the Krave; that one is going to go out the door for $29, and you'll get three free with the purchase of the first for the ultimate four-pack of mediocrity. We don't have a solid line on when these are coming to market, but the Krave's still a possibility for this month.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments