Dell to unveil Google Android phone at 3GSM

Moody new Nokia 7900 Crystal Prism

Nokia have released their stunning Nokia 7900 Crystal Prism phone. The 7900 Crystal Prism was designed by graphic and fashion designer Frédérique Daubal, who's previously developed concepts for the likes of Paul Smith, Gas Tokyo, and the gloriously-named Bumble & Bumble.

It should be clear by now that the 7900 is being pitched solely as a designer phone, and here it really scores. Its nearest competitor is the multi-million selling LG Shine range, but with its black and burgundy colourings and its laser-etched covers, it makes the Shine look, well, dull.

Of course, being a designer phone, it's not heavily laden with features - but then, that's not the point of designer phones is it? It's all about the eye candy, and the 7900 is pure optical Belgian truffle!

More details and pics of the Nokia 7900 Crystal Prism after the jump.

New mobile phone technologies for 2008

In our final look at what's coming in 2008, I'll attempt to divine the tea-leaves to see what general trends we can expect from our phones.

Camera phone improvements

One key feature in 2007 was the improvement in camera phones, with megapixellage rising to 5 megapixels for the top end phones, and 3 megapixels for the medium range phones. This trend should continue in 2008, with top-end phones reaching 7-8 megapixels and mid-range phones getting a respectable 5 megapixels.

Expect to see improved image stabilization features as well, plus various other innovations taken from digital cameras, all designed to improve picture quality. 2008 really will see phones and cameras converge, with improved flashes, increasing use of auto-focus, reduced lag in taking pictures, and more phones appearing with optical zoom.

More mobile phone trends after the jump...

Leaked video of Sony Ericsson Z660i

Despite Sony Ericsson not actually having announced the Z660i yet, it's obviously official, as it has its own official video. Oddly, Sony Ericsson put it up on their own official site, which the Unofficial Sony Ericsson Blog managed to upload onto YouTube just in time before the official Sony Ericsson (still with me here?!) took it down again!

So now we get to see the new Sony Ericsson Z660i in action, as well as getting official confirmation that it's on its way, without actually getting an official confirmation! Don't you just love rumours!

Anyway, looking rather sleek and designery, the vid makes it clear that the Z660i is being pitched as a man's phone for men, so don't expect it in pink anytime soon.

The video shows the Z660 off in all its finery, and also shows how well it uses Google Maps to find various services in your neighbourhood, such as restaurants. Certainly looks super-responsive, which is what you need from a good location-based service.

[Source: Unofficial Sony Ericsson Blog]

Leaked pics of mystery Sony Ericsson GPS phone

At CEs 2008, Sony Ericsson announced that a new GPS phone was on its way in the form of the Sony Ericsson W760. However, that's not all the company has up its sleeve. Here are a few leaked pics of a new Sony Ericsson GPS phone that currently has no model number (although it will be a K series Cyber Shot phone)

The specs on this new device seem quite tasty. Although it comes with only a 3.2 megapixel camera, as it's a Cyber Shot phone you do get auto focus for money. The icing on the cake, though, comes from the built-in GPS device, which should help you geo-tag your photos.

More pics of the mystery Sony Ericsson phone after the jump.

Nokia 2600 and 1209 do what the music industry doesn’t

Nokia has announced a couple of new low end phones for emerging markets that actively embrace the concept of sharing. In stark contrast to the music industry, which sees sharing as equivalent to terrorism, the new Nokia 2600 and Nokia 1209 are designed to be shared by up to five people.

To facilitate this, both phones come with multiple phone books (one per person), and a cost-tracker application that lets each person see how much they've spent on calls.

More details of the new Nokia 2600 and 1209 after the jump.

Philips folding screen phone on its way for 2008

Philips' spin off Polymer Vision has been showing off its READIUS screen for over two years now, but nothing has emerged beyond prototype form. For those unaware of the READIUS, it's an innovative new display technology that enables the development of a completely foldable screen.

Now, though, they've just issued a press release stating that a new mobile phone made by Philips (who own 25% of Polymer Vision) will soon be released that will be the first phone in the world to feature one of Polymer Vision's amazing five inch foldable screens.

"Hang on," I hear you cry, as the penny slowly starts its descent. "Five inch screen...foldable? You mean a huge mobile phone screen that folds up into a super-slim form factor when not in use? Just like paper?"

Yes - and it'll finally be released mid-2008!

More pics of the Philips READIUS mobile phone after the jump.

Motorola’s 2008 mobile phones

Motorola had a dire time in 2007, being overtaken by Samsung and dropping to the world's third biggest mobile manufacturer, and losing money as well as market-share. Consequently the majority of rumours surrounding the company involve who's going to take over its ailing mobile phone division as much as what new phones it's going to be releasing for 2008.

The rumours include everyone from Ericsson to Dell, all of whom are sniffing around the once great mobile manufacturer, convinced that they can do better (which, to be fair, they probably could).

Motorola's mobile phones for 2008

Of more interest to us, though, are the mobile phones that Motorola will be releasing in 2008. Here, there are some juicy rumours doing the rounds, but these may be more like wishful thinking from Motorola fanboys (or at least their PR department!) than reality.

Top of the lot must be the Motorola ZiNE, a new line of Motorola handsets with some top-end features. The most impressive of the new ZiNE line-up will be a camera phone that Motorola is allegedly working on with Kodak.

Aware that they've really dropped the ball in the camera phone stakes, with all other manufacturers having released a 5 megapixel camera phone in 2007, while Motorola can only muster a 3 megapixel variant, the company is rumoured to be working on a whopping 8 megapixel camera phone, with Kodak providing the necessary camera goodies to make it actually take good pictures.

In addition to the huge megapixellage, the new camera phone is also rumoured to offer a large touchscreen, WiFi and GPS.

How much of this is speculation and how much is based on reality, only time will tell. BoyGenius reports that the rumours are false, and he's been right in the past. Worse, he even suggests that a 5 megapixel phone being worked on with Kodak is still only in development phase, and hasn't even been given a name yet.

Personally, I'm not holding my breath, as Motorola have consistently underwhelmed in previous years. However, the technology isn't beyond Motorola's labs, as they're preparing to release the A1600 phone in China, which features a 3.2 megapixel camera, Wi-Fi and GPS. They certainly need to develop a phone with something like these features if they're not to slip further behind the competition in 2008.

We should know more come the CTIA show in April, where Motorola traditionally shows off its new hardware.

[Source: IntoMobile ]

Toshiba Portege G450 - when phones and Swiss Army Knives converge

Toshiba have announced the Toshiba Portege G450, a phone that quite simply looks like no other. In fact, it looks more like a USB key with a few bells and whistles on it, and that's not coincidence. Toshiba aimed to create a new mobile phone that acts as a Swiss Army Knife both in terms of function (well, not literally - there's no knife in it!) and form.

More details and pics of the Toshiba G450 Portege phone after the jump.

Sharp unveils a pointless smartphone

Sharp unveiled a new smartphone at CES 2008 that largely went unreported. Looking at the new Sharp PV250, I can understand why. As well as a plethora of weak features (1.3 megapixel camera on a smartphone, for example), it comes with a bizarre swivelling LCD screen that lets you view the screen in horizontal or vertical format.

More pics after the jump.