Handset market updates
3GSM World Congress report
This year’s event has beaten all previous records: an estimated 55000 visitors, and 1300 exhibitors. All of the major manufacturers (and some others who are not so big) had a strong presence here.
Here is a brief account of the new handset products they were showing off:
Samsung-lona!
Samsung introduces the Ultra Edition II and Ultra Special device line-ups in Barcelona.
You could not possibly miss them, unless you were blind! Samsung wrapped up the 16 story Rey Juan Carlos Hotel in an enormous poster of its new phones. And many of the Barcelona billboards, buses and trams were similarly used as vehicles for marketing the new line-up. Ironically though, if you were to turn the new U100 sideways, it almost disappears; this is the world’s slimest handset at just 5.9 mm, and is part of the Ultra Edition II and Ultra Special device line-ups introduced here at 3 GSM. The Ultra Edition II range consists of two sliders, the 10.9 (U600) and the 12.1 (U700), a 9.6 (U300) clamshell, and the U100 which is a bar. All the devices offer 3MP cameras, multimedia capabilities, and common user experience elements and they will be available in Europe in Q1 2007. The Ultra Special F700 has a QWERTY keypad, 5MP camera, and 7.2 Mbps HSDPA. The F520 boasts a dual-slider design, while the F510 also supports DVB-H standard with a rotating LCD screen and 2MP camera. Both are scheduled for the third quarter of this year.
The other Computer manufacturer
Apple is not the only Computer manufacturer getting into the handset business: HP introduced the first in its new smartphone lineup, the HP iPAQ Voice Messenger, a quadband/EDGE/WiFi phone. The Voice Messenger features VoIP, “push” email, Windows Mobile 6 OS. The HP iPAQ Voice Messenger is unique in that it can be integrated with the office phone systemes; eliminating the need for desk phones. The phone will be available in the US direct from HP this spring.
Motorola goes “Banana” Phone
An ergonomic slider form factor and curved to "fit the face", the RIZR Z8 offers Symbian-powered multimedia features as well. Almost a decade ago, Nokia had introduced a so called "banana shaped" model (the 8110). Will the Z8 prove to be a gimmick, marketing coup, or a failure - time will tell.
We saw five other new phones from Motorola, scheduled to debut in Q2:
- RIZR Z6: Linux-based music phone with Windows media support.
- SLVR L9: Updated SLVR L7 with a 2MP camera and full MP3 player.
- KRZR Z3: Now with HSDPA
- Q q9: A UMTS Q with Windows Mobile 6 HSDPA essentially similar to the Q Pro.
- Q gsm: Has improved ergonomics
"Apple will struggle" according to Nokia chief
When asked about the iphone, Nokia CEO Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo said that Apple will probably struggle to produce the same kind of success it experienced with the iPod.
Nokia announced six new handsets including three Eseries business smartphones, all with quadband/EDGE and WiFi. The E61i (available Q2 2007) and Nokia E65 slider (available now) are stylish updates to the E61 and E50. The E90 (available starting Q2 2007) brings Series 60, HSDPA, WiFi, GPS navigation, and more to the Communicator form factor. The N77 is an Nseries TVphone, the 6110 is Nokia's first mainstream GPS navigation phone, and the 3110 is a "classic" megapixel cameraphone (all three ship Q2 2007).
And the winner is..
The Sony Ericsson K800i won the 3GSM award in the category best 3G phone.
Some announcements from the high end phone champion: Two new Walkman and two new Cyber-shot phones. At just 9.4mm thin, the W880 Walkman phone (triband GSM/UMTS2100) is the slimmest Sony Ericsson phone yet and will be available Q1 2007. The K810 Cyber-shot (triband GSM/UMTS2100) boasts a 3.2 MP camera, auto focus and a Xenon flash. It will be available Q2 2007 in Europe and Asia. The W610 is a quadband/EDGE music camera phone available Q2 2007. The K550 is a quadband/EDGE Cyber-shot phone and will launch in North America in Q2 2007. Pricing was not announced.
New Neonode
Another Swedish manufacturer, Neonode, made waves with a Nano-like phone: N2.. Not only does it resemble a Nano, but is a certain iPhone; it is a keyboard-less touch screen, responding to gestures on its sleek screen. It is actually smaller and lighter than the Apple baby: 7.7 x 4.7 x 1.5cm size and 70g. However it was not clear when this phone will be available. The manufacturer had previously introduced the N1 in 2004 (having first announced it in 2002).
3G goes to LG
Good News for LG; it won the 3G handset supply deal, with the KU250. The GSM Association and its members will use this low cost 3G handset to spearhead the "3G for all" campaign.
LG Electronics introduced two new premium handsets - the Shine Phone and PRADA Phone by LG - and announced its ambitious business plan for the European market during its press conference at 3GSM. The PRADA Phone features an advanced touch interface and 2 MP camera. It will be available in Europe at the end of February. The Shine is a full metal bodied slider with magic mirror screen and an MP autofocus camera. The Shine is available now in Europe, with U.S. availability later in the year.
Alca..who?
Gone almost un-noticed was Alcatel.. who are however attempting a come-back of sorts with a new lineup of handsets.. stressing the fashion aspect. Commenting on the launch, Alcatel Mobile Phones Chief Marketing Officer, Eric Vallet, said: "Our unique strategy to focus on products with easy living design and on entry level range has proven to be successful as our trendy designs and features are well received by customers."
So.. Low end handsets is the order of the day for Alcatel: 15 handsets topped by a sub-€100 pre-pay music-oriented sliderphone, the OT-C825. This device, with textured like finishing comes with music player controls on the front and a 1.3-megapixel camera on the rear. It also supports MicroSD memory cards to expand its music player capabilities.
Alcatel's new design strategy, is for every phone to be tailored to a unique lifestyle, attitude or taste, using textures and materials to inspire an emotional response from users.