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iPhone Mini and iPhone Pro on their way?

Andy Simpson — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 14:26:28 +0000

Considering they only do one phone, the amount of attention drawn to the Apple iPhone is quite surprising, and at this time of year the Apple rumour mill kicks into overdrive. Apple are well known for introducing yearly updates for most of its products. The iPod for example has been updated around September almost every year since its introduction. It seems as though Apple are keen to follow in the iPod’s footsteps by announcing a new iPhone around June/July. We had the first generation iPhone announced in July 2007, and the current iPhone 3G was announced last June at their annual Developers Conference (WWDC).

Apple have just announced that this years Developers Conference is scheduled for the 8th June, and its already been discovered in the code of the new iPhone 3.0 operating system that there could be 2 new iPhones and 2 new iPod Touch models being announced. So what are we likely to see?

Our money is on the announcement of the iPhone Pro and iPhone Mini, and the renaming of the current iPhone to iPhone Classic.

iPhone Classic:

The current iPhone has been a massive success for Apple, and I can’t see them finishing it any time soon – having said that, stores around the world are already beginning to clear out their stock rooms to make room for the new models that will no doubt be on sale in July. I’m expecting to see an increase in storage on the iPhone 3G, along with a few other minor changes (OLED Display improved battery, improved camera), but overall the appearance of the phone isn’t going to change much.

iPhone Pro:

Rumours of an iPhone Pro have been around since the iPhone 3G was released, if not before. Reasons behind wanting the iPhone Pro vary greatly, but the main one seems to be that hard core business user miss the presence of a physical keyboard, and while the on-screen keyboard is good, some say it can take up too much screen space, limiting what you can do. Being a slightly larger device, an iPhone Pro would be expected to have more powerful processors, and be able to support an iPhone version of Apple’s Office software iWork, giving them the chance to be able to be much more productive when out of the office. Other additions would be a forward facing camera for video chat, along with support for iChat, an OLED display, improved camera and battery life.

Several website have created mock-ups of what they would like to see as the next iPhone. 9to5mac.com have a collection of ten of the best mock ups and Matt Brady’s concept also gets a lot of attention. Our attempt at an iPhone Pro Concept is shown above, click on the image for a larger version.

iPhone Mini:

There has been lots of talk in the past of an iPhone Nano, but the whole concept of the iPod Nano is that they’re unbelievably small, and given how much Apple (and everyone else) seems to love the iPhone operating system, I don’t think they’re going to change it as drastically as they would need to in order to make a really small touchscreen phone. Apple themselves have said that by making the screen smaller, it would cause problems with 3rd party apps, as well as usability. Having said that, surely if they were to increase the screen resolution, they could reduce the screen size a little, without causing too many problems? It wouldn’t surprise me either if the iPhone Mini had less features than the Classic or the Pro. To appeal to a new market, they would need a phone with a lower price point – to do that would mean cutting out a few features (GPS, App Store, Internet). Having said that the App Store and Internet Access are two of the iPhones big selling points, so I’d be surprised if they do.

iPhone 3.0 Software:

Regardless of the hardware that gets announced, pretty much every iPhone user is looking forward to the release of the latest version of the iPhone 3.0 Software. This update will add features that many say should have been on the iPhone since its launch back in 2007. Features such as MMS, Stereo Bluetooth, the ability to search your phone, forward messages and share contacts are features that are standard on most other phones on the market, but these are only just finding their way onto the iPhone.

The announcement earlier this month by Apple certainly got a lot of media attention, and a large round of applause from developers, but I can’t help thinking that they held back on something – Apple have another trick up their sleeve that they’ve not shared yet, something that relies on hardware in the new iPhones. I might be wrong, but from what I’ve seen in the past, Apple never reveal all their cards and are well know for saying “One Last Thing” at the end of their big announcements, and surprising most people with something unexpected.

Well, that’s what we think. What about you? What do you want to see the next version of the iPhone? Is the screen size/resolution theory a possibility? Will we get 2 new iPhones? What surprises do you think Apple have up their sleeve? Leave your thoughts below or discuss it on our Forums

Pre Mobile World Congress 2009 Rumours

Andy Simpson — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 15:17:34 +0000

With Mobile World Congress now just days away, the rumour mill is working overtime with talk of new handsets from just about every manufacturer, and a few new ones too. So what are we likely to see announced next week?

Nokia:
Nokia seem to have the most amount of rumours again this year, with a few interesting handsets set to be announced. Some have been announced already, but information on them is still sketchy. Leaked information is still trickling out, so I’d expect to see more than just the ones below get confirmed.

Nokia E75 & 5730:
Originally covered on our post back in September, the E75 looks like its finally going to make its debut – along with the music inspried 5730. Both seem to be the same at first glance, and presumably will run different software to distinguish between the two, with more of a business user spin on the E75, and more music/media focus on the 5730.

Sources: GSM Arena, Phone Arena

Nokia App Store:
Apple really started something with the iPhone. First everyone went touchscreen crazy, now following the success of the Apple App Store (where users can download new applications and games directly to their phone,) it seems that everyone wants a slice of the action. Microsoft, Palm and Samsung have all announced they will be launching an App store in the not so distant future, and MWC should see Nokia announce to the world that their “download!” service is going to be replaced with their version of the App Store.

Source: The Nokia Blog

Codenames: Ivalo & Madeleine:
No real naming is known for these two handsets, but the do seem to match the descriptions of the leaked Nokia Roadmap that we revealed back in November.

Source: GSM Arena

Sony Ericsson:
Not so many with Sony Ericsson last year, nothing groundbreaking anyway. A few revisions to the Cyber-Shot line up and an interesting rumour on facebook phones are the main stories this year.

C903:

Last year camera phones to a big step forwards as the megapixels jumped up to 8MP, and software such as face detection and smile detection made its way into phones. Sony seem keen to develop the Cyber-Shot brand with their phones, with their latest one, the 5MP C903 looking more like a current Cyber-Shot camera from the back than a phone – although I’m really not convinced about the bright red housing.

Source: Mobile Burn

C901:
The C901 seems to be a replacement for the current C902, but without the gimmicky slide out camera and relatively small screen and with the welcome addition of a Xenon flash.

Source: Mobile Burn

C510:
The C510 has already been announced, but the latest rumours suggest that when it is released, it will feature full facebook integration. While its not the first facebook phone, it will be good to see this in a more mainstream handset than the 3 exclusive INQ1.

Source: Unwired View

LG:
LG have had a good year with several successfull handsets, and it looks like they’ve still got a fwe tricks up their sleeve and are about to raise their game again when it comes to touchscreen phones.

LG Arena:
Interestingly named seeing as they are in the process of rebranding the NEC Arena to the LG Arena, but that aside, the LG Arena will introduce a new menu system – a 3D cubic system. Its not Multi-Touch like the iPhone, but looks pretty impressive.

Source: Unwired View, Engadget

LG Solar:
Not content with only offering a Solar Powered Bluetooth car kit LG are expected to announce a solar powered phone. While not relying solely on power from the sun, the phone will use solar energy for phone calls while a conventional battery will power the other functions.

Source: Unwired View

Samsung:
Last year Samsung probably got the most attention and released the most amount of handsets, and it looks like it could be the same this year. Rumours are suggesting that upto 14 new handsets could be being announced, most of these will be low end handsets though. Of all of them, these are the ones that have caught my eye the most.

Tocco Ultra:
I’m not 100% sure why they’re calling it the Tocco Ultra, as it doesn’t really resemble the original Tocco, but this full touch screen handset has handy addition of a sliding standard phone keypad. Great for those that want a touch screen phone, but don’t want to lose their keypads completely, or move to a more bulky device with a full QWERTY keyboard.

Source: Unwired View, Engadget

i8910 Acme:
This one is set to be the show stopper if it is announced. It runs on the same operating system as the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic, so its Symbian 60, and rumoured to have 8MP camera and HDMI support.

Source: Engadget

Blue Earth:
Not wanting to be left behind by LG, Samsung are also set to announce a solar powered phone. The Blue earth is rumoured to be a touch screen device made from recycled plastic bottles, and will even tell you how many trees you’re saving by not charging your phone.

Source: Unwired View

Other News:

Garmin?
Last year Garmin announced that they were going to start producing handsets. Its been announced that they’ve teamed up with Asus and we’re expecting the Nuvifone G60 and Nuvifone M20 to be officially announced. Source: Mobile Burn

Windows Mobile:
Windows Mobile was never really designed to be used using your finger, a stylus was and still is needed to access most menu’s, but since Apple changed the touchscreen interface, more and more manufacturers want to ditch the stylus, hence the introduction of software like Touch-Flo on HTC devices. Windows Mobile are hoping to fix all this with the introduction of Windows Mobile 6.5, information is patchy, but spy shots are starting to leak of the new finger friendly OS. Visit Engadget for more details and some leaked screenshots.

Mobile World Congress:
Don’t forget to check back next week for information on the latest announcements. subscribe to our RSS feed or sign up for email updates using the form on the right.

LG KC780 – 8 Megapixel Slim Slider on its way?

Andy Simpson — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 17:49:25 +0000

LG KC780

Here we go again! It looks like phone manufacturers just can’t keep their new handsets a secret any more! This time its the turn of LG to have one of their next handsets to be leaked to the world.

Rumours have it that this handset from the Korean manufacturer is going to become the KC 780, a slim slider with an 8 megapixel camera.

LG are about to launch the KC910 Renoir, a Touch screen handset with an 8 Megapixel Camera. Earmarked as the replacement for the popular LG Viewty, LG are hoping that the KC910 will take on the likes of the Samsung Tocco, Samsung Omnia and even Apple’s iPhone.

Specification of the KC780 is still unconfirmed, but if the rumours are true, the handset will feature:

Quadband GSM, GPRS/EDGE connectivity
8 megapixel camera with autofocus, red eye reduction, face recognition
30fps video recording
140 MB of internal memory
MicroSD memory card slot
Bluetooth 2.0, USB 2.0

The KC780 has already passed FCC testing, which suggests an official announcement on this handset shouldn’t be too far away.

HTC confirm Ice White Touch Diamond

Andy Simpson — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 17:00:24 +0000

Its been milling around the rumour mill for a while now, but HTC have now confirmed there will be an “Ice White” version of their popular Touch Diamond.

Pre-order the HTC Touch Diamond in White now!

The “White Diamond” will have the same specification as the original black one and is due to launch in October.

Highlights:

2.8-inch touch screen, with four times the pixels of most phones.
Vibrant TouchFLO 3D user interface.
HTC Weather – providing a constant view of weather at home and abroad.
Surf and download at broadband speed with HSDPA internet connectivity.
3.2 megapixel auto-focus camera for quality stills and video.
4GB of internal storage to preserve more photos, music, files and exchanged data than ever before.
Integrated GPS for use with maps software for a full turn-by-turn satellite navigation experience.
GPS and A-GPS ready for use with TomTom®, CoPilot® Live or other leading maps software.

Pre-order your “White Diamond” now!