Sony Ericsson K850

Sony Ericsson reaches for the 5 megapixel barrier with its new Sony Ericsson K850 Cyber-shot cameraphone. The handset features all the goodies seen in the previous Cyber-shot handsets but besides the resolution punch it also packs in full HSDPA support.

The Sony Ericsson K850 Cyber-shot is the next generation of powerful cameraphones by Sony Ericsson which have long kept the first place when it comes to camera-in-phone performance. Today they are making the next step and move on to using a 5 megapixel camera.

Beside that, the Sony Ericsson K850 comes with a number of updates over previously released handsets: it has an automatic camera cover, a renovated camera interface, and a spanking new media browser with picture auto rotate feature. It has a larger, 2.2" TFT display, and features extended network support such as tri-band HSDPA and quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE. That sort of a solution is uncommon for Sony Ericsson since up until now they offered identical EDGE-enabled and UMTS-enabled devices separately. Now for the first time we see 3G plus EDGE all-in-one.

Other than that, the handset retains all the original K810 specs such as a secondary video calls camera, stereo Bluetooth, USB support, FM radio and a M2 memory card slot (with a 512MB card to be included in the retail package). The memory card slot deserves a special attention since this is the first SE attempt in using a dual card support - it can host both a M2 card as well as a microSD card. In terms of its size, the new K850 will be identical with the Sony Ericsson K810 keeping the same measurements and adding only 3g of additional weight. Sony Ericsson K850 carries a really innovative design solution - the navigation D-pad (marked by the green rectangle on the photo) is made part of the alphanumeric keypad, while the softkeys are really small. The most probable reason for such a solution is obvious the need to fit a larger display while keeping the older size and form factor.

In regards to video capabilities Sony Ericsson has finally made a mark in their portfolio - this is the the first of their handsets to feature video recording in QVGA resolution at 30 fps. Regular feature phones produced by SE so far were well known with their meager QCIF@15fps video recording, while their latest smartphones had reached only QVGA@15fps. We certainly hope that VGA@30fps will not be far away.

The Sony Ericsson K850 will be available in Velvet Blue or Luminous Green in the beginning of Q4 2007.

Nokia 6500 - so good they named it twice

Nokia have announced the launch of two new Nokia mobile phones, confusingly both named the 6500. We have the Nokia 6500 Classic and the Nokia 6500 Slide.

Nokia 6500 Classic
The Nokia 6500 classic is encased in an anodised aluminium shell, and is just 9.5mm thick. Each 6500 classic is individually polished, ensuring no two phones will be exactly alike.

The 6500 features dual band 3G technology for high speed downloads and web browsing, with quad band GSM for worldwide coverage. The 6500 has a full 1GB of internal memory, for storing pictures, songs, contacts, messages, etc.

The 6500 classic runs Nokia S40 operating system, which will be familiar to millions of Nokia users. The 6500 classic also includes a 2.0 megapixel camera with dual LED flash, and an integrated music player.

The Nokia 6500 Classic has a unified micro-USB connector, which allows for simplified charging, audio and data connectivity. By consolidating everything into one port, the 6500 classic can easily be used as a high capacity flash drive or charged directly from a PC – All with one cable.

The estimated release date of the Nokia 6500 Classic is Q3 2007

Nokia 6500 Slide

The Nokia 6500 Slide features a 3.2 megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss Lens, the first time a mid range Nokia has been equipped with such outstanding imaging capability. The 6500 Slide offers the easy ability to share pictures, videos and even video calls on a television! The Nokia 6500 Slide has a refined tactile experience with an elegant brushed steel finish and smooth slide mechanism.

The 3.2 megapixel camera offers a dual LED flash, autofocus and 8x digital zoom, all optimised for creating high quality images. With 3G technology, these images and videos can be quickly shared with friends anywhere, anytime, whilst the TV Out Jack allows them to be viewed instantly on any television with standard RCA inputs. The TV out feature can also be used to allow an entire group of people share in the fun of video calling

The Nokia 6500 Slide is expected to be available in Q3 2007