The N95 is the fat, feature-laden boss at the top of Nokias multimedia phone range but now the company has revealed the successor, the N96. The looks are somewhat more stylish and under the hood theres a lot of the functionality already found in the N95. Two of the more noticeable differences is the storage bump from 8GB to 16Gb good for around 40 hours of video - and the inclusion of a DVB-H receiver, the Euro standard for tuning in digital TV. Theres also a microSD card slot for adding another 8GB, if you really need it. It sports a large 2.8in display and even a handy kickstand so that you dont have to hold it when watching videos.  read more »

YouTube may be the best known mainstream video hosting sites on the Web, but it's certainly not winning any awards for the visual quality of its content. YouTube's creators have said that higher resolution videos are on the way, but until then there are a handful of other services that do a much better job at making your uploaded video look a little less Webby.

There's another problem at hand too--size. Video files are big, and a lot of the most popular services place tedious size restrictions. Those restrictions mean you are either going to have to compress your video through third party software before uploading, or make smaller, lower quality source recordings to begin with.  read more »

Panasonic will be bringing together its two divisions in new product initiatives, with plasma video displays for cell phones being one of them while AT&T’s recently unveiled Mobile TV service being the other. Today, we shall look at the former, as the very word ‘plasma’ evokes a sense of wonder among buyers as they know this technology is superior to LCD displays in many aspects, albeit taxing the pockets a whole lot more. With Pioneer and Fujitsu already bowing out of the plasma business, it makes perfect sense for Panasonic to strive even harder to capture customers from those companies. It seems that Panasonic’s latest plan would be to include miniature plasma displays in future cell phones - something I look forward to with great anticipation.  read more »

Camcorders are not very handy. Sure theyve gotten smaller and now theres more features on them than the space shuttle, but they are still too bulky to be carried around inconspicuously all day long, waiting for that perfect video moment. The very small Flip Video camcorder is aiming to change all that and, considering its flogged over 1 million units in the US since last November, its UK debut in a few weeks could mark a craze on this side of the pond too. It doesnt hurt that over there it costs just $150 (75). Here, though, it will cost 99, which is still pretty reasonable Ive been playing with the Flip Video Ultra for the past couple of days to see what all the fuss is about and to be honest, its been a lot of fun. So what is it? Its a camcorder around the same size as a fat mobile phone like the Nokia N95 or something similar that records video onto 2GB of Flash memory. It measures 4.17 x 2.16 x 1.25in and can record up to 60 minutes of 640 x 480 resolution MPEG-4 video at 30fps. It sports a USB arm for attaching directly to laptops or PCs and contains software that allows you to view and edit what youve shot. It also enables you to upload those videos to YouTube or other social networking sites. The trick to the Flip Video along with the size - is that its really, really simple to use. For instance, it comes not with an instruction manual, but an instruction leaflet. And even then, theres not a lot on it. This is the kind of device that not even parents and grandparents could screw up when asked to film the kids birthday party. Of course, all of this simplicity is possible because, well, there are no features. This is the camcorder equivalent of one of those Kodak disposable cameras: just point and shoot. Flip boasts a lens on the front, a bright but small 1.5in display on the back, a TV-out port and just 8 buttons in total: Power, Play, Delete, Record and 4 way navigation. It runs off two AA batteries. So what's it like to use?  read more »

April 4, 2008 With around half the world's population expected to be carrying a mobile phone by the end of this year, it's hard to believe that its just 35 years since the first ever public cell phone call was made. Yesterday marked the anniversary of the historical call made on the streets of New York by portable cell phone inventor Martin Cooper, then general manager of Motorolas Communications Systems Division... Tags: Mobile Phone , Motorola Related Articles: New GSM Diverter promises call cost reductions fo small business New software enables FREE international phone calls with any mobile phone through Skype More than idle chit-chat: the mobile phone is a girl’s new best friend Samsung debuts mobile phone with Speech-to-Text Capabilities The MINI Cooper D Backpacks, Lunch Boxes and Cells?  read more »

A new company named ZZZPhone wants apply to mobile phones the build-to-order business model successfully implemented by giant PC maker Dell and later on adopted by other leading retailers such as Nike iD. With this level of customization, the company claims it has developed a $149-mobile phone loaded with more features compared to the $739 Nokia N95 handset model! It can even compete with Apple iPhone without paying as much. All these enhancements are possible to get at very low prices because this American company claims to have assembly plants in China, near the factories of leading handset manufacturers such as Nokia, Samsung and Motorola. All phones can be customized at the website http://www.zzzphone.com . Starting from a base model, users have the power to combine different features such as touchscreen, dual SIM card slots, GPS navigation, 7 MP camera at the back of the phone, front-facing camera, 4 GB memory and even a flashlight!  read more »

The Samsung i780 Smartphone comes complete with Windows Mobile 6 Professional (touch screen), 3G with HSDPA up to 3.6 mbps, AGPS, Wi-Fi and a QWERTY keyboard.  read more »

Poor Americans! They have finally received the Nokia N95 8GB model while the rest of the world have long enjoyed the uber-capable smartphone’s release for quite some time now already. This means those living Stateside can finally rock on with this handset that features a wide range of portable entertainment functions and high-speed HSDPA connectivity on 850/1900 MHz networks in the Americas. Each purchase will come with half a dozen months’ worth of free navigation service which comes included with Nokia Maps.

According to Bill Plummer, vice president, Nokia Americas, “We’re excited to now offer this all-in-one powerhouse of a multimedia computer in the United States. With the added ultra-fast connectivity of HSDPA, the Nokia N95 8GB delivers on the promise of a multimedia computer in one sleek and compact package.”  read more »

I thought something was up this last week when Sprint sent me a letter stating that they were discontinuing their Sprint Ambassador Program. The Ambassador program basically supplied certain bloggers and mobile industry people with free market test phones, SprintTV, EVDO data and free US calling plans. I had been in the program for one or more years but honestly never really used the phones that much as they were not Windows Mobile devices. I was a regular paying Sprint customer with their Windows Mobile Samsung i830. I did recently switch to Verizon to get the new Samsung i760. Anyway, canceling the Ambassador program is a telltale sign of the trouble that Sprint is in these days.  read more »

Lately, Nokia has been throwing the term ‘classic’ at a fair share of their handsets, bringing us back to an era where old is gold. The 6212 Classic might come in a candybar form factor, but it sure as heck doesn’t carry the baggage of an old handset with the inclusion of integrated Near Field Communication (NFC). Being able to surf the Internet thanks to built-in 3G connectivity, users will be able to share content, access services and information conveniently while conducting payments and ticketing with one tap of the device. Those living in Europe and Asia will be able to look out for the Nokia 6212 classic sometime in Q3 this year, and it is tipped to retail for approximately 200 Euros before taxes and subsidies.  read more »