Siemens' trio
At the ComunicAsia exhibition in Singapore this week, Siemens unveiled a trio of high-end mobile phones, all of which will be on sale in the UK in the autumn.
The ME-45, right, is billed by Siemens as a robust mobile aimed at the business user on the move. It is GPRS (general packet radio services) compatible, boasts a range of organiser style facilities compatible with Microsoft Outlook and is the first Siemens phone to feature EMS (Enhanced Messaging System) which enables images to be embedded in the body of an SMS (Short Message Service). Other facilities include a Wap browser, voice dialling and hands-free option.
Also new is an enhanced version of the SL-45 - the MP3 playing phone Siemens launched earlier in the year. The SL-45i is Siemens' first model to integrate a wireless Java platform. Users can download games, location services, directories and other applications which can be stored on the phone's 32MB MMC (Multimedia Card).
Completing the line-up is the SL-42, another phone targeted at the business user. Key features include a digital voice recorder, Wap browser, address book and currency converter. Information is stored on the phone's accompanying 16 megabyte MMC (Multimedia Card).
Ericsson pen
Ericsson grabbed the limelight at the exhibition by unveiling a digital pen that can relay handwritten text to mobile phones, PDAs and PCs. The CHA-30 Chatpen reads words that have been written on a special paper embedded with a pattern of dots. The text is then sent to a mobile phone via a Bluetooth link, and can also be passed on via a GPRS network to a PC or a PDA (personal digital assistant).
Ericsson believes the device, which goes on sale early next year, will enable the remote signing of contracts, as well as encouraging the purchasing of goods and services via mobile phones.
The Swedish company also announced that it had joined forces with Nokia, Motorola and Siemens to agree a format for an enhanced version of the SMS system. Multimedia Messaging (MMS), which will be available when 3G phone networks are opera tional in 2002/2003, allows users to send images, video and sound files.
Ericsson also showed a new mobile for the Asian market. The A3618 is a small dual band model that features a colour display, calendar, T9 predictive text input and a vibration alert. There are no details yet about a possible European launch.
Slim Samsung
Samsung says that its hottest new product at CommunicAsia is the slimmest ever mobile phone, above. Set to debut in Korea in the next few months, the SPH-N2000 is a flip-type phone that is just 9.8mm thick including bat tery. It sports an eight-line screen and features an internet browser, SMS functionality, and can store up to 1,000 phone numbers. Samsung is promising to deliver even slimmer handsets later in the year. There's no news yet on a possible UK launch. Samsung also displayed a host of 3G concept phone products.
Also on display at CommunicAsia were a Secure Digital (SD) card that adds Bluetooth functionality to Palm PDA devices (due in the UK early next year), and a revolutionary system from Cellonics that claims to transfer data wirelessly a thousand times faster than current speeds.
