LG, Sony Ericsson Windows Mobile 6.5 phones outed
New handsets break cover
IFA LG and Sony Ericsson have joined the Windows Mobile 6.5 bandwagon, both launching 3G-capable handsets based on Microsoft’s latest phone OS.
SE has formally unveiled its latest update to the Xperia smartphone range, the X2, while LG has taken the wraps off a “next generation smartphone” called the GM750.
LG's GM750: WinMob UI out, S-Class in
Sporting a 3in touchscreen, the GM750 also runs LG’s established S-Class ‘cube’ interface in addition to WM 6.5.
The handset is equipped with a GPS chip to help you find your way to the nearest Starbucks, where you should be able to log onto the web using the GM750’s Wi-Fi connectivity.
If you’re out and about, web access is also possible over a 7.2Mb/s HSDPA 3G connection. LG added that the GM750 supports several third-party applications, including weather reports, traffic information and stock prices. However, the list of available apps doesn’t appear as expansive as those available through Apple’s App Store.
The LG handset also has a 5Mp camera - but the one on the Xperia X2 packs a higher resolution: 8.1Mp, according to SE.
Slide-down Qwerty keyboard
It also has a “real 3D panel” for three-dimensional controls in various applications, such as Music. The X2 supports quad-band GSM and 3G connections.
It also enables you to access frequently used applications through a SlideView menu feature. App fans have access to up to 14 ‘panels’ on which to add icons for everything from Google to games, and sites from CNN to YouTube.
3D UI... kind of
Windows 7-style moving wallpapers can be added o the X2 and handwritten notes can be added into the phone, thanks to its support for handwriting recognition.
The phone’s other notable features include DLNA compatibility, Wi-Fi, a TV port and Assisted GPS. Data is stored on Micro SD cards.
Pick your preferred panels
LG’s GM750 will initially be available in the Germany, Greece, Italy, Netherlands and Spain, and in the UK through Vodafone from 6 October. France will get the phone on the same date, but through SFR. Prices haven’t been released yet.
SE’s Xperia X2 will be available, also through Vodafone, during the fourth quarter. Buyers will be able to choose between “Elegant Black” and “Modern Silver”. A price hasn’t been given. ®
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COMMENTS
Slow to market in the US
Don't blame any of the handset manufacturers for the dreadful lack of new and exciting handsets in the US, it's all down to the power games the US carriers play. There is almost no unlocked market (if you must there is Expansys) but the volumes are too small for anyone to consider it as a route for a US specific - say 850/1900MHz - product.
You need to have a carrier deal in place to ramp up manufacture and the US carriers want to know that it's a successful phone before they will commit. This caused one US carrier to look very stupid when they told Motorola that they didn't want any phones from them, and particularly not that rubbish they were going to call Razr.
v.nice x2
This is a serious contender for my next mobile as current one has taken sizeable damage.
Yet to decide between HTC Hero, SE satio or now this. Would definatley need to be sim free as the the vodafone mutilation of SE firmware makes the whole thing tacky.
Looking forward to a full review......
@Gah!
Someone will be along in a minute to tell you that you don't want anything on Orange 'cos they're rubbish.
And someone else will come along to tell that person that they'd be better off on Orange 'cos Vodafone are rubbish.
I'm more interested in whether or not these phones can handle an incoming call when you're doing something else (like an e-mail or syncing) without grinding to a complete halt for ten minutes. All of my previous WM phones have failed in that ability (WM5 through to 6.1).
Mind you, in a mind-boggling first my N97 quite often hangs mid-charge; it's been better since the latest OS upgrade, but not what I'd expect from a flagship device.
Aldous Huxley was miles out with the problems of the brave new world.
Unless we're the ones on the Reservation, that is...
SE's slow release in the US will kill me
While I love my SonyEricsson phones, I have found, through my own experience and several vendors to the USA, that SE tends to delay the "a" models of their phones to the point of obsolescence. If the X2 is world-capable, then this may mitigate the issue.
The big "for instance" right now is the C905a. It was announced around this time last year. The 'i' edition, for the other side of the pond, has seen a second revision. However, the 'a' edition has yet to see the light of day over here, and may only just now be available through AT&T -- though locked and apparently lacking the built-in email client.
But the unlocked version? No where to be found. While I loved my K790a up until it suffered severe memory corruption, and I very much like my K850i (which plays a lot of games much more slowly than the 790, go figure,) I have been drooling over the C905a since it was announced. Oh, the agony.
I am losing my faith in SE-America. I love the phones, but SE does not seem to love me.
Paris, she does not seem to love me, either.
Wow! Fast work, SE!
When I said in my comment on your Nokia N900 report that SE could take some design cues from that device, I really didn't expect such immediate results!
