zte

Those of you hungry for Android 2.3 Gingerbread on more than just the Nexus S will soon get a taste with the ZTE Skate.

The Skate--announced at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona today--will have a large, 4.3-inch touch screen (qualifying it as a "jumbo phone," according to HP). However, its 800MHz processor and 5-megapixel camera make it more midlevel than premium. Also onboard is an Adreno 200 GPU.

ZTE credits the skateboard for its inspiration on its 4.2-ounce 3G candy-bar-style handset.

The Skate is expected to globally launch beginning May 2011.

Though still among the top five mobile phone vendors worldwide, Apple has conceded fourth place to China's ZTE, according to the "Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker" report released today by IDC.

Looking at the global market share of the top mobile phone vendors in the fourth quarter, Apple dipped from fourth to fifth place despite a record quarter for phone shipments, the report said.

The iPhone maker shipped 16.2 million units, a healthy boost from the 14.1 million units shipped in the third quarter and the 8.7 million shipped in 2009's final quarter. Apple's flagship phone sold especially well in developed countries, including North America and Western Europe.

Apple's global market share for the quarter slipped only slightly to 4 percent from 4.1 percent the prior quarter. But that combined with a surge in shipments for ZTE, which has sold mostly lower-cost feature phones, allowed the Chinese mobile phone maker to steal fourth place away from Apple.

Hitting the top five for the very first time, ZTE shipped 16.8 million units for the quarter, helping it win a 4.2 percent slice of the market.… Read more

The AT&T R225 was never destined for greatness, but it sure would come a lot closer if it didn't get in its own way.

The recipe for its self-defeat lies in the phone's lack of a volume rocker, zero Bluetooth support, and an absolutely terrible speakerphone, at least on our testing device. A small screen size and low pixel resolution don't help.

However, the R225 Go Phone isn't all bad, and for just $15 without a contract, we wouldn't take it out of the running for those seeking a very simple, very cheap … Read more

Don't be fooled by the AT&T F160's plain-Jane appearance. It may not cost you a cent when you sign up for a new two-year contract with AT&T, but this isn't the sorry, underpowered clump of electronics you might expect a carrier to throw you gratis.

Instead, you'll find a quite decent cell phone that's perfect for making calls. A very responsive dial pad makes texting painless. This is one phone that definitely grew on us the more we used it. The F160 isn't without its flaws, but it's a … Read more

LAS VEGAS--ZTE isn't announcing devices besides its tablets, but we were able to glean a few things during our meeting with the Chinese phone manufacturer at CES. Chiefly, ZTE is looking for a home for the ZTE Blade, an Android-powered smartphone that's already been released in Europe and Asia.

We took a look at the Blade--it has a 3.5-inch touch screen, and a 3.2-megapixel camera. In global markets, it currently runs Android 2.1 but should be upgradable to Android 2.2 (Froyo). Right now ZTE says it's in talks with major and regional U.… Read more

LAS VEGAS--Mobile device maker ZTE welcomed a trio of additions to its tablet family at CES.

All three are 7-inchers running Android and each has a 3-megapixel rear-facing camera, plus a VGA front-facing camera. Other specs vary slightly between the tiered models. The ZTE Lite tablet, for instance, features Android 2.2 (Froyo), 800x480 screen resolution, a 600MHz processor, and Dolby Surround 3.0 for an audio boost.

The more upscale ZTE Lite 2 tablet boasts a 1GHz processor, a 1,024x600-pixel screen, and DLNA support. It has 4GB internal memory. Both the Lite and Lite 2 are already available … Read more

If you're thinking of picking up a simple cell phone for yourself or someone else, the relatively new AT&T F160 can be yours for free with a two-year service agreement.

The ZTE-made F160 (it sounds like a Ford truck, doesn't it?) has some nice midrange features. It's a 3G world phone with Bluetooth 2.0. There's a 3-megapixel camera with camcorder,  mobile e-mail, instant messaging, and AT&T's Mobile Music service. There's also AT&T's stock browser and other bundled aps like Yahoo Mobile.

The 2.4-inch QVGA … Read more

The ZTE-manufactured AT&T R225, is a prepaid, entry-level Go Phone. Design, price, and call quality are the handset's biggest strengths. To that end, this isn't a bad phone for making calls.

However, its feature set tends toward the anorexic. Mobile e-mail and IM are surprise options, but ZTE has overlooked basics like Bluetooth and a volume rocker, two important fundamentals for a phone best-suited for callers. Still, it's a good buy for some people.

Read more, listen to call quality, and see photos of the phone's very nice design in our hands-on review.

This week on Crave, we check out a touch screen from Nokia that's guaranteed to melt, Jasmine gets all up in arms over a belly band, and Oprah shows off an iPad with wings (seriously). Also, Donald's excited by a beerbot that can detect empties, Netflix tempts people to give up DVDs altogether, and Volkswagen debuts a car for little people. To cap it off, an enterprising designer pitches a watch band for the Nano--and overshoots his project funding by a whole heck of a lot. Finally: two delicious items designed to appeal to the fat person inside of all of us.

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