helios

Even though we played around with the prototype of the Helio Ocean cell phone back in March (see our lengthy first impression here), we were still excited when we received the final product in our gadget-hungry hands.

Yes, we finally have the Helio Ocean right now in the house, and save for a few user-interface improvements, it feels pretty much the same as that earlier prototype. The triple-decker phone has a bit of heft to it, but we liked its smooth lines and soft-touch surface, and the 2.4-inch QVGA screen is simply a sight to behold. The QWERTY keyboard … Read more

I don't know about you, but I'm more excited about the Helio Ocean than Apple's iPhone. Call me a heretic if you must, but I like a phone that has a QWERTY keyboard and 3G support but doesn't cost an arm and a leg. So, I was stoked to see a rumor that the Ocean will be launched as early as May 21.

The Boy Genius Report said the Ocean will be in "general release on May 21" and "limited/internal/partner release is five to eight (days?) prior." I called Helio, … Read more

The opening day of the CTIA show in Orlando was a little quieter than in past years but Crave still found plenty of new and note-worthy products on the show floor. Though the iPhone made only a brief appearance we caught glimpse of several new cell phones, smart phones and accessories.

Cell phones Besides complete photo galleries of the new cell phones from such companies as Sony Ercisson, Nokia, Kyocera, LG and Pantech, I caught the announcement from Alcatel that the company is entering the North American cell phone market for the first time and saw a number of cool … Read more

We sat in with Sky Dayton, CEO of Helio, earlier today, and he gave us the full rundown of the Helio Ocean. We even had the chance to play with it a little, and so far, we're very impressed.

As we mentioned in Crave yesterday, the Helio Ocean is a triple-deckered phone with a number keypad layer that slides down, and a QWERTY keyboard layer that slides sideways. It's rather bulky as a result, but not as bad as I initially thought. The 2.4-inch QVGA screen is great for watching video, the keyboard is nice and spacious, … Read more

I have a Helio Drift phone (oops, I called it a phone) and while my friends love to make fun of me for it, I think it's a great handset. The display is awesome, the 3G Internet works great, and Helio's interface is really cool. Cool phone. Highly recommended.

Only problem is that I don't actually know anyone else who has a GPS-enabled Helio, and consequently my Dodgeball-like "Buddy Beacon" feature, which lets you track your friends' locations through a Google Maps mashup, doesn't get a whole lot of use. But then I … Read more

Yours truly is currently stuck in SFO for a mind-boggling eight hours, but that won't stop me from telling you about the latest in cell phone news. One of the hottest news items this morning is the release of the uber-sexy Helio Ocean, which is that Helio-branded QWERTY phone we mentioned in late February. This triple-decker wonder slides up to reveal a number keypad, and a separate layer slides sideways to reveal a full QWERTY keyboard. At 0.86-inch thick, it certainly isn't the thinnest phone in the world, but we're willing to forgive its bulk for … Read more

With the release of Apple's iPhone just a few months away, we're already seeing phone companies scramble to to keep customers by adding value to their phones and services. WHERE, from start-up uLocate, is no different, providing a bevy of GPS-enabled widgets for mobile phones while managing to use a drag-and-drop Web interface. Subscription to and use of the widgets requires a monthly fee of $2.99. For now, the service works with only six of Sprint's handsets, though about a dozen more are being added next Monday.

The widgets range from weather information providers to locators … Read more

Helio has announced a brand new cell phone in its lineup, and no, it's not that QWERTY phone that we were all excited about a week ago. Instead, it's a slim and shiny slider phone called the Heat, which appears to be the glam version of the company's much more sedate-looking Drift. The big design difference is that the Heat features "electrostatic" touch-sensitive buttons, much like the ones on the LG Chocolate. The touchpad includes the standard soft key and navigational buttons as well as dedicated music-player controls. It comes in onyx black as well … Read more

Well looky what we got here: Phonescoop spotted this shiny new Helio QWERTY phone on the FCC site this morning, and it looks to be a triple-layer wonder. Not only does the phone slide up to reveal the number keypad, it also slides sideways to reveal a full QWERTY keyboard--both the keypad and the keyboard are on separate layers. Manufactured by Pantech, the phone is tentatively called the PN-810, but we're guessing Helio will name it something else to suit their current lineup of the Hero, the Kickflip, and the Drift. Known features of the phone are impressive: EV-DO … Read more