Phones

OK, so you think $842,000 is a wee pricey for a cell phone strap (tightwad). All you bargain hunters out there may be pleased to know that you can get a cheapo alternative for chump change-- just $250--that features a 24k gold charm as seen on Tokyomango to commemorate the "Year of the Boar" (or pig, if that seems more appropriate for this bit of conspicuous consumption). If you're so inclined, you can even get a set of genuine gold and silver USB keys as the perfect accessory. And at this level of decorative wastfulness, it'… Read more

Sometimes you chat. Sometimes you listen to music. Sometimes you alternate between the two on your music phone. And sometimes you alternate between the two using two different devices. Oh, why can't there be one Bluetooth earphone to handle all these situations?

Well, there is--the Jabra BT8010, to be released in the next couple months. First, it's a regular, single, over-the-ear Bluetooth earpiece with an OLED display that shows caller ID. You can also transfer up to 30 contacts to the headset in case you don't want to reach for your cell phone to make a call. … Read more

Though Verizon Wireless has yet to announce officially that it will start offering the Motorola Slvr L7c, Motorola demonstrated such a phone this evening at a CES press event. Motorola reps declined to comment, but it's clear Verizon will join Sprint in offering the candy bar version of Moto's slim handset line. And in any case, bloggers have sighted the Slvr L7c on the carrier's prerelease Web site. Clad in silver, Verizon's Slvr L7c will be similar to both Sprint's model and the GSM Slvr L7 for Cingular. Features should include a VGA camera, Bluetooth, … Read more

Samsung is no slouch when it comes to music phones, but at CES 2007, the company is doing everything it can to top its efforts of previous years. Instead of offering new music features, however, the Samsung Ultra Music brings an innovative music phone design. And if our hunch is correct, we should see it from Sprint by March.

While most music phones barely give a thought to music functionality in their designs, the Ultra Music takes a more Jekyll-and-Hyde approach by combining elements of both devices. Yes, dedicated music controls are here but you'll find dual displays and … Read more

Nobody loves staring into a sea of red brake lights while enduring their daily commute, but TeleNav and Sprint are hoping to relieve some of that headache with TeleNav Traffic. A new feature of TeleNav GPS Navigator, a GPS-enabled navigation service for cell phones, TeleNav Traffic alerts you to congestion and accidents with voice and visual prompts on your mobile phone. In addition, customers can get alternate routes by pressing "0" on their phone, and can receive an estimated time of arrival based on real-time traffic conditions. Swanky.

TeleNav Traffic is currently only being offered to Sprint customers … Read more

Nokia's 6131 isn't new but the company announced today that it would soon be the world's first cell phone with Near Field Communications (NFC) technology. NFC will allow users to instantly store and access business cards in their phone, gain access to an event, share information, and make quick purchases for items ranging from coffee to show tickets. Nokia promises that by touching their phone to an NFC-enabled business card, advertising display, or menu board, people can use their phone almost as an ID, a wallet, and a computer.

For example, users could download multimedia content from … Read more

Just as everyone suspected, Verizon Wireless is bringing programming from the small screen to an even smaller screen with today's announcement of V Cast Mobile TV. At a multimedia-filled event at the hip Palms Hotel, Verizon execs unveiled the service and the two phones that will support it.

As we told you earlier today, V Cast Mobile TV will bring live full-length television programming to selected handsets via Qualcomm's MediaFlo technology. The service is set to launch by the end of March and will offer eight channels of programming available including CBS, NBC, MTV, Fox, and ESPN. Verizon … Read more

The LG VX9400 is not the only phone to support V Cast Mobile TV. The other phone is called the Samsung Mobi, which also goes by the name Samsung SCH-u620. We managed to get a look at it after the Verizon press conference, and it looks and feels a lot like the Samsung Drift phone from Helio. It is nice and compact with a soft-touch finish on its matte black surface, and it's a slider phone.

The specifications are very similar to that of the LG VX9400; features include a 1.3-megapixel camera, a camcorder, text and multimedia messaging, … Read more

Well, well, well, looky here: CES 2007 hasn't even officially started, and we already have a hot little product announcement: the Palm Treo 750 for Cingular. Actually, as per usual, this news wasn't much of a secret; details of the release leaked onto the Web prior to the show. Plus, we were expecting to see this Windows-based Treo drop before the holidays, but after delays with carrier certification, the launch was pushed back till after the new year, and CES is certainly the place to debut it (after all, it served as the backdrop for the Treo 700w … Read more