Sandgate VP Windows Mobile VoIP smartphone
By Marc Perton 
posted Nov 8th 2005 10:15PM
posted Nov 8th 2005 10:15PM
Sure, the Sandgate VP, from Japan's Sophia Systems, might be a
niche product, but it's a niche we're in already, so it looks pretty good to us. The phone is, for lack of a better
term, a VoIP smartphone. Outfitted with Windows Mobile 5, a 520MHz processor, WiFi and USB, it also has a 2.2-inch
screen and CF slot. And, yes, you could use just about any Pocket PC as a VoIP phone if you add a WiFi card and the
right software. But this one has those things already, along with that phone shape, making it something that could be
very handy for regular Skype users looking for a compact, user-friendly wireless solution.
[Via Akihabara
News]
Hook me up with one of these, beats my old I930, returned.. cuz of thick ness. how this is this?
It also has IRDA, so install a nice remote control app and this could be the perfect coffee table gadget. Use it to change channels, turn down the volume, and call your buddy.
I wonder if the IRDA is powerful enough to make a decent remote control...
So in a few years, when wimax emerges and blankets the country/world, devices like this will render cell phone carriers superfluous, right? Am I reading the situation correctly?
When this releases I will deff. be dumping my 60 dollar phone bill that I have and will be getting this for sure.
ya this phone looks pretty wicked... i mean its voip too so ya... and # 2 post i agree with u, its a prediction but i think it'll happen. But so what happens to the 802.11 now, since the "new standard" is 802.16 or something
Is this really Windows Mobile 5.0, or is it a device built upon Windows CE 5.0?
WiMax (802.16) will never replace cellular WANs. Just like WiFi is *not* a 3G competitor. The technologies are completely different. One is geared towards carrier grade voice/data services, the other is our favorite bridged ethernet over wireless, with a flashy new air interface. Woo hoo! Just what I need: bridged ethernet to a freaking cell phone.
Also, at the rate that standardized WiMax hardware is hitting the market (a rate of 0) WiFi (802.11) will also stay around for a long, long time.
People think that wifi phones are a niche market. Perhaps this is true, but they are going to still sell quite well today, and become a big market in the future. Think of them as fancy portable phones that do not interfere with your wireless network.
While it is true that 802.11 and voice is a very bad mix, it actually has a lot of potential in very specific situations.
1) its dirt cheap; commodity
2) anyone can put it up; no licenses required
3) although voice over wifi is horribly inefficent, the bitrate is so freaking fast, that it actually makes up for this issue and offers nearly the same amount of capacity in erlangs as CDMA/GSM systems! If WiFi didnt suck so much, it would probably have about 5 times more capacity.
The downside is that at the expense of 22MHz per channel, it really doesnt compare to bits per Hz of WAN systems.
Very nice and pretty product.
Very nice and pretty product.
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Hm, I think it looks like a mutant iPod mini + iPhone design done by a 12- year old.
No just kidding...
....surely the designer is much older than that.
work with skype?! cool! we need a cool skype phone!