DeskPhone
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Rockchip shows off Android-based desk phone, won't sell you one
We unfortunately didn't spot this one ourselves at IFA, but it looks like Rockchip had more than just the usual tablets on display at the show -- it also had this Android-based desk phone tucked away at its booth. Before you get too excited, however (tough, we know), we should point out that Rockchip is apparently just using the phone as a showcase for its own chipset, which it hopes will be used in a whole range of different Android-based devices. The prototype on display was apparently fully functional though, and included both landline and 3G connectivity, and a built-in camera for video calls -- so there may be at least a slight chance that it could wind up as an actual product someday.
Desk Phone Dock spotted in the wild
Still harboring some lingering doubts that the Desk Phone Dock is as real as you hoped it to be? Then it looks like you can now cast those worries aside, as our pals at Engadget Chinese have spotted the device in the wild following its debut at the China Sourcing Fair. Unfortunately, there's still no word on a release date, but the dock will reportedly run $150 "or more," and it does seem to work just as promised, with the speaker at least loud to be heard on a crowded trade show floor. Head on past the break for a quick video, and hit up the source link for plenty more hands-on shots.
Cloud Telecomputers announces Android-based Glass platform for desk phones
It may not be the first to come up with the bright idea of putting Android on a desk phone-esque device, but upstart Could Telecomputers may well be the most ambitious, with it boasting that its new Glass platform "makes the desk phone relevant again," and is "smarter and more powerful than your 'smart cell phone.'" To that end, the company has basically paired a full-fledged, 8-inch Android-based MID with a plain old corded phone, which will let you do things like dial numbers directly from your Outlook address book, pair up a cellphone via Bluetooth and, of course, take advantage of a whole range of Android apps that should put most other internet-connected desk phones to shame. As you probably picked up, however, this is still a platform and not an actual product just yet, but Cloud Telecomputers does have some pretty heavy backers behind it, and it "anticipates" that the first phones should be available sometime in the first quarter of 2010 for between $599 and $699. [Via PR Newswire]
