FlipPhones
Latest
Hello Kitty, Snoopy lend their brand equity to the cute clamshell phone cause
In Japan, a certain hallowed distinction has been garnered by all ephemera cute and pretty. So, it goes without saying that this pair of oblong flip phones, with their familiar animated sponsors, should have the Harajuku hordes rushing in with charm straps at the ready. For its particular crack at kawaii, Panasonic's P-06C gets an understated splash of Snoopy cool, visible only through two available built-in themes. The clamshell entry comes with a 3-inch display, 5.1 megapixel camera and retails for about 28,560 yen (or $375). But, let's face it folks, the real stunner of the two is the Softbank-designed model Ms. Kitty-chan adorns. The Antique Berry-shaded 007SH KT packs a 3.4-inch display, 16.1 megapixel camera and Android 2.3 into a 180 degree foldable handset, and can be yours when it goes on sale next month. Be sure to jump past the break for a double dose of this wireless adorability.
Mysterious Motorola MT820 poses for a long, leisurely spy shoot
Two in one week -- Two leaked Chinese Motorola phones with Android and transparent MOTOMING-like flip covers, that is. However, this one's a little more exciting. Dubbed the Moto MT820, this sleek handset's got a full leaked gallery of nice, clear images courtesy Chinese forum HiAPK, and word has it this might be the first device to make use of the dual-screen 3D patent Motorola applied for early this month. Actual facts are a little more scarce, though spy shots show a front-facing camera, physical home, power, volume and camera buttons, and a microSD slot hidden inside the back cover. Oh, and that spiral G3 logo? That means this particular device is destined for China Mobile's TD-SCDMA network. See all the spicy pics at our more coverage link.
Motorola patent application offers new option for 3D cellphones
Flip phones may be somewhat on the outs these days (at least among those demanding the latest and greatest), but they may well be the key to future 3D cellphones -- at least if this Motorola patent application is any indication. The basic idea is actually a fairly simple one: you'd see a regular 2D image on the screen when the cover is open, but when it's closed you'd be able to look through the transparent lid and see the images with a "three dimensional appearance." As you can probably figure out, that screen would be a touchscreen that takes the place of a keypad, and another illustration also shows that the same idea could be applied to a slider phone. Of course, what the illustrations don't show is how effective that three dimensional appearance would actually be, although it seems like it could give Motoblur a whole new meaning.
Vertu announces Constellation Ayxta flip phone for the discerning, friendless traveler
Vertu's not known for making cut rate electronics, so this is probably the closest it'll ever come. The company's just unveiled its latest flip phone, the Constellation Ayxta. The Ayzta is aimed at citizens of the world who are looking for a "high quality product to assist in maintaining their standard of living wherever they may be," -- i.e., lazy people who'd rather throw money at something than figure out what to do on their own on a Friday night in Vienna. We can sympathize -- sort of. To that end, the handset will be kitted with all manner of, including Vertu's own Concierge service which puts you on the line with a customer service representative directly -- no hold required. Users will also get access to Vertu Select -- which, as we said before, will help you out and tell you where all the cool people are in whatever one horse you happen to be in at the moment. It's got 3G and a micros SD slot for up to 8GB of storage, plus a 3.0 megapixel cam with integrated flash (which is always nice), but other than that it's pretty unimpressive. The Constellation Ayxta is available in Europe now, and for a very affordable €4,900 to €6,500 -- somewhere in the neighborhood of $7,000 - $10,500. [Via T3]
Vodafone Japan announces summer lineup
New Softbank property Vodafone K.K. has announced four new 3G handsets -- along with the 2G Toshiba V304T "simplephone" -- that will be released this summer in Japan, including Sharp's 905SH clamshell with a 2 megapixel camera and One Seg digital TV reception. Also seen before was Voda's version of Nokia's N71, dubbed the 804NK, which sports those same multimedia and smartphone features along with obvious addition of bilingual menus. Like the three models mentioned previously, the Toshiba 705T and Sharp 705SH SLIMIA also sport clamshell designs, with the Tosh featuring external music controls and the Sharp (pictured) rocking dual cameras. Additionally, a sixth model, Sharp's 2G V403SH (also a flip phone), was announced as getting a summer makeover, and will now come in your choice of cloth beige or cloth blue.
