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O2, Vodafone both working on 3G femtocell trials
Femtocells may be one of the closest things we have to a win / win in the wireless industry, lowering infrastructure costs for carriers and giving customers on-demand, self-installable coverage where they wouldn't have it otherwise, all without requiring WiFi-capable handsets that UMA services like T-Mobile's HotSpot @Home do. It makes sense that a number of carriers would be rushing to get femtocells into end users' hands, then, and both O2 and Vodafone are doing exactly that in separate European trials. O2's trial involves NEC equipment in the UK, while Vodafone is turning to Huawei and Alcatel-Lucent to supply hardware to Spanish testers. Both trials involve 3G cells (yay!) and at least O2 has gone on record saying that a successful test will lead to commercialization by early next year. Kinda strange that Sprint is so far ahead of the curve on this one, but hey, do you see us complaining?Read - NEC and O2 trial femtocells in the UKRead - Vodafone Group trials 3G femtocell technology
Nokia "Dora" to replace E65
We were still kinda settling in with the businesslike E65 slider, a phone that feels like it just found its way into widespread commercial availability a few months back. Ah, that's because it did! No bother, though; time marches mercilessly on, and Nokia's apparently getting ready for the inevitable future with this here piece coined "Dora." We know this from the same endless barrage of Vodafone leaks that have plagued the carrier today, and we're sensing some common themes: like several others in the mix, this one features 3.6Mbps HSDPA, GPS, and WiFi. The camera is up from 2 megapixels to 3.2, and we're a tad skeptical on this one, but the slide claims that we can expect a 320 x 320 display which would be an improvement over the E65's 320 x 240. This one's expected on Voda next quarter for £280 (about $554).
HP's Pearl -- er, "Silver" smartphone
Palm's not the only company bringing some new Windows Mobile kit to Vodafone this year -- Boy Genius Report's scoopage of Voda's '08 lineup includes a new HP, too. The "Silver" (a codename, we assume) should put the kinda sad iPAQ 510 out of business and appears to take a page straight outta the Pearl's book, right down to the WiFi, GPS, and SureType keyboard (which is surprisingly actually identified as "SureType," a RIM trademark). Unlike the Pearl, though, this sucker rocks Windows Mobile 6 Standard and HSDPA -- a whopping 7.2Mbps of it. Look for it in July for about £250 ($494).
Nokia "Liam" is the E61i successor
Okay, next up from Boy Genius Report's Vodafone breakdown comes the Nokia "Liam," the phone we just saw in the wild being called the E71. No word from this slide whether the E71 name is gonna stick, but Liam is pretty obviously a codename so it'll pick up an "E" number of one sort or another by the time it launches in the second quarter. Looks like all the features we'd heard so far are holding strong: HSDPA, 3.2 megapixel cam, WiFi, GPS, video call support, and pretty much all the S60 you can handle. No word from this slide whether US 3G's in the mix, but we're crossing our fingers.
Palm "Drucker" in the mix, better only than "Zeppelin" among Palm codenames
The Treo 680 and 750 are getting a little long in the tooth, are they not? The 680 has a spiritual successor in the Centro -- the 750, though, not so much (come on, the 500v does not count). That might just be where this "Drucker" comes into play, a phone listed on Vodafone's 2008 roadmap that alleges Windows Mobile 6.1, a 320 x 320 (!) display, 2 megapixel camera, GPS, WiFi, and triband 3.6Mbps HSDPA when it comes down the pike this July. In fact, we can pretty much guarantee it'll be replacing the 750v, seeing how it says so right on the slide. Sadly we don't have any visuals on this one (something tells us this ominous gray box isn't the actual phone), but it looks like Voda's targeting a price of £270 (about $534) and we'd be pretty shocked if we didn't see an AT&T launch in roughly the same time frame.
Vodafone's 2008 roadmap gets outed, new BlackBerry included
Boy Genius Report has seemingly scooped up a healthy portion of Voda's '08 roadmap here, and with it a host of unannounced devices from various manufacturers. Here's one we kinda expected at this point: a new BlackBerry previously spotted via a shady eBay auction, once thought to be a member of the upcoming 9000 series but identified here as an "8XXX" -- in other words, either RIM or Voda hasn't quite decided yet how to shoehorn it into the 8000 series lineup. Projected launch (on Voda, anyway -- other carriers may vary) is May of this year, bringing quadband EDGE, triband 3.6Mbps HSDPA, a 480 x 320 display, 2 megapixel cam, GPS, WiFi, and a whoppin' 624MHz core to "senior executives" across the land (Vodafone's words, not ours). These guys are getting better at making slick looking devices with every iteration, are they not?
UK man racks up monster bill, Vodafone says don't use your phone as a modem
Wait, what? We'd suspected that carriers always secretly hated subscribers tethering their phones to their computers, but it's another matter entirely for one of the world's largest to just come right out and say it. A British man discovered that the data speeds on his Vodafone mobile were faster and more reliable than those offered by his ISP, so he cabled it up to his PC and proceeded to blow through "20 or 30" TV show downloads and a handful of albums. Next thing he knows, Voda's cutting him off and slapping him with a £27,322 (about $54,000) bill -- a bill he has no capability to pay, and a bill he'd never expected on account of a £7.50 (about $15) data plan that he thought was unlimited, but was actually designed for mobile use with 125MB of data allowance per month. Though it says that the charges are totally legit, Vodafone is considering going easy on the guy, but here's the kicker: the carrier's advice is to "never use a mobile as a modem." What's next, should we "never use a mobile as a mobile" for fear that we might go over our monthly minute allowance?[Via textually.org]
Vodafone quietly kills Windows Mobile-based 920
We hope you weren't holding out to scoop up one of those Vodafone 920s to slide into the Festivus stocking, because, well, it no longer exists. It seems that Voda has up and pulled a Foleo on the HTC-sourced Windows Mobile slider, silently dropping it from the planned holiday lineup without giving a reason why. Maybe the carrier felt it duplicated some of its other offerings too closely, maybe it couldn't pass the carrier's usual battery of tests -- but whatever the reason, it's time to find another phone to give to that WinMo lover in your life.
Vodafone "InsideOut" connects phones to Second Life
Vodafone customers now have access to a new service called "InsideOut" that allows interaction between characters in the vast virtual world Second Life and real, actual phones (you know, like in the real world) operated by Voda. Both voice calls and text messages can be ferried in and out of the game, with SMSes running a cool L$300 (which we think is somewhere around $1) and voice calls running L$300 per minute. Calls and messages placed to Second Life, though, are billed at the same rate as they would be to a traditional German phone (it seems Voda's pool of InsideOut numbers are based in of Deutschland at the moment). Through the end of November, InsideOut's still operating in a beta mode so it's all free to try out, but keep in mind that Voda's customer support won't be able to bail you out -- cue Matrix reference -- if you're having trouble getting to a hardline.
Vodafone breaks rank, gives Nokia's Ovi the thumbs-up
Carrier reaction to Nokia's Ovi suite of multimedia apps has been tepid at best -- and understandably so, considering that the company's gunning for a share of on-device entertainment revenue, a cash stream historically reserved for carriers themselves. Fortunately for Espoo, though, the 800-pound gorilla of European carriers has gone against the trend to issue Ovi a hearty endorsement. Vodafone and Nokia have announced that Nokia handsets released on Voda in '08 will rock out with Ovi services installed -- with a catch, of course: Vodafone's own competing services will also be installed. The companies say it's a win for consumers because the diametrically opposed apps somehow compliment one another, but by loading both Nokia's Music Store and Vodafone's own music service, for example, it could all be a daunting challenge for consumers to figure out what's what. We'll have to wait and see how this all plays out on retail devices in a few months.
Vodafone's v1520 WM6 handset goes for endurance
Is it just us, or does this teeny, tiny image bear a striking resemblance to one ASUS P550, a feature-packed Windows Mobile handset that hit the FCC a couple months back? The few specs Vodafone lists on its site for this coming-soon device match up with the aforementioned FCC docs, too, so we'd say it's pretty safe to assume ASUS is the ODM in question here. Anyway, it looks like Voda will be getting this bad boy as the self-branded v1520 -- and while the 3.5 inch screen is pretty hot, the headlining feature seems to be an astounding 12 hours of rated talk time (whether real-world results are anywhere near that remains to be seen). No word on price or drop date yet, but you UK folk keep your ears to the ground, k?[Via the::unwired and CoolSmartPhone]
LG KU950 does DVB-H for Vodafone
Vodafone already has a partnership with the UK's Sky TV to bring live television to handsets via 3G data; it must be going pretty well, seeing how this here LG KU950 will apparently be one of the first handsets to bring Sky to Voda customers via DVB-H. Unlike UMTS, DVB-H is a downlink-only technology, suggesting that Vodafone might be a bit... shall we say, concerned at the long-term implications of customers getting their TV fix via the traditional data pipes. We don't have any solid details on the KU950, but the pivoting slider features a front-facing cam (meaning 3G is a sure thing), the screen apparently clocks in at a TV-friendly 2.4 inches, and it'll apparently run €99 when it hits next year -- not a bad first foray into the brave new world of digital mobile TV for Vodafone, if we do say so ourselves.[Thanks, Tony]
Vodafone boils support down to three platforms
Sorry, SavaJe fans -- if you call Vodafone home, it looks like you're out of luck. Hoping to reduce integration, development, and support costs and speed up time to market, Vodafone has announced plans to purge their lineup of anything that doesn't run on Windows Mobile, Series 60, or Linux. The streamlining will take place over the next five years, during which a separate agreement announced with Microsoft aims to "integrate Vodafone's applications and services with Microsoft's software" -- we're not exactly sure what that means, but we think it has something to do with getting Vodafone-branded Windows Mobile devices into users' hands with a little more hustle than everyone's accustomed to. The first visible evidence of this grand plan for standardization should apparently rear its head in the first half of 2007 with some Samsung hardware. The i520, perhaps?[Via PDA247]
Motorola MOTORIZR Z3 now on Vodafone Germany
With the MAXX and V3xx both coming out of the woodwork recently and into customers' hands, it's already been a helluva week for Motorola launches -- but there's no rest for the wicked. The MOTORIZR Z3, alternatively known in some circles as the RAZR slider (but not that RAZR slider), has gone ahead and dropped on Vodafone Germany for the reasonable sum of €100 on contract (about $128). Though the RIZR falls behind its launch-mates with nothing more than old skool EDGE data to its name, it's a solid alternative to the K1 KRZR for those that prefer sliders and just can't bear to give up that Moto look. Here's hoping the Voda launch is only the first of many in the next few weeks, eh?[Thanks, Jewburg]
Vodafone announces blockbuster 31-phone lineup
So, this actually went down a couple days ago, and we've been sitting here trying to process all the information ever since. The idea of any carrier -- let alone a non-Japanese one -- announcing thirty-one handsets in one fell swoop simply boggles our mortal minds. We take it so seriously, in fact, that we liken it to the discovery of penicillin or man landing on the moon; if a US carrier were to launch 31 handsets at once, we wouldn't be surprised to see it on the front page of every newspaper in North America. Alas, this isn't Cingular or Verizon with the announcement -- it's Vodafone, so let's get down to business. First up, Nokia is bringing six phones to the party: the 6070, 6151, 6234, 6288, 7390, and the N73; all but the 6070 are 3G, and you get your choice of cams ranging from VGA all the way up to the N73's monster 3.2-megapixel shooter. LG will be contributing its KU800 (a Chocolate variant) and L600V, both with 3G data. Motorola rolls deep with four models, the MAXX, V1100 (an HSDPA-capable Vodafone exclusive), MOTOKRZR K1, and V3xx. Sagem's got the my600V and my800V -- both lower-end 3G devices -- and the super simple myC5-3. We're starting to get a little fatigued here, but let's keep going; Sharp has their 770SH and EDGE-only GX29 in store with 1.3-megapixel and VGA cams, respectively. Sony Ericsson brings their K310i, K610i, K800i Cyber-shot, V630i (another Voda exclusive, hence the "V," we're guessing), and W850i Walkman phones, though no mention of the P990. Samsung wins the title of "World's Most Phones Launched By A Single Manufacturer In This Particular Vodafone Announcement," dropping the X510V, X680V, Z400V, Z540V, Z560V, Z720V, ZV40, and ZV50. Last -- and possibly least -- the Vodafone 710 inaugurates Voda's self-branding initiative, bringing 3G and a 1.3-megapixel camera in (what should be) an inexpensive package. All told, six of the new phones will rock HSDPA, and a total of 24 support some manner of high-speed data. Now if you'll excuse us, we need some milk of magnesia and a nap, but we hope we've brightened the day of a Brit or two among our readership. [Warning: PDF link]
Treo 750v in the flesh
Windows Mobile had a fresh 750v kicking around in their booth, and we were more than happy to snap a few shots of it au naturale. We're told that Vodafone has an exclusive on the device at least through the holidays, meaning Cingular might not be getting the love until '07 despite the presence of triband UMTS. We also confirmed that the device is UMTS only, not HSDPA, but hey -- when it comes to triband 3G devices, beggars can't be choosers.Update: TreoCentral's been told that the 750 will be software upgradable to HSDPA; also, Vodafone's exclusivity clause applies to Europe only, leaving the door open for 2006 releases in Asia, the US or elsewhere.
