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Confirmed: HTC Qilin uses OMAP3 -- out of necessity
HTC's got a super-tight relationship with Qualcomm, a relationship that they've gone to the mat to defend on many occasions -- most recently with the Hero, which uses essentially the same 528MHz MSM7201a chipset as pretty much every other notable HTC in recent memory. Thing is, this is 2009 and there now are better, faster processors out there, even within the ARM family; take TI's Cortex A8-based OMAP3, for example, which very effectively powers some of the most media-centric, UI eye candy-heavy devices on the market. That's not to say that the MSM7200 series can't hold its own -- one look at TouchFLO 3D gliding along smoothly on a Touch Pro2 will tell you that -- but why not throw more horsepower under the hood if you can still get a full days' worth of use on battery power? We've been able to confirm a wmpoweruser.com report that HTC's upcoming Qilin for China Mobile will be underpinned by an honest-to-goodness OMAP3, which you'd think might rock the Qualcomm boat but HTC's decision was actually very easy: the fully-integrated MSM7200 isn't available in a TD-SCDMA configuration. That's good for Qilin, good for China Mobile, bad for customers of every other Whitestone variant in the world. If there's a silver lining here, it's that HTC's leaked roadmaps seem to indicate that Snapdragon-powered gear will happen sooner rather than later, but at this point, it can't happen soon enough.
Lenovo's O1e takes the O1 down a notch or three
The O1 isn't even out yet, but a new filing with China's regulatory folks suggests that Lenovo's already hard at work at a lower-cost version that would swap out metal bits for plastic ones and kick the camera down from 5 megapixels to 3. On the plus side, buyers still make out with 8GB of internal storage and quite possibly China Mobile's homegrown Android skin, so it can't be all bad, right? Then again, this remix could be for a different carrier altogether, in which case we might be spared Open Mobile System's uncomfortably iPhone-esque home screen -- and really, that'd be just fine with us.
Philips' Android-powered V900 for China Mobile shown off as OMS launch draws near
In China, excited about Android, and finding yourself a bit let down by Dell's first smartphone outing? Chin up, kid -- maybe Philips has your number. The company already has an established Asian phone business with its Xenium line of ridiculously energy-efficient handsets, and as suspected, it turns out it'll be one of China Mobile's launch partners as it kicks off its Android-based Open Mobile System next month alongside Lenovo, Dell, and HTC subsidiary Dopod. What you're looking at here is the V900, and like all OMS devices, it runs a highly customized Android build that's taken on a vaguely iPhone-esque appearance; other features include WiFi, a 3.5mm headphone jack, a 3.2 megapixel camera, and -- if you squint really hard -- the momentary believe that you're actually holding a Touch Diamond2. Looks-wise, we think we prefer every other OMS launch phone, but it's good to see that there'll be plenty of options on the shelves. [Via HTC Phones, thanks Micah]
Dell Mini 3i is like totally not official, man
Oh, how we love PR people and their eternal clarifications on things. Apparently, the Dell Mini 3i's apperance at a China Mobile event on Monday was merely a proof of concept, and -- wait for it -- "it wasn't officially, formally introduced so much as it was waved around." Thank you, Dell, for our quote of the week. Unwilling to yet commit to the handset and specs on display, Dell is saying that it was there to support China Mobile in its role as a development partner rather than to promote any retail products. We wouldn't read too much into this supposed refutation -- if the phone were indeed a concept, that'd have been made clear at the show (and it wasn't based on the original report), and what we're experiencing now feels very much like post-event spin. [Via Mobile Review]
China Mobile's Mobile Market apparently goes live ahead of schedule
Its website is still showing a Coming Soon page for us, but the Wall Street Journal is reporting via Hong Kong -- China Mobile's hometown -- that the world's largest carrier's app store is now live. The service, which offers the usual array of apps and media that you'd expect of any self-respecting fee-based carrier content deck, is said to support some ten handsets out of the gate from Nokia, Samsung, and LG. Mysteriously missing from that list is anything that'd be running OMS, though we suppose that makes sense since the first OPhones aren't coming to market in an official capacity until next month.
Dell officially developing 'mobile devices' for China Mobile
If you're going to go, you might as well go big, right? In a confirmation for the ages, Dell spokesperson Andrew Bowins has clearly stated that the company is "developing mobile devices for China Mobile," giving the Round Rock powerhouse access to the biggest mobile subscriber base on the entire planet. Unfortunately, he didn't confirm nor deny whether the Mini 3i that we peeked this morning would be amongst the first to launch, but obviously you won't find us gasping should it happen. Beyond that, details on the whole arrangement are scant, but here's hoping that Dell trucks those handsets over to this side of the drink in short order.
Dell Mini 3i smartphone gets official outing in China
At last, the much rumored Dell cellphone has made its first official appearance. The 3.5-inch 360 x 640 pixel device with capacitive touchscreen was on display in China running the Android-based Open Mobile System (OMS). The Mini 3i was on-hand as part of the launch of China Mobile's new Application Platform that offers music, video, and app downloads to mobile phones from Nokia, Samsung, LG, and apparently, Dell. The candybar device lacks WiFi (or Chinese WAPI) and is strictly 2G GSM (no 3G) but does come with a 3 megapixel camera, microSD slot, Bluetooth, and 950mAh battery. Guess now we know why the early prototypes were met by a collective meh by mobile carriers earlier this year. No idea when this will ship but it looks China-bound for at least the near future. A few more pics after the break.[Via Cloned In China]Read -- China Mobile's Application PlatformRead -- Dell cooperating with China MobileRead -- Dell Mini 3i unveil
Dell Mini 3i smartphone captured in pair of spy shots
Well, it's looking increasingly like those very first shots of a rumored Dell smartphone that cropped up way back in June were indeed the real deal, as two separate sets of purported spy pics have now turned up showing an identical-looking phone. Better still, they also show the device powered on, offering us our first look at Dell and China Mobile's customized Android interface for the thing. The Boy Genius Report also goes one step further with a complete list of the phone's purported specs, which includes quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE connectivity, a 3.5-inch 640 x 360 display, a 3-megapixel camera with a flash (and support for 30 fps video), Bluetooth, A-GPS, and a microSD card slot for expansion, to name a few features. Head on past the break for one more, equally blurry shot, and dive into the links below for a few pics and details.Read - Cloned in China, "Dell Mini 3i spy shots"Read - Boy Genius Report, "Dell's smartphone pictured again, spec'd, other Android details"[Thanks, xleung]
Dell's China-bound smartphone possibly called 'mini 3i,' but questions abound
Alright, you know how Dell's seemingly been going through hell and high water for years now to try to bring a smartphone or two to market? China's been a special focus of this clandestine effort, and we've got some new information here -- possibly. Chinese site NetEase is reporting on an email supposedly received by developers on China Mobile's Mobile Market mailing list, discussing a handful of S60, WinMo, and Android-based Open Mobile System (OMS) devices that the carrier would really love devs to concentrate on as Mobile Market goes live and tries to gain some footing. Most of the content is mundane, but there's a section for an OMS device called the Dell "mini 3i," a name that would certainly fall right in line with Dell's branding -- but there are a couple issues here. First, the phone is said to operate on China Mobile's legacy GSM network, not the homegrown TD-SCDMA 3G tech that the carrier is working diligently to deploy right now; it seems illogical at best for Dell to get into the game with a phone that's immediately walloped by Lenovo with its 3G-capable O1 as the first volley of OMS phones comes to market over the coming weeks. Secondly there's absolutely zero discussion about the supposed email on OMS' official forums, which seems odd if the email's real. To its credit, the claimed 640 x 360 -- that's a perfect 16:9, if you can't be bothered to get out your graphing calculator -- sounds about right to match the rumored shot we've seen floating around lately, but we're still staying guarded on this one until we hear something official from the folks in Austin or Hong Kong. [Via Cloned In China]
Lenovo's Android-powered O1 'OPhone' due next month
Good news, kids! It looks like Lenovo's O1 "OPhone" handset is finally ready to hit the shelves over on the Mainland sometime next month. Truth be told, the story arc of this Android-powered 3G (TD-SCDMA) handset has been quite the emotional roller coaster: Some were riveted by the sleek, sexy physical design of the thing, while others were repelled by its intensely KIRFish UI. China Mobile is obviously hoping for big things from the little guy -- and getting it into stores before Unicom gets the iPhone sorted can't hurt. Either way, it looks like someone's just taken a bite out of iOrgane's market share!
HTC Hero and Click coming to China under Dopod brand
HTC has been on a global Android-pimping mission with its Hero device, and it looks like Chinese subsidiary Dopod gets the honor of announcing three new handsets for the Middle Kingdom. Unlike others, the Hero retains its WiFi capabilities by playing nice with China's custom WLAN security protocol and is expected in late August on China Unicom for 5,600 Yuan ($820) along with the few-frills Click for 3,400 Yuan ($500). The carrier has opted to strip Google Maps from the Hero (though it's still downloadable), and to soften the blow it will likely offer a snazzy red version of the phone. China Mobile will have to settle for an as-yet unspecified TD-SCDMA handset and the already announced Magic, both of which will likely be sporting the OMS flavor of Android. We're not sure we'd classify the Hero's price tag as reasonable -- but really, can you put a dollar figure on being the first big-name Android release in the world's largest wireless market?
China Mobile's OPhone SDK goes gold
In China, Android's well on its way to mutating into an entirely different beast thanks to China Mobile's OPhone initiative to standardize the carrier on a smartphone platform -- and with devices like the lovely (well, from a distance, anyway) Lenovo O1 backing up the effort, we'd say they've got a fighting chance of making the whole thing work. Of course, any good smartphone platform needs developers, and developers need an SDK; to that end, China Mobile has just unleashed version 1.0 of its OPhone developers' site on the world. It looks like they're positioning the so-called OPhone Software Developer Network as a central hub -- a place for devs to come for the software and stay for the conversation, with access to software tools, official documentation and communities where hardened programmers can exchange dramatic stories of software engineering survival in the field. It remains to be seen how successful OPhones will ultimately be at the cash register, but at least China Mobile appears to be doing everything it needs to on the back end to get quality apps in the pipeline -- and that's a start.[Via Cloned In China]
Samsung touts that it has 3G covered like a blanket in China
Though it stands as the world's most populous wireless market (by a stunningly wide margin), China lags in 3G coverage --partly thanks to its fragmentation-happy attitude that has left the country with three very different, very incompatible standards that are all being rolled out in parallel. Of course, when you're Samsung, that ain't no thing. Sammy -- the world's number two manufacturer, and a company that very nearly rolls out a phone a day every single day of the year -- is spearheading a new "3GSamsung, 3G for all" marketing campaign in China to advertise the breadth and depth high-speed wares. To be fair, the company is probably more qualified to aggressively advertise 3G support in China than any other company, seeing how it's in the process of rolling out around 30 compatible phones there spanning the full range from EV-DO to HSPA to China's own TD-SCDMA -- now they've just got to work on bumping up those adoption rates and they'll be in business. [Image via 163]
China Mobile's 7-inch Android slate gets rendered
We've nothing much to go on outside of a few good renders and a smattering of machine translated paragraphs, but it sure sounds as if China Mobile is entertaining the idea of bringing a 7-inch Android-based tablet to its airwaves. As the story goes, said slate would boast China's homegrown TD-SCDMA 3G connectivity, support for video calling, a full-fledged web browser and an OPhone operating system -- which is essentially a customized version of Android for the Chinese market. Sadly, no further information was given, leaving us to wonder what kind of innards are scheduled for implant and what kind of price tag / release date we're looking at. Oh, and those "call" and "end call" buttons are pretty darn evident, leading us to believe that China Mobile might actually expect you to use this as your primary mobile. Can you say... Sidetalkin'? [Via Pocketables]
Philips V808 smartphone to run Android-based OPhone OS on China Mobile
Well, at least some of the mystery is solved. If a machine translated source is to be believed -- not to mention a healthy gathering of screengrabs -- Philips' elusive V808 smartphone will be a China Mobile exclusive. As with other Android-based phones on the operator, it'll be the reworked OPhone OS handling the dirty work, which basically means a carrier-customized app market and a few other tweaks that seem to be frowned upon in the Chinese community. We're also told that the phone will lack support for 3G, WiFi and multitouch, leaving us grieved, lugubrious and lachrymose. C'mon guys -- why hamstring a good thing?[Via Cloned In China]
WiFi-less iPhones roll off assembly line -- and into Chinese pockets?
Word from the land of Yao is that Foxconn has begun mass production of a 3G-enabled iPhone 3GS-looking device that lacks WiFi functionality, though it's being suggested that these may actually lack a WiFi module altogether as opposed to the software lock we'd heard about earlier. The phone (read: iPhone) in question is said to be the same as the one Apple recently sent to the China Telecommunication Technology Labs for testing, which points to the handset making its long-awaited Chinese debut in the near future. Of course, rumors of this happening have been surging and receding for years now, and even these "undisclosed sources" provide no insight as to which carrier will scoop the prized contract. The great will they or won't they discussions continue, though if these things are actually being produced, it means one of two things: the world's most populated nation is about to get its iPhone fix, or the world at large is about to receive another stash of iPhone KIRFs.[Via 9to5 Mac]
China Mobile's Mobile Market site goes live, sort of
A site channeling 480 million subscribers into a single mobile app and content store would seem like one of the world's most lucrative properties, so naturally, there are a lot of eyes focused on China Mobile right now as it gets ready to launch its Mobile Market venture. The store's site is sort of live now, though it appears to be in a pre-release testing phase with broken links all over the place; the carrier officially says that the service will be available in September, so we'd look to that date before the full force of half a billion individuals gets unleashed on the site. Combine this with an Android-based OPhone or two, and we're totally in.[Via PC World]
China Mobile says 3G isn't winning hearts and minds yet
China Mobile officially kicked off commercial 3G services on China's homegrown TD-SCDMA standard way back in January of this year and it's sparing no expense to build it out, but so far, only 3 percent of new subscribers -- that is, those that could easily get a 3G line and hardware if they wanted to -- are opting for the service. It'd be totally cool if 3 percent of China Mobile's total subscriber base were on 3G, but in reality, only about three-quarters of a million folks were signed up by the end of May -- and when you consider that there are nearly half a billion subscribers on the carrier, that's a drop in the bucket. Part of the problem could simply be that TD-SCDMA is unique to China, which limits hardware selection; its competitors are deploying HSPA and EV-DO networks, which may have a better chance of broad acceptance. Either that, or Chinese just hate fast wireless, and we're doubting that.
Move over, Lenovo: HTC Magic-based OPhone confirmed for June on China Mobile
Shots of that China Mobile-customized Magic in the wild have proven spot-on now that the Wall Street Journal has confirmed HTC's plans to begin offering the device starting next month. The phone will join hardware from Lenovo as a member of China Mobile's OPhone initiative, which is looking to offer a carrier-customized Android experience on surprisingly awesome handsets. Of course, awesomeness always comes with a price, and when the Magic launches in June, it's expected to run something in the range of 5,000 yuan ($732) -- a princely sum for a phone that should run no more than $450 or so totally unlocked in other locales. Just how bad do you want Android, punk? [Via CNET]
Samsung B7300 pictured, excites only the most rabid WinMo fans
It's not the prettiest Windows Mobile smartphone we've ever seen, and there's a good reason for it -- all indications are that the unannounced Samsung B7300 is targeted squarely at the midrange of the market. In fact, the leaked pictures we're looking at here are China Mobile-branded, suggesting that the 3G- and WiFi-free device will find a home in an area of the world where EDGE doesn't matter much, much less HSDPA. Specs are said to include a WQVGA display, GPS, Bluetooth and USB 2.0, and quadband GSM, so at least you'll be able to take this puppy wherever you need to go -- and the 12.98mm-thin shell helps make the case, too. No word on when or where else we might see this one, but we'll stick with our Omnias for the time being, we think.