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Korean carriers to offer anti-eavesdropping service
Just as Japan announces that it'll pretty much have an eye on every single cellphone user in the nation, Korea is going against the grain somewhat by offering up an anti-eavesdropping service on users' handsets. SK Telecom, KTF, and LG Telecom will all be offering private long code service, a digital encryption system to keep voice snoopers at bay, and will dub the service "Voice Private." Marketed primarily towards people of utmost importance, such as politicians, public officials, journalists (ahem), and CEOs, the luxury will purportedly operate on any mobile phone and will cost between W1,500 ($1.60) and W2,000 ($2.13). Interestingly, it wasn't noted if these fees were a monthly charge (less likely) or a per-call exaction (more likely), but regardless, the service should go live just as soon as the Ministry of Information and Communication approves it.
KTFT's EV-KD350 with split screen
While we patiently wait for true mobile TV of any sort to launch here in the States, Koreans will be getting ready to enjoy another phone to sport a DMB tuner with split screen capability, the EV-KD350 from KTFT. The white slider brings GPS, expandable memory, and a 1.3-megapixel shooter to the table, but naturally, the real story here is the display's dual personality. Since text messaging while enjoying your favorite soap opera can be an exercise in tedium when the video goodness takes up the whole darned screen, the KD350 splits it all down the middle so you don't miss a single second of commercials while browsing Engadget Mobile's mobile feed. That's all well and good if you're on Korea's KTF network where the KD350 is bound, but otherwise, it seems our split-screen dreams are going to have to remain unfulfilled a bit longer yet.[Via Tech Ticker, thanks Neil]
Samsung's SCH-B510: enough with the "world's thinnest" DMB phones already
Ok, this slim thing is just outta control. As if you needed proof, Samsung went and launched the 8.4-mm thin SCH-B510 calling it the "world's slimmest DMB phone" just days after LG launched its contender, and a mere three weeks after Sammy loosed their previous title holder, the SCH-B590. Sharing that top-end bulge with the true thin-champ, the X820, the B510 packs in an MP3 player, MicroSD expansion, and 2 megapixel camera into a package weighing only 72-grams. Thing is, this is a freakin' DMB phone for watching mobile TV, yet the screen has been shrunk to an impossibly small, unspecified dimension in order to reduce the bulk. At least they won't be seen outside of Korea's KTF network any time soon. Hey Sammy, how 'bout trying to coax LG into using one of their fancy new slim displays and bring this madness to an end? K, thanks.
Not for US consumption: Pantech's PT-K2700
It's not unusual for a manufacturer to call out a model for being slim and stylish (or any number of other completely subjective, meaningless terms) but Pantech's kicking it up to the next level, emblazoning "stylish slim" right on the phone's face -- lest you forget the goodness of the device resting in your hands. The uh, stylish slim PT-K2700 for KTF packs 140MB of internal storage and a GPS, though the subpar 1.3-megapixel shooter dampens our mood a tad. Then again, this thing won't be making the hop outside Korean borders, so we're not getting too worked up about it either way.
KTF's "K-ways WIDE" mixes up the DMB/PMP/GPS game
We've seen enough mid-sized DMB units with PMP and navigation capabilities by now to entertain a small army of Koreans, so it's good to see KTF doing something new with the form factor. Their new K-ways WIDE device features a 4.3-inch LCD mounted in a "swing folder design," along with a nice 2GBs of storage. In addition to the usual music and videos, the device can handle some bundled games, and appears to have a touchscreen interface unless we're much mistaken. No word on price, but we're talking South Korean Won in any case.[Via MobileMag]
LG's KH1000 HSDPA slider for KTF
It looks like SK Telecom and KTF are locked in a heated battle for Korean HSDPA supremacy, with both carriers having launched their 3.5G networks in the last month. So far, equipment is a toss-up, KTF having received a reskin of SK's Samsung SCH-W200 and now this, LG's KH1000, a remake of their SH100 for SK. LG takes a cue from Samsung here, swapping color schemes and d-pads, but leaving the phone's innards intact (as best we can tell). Besides simply looking better than its Samsung stablemate, the KH1000 wins the cool factor, sporting an additional degree of slider freedom for two -- count 'em, two -- keypads on the bottom and right of the phone. Naturally, the KH1000 isn't expected outside Korea, but we're pretty sure we couldn't pony up the cash for it anyhow.[Via Mobile Magazine]
KTFT's minuscule EV-K130 slider
Zoolander's microscopic cellphone may have been conceived in humor, but some manufacturers seem destined to make that joke a nightmarish reality. KTFT's entry, the EV-K130 slider, comes in at a very misplaceable 82 x 37 x 16.9mm and packs 165MB of flash, 1.3 megapixel camera, music player, and 128 tone polyphony. It can also serve double duty as a USB flash drive, but for all we know, so can the giant lipstick next to it.
Samsung breaks the bank with HSDPA SPH-W2100
A month after SK Telecom rolled out Korea's first commercial HSDPA network with the SCH-W200, #2 Korean carrier KTF is getting theirs, launching the lookalike SPH-W2100 along with its own 3.5G service. Deets on the W2100 have been hard to track down, but we know that it trades the W200's S-DMB for terrestrial DMB and comes in at 21.1mm thick; if we were betting folk, we'd wager that the W2100's innards are otherwise similar, likely sporting 2 megapixel external and VGA video calling cameras, music player, and multitasking capability. Apparently, the W2100 allows the user to text and video call at the same time, though we think that might be information overload for our little brains. Koreans readers needing 1.8Mbps of sliding KTF action best have some available credit limit -- expect the SPH-W2100 to retail in the neighborhood of $800 USD when it drops next month.[Via Slashphone]
Curitel drops a perfectly average slider, the PT-K2100
Korean carrier KTF is spreadin' some more slider love courtesy of Curitel. The PT-K2100 is undoubtedly Korea-only, but fret not, friends; there's not much to get excited about here. GPS is integrated to offer support for KTF's K-Ways voice navigation service with 3D mapping. Otherwise, the phone weighs in with a 1.3 megapixel camera, MP3 player, and that's about it -- not enough meat to justify its 19.9mm of relative chubbiness.
KTF's thinnish EV-K150 slider
Okay, KTF, the jig is up. You can't double the goodness of your new phone by adding a second, out-of-focus, moderately creepy model in the background of your press shot. A Chocolate it's not, but everyone give these guys a nice big round of applause for their me-too effort, the 13.7mm-thick EV-K150. MobileKorea is telling us this thing sports "vector font," and while we're not quite sure how that's relevant in a cellphone, we're down with it. A 1.3 megapixel camera, Bluetooth, MP3 player, and whopping 128-tone polyphony round out the feature list. EV-K150, we know you're a run of the mill slider to your Korean brethren, but you'll always be exotic to us.
KTF's DMB slider with GPS
It appears that egg-shaped white sliders are all the rage in South Korea these days. KTF is bringing it strong with their Korea-only EV-KD330, including DMB (naturally), a 1.3 megapixel shooter, Bluetooth, an MP3 player, and GPS. Does anyone else think that DMB antenna looks like a stylus? Well, don't get your hopes up -- it's not.
Korean dog translation service gets premium upgrade
You probably thought it was pretty silly when you heard that Korea's second largest wireless carrier, KTF, began offering a service last year that can supposedly discern your dog's emotions from a few barks into the phone. Well the "doggy translation" service has proven so popular, that not only did the top Korean carrier roll out its own implementation, but SK Telecom is now offering a premium version of the service that seems to give users access to a sort of pet lovers' mobile community where they can query veterinarians, make a homepage for their little bundle of fur, or purchase pet-related items online at a discount. The core service will remain the same, continuing to offer two-way translation (yes, your voice can be converted into barks as well) for about 55 breeds of dogs, although cat lovers must continue to gauge their pet's mood by the intensity of his/her hissing and scratching.[Picture credit: Telecoms Korea]
"Asia-Pacific Mobile Alliance" to allow seamless roaming over seven countries
About one hundred million Asian mobile subscribers are about to experience a better roaming experience around the continent thanks to a new multi-carrier initiative to create a so-called "Virtual Home Environment." Seven wireless providers covering eight countries and regions -- NTT DoCoMo (Japan), FET (Taiwan), Hutchison Essar (India), Hutchison Telecommunications (Hong Kong and Macau), KTF (South Korea), Indostat (Indonesia), and StarHub (Singapore) -- have formed the "Asia-Pacific Mobile Alliance," as it's tentatively known, to eventually enable seamless voice, video, and data roaming across their networks. According to the joint press release, when the initiative goes live in the latter half of the year, GSM/GPRS and W-CDMA customers will also enjoy access to the basic services they've become accustomed to, such as caller ID and quick access to voicemail and home carrier tech support via short-code service.
