MediaPhone
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Zii Trinity smartphone concept handled on video
It's an all too brief look, but it's infinitely more than we've seen so far. CNET Asia has managed some hands-on time the Zii Trinity concept smartphone. Quite a looker, and here we also get a glimpse of it next to the good ol' Zii Egg. As noted by the narrator, the bottom proprietary slot can be swapped for microUSB or mini-HDMI, there's a notably-sized 5 megapixel camera on the back, as well as one on the front for video conferencing. Enough talk, take a gander for yourself after the break. [Thanks, kumar]
Zii Trinity mobile platform packs 1080p punch, looking for OEM love
Ready to start lusting after a new smartphone? If Creative has its way, you'll soon be enjoying Full HD video on a 3.5 / 4G device, with built-in WiFi, 5 megapixel autofocus camera, accelerated 3D graphics, and mini-HDMI and Composite video outputs. The newly announced 3.1-inch, multitouch-capable Zii Trinity has been designed by Creative subsidiary Ziilabs, and will be licensed out to clients who'll be able to customize a Zii-optimized Android install and Plaszma interface. As if we haven't got enough smartphone ecosystems knocking about already, this also marks the introduction of ZiiLife, which aims to be both a content delivery and productivity suite. Powered by the ARM-based ZMS-05 or ZMS-08, the new handset actually seems destined to perform plenty of KIRF and grey market duties, judging by Creative's "strategic partnerships" with Chinese manufacturers, but that might be no bad thing as, according to Gartner, the grey market is booming right now.
Found footage: Dashboard for iPhone on your lock screen
Why didn't Apple think of this? SmartScreen lets you add widgets to your iPhone lock screen, providing an interactive dashboard experience whenever you wake up your device. The software is jailbreak-only (as you'd probably expect, given its standard system-defying functionality) and will be launched in November 2009. Widget developers are currently being accepted to an invitation-only beta program. Details for the beta program and the SmartScreen product are available at the media-phone web site.Yes, this isn't the only lock-screen information system out there. Intelliscreen and LockInfo provide calendar and email updates. At the same time, SmartScreen offers a fresh new approach that's a worthy alternative. I really like the visual flair and paged presentation, and the ability to move widgets around via direct interaction.[Thanks, pytey and Steve Streza]
Video: Inventec's Moblin-based MediaPhone shown at Computex
You may be doing your best to plug your ears and pretend that Moblin's no big deal, but blissful ignorance is only effective for so long. At a Moblin press event over at Computex, the Inventec handset you see pictured above was demonstrated. Reportedly, the MediaPhone was a working unit based around Intel's forthcoming Moorestown platform, and the talking head made it clear that we wouldn't see a "netbook experience" simply shoved in here. We also get the idea that this particular device is just the beginning of a short to medium list of similar products, but there's obviously no word yet on what other handset / MID / UMPC makers are swallowing the Moblin pill. Live demonstration video is just past the break.
OpenFrame and O2 caught canoodling in the wild
Our good friend Mr. BlurryCam managed to steady his (or her) hands a bit and snap a few shots of a working OpenFrame, complete with an on-screen widget indicating the multimedia phone's apparently found itself a home with European carrier O2. Additionally, it looks like traded in last season's iPhone duds for something in a more BlackBerry motif. Our anonymous tipster tells us we should expect to see it hit retail sometime near the end of February. Want more? Check out another shot of OpenPeak's touchscreen darling after the break.
OpenPeak gets official with Atom-based OpenFrame IP "media phone"
OpenPeak was showing off an Atom-based version of its OpenFrame touchscreen / phone combo at IDF last month, but it's only just now gotten fully official with it and, naturally, it's taken the opportunity to dish out some new, prettied-up pictures. Not much looks to have changed with the device itself in the past month or so though, with it still promising to "simplify everyday family and media interactions" and, just as importantly for OpenFrame, "drive new revenues for service providers" -- it'll handle phone calls, too. Unfortunately, while OpenFrame is still saying we can expect to see the first devices based on the platform early next year, it's apparently not yet ready (or able) to announce exactly who those OEM partners might be.[Via HotHardware]
