t819
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T-Mobile's entire 3G lineup gets handled
T-Mobile's still doing its darndest to keep its fragmented 3G network launch on the DL -- the carrier can't deliver a wide footprint just yet, and it look like it doesn't want to put customers under the false impression that it can. A great way to make sure no one cares about your high-speed handsets is to make sure they're all totally anonymous, low- to midrange devices with minimum shelf appeal, and what can we say, T-Mobile? Mission accomplished! PC Magazine has devoted some quality time to checking out all four of the 3G models currently offered -- the 3555 and 6263 from Nokia along with the t819 and t639 from Samsung -- and it looks like they've managed to develop a really potent power user repellent with the lineup. The 6263 scrapes by with the most generous review of the review, but even it is hampered by a lack of HSDPA (meaning 3G data's capped at a theoretical 384kbps) and a measly 1.3 megapixel camera. Clearly, T-Mobile wants these phones viewed in exactly the same light as the remainder of its consumer-class models, and we'll give 'em that much, they've done a bang-up job in that regard. Maybe too good, in fact.Read - Nokia 3555Read - Samsung t819Read - Nokia 6263Read - Samsung t639
Samsung t819 slider officially joins T-Mobile
Though its FCC documents clearly indicate the delicious presence of WCDMA on the 1700MHz band, T-Mobile and Samsung are continuing their policy of totally downplaying AWS 3G in new handsets with the official introduction today of the t819 slider. The midrange device tops out with quadband EDGE (or that's the official line, anyway), stereo Bluetooth, a 1.3 megapixel camera, microSD expansion, and a middling 220 x 176 display all tied together with the typical myFaves support -- not the most exciting thing, but not every release can be a new Sidekick, we reckon. The secret 3G phone of your middle-of-the-road dreams is available today in "coffee brown" from T-Mobile's site and retail locations. %Gallery-14322%
More details on Samsung's t819 3G slider for T-Mobile
It looks like T-Mobile had a change of heart about the coloring of its next 3G device -- Samsung's t819 slider -- after it hit the FCC recently, changing from a rather lovely medium blue to "coffee brown." That got us to thinking: does a phone have to go back through the FCC when it changes color? Probably not; in fact, we can think of plenty of examples to the contrary. That seems a little odd considering that color formulations could almost certainly affect SAR ratings, but whatevs -- point is, Boy Genius Report has a little more info on the midrange slider now. Besides the aforementioned color change, we now know that T-Mobile expects to start offloading this bad boy come January. Whether the carrier will actually start to admit that its 3G phones are 3G by then... well, that's another story entirely.
T-Mobile's 3G portfolio gains momentum, Samsung t819 next
We're starting to sense a trend here -- much like T-Mobile's Hotspot @Home lineup, the carrier's nascent 3G lineup is quickly getting filled with bland, anonymous handsets that prevent power users from really getting into the tech. Then again, maybe that's exactly the idea: keep the really big, important initiatives in the hands of perfectly average users that won't be stressing it too hard before popping for the serious hardware. Anyway, here's the SGH-T819 from Samsung, a WCDMA 1700 slider that keeps things low-key with a relatively unremarkable design and a 1.3 megapixel cam for the occasional candid shot. It'll likely be T-Mobile's first 3G slider, but let's be honest -- the lion's share of buyers won't even know what magical goodies lie beneath that blue plastic. No word on a release date or pricing for the t819 just yet.[Via phoneArena and CellPhoneSignal]
