Engadget realy does have a good set of mobile tidbit from around the world including some interesting trends:
h2. Innovations
The big ones appear to be making things slimmer and slimmer and also having a real music phone plus an onslaught of Windows Mobile devices:
!http://www.engadgetmobile.com/media/2006/06/canary14.jpg!
“Motorola Canary”:http://www.engadgetmobile.com/2006/06/14/motorola-canary-razr-2-hands-on/, this is the RAZR follow-on codenamed the Canary basically thinner. Technically it will be called teh “KRZR”:http://www.engadgetmobile.com/2006/07/14/fcc-comes-clean-on-motorola-krzr-canary/ and comes out this fall with EDGE.
!http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.engadgetmobile.com/media/2006/07/vzw-chocolate-web.jpg!
“LG KG800 Chocolate”:http://www.engadgetmobile.com/2006/07/16/verizons-chocolate-site-goes-live/. These things are being advertised everywhere in China which folks love because of the size and the way that it works as a iPod and then slides up to be a phone, it will be the “VX8500”:http://www.verizonwireless.com/chocolate/ over here. LG has another “KG99”:http://www.engadgetmobile.com/2006/07/10/lg-preparing-another-chocolate-like-phone/ which is a candy bar version with the checkerboard keys as well. !>http://www.engadgetmobile.com/media/2006/07/kg99.jpg!
!http://www.engadget.com/media/2006/07/voda_hermes.jpg!
And HTC is running away with lots of wins for Windows Mobile 5 devices including the “Hermes”:http://www.engadgetmobile.com/2006/07/11/up-close-and-personal-with-the-qtek-9600-hermes/, a Danger like opener, Star Trek, a smart phone that Vodafone Germany, Orange and Cingular will all carry, while “Palm”:http://www.engadgetmobile.com/2006/07/05/palm-lennon-and-nitro-in-the-flesh/ tries to stay ahead with the Lennon and Nitro and “RIM”:http://www.engadgetmobile.com/2006/06/29/blackberrys-to-get-wifi-this-year-too/ looks to finally offer consumer services like Wifi, MP3 and Cameras (yeah!) to compete with Windows Mobile.
h2. Segmenting
!http://www.engadgetmobile.com/media/2006/06/2400collection.jpg!
“SCP-2400”:http://www.engadgetmobile.com/2006/06/30/sanyos-kid-safe-scp-2400-for-sprint/ for kids features like parental controls on the who they call and restrictions on usage.
!http://www.engadgetmobile.com/media/2006/07/588.jpg!
“Philips 588”:http://www.engadgetmobile.com/2006/07/12/philips-588-music-phone-drops-in-taiwan/ is a nice ladies phone that is small as another segment.
h2. Cloning
!http://www.engadgetmobile.com/media/2006/06/tosh-ts30.jpg!
As another SLVR clone example, we have the Toshiba “TS30”:http://www.engadgetmobile.com/2006/06/30/smartone-vodafone-launches-thin-toshiba-ts30/ from Vodafone .
Sanyo “Katana”:http://www.engadgetmobile.com/2006/07/07/sanyo-katana-reviewed/ is one of zillions of RAZR knockoffs and Samsung “D830”:http://www.engadgetmobile.com/2006/06/20/possible-details-emerge-on-samsung-d830/ is just 9.9mm thick but has EDGE, QVGA, MicroSD and 2mp camera. !>http://www.engadget.com/media/2006/06/samsung_d830.jpg!
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