Bang & Olufsen, well known for their pricey consumer electronics and high-end styling, has announced that they will be pulling the plug on manufacturing everything outside their core TV and sound system business. That means all those mobile phones, DVD players and DVD recorders that well-heeled consumers were snapping up last year are going to become a bit more scarce.
The problem is that current economic conditions don’t favor high-end gadget purchases like $2000 cellphones and $20,000 home theater systems. Bang & Olufsen’s chief executive Karl Kristian Hvidt Nielsen says that sales on all products have taken a hit. “It’s a pretty broad spread.”
So, if a Bang & Olufsen handset was high on your list of must-have gadgets for this holiday shopping season, may we suggest eBay or Craigslist?
[Via: Financial Times]
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Samsung is launching a new Windows Mobile smartphone in Italy called Samsung C6620. From what we can tell, the BlackJack-like handset comes with an improved QWERTY keyboard with buttons looking like those found on Nokia E71 or Palm Treo, which make typing way more convenient. Or at least, that’s my experience.
Specs wise, there’s a tri-band GSM/GPRS radio (900/1800/1900 MHz) on board, QVGA non-touchscreen, 3G (HSDPA), 2 megapixel camera, 20 MB of internal memory that is further expandable with memory cards. Windows Mobile 6.1 Standard edition is running the show. Lack of WiFi and GPS may be a dealbreaker for many, myself included.
In Italy, TIM is selling the Samsung C6620 in “Wine Red,” “Apple Green” and “Navy Blue” for 199 EUR with a contract. We’ve no idea when nor whether the new Samsung smartphone will start selling in the U.S. The FCC approval is there, but that doesn’t mean much…
[Via: Unwired View]
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AT&T’s recently-launched SGH-i780 (a.k.a Jack II, a.k.a Epix) just got some hands-on time with reviewers. After playing with the optical mouse-packing smartphone, they walked away with the following consensus:
“I really like this phone. With a bit of customization and added software, it can be a true winner. It’s a great combination of touchscreen versaility and one-handed usability that a device like the Palm Treo Pro just doesn’t have. If you’re on AT&T and are looking for your next WinMo phone, this is a great choice – but expect to spend some time and perhaps money filling in the missing blanks that Samsung left.”
Not a terrible verdict; some of the cons that especially stick out are the lack of camera flash and sketchy software loadout, but it’s nice to have an alternative to the Treo Pro. Plus, it’s cool to have a phone named after phat loots in World of Warcraft. You can grab this sucker for $199 on a two-year plan – check out AT&T for more info.
[via PocketNow]
Specs for the AT&T Epix after the jump!
AT&T Epix Specifications
Windows Mobile® 6.1 Professional
Quad-band (850/900/1800/1900MHz) GPRS/EDGE
Tri-band (850/1900/2100MHz) 3.6Mbps UMTS/HSDPA
Wi-Fi
GPS (AT&T Navigator)
Integrated 2.0 Megapixel Camera
QWERTY Keyboard with Optical Mouse
Bluetooth® Wireless Technology (v 2.0)
Speakerphone
Multimedia Message Service
Threaded 2-Way Text Message
Flash Memory: 256MB Internal ROM/Up to 150MB Internal RAM
microSD™ External Memory Slot supports up to 32GB memory cards
Video Share
MobiTV™
Dimensions: 4.6” x 2.4” x 0.5”
Weight: 4.4 ounces
Display: 2.5”, 320 x 320 Pixels, 65K,TFT Color
Battery: 3.7 Volt Lithium Ion,1800mAh
Talk Time: Up to 7 hours
Standby Time: Up to 14 days
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It seems Verizon Wireless has problems with the Samsung Glyde. According to Engadget, the Big Red is in the midst of pulling off the device from the store shelves. Furthermore, they’re not allowing customers to get their Glyde back if they send one in for service — instead, customers are offered the LG enV2 as a replacement.
Apparently, this information was received in a Verizon customer service call center and it’s not clear when (or if) corporate and non-Verizon stores will receive the same story. Are Verizon and Samsung preparing a new firmware for the Glyde or there are some serious problems with the QWERTY touchscreen phone? It’s hard to tell at this stage, but we’ll certainly keep our eyes wide open.
In the meantime, if anyone of you guys and gals have had problems with the Glyde, we’re eager to hear what do you think about this. Have you sent your device to Verizon? What did they say to you?
[Via: Engadget Mobile]
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