handset

Crave tends to cringe when a fashion house teams up with a consumer electronics manufacturer, as it usually means some abomination is about to be exposed that offends both style freaks and geeks alike. The idea of a Samsung Armani phone was no exception.

But it hit the Crave doormat this morning, and our fear was replaced with a sigh of relief as we unboxed a rather lovely looking handset. It's small, it's solid, and most importantly, it's not garish. The Armani logo is subtle and the casing comes in a stylish Italian-footwear brown. Better yet, the … Read more

It's always seemed a bit odd that a company would model a phone after a successful line of TVs, but that appears to be a trend of sorts in Japan. Sony, for example, did this by coming out with a Bravia phone based on its high-end TVs by the same name. And now Panasonic appears to be taking the same route.

Sporting a 3.5-inch VGA widescreen, the seductively named P905iTV slider is supposed to reflect the design of Panasonic's Viera plasma TVs. The specs listed on Electronista may indicate that the phone is almost more concerned with … Read more

We thought there was something familiar about this phone from a new U.K. company called Onyx, and our eagle-eyed colleague Kent German spotted the reason why: It looks remarkably similar to the "Elegance" handset introduced several months ago by Haier, the Chinese company of household appliances fame.

Haier, interestingly enough, described its version as a "lipstick-case-sized luxury phone" while Onyx is marketing its "Liscio" for the compact convenience of its 3.5-inch-long handset--perhaps accurately reflecting the difference in high-end standards between the two markets. It would be difficult to label this as a … Read more

Last year luxury handset maker Bellperre made some news with the audacious claim that it would produce mobile phones without using a single plastic part (heresy). And now it's come out with a new line that focuses on its exterior as well.

So what is it like to make a product without synthetic polymers? Try crocodile, shark, and buffalo skin, combined with aircraft aluminum, premium hardwoods, and 18k rose gold. Those are a few of the options offered in the European company's latest models, which come in more than 200 colors, according to Newlaunches. Handmade in the Netherlands, … Read more

Toshiba isn't well known for its mobile phones, but it does make them. Newest among these enigmatic devices is the G450: a mobile-cum-iPod-cum-HSDPA modem. Come read why you should be interested.

The G450 is a quirky-looking device. Its keys are spread across two separate button clusters and the screen is only big enough to accommodate three lines of text--so it's pretty difficult to use at first. That's if you use it at all--it lacks many modern phone features, such as a camera, MMS, or email, but it has plenty of other tricks that make it worthwhile.

Firstly, … Read more

Today Samsung announced a new addition to the Ultra Edition range called the Samsung Soul. The Soul will be properly shown off at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona next week and we're definitely looking forward to getting our sticky, cake-stained hands on it.

Packed with HSDPA that can reach speeds of up to 7.2mbps and a 5-megapixel camera, you might forgive the Soul for being a little chunky, but it only measures 13 millimeters thick and comes in a tough metal casing.

More impressively, Samsung has included a new navigation pad with a display that changes its … Read more

While we're still waiting for MWg to release its first products, the Singapore company has made another announcement. This time, it isn't new smartphones, but a partnership with U.K.-based Splashpower to provide wireless charging for its future devices.

If and when this is implemented, MWg's phones will not need to be plugged in for power. Instead, a base station will allow wireless charging using electromagnetic induction. Such technology has been in the works for some time, but there's hardly any use of it in commercially available products.

Few details have been provided by MWg … Read more

Motorola, the third largest cell phone maker in the world, may spin off its handset business as it tries to turn around its business, the company said Thursday.

In a statement issued after the market closed, Motorola said that it was exploring "strategic alternatives" that might include a possible separation of its mobile-device business from its other business units.

"We are exploring ways in which our mobile-devices business can accelerate its recovery and retain and attract talent while enabling our shareholders to realize the value of this great franchise," said President and CEO Greg Brown.

The … Read more

Dell has long been rumored to be working on a handset, and the latest speculation is that Google will be part of those plans.

MarketingWeek reported Wednesday that the two companies are teaming up on a handset based on Google's Android mobile platform, and the official announcement will come at next month's Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. The report cites "senior industry sources," but notes that Google insiders are denying any such announcement is imminent.

Dell isn't talking either. Company spokesman David Frink told CNET News.com that the Marketing Week report is "speculative&… Read more