[CES 07] New Media Phones for Verizon’s V-CAST
January 10th, 2007 — By editorPlenty of Options for Watching Video on Tiny Screens
Jan 9 - If you thought MP3 and portable media players represent a complete degradation of audio and video quality standards, you’re bound to be downright suicidal as multimedia cell phone continue to proliferate. New cell phones and services unveiled at this CES are all about TV and other video viewing on tiny 2-inch LCD screens, and compressed music heard through earpieces and earbud headphones designed for more for conversation than for critical listening.
V CAST TV from Verizon, powered by a Qualcomm technology called MediaFLO, will bring live TV broadcasts to MediaFLO-compatible cell phones by the end of March to around half of Verizon’s national footprint. MediaFLO transmits live TV over a 6 MHz slice in the 700 MHz band, separate from the 1900 GHz cell phone networks. Among the special TV channels at launch will be NBC, CBS, Fox and Comedy Central, but the spectrum can accommodate up to 20 channels. And since MediaFLO transmits on a different network, you’ll be able to perform other phone functions while the TV is on, such as converse.
Two V CAST TV phones were announced this week, the LG VX-9400 and the Samsung SCH-u620, aka “Mobi.”
LG VX-9400: This is a so-called “T-bar” phone; its 2.2-inch screen swivels 90 degrees from portrait to widescreen landscape for watching TV viewing. As a phone, the 4.04 x 1.93 x 0.73-inch, 4.06 oz. VX-9400 can access Verizon’s broadband EV-DO network, and also features a 1.3 MP camera, an MP3 player with stereo Bluetooth, and a microSD card slot for extra media storage.
Samsung SCH-u620: To watch TV widescreen on the this slider phone’s 2-inch LCD, you turn the whole phone horizontally and pull up the old-fashioned skinny telescoping antenna. Like the LG, the u620 also is equipped with a 1.3 MP camera, microSD slot, stereo Bluetooth and a 2.5mm headphone jack.
Samsung also unveiled the two most arresting non-V CAST multimedia phones, the Ultra Music and the Ultra Video. While each of the candybar-style 10mm-thin phones offers advanced multimedia features, it’s their industrial design that gets your attention.
Samsung Ultra Music: This is, literally, a two-faced phone. On one side is a standard numeric keypad and a small screen for phone use. Flip it over and you find a larger screen and music navigation controls for music use. There’s also stereo Bluetooth for wireless listening and, like the Video, a microSD slot for multimedia storage. Aside from its musical attributes, the Music also boasts a 1.3 MP camera. While no carrier was announced, we’re guessing Music will be a Sprint PowerVision phone, likely available sometime this spring.
Samsung Ultra Video: The screen segment of the Video, equipped to operate on the new broadband GSM HSDPA/UMTS network, twists around 45 degrees like a stand, which allows you to sit the phone on a flat surface for widescreen viewing. For wireless listening, the Video also includes Bluetooth stereo, as well as a 2 MP camera. Like the Music, no timing or carrier was officially noted, but Cingular is the only U.S. carrier operating a HSDPA/UMTS network.
Sony Ericsson sneak-peaked two new Walkman models, both of which are GSM/EDGE models that will be available from as yet unannounced carriers or “unlocked” — sans SIM card and sans carrier discounts.
Sony-Ericsson W880: Only scant information was available on this high-end Walkman phone. We know it’s a thin candybar with a Memory Stick Micro (MM2) slot that can accommodate up to a 1 GB card and will be equipped with stereo Bluetooth.
Sony Ericsson W200: This tri-band phone (850/1800/1900) can be used anywhere in Europe. Like other Walkman phone models, the W200 ($199.00 unlocked; probably around $50 from a carrier with contract requirements and other discounts) will likely be packaged with a 128 MB MM2 card, but the slot can accommodate up to a 1 GB Memory Stick. It’ll also be equipped with an FM radio and a VGA camera.
-Stewart Wolpin
