SmartPhones

It's called the Nokia E71 and it's just made technology history (or at least the record books) as the thinnest QWERTY-keyboard smartphone in the world. The latest in the Nokia E-Series of handsets for business, the E71 is the replacement for the Nokia E61.

The E71 is HSDPA network capable and features a built-in GPS and both the Nokia email software and Microsoft Exchange. It also offers two home screens you can switch between at will - one for home and one for the office. And the digital camera (with flash) is a whopping 3.2 megapixels.

By designing a casing that's thin and compact, Nokia aims to appeal to those business users who take their handheld with them everywhere and are constantly holding it, using it, and interacting with it. The fact that the E71 boasts a durable hard metal casing is another appeal to businesspeople always on-the-go.

So while the RIM BlackBerry is busy battling the Apple iPhone, the Nokia E71 seems to be sneaking in from behind for some of the BlackBerry's business.

written by SmartPhoneWizard \\ tags: 3.2 megapixels, apple, Blackberry, business smartphone, digital camera, E61, E71, GPS, hsdpa, iphone, Nokia, RIM

Taking social networking to the next level, Trapster, a new wireless, Web 2.0 type software service for smartphones enables you to avoid speeding tickets while driving.

With Trapster, users share information on police speed traps wirelessly by pressing a button on their smartphone, the information then compiled and distributed to other smartphone users based on their locations, as determined by GPS and Skyhook Wireless.

Motorists can either set their smartphones to sound an alert whenever their vehicle nears a police radar detector, alternatively, a driver can choose to download a map of their route with the determined speed traps indicated.

False reports are minimized by comparing warnings from all users in the same area, with the intention being to make the system more and more accurate and efficient as time goes on and more people participate.

Already the technology has caught the attention of: CNN, The New York Times, Digg, Wired, Slashdot, FOX News, The Wall Street Journal, Yahoo Finance and more.

written by SmartPhoneWizard \\ tags: CNN, Digg, FOX News, Global Positioning System, GPS, radar detectors, Skyhook Wireless, Slashdot, social networking, speed traps, speeding tickets, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Trapster, Web 2.0, Wired, Yahoo Finance

The ASUS P735 is a Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.0 Pocket PC 3G smartphone. With tools and features for both the professional user and the general consumer, the P735 is bundled with an impressive combination of multimedia features and productivity tools.

For example, its multimedia features include:

• Dual camera
• Video calling
• Total multimedia playback
• Business card reader

And its productivity tools include the deft and dexterous ASUS Remote Presenter app that allows users to access and manage Microsoft PowerPoint presentations from your PC, as well as a meeting planner capable of scheduling teleconferencing across three time zones.

The ASUS P735 lacks GPS or HSDPA, but it does operate on GPRS Class 10 networks. It has Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity as well as a miniSD card slot for extra data storage.

The look and feel of the ASUS P735 resembles the Apple iPhone with a large screen dominating the face of the smartphone, though it has a few other buttons surrounding its primary, multipurpose button. A touch screen smartphone, the P735 has no keyboard or numeric keypad.

written by SmartPhoneWizard \\ tags: 3G, apple, ASUS, ASUS P735, Bluetooth, GPRS, GPRS Class 10, GPS, hsdpa, iphone, Microsoft, Microsoft Windows, miniSD card, miniSD card slot, multimedia, Pocket PC, Remote Presenter, touch screen, touchscreen, Wi-Fi, Wifi, Windows, Windows Mobile, Windows Mobile 6

The world leader in travel resources - AAA - is now accessible via the Blackberry, specifically the 8830 and the 8130. AAA Mobile, downloadable through the Blackberry's GPS app and powered by Networks in Motion, now makes the world's favorite handy devices even handier, adding the following of its services to its menu:

• TourBook Guide Travel Information
• Navigation
• Member Roadside Assistance

This makes the RIM Blackberry the first smartphone device compatible with AAA's award-winning local search and navigation applications. Even Blackberry users who aren't AAA members can still subscribe to AAA Mobile and get access to:

• audio/visual directions to any U.S. destination
• the locations of AAA-approved POIs (points of interest)
• the locations of Diamond Rated restaurants and hotels
• a searchable listing of more than 100,000 destinations that offer member savings to those who present their AAA or AAA Mobile card
• detailed maps of all of the above
• bookmarking features

The service also streamlines the process of using AAA roadside assistance by transmitting one's location via their GPS to the nearest AAA-approved responder.

written by SmartPhoneWizard \\ tags: AAA, AAA Mobile, Blackberry, Diamond Rated, directions, GPS, hotels, maps, POI, restuarants, RIM, TourBook Guide, Travel Information

We're all used to the typical promotion where you get a free cell phone in exchange for signing up for a set period of service. So it should come as no surprise that the same phenomenon has begun with the product representing the evolution of the cell phone - the smartphone.

CNET reported today on the Samsung BlackJack II being offered for free on Buy.com for anyone signing up for a two-year AT&T contract. While not the fastest or easiest phone to use, the Samsung BlackJack II nonetheless has some impressive qualities, including:

• a GPS
• a 2- megapixel camera
• and AT&T HSPDA network support

Researching this phenomenon further, I found that Buy.com actually offers several smart phones for free with activation, including:

• Palm Centro
• RIM BlackBerry Pearl
• Motorola RAZR

From here, I checked into how commonly this phenomenon occurred at competing cell phone and smart phone vendors and found that everybody's doing it. In addition to more of the aforementioned brand names, I also found all sorts of other smartphones (such as Sony Ericsson, Nextel, and Nokia) offered for free by all the major carriers:

• AT&T (and the former Cingular)
• Verizon
• T-Mobile
• and Sprint

Now there's a way that people on a limited budget can still afford to get a smartphone of their own (though maybe not the latest and greatest model), just by signing up for the wireless service they're going to need to get anyway.

To boot, most of the participating smartphone vendors will even throw in free shipping with the deal.

With such great deals flooding the net, and every phone manufacturer and wireless carrier competing for your hard-earned dollar, we may soon see the day when you never have to pay to obtain a smartphone again.

written by SmartPhoneWizard \\ tags: , AT&T, Blackberry, BlackBerry Pearl, camera, cell phone, CNET, GPS, HSPDA, Motorola, Motorola RAZR, Palm, Palm Centro, Palm Treo, Research in Motion, RIM, Samsung, Samsung BlackJack II, smart phone, smartphone, Sony, Sony Ericsson, Sprint, T-Mobile, verizon