Call-rounders
Modern
mobile phones prove it's good to talk...as well as
e-mail, surf the net, download music, take photos and organise your life.
Remember when a mobile could only make calls? Nowadays, they can stand in for a
digital camera, an MP3 player, a personal organiser, or even a computer for
surfing the internet or checking your e-mail. Meanwhile, users who don't need
all these add-ons can opt for ever-smaller phones, including some of the most
stylish models on the market.
Last month, at M3, manufacturer Motorola was due to talk about a new product
that's become known as the iTunes phone. In the end, it didn't launch the
handset, apparently because its project partner, Apple, likes to announce its
products just before they hit the shops. The phone's due to arrive between now
and June and, from what is already known, it will let users download music to
the handset directly from the iTunes website, thus allowing you to increase your
music library on the move. However, it's also possible that UK networks won't
support the handset. The networks already have systems in place to download
music from their own sites, so why would they encourage you to buy it elsewhere?
Motorola E1000
While we wait for the iTunes phones, Motorola already has several
music-friendly handsets available, including the E1000, a snazzy 3G phone which
has a decent camera, a great screen and an MP3 player which sounds fantastic
whether you play it through headphones or the phone's built-in speakers. Only
16Mb of memory is included in the phone, but a tiny TransFlash storage card the
size of a child's fingernail can be added to increase capacity.
Samsung E720
If MP3 appeals but you don't want a 3G phone thank you very much, then the
new Samsung E720, out in the next couple of weeks, might be for you. The
clamshell phone is a small, tidy and highly specced phone. It has an external
screen that uses OLED (organic light-emitting diode) technology, which is
effective and not very energy-hungry. The built-in 88Mb memory is big enough for
a few albums, but if you don't want to listen to music then this space can be
used to store photos taken on the one-megapixel camera.
Siemens SK65
The smart Siemens SK65 comes with BlackBerry software and a cunning twist-out
keyboard. The phone is blessed with the intuitive Siemens user interface but
there's no camera (as some companies are banning camera phones from their
premises).
Sharp 902
This phone's 2-megapixel camera takes excellent photographs, and its Bluetooth
wireless connection means you can transfer the large images you create quickly
and easily to a PC. It's quite big, but it's tremendous for pictures.
RAZR V3
Finally, Motorola still has the best-looking phone around with its RAZR V3. It's
thin, tough and cute. And now, as well as the dazzling silver model, there's
also a new black version. These are similar to the ones that were given to
Academy Award nominees in February but now, it seems, anyone can have one.
Compiled
by: Express Team
back to
headlines