Samsung Unveils Next Generation Smartphone

Samsung plans to release the SPH-M330 smartphone in the U.S. in April, according to PCWorld. This is an updated version of the company's I300. It will have a 240 by 160 screen capable of displaying 256 colors and will, of course, run the Palm OS.

It will have both wireless voice and data capabilities. It will run on CDMA 2000 1X networks and support gpsOne.

CDMA 2000 1X supports an average of 144 kbps packet data in a mobile environment. gpsOne uses signals from the GPS satellite constellation and from CDMA cell towers to locate the wireless handheld. This will allow for location-based services.

The M330 will be 4.9 by 2.2 by .7 inches and weigh 5.3 ounces. This makes it lighter and thinner than its predecessor.

It will run off a rechargeable battery and have 4 hours of talk time and 100 hours of standby time.

The Samsung representative didn't release all the details. He wasn't willing to say what version of the Palm OS the M330 will run, saying it hadn't been decided yet. He also wouldn't say how much RAM it will have or give a price. He did say it will be available through Sprint.

Last week, PDA France had some information on this device, which it called the I330, based on talking to Samsung representatives at the GSM World Congress 2002. According it that report, the I300 replacement will run Palm OS 4.1 and have 8 MB of RAM.

The issue of what version of the Palm OS this device will run was made even more complicated when an anonymous source, citing inside info, said the device would run Palm OS 3.5.2.

Thanks to John Bartley for the PC World tip. -Ed

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Giving Sony a run for their money...

I.M. Anonymous @ 3/5/2002 5:48:16 PM #
According to the recent issue of Businessweek, uttering the word "Samsung" in the Sony boardroom apparently gives the execs panic attacks. No wonder. Sony needs to combine cell phones with Clie's immediately, because it's clear that Samsung intends to refresh the I-series at a brisk clip. I think we can kiss Kyocera goodbye.

I think the Samsung I-series still looks plasticky, but it's getting better. Add a Sony hi-res screen plus Bluetooth and they will have the ultimate GPS smartphone for traveling business people.

RE: Giving Sony a run for their money...
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/5/2002 8:03:00 PM #
I agree, though Bluetooth doesn't seem to matter as much since the main reason that people want Bluetooth for there PDAs is to connect to their cell phones. This device makes that a non-issue - though i guess some would still want it for other networking purposes.

RE: Giving Sony a run for their money...
jeremyf @ 3/6/2002 2:38:29 AM #
Hm, that sounds like a good idea if you get rid of the bluetooth, if you can save $2.50 or so it would be worth it

RE: Giving Sony a run for their money...
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/6/2002 3:37:43 AM #
ummmm ultimate tool for travelling business people?... Only if they don't travel outside North America....

To be the ultimate tool it would need to provide GSM/GPRS too... Or America could just get with the programme and join the rest of the world in embracing GSM.. *heehee*

RE: Giving Sony a run for their money...
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/6/2002 4:09:49 AM #
>>
Or America could just get with the programme and join the rest of the world in embracing GSM..
<<

VoiceStream, AT&T, and Cingular are GSM-based (well, AT&T and Cingular are still in the process of converting). If only Verizon and Spring weren't so blindly tied to CDMA...

RE: Giving Sony a run for their money...
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/6/2002 5:31:54 AM #
Check out the new Sony Ericsson P800.

Maybe they have plans for a Palm OS version of this sweet looking thing.

www.sonyericsson.com/cebit/

Samsung licenses Bluetooth from Ericsson
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/6/2002 6:17:27 AM #
I hope it's not a surprise that....Samsung will license the Bluetooth wireless technology from Ericsson and integrate it into its semiconductor products. These devices will meet the needs of customers worldwide for next generation wireless products which will be available under the Samsung brand name in products such as mobile phones and PDA's.
http://www.cellular.co.za/news_2001/04172001-ericsson_teams_up_with_samsung.htm


Sony-Ericy with New Bluetooth Phones: T68i, P800 and Z700
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/6/2002 6:21:41 AM #
Sony Ericsson adds digital cameras to phones
http://news.zdnet.co.uk/story/0,,t269-s2105568,00.html

All the Sony-Ericsson T68i, P800 and Z700 Phones have integrated BLUETOOTH.



RE: GSM-Phone +Clie
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/12/2002 6:21:01 PM #
Sony Better start running and kicking in that last mile strength. It seems that Microsoft is pushing the Mobile phone/handheld hard for it's 2k2 OS.
Business people like myself don't want a palm and a Cell phone we want 1 device that does it all in our pocket.
I'm holding off on buying a clie until they integrate a phone (pref triband GSM with G3 Data) *ARE YOU READING SONY* GPS Integration is good too since Samsung(yes I said the BAD S word) has that coming in their new integrated Palm/Mobile Phone.
Sony has it's game face on and it looks like it's going to put up a good fight, but they really need to start to look ahead more and realize what people want and it sure as hell isn't more things to be caring around in their pockets (and yes we still want this thing to fit into our pockets with the batteries inside)
This is all possible now with sony working with erricson now!


Needs to be OS4 or better

mknowledge @ 3/5/2002 6:05:43 PM #
WCA 2.0 and minimum security enhancements make having OS4 or better critical for wireless applications... especially if Palm.net and Palm.net Enterprise takes off!!

Hope the specs are real...

SPH-E120 ?

crustyedgeofinnovation @ 3/5/2002 7:32:48 PM #
"At the same time as unveiling the upgraded Palm phone, Samsung also took the wraps off its latest handset for the Korean market.

The SPH-E120 supports the CDMA2000 1X Evolution Data Only network that is beginning to be rolled out in South Korea and has data speeds of up to 2.4 mbps. With a 260,000-color LCD screen and built-in video camera, the handset weighs just 3.1 ounces and measures 3.5 inches by 1.9 inches by .8 inches. Samsung has also thrown in its recently announced 40-polyphonic-tone ringer to make a richer, less electronic-sounding ringtone than current models."

can somebody get a pic of this phone...why can't palm make things like this with a palm os...these Asian countries have all kinds of cool gadgets...

RE: SPH-E120 ?
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/5/2002 7:53:42 PM #
..well there are cell phone here with w/color screens and messaging - but i guess the requirements of PalmOS (the larger screen and digitizer) mean more weight. Still, if Samsung can make screens for this phone with 250,000 colors and other manufacturers (including Palm) can make screens for the Palm that have65,000 color (which is supported in Palm OS 4 and 4.1) then why not put a 65,000 color screen in this device? If they did this, ramped up the RAM to 16megs, and maybe went with 320x240 (also supported in the OS now - though maybe only in Handera modification? - someone help me out on this one), and added SD or MemoryStick (Samsung has licensed this from Sony for other devices) then i would be completely sold. Im sure we'll get there soon.

Beware of Battery Life Claims

robrecht @ 3/5/2002 6:31:36 PM #
Like the I300, this combo unit promises 4 hours of talk time and 100 hours of standby time, which compares favorably with the Handspring Treo (2.5 hours of talk time, 60 hours of standby), but real talk and standby times, especially in areas where digital service is not available, will be much, much less. According to Samsung, in analog areas the I300 only allows for 90 minutes of talk time and 20 hours of standby time. That's 20 hours of standby not counting any use of PDA functions.

That being said, another huge advantage of the Samsung models over the Treo is that they have both an internal battery as well as a replacable rechargable battery. As the battery drains, it can be replaced with a standby, charged battery, though users need to be careful not to loose data.

I would love to combine my cell phone and PDA but it doesn't seem as if battery technology has advanced enough to make this a viable option in the US for people who use their cell phones (or their PDAs) heavily.

I hope the color CDMA version of the Treo will allow for a replacable, extra-capacity rechargable battery, but I think it will be a while before these combo units are for many users in the States.

Thanks, Robrecht

RE: Beware of Battery Life Claims
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/5/2002 7:39:52 PM #
Most digital phones (CDMA) have great battery life in digital areas and terrible battery life in analog areas. Get a car charger.

RE: Beware of Battery Life Claims
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/5/2002 7:46:06 PM #
I am sure that it will come with multiple batteries, as the I300 does. I use my i300 for games/email/web/phone, and can last all weekend with the two batteries.

RE: Beware of Battery Life Claims
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/5/2002 10:05:00 PM #
Well the Treo doesnt do analog now does it, nor is it color or have a swappable battery, so who's behind the curve again?

RE: Beware of Battery Life Claims
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/5/2002 11:48:46 PM #
The Samsung I300 has an extended battery available for purchase directly from Samsung. I've been using it has been great! Highly recommended for those who talk and use the PDA tremendously. That way, when you buy an extended battery, you've got three batteries (phone comes with an extra battery!!) great work Samsung!!

RE: Beware of Battery Life Claims
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/12/2002 6:37:43 PM #
Why not have 2 batteries one for cell phone,and one for palm OS. This way you can swap out just the cell phone battery when needed! Duh!

Samsung Vs Treo

I.M. Anonymous @ 3/5/2002 8:16:10 PM #
Boy, I was awaiting for the color Treo but if the Samsung hits the shelves first I know which one to buy.

RE: Samsung Vs Treo
drw @ 3/5/2002 8:30:17 PM #
Interesting how us smartphone officianados come out of the wood-work when applicable news stories surface. Usually, all I read is "brick this, and brick that", however, there is a segment of us that have learned to appreciate the benefits that convergence brings. Smartphones are one example where the sum is greater than the parts (or however the saying goes).

David in Pflugerville, TX

Still possibilities for Kyocera 6055

drw @ 3/5/2002 7:50:32 PM #
All Kyocera needs to do is ship a color 6055 that is thinner, shorter, lighter, and with similar battery life as the 6035 and they will have the advantage. I had a mobile phone once who's battery from day one wouldn't last a whole day. It was a Sony Zuma100. Cool phone with a flip down voice boom, but man the whole year I used it (before upgrading to a Startac) was a major pain. I'd have to remember to check the battery and change it every afternoon, sometimes missing important phone calls because I didn't change the battery in time. I'm a heavy palm user and I'll never buy a smartphone that requires me to carry around a backup battery. I'll continue carrying my Kyocera, thankyouverymuch.

Further things to upgrade:
-ditch serial, make the cradle usb
-put in the latest PalmOS
-include an SD slot

The Blazer browser is incredibly slow. The "text only" Eudora browser is useable at 14,4, but work needs to be done in the browser department if the speed goes up to 144kbps.

I'm not convinced that the GPS meantioned in the article will do what we think it will do. Many are probably thinking "cool, I'll have Rand McNally maps and be able to follow my course on the map". More likely is the GPS will only be used as a locator for emergency services or save you from inputting a zip code to get the local weather. Better than nothing, but certainly less than a gps device that can give turn by turn voice prompts.

While I applaud Samsung's use of a virtual graffiti area it's my understanding that the only app that can use it is the dialer app. What they =should= have done is adopt the handera standard (240x320) with landscape capability. That would have made web browsing better and given them a plethora of apps that are already written to utilize the handera format.


David in Pflugerville, TX

RE: Still possibilities for Kyocera 6055
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/5/2002 9:45:26 PM #
Is Handera really 240x320?

HandEra resolution
LarryGarfield @ 3/6/2002 2:13:06 AM #
The HandEra 330 uses a QVGA, 240x320 grayscale screen. That's how it supports a soft graffiti area and rotation. They developed their own (rather nice) API for writing applications that can use the larger screen real estate and rotation, and many major applications already support it. More information is available on HandEra's web site ( http://www.handera.com/ ).

--
This post is ROT26 encrypted. Reading it is a violation of the DMCA
i300 Screen Size
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/7/2002 1:33:30 PM #
Yes and no.

The i300 has the ability to (thanks to hardworking hacker The Jake) use the entire screen. Jake has reverse-engineered the graffiti area, and has produced not only the coolest hack ever for any Palm machine (user-installable skins), but also has shared his code with TealPoint, who have already added full-screen support for TealDoc, which I have to say is unbelieveably cool as well.

The only major drawback to this is that Samsung has failed to produce an SDK for programmers to take advantage of the phone's unique features.

Come check us out over at http://www.sphi300.com - and yes, I think we are zealots. Maybe you'll even want one!

RE: Still possibilities for Kyocera 6055
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/21/2002 2:27:45 PM #
My only qualm with the SPHi300 is the fact it doesn't support GSM/GPRS. Other than that,from what I can see it is thoroughly impressive, especially with The Jake putting his two-hacking-cents in on it. :) I am looking for ward to some of the new Sony/Ericsson phones, if only they could incorporate PalmOS 5, GPRS/GSM and have the capability of working on standard CDMA networks, making it an options for the rest of us not switched to GSM. I really don't think that PPC is going to take off with the wireless stuff, as it only has about 32% market share anyway, and the Palm OS is much, much less bulky, and unlike the PPC, Palm OS 5 will get a performance increase with the new 400Mhz Intel chip. Whew. Well, thats my speel.

-CS
Proud Sony N760C owner: Go Sony!

Memory Stick?

fperkins @ 3/5/2002 8:50:00 PM #
Will it have a memory stick slot? Also, what do you think the pricing will be for these new faster wireless internet services? Will they try to soak us for the faster connection?

I like the GPSOne technology. I bet I could write a script to plot my location on a map doing a poll every 1/2 hour or so. Neat.

[Note to Ed. Be nice that on the comment page, the article you are commented on appears above this form.]

RE: Memory Stick?
Ed @ 3/5/2002 9:46:11 PM #
It doesn't have a Memory Stick slot. Frankly, I'm a little surprised about this. Samsung is a licensee and makes other gadgets with Memory Stick slots.

---
News Editor
soaking
drw @ 3/5/2002 11:45:44 PM #
You better believe we're going to get soaked. Almost make one think twice about the whole thing. My sources say $30-$35 for wireless broadband above what we're paying already. Have to be on the look-out for, and pounce when a good deal comes along.

David in Pflugerville, TX

Check this out

I.M. Anonymous @ 3/6/2002 1:04:16 AM #
http://www.sonyericsson.com/3Dphones/p800/p800.html

a really cool phone (PDA communicator device) running Symbian OS V7.0, avaliable Q3 2002 :) I am pretty impressed

RE: Check this out
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/6/2002 1:11:18 AM #
Interesting phone but if it doesn't run the Palm OS, it doesn't cut the mustard.

RE: Check this out
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/6/2002 1:13:34 AM #
LoL Symbian OS is like palm OS 6. Or maybe it's everything you could wish for in palm OS 6.

RE: Check this out
LarryGarfield @ 3/6/2002 2:16:47 AM #
LoL Symbian OS is like palm OS 6. Or maybe it's everything you could wish for in palm OS 6.

Does it run WordSmith, iSilo, AvantGo, HanDBase, JFile, or any of the other dozens of programs that I already use? No? Then it doesn't do everything I could wish for in Palm OS 6.

--
This post is ROT26 encrypted. Reading it is a violation of the DMCA

RE: Check this out
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/6/2002 2:25:39 AM #
"Does it run WordSmith, iSilo, AvantGo, HanDBase, JFile, or any of the other dozens of programs that I already use? No? Then it doesn't do everything I could wish for in Palm OS 6."

EPOC has it's own version of offline Browser, Database programs, Ebook reader or the other dozens of program that you already use. If it doesnt do everything you could wish for in Palm OS 6 because they don't have the exact program then it really sucks to be you.

RE: Check this out
Fzara2000 @ 3/6/2002 2:40:09 AM #
Take a look at the demo.
the thing is huge! and it reminds me of the kyocera junk!


SONY ROCKS!

RE: Check this out
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/6/2002 2:44:06 AM #
Actually it reminds me more of the Treo Junk, but with acolor screen and a builtin camera.

RE: Check this out
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/6/2002 2:48:10 AM #
Seriously, how is Sony/erricson's phone huge ??

Sony/ericsson - 4.6inch
Handspring - 4.3inch (not counting the antenna)
Samsung - 4.9inch

''Next Generation''?! I don't think so

I.M. Anonymous @ 3/6/2002 9:41:36 AM #
What could possibly qualify this phone as "next generation"? So, it's a little smaller, that's great. But is it upgradeable? Apparently not. Does it have a built-in keyboard (like Blackberry or Treo)? Apparently not. Does it have an expansion slot? Apparently not. Does it offer always-on e-mail? Apparently not. Would I buy it? Apparently not.

RE: ''Next Generation''?! I don't think so
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/6/2002 8:34:17 PM #
Why the heck to do you say it's not upgradable? The I300 has Flash memory, I seriously doubt this went back in time. They have to be specific upgrades from Samsung b/c of the smartphone integration and technology, but it is certainly upgradable. Please try and get your facts before posting.

RE: ''Next Generation''?! I don't think so
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/7/2002 1:18:27 PM #
It's qualified as 'next generation' because it is true 3G.

See http://celdata.cjb.net for an explanation of its coolness.

RE: ''Next Generation''?! I don't think so
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/7/2002 1:25:35 PM #
or the "next generation" means Samsung's "next generation".

Anyway why having a keyboard is "next generation" ?? Nokia 9210 has a keyboard for the longest while, so what kind of "next generation" is treo ??

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