We've learned that Pantech and AT&T are apparently hard at work on the successor to the Duo C810 smartphone, a Windows Mobile 6 Standard device whose claim to fame is its dual slide mechanism in the same vein as the Pantech-sourced Helio Ocean. The Duo 2 -- model number C820, naturally -- is said to feature a rounded black case that recalls the look of Motorola's old MPx200 and clocks in with dimensions very close to those of the HTC Vox. We're also told that the dual slide feel is "excellent" with well-illuminated buttons on both the numeric and QWERTY pads; the QWERTY side is apparently the easier to use of the two, with the numeric side being just a bit difficult to navigate by feel alone. Up front, the 2.4-inch screen is QVGA (who'd have thought?). Along the four edges you'll find a Pantech proprietary charge / sync connector and a microSD slot protected by a hard plastic cover.

It doesn't sound a heck of a lot different than the phone it replaces so far, but here's where it gets a little interesting: the C820 moves up from a 1.3 to a 2 megapixel camera and packs Windows Mobile 6.1, which apparently is already pretty well customized for the carrier thanks to the inclusion of apps like MobiTV and AT&T Music. Follow the break for software, memory, and processor details; since we might be waiting a while for a release, you may as well get all the info you can in the meanwhile, eh?

History tells us that Pantech likes to slap a "C" prefix on its models destined for AT&T (harking back to the Cingular days, no doubt), and so naturally our eyes widened just a bit when we saw just such a device fly through the FCC this week. This particular device is dubbed the C610, which we guesstimate puts it at about 200 less than the C810; enough of a deduction to take it out of the smartphone realm? Hard to say. We can tell from the documentation here that it's a 3G device, and a couple shots of the phone in the SAR reports taken from far, far away (blown up here for your viewing enjoyment) show a clamshell that's probably targeting a fashion-conscious crowd since it's done up in red. We wish we could say "we'll know soon enough," but since we're still waiting for the SMT5700 that hit the FCC over a year ago, we'll keep our mouths shut.

"Luxurious yet simple design" is the name of the game for SKY's latest bit of mobile splendor, curiously named "Duke" of all things. For many of us, "Duke" conjures up images of rough-and-tumble sheriffs in the Wild West or gargantuan Xbox controllers, but one thing it doesn't necessarily bring to mind is "luxurious yet simple." No bother, we suppose it's the hardware that matters, so let's get to it: 2.4 inch QVGA display, 1.3 megapixel camera, document viewer, media player, Bluetooth, and built-in subway maps (Korean subways, that is) all grace the rather plainly styled slider. Look for it on your favorite Seoul retailer's shelf for something in the range of 400,000 won (about $404).

[Via Unwired View]

This dual-band CDMA handset with EV-DO just popped up on our FCC radar this morning with the model designation "ELVIS," and while we have no idea what it is, where it's going, or when, we have to admit -- we can kinda see the resemblance between this and The King in his later years. If you catch our drift.

Update: Turns out it's the UTStarcom TXT8010, which has a QWERTY keyboard; no wonder it's so wide. Thanks, everyone!

In light of the fact that the original Ocean's model number was OZ, it seems pretty obvious that an "OZ2" passing through the FCC by way of Pantech would be -- you guessed it -- the Ocean 2. It helps that the label diagram's depiction of the phone is clearly Ocean-esque in nature, too. So let's use this opportunity as a springboard for discussion: what does everyone hope to get out of the dual-sliding Helio Ocean's successor?

We've already mentioned that the LG Vu is looking solid for a late March release after being held up (or so they say, anyway) to work through a few MediaFLO issues; we've now received independent confirmation that it's true -- assuming no more issues arise, of course -- but that's not all. No, far from it, in fact. The Sony Ericsson Z750 is apparently inbound for a release within two weeks, and along with the rugged Motorola W760 "Hurricane" (pictured), that should close out AT&T's March docket.

Moving on to April and beyond, the Pantech "Breeze" is expected some time next month, but don't get too excited -- it's an entry level flip that should move out the door free on contract. The Motorola Z9 slider should lackadaisically stroll into stores in late April, and finally, we've heard that the Nokia N95 has been approved by the carrier's powers that be (!!!) and should be available in the second quarter; no word on whether it's the standard N95 or the N95 8GB, though. How about an N96 with MediaFLO while you're at it, guys?

[Thanks, Kal]

Update: We've just heard from another tipster that the N95 in question is the original for the North American market, the N95-3. It apparently just started going through the arduous approval process last week, a testing marathon that takes roughly 400 hours -- four to six months -- to complete. By then, we'll all have 4G radios embedded directly within our brains and be living in terraformed colonies on Mars, but it was a nice thought on AT&T's part nonetheless.

Back before there was Helio, there was Earthlink, South Korea's SKT, and a dream. Heliocity managed to score some shots of just what that dream looked like in the early days, a similar -- yet decidedly different -- vision than what the MVNO ended up bringing to market. Not only are the prerelease versions of Helio's first two models to market (the Kickflip and Hero) "SK Earthlink" branded, but check out that super trippy Kickflip proto, complete with aerial antenna and secondary LCD for self-portraits. The Ocean obviously came along further down the road, and while we like the all-black finish Helio decided on, we think the two-tone action here would've made for an interesting second choice. Read on for all the visuals.

Pantech's double-sliding Duo seems set to roll out with AT&T in a refreshed red housing color. Seriously, what's not to like here if you're hunting for some inexpensive Windows Mobile, QWERTY keyboard and keypad, HSDPA / EDGE, fun? Not much, and for $99 bucks on contract, AT&T has even seen fit to match the color with next week's Valentine day launch window. Who thought Blue could be so romantic?

[Via IntoMobile]

Yes, friends, the time has come once again for Japan's carriers to upheave their still-fresh lineups and replace them with even fresher ones. Here we take a look at KDDI au's just-announced Spring '08 collection, including a model with an e-ink display and another with a 3 inch OLED. Wowza! Note that not all of these handsets are new -- some are carryovers from the carrier's Winter '07 collection, so we won't be covering those here. Read on.

In its domestic Korean market, the IM-S300 slider from Pantech's SKY division is apparently being touted as the "Romantic Wave," and we guess we're hard pressed to disagree. The wavy buttons front and center look really cool -- usability aside, of course -- though the 1.3 megapixel cam leads us to believe that physical design is where the high-endedness ends on this one. If you happen to be around Seoul, grab it for something in the range of 400,000 won (about $430) in black or white (with pink accents, no less).

[Via Just Another Mobile Phone Blog]

We're going to refrain from the "In Soviet Russia..." jokes and get straight to the point: RIM is bringing its BlackBerry phones to Russia in Q1 2008. Apparently the hang up was with Russian security agencies, but now that the two main carriers, MTS and Vimpelcom, have gotten approval from the FSB, the phones are finally able to enter Russia in acronymical harmony. MTS has had BlackBerry phones in Ukraine since October, any many business customers use foreign phones via roaming, but this is the first time in a while the phones are going legit in actual Russia. The carriers have been granted permission for one year of sales, but as we all know, once a few government officials go CrackBerry, they're never going back.

Helio's Ocean certainly has the hardware credentials to see some duty as a business device, but with Helio's consumer focus, the software necessary to turn the phone into a productivity powerhouse hasn't really materialized. That changes a bit today though with the introduction of File Viewer, a free application that allows Ocean users to read a variety of popular file formats, among them Word, Excel, and Powerpoint documents, PDF, plain text, HTML, and several image types in both landscape and portrait modes. Helio's commemorating the event by also upgrading its Mail for Exchange platform to version 1.2, offering a handful of improvements and providing direct integration to the File Viewer. Both are available today; follow the break for the full press release.

No surprises here, but the Pantech Duo (split-personality and all) has officially arrived in late October, just as we were led to believe. Ready to rock texters' worlds on AT&T, the Duo does indeed boast Windows Mobile 6, a QWERTY keypad and a numeric 'board for your convenience, UMTS / HSDPA compatibility and a 320 x 240 resolution display. The unit measures in at 4.02- x 1.97- x .83-inches, and if you dig what you're seeing, it can be yours today for $199.99 if you're cool with signing a two-year agreement.

[Via Reuters / Yahoo]

We're still waiting for it to grace AT&T's pages, but it looks like the WinMo 6 Standard Pantech Duo C810 is now available in most AT&T retail stores for $249 with two-year contract. Phonescoop has the full spec rundown and video hands-on of AT&T's new quad-band GSM / HSDPA dual-sliding QWERTY. Besides that rough, chubby look the phone also sports more than a few operational oddities including a mysterious "turbo mode" and the fact that sliding the phone open and shut does not answer or hang-up your calls. Fat? Sure, but still trimmer than the Helio Ocean also manufactured by Pantech. Check the video review after the break.

[Via Pocketnow]

So the Duo's finally starting to land in stores (as is the LG CU515, we're hearing), and Boy Genius Report has wasted precisely zero time to check it out. It sounds like everything's just fine and dandy from the initial impression -- it turns out you can't slide out both the numeric and QWERTY keyboards at the same time like you can with the dummy units, but we're not too sure why you'd want to do that anyway. Oh, and if the Duo isn't to your liking, hang tight; we're hearing that the Q9 Global has starting shipping to stores (the Samsung A737, too), so they should be showing up any day now.

[Thanks, anonymous tipster]