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Nokia grabs the Windex, clears up 'erroneous' Maemo carrier customization claims

by Darren Murph posted Sep 11th 2009 @ 1:36PM

We aren't too sure where a number of outlets overheard that Nokia was planning to pass on customizing its Maemo-based devices, but one of two things has happened: either Nokia is lying to our faces and has secretly had a change of heart, or everyone was just misinformed from the get-go. Regardless of the hows and whys, Nokia has now come clean and stated that those very reports -- you know, the ones that "erroneously suggested that Nokia will not support operator customization for Maemo devices" -- are "simply incorrect." A long winded explanation follows, but the long and short of it is that the suits in Espoo are (at least now) very open to letting operators "tailor future Maemo devices to suit their needs," which may or may not be a positive in your eyes depending on the carrier you're chained to. Now, aren't you glad we had this little talk?

[Thanks, Dallas]

Nokia putting foot down on Maemo, won't allow carrier customizations

by Chris Ziegler posted Sep 9th 2009 @ 4:09PM

Google and Apple have both managed to wrest a great deal of control over the mobile user experience from carriers over the past couple of years -- cheers to that, by the way -- and now Nokia's decided it wants a piece of that action with the introduction of Maemo 5 and the N900, which it says will be free of the branding that Symbian products frequently get subjected to. It makes total sense that Nokia would be looking to come play in that rarified air that Android, iPhone OS, and webOS are all playing in -- a place where ARPUs are high, UIs are slick and modern, and the apps (and data) flow like water -- but since the majority of customers for these types of devices rely on subsidies to justify the purchase, they'll still need carrier buy-in to pull this off effectively. At least Palm and the gang have all proven that there's precedent for it, and it's definitely a noble fight to wage -- no one wants a bright magenta interface, right?

[Via Phone Scoop]

Sharp 770SH MILILITER gets McLaren makeover on Vodafone

by Darren Murph posted Jan 7th 2007 @ 1:23AM

McLaren isn't a stranger to spiffing up an otherwise run-of-the-mill handset, but the whole "automobile-electronics" partnership is most commonly associated with the bevy of high octane lappies out there. Nevertheless, it looks like Vodafone has picked up Sharp's Mercedes McLaren-branded 770SH, and aside from sporting an ultrathin, sexy enclosure dashed in red, silver, and black, it also boasts a central LCD on the lid, 320 x 240 inner screen, 1.3-megapixel camera, Bluetooth, a paltry 5MB of internal memory, miniSD slot, MP3 playback, Vodafone Live compatibility, USB connectivity, and 220 minutes of reported talk time. Although the luxurious title may force you to ponder which fixed assets you'll need to liquidate to afford all this, thankfully the pricetag is rather reasonable, as you can apparently pick this gem up in about two weeks for just €69 ($91) with a new agreement. Click on through for a more snapshots.

[Via Xataka]

Continue reading Sharp 770SH MILILITER gets McLaren makeover on Vodafone

HTC Herald gets its HTC branding: the P4350

by Darren Murph posted Nov 20th 2006 @ 10:52AM

C'mon, HTC certainly wasn't fooling anyone after the Herald was unmasked and taken from under wraps, but now the QWERTY-packin' device is finally getting a proper nametag. The HTC P4350, while far from being a new release, will "officially" sport a slimmer enclosure than the Tytn and foolishly lack onboard HSDPA. Apparently hoping to compensate, the quad-band unit will boast EDGE connectivity, Bluetooth, and WiFi options along with the usual compliment of smartphone functions. Aside from handling your Microsoft Office / Outlook needs, it will sport a 2.8-inch touchscreen, five-way navigational stick, 200MHz TI processor, 2-megapixel camera, 64MB of internal RAM, 128MB of ROM, and a microSD slot to store your extra files, tunes, or CIA material. Weighing in at 5.92 ounces, the 17-millimeter thick mobile should retail for "around $735," and if all goes as planned, will hit European shores next month.

[Via The Unwired, thanks Jonathan]