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ice posts

Mobinnova Ice given lobotomy, reemerges as Highscreen PP5420 with Android

by Chris Ziegler posted Jul 6th 2009 @ 5:32AM

If you don't remember the Mobinnova Ice, we can't say we blame you -- apart from its unique and mildly amusing (but poorly implemented) secondary display, the Windows Mobile-powered handset really didn't have anything going for it to set it apart from the pack, and our hands-on experience with it left us questioning its build quality, its robustness, and indeed its very reason for being. Anyhow, it seems that a Russian company has taken the Ice's guts and remixed them as the Highscreen PP5420, offering Android atop the 528MHz Qualcomm core with a WQVGA primary display, 3 megapixel camera, GPS, and full HSPA. As other fly-by-night companies have already learned, Android really looks like garbage on anything but half VGA right now -- and who the hell knows what (if anything) that secondary OLED is going to be programmed to do -- so we'd probably stay away from this one. If you're still feeling it, though, it should be available now for 15,990 rubles (about $511).

[Via Unwired View]

Mobinnova Ice hands-on

by Chris Ziegler posted Jan 10th 2009 @ 7:50PM

On the surface, the Ice from Taiwanese upstart Mobinnova looks like a decent WinMo set, it really does. The spec sheet's solid enough with a wide QVGA display, AGPS, integrated FM radio, HSDPA, and a secondary touch screen for navigation (a la LG Venus) -- but regrettably, the specs only tell half of this tragicomic tale. Up close, questionable engineering decisions start to come out of the woodwork. Take the d-pad, for example: sounds like an awesome idea, but the screen the Ice uses is so dim you can barely make it out under normal lighting. Not that you'd have to make it out, since -- as far as we can tell, anyway -- the only thing it ever shows is the d-pad, which begs the question why they're using a display here in the first place (we'd figured that opening Windows Media would trigger a transition to music controls, but no dice). What's more, Mobinnova's skin to take advantage of the 400 x 240 screen is possibly the worst manufacturer-issued skin we've ever seen on Windows Mobile, with text that looks like it was hastily downscaled to the point of being illegible at the Ice's dot pitch. Now that Sony Ericsson's said to have made the leap to these guys, we're a little worried for the future of XPERIA, honestly.

Gallery: Mobinnova Ice hands-on

Mobinnova's ICE suggests Sony Ericsson might know what it's doing

by Chris Ziegler posted Dec 24th 2008 @ 2:16PM

So remember how Mobinnova allegedly has some hot new contract with Sony Ericsson for busting out future XPERIA models? We're still a little bummed considering how good the X1 looks -- and how good HTC is at its trade in general -- but digging into Mobinnova's dealings a bit gives us hope. Turns out the Taiwanese company introduced the "ICE" last month, a reasonably decent-looking Windows Mobile 6.1 slate with a 3-inch WQVGA display, 3-megapixel cam, WiFi, and HSDPA. It doesn't stand out against the myriad offerings on the WinMo front these days, but if nothing else, it shows that Mobinnova might just have the chops to keep pace.

[Via pocketnow.com]

Will it freeze? i-mate JAQ takes a chilly beating

by Darren Murph posted Apr 18th 2007 @ 3:32AM

We won't say it's for certain just yet, but we've got a sneaking suspicion that the now-infamous Will It Blend series of destruction videos has created a monster. In a zany spinoff of the violent series, an i-mate JAQ is dealt a chilly beating as a presumably deranged individual ponders if it will "pass the freeze test." The snazzy smartphone was placed in frigid waters and then frozen block solid, only to be bashed repeatedly once it returned from the freezer. As with most of these cases, the JAQ didn't exactly perform admirably, and in fact, it failed to ever turn on again. So if you don't mind seeing perfectly good electronics go to waste, or you'd just like another ~~bright~~ idea to try yourself, be sure to hit the read link for the ominous video.

O2's "Ice" first European handset with uiOne

by Chris Ziegler posted Sep 5th 2006 @ 12:51PM

Sprint's been working with Qualcomm on uiOne-enabled handsets for the better part of a year now (you know, Qualcomm's solution for skinning handsets' user interfaces with themes) but Europe's been left out of the fun -- until now, that is. Coming it at a fairly reasonable £0 on contract, O2's clever looking "Ice" candybar isn't exactly high end, but it still manages to pack a reasonable punch with 3G data, Bluetooth, video and music players, and microSD expansion. It seems to lack GSM 850, but if cheap 3G suits your fancy and you've always wanted that, uh, "tropical look" in your phone's menus, the Ice might be right up your alley; it's available now on O2's site.

[Via Slashphone]

The $75,000 Motorola SLVR

by Paul Miller posted Apr 15th 2006 @ 8:59AM

We can't help but think the jewlers involved here could've found something a bit more snazzy to glue 260 diamonds and a platinum plate to, but that's just us. This extra extra shiny edition of the SLVR was recently shown at the Fresh Art "Zoom" Exhibition, and sells for a mere 75 grand. It seems quite ironic that after spending enough money to ice up a $75,000 version of the SLVR they couldn't manage more than cameraphone pics to promote it, but perhaps it's a subversive method to make their product appeal to the everyman. Right.