Okay, so we've gathered a little more intelligence since our last run-through on the topic, and it turns out that Samsung's Ultra Smart F700 has not been dubbed "Croix." Croix is still alive and well, but it's actually the F700's underlying user interface paradigm, a paradigm based on crosses used for navigation ("croix" is French for cross, after all). It's the first time we've really seen the F700 in action, come to think of it, since we've only managed to get our hands on nonfunctional units at events so far. If the platform turns out to work as nicely as it looks, this is all great news, because Samsung's freshly-issued iF Communication Design Award indicates that "Croix is the backbone of a series of finger touch-based mobile phones with full touch screens." Let's worry about getting some F700s out in the field first though, eh, Samsung?

[Thanks, Gary C.]

Little is known about the KE850 from LG, but the folks over at International Forum Design must know a thing or two about it, seeing how they just hooked it up with a Product Design Award for 2007. And hey, with those hot Chocolate-esque looks -- though we have no proof this one'll actually be branded as a Chocolate -- who can blame them? The big draw here, of course, is a 400 x 240 touchscreen that takes the place of virtually every hard button you might find on a more traditional handset, save for Send, End, and a handful of keys on the sides. The posterior reveals a cam, though its specs remain a mystery. Does someone at LG (or iF) want to spill the beans for us?

[Via Slashphone]