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Philips offers up Xenium X500, new name, same face


If you happened to catch the oddly -named 9@9k about a year ago, you'll likely notice that the "new" X500 seems like a twin with a minor bit of cosmetic work. The X500 features two-month standby and 16 hour talk time, tri-band EDGE, 1.3 megapixel camera, microSD expansion, and an FM radio with RDS support. The only bit of cool we see going on here is the nifty "Up to 2 months standby" written on the screen, and we expect that's not a feature the phone actually has. The Philips Xenium X500 is set to ship to Russia, Turkey, and Romania, at some point in the future, and honestly, with the care-o-meter registering about zero on this set, we may just never find out.

E-TEN Glofiish X500+ gets unboxed


The new E-TEN Glofiish device we hinted at earlier in the month has arrived in all of its 2.8 inch VGA screened, Windows Mobile 6 Pro (see that? We're already shortening that name up 'round here) goodness. Nothin' has changed in the specs, but previously unnoticed (at least by us) is the fact that the X500+ supports RDS-TMC -- so not only will the GPS support get you where you are going, it will help you dodge traffic, too. The package contains all the bits and bobs you would expect: a headset, USB cable, case, charger, and of course some bundled software. Still doesn't seem to be anything official on pricing, but at least you hit the link to check the rest of the unboxing pics.

E-TEN Glofiish X500 and M700 get Windows Mobile 6 updates


Hot on the heels of T-Mobile's Windows Mobile 6 upgrade for the Dash, E-TEN is rolling out the first Windows Mobile 6 Professional updates for its handsets. As of a few days ago, if you happen to have an X500 kicking around with that oh-so-long-in-the-tooth Windows Mobile 5 on it, head on over to E-TEN's site to freshen it up. It seems that M700 owners will have to keep that download finger waiting for another week as the Microsoft certification process seems to be stopping that ship from sailing. The update process is pretty straightforward, register your handset, E-TEN will send you an "action key" which coupled with your IMEI will let you get at the goodies. Good luck on those updates, and if you have a happy or nightmarish story about your upgrade, let us know. Hit the read link to head on over to E-TEN's site for all the details.

[Via the::unwired]

E-TEN's glofiish X500+ gets official


First, the good news: the glofiish X500+ takes the original X500's thin formula and packs in a glorious VGA display. Now, the bad: 3G data is still nowhere to be found. We suppose we'll have to wait for the upcoming X800 to sup the sweet nectar of HSDPA from an E-TEN device, but in the meantime, it seems the X500+ is a worthy upgrade its predecessor thanks to a stylish new black casing, Windows Mobile 6 Professional, and, of course, the aforementioned 640 x 480 touchscreen. No word on pricing or availability just yet, but we can probably guess "a lot" and "not here."

[Via the::unwired]

E-TEN set to release X500+?

Remember the Glofiish X500? Well we do too, but just barely; E-TEN may be hustling an upgrade out the door in the coming weeks in the form of the X500+ (yeah, they added a extra character). The plus brings a few changes to the device most notable of which is the resolution bump from QVGA to VGA – higher res is always okay with us -- and Windows Mobile 6, and a conspicuous lack of 3G. While we get that E-TEN doesn't want to step on its higher end devices by adding WCDMA, we don't have to like it.

[Thanks, Gti]

izenMobile's KSMT and KRMA: E-TEN rebrands

These suckers look familiar to anyone? They should -- they're E-TEN's M700 and X500, respectively, with the "E-TEN" logos rubbed off and replaced with izenMobile's. The M700 becomes the "KSMT," sporting 128MB ROM / 64MB RAM, GPS, a 2 megapixel cam, and a slide-out QWERTY keyboard, presumably with the same trick backlighting as its E-TEN cousin. The "KRMA" looks positively nothing like the one izenMobile had originally been tossing around, trading a numeric keypad for the X500's ultra thinness. Still no word on a release date, but with E-TEN doing all the heavy lifting on these ones, it can't be that hard to get 'em out the door.

[Via Mobility Site]

Pharos announces GPS Phone -- no really, that's the name


Pharos, another up and coming gadget company has taken the next step for its GPS device lineup by jumping into the phone space, and rebadging that ETEN device (you know, the much discussed X500 glofiish, aka OX500). Dubbed GPS Phone (we really think calling it The GPS Phone would be much more potent), it's got all the specs we knew this phone was packing, including: SiRFStarIII GPS receiver (duh) with Pharos Ostia nav software, quad-band GSM / GPRS / EDGE (sigh), WiFi, Bluetooth, a 2 megapixel camera, FM radio (o rly!), and a friggin fat $699 price tag. Now, we're not necessarily saying $700 for a GPS-equipped Pocket PC is too much, but we really do wish they could have shaved $5 off the top of that margin and dropped in a damned UMTS / HSDPA radio, you know? Ah well, SIM unlocked and yours come February.

ETEN glofiish X500 hits FCC as "OX500"

The good news? ETEN has humbly submitted its thin, sexy X500 glofiish Pocket PC for the FCC's approval as the "OX500." The better news? According to the test report, GSM is in the box on both the 850 and 1900MHz bands. While that obviously doesn't guarantee any US carrier is going to pick up this bad boy, it does mean that you'll be able to import one, use it on any GSM tower in the States, and do so with the peace of mind that the FCC isn't trying to hunt you down for using an unapproved device. At just 0.6 inches thick, we're digging the integrated GPS, WiFi, and Bluetooth 2.0; just give us a few minutes to curse the lack of 3G and we'll totally be on board.

E-TEN glofiish X500 reviewed

With the recent bombardment of Windows Mobile devices being released, it's kind of hard for anything to really catch our attention -- until now. E-TEN's latest offering, the glofiish X500, brings to the table what is being called the "World's thinnest Pocket PC Phone that combines GPS and WiFi in one device." This handset comes feature-packed with a quad-band GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 radio supporting EDGE data, a 400MHz Samsung S3C2440 processor, 128MB ROM and 64MB of RAM, a 2.8" QVGA touchscreen display, 802.11b/g WiFi, Bluetooth 2.0, and a 2 megapixel camera with flash. It seems like E-TEN still had some extra room left, though, seeing how they also decided to throw in SiRFStar III GPS for when we get lost, microSD slot for saving all of our music and pictures, and even found some space for an FM tuner. Of course, with new Pocket PC devices being released almost weekly, we wonder just how long this phone will reign supreme.

E-TEN glofiish X500 smartphone gets official

While its hard to take a Pocket PC phone seriously that goes by the name of "glofiish," and even harder to take it seriously when it ain't got no 3G data, we're still fairly impressed with E-TEN's new X500 phone. The glofiish X500 packs in SiRF Star III GPS, Bluetooth 2.0, 802.11b/g WiFi, and an EDGE radio all into a 0.6-inch thick form factor. While it was at it, E-TEN stuff in a 2 megapixel camera, 2.8-inch QVGA screen, 400MHz Samsung processor, 128MB ROM, 64MB RAM and a microSD slot. No surprises, since we spotted this thing a few weeks ago, but now it's getting "official," with an expected November launch and that silly glofiish moniker. Still no word on price.

[Via Mobility Site]

E-TEN shows thin X500 Pocket PC phone

In a world of 6.9mm-thick phones, we use the term "thin" somewhat loosely, but what the heck -- it is a full fledged Pocket PC phone, after all. E-TEN's latest, the X500, manages to pack Bluetooth 2.0, microSD expansion, 802.11g, FM radio, GPS, and a 2-megapixel autofocus shooter into a sub-15mm frame sporting Windows Mobile 5 with AKU3. The device also rocks 64MB of RAM, 128MB of ROM, and a respectable 400MHz Samsung core, though the complete lack of 3G is starting to become a sore spot for us. No details on when or where the X500 might drop (or how much it might be, for that matter) on account of it not officially having been announced quite yet, but we'll keep our ear to the ground on this one.

[Via Pocket PC Thoughts]




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