HTC Hero comes to India

HTC Hero comes to India @ Rs 31,990 Images: HTC Hero HTC Corporation announced the launch of the Android-powered HTC Hero in India. HTC Hero has bevelled edges and an angled bottom and is contoured to fit in the hand and against the face while on a call. It comes with an anti-fingerprint screen coating for improved smudge resistance and a longer lasting, clearer display. The white HTC Hero includes Teflon coating. HTC Sense, an intuitive and seamless experience that will be introduced across a portfolio of phones beginning with the new HTC Hero. With its 3.2-inch HVGA display, the HTC Hero is optimised for Web, multimedia and other content and has a small size and weight. It also comes with hardware features including a GPS, digital compass, gravity-sensor, 3.5mm stereo headset jack, a 5 mega-pixel autofocus camera and expandable MicroSD memory. HTC Hero also includes a dedicated Search button that goes beyond basic search that enables users to search through Twitter, locate people in contact list, find emails in inbox or search in any other area in Hero. HTC Sense promises to shape the mobile experience around the individual. Debuting on the HTC Hero and available on all new HTC devices moving forward. The HTC Hero comes with a special offer for Airtel users in India, wherein Airtel customers will get free data download of 100 MB per month for six months. The HTC Hero will be available at a market operating price of Rs 34,600 in Maharashtra and Rs 31,990 in the rest of India. Specification Processor: Qualcomm MSM7200A, 528 MHz Platform: Android Memory: - ROM 512 MB - RAM 288 MB Dimensions (LxWxT): 112 x 56.2 x 14.35 mm (4.41 x 2.21 x 0.57 inches) Weight: 135 grams with battery Display: 3.2-inch TFT-LCD touch-sensitive screen with 320×480 HVGA resolution Network: HSPA/WCDMA - 900/2100 MHz - Up to 2 Mbps up-link and 7.2 Mbps down-link speeds Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE - 850/900/1800/ 1900 MHz Device Control: Trackball with Enter button GPS: Internal GPS antenna Connectivity: Bluetooth 2.0 with Enhanced Data Rate and A2DP for wireless Wi-Fi: IEEE 802.11 b/g 3.5 mm audio jack Camera: 5.0 megapixel color camera with auto focus Audio Supported Formats: MP3, AAC(AAC, AAC+, AAC-LC), AMR-NB, WAV, MIDI and Windows Media Audio 9 Video Supported Formats: MPEG-4, H.263, H.264 and Windows Media Video 9 Battery: Rechargeable Lithium-ion battery Capacity: 1350 mAh Talk time: - Up to 420 minutes for WCDMA - Up to 470 minutes for GSM Standby time: - Up to 750 hours for WCDMA - Up to 440 hours for GSM Expansion Slot: microSD memory card (SD 2.0 compatible) AC Adapter: Voltage range/frequency: 100 ~ 240V AC, 50/60 Hz DC output: 5V and 1A Special Features: - G-sensor - Digital compass

Nokia X3 Feature Phone Plays FM without Headset

You know how the guys at Sony Ericsson officially took the wraps off the XPERIA X2 smartphone yesterday? I guess the team in Finland wanted to do them one better, because we are now taking a look at the Nokia X3 feature phone. It’s no smartphone, but it’s still quite clever.

The Nokia X3 is a part of the newest X-series of handsets from Nokia, joining the E-series business handhelds and N-series multimedia smartphones. The Nokia X3 will be running on S40 6th Edition and it is clearly targeting the music end of the scale with its dedicated media controls. I guess the X-series is the evolution of the XpressMusic series.

Some of the features include a slide-out numeric keypad, a 3.2-megapixel camera, tri-band GSM, full HTML browser with Flash Lite 3.0, microSD expansion, embedded stereo speakers, Bluetooth 2.1, 3.5mm audio jack, and the Comes With Music option for unlimited music service.

Interestingly, the stereo FM radio with RDS allows you to listen to the radio without having to plug in a headset. In all other phones, you need to use a headset because it functions as the antenna. Such is not the case with the Nokia X3, so that’s a plus.

Look for the Nokia X3 to sell for 115 Euro ($163) before taxes and subsidies when it launches in Q4 of this year.

Charge Your iPod and iPhone with Bicycle Power

Have you ever been to one of those science exhibits where you ride a stationary bike, generating enough electricity to light up a light bulb? It’s obvious that we can harness the energy that you generate on a bike, so why not do the same when you’re pedalling along on a real bicycle? Well, you will soon be able to do that with your iPod or iPhone

The BioLogic FreeCharge is a $100 device that connects to your bicycle and, while you pedal your way around town or up the mountain, that energy is then transferred over to your iPod or iPhone over a standard wired connection. Simple, effective, and green.

In essence, a dyno is attached to the wheel on your bike and then the power generated is passed through to a battery-powered USB hub. This USB hub can then be used for your iPod, iPhone, or just about anything else that can charge over a USB connection. In the case of an iPhone, they say that three hours of biking is enough for a full charge.

Going back to the science exhibit, you’ll remember that the light bulb shuts off the moment you stop pedalling. This would be an issue with charging the iPhone, so that’s where there is an intermediary battery. You pedal to charge the battery, the battery powers the hub, and your iPhone gets a steady stream of juice.

Look for the pedal-happy BioLogic FreeCharge to sell for $100 when it ships next March.

Talk to the Hand with Bluetooth Color Rings

You know the universal hand signal for a telephone? You know you can talk into your pinky finger and listen to the other end of the conversation on your thumb? YOu want to have an Inspector Gadget or James Bond like communication experience? Look no further than the Color Rings by BCK design team.

Instead of latching a traditional Bluetooth Headset onto your ear, you wear a pair of rings on your hands. One ring goes on your pinky finger and this acts as the microphone. The other ring goes on your thumb and it acts as the earpiece. Yes, this is the same universal hand signal among surfers for being gnarly.

To make the functionality even more whimsical (and possibly very usable), the way that you answer an incoming call is to make that characteristic “phone” sign with your hand. The two rings detect the increased distance between them and then they pick up the call. To hang up, close your hand back into a fist.

If we were to continue with this line of thinking, wouldn’t it make more sense to have accelerometers placed in the rings that would detect when you were hanging up your make-believe phone on a make-believe base station? You know, like pointing your hand downward with the phone-hand configuration intact?

Either way, this is very weird and still just a design concept. I wonder if anyone at Nokia, Motorola, or Apple is paying attention.

Sony Ericsson Xperia Pureness Preview

Presumably announced to a fanfare of whale song and the whiff of joss-sticks, this preview of the Sony Ericsson Xperia Pureness shows an intriguing device combining classic Sony Ericsson
design with transparent panels to make a very distinctive looking phone.
The full horror of the press release can really only be experience by reading the full thing:
Today at a business update meeting, Sony Ericsson showed the new Xperia™ Pureness, a simple design phone
which brings together beautiful craftsmanship and the concept of “talk, text, time – a holiday from technology”. The Xperia™ Pureness will be officially launched in November 2009 through selected retail distribution channels in key cities around the world.

The handset was shown to media attending an event to launch Sony Ericsson’s new brand direction where the company also confirmed its alignment under the Sony make.believe brand message.

Xperia™ Pureness approaches the mobile phone as a work of art rather than technology. The company’s designers aimed to sculpt an object of design that reflected the purity of water and a sense of calmness when not in use.

More details on Xperia™ Pureness will be available when the phone launches in November 2009.

Pretty silly stuff, we think. But the phone looks nice.. although we have a feeling that this will be really very expensive, whenever it does actually reach the shops.