IT8217;S RAINING SMART PHONES

Top mobile brands are launching a series of phones armed with features and looks that will have you shelling big money without remorse

It looks like the Summer of 2008 will be the cell slinger8217;s season of bliss. All mobile-phone companies have lined up some smart offerings for the Indian market and one could possibly end up being spoilt for choice.

To its sleek designs and mind-blowing LCD displays, Samsung has now added an edge, rectifying its traditional weakness8212;sound quality. The new SGH-i450 comes with a 3D surround sound powered by ICE power amplifiers by Bang and Olufsen. So users can look forward to a mobile theatre experience. In this dual slider, the two slide form factor enhances the ease of controlling music and other phone functions. But SGH-i450 is not just a juke box, it8217;s a smartphone. As it runs on Symbian S60, it can host applications like document reader/ editor and check e-mails quickly. It comes with a 60 MB internal memory, which is average, but it has a microSD slot up to 4 GB. The EDGE-enabled phone has an impressive 2.4-inch LCD screen and a 2-megapixel camera. The price is surprising8212;a very affordable Rs 15,000.

While a 5-megapixel camera is considered a must for any high-end phone, the G800 from Samsung8217;s Metal Series combines a sleek digital camera and a multimedia handset into one device. The SGH-G800 is unique in its class thanks to its 3x optical zoom, face detection, auto-focus assist lamp, xenon flash and image stabilisation. Like other camera phones, the G800 also suffers from shutter lag, so trying to capture moving objects will be a problem. This handset is equipped with an ultra-small card slot with microSD and expandable microSDHC flash memory support, so 4 GB or 8 GB microSDHC should be the ultimate storage solution. The G800 is priced at Rs 21,799.

Some of Samsung8217;s dream handsets, the F490 and the U900 Soul8212;whose launch dates will be announced shortly8212;were also on show. The F490 is Samsung8217;s version of the iPhone. Its touch-based user interface has a 5-megapixel auto-focus camera, a 3.2-inch TFT display and a slim profile. The camera comes with a LED flash, not a xenon one, which was surprising. It is equipped with a microSD memory card slot. The price? Around Rs 30,000.

The Soul may not be the slimmest handset in the Ultra series, but it excels in features and looks. It has a 5-megapixel camera and the unique D-pad which is a touch pad. Users can enjoy super-fast Internet access through the 7.2 Mbps High Speed Downlink Packet Access HSDPA browser and share images or videos taken with the phone. It also means that you can download songs at a faster speed compared to the average 3G networks. Soul is also perfect for music listeners with features like Music Library Navigation, digital power amplifier by ICE power technology by Bang 038; Olufsen ICEpower. The price has not been finalised yet, but expect the phone to hit the market in a couple of months.

Sony Ericsson, on its part, has gone the business handset way and will launch the XPERIA X1 and G900i. The XPERIA X1 is for mobile Web communication and multimedia entertainment. It has a 3-inch VGA display and a full QWERTY keyboard in a metal-finish body. Powered by Windows Mobile 6, the new Windows Mobile software from Microsoft, the XPERIA X1 will help users enjoy their favourite entertainment content or complete their office work efficiently on the move. It is equipped with an optical touch screen and has a unique arc slider, 3.2-megapixel camera, A2DP Bluetooth, aGPS, and Wi-Fi support. It will be launched soon and won8217;t come for less than Rs 30,000.

The G900i is a 3G phone and can access the Web in a Wi-Fi hotspot. It has a large 2.4-inch display and comes with a stylus. The phone has a 5-megapixel camera and touch-screen controls. Users can scroll through photos on the phone with touch control and edit them with the touch photo album and editor. The G900i comes with a music player and you can download and listen to songs. It has a Memory Stick Micro M2 slot with support of up to 4 GB 3,600 full-length tracks. The HSDPA mobile broadband technology to download a full-length music track is four times faster than a regular 3G phone about 14 seconds per song. This will cost Rs 18,000-Rs 20,000.

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When it comes to hardcore business phones it has to be i-mate8217;s new Ultimate series. The Ultimate range comes in Windows Mobile 6 version which makes sure the user does not need to carry a laptop. The high-end Ultimate 9502 comes with a 2.8-inch sliding VGA touch-screen and a full QWERTY keypad, while the Ultimate 8502 has a 2.6-inch touch-screen and full QWERTY keypad. Both run on Qualcomm MSM 7200 chipset/processor.

There is also the Ultimate 6150, which is a sleek version of a PDA, and comes with a 2.8-inch VGA touch-screen, while the Ultimate 8150 features both a VGA touch-screen and a fully functional dial keypad with T9 or dictionary mode. Both run on 520 Mhz Intel processor. With these mobile devices users can access the Web and check e-mail, data 038; MS Office, apart from video and pictures. These too will cost nothing less than Rs 30,000.

So go ahead and decide from the snazzy Samsung, futuristic Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1 or the Ultimate Series8212;all will be worth every rupee you shell out.