Aplix Corp., Celunite Inc., LG Electronics Inc., McAfee Inc. and Wind River Systems Inc.; and new associate members are ARM Inc., Broadcom Corp., Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson, Innopath Software, KTF Co. Ltd., MontaVista Software Inc. and NXP B.V. have recently joined the founding members of LiMo Foundation to promote the use of Linux in handheld devices. It could be recalled that the six original members were mobile world titans Motorola Inc., NEC Corp., Panasonic Mobile Communications Co. Ltd. and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., and carriers NTT DoCoMo Inc. and Vodafone Group Services Ltd.

With the big support it has gotten, the first phones that would incorporate the Linux platforms are widely expected to hit stores next year.

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Linux, LiMo Foundation, NEC, LG, Samsung, Vodafone, Panasonic, Motorola, McAfee

[image from: belgiquemobile.be]

NEC N908 is a mobile phone (for real), I know some of you would question “How could it be possible, there is no keypad on it?”. But if you try to look closely, this is a real phone, where you can make calls and send SMS or MMS to your family, relatives and friends. N908 comes with a touch screen interface, though Apple iPhone has already done that remarkable touch screen ideas that was already been an issue for a while. And since this was made without keypad, unfortunate for those text messaging enthusiast it will take them time to perfectly master it.

But lets look for the better side of N908, with its 2.2 inch QVGA display and 262,000 colours, the images on the screen looks fantastic and the text is an eye friendly, that gives the appearance as simply stunning. The features of N908 will not far from the features of other Smart Phone, from their videos to audio player which supports MP3, 3GP, AAC and even MPEG-4. You can either save files from the computer or just simply connect it to microSD card.

Unfortunately, this is not available in US with a carrier however; you can have the chance to have its unlocked version from Dynamism.com, so for those who are interested adding this to your collection or becoming a part of innovation, then buy this now before stocks are out.

NEC N908 Specification:

General

• Cellular technology
• Band / mode : GSM 900/1800/1900 (Tri-Band)
• Weight 3 oz
• Bluetooth
• Standby time : Up to 100 hours
• With digital camera / digital player

Phone

• Vibrating Alert
• Polyphonic Ringer
• Alarm Clock
• Calendar
• GPRS support
• Digital Camera 1280 x 1024

PDA Features

• Synchronization With PCÂ
• Voice Mail Capability
• Short Messaging Service (SMS)
• Internet Browser
• GPRS (General Packet Radio Service)
• Mobile Email
• Messaging / Data Features
• XHTML Browser
• MMS
• WAP Protocol Supported:WAP Protocol Version
• WAP 2.0

Digital Player / Recorder

• Digital player supported digital audio standards
• MP3
• Digital player/recorder type
• Digital player

Display

• LCD display
• Display Resolution : 320 x 240 pixels
• Color Support : Color

Power

• Talk time : Up to 180 min
• Audible Battery Alert

Cellular

• Phone style : Candy bar
• Automatic Redial
• Call Divert
• Call Barring
• Call Hold
• Call Timer
• Caller ID
• Call Waiting
• Volume Control
• Ringer Control
• Conference Call Capability
• Computer Link

CNET Reviews:Â

The good: The NEC N908 is a credit card-size phone that’s stylish and elegant. It has a beautiful 2.2-inch touch screen interface, and its features include a 1.3-megapixel camera, a camcorder, and an MP3 player. It has great audio quality and call performance as well.

The bad: The NEC N908′s touch screen interface can take acclimation. You have to remove the battery to access the microSD card slot, and the N908 also does not have a speakerphone.

The bottom line: The NEC N908 is a beautiful design-centric phone with a luscious touch screen interface. Dialing and texting were a bit difficult due to the lack of a keypad, so it’s not a phone for everyone. But those who love compact and uniquely beautiful handsets will not be disappointed.

[tags Apple iPhone, CNET Reviews]