i-Mate have been busy boys. Not only are they promising a Windows Mobile 6 upgrade for their JAQ3 device, but they’ve also found time to give a little colour to their Motorola SLVR-esque handsets. A choice of blue, pink and red SPL handsets will soon be available, but wait – that’s not the whole story. On display at 3GSM the colourful SPL’s are running Windows Mobile 6 Standard (ala Smartphone), so there’s hope that the new OS may turn up on these colourful devices when they go on sale soon.
Specs? Expect triband 900/1800/1900 GSM/ GPRS, bluetooth V1.2, miniSD, 240×320 pixel screen and a 2 megapixel camera. There’s a distinct lack of 3G and EDGE, but hey – it’s all good when you’ve got a funky looking device like this in your pocket. Check the press release below for further info.
Link – i-Mate Press Release
Picture – Engadget.com
Specialist in Windows Mobile® Solutions Launches the Ultimate Range
February 12, 2007, Barcelona, Spain – i-mate™ (London AIM: IMTE), the specialist in Windows Mobile® devices and solutions, today announces at 3GSM World Congress 2007a dazzling array of new products and services including a category-defining range of mobile devices for business users and consumers. The Ultimate range is a collection of high-end, sophisticated 3G Windows Mobile® phones and PDA’s in a selection of form factors to suit any user, the first of which will be available mid-year. The devices will be based on Windows Mobile 6, the latest version of Microsoft’s mobile operating system.
The Ultimate range consists of a collection of five devices in various form factors to suit individual preferences, from classic bar to PDA to a notebook replacement and was designed to provide the latest and best in phone and PDA technology. From the 530MHz processor, to the XGA direct video out, from HSDPA connectivity to the 262k colour VGA LCD touch screen, every component of each device is specified at a very high level. These are the first of a line-up of exciting devices i-mate will introduce through 2007.
“2007 will see i-mate™ offer a portfolio of new and iconic devices and highly sophisticated services,” said Jim Morrison, CEO, i-mate™. “The Ultimate range, with its great design and strong specifications will appeal to business users who require, as the name implies, the best of breed combination of innovation, design and technology. Each of our devices is designed with different users in mind giving our customers real choice. ”
“We’re thrilled to see i-mate expanding its device portfolio with its ‘Ultimate’ range of phones, which will bring the newly announced Windows Mobile® 6 to the hands of i-mate customers and adds further to i-mate’s impressive record of innovation on our platform,” said
Marianne Roling, EMEA Director, Mobile & Embedded Devices Division, Microsoft® Corp. “These phones are opening a whole new category of devices that bring a wide range of entertainment and productivity options for business users and consumers.”Windows Mobile® 6 brings a powerful personal computer experience to mobile phones, improving how people do business on the go with better-looking and easier to manage email and an improved Office Mobile experience.
i-mate™ is also launching the JAQ4 – the first i-mate™ device to ship with Windows Mobile® 6 – a sturdy QWERTY keyboard GPS phone with a five-way joystick and scroll wheel allowing for easy navigation and use of services including push email. Furthermore, the landscape 2.8” colour touch screen supports the use of the stylus as an increasingly popular means of accessing and writing email and messages.
i-mate™ is also addressing the more fashion-conscious 18-34 year old segment with a range of brightly coloured SPL devices in red, pink, blue in addition to black. These SPLs will extend the benefits of Windows Mobile® functionality with popular consumer features such as a 2.0 mega pixel camera and video capabilities to an all-new audience.
Morrison reveals, “We are thrilled to be bringing this exciting portfolio of devices to the market made possible by the freedom we now enjoy as an OEM in our own right.”
As part of i-mate™’s service proposition, 3GSM will also mark the launch of i-mate’s™ Customization Order and Management Solution (COMS). COMS, a web-based application that integrates customization and logistics to ensure that i-mate™ devices are ready to use “out-of-the-box”, complete with corporate, enterprise or small volume customizations. System Integrators (SI) and Value Added Resellers (VAR) will use COMS to customize Windows Mobile®-based devices according to specific customer needs, from security and data synchronization to applications, ring-tones and look-and-feel in as little as 48 hours. Mobile Operators can use COMS to improve their services to the enterprise segment and to accelerate their time-to-market with new mobile devices to address the rapidly expanding mobile workforce. IDC estimates that the worldwide mobile worker population will grow to 878.2 million in 2009 to account for 21.3 percent of the global work force*.
Morrison concludes, “The mobile industry is starting to develop an approach where a customer can select a device based on what they want and need, not because they are restricted by available options. With the Ultimate, SPL and the JAQ4 and the ability to customise those devices for the enterprise, we believe we are delivering what our customers are asking for.”
i-mate™ Ultimate
All Ultimate devices come with the following specifications:
Microsoft Windows Mobile® 6
Intel Bulverde 520MHz
Quad-Band GSM/EDGE, Tri-Band UMTS/HSDPA
WiFi 802.11b/g/e/i
256MB ROM, 128MB RAM
Micro SD card slot
VGA 262K Colour LCD Touch Screen
Bluetooth® v2.0 + EDR – up t 1.3 Mbps
Mini USB high speed – 480 Mbps
Direct Video Out XGA
Micro SD card slot
2.0 mega pixel camera
FM Stereo Radio
Microsoft® Direct Push email directly from MS Exchange® 2003 SP2
i-mate™ JAQ4
Microsoft® Windows Mobile® 6
GPS
Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE
WiFi 802.11 b/g
64 MB RAM, 128 MB ROM,
Mini SD Card Slot
2.8” 65k Colour Transmissive Micro-Reflective (TMR) touch screen
Talk time 5 hours, up to 200 Hours Standby
2.0 Mega Pixel Camera
QWERTY Keyboard
Bluetooth® V1.2 Compliant
Multi language options
Microsoft® Direct Push email directly from MS Exchange® 2003 SP2
i-mate™ SPL
Microsoft Windows ®5.0 for Smartphone
GSM / GPRS, Tri Band 900/1800/1900
Bluetooth® V1.2 Compliant
Mini SD Card Slot
2.2” 65K colour 240×320 pixel LCD
Talk time 4 hours, up to 150 Hours Standby
2.0 Mega Pixel camera
Multi language options
Microsoft® Direct Push email directly from MS Exchange® 2003 SP2