If thought it would be alone in delivering hardcore handheld devices with high-tech hardware, it will seriously have to reconsider. AMD has also announced an expanded portfolio of products and technologies to enable popular, media-rich applications such as mobile TV, 3D games and high-fi audio, delivering immersive entertainment to tomorrow’s mobile phones and handheld devices. All this was showcased at this year’s GSMA 2008 World Mobile Congress.AMD has enhanced its established line of open-standard handheld device technologies with upcoming AMD Imageon processors, as well as next-generation 3D and vector graphics cores, available for licensing.

These new offerings are designed to allow device manufacturers and network operators to support today’s most popular applications, as well as cutting-edge applications that will thrill tomorrow’s mobile consumer.”Today’s mobile consumers demand devices and services capable of providing outstanding entertainment. AMD is committed to enabling advanced graphical interfaces that deliver the Ultimate Visual Experience on the go,” said Adrian Hartog, senior vice president and general manager of AMD’s Consumer Electronics Group. “Our latest handheld technologies allow AMD to better address new and emerging applications, such as 3D gaming and mobile TV, as well as satisfy today’s consumers who crave portable music players and full-function touchscreen mobile phones.”

End-user generated revenues from mobile games will reach nearly $10 billion by 2009, according to a November report by Juniper Research. Over 460 million mobile users are expected to download games by 2009, which is double the current number, the report said. Verizon Wireless and other carriers are trying to capitalize on the billion-dollar opportunity. Guitar Hero III, the third installment of a very successful console music video game published by Activision, a worldwide developer and distributor of interactive entertainment, is being offered to Verizon Wireless customers through the carrier’s partnership with Hands-On Mobile, a publisher of mobile entertainment products.

The mobile version of the video game lets cell phone users jam to music, much like they do on the console game. Users get rich graphics and high-quality audio, despite the fact that they’re playing on a cell phone and not a large screen, said Verizon Wireless. There are some modifications, however, that had to be made to the game in order to play it on cell phones. For example, Guitar Hero III Mobile comes with four authentic guitars and three venues, which requires players to hit number keys in sync with colored notes that appear on a scrolling fret board.

Verizon Wireless customers initially get 15 song tracks from the Guitar Hero console series, but they can add more tracks to the video game with song packs that Verizon Wireless will introduce each month, the carrier said. Guitar Hero III Mobile can be accessed on a monthly basis for a fee of $4.49, or customers can purchase the unlimited use package for $12. The game is compatible with Verizon Wireless’ Get It Now-capable phones, which include the Moto Rizr Z6TV, the Chocolate by LG and the Samsung. Customers will also have to sign up for Verizon Wireless’ digital service to access the game. Verizon  Wireless, in partnership with Hands-On Mobile and Activision, on Thursday began offering the Guitar Hero III mobile game exclusively to its customers.

Hutchison 3G today announced partnerships with nine games development companies; iFone, It’s Alive, Supedo , nGame, Codetoys, Simian Industries, Morpheme, Cheeky Wireless and Purple Software. Under these agreements a range of new and classic arcade style games, as well as traditional board and card games, will be available through Hutchison 3G’s multimedia services later this year. These agreements cover the supply of over forty games, to all international markets where Hutchison Whampoa has 3G interests. Many of the interactive games will be written and developed exclusively for Hutchison 3G; others will be improved versions of existing games. Lisa Gernon, strategy and marketing director at Hutchison 3G commented: “3G offers an exciting new gaming platform for everyone’s pocket. Hutchison 3G is focused on offering quality content in this new format and this is why we have carefully selected partners with the expertise and creativity to deliver compelling gaming experiences.”Joe Dever, head of games at Hutchison 3G, will be at E3, Los Angeles, 21-23 May . 

For video-gaming enthusiasts who don’t wish to shell out hundreds of pounds for the latest console, there may be an alternative in the form of an upcoming $20 (14) device for playing classic Atari 2600 games. The “Atari 10-in-1 TV Games” device is a basic joypad with 10 built-in 8-bit Atari games and a standard ATV output cable allowing it to connect to any standard television. The device will join a similar product, launched last year, that plays Activision games.

The device includes classics such as Centipede, Asteroids, Missile Command, Battlezone, Adventure, Combat and four others, according to Jakks Pacific, which is making the device under license from Infogrames Interactive, owner of the Atari intellectual property. It will retail under the brand of Jakks’ Toymax International subsidiary. British mobile phone developer IFone said last year it would work to put classic Atari games into mobile phones, and this year has announced deals with Ericsson and Vodafone to deliver games.

Sega Mobile, a division of Sega.com, Inc. dedicated to bringing Sega content to the mobile market in North America, has formed a strategic alliance with Sprint (NYSE: FON, PCS), which operates the largest all-digital, nationwide network and is the fastest growing wireless carrier. Sega will leverage its popular franchises and extensive gaming legacy to deliver the best in mobile gaming content for the highly anticipated Sprint Third Generation Network launching nationwide this summer. Sega Mobile will bring one of the first full-color mobile games to Sprint wireless customers with the launch of the hit title Monkey Ball. Sega’s simian superstars are rolling straight onto your cell phone in SEGA Monkey Ball from Sega Mobile.

The basic idea is simple enough: just guide your spherically-encased monkey to the goal line while collecting bananas along the way. Ah, but gravity is a harsh mistress, and if you tilt too far, you’ll send your monkey to the great void below. The same precarious action you expect from Monkey Ball is here in glistening 2D, along with some all-new features, including different terrains, wind, and black bananas that will redefine the term “shock the monkey.” So follow the bouncing, crashing, and plummeting ball, and start monkeying around with your wireless phone, Sega-style.

• The Nintendo GameCube hit comes straight ballin’ to cell phones.
• 15 levels filled with different gameplay elements.
• New obstacles including wind, various terrains, and yucky black bananas.
• Auto-save feature lets you suspend play at any time.
• Painstakingly rendered monkeys — you’d think you were watching
• PBS! Made for Sprint vision-enabled phones.

“The Sprint Third Generation Network enables the transformation of mobile games from the text-based experience of today to a graphic, full-color experience of console-brand games available through Sprint on its 3G-enabled PCS phones,” said Chip Novick, vice president of consumer marketing for Sprint’s PCS division. “When Sprint launches recognizable games like Monkey Ball from a top provider like Sega on its 3G Network this summer, you will inevitably see more and more Sprint customers moving their phones from their ears to their eyes as they get a little game action on the go.”  

Nokia Game, an interactive adventure provided by Nokia, will be played from 11 to 29 November in nine languages across all 25 countries simultaneously. During the game, players receive a mission that they must complete within the next 20 days. Those players who complete the mission to the fullest (i.e. score the most points) will win. Compared to previous versions of Nokia Game, this year offers both active and casual players the opportunity to play at their own level. Due to a new game concept, players can enjoy the experience 24 hours a day, if they want to, and upload and share their own created content to amaze and impress fellow players.

In addition, players are challenged to create a new game identity and investigate - using their game identity - the borders between fiction and reality. Close cooperation with the world’s largest music publishing companies has resulted in a game theme that will teach participants the ins and outs of today’s music business.Nokia Game uses the Internet, SMS, chat, interactive voice response (IVR) calls and mini-movies distributed over the web to share information and provide clues and instructions to the players. There is no participation fee to participate in Nokia Game. To play, participants need to have access to the Internet, an e-mail address, and a mobile phone with the capacity to receive short messages.

There is no age limit to play the game, but minors need their guardian’s permission to participate.At the end of the game, the top 10-100 players in each country will each win a special new Nokia 3650 phone with integrated camera, video player and camcorder. The winners will be among the first in their region to own and use this new phone.

The Nokia 3510i phone delivers a high-quality color display, MMS and JavaTM technologies in a trendy package“The Nokia 3510i brings a great quality color display to the consumer market. When you consider the additional exciting features such as MMS and Java technology, the Nokia 3510i is truly an exciting mobile phone,” Senior Vice President, Nokia Mobile Phones. “And users can personalize their phone to an unprecedented degree with our trendy functional accessory covers.”

The Nokia 3510i phone’s high-quality color display, with support for 4096 colors, enriches multimedia messages and games, and is well suited for WAP browsing. The Nokia 3510i is able to receive, send and forward multimedia messages with text-, image-, and tone content.The functional accessory covers for the Nokia 3510i also include active covers that completely light up, flashing to the rhythm of your ring tone or as a game effect.

Sam sung and Bang & Olufsen now introduce Serenata, the new music mobile phone that combines superb sound quality with the convenience of a mobile phone, all nicely tucked in the palm of your hand. Serenata is a music mobile phone focusing on sound quality and at the same time on bringing a more sophisticated lifestyle to the customers. To own Serenata is to enjoy the best possible music experience while you are on the move. Bang & Olufsen’s expertise in concept development, user interface experience, acoustic sound capabilities and design skills together with Samsung’s leadership in mobile phone technology, engineering and quality have realized a new way of combining unique music and mobile experiences for consumers. “Since we started our first co-operation with Bang & Olufsen, we have only been confirmed in our belief that both companies share a passion for innovation and consumer-focused technology. Serenata is another example of new ways to think of the mobile phone.

I’m proud to say that our customers can see a true innovation of music player and mobile phone as we have opened a new era of mobile phones with Serene two years ago”, says Gee sung Choi, President of the Telecommunications Network Business in Sam sung Electronics.”We have high expectations to Serenata, as it is a result of our joint vision to constantly push the boundaries, and bring unique and exciting products to our customers”, states Torten Ballegaard Sorensen, CEO of Bang & Olufsen. Acoustic performance dedicated to use Serenata represents an innovative approach to a personal music player. Two companies’ astonish-ing technology and design bring the experience of digital music to quite another level for music fans on the move. Serenata features a built-in stereo speaker system which delivers outstanding sound quality. Equipped with a built-in hi-fi speaker and outstanding bass system, the phone delivers high quality sound without any distortion. With this state-of-art technology, mobile phone users can enjoy various kinds of music from pop and rock to jazz and classic in the same way they would through their hi-fi system at home.

At anytime and any place, you can listen to the opera in a music quality as if you were there yourself through the integrated loudspeaker system or through the dedicated stereo EarSet 3. Combining only top-performing speaker components with ingenious acoustic principles and Bang & Olufsen-patented ICEpower amplification, we get the world’s best acoustic performance. The focus has been to provide uncompromised and totally authentic music performance, with emphasis on playback of “uncompressed” music.

 Besides handling lossless, Serenata also handles playback in various formats, including MP3, WMA, and AAC.As a dedicated music phone, Serenata brings special ring tones for the users who want to have unique and sophisticated sounds designed by Bang & Olufsen. The sound achieved from a triangle, wind chimes, various types of glass and different types of woods will offer beautiful sounds to match any situation.

Technical specifications:

Designer David Lewis
System 3G/GSM R/F band, GSM 900,1800,1900 and HSDPA 2100
Dimensions 63 x 109.5 x 19.7mm
Weight 136 g
Battery capacity 1000 mAh
Talk time Up to 3 h
Standby time Up to 280 h
Display technology TFT-LCD Pixel 240×240 Colour 256k
Size in inches 2.26″
Bluetooth Yes USB Version 2.0 (High Speed)
Browser WAP 2.0, Access NetFront v3.2
Message SMS, MMS, E-Mail (POP3, IMAP4, SMTP, SSL, TLS, OTA E-Mail Settings Configuration)
Memory 4GB + 25MB (1,000 tracks MP3)
Phone book 1,000 contacts
Speaker phone Yes
PureMusic Yes (flight mode)
Offline playback Up to 5 h (speaker) Up to 13 h (headset)
Audio codec MP3, AMR (Voice Tag), AAC, WMA,
WMA Lossless 9.1
DRM OMA DRM, Windows Media DRM
Artificial Bass True bass
Accessories Travel Adapter, Cigarette Lighter Adapter, Car
Holder, Stereo Wired Headset
PC tools PC studio (OS: W2k, XP, Vista)
BeoPlayer (OS: XP)

T-Mobile celebrates the imminent launch of the brilliant new Sagem my-C4 Today. It is expected to be in store within the next few weeks.This trendy new handset is exclusive to T-Mobile and features a slide-up design with a high definition colour screen.Key user benefits:

• The myC-4 sounds great with it’s 64 polyphonic and hi-fi ringtones
• It also looks fantastic with a 65k colour screen that’s 128×128 pixels in size means it brings clarity to all on screen images
• Java(tm) technology means enhanced 3D gaming, either on the preloaded titles or on the many others available to download in t-zones

MobileGuru limited a well known information portal for its mobile sources, today launched its mobile website for all internet enabled phones with browsers. The future of mobile phones is third generation mobiles (3G), which is why MobileGuru takes its first step into the third generation of mobile phones.UMTS is said to be the future of mobile communications, which is currently being planned by the four existing UK network operators along with a fifth operator called Three (formerly known as Hutchinson 3G). As you may have guessed this is known as 3G (also UMTS) in the industry and is aiming to provide new services utilising voice, data, video, multimedia etc. at capacity up to 2Mbps. In reality services will be limited to 384 Kbps downlink and 128 Kbps uplink. For more information on 3G technology and services visit our. MobileGuru mobile website will contain 3G services such as multimedia images, pictures, videoclips in 3gpp format, data and voice. Also all the existing contents from the MobileGuru website such as mobile news, mobile shop, downloads from the picture gallery, jokes gallery and videoclips gallery.