Vendors To Take Wraps Off New Features AT CTIA

New Orleans — Cellular phones will supply more entertainment than a laser pointer on Bourbon Street if new cellular phones unveiled at Wireless 2005 are any indication.

Vendors here will take the wraps off advanced phones that will appeal to entertainment-oriented consumers and to professional

users. New models include 3G W-CDMA phones with 3-megapixel camera and 25 fps video capture, PDA phones and camera phones with dedicated shutter buttons. Also expected to be on display: Bluetooth hands-free sunglasses and Bluetooth hands-free kits for motorcycle helmets.

Here’s what attendees can expect to find:

BenQ: The company’s first PDA phone is the P50 PocketPC-based P50, a quad-band GSM/GPRS worldphone with built-in Wi-Fi, QWERTY keyboard, 1.3-megapixel camera/videocamera, Java and J2ME support, MP3 player/recorder, Bluetooth, ItDA, USB and 2.82-inch color TFT touch screen. Its estimated street price is $800.

Cardo Systems: The Pittsburgh company’s EasyRider series of Bluetooth kits for motorcycle helmets features voice control so riders don’t have to take their hands off the handlebars to initiate or accept phone calls. Volume adjusts automatically to ambient noise level and driving speed. The kit works with all Bluetooth mobile phones and fits all helmets. Talk time is up to six hours on the standard rechargeable battery.

Model 100 retails for a suggested $119. The version with FM radio is a suggested $134, and the model that offers FM and handlebar-mounted remote control of the FM radio is $154.

Haier: Eleven new GSM/GPRS phones include the unusually designed P7 pen-style phone, the brand’s flagship. The triband GSM/GPRS phone is only 1.06-inched wide and 5.9-inches long. It features VGA camera, 65K color screen, voice command, WAP 2.0 browser, speakerphone and MMS.

Motorola: Among new models expected to be on display are a trio of high-style GSM phones, a trio of 3G W-CDMA phones, and a W-CDMA HSDPA PC Card.

The W-CDMA phones are the E1120, A1010 PDA-phone, and value-oriented E1060. They operate in Europe’s 2.1GHz W-CDMA band and in GSM/GPRS 900/1800/1900 MHz bands. The E1120 candy-bar phone features 3-megapixel camera, 30-lux lamp, dedicated shutter key, 8x digital zoon. QVGA color display, dual speakers and 25 fps video capture.

The A1010 PDA-phone features color touch screen; 2-megapixel camera; 48MB internal memory; TransFlash slot for up to 512MB of additional memory; and ability to download and edit Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and PDF documents. VPN and push e-mail support are also included.

The E1060 features two-way video calling, dedicated Internet browser key, 1.3-megapixel camera with video capture, color display and speakerphone.

The D1100 PC Card is Motorola’s first HSDPA device.

The W-CDMA devices will be available in the fourth quarter.

The GSM phones, due sometime in 2005, are PEBL V6, SLVR V8, and a special-edition RAZR V3. The PEBL is a rounded clamshell with polished metal finish, Bluetooth, VGA camera, 5MB memory and triband operation. The SLVR V8 is a thin candy-bar model that features EDGE, Bluetooth, VGA camera, digital audio player, TransFlash slot and 262K color display. It’s the first in the planned SLVR series. The special-edition RAZR V3 is a jet-black, thin clamshell made available initially as gifts to Academy Award nominees.

Also new: Bluetooth hands-free sunglasses, dubbed RAZRWire, for active outdoors-types. It’s due in the second half.

Nokia: As part of an expanded portfolio of clamshells, Nokia plans to show its 6101, a GSM 850/1800/1900MHz model with VGA camera and FM radio. It’s due in the second quarter with dedicated shutter button, Xpress audio messaging to send a voice message over a GPRS data network, and push-to-talk technology.

SignalReach: Through master distributor National Cellular of Arlington, Texas, the company is offering what it says is the first 3-watt booster that connects to any cellular phone or cellular PC Card to boost signal strength. One version operates with all phones but iDEN phones; a separate version is available for iDEN phones. To achieve universal compatibility, the TP200 uses an inductive coupler that users attach to a phone with Velcro. It doesn’t require a hard physical connection, such as a connector inserted in a handset’s antenna port. That means it can be used with phones lacking external antennas.

The transportable TP200 comes with universal antenna coupler, 3dB-gain magnetic-mount dual-band antenna, AC adapter and vehicle power adapter.