Mobile vendor strategies - 30/11/05

Pantech has launched two new handsets, the IM-8600 5 mega-pixel camera phone and the IM-8700 F2F (face-to-face) telephony handset.

Motorola launches a mobile handset with payphone features, and first-ever personal digital assistant (PDA) to operate on TETRA (TErrestrial Trunked RAdio) networks.

Nokia announced 70 customers for its MSS (MSC Server Solution), of which 35 have already deployed the technology into a live network. It adds WiFi connectivity to its existing PDA handset, the Nokia 9300. It also said it has successfully completed a High Speed Downlink Packet Access call at its facilities in Beijing, China. Nokia and PLDT (Philippines) cooperate in Fixed-Mobile Convergence solutions in the Philippines.

Nortel successfully completed HSDPA calls with a category 6 handset using 16 QAM modulation and reaching 3.6Mbps data rate over the air interface.

Texas Instrument is sampling a new line of 3G chipsets that could be a driver in lowering the price of 3G handsets. The chipset is expected to debut in handsets in 2006.

Ericsson and MTN (S. Africa) are jointly working broadband fixed and mobile services using 3G HSDPA technology.