Mobile Phones & Smartphones

As you'd expect from a tech Podcast, here at FrequencyCast, we love mobile phones. This page covers some stuff on mobile phones, as discussed on our show:

Here's details of some of the phones we've recently discussed on our shows:

o2 XDA Orbit

We've fallen in love with the new XDA Orbit, from o2. This phone combines a phone and Windows Mobile PDA, with a GPS receiver, so you have a one-box phone, organiser, Internet and email device, that's capable of satellite navigation with no extra hardware. This is powerful phone and PDA, and it's also a comfy hold. If you're into your power phones, and fancy being able to navigate in your car or on foot with just a phone, check out the sexy XDA Orbit.

This phone is available directly from www.o2.co.uk. The XDA Orbit is also carried by T-Mobile, where it's known as the MDA Compact III.

We featured the o2 XDA Orbit in Show 10 and again in Show 14 - Take a listen to these shows online.

Nokia N95

We looked at this snazzy phone in Show 14. The Nokia N95 phone became available in the UK in March 2007 and is a top-of-the range device with a great screen, and a nifty bi-directional sliding keyboard.

Carl and Pete got some hands-on time with this new phone, to see what it offers. Take a listen to Show 14 to hear how we got on, and for a sample of the mapping and music playback on the Nokia N95.

One of the features that demonstrates really well on the show, is the impressive sound - the Nokia N95 has two speakers for some impressive stereo playback. Here are some of the other top features of the Nokia N95:

GPS - A built-in satellite receiver for GPS navigation - maps are downloaded as required over the air, meaning the map data can be kept up-to-date. Voice navigation files can be downloaded on demand too - listen in to this show to hear navigation in action.
Connectivity: USB, Infrared, Bluetooth, GSM, WCDMA, HSDPA and Wi-fi
A 5 megapixel camera, with Carl Zeiss optics and VGA video capture. The camera has a flash, auto-focus and a lens cover
As well as MP3 playback, the N95 has a stereo FM radio and supports Visual Radio

Screenshot of Mapping on N95

Screenshot of the main menu on the N95

The Nokia N95 became available in March 2007. It's available on contract from T-Mobile and MobileShop.
It's also available SIM-free from Play.com.

We get hands-on with the Nokia N95 in Show 14

You can listen online with our pop-up Pod Player, save as MP3 or subscribe via iTunes.

Skypephone from 3

Free Skype on a mobile: Here's a great bargain. Get this phone from UK network operator 3, and you can make free calls to other Skype users around the world, or to others with a Skype phone. The Skypephone has a dedicated Skype button and is very easy to use.

The Skypephone from 3 is also a standard mobile phone and has a good number of features, such as MP3 and video playback, a 2 meg camera, a 256Meg storage card and a stack of other applications. It also uses 3's high-speed data network for Internet and email access,

The 3Skypephone is a standard 3G mobile with a dedicated Skype button. It can make and receive free calls to other Skype users over the 3 mobile data network. It has free Skype Instant messaging too. 3's Skypephone acts as a normal mobile too, and has an MP3 player and a 2meg camera. Available free on contract, or under £50 on pay-as-you-go. Calls on the 3Skypephone are truly free, there are no calling or data charges. If you have friends on Skype, it's FREE calls to them, anywhere at anytime.

The Skypephone is available for £39.95 on pay-as-you-go, or free on contract. More details on 3's Skypephone page.

We reviewed the Skypephone in Show 21

You can listen online with our pop-up Pod Player, save as MP3 or subscribe via iTunes.

Apple iPhone (UK)

Has there ever been a more hyped phone? The iPhone launched in the UK exclusively on the o2 network in November 2007. We've had our hands on one of these magic phones since the start of November, and they sure are impressive - sync to iTunes, perfect music and video playback, and the best mobile web experience we've ever had.

We've put together an audio review of the UK iPhone - Our podcast's presenters Pete and Carl sat in a room, and went through each application seeing what's on offer. Pete then outlined how to get online with an o2 iPhone, then compared the iPhone with some of the other lerading handsets featured on this page.

To read more on the iPhone, or to download our audio guide, see our UK iPhone review page.

The iPhone is available on contract in the UK for £269 from o2 or Carphone Warehouse. More on our iPhone page.

Free SIM cards.

You can get your hands on up to 4 FREE O2 SIMs, each with unlimited O2 to O2 free calls and texts when you top up just £15 a month. Get your free SIM cards at freesimo2.o2.co.uk

You can also get two free T-Mobile SIM cards, with a free weekend texts offer. More details at t-mobilesimgiveaway.co.uk.

Lobster 700TV Tellyphone

Lobster 700 TV We reviewed this phone in Show 07, and were pretty impressed. We also had some listener feedback in Show 15. Sadly, this phone is no longer available. At the time of recording, the phone wass able to tune in to up to 50 channels of DAB digital radio, and a small number of digital TV channels:

BBC One, ITV 1, Channel 4, E4 and ITN News

This phone doesn't get its TV content via an expensive Internet connection, it gets its telly over-the-air with a built in receiver - actually using the DAB Digital Radio system to download TV as data. Clever eh? The service is called BT Movio.

The Virgin Lobster 700TV 'tellyphone' is a tri-band phone powered by the Smartphone version of Windows Mobile v5.0, comes with a 1.3 megapixel camera, and supports Internet and email over GPRS. Battery life: 140 hours of standby. 64Meg RAM with micro-SD slot. It connects to a PC and other devices using USB and Bluetooth support.

Summary: An odd-looking mobile phone, but generally impressive. DAB reception is pretty good, and the TV service is smooth. Check out our review of the Lobster in Show Show 07

Extra channels? Answered in Show 15.
Got a question about the Lobster 700? Ask away.

We featured the Lobster 700TV in Show 7 - Take a listen to this online show.

Update: The Lobster 700 has now been discontinued (as of July 2007). It was previously available free on contract or for £50 on pay-as-you-go from www.virginmobile.com.

Swap your old phone for cash!

Got an old mobile phone handset that you're no longer using... don't leave it in the back of a drawer - you may even be able to make some money for getting rid of your old phone safely. For cashback, go to envirofone.com, or to donate it to charity with Fonebak.com.