Men Free Blog

QWERTY fans need not apply — your phone hasn’t quite hit yet — but folks in search of a slick-lookin’ little slider on Helio have another solid choice. Just like its big sib, the Drift, the Heat comes to Helio courtesy of Samsung, but gains touch-sensitive controls and a lower price point. The new model serves up Bluetooth, 136MB of internal memory (though no external — advantage Drift), 1.3 megapixel cam, Helio Music compatibility, and the full suite of GPS goodies including Google Maps and Helio’s “Buddy Beacon” service atop a 2-inch QVGA display.

 Look for the Heat to go on sale today for $150 in your choice of Gold and the always-fashionable “Onyx” (alias “black”). Follow the break for a shot of the Heat doing its slide thing in both shades!

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Hey, remember the SLVR L7c? You know, the candybar version of the CDMA RAZR — the one with circa 2005 specs? Well, as you might recall, Verizon had some grand plans to get this one out the door at some point; turns out they still do, and we have some high-quality photography here to prove it. Though the opportunity to be the first US carrier to launch the L7c has come and gone, well… “better late than never,” as they say. We’ll begrudgingly admit that the phone doesn’t look half bad in this rather pale shade, though the feature list is a pretty tough pill to swallow (think VGA cam). Word has it there’s enough chatter going on behind the scenes to indicate a possible launch before the month’s out — we’d say that’s a mighty good idea unless Verizon is going for the “instant obsolescence” phenomenon here.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

We feel like we can barely tell the difference between the white KRZR from Moto and the original gray — especially if you squint your eyes a bit — but choice is always good nonetheless, and to that end Telus has added the paler variant to its lineup. Going toe to toe with the K1m in the high-fashion game, Samsung’s u510 has also found its way onto the CDMA carrier (look familiar?) with a 220 x 176 display, 1.3 megapixel cam, microSD slot — something its Helio doppelganger lacks — and touch-sensitive controls. Grab your white KRZR for the same price as its grayer counterpart, $149 CDN — or a u510 for $50 CDN less, $100, both on a three-year agreement.

[Thanks, Jay]

Read - Samsung u510
Read - Motorola K1m MOTOKRZR

After seeing it kicked around the Net for a few months, it’s good to see the BlackBerry Curve 8330 finally go live on Verizon Wireless. Well, almost — you’ll have to wait until May to lay thumb to QWERTY while riding that cool EV-DO wave of data. It’ll cost you $270 after a $50 mail-in rebate and two-year contract with further discounts available when signing up for eligible voice and data plans. Your cash will be rewarded with the wee 4.2 x 2.4 x 0.6-inches / 4-ounces curve sporting a 320 x 240 pixel display, 2-megapixel camera, media player, stereo Bluetooth audio, microSD / SDHC expansion, and 260 minutes talk / 11 days standby. Unfortunately, it’s missing WiFi like the early prototype and GPS like the rumored Sprint version coming in April.

Update: Sorry, scratch that. It does have GPS which Verizon touts as vzNavigator.

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Don’t you dare say green wasn’t already in style, as in all actuality, it’s US Cellular and Alltel following the crowd yet again. As the run-up to CTIA 2008 continues, the aforesaid outfits have both announced that a lime green variant of the Motorola Q9c will soon be on their shelves. Aside from that, prospective customers can also snap up the WinMo 6-powered Q9c in licorice, and of course, they’ll find a 1.3-megapixel camera, 2.4-inch display and 128MB of onboard memory. As for pricing, you can call Alltel’s version your own for $99.99 on contract, and while US Cellular is being mum on the subject, both providers will have ‘em available “this summer.”

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What’s blue, silver, and boring all over? If you guessed the Nokia 6205, well, you clearly knew something about the phone you were holding back to us — but nonetheless, go ahead and give yourself a gold star and a pat on the back for a job well done. The low-end flip for Verizon, which we’d mentioned not long ago, has finally been exposed in all its entry-level glory; don’t get us wrong, we’re delighted that Espoo seems to be back in the thick of the CDMA hunt, but we think we’re going to hold out for something just a little more visually stimulating than this. The lack of EV-DO isn’t helping its case either, though we suppose the external controls and camera flash are welcome additions for the folks who actually hold out until its alleged mid-June release.

Update: Peep that little “EV” signal strength indicator up there? Looks like there might be a 3G radio hiding in this one, after all. If so, kudos, Nokia! Thanks, VZW_Emp!

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phoneArena appears to have scored information on exactly when Verizon will be (or would like to be, anyway) releasing three new models from LG, all of which should be attracting some serious attention in their own right. Headlining the group is the VX9700 “Dare” — Verizon’s Prada-alike, if you recall — which is allegedly now being targeted for a July 4 online release and an in-store launch shortly thereafter (we’d say those dates put it at risk of cannibalization from the Glyde, but the Dare’ll win the photography battle with a 3.2 megapixel sensor versus the Glyde’s measly 2). Next up, the trick VX8610 with the internal Bluetooth headset has apparently been christened “Decoy” and is tracking for May 30 online and June 9 in store. Finally, the VX8650 Chocolate Flip gets ready to mercilessly slaughter its VX8600 predecessor come June 24 on your trusty web browser with brick-and-mortar locations getting theirs in July. Naturally, launch dates tend to have the solidity of Jello, so don’t be dropping your life savings on any wagers here with your shady friends. Not yet, anyway.

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