Market Update Week 47

It's time for our next Market Update edition. You can expect our market reports every Friday. Those will inform you on the latest (and greatest) mobile phones that hit the stores on a weekly basis. As previously noted, unfortunately, we won't be able to comment local availability in stores near you, as well as on carrier-subsidized prices.

The Nokia N82 is probably the most interesting offering in this week edition of our Market Update series. According to Nokia it has started shipping 10 days ago, however it's only now that we could find any retail price to quote. The Nokia N82 specs include HSDPA with video calls and quad-band GSM support. The 100MB of integrated memory is complemented by the microSD memory slot. The 2.4" 16M color QVGA TFT display is not as large as the one of Nokia N95 however we feel that the N82 will be a strong contender to the N95 flagship. The handsets are pretty much identical in hardware. They have 5 megapixel autofocus cameras with Carl Zeiss optics, they can capture 30fps MPEG4 videos at VGA resolution, and both have a TV-out port to watch those on your TV set. They are also throwing in A-GPS that works with Nokia Maps. The N82 however flaunts a xenon flash which is a first for Nokia but a really popular feature among users and again, there's the screen auto-rotation feature that's really cool.

Nokia N82

The Nokia N82 was expected for around EUR 450 (USD 670) before taxes and subsidies with a 2GB memory card included and we thought that was a really good price. However it can currently be found online for around EUR 540 (USD 800), which is probably normal since it's still not readily available at all shops.

The HTC Touch Dual is next in line this week. It's the HTC Touch worthy successor, which features a sliding keyboard, a bristling new 400 MHz processor, 128MB RAM, 256MB ROM, Windows Mobile 6 Pro and a 2.6" TFT touchscreen display. The HTC Touch Dual also boasts tri-band GPRS/EDGE support plus HSDPA 3.6 Mbps. A 2 megapixel camera and Bluetooth 2.0 complete the list of specifications. Unfortunately, the Touch Dual won't feature Wi-Fi functionality, which is a real deal breaker for us. Sorry, HTC! Otherwise, the PocketPC comes with an updated version of the TouchFLO user interface which now allows you to zoom in, edit, create slideshows and pan through your images with finger gestures.

HTC Touch Dual

The HTC Touch Dual will be available in Europe later on this month with either a 16 or 20-key keypad depending on country and operator choice. The 16-key keypad is much like the one of every other mobile handset, while with the 20-key one every key is shared by two characters, which are accessible in multi-tap presses much like some RIM Blackberries Sure Type keyboards. Currently, the HTC Touch Dual can be found online for around EUR 460 (USD 650).

The feminine Samsung L600 is also out there, waiting for the ladies to set their eyes on it. Beside the lovely looks, it offers a small TFT display with a resolution of 176x220 pixels, microSD memory card slot, stereo Bluetooth, FM radio, office document viewer and a 2 megapixel camera. This lower-mid-tier stylish Samsung L600 can be found online for around EUR 160 (USD 240).

Samsung L600

The Sharp GX34 is also selling officially from this week on. This budget clamshell upgrades the existing Sharp GX33. Currently it's only available through Vodafone. The Sharp GX34 offers tri-band GSM support, a 176x220 pixels TFT display, a microSD memory card slot, Bluetooth and a 2 megapixel snapper. Nothing else to speak about here, but at least it's supposed to have a matching price tag.

Sharp GX34