Say you’re watching a cooking show on television and you see some ketchup. Tasty, right? Salivating? Need some ketchup right this second? Look no further than KDDI’s “smARt” television viewing concept, which uses your phone as a tool to get more information on stuff you’re seeing on the boob tube in real time. Using an Android-powered Sharp IS01 to demonstrate, KDDI’s crack team of presenters showed some delicious-looking food on screen then captured it with the phone’s camera, which ultimately resulted in being redirected to a site where you could purchase a bottle of Hunt’s for ¥650 (about $7.83). Of course, considering that TV itself can be interactive in a variety of ways, it seems a bit much to bother getting your phone involved while you’re trying to zone out on the couch… but hey, whatever gets us to our Utopian dream of real-time ketchup purchases the fastest is where we want to be. Follow the break for video.
Two 3.5-inch displays at 960 x 640 resolution, both equipped with fancy wide viewing angle technologies. Does the Sharp IS03′s ASV get the nod over the iPhone 4′s famously good IPS? After peeping them side by side, we’re not sure any mere mortal could call it — both look bright and ridiculously crisp from every conceivable vantage point and have roughly the same amount of gloss, though the IS03 has the advantage of a second always-on monochrome LCD strip. Regardless, we’re just happy to see that we’ve got at least two suppliers of excellent 960 x 640 mobile displays in the industry now — let’s just hope they can keep up with demand.
Both KDDI and Sharp had a billion IS03s on display at CEATEC in Japan today (okay, not literally a billion, but quite a few), so naturally, we swung by to see what all the commotion was about. We’ll be honest — the phone didn’t feel particularly high-end, coated top to bottom in cheap-feeling plastic and weighing a little less than you’d expect a phone of these specs to weigh. Furthermore, it was pretty sluggish and Sharp’s UI skin atop Android 2.1 felt very “version 1.0,” so we think we might want to wait for these guys to hone their game a bit before jumping in. That said, the vaunted 960 x 640 ASV display definitely seems up to the task, delivering bright, crisp images in the face of the notoriously harsh trade show lighting — and the always-on LCD strip below the main display is a neat trick for glancing at the date and time without going to the hassle of powering on your phone. You might be worried that stacking it below the already-large primary display would make the handset too long, but we really didn’t feel like that was the case. Follow the break for video!
WVGA’s so 2009, isn’t it? Sharp has broken Android’s usual 800 (or 854) x 480 mold this week with the introduction of the IS03 for Japan’s KDDI au network, boasting a full 960 x 640 on its 3.5-inch screen — matching the iPhone 4′s so-called retina display — along with Advanced Super View (ASV) technology, delivering the same kind of viewing angle benefits you find in IPS. If that alone doesn’t make for enough of a monster spec sheet for you, consider that the IS03 also features a 9.6 megapixel autofocus camera with image stabilization, one-seg TV tuner, and Osaifu-Keitai, which allows the phone to be used for contactless payments in subways and the like. Though you won’t find it sold outside Japan, you might eventually see one outside Japan thanks to support for Global Passport CDMA, meaning the IS03 can be used in countries that have operating CDMA networks — the US, for example. Unfortunately, it’s running Android 2.1, but let’s be honest: the monster hardware might be enough to overcome that little oversight. Look for this puppy to launch in three colors next month.
Apple’s Retina Display for the iPhone 4 and latest iPod touch may have been leaving WVGA Android smartphones in the shade, but it was only a matter of time before the open-souce alternatives caught up. Sharp has just announced the IS03, headed to Japanese carrier KDDI in November, with a 3.5-inch 960 x 640 capacitive touchscreen, 1GHz Snapdragon processor and 9.6-megapixel camera with flash.
As we’ve grown to expect from Japanese smartphonse, the KDDI IS03 is bursting with functionality. In addition to EVDO Rev.A, WiFi b/g and Bluetooth 2.1+EDR there’s infrared, GPS, 1-Seg mobile digital TV and an FM transmitter, as well as compatibility with KDDI’s mobile wallet electronic payments system.
There’s also 512MB of RAM and a 2GB microSD card preloaded (up to 32GB supported), and the whole thing weighs in at 138g and will be available in white, black or orange. Interestingly, the display has a dual-power mode which can show battery status, signal, missed calls and other reminders without the backlight being active, and it seems to beat the Continuum to the post with a second touchscreen panel for the Android controls. No word on whether Sharp are going to develop a version of the IS03 for the US or Europe, sadly.
Well, that wasn’t much of a delay at all! Japanese regulators have apparently gone ahead and selected NTT DoCoMo’s proposal for Japan’s next-gen mobile TV network scheduled to go live in 2012 — ISDB-Tmm, an evolution of the country’s existing one-seg technology — over the MediaFLO-based solution floated by competitor KDDI. Considering that KDDI is tied up in CDMA / EV-DO, it’s little wonder they were pushing MediaFLO, a product of CDMA patron saint Qualcomm — but it’s a moot point now that the license is going to DoCoMo’s broadcasting consortium. For what it’s worth, KDDI — understandably none too pleased by the decision — has said that it will refuse to offer programming for the new network, which likely means that its 30 million-plus subscribers won’t have access. Great to see these guys can work together so well, isn’t it?
We’d surmise that neither Europe nor the Americas are anywhere close to worrying about a next-generation mobile TV standard, since virtually no carrier has managed to monetize the standards they’ve already adopted — but things work a little differently in Japan where one-seg tuners are offered on nearly every portable device with a screen that’s sold. A refinement of the existing ISDB-T technology designed to take advantage of the analog TV shutdown, ISDB-Tmm, had been pushed by NTT DoCoMo, while competitor KDDI — the country’s main CDMA operator — had wanted to adopt Qualcomm’s MediaFLO in a regulatory decision originally scheduled to be made by the middle of this month, but the government has apparently decided to hold off in the hopes that the two sides can work together on a mutually beneficial standard. Commercial availability of the network had been expected in 2012, so it’ll be interesting to see if these two giants can bury the hatchets long enough to work this out.
Surprise: Japanese carriers are announcing literally dozens of phones at once. Okay, look, that’s not a surprise at all, but bear with us, because there are a few shining jewels in here amongst the seemingly endless array of WVGA displays and one-seg tuners from NTT DoCoMo and KDDI au, both of whom have announced their Summer 2010 collections of handsets this week. Of note, two of the models from DoCoMo — the Fujitsu F-06B and Sharp SH-07B are capable of shooting 1080p video, while KDDI’s SH008 from Sharp, S003 from Sony Ericsson, and CA005 from Casio all feature sensors of 12 megapixels or larger. Several of the devices can also be used as WiFi hotspots, and Hitachi’s trick Beskey for KDDI has interchangeable keypads that change the shape of the keys, not the layout — a bit superficial, perhaps, but we’re all about choice. DoCoMo is also launching a handful of smartphones: the Lynx SH-10B from Sharp (not to be confused with the old Atari handheld of the same name) that features Android atop a 5-inch touchscreen, Toshiba’s 4.1-inch T-01B Dynapocket with WinMo, and RIM’s plain old BlackBerry Bold 9700. Don’t get us wrong, it’s still quite a haul, but we can’t help but feel that the gap between Japan’s wireless scene and the rest of the world is closing fast.
Back when Sharp announced the KDDI IS01 Android-based MID, alongside the consumer device they also promised a version tailored for developers. That’s gone on sale in Japan now, with Sharp hoping to drum up custom applications suited to the 1GHz Snapdragon MID. Unfortunately, it’s not all good news: while the IS01’s spec sheet is positively bulging, developers won’t have access to all of the goodies.
For instance, while the IS01 has an FM transmitter, 1Seg digital TV tuner, EVDO modem and phone functionality, developers won’t apparently be able to access them. Instead, they’ll get the basic Android 1.6 SDK and a proprietary Sharp API that covers “infrared data transfer, LED flashlight, camera, opening and closing [notifications], and file picker.”
What’s interesting is that, while the IS01 has a 5-inch 960 x 480 capacitive touchscreen, developers are being asked to code Android apps running at 854 x 480. That’s more appropriate for regular Android smartphones, so hopefully we’ll see whatever Sharp’s developers come up with spread to other devices.
As for the consumer IS01, rather than the October 2010 release we initially heard about, it seems the handheld will drop next month (albeit in Japan) in both black and light blue. The developer version is only available in brown; no word on pricing yet, but if you’re interested you can register for more information.
There’s nothing like bathing in the cool green glow of your KDDI Sharp IS01 to cheer you up, just as this happy model has found. If you can’t get enough of the 5-inch multitouch-capable Android clamshell MID then Gigazine’s hands-on report should be your next port of call; they’ve got lashings of video showing the IS01 in action, some of which you can see after the cut.
Video demos after the cut
The IS01 is based on Qualcomm’s 1GHz Snapdragon chipset, and packs EVDO Rev.A, WiFi b/g and Bluetooth 2.1+EDR. Android sits under a custom UI, and there are dual cameras – a 5.3-megapixel one on the back and a lower-res one up front for video calls – with support for augmented reality apps.
Unfortunately Akihabara News weren’t as positive, critiquing the IS01’s build quality though admitting that the Snapdragon keeps things chugging along nicely. We’re crossing our fingers that Sharp do the sensible thing and bring the IS01 to North America and Europe sometime soon.
