Just when you thought they couldn't pack anything more into a cell phone, Asian manufacturers have latched onto a new feature: motion sensing. Basically, moving the phone through the air translates into actions and prompts a response on the screen. Gamers appear to benefit most from this technology.
Motion-Sensing Cell Phones
The newest handset to offer motion sensing is the V603SH, produced by Sharp for Japan's Vodafone. Three similar handsets have already been announced in South Korea: Pantech's PH-S6500, LG Electronics' SV360, and Samsung Electronics' SCH-S310.
A couple of games for Vodaphone's Sharp V603SH handset rely on motion sensing. The first, House of the Dead Mobile, is a zombie shoot-'em-up game from Sega. The screen shows the game scenario from the character's point of view, and as the player turns around with the phone, so does the character in the game. In Full Swing Golf from Taito, the player holds the phone as if it were a golf club and swings it to hit the ball on the screen. A warning tone before each shot reminds the user to avoid hitting people when swinging the phone.
The Pantech handset comes with a fishing game that requires the player to swing the handset like a fishing rod, plus a racing game in which the handset becomes the steering wheel.
LG Electronics' phone, which resembles a portable gaming device, includes a skiing game that uses motion sensing.
But this technology isn't limited to games: For example, users can make calls on the Samsung phone by drawing the numbers in the air with the handset, or they can end a call by shaking the phone twice. Other functions include a sharp move to the right or left to tell the built-in MP3 player to skip forward or back a track. Vodafone's Sharp V603SH can be programmed to perform similar functions when it is moved.
The Pantech phone is on sale in South Korea for about $440. Vodafone plans to begin selling the Sharp V603SH later in February; and the LG and Samsung phones are due in March or April. Prices for those phones have not yet been announced.
None of the handsets are based on the widely used Global System for Mobile Communications standard, so they won't be available outside their home countries. However, Samsung representatives say the company will consider adding motion sensing to international models if its SCH-S310 is well received in South Korea. Aichi Steel, which is making the motion sensor for Vodaphone's Sharp V603SH, has already begun offering the sensor to other companies for use in their products, increasing the chance that the technology will make its way overseas.
Sanyo Hard-Drive Voice Recorder
Now you can add voice recorders to the list of portable gadgets that include hard disks. Sanyo's HDR-B5GM includes a 1-inch 5GB drive that provides a maximum recording time of 693 hours in the lowest-quality MP3 recording mode. The device has four quality modes, and recording time drops to 57 hours with the highest of them.
The HDR-B5GM doubles as a music player; it plays Windows Media Audio and MP3 files. In addition to the hard drive, the device has a Secure Digital Card slot and the recorder can copy files from the card to the hard disk, freeing the card for reuse. The HDR-B5GM is scheduled to go on sale in Japan in early March priced around $507. Sanyo will sell the player overseas, although no international release plans have been announced.
Compact Casio Digital Camera
Casio's Exilim EX-P505 digital still camera packs a 5X optical zoom and a 5-megapixel image sensor into a compact body.
Unlike many other digital cameras, the Exilim EX-P505 has a short shutter lag (the delay between when the shutter is pressed and the image captured) of only 0.01 seconds. The camera is ready to take a picture 0.8 seconds after it is first switched on. Other noteworthy functions include VGA-quality MPEG4 video recording at 30 frames per second and a 2-inch LCD monitor that flips out from behind the camera.
The Exilim EX-P505 measures just under 4 by 2.22 by 3 inches; it weighs 7.5 ounces. Its battery life is sufficient for 220 images, according to Casio. The camera goes on sale in February in both Japan and the U.S., and in March will be marketed in Europe. It will cost $500 in the U.S.
Hitachi Digital Audio Player
Hitachi will release a new digital audio player in Japan in early March.
The HMP-1 plays .mp3, .wma, and .wav files and comes with 256MB of built-in memory, plus an expansion slot for an SD memory card. Other features include an FM radio; a voice recorder; a USB 2.0 interface; and support for English, Chinese, or Japanese on-screen display. In music playback mode, it will run for up to 13 hours on a single AAA battery.
The device, which has a rather basic rectangular design, measures 2.25 by 2 by 0.5 inches and weighs just an ounce. Hitachi is releasing it in Japan priced around $142, but currently has no plans to sell it overseas.
Aiwa Digital Music Player
Sony has launched a couple of new flash memory music players as part of its Aiwa family of products. The XDM-S900 and XDM-S990 are both similar to the XDM players that Sony announced a few months ago, but have at least double the memory: either 512MB or 1GB, depending on the model.
Like the other members of the family, the new players handle files in MP3 or ATRAC3 format and offer a battery life of about 100 hours. They'll be on sale in Japan and Europe before the end of February. Sony has no current plans for sales in other regions. In Japan, the XDM-S900 will cost $236 and the XDM-S990, $284.
Tiny DV Camcorder From Sony
Sony's latest digital video camera, the DCR-PC55, is a small device that made a big splash at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January. This MiniDV-based camcorder is just a little larger than a pack of cards, and Sony it's the smallest on the market. Sony had great success in Japan with a passport-sized camcorder released a few years ago, and this new model is even smaller, at just under 2 by 4 by 2.8 inches.
Despite its size, the camcorder features a 3-inch display on the side that can be turned to face either outward or inward. The camera offers a 10X optical zoom and a 120X digital zoom function. Sony is selling it in the U.S. in February for about $800.
Martyn Williams is Tokyo bureau chief for the IDG News Service, a consortium of IDG publications.
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