HTC are planning to launch at least one Qualcomm Snapdragon-based mobile device in Q2 2009, according to market sources in Taiwan. The devices are expected hit the market one quarter later than Toshiba’s own Snapdragon-based handset, the TG01, which was announced earlier this week.
By now you’ve probably seen our live video demo of the Toshiba TG01 from yesterday’s launch – now available in HD, no less – and now it’s the turn of Toshiba themselves to promote what a few more months development will hopefully deliver. The two minute official video shows the custom 3D GUI in action, complete with spinning vertical panes, gestures and that nifty “shake to dismiss” feature.
Official video demo after the cut
Yesterday Toshiba took the wraps off their latest smartphone, the TG01, and with it catapulted themselves into the must-see category at Mobile World Congress next week. We’ve got details, photos and high-definition video of the TG01 if you need to get fully up to speed, but basically it’s a 9.9mm thick WM6.1 smartphone with a 4.1-inch touchscreen, all the usual 3G and GPS connections, and a custom GUI as is so common now among users of Microsoft’s mobile platform. There’s no denying it’s a slick, attractive handset – so how come I can’t get excited?
Toshiba were pretty tight-lipped at this morning’s TG01 launch about what exactly you’ll find inside that 9.9mm thick casing. Aside from Qualcomm’s 1GHz Snapdragon QSD8250 chipset, and confirmation that it will support GSM 3G HSDPA/HSUPA, there’s certainly no word of a US launch. However, printed on the side of the dummy handsets Toshiba had provided for photography, was the text “Qualcomm 3G CDMA”.
Aside from the super-skinny profile of the TG01, Toshiba seems most proud of their new GUI, the smartphone’s gaming abilities, and its media playback charms. Since it would be rude to ignore a proud parent, SlashGear got some live footage of the TG01 in action at the London launch today. Check out the video – now available in HD – after the cut.
Toshiba only brought along two working TG01 prototypes to the London launch of the Windows Mobile 6.1 smartphone today, but SlashGear managed to get some in-use shots of the handset in action. The company is betting on consumers prioritising style, screen size and multimedia ability above all else, and while their claims to have created a “new category of product” can be dismissed as the usual marketing hyperbole, the Toshiba TG01 itself looks to be a very interesting device.
More photos and hands-on feedback on the Toshiba TG01 smartphone after the cut
Toshiba this morning announced their latest smartphone, the TG01, set to take on the HTC Touch HD and iPhone 3G. The Toshiba TG01 is a 9.9mm thick Windows Mobile 6.1 smartphone, with a 4.1-inch WVGA 800 x 480 384k pixel resistive touchscreen, 3G HSPA, WiFi, GPS and A-GPS. It also features Toshiba’s own 3D user interface, and is the first device to use Qualcomm’s 1GHz Snapdragon QSD2850 chipset.
SlashGear Japan
