T-Mobile Announces Samsung Blast

T-Mobile added a new slider phone from Samsung to its lineup. The Samsung T729, dubbed the Blast, is a replacement for the Samsung T719. The phone is meant for messaging with its SureType slider keyboard, a QWERTY keyboard where each key represent two letters. Messaging capabilities are enhanced with integrated support for Instant Messaging services from AOL, Yahoo, MSN, and ICQ. The phone also supports email from popular services like AOL, Yahoo Mail, and others. To help generate data traffic, T-Mobile is trying something new by charging for sent and received emails just as they do for text messaging. Other features include a 1.3 megapixels camera, stereo Bluetooth, a microSD slot, and myFaves support.

The phone is 4.2"x20"x0.5" and weighs just 2.8 ounces. It is available for $99 after discounts and rebates.

Sprint to Launch the UpStage in Red

The popular music phone from Samsung and Sprint is expected to be available in RED sometime around June 18th. The combination phone is a phone on one side and an MP3 player on the other. The current model (available in Black) is on sale for $99.99.

Even with two sides with separate displays, the UpStage is still only 0.3 inches thick. It has a 1.3 megapixels camera/camcorder, Bluetooth, and a MicroSD slot. One thing that separates this music phone from the much anticipated iPhone is the ability to download music directly to the phone over-the-air (OTA) from Sprint's music store. To put music on the iPhone, you will have to download it to your PC and then sync the phone to the computer.

Pros: OTA music downloads, thin, and EV-DO
Cons: The phone does not have much internal memory, but it does have a MicroSD slot to store music and comes with a 64 MB card.

Sprint Launches New Samsung Clamshell Phones - M300, M510

The M300 (not pictured) is an entry level device. It measures 3.6" x 1.9" x 0.7" and weighs only 2.7 oz. It's best features are Bluetooth support and a VGA camera. Being an entry level phone, it works with Sprint's 1xRTT data network versus the higher speed EVDO network. The M300 is avaialable in two colors (red and silver) for $29.99 with a two-year service agreement.

The M510 (pictured in pink) is a mid-range phone. It measures 3.6" x 2.0" x 0.6" and weighs only 2.9 oz. The phone may be tiny, but it packs a lot of punch. It comes with stereo Bluetooth support, a 1.3 megapixels camera that takes pictures and videos, a web browser, a media player, GPS, and a microSD slot for extra storage. The phone also operates on Sprint's high speed Mobile Broadband (EVDO) network allowing over-the-air music downloads, Sprint TV, and PAM (Phone As a Modem). The M510 is a available in two colors (black and pink) for $129.99 with a two-year service agreement.