Samsung Introduces Phone With Hard Drive 241
swight1701 writes "It is being reported that Samsung has shown what it claims is the world's first mobile phone that incorporates a hard drive. The model, V5400, is integrated with a 1" hard drive with 1.5GB of capacity. Other features of the phone include - 2.2" LCD display, an MP3 player, electronic book reader, and Korean-English dictionary. Samsung has also included a built-in microphone to enhance the audio in the phone's camcorder feature. The included dual-speakers allow the user to listen to music with a 3D appeal."
loid_void adds a link to this Reuters story, too.
Tetris (Score:4, Funny)
Cost (Score:2)
It's amazing how the GB per £ keeps going up for new 'toys' The benefits being that as other technologies progress, 'old' models also drop in price allowing the wider marker reasonable access
Re:Cost (Score:2, Funny)
You meant but instead of as, right? : p
It's a step, and it had to happen (Score:2)
Uh-Oh (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Uh-Oh (Score:2)
Re:Uh-Oh (Score:3, Funny)
You read my mind...
features:
5 megapixel camera with video capability
mp3/ogg/mpg... player
PIM features with voice recognition
Voice memos
e-mail / web browsing
TiVo functionality
blog hosting
wireless access point
BitStream client/peer
SETI client
holographic user inteface
2 sec. standby time
1.7 sec. talk time
Maybe they could put a kinetic drive in there, you know, like in those watches. I'd pay to see someone do calistenics while driving their car and talking on this sucker.
Most important feature.. (Score:5, Interesting)
I've dropped my Nokia 5100 series about 5 feet from ear level to concrete several times. Except for a few scuffs (mostly on the battery, it must be the heaviest part), it's survived perfectly.
I doubt a phone with a hard drive can survive that kind of abuse.
Jason
ProfQuotes [profquotes.com]
Re:Most important feature.. (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Most important feature.. (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Most important feature.. (Score:2)
Re:Most important feature.. (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Most important feature.. (Score:5, Insightful)
I've never dropped my PDA, but it spends a lot of time in my backback which gets thrown around. If it had a hard drive, it also wouldn't survive.
If I have to leave the cellphone home because I'm worried it might get damaged, then it's completely useless.
Jason
ProfQuotes [profquotes.com]
Re:Most important feature.. (Score:4, Insightful)
Also note that the phone's disk drive will be deactivated almost all the time - there's no reason to run it constantly, and it would kill the standby time. This reduces the risk even more.
Re:Most important feature.. (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Most important feature.. (Score:2)
Re:Most important feature.. (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Most important feature.. (Score:2)
Re:Most important feature.. (Score:2)
21st Century mobility (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Most important feature.. (Score:2)
Re:Most important feature.. (Score:2)
How do Ipods survive beeing dropped? (Score:3, Funny)
I'm unemployed and, therefore, too poor to buy an Ipod. Else I would be able to answer the question from first hand experience. ( I drop everything )
Re:Most important feature.. (Score:2)
Me too. Well, from 3 ft. But it gave out after the third drop or so.
Even without a hard drive, a cell phone isn't really designed to be dropped all that much.
Re:Most important feature.. (Score:2)
I freaked out. I quickly pulled out the bed and grabbed the iPod and started inspecting it. The metalic back side had a fe
Re:Most important feature.. (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Uhhh, heaviest part? Go back to Gravity 101. (Score:2)
Re:Uhhh, heaviest part? Go back to Gravity 101. (Score:3, Insightful)
Things like to have their center-of-gravity as close to earth as possible. Ever notice that things that are top-heavy are a lot easier to tip over than things that are bottom-heavy? If you drop something that's very top-heavy out of an airplane, it's going to at least initially flip over to be heavy-side-down.
In a short fall, rigid bodies will tend to rotate so the heavy side faces the ground. In a longer fall, aerodynamic forces become more dominant than distribution-of-mass iss
Re:Uhhh, heaviest part? Go back to Gravity 101. (Score:2)
OK, let's say you're right. Then there's a uniform amount of resistance to the object falling over the surface facing the ground. Let's even be generous and pick a shape that won't induce any torque itself, like a sphere. This can be modelled as a vector, from the aerodynamic center of the object, in the opposite direction of the fall.
Then, when you add up all the mass vectors to figure out the center of
Re:Most important feature.. (Score:2)
That's a very bad analogy. If I make a 1" model of my house out of toothpicks and paper, I would expect it to survive a fall of 50 times its dimentions (4 feet). Despite my real house being made of much stronger material, I wouldn't expect it to survive a fall of 50 times its dimesion (nearly half a mile).
Re:Most important feature.. (Score:2)
No, but if I get bitten by a radioactive ant I'm going to kick some serious ass.
Is this a phone? (Score:2, Insightful)
Z
Re:Is this a phone? (Score:3, Interesting)
Must... have.... larger.... featureset....
I look forward to the day when a simple handheld device can do pretty much anything. I'd like to see standardized incorporation of GPS into a net-capable portable phone. Talk about redefining mobile gaming... you could even have a virtual map of your city, and any friends not set to "invisible" would show up in their actual locations. It would be great!
Re:Is this a phone? (Score:2)
Re:Is this a phone? (Score:2)
I want a Linux-based PDA-phone (GSM) with a keyboard (something like the Zaurus, only a little sleeker and more compact) with a 20GB+ hard drive, a real USB 2 port (and have it behave like a USB hard drive when plugged in), and 802.11b or better interface on it.
This is a HUGE step in the right direction. I want to carry only one damn device that does everything I need (play my Ogg's, surf the web, check emails, SSH to my web server, manage my calendar and contacts)
Re:Is this a phone? (Score:2)
Re:Is this a phone? (Score:2)
Oh good (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Oh good (Score:2)
Re:Oh good (Score:5, Informative)
To understand this sort of thing, you have to accept that everyone in Europe (and I suspect the Far East) has a mobile and carries it everywhere . Actually, that's not true but it's very close, and the younger the person, the more likely they will be to have a phone (down to a point, of course). As far as electronic devices that you carry all the time are concerned, the mobile phone won. In the UK at least, you may well see people with PDAs, but everyone has a phone. Therefore, there is a market for phones which do more. Given that people will always carry their phone, there is the potential for the phone to assimilate the MP3 player, for example. Or the PDA. Or a radio. Or a walkie-talkie. I'm sure you get the general idea. Like it or not, manufacturers have finally found an electronic device that most people want to carry with them all the time.
Re:Oh good (Score:2)
Insightful
I can't deal with this information! I am from America, where everyone has a mobile (we call them cell phones) and carries it everywhere.
eh, nevermind.
Re:Oh good (Score:2)
Re:Oh good (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Oh good (Score:2)
Re:Oh good (Score:2)
If you look at the phone reviews over at http://www.howardchui.com/ [howardchui.com] then you'll notice that many of the phones that have "excess" bells and whistles also have excellent RF reception. My Nokia 3650, for instance, both synced without issue via Bluetooth with iSync on my Mac OS X box, but also performed admirably as a phone. Imagine that.
Re:Oh good (Score:2)
I'm sure there are headphones available. I, for one, would certainly buy an all-in-one device, as soon as they build one that fits my needs and my budget. It certainly makes more sense than carrying half a dozen individual gadgets for making phone calls, getting information off the web, listening to music, taking notes, etc.
Re:Oh good (Score:2)
Go look at the available phones, unless your area is something amazingly special, you will find cheap simple and effective phones that really are just that. At most they'll have a few alarm and meeting/memo functionalities, but these in NO WAY get in the way of the phones functionality.
The high tech cutting edge phones that you hear about on
Gotta love the featureset! (Score:3, Funny)
But can it make a phone call? (Score:3, Insightful)
Most of the time I am just trying to maintain a clear enough signal to complete a call.
Cheers,
Erick
Why not Flash? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Why not Flash? (Score:2)
Re:Why not Flash? (Score:4, Insightful)
You know, I sincerely doubt that any greater than 2% of the population has a clue that the iPod uses a HDD. All anyone in the general population cares about is "hey, this thing can hold X days of music and still have room for X pictures!!"
Re:Why not Flash? (Score:2)
Portable hard disks aren't as fragile as you think. After all, iPods use them, and I still have a working 1st gen iPod from about 3 years ago, and that's been across to the states a few times, round europe, everywhere, and I'm not the most careful owner :)
Translation (Score:2)
Stealth & Surveillance (Score:2, Interesting)
How easy will it be to hack this phone to become a miniature security camera? Just place a couple of them around --- pretty inconspicuous since they're just phones. I'm sure it can be done with current tech, this device just seems to combine all those things into a mass-market product.
Re:Stealth & Surveillance (Score:2)
Pervies around the world are jumping for joy--now they can not only take pictures of you changing in the locker room after your workout while they "check their voicemail"--now they can get full motion video with sound too! Oh joy!
Doesn't take too many of them to get cellphone use completely banned--the gym I go to already tells you to not to bother bringing them in--if staff sees someone using it they apparently confiscate it from you until you are ready to leave. I'm sure cinemas and
Re:Stealth & Surveillance (Score:2)
Pics (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Pics (Score:2)
yes, but the million dollar question is ... (Score:5, Funny)
The thin line is disapearing (Score:2)
Re:The thin line is disapearing (Score:2)
I have an OLD Sony Ericsson T610.
It has a processor, embedded OS, bluetooth, keypad, and a color display.
It doesn't have a hard drive.
HOLY COW, this phone is a REVOLUTION!
I'm getting my flying car tomorrow!
Ripe for iTunes? (Score:2)
Re:Ripe for iTunes? (Score:2)
Bettery life will go to hell, why not flash? (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Bettery life will go to hell, why not flash? (Score:2)
Reliability isn't an issue - you're more likely to break something crucial on the outside of the phone than the hard disk. Portable hard disks are quite versatile, so I seriously doubt you can kill it that easily.
Just now with the mics? (Score:5, Funny)
That's odd, my cell phone has had a built in microphone for ages.
the all in one (Score:2)
Re:the all in one (Score:2)
Pre-emptive strike against the luddites!! (Score:3, Insightful)
Sure, we all want that... but keep in mind that the cell phone hardware manufacturers and the cell phone service providers are different companies. This is an article regarding Samsung cell phones. At least in the U.S., Samsung is not a cell phone provider. So if you want fewer dropped calls, call your provider and complain... but don't insist that hardware manufacturers focus on something they don't have control over (the cell phone networks.)
Re:Pre-emptive strike against the luddites!! (Score:2, Insightful)
iPone (Score:2)
My guess is 2 years.
OS (Score:2)
Re:OS (Score:2)
Re:OS (Score:2)
Non-entities? I'll give you PocketPC on that one, but the Treo600 (PalmOS) is THE hybrid that has brought smartphones to the mainstream.
Samsung has also included a built-in microphone (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Samsung has also included a built-in microphone (Score:2, Funny)
Or does your handheld computer have a phone?? (Score:2)
Still missing my most wanted feature? (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Still missing my most wanted feature? (Score:5, Funny)
I can't wait (Score:2)
User interface (Score:5, Insightful)
Given Moore's law, we can predict that this kind of thing will cost $100 in a couple of years. I think that the company that prospers will be the one that can make it work the way people want it to work. Otherwise, all they're doing is kludging a bunch of stuff just because they can.
Mobile weight lifting (Score:2)
Proof of progress. (Score:5, Insightful)
Sometimes it may not seem like it, but we really have come a long way.
Re:Proof of progress. (Score:3, Funny)
no we havent, but our technology sure has.
Technology changes, people don't.
Re:Proof of progress. (Score:2)
Still no Bluetooth Samsung (Score:2, Interesting)
It seems they are the only cellphone manufacturer that doesn't want to support Bluetooth. If they had it in their handsets, I'm sure more phonegeeks would purchase them - I know I would, as I'd instantly hand over cash for something like the Samsung E715 with Bluetooth functionality.
Camera phone + hard drive = ? (Score:3, Funny)
Why hd? (Score:2, Insightful)
Then there is no need for a hd. Just stream the MP3/movie, etc from your home server to your car, office, headphones, friends house.
This allows for a more compact convergence device, with more of focus on interface and usability.
DRM (ducks) would also be *slightly* less annoying as portability of content would be increased.
Re:Why hd? (Score:2)
Stop and think. (Score:4, Insightful)
A cell with a microphone? (Score:3, Funny)
That's über-cool! I always wanted a cell with a built-in microphone. Now I can finally talk to the people I call!
Rotational Inertia will be a problem (Score:2)
Even with an accellerometer-driven braking mechanism, this is a potential problem.
Thank goodness these are small, lightweight drives, so it MAY not be a problem for "ordinary" use.
I think I'd prefer solid-state for something like this, even if it means paying 10x as much for storage.
A new song from "Strong Bad's Rhythm N' Grammar".. (Score:2)
And I don't caaaaaare.... if your cell phone.... has a hard drive in it....
--riney
But does it make phone calls? (Score:2, Funny)
a bunch of worn-out slashdot cliches: (Score:2, Funny)
yeah, but can you put linux on it?
Imagine a beewolf (spelling wrong on purpose) cluster of these!
I want to see Natalie Portman using one...patricularly when she's naked and petrified, while I'm pouring hot grits down my pants.
blah, blah b;ah!
Wooo yeah this is good! (Score:2)
While the additional HDD space is helpful... (Score:2)
Re:Is it a "phone" anymore? (Score:2)
Re:Now.. (Score:3, Informative)