pda | ipod | mobile phone | GPS Info

Motorola Inc.’s decision to cut an additional 4,000 jobs by the end of the year may improve its bottom line short term but will not solve the most pressing problem: coming up with new hot-selling phones, analysts said Wednesday.

The cellphone maker Motorola said it would cut another 4,000 jobs as part of a plan to improve sagging financial and operational results.

The latest round of cuts means Motorola, the world’s No. 2 handset maker, has announced plans to eliminate more than 10 percent of its work force since the start of 2007, when it became clear that two years of strong momentum behind its popular Razr phone had collapsed.

The company is already eliminating 3,500 jobs as part of a two-year cost-cutting plan to save $400 million. Those layoffs, announced in January, are to be completed by June 30.
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Ever forget where you parked your car? The new BlackBerry 8800 will show a compass and an “as the crow flies” arrow and distance to your vehicle. As a BlackBerry, it does more than that for $499 with three-year plan from Rogers.com.

And its built-in global positioning system takes the cake. It senses the nearest orbiting satellites above, showing you where you are with available BlackBerry maps.

You want the optional TeleNav software and $10 monthly subscription for spoken turn-by-turn driving directions with clear, colourful screen views. It can find nearby businesses and stores, and works directly from your contact address or you can call in an address.
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Europe Spain : Ericsson has been selected by Vodafone Spain to modernize and expand its existing WCDMA/HSPA radio access network throughout Spain. This is the first time Ericsson will deliver WCDMA/HSPA radio network equipment to Vodafone Spain.

Under the three-year agreement Ericsson will deliver WCDMA radio base stations to enhance Vodafone Spain’s network coverage and add the latest Ericsson HSPA functionality. Ericsson will also upgrade existing Vodafone Spain base station sites with Ericsson nodes to boost the capacity and functionality of the current WCDMA/HSPA network.

Jaime Bustillo, CTO, Vodafone Spain, says: “We are modernizing our 3G network so we can provide the best possible multimedia experience for our customers. The choice of Ericsson for this important project is a natural step for us following a long working relationship in which Ericsson has proven it has the competence, product portfolio and rollout capability necessary to deploy an advanced 3G network.”

Ingemar Naeve, President of Ericsson Iberia, says: “Ericsson is proud to have been selected for this important WCDMA/HSPA radio project, which further strengthens our, long-term relationship with Vodafone Spain. This project complements an earlier agreement in 2006 when Ericsson was selected as sole supplier for the evolution of Vodafone’s entire core network in Spain.”

These projects reinforce Ericsson’s WCDMA/HSPA leadership in the Iberian peninsula, and the company’s position as the leading provider of mobile telecommunication networks in the world. [via]

The smooth features and rounded corners of the Nokia 8600 cell phone make it more than merely fashionable, the Nokia 8600 is elegant with an almost-futuristic in appearance.

The display is easy-to-read at a nice high-resolution and the Nokia 8600 has a unique smoked glass sliding cover over its beautiful stainless steel body.

People that are familiar with Nokia phones will appreciate the normal high quality of a Nokia handset while those new to the Nokia brand of phones will make it their new friend.

The camera is not as big as the Nokia N95’s 5 Megapixels, but the Nokia 8600 does come with an adequate 2 megapixel camera on the back, which will give you good looking photos in print.
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This is the Acer V200 which is a budget priced GPS device that is currently exclusive to France, this is only for the time being as it will meet the rest of the world sometime soon.
It’s price point and placement makes us think that it is going to replace the e300, e305 and e310 series.

The Acer V200 series features:

• Destinator 6 navigation software of with maps of France coming from Navteq on 512MB SD card
• Weighs 172g
• Dimensions 9.5×7.9×2.5cm
• 1100mAh Li-Ion battery that lasts 3 hours
• 3.5 mm audio out
• 1W speaker

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Garmin this morning revamped its eTrex line of mapping handhelds with five new models. Elaborating on details from an online flyer, the company has given each unit a new, higher-sensitivity GPS receiver to better fix the user’s actual position. Also new to the field is an improved geocaching technique, Garmin says. Rather than add coordinates manually for past caches, owners can download the information directly to an eTrex handheld (as well as some other units) to track others’ travels.

The eTrex H ($100) starts the range with the most basic navigation functions: the ruggedized system contains just enough built-in memory to hold 500 waypoints or 20 complete routes and uses a lower-cost monochrome screen. The Venture HC ($200) and Summit HC ($250) add a color display as well as a larger 24MB of memory to overlay additional maps, with the Summit model adding an altimeter and a compass for rougher hiking trips.
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