IDG News Service - Japanese bloggers have a new tool with which to update their sites with the launch of a new Sharp phone that packs a small QWERTY keyboard.
The 922SH went on sale Friday through Softbank Mobile, Japan's No. 3 cellular provider. It has a 3.5-in. display that folds out to the side so the phone can be used more like a miniature laptop than a traditional clamshell phone. The widescreen VGA display has a resolution of 854 by 480 pixels.
The phone has an RSS reader and a PC-style Web browser in addition to a browser adapted to mobile use.
Above a three-row QWERTY keyboard sits a camera and hot keys for functions such as digital mobile TV. There are also buttons for phone functions, navigation keys and a shortcut key to Yahoo Mobile, the mobile Internet service offered by Softbank, which is the largest shareholder in Yahoo Japan.
The phone works on the WCDMA (Wideband Code Division Multiple Access) used in Japan and the GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) networks found elsewhere. Its features include Bluetooth and a 2-megapixel main camera and a 110,000-pixel subcamera for videoconferencing. It accepts Micro SD memory cards.
The phone measures 56mm by 116mm by 17mm and weighs 132 grams. Battery life is 250 minutes of talk time on WCDMA and 270 minutes on GSM, with standby time at 340 hours and 310 hours, respectively, said Sharp. TV viewing time is 4.5 hours.
The phone is locked to the Softbank network in Japan, and there are no plans at present to launch it overseas.
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