4 Mar 2003

Time to upgrade?

t610_96_199.jpgEricsson introduced their new t68i replacement today, the t610. It's got the same Bluetooth, IR, SyncML and vcard/vcal support as my t39, which enable it to work with iSync and similar services, plus the gratuitous camera that everyone seems to be adding to their phones.

What I'm confused about his how this device is supposed to complement the P800. As far as I can tell, they're both bulky, java-based, camera-phones. The P800 has a touch-sensitve screen and a loss-O-matic removable keypad, but that hardly seems like enough of an advantage to outweigh the accompanying size, weight and price penalty.

It's interesting that you can now get a t68i for nearly free on Amazon, if you agree to a two-year contract. Of course, those phones are probably SIM-locked to a particular GSM provider, but since there are only two big ones in the US, I don't know how much of a problem that would be. I've always just my US-based SIM when I'm in Europe, as it enables people in the US to call me using the same NYC number they always do. Figuring out a foreign cell company's pricing structure and byzantine long-distance policies has never seemed worth the savings in making local calls within the country, at least for me.

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