Tek Tok Canada Canadian Technology News & Reviews
Kyocera Echo coming to Sprint customers in the USA soon, by Jamie Forestell
During a live media event tonight in New York, Sprint announced plans to launch the new Kyocera Echo smartphone. The phone runs on Android 2.2 and is 3G capable. Here is a few screenies and this is definitely an industry first, as promised. The dual screen phone allows for “simultasking” across the two screens. As no photography was allowed, none of the livebloggers were able to capture pictures of David Blaine and his magic, but we are still not sure the purpose of his cameo. Perhaps the fact he was under water, lighting a cigar, while reading Dr Seuss, and drinking wine would indicate he was “simultasking”?
httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zk7nf6TNHH4
Features
Dual-Touchscreens
Two high-resolution 3.5-inch WVGA displays connected by a revolutionary pivot hinge that allows them to operate independently or together as a single large display.
4-in-1 Versatility
Single-Screen Mode – a fully functional single-display experience.Simul-Task™ Mode – choose 2 of the Echo’s 7 core apps and run one on each display simultaneously.
Optimized Mode – optimized apps let the dual displays complement each other, like email on one and a full virtual keypad on the other.
Tablet Mode – dual displays act as a single oversized (4.7 inches diagonally, 800 x 960 pixels) display ideal for multimedia.
Customized Apps for Echo™
Applications specifically developed for Echo’s dual screen and larger real estate give optimum viewing quality.*
Camera & Camcorder
Echo offers a 5 megapixel camera with flash and digital zoom, and a 720p HD video camcorder.
Android 2.2 with Hotspot Capability
Wi-Fi b/g with hotspot capability supporting up to 5 devices.*
Other Features
- Android 2.2 with access to more than 100,000 apps on Android Market™
- 3G data speeds (EVDO Rev A.) with peak download speeds of 3.1 mbps; peak upload speeds of 1.8 Mbps: average download speeds between 600 kbps and 1.4 Mbps
- Expandable memory; 8GB microSD™ card included; supports cards up to 32GB
- Full HTML Web browser supporting Flash 10.1, optimized for dual screens
- Corporate (Exchange ActiveSync) and personal (POP & IMAP) email
- Access to Telenav GPS Navigator, Sprint TV® and more
- Media player with 3.5 mm headset jack
- 1GHz Snapdragon processor
- Bluetooth® 2.1 + EDR
- Digital compass, accelerometer, proximity sensor, light sensor, GPS
- Hearing Aid Compatibility Rating (HAC): M4/T4
* Hotspot functionality carries a monthly surcharge
UPDATE: I have confirmation from Kyocera, the Kyocera Echo is a Sprint Exclusive smartphone, and will not be coming to Canada at this time.
