Slashdot Log In
Samsung Cell Phone Features 3GB Hard Drive
Posted by
CmdrTaco
on Thu Mar 10, 2005 03:00 PM
from the we're-getting-close-on-this-one dept.
from the we're-getting-close-on-this-one dept.
An anonymous reader writes "Samsung will be showing off a new cell phone which runs on Microsoft's Windows Mobile operating system which features a built-in hard drive. The SGH-I300 will offer 3GB of storage which allows you to store up to 1,000 songs on it for playback through the music player. The 3GB hard drive is similar to the type of hard drive that is found in Apple's Mini iPod. These 1-inch drives with very low power requirements, are ideal for cell phones and other mobile devices."
This discussion has been archived.
No new comments can be posted.
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.
Full
Abbreviated
Hidden
Loading... please wait.
More Details (Score:5, Informative)
Engadget [engadget.com] stated that the phone supports MP3, WMA, AAC, and AAC+ audio files, and a plug-and-play drag-and-drop no-brainer way of transferring files as you please.
Re:More Details (Score:3, Informative)
2) The only way most people are going to be able to get one of these phones is to buy it through their cellular provider - almost every (if not every) smart phone out there is carrier specific and has custom firmware that ties it to the carrier. M
Amazing how far things have come (Score:3, Interesting)
Makes you wonder if we'll have 120 and 200GB drives in our cell phones in 2015
Re:Amazing how far things have come (Score:5, Insightful)
You worry about that?
Luddite.
By 2015, I want a cell phone with a 200GB HD installed sub-dermally in my jaw!
And where's my damn flying car!?!?!?
Parent
Re:Amazing how far things have come (Score:4, Insightful)
Why would a phone need a hard drive in the future? I would imagine you could have an advanced wi-fi type internet phone, that does VOIP, and allows you to access your home network to allow you to stream music and movies directly to your phone. It would also be able to take pictures/video and stream them directly to your computer at home.
Parent
now featuring Spyware on your Phone (Score:2, Insightful)
yay. thanks.
Maybe I should just RTFA... (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Maybe I should just RTFA... (Score:2)
Re:Maybe I should just RTFA... (Score:2)
Re:Maybe I should just RTFA... (Score:5, Informative)
That depends on what state (of the US) you're in.
In some states, both parties have to consent to the call's being recorded, and/or an audible "beep" has to play at specified intervals as a reminder that the call is being recorded.
You could actually do this in firmware; cell phones have locator technologies, and are theoretically capable (over the data stream as a back channel) of exchanging information regarding in which state each party to a call is physically present.
From that, it's a small set of if/then logic to work out whether the "beep" comes on automatically, and/or whether consent is required ("Press 'GO' to consent to monitoring") of more than one party to the call.
There lots of legitimate (banking/finance) commercial applications where users (both clients and brokers, for instance) might want their calls recorded.
Of course, real men don't need recording devices to back up their phone conversations. They just casually mention materials that have high neutron cross sections, mention the curve of binding energy a few times, and NSA records their calls for them.
Parent
Apple vs Microsoft (Score:5, Insightful)
But Apple has the good sense not to try to cram OS X-mini onto the iPod hard disk. Instead a much simpler, special purpose OS does the job simply and well. But cram Windows-mini onto a hard disk, and well, you've wasted a lot of space for no real valid reason.
Plus the delicious treat of viruses headed your way as a brand new target sits there and says, "Attack me, please."
Why can't people realize that special-purpose devices work best with special-purpose OSes?
Re:Apple vs Microsoft (Score:3, Informative)
Anyone out there who has done some development on Windows Mobile
Oh noes, 64 MB taken on a 3 GB drive!!!11
Re:Apple vs Microsoft (Score:3, Funny)
Windows Mobile certainly is special, kind of like how the short school bus is special.
Re:Apple vs Microsoft (Score:5, Insightful)
It's progress for the following people:
- the manufacturer who gets to sell you another one
- the shipping carrier who couriers the RMA package from
- the retailer who gets to sell you another one or maybe something else while you're there
- the tech support rep who gets to log another call
- the manufacturer again when they refurb your device and sell it to a bargain basement OEM
- the OEM who makes a tidy profit on the refurbed parts sold as new
The disposable culture is a huge step backward for society, but because so many people can make money off of it, it's considered progress, at least in legal terms.
Parent
In related news... (Score:5, Funny)
When did the 'song' become the standard... (Score:5, Funny)
Re:When did the 'song' become the standard... (Score:3, Funny)
Re:When did the 'song' become the standard... (Score:3, Funny)
Over 1,000 songs...blah blah blah. (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Over 1,000 songs...blah blah blah. (Score:3, Insightful)
car's gas milage depends heavily on the driving condition/pattern. so what? it's still a fairly useful metric. same thing here.
Do you really wanna carry a disk in your pocket ? (Score:2)
Uh, oh... (Score:2, Flamebait)
Windows and 3gb HD (Score:2, Flamebait)
Battery life (Score:4, Insightful)
And if you have US Cellular... (Score:3, Informative)
(USCC will sell you a camera phone, but thy have disabled the phone to disallow the use of a local connection cable to upload or download any audio or graphics. Nice, huh.)
Get Cingular/AT&T... (Score:3, Informative)
What I'm looking for (Score:5, Interesting)
Is a cell phone that does everything. Yes, I've heard the whining from people who just want a cell phone to be a phone, but from my perspective, the fewer devices I have to manage, the better.
Imagine you're going on vacation. You could pack:
- Your camcorder
- MP3 player
- digital camera
- PDA
- Personal video player
- Personal tv
- Cellphone
Or, you could just take your:Right now, we do have the technology to incorporate all of these features into one device with the form factor of a small notebook or PDA. Instead, people spend 5 times the amount of money on discrete appliances, and then have the added burden of having to carry them all. And then they whine because their phone isn't just a phone - as if they enjoy having dozens of electronic gadgets lying around the house, waiting to get lost, stolen, forgotten, etc...
I'm tired of using a dozen different gadgets to do what could easily be integrated into one. If cellphone manufacturers are going to break into new markets, their phones are going to have to be more than just phones.
Re:What I'm looking for (Score:5, Funny)
camcorder
MP3 player
digital camera
PDA
Personal video player
Personal tv
Cellphone
toothbrush and toothpaste
shampoo AND conditioner
toilet paper
hairbrush
credit cards
week's worth of clothing
golf clubs
my car
Chinese hooker
Anyone who doesn't think these belong in a phone is simply a luddite who resists technological evolution.
Parent
Re:What I'm looking for (Score:5, Interesting)
Well... I think you're both getting the point and then missing it at the same time.
A lot of Slashdotters in a rush to get the first +3 Insightful are quick to poo-poo integration. They don't care about a camera in a cell phone because it only does 640 by 480 and they've got some whiz-bang digital camera that does 5 megapixels. They paid considerably more for that camera, and they also got considerably better quality out of it. The point has been made ad-nauseum here that the more something can do, the less competent it is at doing it. It's a valid point. However, this is where they miss they miss the point entirely: That 5 megapixel camera is only good when you have it on you to use. Common sense, right? You'd think so, but when people poo-poo phones with cameras built in, they suddenly forget this point. (Race to get that +3 Insightful?) A cell phone is a nice convergence device because it stays with people at all times. I go to work: There's my cell phone. I go to an arcade: There's my cell phone. I take my family out to dinner: There's my cell phone. I take a dump: There's my cell phone. (yeah yeah, I know that'll attract smart ass comments, oh well.) Would I take my 5mp camera to an arcade? Dinner with the family? Not likely. While I'm taking a... err. Okay, that was a really bad example. I was actually thinking more about cell phone with built in games/internet etc. You get the point. Value. My cell phone does MORE. It may not be perfect, but it's better than nothing. I have photos of my nephew being silly at dinner that I simply would not have captured if my phone didn't have a camera. (I could keep going but I think the point was made right there.)
I mentioned before that you got the point and then missed it. I think you get what I just said above. I think you understand why having this stuff in a cell phone is cool for a lot of people. But what I'm really replying to is "you're going on vacation". Ugh. That wouldn't be my first example. A stronger example would have been "going on a spontaneous trip". The "master of none" point still very much applies. You want a 5 megapixel photo of the Grand Canyon.
So, yes, I agree: Cell phone convergence == generally good. Moaning about new features in cell phones == generally obnoxious.
Parent
Re:What I'm looking for (Score:3, Insightful)
or I could just lose my:
All this consolidation isn't a boon. I don't have masses of electronic items lying around waiting to get lost and honestly the only thing a phone should have in addition to the phone is the pda feature, since it can tell time and has a calendar. Everything else is extrava
Re:What I'm looking for (Score:3)
If I wanted a low-end, HD-based camcorder which used the same HD to playback video, and could use a TV module for playing and saving TV, even better. Yeah it might get lost, stolen, or crushed, but if it costs $700 instead of $400 + 400 + 100(TV), I might think it's worth it.
Combine all of the above in one device for co
Swiss-Army Phones (Score:3, Funny)
Things to Try Mounting on Phone:
Philips-Head Screwdriver
Can Opener
Scissors
Deathray
Yay for Single Point Of Failure! (Score:3, Insightful)
Personally, I don't even want a portable phone, as people tend to annoy me.
When will this end? What's next, a pacemaker with built-in mp3?
The real question is... (Score:3, Insightful)
SMS and phone call saved on HD ? (Score:3, Interesting)
I know this is touted as "convergence"... (Score:5, Insightful)
It's pretty much the current definition of jack of all trades, master of none. The browsers all suck wind from the first click. No way the phone camera matches the 4MP with optical zoom and full controls. With my luck, I'd go to open the garage door and dial the Pentagon, who'd read the fix from my GPS and catch me screaming "Attack! Attack! - No, use the sniper rifle!" in the middle of a Halo session...
So it's really just a away of any one manufacturer making sure you buy the whiz-bangiest phone instead of someone else's.
What if I lose it? Right now I keep track of my GPS, iPod, camera and cell phone. Suppose I lose one device. I'm either out a copy of my music, or my most recent photos, or a location fix, or my phone. Lose the uber-device and I'm out all of them at once.
I'm not a fan of whizz-bang cellphones, BUT: (Score:4, Interesting)
But, instead of just ranting about how I think all this extra whizz-bang is wasteful, stupid, and whatnot, I spent a couple minutes thinking about what I *would* like to have in my cellphone. What extra feature would I pay to have? I've got a good idea. A genius one:
Television and Radio. Once, many years ago, I owned a handheld backlit LCD television. It was a thing of beauty; a few ounces of mass, a two-inch screen, and a telescoping antenna. It was great to have in lots of places. It had a 1/8" mono jack for plugging in headphones or an earpiece. Its integrated speaker was adequate as well.
Now, this was about ten years ago. I know the technology for LCDs has come a long way. I know that device would easily fit into a cellphone today. So, do it. And add AM/FM radio. Then, give me TiVo functionality for the TV and radio (I'm sure the television video scaled down for the phone display would compress pretty damn well!). If my phone had all that, I could justify paying for a hard drive in it.
Re:My cell phone... (Score:5, Informative)
There are plenty of cheap, boring phones that work primarily as phones. They don't get much attention from the tech press because they don't have any useless whizbang features.
Parent
Re:My cell phone... (Score:5, Funny)
I want it to take good pictures, check my email, sync to my server, play music, browse the web and have a fold out QWERTY keyboard.. I want a big color screen, weeks of battery life, kinetic charging, and it needs to fit in my pocket and be very light.
but it should NEVER recieve incoming calls, thats just a nuisance and needless distraction.
Parent
Re:My cell phone... (Score:3, Funny)
Your needs do not govern anybody else (Score:3, Insightful)
Did Jesus die and leave you in charge? Is your name GW Bush by any chance?
And some other idiot moderated your post as insightful. Yeh, right.
Re:Your needs do not govern anybody else (Score:5, Funny)
That sounds familiar, let me google it, I'll let you know.
Parent
Re:My cell phone... (Score:5, Insightful)
Parent
Re:My cell phone... (Score:3, Insightful)
Whoop-de-shit. Why'd you even read the article to begin with?
I wouldn't mind, but this exact same stupid comment keeps getting modded up in every single "coooool cell phone!" story. Frankly, it's getting old, and it's really starting to smell like a cheap "gimme karma" comment.
Re:Mod parent up! (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Perhaps... (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Perhaps... (Score:4, Insightful)
The question I've not seen asked yet is this:
What happens when you drop it?
Hard drives typically don't like being dropped. Cell phones, being handheld devices, stand a good chance of getting dropped. I fumblefingered my Ericsson T610 within 24 hours of getting it. It has a ding in the case where it hit the pavement, but it still works. A few years ago, I had a Motorola i1000 fly out the passenger window onto a freeway overpass. I parked my car, walked out onto the overpass, and retrieved the phone. It was a little bit scratched up, but it still worked. Will you be able to say the same for a hard-drive-equipped cell phone after it slipped and fell?
Flash storage density is up to at least 4 GB now. (That's the largest CompactFlash card (not a Microdrive) I've seen at Fry's; there might well be something even larger on the market already.) That would be a better match for a cell phone than a hard drive. Flash doesn't suffer head crashes when it's dropped.
Parent
Re:Perhaps... (Score:3, Insightful)
It's not needed - none of it is needed. The questions are: is it possible? is there a market? is there a reason not to?
It's hypocritical reading this site then not allowing the same enthusiasm that applies to computers, software, television etc. to be expressed about mobile phones just because they're not as popular
Re:Perhaps... (Score:4, Interesting)
Nah, it's not about if you need one or not (of course you do). What I'd need to be convinced about is, will the hard drive survive when I drop the phone while riding a bicycle and it hits the pavement and it's parts are thrown all around. Any current phone can handle that kind of repeated abuse pretty well (well, at least my Nokias have...).
No, mobile phone isn't a place for moving parts... Solid state all the way is the only way.
Parent
Re:Don't drop it (Score:3, Insightful)