Nokia's newfound commitment to CDMA isn't just a US effort -- it's a big deal in China, too, where a beefy percentage of the world's CDMA users reside. On that note, the company has introduced the Asian market to three new models today spanning the low end to the midrange, but if you're outside China, we wouldn't get our hopes up for a launch in your neck of the woods. Starting at the bottom we've got the 1506, an ultra-basic candybar with an integrated voice recorder and speakerphone; it's being billed as Nokia's cheapest CDMA device yet. Next is the 3806, which steps up to a QVGA display, Bluetooth 2.1 support, and support for external storage up to 4GB -- but maybe the most notable feature here is the inclusion of a "Health Assistant" app that allows "you to stay healthy, which ultimately, allows you to stay happy." We're all for phones that keep us happy around here. Finally, the 6316s slider is the beast of the bunch with GPS and EV-DO for China Telecom's 3G network plus a 2 megapixel camera, but you'll be waiting a while -- it and the 3806 won't be hitting until the first quarter of next year, while the 1506 comes into play by the end of '09.

With the N900 getting AWS support, there's every reason to believe that T-Mobile USA and Nokia want to make beautiful music together -- but in order to do that, they're going to need some quality hardware in the mix. Whether the S60 5th Edition-based 5230 qualifies as "quality hardware" is strictly a matter of personal opinion, but for what it's worth, Cell Phone Signal has raised some very good points about a recent FCC filing suggesting that the model is inbound. First off -- and most importantly -- the SAR report for model code RM-593 indicates that AWS 3G is supported, and overlaying the back of a 5230 with the filing's label document lines up perfectly. A slam dunk? No, it's not -- but considering how long it's been since T-Mobile's sold an S60-based device, the time might be right to get back into the game.

[Via Cell Phone Signal]

When you hear "ability to see 3 time zones simultaneously" quoted as a feature on a phone, you generally don't expect two of those three to be expressed as analog Swiss movements -- unless you own Mobiado's absurd Professional 105GMT, of course, which features two old-fashioned clocks directly below the keypad. Weird, yes; excessive, most definitely, but excess is what luxury phones tend to be all about these days, and in that regard, the 105GMT definitely fits the bill. To that end, Mobiado has just introduced two new versions of the model, the Antique -- with watch faces crafted in rare Cocobolo wood -- and the Stealth, which is as "murdered out" as a phone gets (as the kids would say) thanks to gunmetal black treatment everywhere you look. Both phones are hard to find and even harder to pay for with stickers that run into the thousands of dollars, but the good news is that if you're weird enough to drop that kind of coin on a phone, we bet you probably don't care that it's only got a 2 megapixel camera.

[Via mobile-review]

Read - Professional 105GMT Antique
Read - Professional 105GMT Stealth

We spend most of our time talking about Espoo's Maemo- and Symbian-based lineup, which makes it easy to forget that the company has a vibrant business taking care of the very lowest rungs of the wireless industry -- devices that shatter price barriers and take service to entire new market segments in the furthest reaches of the world. Last year, it was the 1202 raising eyebrows with a €25 price tag, and this week, Nokia's beaten its own mark by coming out with the 1280 (pictured) at just €20 unsubsidized. The phone comes as part of a new five-pack of emerging market devices Nokia has shown this time around, including candybars ranging from the monochrome 1280 to the 1616 and 1800 with color displays for just €4 and €6 more, respectively; we've also got a 2220 slider and 2690 candybar that move a little upmarket at €45 and €54. All of the handsets feature FM radios (particularly critical in some of the markets where these phones will be sold) and feature killer battery life, perfect when power outlets can be hard to come by for days at a time. Indonesia will be the first to get these bad boys in early December, but we imagine they'll find their way to other regions shortly.

We're not sure why the color pink tends to spawn special editions with greater frequency than other colors, but for pink lovers, it works out pretty nicely because you end up getting all sorts of free crap bundled with your phone simply for buying your favorite shade. Take Nokia's new Illuvial Collection, for example, which has taken the 5530, 6303, and 6700, dressed them up in a very hot shade of pink, and stuffed 'em in boxes with custom leather cases and straps. The pinkfest doesn't stop there, though: the phones also include custom themes which are dominated by -- you guessed it -- pink. It looks like all three models are already available from the UK's mobiles.co.uk, and other markets throughout Europe should be getting hooked up with at least some of these in the coming weeks.

[Via mobil.cz]

Read - 5530
Read - 6303
Read - 6700

Nokia's 5230 isn't apt to blow any minds with the likes of the HD2, Droid and XPERIA X3 on the horizon, but for those perfectly content with a touchscreen-based Symbian S60 5th Edition handset, this one sure looks purty. After dipping its toes in the FCC's expansive database just last month, a crop of new in the wild shots have surfaced to show off its 3.2-inch display (640 x 360), 2 megapixel camera, Bluetooth 2.0+EDR module and variety of colorful backs. Hit the read link for more pixels if you're so inclined, and feel free to take the "January 2010" release date in with a dose of NaCl.

[Thanks, Daniel]

No one's going to mistake this for a fashion phone, but we're thinking that's just fine with Sonim, the company well-known for its ultra-rugged XP3 that's just passed a new XP2 model through the FCC's barrage of testing. Dubbed "Spirit," the XP2 appears to be Sonim's first phone with 3G on board -- though the tiny display will probably make it useful more for tethering than anything else -- and that insane-looking octagonal shell has us believing that they're going to be able to make some truly wild claims about its survivability. UMTS while spot-welding the phone in 30 feet of water? Probably not, but if any phone could do it, we suspect it'd be this bad boy. No word on pricing, availability, or even an announcement, but we'll keep you updated.

Here's the problem with carbon fiber phones: they're not for everyone, especially those who aren't interesting in dropping over two grand on a midrange candybar. Don't sweat it, though, because Gresso's back at it again with a leather-clad version of its Grand Monaco called the Grand Monaco LE -- "LE" apparently stands for "Limited Edition," if the badging on the back of the phone is any indication -- available in your choice of red and black. Otherwise, you've got the same pricey materials found on the basic Grand Monaco like machined titanium and sapphire (plus a few not-so-pricey materials like a 2 megapixel camera) which somehow ultimately collaborate to produce an $1,800 price tag.

Calling LG's New Chocolate BL20 half of the BL40 would probably be classified as logorrhea, but there's no doubt that this slider is handsome. So handsome, in fact, that LG has seen fit to showcase it over in the company's new building in Amstelveen, Holland. GSMArena was able to snap a few pics of the installation while also gathering that it'll boast a non-touch edition of the S-Class UI.Hit the read link for a few more looks -- it ought to make waiting for LG to actually announce this thing a lot easier.

[Via slashphone]

T-Mobile subscribers looking to get in on the whole musicphone craze at a bare minimum of expense need look no further than the just-announced Nokia 5130 XpressMusic, a colorful candybar previously announced for other parts of the world that features a 2 megapixel cam, 2-inch QVGA display, integrated FM radio, and -- most importantly -- a 3.5mm headphone jack. Considering that there's no 3G, we're not necessarily sure why you'd pick this over the stylish 5310 -- especially considering that it's now free on contract -- but if you're digging the new model in either its Black / Red or White / Aqua color schemes, you're welcome to grab it now for $29.99 on a two-year deal after discount and rebate.

There's nothing typical about Sony Ericsson's Pureness handset so why should details about its launch differ? Brand Republic, a magazine focused on advertising, quotes Sony Ericsson's director of marketing, Cathy Davies, saying that the low-spec'd (said to lack GPS, camera, WiFi, and gasp, a touchscreen) candybar with translucent display will go on sale in November for £530 at Selfridges and "design museum shops." And if it wasn't already clear (get it?), SE says that it's positioning the device as "an iconic niche product, not mass-market." In other words, Harrods shoppers need not apply.

[Via Techradar and Pocket-lint]

Looks like this one quietly launched in a few markets several weeks ago -- but bear with us, because we think it's a pretty interesting little device. The first thing you'll notice is that it really doesn't look like an LG -- if anything, it looks like a cross between a Sony Ericsson and a no-name knockoff. The second thing that you may not notice is that the two phones you see here are really one and the same. The GB270, a member of LG's Dynamite series, has interchangeable covers that change both the color of the phone and its physical traits, swapping keypad and d-pad styles, the shape of the bezel, and even the presence of an external lanyard in the upper corner. Cool, yes -- less cool, though, is the triband GPRS radio, VGA camera, Bluetooth 1.2, and microSD support up to a meager 2GB. It's already available in some regions, and we're willing to bet you can find it unlocked for a song.

[Via mobil.cz]

Unless you're talking about S60 5th Edition, the terms "Nokia" and "touch" don't typically go together in the same sentence -- but over in China, stylus-based touchscreens make a heck of a lot more sense for character input than they do in locales with with Latin character sets. Following the bizarre (by Nokia standards, anyway) 6208c, the company's now rolled another China-only Series 40 model modified for on-screen character recognition in the form of the 3208c candybar. It's got EDGE, a QVGA display, and a 2-megapixel cam -- nothing to write home about there -- but on the plus side it features a 3.5mm headphone jack, that aforementioned trick touchscreen, and if you squint hard enough, it sorta looks like an N79. Of course, the dilemma of whether to sink the cash for it will never enter most buyers' minds; it'll never see the light of day outside China's domestic market, where it'll be launching in the fourth quarter.

[Via GSMArena]

It doesn't take but a few dollars (or euros, rubles, reais, yuan, you name it) to pick up a fully-unlocked 2G candybar these days. At least it usually doesn't -- unless you happen to source it from Russia's Gresso, in which case it's going to run you about $2,100. For that sum you'll have your choice of the company's new Grand Monaco model in black or metallic ceramic, featuring a 2 megapixel camera, triband (yes, triband) EDGE data, Bluetooth, FM radio, and microSD expansion up to an anemic 2GB. In other words, you're paying purely for the materials and the assembly, because the specs are south of suck and Gresso's got about as much name recognition as ZTE in most parts of the world. When's the last time you paid over a grand per megapixel, anyway?

[Via Unwired View]

If you're looking for the most basic of basic candybars and you happen to be using AT&T service, today is a glorious day, friends, because Pantech's submitted a doozy for the FCC's perusal. The C180 lacks virtually every modern mobile convenience, eschewing even EDGE data -- though they have managed to keep a memory slot and FM radio aboard. Mentions of MEdia Net in the manual and the "C" model name -- historically reserved for Cingular, which is now AT&T -- tell us where this one's going, but we can't imagine that it'll see duty beyond GoPhone.

[Via Phone Scoop]