Samsung Mondi

[Tom Metro]

Looks like Samsung has created a clone of Nokia's N810 that will be sold 
in the US later this year:

http://www.betanews.com/article/Samsung-Mondi-first-WiMAX-MID-in-USmaybe/1238197477

   The tablet runs Windows Mobile 6.1, so the 4.3" touchscreen is
   therefore resistive (i.e., it requires a stylus). It slides up to
   reveal a QWERTY keypad and 8-direction control pad, there is a 3
   megapixel autofocus camera facing outward and a VGA webcam facing
   the user. It has a microSD slot for memory expansion, but there is
   not yet a spec telling what kind of onboard memory and processing
   power it will provide.

The article also notes:

   The device looks very similar to the Nokia N810 WiMAX Edition mobile
   Internet device (MID), which was scheduled to come to Sprint's XOHM
   WiMAX network in the US, but was reportedly discontinued at the
   beginning of 2009.

   Several years ago, Nokia was one of the strongest supporters of
   WiMAX in the US. But by January 2009, the 4G standard had still only
   been deployed in two U.S. cities...

I was wondering why I hadn't heard much more about the WiMAX version of 
the N810 since the initial release announcement a year or more ago.


See also:
http://www.crunchgear.com/2009/03/31/ctia09-samsung-mondi-a-huge-wimax-slider/

which mistakenly calls it a "handset" and:
http://www.linux-mag.com/id/7294/2/

which mistakenly calls it a "netbook" and talks up its use of Opera 9.5 
browser while failing to mention the Windows Mobile OS. I'm not sure how 
it qualifies as a "Mobile Device Running Open Source" (from the 
article's title).

(On a side note, the Nokia E71x smartphone, also covered in that Linux 
Magazine article, looks like a potential replacement for a Blackberry 
(same form-factor). It runs Symbian, which is supposed to go open source 
later this year.)

And finally:
http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-12261_7-10208122-51.html
has a brief video demo of the Samsung Mondi.

  -Tom

-- 
Tom Metro
Venture Logic, Newton, MA, USA
"Enterprise solutions through open source."
Professional Profile: http://tmetro.venturelogic.com/