Latest phones and cell review

AT&T has launched the LG CU500v, the first phone to support its new Video Share Calling service.
The phone is functionally the same as the CU500 we reviewed last year, with dualband UMTS/HSDPA (850/1900), microSD expansion, 1.3 megapixel camera with video recorder, quadband GSM/EDGE (850/900/1800/1900), media player, stereo speakers with stereo speakerphone, Bluetooth with A2DP stereo audio support, QVGA display, Cingular Music and Video support, and media player. The phone is now available for $29.99 with new 2 year agreement, $20 instant online discount and $50 mail in rebate.

The S60 Summit saw Samsung unveil the SGH-i400 smartphone that runs on the Symbian OS. While this is no 3G handset, its list of features ought to be enough to satisfy the average cellphone user. This GPRS/EDGE tri-band (900/1800/1900) handset comes with a 2 megapixel camera, a 2.3″ QVGA TFT 262k color display, Bluetooth A2DP connectivity, dedicated music keys, dual speakers, and a microSD memory card slot that can hold microSD cards up to 4GB in capacity. There is no word on pricing details, but the SGH-i400 will debut in Russia this July followed by other European countries shortly.

T-Mobile USA has finally announced the launch of the BlackBerry 8800 today.It comes with an integrated QWERTY keyboard, a microSD memory card slot, MP3 playback, an AAC music player, video capture and playback, and Bluetooth connectivity.

Looks like AT&T will be bringing the Samsung SGH-A727 and SGH-A717 to the masses. The former is a candybar handset while the latter comes in a clamshell form factor, but both phone are rather slim in nature, freeing up space in your pocket for other items. The 8.9mm thin A727 is one of the slimmest HSDPA-enabled cellphones around, featuring a microSD card slot, a 1.9″ 220 x 176 pixels display, stereo Bluetooth audio support, and a 1.3 megapixel camera. The clamshell A717 comes in a 12.9mm thin body, boasting a 2.3″ QVGA internal display, a 2 megapixel camera, HSDPA connectivity, and a microSD memory card slot.

Motorola RIZR Z8 have  a 2-inch QVGA display, 2.0-megapixel camera, secondary VGA camera, HSDPA, microSD card slot, 90MB of built-in memory, Bluetooth w/A2DP, and video recording capabilities.