May 2011 Roundup

31st May 2011

Although there were only a small number of announcements this month, they did seem to cover just about every niche in the mobile phone market.

The Nokia Oro is basically a C7 smartphone skinned in gold and leather and sporting a premium price tag. Although it won't be to everyone's taste, it is at least a lot more capable than many other luxury phones. At the other end of the market, the bargain Nokia X1-01 is an dual-SIM phone with impressive musical capabilities, selling at just €34 before tax.

Sony Ericsson showed two new "mini" Android smartphones, the Sony Ericsson Xperia Mini and Xperia Mini Pro. Although a fair bit bigger than their "mini" predecessors, these two new devices are much more usable. A completely different approach to building an Android device can be seen in the Sharp Aquos Phone Hybrid, a waterproof 3D clamshell available exclusively in Japan.

Looking like just about every other classic BlackBerry design, but this time with a touchscreen, the BlackBerry Bold 9900 represents an evolution rather than a revolution. One surprise this month was the Motorola GLEAM, a decidedly retro clamshell phone based on the old RAZR design.

Talking of retro, we took a trip back to 2004 to have a look at a very different mobile phone marketplace. We also took a look at the rivalry shaping up between Apple and LG in the high-end smartphone and tablet market to see who might prevail.

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