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Geekery! LG Style-i
May. 8th, 2007 12:34 pmSmartPhone users will be familiar with the odd solutions that the designers come up with to make their uber-devices work as telephones. From the N-Gage "Prince-Charles-Ear" trick, to the "half-a-Cyberman" look of using an HTC Universal device, no headset=you're going to look damn silly.
T-Mobile went one better with the Ameo; it has NO telephone features as such. It has a speakerphone and wired headset. Dialling is only via onscreen touchpad (Mmmm, fingerprinty) or fun with the detachable keyboard.
So, I bought this little gadget from the US - the LG HBM-700 aka "Style-i". It's a pen-like device, about 4" long, with number buttons, OLED display (very pretty and sharp), headset connection (for earphones/mic, wired and included with it). You can make calls using the numbers for dialling, use the device hand held like a phone handset, or if you want to get creative with some bent wire, it'd make a large-but-effective earpiece. Except the buttons would be beside your cheek...
For some reason they haven't been offered on the UK market and I think they may be discontinued there now, so this is a heads up for the handful of geekphone users on my flist.
Link to seller - sorry if that broke Friends views!
I think - if that works - that is a list from the seller I got mine from.
Actual PayPal amount I paid including the seemingly horrific shipping amount was £40. Just bid on the lowest amount, they seem to be selling for that. You don't get great headsets for £40 here and if you use a large/bulky phone, it will be REALLY useful. For me, I'm currently finding T-Mobile's rate/contract very appealing, and I want to use the Ameo as a phone - so this is far more useful than wandering around with my giant, cheap and ugly Anycom BSH-100 headphones on.
It is not stereo; the provided earphone/microphone is mono. Caller ID works but displays the number; I believe there are registry hacks required to make it display the contact name.
I haven't tried to see if it works with Symbian/UIQ devices; it works with Windows Mobile 5 perfectly well. Which means all you HTC users out there :D
Voice commands also work very well; the inverse of the BSH-100, voice command is initiated with a tap on the "Send" button, last number dialled is "press and hold".Some pictures show it with a ball-like attachment on the back - that's a retractable lanyard. You just KNOW I'm going to use that. Medallion man? Winner? NO! I have a TINY phone around my neck (except it's not a phone. Ought to get the chavs excited, though, as they'll think it is a tiny phone and will be all curious).
Is it sad that I'm also rather enamoured of the idea that it's like using an old analogue transportable phone? The Ameo is like, the base unit, and the LG is the handset...
Also, last night I tried to record a cover of "Innocent When You Dream" by Tom Waits. I've decided I am never singing again. Well, at least not for a while. Until my cold clears up. But it wasn't trying to sound like Tom Waits in the slightest, it just sounded like shite anyway :(
T-Mobile went one better with the Ameo; it has NO telephone features as such. It has a speakerphone and wired headset. Dialling is only via onscreen touchpad (Mmmm, fingerprinty) or fun with the detachable keyboard.
So, I bought this little gadget from the US - the LG HBM-700 aka "Style-i". It's a pen-like device, about 4" long, with number buttons, OLED display (very pretty and sharp), headset connection (for earphones/mic, wired and included with it). You can make calls using the numbers for dialling, use the device hand held like a phone handset, or if you want to get creative with some bent wire, it'd make a large-but-effective earpiece. Except the buttons would be beside your cheek...
For some reason they haven't been offered on the UK market and I think they may be discontinued there now, so this is a heads up for the handful of geekphone users on my flist.
Link to seller - sorry if that broke Friends views!
I think - if that works - that is a list from the seller I got mine from.
Actual PayPal amount I paid including the seemingly horrific shipping amount was £40. Just bid on the lowest amount, they seem to be selling for that. You don't get great headsets for £40 here and if you use a large/bulky phone, it will be REALLY useful. For me, I'm currently finding T-Mobile's rate/contract very appealing, and I want to use the Ameo as a phone - so this is far more useful than wandering around with my giant, cheap and ugly Anycom BSH-100 headphones on.
It is not stereo; the provided earphone/microphone is mono. Caller ID works but displays the number; I believe there are registry hacks required to make it display the contact name.
I haven't tried to see if it works with Symbian/UIQ devices; it works with Windows Mobile 5 perfectly well. Which means all you HTC users out there :D
Voice commands also work very well; the inverse of the BSH-100, voice command is initiated with a tap on the "Send" button, last number dialled is "press and hold".Some pictures show it with a ball-like attachment on the back - that's a retractable lanyard. You just KNOW I'm going to use that. Medallion man? Winner? NO! I have a TINY phone around my neck (except it's not a phone. Ought to get the chavs excited, though, as they'll think it is a tiny phone and will be all curious).
Is it sad that I'm also rather enamoured of the idea that it's like using an old analogue transportable phone? The Ameo is like, the base unit, and the LG is the handset...
Also, last night I tried to record a cover of "Innocent When You Dream" by Tom Waits. I've decided I am never singing again. Well, at least not for a while. Until my cold clears up. But it wasn't trying to sound like Tom Waits in the slightest, it just sounded like shite anyway :(
