But the Ovi and App Stores are designed to be used with very different handsets and so have very different applications etc. to offer the individual mobile user. It’s inevitable that each manufacturer is going to develop and launch its own online application store because that would be the best way to reach out and offer Value Added Services to existing and new customers. BlackBerry only recently launched their App World online store as well. But here’s a quick view of Nokia’s Ovi Store for new users. Now please understand we are not talking about having an Ovi account for data back up and syncing or using the maps etc. but the virtual supermarket of sorts for your mobile phone and how easily it makes shopping for you handset.

The online store via PC looks crisp and easy to navigate. Setting yourself up with an account doesn’t take a Rocket Scientist to figure out so no worries there. Register yourself and select your phone type. You’ll need to enter your mobile number as the only way you’ll be able to download anything off the site is to receive an SMS and then download via the link provided. So you might want to consider switching to an unlimited full GPRS plan or you’ll end up paying something for everything you download even if it is free. What they could have had here is a simple download to PC option like all the other sites for Nokia handsets. It won’t cost you anything and you can simply transfer and install on the handset via the PC suite or just copy paste it onto the handset’s drive and run it from there. While there seems to be plenty of stuff available on the Ovi Store, I did find quite a few popular items like the Nimbuzz application that were for some reason removed or ‘No longer available.’

In case you’re wondering about the Nokia Download Section/Catalogs and MOSH that has been around in handsets for over a year, they are going to be integrated into the Ovi Store. It’s so much easier to download and install apps, games etc. via those servers though rather than the elongated select item-wait for an SMS-click on the embedded link-download-then install. How annoying is to receive an SMS to download something as small as wallpaper? Seriously! The Catalogs will slowly be downsized and the Download section will soon lead directly to the Ovi Store. An Ovi Store client will also be out soon.

Payment is a rather vague scenario as of now. Although the Indian billing segment is not yet in place, you can still buy products off the site. We just don’t yet know how. I presumed it would be via a credit card, but it didn’t ask me for one. I received an SMS nevertheless that stated – Shayne Rana has shared this (the name of the product) with you, followed by a link. Why would it tell me I’m sharing it with myself firstly, and when does the bill come in? The link led me to the Store with the item for purchase, pricing etc. and a Buy option. Since everything’s in Euros, I wasn’t sure I wanted to take this further in case it doesn’t ask for my card and goes right onto my bill or something.

The process is unnecessarily long. While I do believe that Ovi is good service, the store has a long way to go.  There are plenty of goodies already available for download, but I wasn’t too thrilled with the overall content so I intend to keep a close watch on the kind of stuff that becomes available over the next couple of months. Although you may not have an icon for Ovi on your handset just yet, if you’re a current user you can direct your mobile web browser to store.ovi.mobi and make your selections there. You’re still going to have to go through the whole procedure of SMS links etc. till they hopefully bring us a direct download option.  In the long run, I believe people would still prefer to download from other sites rather than here.

A small hack in the handset’s programming would allow criminals to use someone else’s phone number and receive their SMS. Thus, in certain countries where banks would send a one-time password called an mTAN (mobile Transaction Authentication Number) to a person’s phone in order to allow the transfer of money to another account etc. the hacked cell phone users would gain access to accounts. The company in charge of the investigation, Ultrascan, managed to acquire a handset from the specified factory with specified firmware for testing and successfully reprogrammed the device to do exactly what the criminal would have it do.

“The power of the Internet is undeniable,” says Alex Lambeek, Vice President at Nokia. “We’ve seen mobile technologies catalyze the growth of the informal sector across the world, empowering local entrepreneurs and having an immediate and lasting impact on people’s lives. Services like Nokia Life Tools and Ovi Mail, combined with the mobile phones we’re launching today, bring powerful solutions that can be the gateway to knowledge, entertainment and people, without the need for a PC.”

Nokia 2730 classic
 

The Nokia 2730 classic is Nokia’s most affordable 3G phone offering faster access to the Internet at Rs. 5155 (EUR 80). The Nokia 2730 classic is expected to start shipping in the third quarter of 2009.

Nokia 2720 fold

The Nokia 2720 fold is a compact fold phone with a mirror-effect design, which helps people stay organized with easy access to email, calendar, Internet connectivity and file sharing applications. Email can be activated by completing a simple three step set-up process, and in select markets will be offered with Nokia Life Tools. The Nokia 2720 fold is expected to begin shipping in the third quarter of 2009 for an estimated retail price of Rs. 3576 (EUR 55) before subsidies and taxes.

Nokia 7020

Another fold phone from the company, the 7020 uses light, color and metal finishes conveying personal style. It has a stardust effect when a call or message comes in, or users can tap twice to have the cover light up. It also has options to connect to social networks and share pictures taken with the 2 megapixel camera. The Nokia 7020 is expected to begin shipping in the fourth quarter of 2009 for an estimated retail price of Rs. 5799 EUR 90 before subsidies and taxes.

According to extensive Nokia consumer research, nearly half of emerging market customers state that they would rather connect to the Internet over a mobile phone than a PC. As a result, Nokia has developed solutions that consist of affordable mobile phones and applications, designed and built from the ground up to meet the specific needs of customers in the developing world. Lambeek continues, “Whilst many people are still primarily using voice and text, the Internet does offer a whole new range of opportunities.”

With the launch of the three new touch screen phones, Samsung now has a portfolio of seven touch screen phones, ranging from Star to its flagship touch screen phone, Ultra Touch launched last month.

“Samsung Star and Samsung Star 3G are significant additions to our full-touch screen mobile portfolio, featuring all the essential functions in one single device. At Samsung, our effort is to deliver various full touch products for every consumer lifestyle,” said Sunil Dutt, Country Head, Samsung Mobile Division.

Samsung Star (S5233)
Samsung Star comes with the latest multimedia features in a slim and compact body that measures a mere 11.9mm. It also comes with a stylus for convenience. Other features include -

• a 3.0-inch WQVGA full-touch screen and Samsung’s TouchWiz User Interface with Mobile Widgets and an accelerometer sensor
•  “Photo Contact,” to call a contact by touching an appointed image.
  a 3.2 mega-pixel camera with smile recognition
• multi-format playback and Samsung’s DNSe sound engine
  recognition using Shazam’s “Find Music” service
• 50MB Internal memory, expandable up to 8GB via microSD cards
• Google applications like Google Search, Gmail, Google maps; online widgets and photo blogging

Gesture Control is a new feature added that allows the user to unlock the touch screen or run an application by just giving a gesture command. For example – to call a friend, you don’t need to search his/her number in the contacts list, just give a gesture command (A, B or C as per your preference and setting) – the phone will recognize the command and dial the number. In addition, the user can also customize various applications like C- Call, M – Music, I – Internet etc.The phone also supports a virtual QWERTY keyboard for messaging and handwriting features.

Samsung Star 3G (S5603)
The second handset, the Samsung Star 3G comes with full Internet browsing support with an accelerometer sensor for auto-rotation and, as the name suggests, is a 3G enabled phone. It’s equipped with the same features as the S5233 including Gesture Control. It also has a 3.2 mega-pixel camera with Power LED Flash and 80MB Internal memory expandable up to 8GB.

BEAT DJ
Samsung’s BEAT DJ handset was announced at MWC earlier this year and has finally made it to our shores. Running Samsung’s intuitive DISC User Interface, the BEAT DJ comes fully loaded with Bang & Olufsen audio technology.

“Samsung BEAT DJ is designed to take music on mobile phones to a whole new level of quality and exciting user experience. With amazing sound quality and advanced music application, the BEAT DJ J  will appeal to a growing base of consumers who want to consolidate their music playing devices without compromising on style, function and experience”, said Dutt.

With the BEAT DJ application & DISC UI, users will be able to add preloaded voice samples and sound effects to their favorite songs and record it. Users can also ‘scratch’ the records by swiping their fingers across the display. The handset comes with the following feature set -

• 2.8-inch AMOLED touchscreen display (240 x 400 pixels with 16 million colors), accelerometer
• 50MB internal microSD card slot (up to 16GB)
• 3MP AF camera, Geo-tagging, Smile Shot, Face Detection
• HSDPA, EDGE
• Bluetooth v 2.1, USB 2.0 (micro)
• GPS with A-GPS
• DivX, XviD, WMV, MP4 playback support
• 3.5mm AV socket, DNSe, SRS Virtual Surround
• FM radio with recording
• 50MB internal memory,  expandable to 8GB with the micro SD card

The Samsung BEATDJ is also equipped with built-in real stereo speakers – powered by B&O’s ICEpower amplifier.

The Samsung Star S5233, S5603 and Beat DJ are priced at Rs. 11,100, Rs. 14,499 and Rs. 18,990 respectively.