XCute's Megapixel DV1

xcute DV1When cameras first appeared on mobile phones, they were mostly an afterthought, intended more as a novelty than as a true tool for taking and sharing pictures. However, now that their popularity has surged, cameraphones are now evolving into truly practical multimedia devices, capable of taking high quality still and video pictures.

The DV1, a tri-band GSM handset from a new Taiwanese manufacturer called xcute (all lower case), seems to be aiming for the forefront of this trend. The company claims that the DV1 is the first GSM phone to offer a 3 megapixel camera, a resolution that's good enough for printing and cropping pictures. In fact, the phone seems to be designed around the camera, which is built into the stubby hinge of its clamshell cover. A rotating display with a high resolution OLED screen, digital zoom, a flash, and advanced video features are further evidence that the DV1 is designed first and foremost for taking pictures.

Video support includes VGA quality output, and users can connect the DV1 to a TV or video monitor through a video cable for viewing videos and still photos. Video recording and playback can be done in MP4, AVI, and ASF formats. The phone's display, which can rotate up to 270 degrees, is designed to be used like a video camera viewfinder.

Specifications for the xcute DV1
Band	GSM 900/1800/1900Mhz
Data	GPRS
Size	86mm x 46mm x 22.5mm
Weight	118g
Battery Life	150 hours standby time
	120-240 minutes talk time
Main Display	16.7M color TFT, 640x240 resolution
Sub-Display	65k color TFT, 96x64 resolution
Camera	3 megapixel resolution
Video	Video capture/playback at VGA (640x480) resolution
Messaging	MMS/EMS/SMS
Email	No
Browser	WAP
Bluetooth	No
Infrared	No
Java	Yes
Polyphonics	Yes (64 voice)
Memory	20MB internal, miniSD memory card slot
Availability	Q2 2005 (manufacturer's estimate)
Other	Rotating clamshell design, camera flash, 4X digital zoom, MP3 player, voice recorder, video out, USB support, speakerphone

Of course, once you take pictures with your phone, you need a way to save and share them, and the DV1 includes 20 MB of on-board memory, a miniSD card slot for saving pictures, and EMS and MMS support for sending them across the network. Unfortunately, data support is limited to GPRS, so sending large images across the network might be a slow process. There's also a voice recorder and support for MP3 playback, but the DV1 lacks Bluetooth or infrared support.

There's no word yet on where and exactly when the DV1 will be available, but we look forward to seeing how the phone's advanced multimedia features perform.

More images are available on the following pages.

 

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