Vodafone 360 debuts with the Samsung-Built Vodafone 360 H1
Just when we thought the LiMo (short for Linux Mobile) platform that enjoyed open source community support over the years is taking the dinosaur path with the emerging adoption of the similarly Linux-based Android, here comes the Vodafone 360 H1 running the Release 2.0 LiMo that just might herald the resurgence of the stable OS. It was used by Motorola in its RAZR and ROKR handsets though it too has been caught up in the Android bandwagon. Now it comes out to deliver the Vodafone 360 experience alongside Nokia’s Symbian-based smartphones.
Vodafone Exclusivity
Korean mobile phone maker Samsung has made a smartphone exclusive to Vodafone which recently launched its Vodafone 360 service to replace a seven-year old Vodafone Live. The service takes a crack from US carriers offering end-to-end internet-based data service that Vodafone claims is the apex of social networking – a People-centric service that merges your phonebook contacts with Google talk, Live Messenger and Facebook for starters with more coming soon.
This integration will also enable subscribers to share their multimedia files across the Vodafone network. The only issue to overcome is making sure your network of friends and colleagues are on the Vodafone network as well. All these can be done, of course, if your handset is up to the task. Vodafone has launched its 360 with 4 Nokia smartphones and a couple of Samsung handsets exclusively made for the purpose, like the Vodafone 360 H1.
Upscale Features
Samsung made sure Vodafone’s 360 service can be maximized with its H1 smartphone. For starters, it’s a quad band GSM and dual band UMTS on 3G so you can have broadband internet speeds from its HSDPA/HSUPA data connectivity – one of the main things you need to get into the 360 service. From there, the H1 is upscale all the way. It has a gorgeous 3.5” AMOLED touchscreen with Wide-VGA resolution, a 5-megapixel camera with autofocus and LED flash, WiFi, Bluetooth and a generous 16 GB internal memory that’s expandable from its microSD slot.
Availability
The Vodafone 360 H1 is available now in 8 European countries including the UK. The rest of Europe follows early next year. Vodafone hopes to lure subscribers into its service with an appealing ₤35 24-month contract. Maybe it’s worth giving them a try this Christmas if only to get hold of the wonderful H1 handset.
