Pantech&Curitel present their IM-U100 today, a phone with a 2.6″ QVGA screen, a 2MP camera, CDMA 1x EV-DO, MP3/MOV/VOD compatibility, and other PMP functions. True, it can play videos, but only VOD apparently (so unsure whether it can play videos that are not downloaded). Personally, I wouldn’t call this phone a PMP, that’s marketing-speak in my opinion, but it’s a nice effort to make a phone behave like a PMP in some ways.

Pantech Unveils IM-U100 Handset, Aimed At Providing “World Class” Portable Multimedia Player Functionality

l Pantech introduces the IM-U100 mobile handset with 2.6 inch wide LCD screen, among the largest in the Korean handset market & the world

l New PMP slider phone offers optimal mobile multimedia experience with exterior dial

SEOUL, January 26, 2006: Pantech Group – South Korea’s second largest mobile phone manufacturer – has announced the introduction of the IM-U100 handset, which is designed to provide users with a “world class” Portable Multimedia Player (PMP) phone, incorporating MP3 player, camera and movie functions.

The IM-U100 phone includes a 2.6 inch wide TFT LCD screen, which is two times larger than the screens on other multimedia handset models in Korea and among the largest of its type in the mobile handset sector globally, ensuring the richest and most visually enhanced multimedia experience for mobile phone users.

The new handset also features an aspect ratio – the ratio of the width of the LCD display screen to the height – of 15:9, considerably in advance of the 4:3 screen ratios of other mobile phones. In practice, this means that – along with high quality loud speaker and visual sound systems – users can avail of a similar picture experience to that found at the movies.

Ji-Bong Ryoo, Vice President, Domestic Product Planning, Pantech Co., Ltd., said: “As the demand for advanced multimedia features has increased among handset users, Pantech has moved to introduce phones that dramatically exceed consumer expectations. We are confident that users in Korea and, eventually, overseas will appreciate the world class PMP functionality of the new IM-U100”.

The large LCD screen shows users of the handset all menus in one screen without having to scroll down. Coupled with a 2.0 mega-pixel CMOS camera with panorama capability, the large screen is optimized for taking images and video clips.

Without having to open the slide, the Analog Mode Dial in the back of the IM-U100 allows direct access for users to camera, MP3 player and movie applications at the touch of a fingertip. Users of the IM-U100 can also save large volumes of data via the external T-Flash memory. In addition, the model also has a multitasking function, meaning mobile users can use the Internet or play games while listening to music.

The 2 mega-pixel camera also includes auto focus and PictBridge functionality, so that pictures can be printed without being connected to a computer. The IM-U100 will be marketed under Pantech’s SKY brand and will be initially targeted at the Korean market.

IM-U100 Features:
- 2.6 inch wide QVGA TFT LCD with 15:9 aspect ratio
- Analog mode dial
- MP3 player
- 2 mega-pixel embedded CMOS Camera with Panorama & PictBridge Functionality
- PMP functionality
- 64 polyphonic melody
- T-Flash memory support/Full multitasking functionality
- MSM 6500 chipset
- 2.4 Mbps/CDMA 1X EV-DO
- Loud stereo speaker & MOD (music-on-demand) / VOD (video-on-demand)
- Nano silver coating
- IrDA

Pricing:
The IM-U100 handset will be priced at approximately USD550 and will be launched in Korea later this month.