RSSSony Debuts Wi-Fi Music, IM Device
By Ed Oswald | Published August 8, 2006, 12:57 PM
Hoping to take advantage of the growing ubiquity of Wi-Fi, Sony said Tuesday it will be releasing the "mylo" in September. The mylo is a Wi-Fi enabled entertainment device that will be able to perform a wide variety of functions, with a focus on instant messaging.
The device, which name stands for "my life online," will allow the user to instant message, browse the Internet, make broadband calls, listen to music, send emails and view photos. No service contract or computer setup is required, and all it needs to operate is an 802.11b network.
mylo will be available in either black or white, and will come with Skype, Google Talk and Yahoo! Messenger pre-installed. Shaped much like the popular Sidekick phone, the mylo will have a 2.4-inch LCD screen and slide-out QWERTY thumb keyboard.
To assist users in finding available hotspots, JiWire's directory will be included in the device. Sony claims the mylo will boot up in seconds, and the initial boot screen will allow up to 90 avatars to quickly view who is online. Sony said up to nine online identities can be stored per person, allowing a user to select which method they would like to communicate with their buddies.
Like the PSP, the device can also create ad-hoc networks between devices, and will auto-detect other mylo units within range.
"The mylo personal communicator puts the fun parts of a computer in the palm of your hand," Sony's personal communication devices marketing head John Kodera said. "It's ideal for people who want to stay connected to their online friends and family, but not be weighed down by a PC or buffeted by charges for IM and texting on cell phones."
In addition to communication features, the mylo is also multimedia capable. Sony said the device will play MP3, ATRAC3, and secure or unsecure WMA files. MPEG-4 videos and JPG and GIF photos can also be played back on the device as well.
mylo is slated to become available in September for a retail price of about $350 USD, Sony said.
I like the style... but then again it would be nice if they could turn it into a phone too... and also add psp features like gaming.... that would be the ultimate gadget...
-peace-
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Let me guess: I only accepts MemoryStick.
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That is ALLOT of money! More then the PSP!!! Damm!
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Why would anyone want this? Just buy a PSP, it does pretty much all of this, AND plays killer games.
PS. The article forgets to mention, that it comes with Opera web browser...
http://operawatch.com/ne...a-browser-built-in.html
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$350 is a lot of bread. Why would anyone buy this thing when you get get something like Sprnt's PPC 6700? It runs Windows Mobile 5, so it does everything this gizmo does and 10 times more - not to mention the fact you can use it as a phone and camera too. Last time I check sprint was selling them for less than this thing. Sprint's toy has the same size screen and also has a pull out keyboard.
I just don't get it sometimes, are consumers really this lame?
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"..are consumers really this lame?"
Yeah, they only want cool products.
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you have u looks at the price 4 that phone with out rebates and stuff like that plus u would need a plan 2 use the phone so there really is no point in buying that phone because the cost of the plan and activation would make the price of the myol well worth it
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RE: "...they only want cool products."
Hey look an iPod. I want that! It is cool/hip/in/krunk...
Great idea, but until they are about $30 I will continue to just use my old laptop that can do "much" more.
-specialk
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I see your point viperdrifta about activating the phone...but the ppc 6700 pda/phone that I'm talking about comes with built in wifi and bluetooth - both of which work just fine even if the phone hasn't been activated. Only thing you loose by not activating the phone is being able to use sprint's high-speeed connection via cell towers and phone calls.
Basicly, without the phone services, its just a Windows Mobible 5 PDA device...which brings me to another point...why not just buy a nice WM5 device instead of this thing?
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