As social creatures with an uncanny propensity to send multiple text messages per minute, most students could not imagine college life without a cell phone. Clever names, attractive designs and new technology beget our fascination with them. With newfangled phones ready for purchase, the long-gone holiday sleigh bells of winter will not be the only ringing we hear nowadays. Here are five noteworthy phones from this winter's technological wonderland.
APPLE: iPhone
Cost: $599
Apple Inc. CEO Steve Jobs announced the iPhone earlier this month. It is equipped with virtually every feature imaginable. The iPhone is an iPod, mobile phone, Web resource and 2-megapixel digital camera. All features are highly irresistible for their very sleek and gorgeous user interfaces. To add to its grandeur, the iPhone is operated by touch controls. The phone also rotates from portrait to landscape position and has sensors that adjust the phone's display in order to preserve its power. Ultimately, any student would feel proud to have the iPhone "accidentally" ring during lecture. Unfortunately, however, the phone is not set to release until June, according to The Washington Post.
SAMSUNG: BlackJack
Cost: $449
The BlackJack is Samsung's currently featured smart phone. It is programmed with Microsoft Windows Mobile for PC functions and Windows applications. Among its other features are e-mail access, a 1.3-megapixel camera/camcorder and Cingular Video for video content. On Samsung's Web site, the phone is targeted toward college students: "Your passions don't stop after a long day of classes. And why should they? You need a smart device that extends both work and play after the library closes." Samsung also says the phone is designed "to make you look smart." In other words, remember to hold the BlackJack to your ear while you speak in class.
SONY ERICSSON: K790A
Cost: $499
You can think back on the days when cell phones didn't have built-in digital cameras, but with the Sony Ericsson K790A phone, you wouldn't want to. The phone is made for the digital imaging lifestyle with a Sony Cyber-shot 3.2-megapixel camera, offering supposedly great picture quality. Moreover, since blogging has been a growing fad for students, those with the K790A also have the ability to post text and pictures directly from their phone to their blog on the Internet.
LG MOBILE: Chocolate
Cost: $299.99
LG Mobile's Chocolate phone was actually introduced in October 2006. The "mobile treat" is still LG Mobile's featured phone and is not just offered in black, but also in green, red and white. The design, a vertical rectangular screen accompanied with a directional pad beneath it, is simple and appropriate for the everyday minimalist. The phone slides open to reveal the number keypad. Described by LG as "exciting, beautiful, exquisite, unique, unusual, moving, articulate [and] imaginative," the phone is characteristic of everything a bright-eyed student aspires to be - except for the candy part.
SANYO: Katana
Cost: $279.99
Sanyo designers called this phone the Katana, a name inspired by the Japanese sword that samurai used during battle. The idea was to express the role of fine craftsmanship in the phone, and that they certainly did. It has a sophisticated design similar to Motorola's popular MotoRazr. The mystical catchphrase for the Katana, "A New Legend Begins," is likely aimed to make any student want to start his or her own legend, too. The phone, modeled with the "strength, power, dedication, and honor" of the Japanese sword, allows every student to fulfill their destiny on the social battlefield. And it can come in a pretty Cherry Blossom Pink.
