Toshiba unveils Windows Mobile handsets

Toshiba is entering the UK's smart phone/PDA market with two Windows Mobile devices promising close integration with the company's laptops, the manufacturer revealed at the 3GSM World Congress on Monday morning.

The G500 slider smart phone and the G900 Pocket PC, which will be marketed under Toshiba's Portege brand, will incorporate fingerprint scanners for added security. The scanners can also be used to navigate menus.

One integration feature is that users will be able to unlock their Toshiba laptops via their Toshiba handsets with the fingerprint scanner. If the user moves a certain distance away from the PC, its Bluetooth connection to the mobile device will break and the laptop system will lock down. The handsets can also be used as controllers for PowerPoint presentations.

The handsets have several other useful features. Both devices can handle Wi-Fi and HSDPA (the faster version of 3G), and are SIP-enabled for VoIP usage. Toshiba plans to ship a VoIP client with the phone.

While the G500 is based on Windows Mobile 5.0, the G900 will be one of the first devices to sport the new Windows Mobile 6 for Pocket PC Phone Edition. It will take mini-USB sticks as well as miniSD cards.

The G500 will be the first to hit the shops, sometime this spring, followed by the G900 a month later, in the early summer. No operator partnerships have yet been revealed, although Toshiba intends to market the handsets through its traditional IT hardware resellers as well as direct corporate channels.

Toshiba is not a well-known name in the UK handset business, although its fashion phones are popular in Europe.