Vodafone Unveils Samsung LiMo R2 Handsets

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Samsung Vodafone 360 H1

The first handsets supporting the LiMo Foundation's Release 2 were introduced Thursday. The Samsung touchscreen devices will support Vodafone's 360 service, Vodafone said. The LiMo Foundation is the industry group behind the Linux-based operating system for mobile devices.

At the same time the LiMo Foundation said operators planning to bring R2 handsets to market in the coming months include Verizon Wireless, NTT DOCOMO, Orange, SK Telecom, and Telefonica.

Vodafone's 360 service is using the open source LiMo operating system to enable users to store social networking contacts and phone contacts in a single place.

The collaboration between Vodafone and Samsung that resulted in the Samsung handsets "signals the first of a wave of R2 LiMo handsets due in the coming months," said Morgan Gillis, executive director of the LiMo Foundation, in a statement. Samsung's Vodafone 360 H1 represents Samsung' first LiMo-based product. The phone features a 3.5-inch WVGA AMLED display and 720P HD video recording.

The Vodafone 360 service has a universal contact list that can integrate multiple online address books.

Last spring, the LiMo Foundation released the specs for R2 and they include the capability to integrate with the Bondi framework and its platform for mobile widgets and Web apps. Also included are location-based features, VPN security solutions, and PIM software.

The new Samsung devices follow the unveiling last month of LiMo handsets developed in an earlier LiMo release. Those devices are made by Panasonic and NEC, which are making the handsets for NTT DOCOMO.

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