The Mobile World Congress, the largest mobile-themed event in the world, kicked off on Monday. Mobile companies of all different shapes and sizes descend on Barcelona every year for the event, from which handset releases and strategy announcements inevitably emanate. So far, there have been a series of handset releases from big players like Samsung, which unveiled a model called Blue Earth, made from recycled plastic with a solar panel on the back for charging; Sony Ericsson, which launched a new Walkman phone, the W995, along with a 'concept phone' called Idou -- to be available in 2010 -- which boasts a 12 megapixel camera; and Nokia, which announced two new business handsets -- the E55 and the E75. Nokia claims the E55 is the world's thinnest smartphone. Elsewhere, Caribbean mobile operator Digicel unveiled a low-cost solar-powered mobile handset -- the Coral-200-Solar -- which it will launch in selected markets in June. Meanwhile, inspired by the success of Apple's AppStore, Nokia, China Mobile and Microsoft all announced online software stores at the Congress. Nokia said it would open an online store for software and media under its Ovi brand in nine countries in May, while Microsoft announced a revamped online store. China Mobile said it plans to launch a mobile market applications store within the year. In an announcement that amounts to something of a truce after years of fighting each other in the courts, Nokia and Qualcomm have outlined their plans to work together (yes, together) on a range of high-end phones. Nokia will use Qualcomm chips for the devices, which they expect to release in the middle of next year. The Congress also plays host to the prestigious Global Mobile Awards.
Irish mobile services firm NewBay was awarded the 'Best Technology' prize at the event, which took place on Tuesday night. The Irish firm's LifeCache Social Networking solution was lauded as "an impressive product" by the judges.
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