Arc Camera Phone Released by Virgin Mobile

Virgin Mobile USA, the largest North American MVNO (mobile virtual network operator) has released a new affordable handset named, simply, Arc. The phone is a clamshell that won't wow anyone with its features, but it can still be a good choice for those who only need basic functions.

Built by UTStarcom, the new Virgin Arc weighs 3 ounces (85 grams) and, when not flipped, it measures 3.8 x 1.8 x 0.7 inches (96.5 x 46 x 17.8 millimeters). The phone looks pretty nice, both when it comes to its shape and in terms of the combination of colors used (black and red).

Presented by Virgin as a "flip camera phone", the Arc does indeed pack a photo camera, but only a VGA one that can offer pictures at a maximum resolution of 480 x 640 pixels. Thus, it will only be good for taking occasional snapshots when there's no better device around.

Camera aside, Virgin Mobile's new clamshell also comes with Bluetooth, Web browser, "real music ringtones", SMS capabilities and pre-installed games for those boring moments when you need to be entertained. The Arc features two color displays, an internal and an external one (their sizes and resolutions have not been unveiled by Virgin), plus an array of basic but useful stuff, including voice memo, calendar, alarm clock, calculator, stop watch and world clock.

According to the Virgin Mobile website, the battery of Arc is capable of offering 14.5 days of stand-by time and "210 hours" of talk-time. Well, this talk-time would be really great, but Virgin surely mixed "minutes" with "hours", so the battery can actually last up to only 210 minutes in talk-time mode - which is not exactly great.

The Arc costs only $49.99 and it's the ninth handset that Virgin Mobile is currently offering to its US customers.