14 DAY TRIAL // One of the newcomers in the mobile phone market is Hyundai, a company that came to the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona with a brand new device, dubbed Hyundai MB-490i Dolphin. It’s rather easy to understand where the name of the phone comes from, given the resemblance between the design of the handset and the sea creature, yet the specifications of the handset were expected to be a much more interesting point.
Unfortunately, although the company was supposed to showcase a rather feature-packed device, one meant to allow the maker to secure a market share for itself, the new Hyundai MB-490i Dolphin phone comes with mid-end characteristics, and it fails to impress too much.
Nevertheless, the design ofthe device is impressive, mainly when you look at it from the sides, and a glimpse at the images bellow will show you why it is so unusual. The rounded shapes of the new mobile phone are complemented by blue and gray colors, making the effect even more powerful and real.
On the other hand, the new Hyundai MB-490i Dolphin comes with a touchscreen display able to deliver a 240 x 400 pixel resolution, and also sports a touch-sensitive navigation wheel bellow the screen. Other specifications of the device would include Stereo Bluetooth and Yamaha speakers, as well as MP3 player, FM Radio and a 3.2-megapixel photo snapper, but with no flash.
The touchscreen is a nice feature for the newcomer, and the device also allows users to operate it through the navigation wheel, yet the software keyboard does not seem too well fitted, since it is rather small and somehow hard to operate it.
The fresh Hyundai MB-490i Dolphin phone is expected to hit the European market sometime in May 2009, while featuring a retail price of $315 (250 Euros).
