May 26 - 4:20pm EDT   A Monday leak has revealed that Pantech's Aladdin handset may be coming to wireless provider AT&T in mid-August. The candybar device has a slide-out QWERTY keyboard for texting, which is its main mission, as it is otherwise fairly basic in its specifications. There is a 1.3-megapixel camera, assisted GPS functionality, stereo Bluetooth support and a Video Share mode for one-way calls. It should support protected Windows Media tracks in addition to usual mobile formats. [full story]

May 14 - 3:45pm EDT   Apple and AT&T are two of several companies being targeted in a new patent infringement lawsuit, court documents show. The case was initiated by Tune Hunter, a company which owns a patent titled Music identification system, granted in September of 2005. The patent describes "a method for marking the time and the name of the radio station in portable device such as a key holder, watch, cellular phone, beeper or the like which will allow the user to learn via internet [sic] or regular telephone the name of the song, artist and/or music company by matching the stored data with broadcast archive." [full story]

May 8 - 12:05pm EDT   Fractus has revealed that it has sued 10 cellphone manufacturers this week over their allegedly violating nine different patents relating to internal cellphone antenna technology. The Spanish company's targets are most important world firms and involve HTC, Kyocera, LG, Palm, Pantech, Research in Motion, Samsung, Sharp, Sanyo and UTStarcom. These companies were aware of the patents but violated their use all the same, Fractus claims. [full story]

March 23 - 9:35am EDT   ARM today said it should be the first to have truly console-like graphics on smartphone-grade devices. Detailing its plans to PC World ahead of this week's Game Developers' Conference, the company said its upcoming Mali-200 and Mali-400 chips will both have improved pure performance but will also support OpenGL ES 2.0. The mobile video standard is based on programmable shaders (effects instructions) that allow complex visuals like water ripples without overly complex code paths. [full story]

February 25 - 1:10pm EST   Wireless provider AT&T on Wednesday announced it will add the Pantech Breeze C520 flip phone in black to its offering later this week. The two-tone phone features an all-black exterior along with a silver-painted interior and has the same features as the current all-silver Breeze, including a VGA camera with video capture capabilities, access to e-mail and a WAP web browser. Instant messaging via mobile clients for AOL, Yahoo and Windows Live Messenger is also supported, all via the EDGE network. [full story]

February 18 - 10:05am EST   AT&T this morning added the Pantech Matrix Pro to its cellphone roster. The phone upgrades the design with a smaller but more upscale body that adds a larger 2.4-inch display and better materials. It also gets a full smartphone-class operating system and uses Windows Mobile 6.1 instead of the feature phone OS of the original Matrix; the switch gives support for full third-party apps and editing Office documents. [full story]

February 12 - 10:05am EST   Korea's Pantech on Thursday announced the upcoming introduction of what it claims to be a pair of nearly identical cellphones with a Wind Recognition feature, the SKT IM-S410 and KTF IM-S410K. Equipped with a Nintendo DS-like sensor that can gauge the amount of forced air or wind moving through it, the feature is tied into various functions of the handset that, among other things, allows users to blow an emoticon kiss during a video call. The feature can also be used in the phones' photo galleries, gaming and video applications. [full story]

December 11 - 9:20am EST   AT&T today helped wrap up its year through the release of the Pantech C630. The candybar design aims to bring relatively high-end features to the budget realm and carries both 3G and assisted GPS. It also brings a slightly more upscale design with metal-like accents and a rubberized texture at the back to improve its grip. [full story]

November 21 - 4:35pm EST   Pantech showed its C630 candybar handset to the media on Thursday evening and the handset is scheduled to be offered by provider AT&T starting in December. The handset maker has asked that photos of the device taken on Thursday night be embargoed until its official announcement next month, and official specifications are likewise unavailable. An AT&T spokesperson at the event did confirm the C630 will run on Symbian, however. [full story]

October 29 - 10:35am EDT   As promised earlier this month, the Pantech Slate handset is now available for purchase on AT&T's website, with the provider quick to point out it's reportedly the thinnest handset in the world with a QWERTY keyboard at under 0.4 inches thick. The Korean handset is meant for users who send text messages or e-mails heavily but who don't want the price of a smartphone. [full story]

October 14 - 12:15pm EDT   AT&T today delved into messaging-focused feature phones with four new devices. The Pantech Matrix (pictured) is the spiritual descendant of the Duo and carries the same dual slider that switches either to a full QWERTY keyboard or a number pad. It also carries a similar 1.3-megapixel camera and supports 3G audio and video streaming plus the carrier's music store downloads. It comes in blue, green and red trim and is priced at $80 on a two-year plan or $280 while contract-free. [full story]

October 6 - 9:25am EDT   AT&T this morning set a baseline for its faster 3G network with the launch of the Pantech C610. The clamshell gets faster browsing and access to music downloads, media streaming and one-way video calls through HSDPA. In return, Pantech uses a handful of minor hardware choices to save on the final cost. A 1.3-megapixel camera and assist-only GPS help keep the price down, though the C610 still supports stereo Bluetooth audio and microSD Storage. [full story]

September 19 - 10:50am EDT   The long-rumored Helio Ocean 2 has finally shown in concrete form courtesy of an FCC filing made public today. Appearing under the codename OZII, the Pantech-made dual slider matches earlier leaks and appears to primarily change the looks of the original Ocean as well as improve the software; aside from chromed trim, the device would chiefly improve by adding a full HTML web browser. [full story]

September 12 - 2:15pm EDT   Virgin Mobile plans to carry Helio's planned Ocean sequel but doesn't have plans for it until next year, says company spokesperson Jayne Wallace. Although confirming that the device has been built and that Virgin will take over releasing the device to market, Wallace says the new Ocean isn't yet ready and that it should be launched in early 2009, when it will perform as "best" as possible. Little is known about the Pantech-made device other than that it should continue to use a dual slider and that it will have a cosmetic makeover. [full story]

June 24 - 5:20pm EDT   South Korea's third-largest cell phone manufacturer, Pantech, today announced the newest phone in its range, the IM-R300. The GSM slider's notable features include a DMB TV tuner, which allows its 2.6-inch, 240x400 LCD touchscreen to display over-the-air video programming. An wireless payment feature, called eWallet, is also integrated into the phone. [full story]