Yesterday, we posted that, Vodafone India will soon launch the Vodafone Blue Facebook phone in India. Now, the company has finally launched this amazing handset, exclusively for the Vodafone subscribers in India. The Vodafone Blue is originally called as the Vodafone 555 Blue in the UK and other European countries. This handset comes with the unique Facebook button, similar to the popular HTC ChaCha smartphone.

Speaking at the launch, Mr. Kumar Ramanathan, Chief Marketing Officer, Vodafone Essar said,

“The mobile internet plays a central role in the daily lives of millions of Vodafone customers, many of whom are avid Facebook users. Vodafone Blue is the answer to our youth’s mobile social networking needs. The phone has been designed to let everyone experience the fun of connecting with friends on the go, at a pocket friendly price. With our unique, fully integrated Facebook customization, the Vodafone Blue offers a compelling, out-of-the-box experience.”

Vodafone Blue allows you to easily share and stay connected with your friends anytime, anywhere. The F (Facebook) button on the Vodafone Blue handset lets the user upload pictures, visit profiles and update status at a single click. You can also customize the Facebook ‘F’ button and assign a number of tasks, including instantly posting a status update with photos from the gallery or with links from the browser.

Vodafone Blue features a 2.4-inch (non-touch) QVGA display with 320 × 240 pixels resolution, 200 MHz MediaTek processor, QWERTY keypad, Bluetooth 2.1, GPRS/EDGE, 2 megapixel camera with LED flash, email client with POP3 and IMAP support, music player, Opera Mini browser, microSD card slot, 32 GB expandable memory, FM radio, 40MB internal memory, microUSB port, 3.5mm headphone jack and a 1000 mAh battery.

The Vodafone Blue Facebook phone comes with a price tag of just Rs.4,950 (approx. $110). You will also get free unlimited access to Facebook for a year, with the purchase of this handset.

Do you still remember the entry-level QWERTY phone, which was announced by Vodafone during the end of July? Yes, we are talking about the Vodafone 555 Blue phone, which comes with the Facebook button, similar to the HTC ChaCha smartphone. Vodafone 555 Blue is an entry-level phone, which comes with a 2.4 inch QVGA display, 200 MHz processor, QWERTY keypad and much more.

This handset is already available from July in the UK, but the wait is finally over for the customers in India. Vodafone India will finally launch the Vodafone 555 Blue Facebook phone tomorrow in India. We also got an invitation from Vodafone India, to attend the launch of this phone at an event tomorrow in Mumbai.

Vodafone 555 Blue features a 2.4-inch (non-touch) QVGA display with 320 × 240 pixels resolution, 200 MHz MediaTek processor, QWERTY keypad, Bluetooth 2.1, GPRS/EDGE, 2 megapixel camera with LED flash, email client with POP3 and IMAP support, music player, microSD card slot, 32 GB expandable memory, FM radio, 40MB internal memory, microUSB port, 3.5mm headphone jack and a 1000 mAh battery.

This handset comes with a price tag of £60 in Europe. It is expected to be available in India for less than Rs.5,000. We cannot expect GPS, Wi-Fi and 3G connectivity options in this low-cost phone. But, this phone allows you to easily browse the web, thanks to the pre-loaded Opera Mini browser.

Vodafone recently announced a new entry-level QWERTY phone, the Vodafone 555 Blue. This handset comes with basic features such as 2.4-inch display, 2 megapixel camera, 16 GB expandable memory and so on. The most interesting feature of this phone is the dedicated Facebook button, which was earlier seen in the HTC ChaCha smartphone. The dedicated Facebook allows us to upload photos, share links as well as change the status update on the go. Check out the complete specs below.

Vodafone 555 Blue features a 2.4-inch (non-touch) QVGA display with 320 × 240 pixels resolution, 200 MHz MediaTek processor, QWERTY keypad, Bluetooth 2.1, GPRS/EDGE, 2 megapixel camera with LED flash, email client with POP3 and IMAP support, music player, microSD card slot, 32 GB expandable memory, FM radio, 40MB internal memory, microUSB port, 3.5mm headphone jack and a 1000 mAh battery.

Vodafone 555 Blue allows you to easily browse the web, thanks to the pre-loaded Opera Mini browser. Sadly, this phone does not come with GPS, Wi-Fi and 3G connectivity. Vodafone 555 Blue is expected to come with a price tag of £60 (approx. $100/ Rs.4,400). This handset will be available from next month in Europe and Asia.

Samsung finally launched the much-awaited Samsung Galaxy S II at an event in New Delhi. This handset is the successor of the highly popular Samsung Galaxy S smartphone. The powerful Galaxy S II runs on the Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) Operating System and comes with a 1.2 Ghz dual-core application processor, 8 megapixel camera with full HD (1080p) video recording and more.

This handset features a new Live Panel service that aggregates live web and application contents to a single customizable home-screen. Samsung Galaxy S II comes with the WiFi Direct technology, which allows consumers to connect to wireless-enabled PCs and printers without the need for wireless access points.

Samsung Galaxy S II features a 4.3 inch Super AMOLED Plus display with 800×480 pixels resolution, Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) operating system, 1.2 GHz dual core processor, 3D user interface, HSPA+ connectivity, Bluetooth 3.0+HS, 8 megapixel camera with full HD (1080p) video recording, 2 megapixel front-facing camera, Android Market, Social Hub Premium, Readers Hub, Game Hub, Music Hub, Kies Air, NFC (Near Field Communication) and more.

Samsung Galaxy S II will be exclusively available at Vodafone Stores from June 3 and at other retail stores from June 9. This handset comes with a price tag of Rs.32,890. Vodafone also offers 1 GB of 2G/3G data for the first 6 months, with the purchase of this smartphone. Are you planning to buy this amazing smartphone? Let us know your views in the comments below.

It was just yesterday that we reported about HTC rolling out the Android 2.3 Gingerbread update for the Desire HD and the Incredible S.

However, the update was being rolled out only for the unbranded Desire HD and Incredible S handsets, in Europe.

Today, Vodafone U.K. has announced that they have started rolling out the Android 2.3 Gingerbread update for the Vodafone branded Desire HD, in the U.K.

Here is the update change-log via Android Community :

• Enhancements to the user interface (simpler and slicker)
• New Android Keyboard,   with easy copy/paste feature
• Improved Power Management
• Internet Calling support
• Multiple Camera Management (front and back)

Ironically, the Desire HD lacks a front camera, so I wonder what the Multiple Camera Management’ feature will do.

The update is an OTA one, and users are recommended to use Wi-Fi to download the update. The update will be rolled out to all Desire HD owners within the next few weeks.

Hopefully, other carries will follow Vodafone U.K. steps, and release the Android 2.3 Gingerbread update for the Desire HD.

Today, Nokia released the next generation business communicator the E7 in India, within a few days of its global launch. The Nokia E7 sports a huge 4-inch ClearBlack Display with nHD (360×640) resolution.

The E7 also features a spacious four-row slide-out QWERTY keyboard. The handset is powered by an ARM11 680Mhz processor and packs 256MB of RAM. The back of the handset sports an 8MP EDoF camera with dual-LED flash, while there is a VGA cam up front for all your video calling needs.

The E7 also has 16GB of internal memory, and supports USB On-The-Go as well. Sadly, the E7 has an inbuilt battery like the iPhone and the N8.

The E7 also suffices the needs of business users with support for Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync, Mail for Exchange and VPN support. Nokia has also tied-up with Vodafone to offer 2GB of free data usage to all E7 owners for six months. The offer is valid for all Vodafone 2G and 3G users.

The Nokia E7 will be available across all Nokia Priority dealers effective immediately, with a best buy price of Rs 29,999.

Each year Google releases a “Year in review” called Google Zeitgeist with the help of which it showcases some wonderful data through the aggregation of millions of search queries that the search engine receives every year. This year, Google Zeitgeist for India had some nice revelations with the IRCTC (railway ticket booking) continuing to top the charts of the year-on-year fastest rising bracket for search queries in India.

The top three most popular searches among Indians on the web during the year 2010 were Songs, Facebook and Google. Amongst the fastest rising people, Indians searched for British actress Aruna Shields and this year’s new Bollywood sensation, Sonakshi Sinha and other favorites from Bollywood like Zarine Khan, Katrina Kaif and Salman Khan.

The zeitgeist also has a list of top 10 popular brands in India in terms of the search volumes generated by Indians on Google search. Here is the list:

Micromax Mobile ranks 4th among the top 10 popular brands in India during 2010

10 Most popular brands in India

1. Nokia

2. Samsung

3. Airtel

4. Micromax

5. Dell

6. Maruti

7. Vodafone

8. Apple

9. Sony Ericsson

10. HP (Hewlett Packard)

It is really nice to see a relatively new Indian brand Micromax making it to the top 10 in the list and that too it being the 4th most popular brand in India among the big guns!

Lot of big companies around the world leverage Indian IT expertise to give their businesses a lead over others. UK-based mobile operator Vodafone is now planning to set up a global applications research and development (R & D) centre in India in order to leverage on the expertise in India.

Mr Marten Pieters, the Managing Director of Vodafone Essar said that Vodafone is already in the process of setting up an application centre in India. India being such a big centre for IT, technology and application development, Vodafone is looking forward to leverage this not only for their Indian operations, but also for the rest of the world.

Opening this R&D Center in India will open new opportunities for development firms and generate more jobs. Also experienced programmers from different avenues will have a good chance to change their service line and do something new.

Vodafone has announced that they will be rolling out the Android 2.2 (Froyo) update for the HTC Desire from August 23. The update was initially expected to be rolled out on August 12. However, the good news is that Vodafone has removed most of their bloatware/crapware from their Android 2.2 update. Earlier, Vodafone was heavily criticized for loading the Desire with their Vodafone 360 crapware. Now, along with the announcement of the Android 2.2 update, the company has also mentioned the steps on how to remove Vodafone 360 for users who have already installed it.

According to the news from Vodafone forums, the Android 2.2 update will be based on the HTC open market visionwith the software optimized for Vodafone’s network settings.

Here is the full press release :

HTC Desire: Firmware Over The Air (FOTA) Update to Android 2.2

The Android 2.2 update for HTC Desire will start to be available to Vodafone customers from Monday 23 August.

Our priority has been to make sure that the software does what we said it will do. This meant testing took a little longer than anticipated.

Customers will receive an alert telling them that their handset is ready for an update and this alert will be phased over a two week period.

If you did not download the Vodafone 360 update, follow the first set of instructions below to download the Android 2.2 update when prompted to.

If you did download the Vodafone 360 software, once you have the 2.2 update, these guidelines also explain what you need to do to remove that content from your device, depending on the current software configuration of your HTC Desire.

Customers who still want to use Vodafone 360 services can visit the Android Marketplace, where a number of 360 apps are available. We will also be issuing an optional Vodafone 360 update for HTC Desire users at a later date.

*Please note: The following steps will only work once you have downloaded the 2.2 Android update*

Finding out which software your HTC Desire is running

To check the current software version of your HTC Desire, go to Settings->About phone->Software information and look for the entries Android versionand Software number.

Your software should either be 1.19.161.5 if you haven’t downloaded the recent Vodafone 360 software, or 1.24.161.3 if you have accepted the update.

The launch of VF 247 solar powered phone is in keeping with Vodafone’s aim to increase mobile technology accessibility for millions in India. With an extended solar powered battery, the solar powered phone addresses the problem of unstable electricity supply in many rural areas. VF 247 solar powered phone charges by itself, by exposure to ambient light. Sun Boost, the special in-built hardware and software ensures that the phone charges also in a room, under normal daylight.

The new handset uses a solar powered solution to benefit users in areas with adequate sunlight and is priced at Rs. 1300 approx ($32). Given the fact that Vodafone’s rural network coverage of 65 per cent is the second highest in India, the launch of a solar charging handset will definitely make up for the unavailability of electricity in the rural areas of the country, making it really easy to charge mobile handsets.

via Digitizor