Samsung Telecommunications America Inc. plans to introduce a new series of Code Division
Multiple Access phones this week at Wireless ’99 in New Orleans, including the company’s first CDMA tri-mode
handset.
According to Peter Skarzynski, vice president of wireless sales and marketing at STA, the new line is a
significant event for Samsung’s strategy in the U.S. market.
“When you look across the five different phones,
we’re offering feature-rich products that meet different customer needs,” he said. From entry-level to high tier,
“these products were developed to look at different parts of the marketplace.”
An example of the latter
is the SCH-2500 tri-mode phone. While both Nokia Corp. and L.M. Ericsson make tri-mode phones for Time Division
Multiple Access networks, offered by AT&T Wireless Services Inc. with its Digital One Rate plan, no CDMA
manufacturer matched them until now.
The SCH-2500 can roam between CDMA 800 MHz, 1900 MHz and
Advanced Mobile Phone Service 800 MHz networks, the company said.
With such a phone now available for
CDMA networks, carriers using the technology will be able to offer more aggressive nationwide pricing plans similar
to AT&T’s Digital One Rate.
Such aggressive pricing plans have been a major force behind converting wireless
users to digital service. CDMA carriers have been limited in their ability to extend cut-rate nationwide plans because of
a lack of handsets that can be used on all CDMA networks. PrimeCo Personal Communications L.P., for example, has
expanded digital coverage through agreements with AT&T Wireless and U.S. Cellular Corp., and is owned by Bell
Atlantic Mobile and AirTouch Communications Inc. The company has stated its desire to offer aggressive nationwide
pricing plans, but lamented the fact that tri-mode CDMA handsets were unavailable.
Samsung said it expects the tri-
mode to go over quite well with these carriers.
“We have been developing this product with a carrier or two in
mind,” Skarzynski said. “This is filling a carrier need, carriers who have different frequencies in their
footprint.”
He said the unit will be commercially available by mid-year.
Also in the new line is the SCH-
3500, a dual-band/dual-mode handset at CDMA 1900 MHz and AMPS 800 MHz featuring a unique design where the
ear piece covers the keypad and flips up, as opposed to the mouthpiece. Skarzynski likened it to a Star Trek
Communicator.
The unit also features Internet access via Unwired Planet Inc.’s UP.Browser for such functions as e-
mail and Internet-based information services. It also features voice-activated dialing of up to 20 pre-stored numbers.
But the company is emphasizing the phone’s design.
“The style and look of a phone are important to
consumers,” Skarzynski said. “Because Samsung believes wireless should be about cutting-edge, it is
designing phones that appeal to people’s sense of style.”
The SCH-4000 also features the UP.Browser and is
being marketed as a data-enhanced phone, while the SCH-411 is a dual-mode CDMA 800 MHz/AMPS 800 MHz
phone that also features voice-activated dialing and is positioned as an entry-level device.
Finally, the SCH-6000 is
touted as the lightest phone available, weighing in at 3.1 ounces. The CDMA 1900 MHz handset also allows for voice-
activated dialing and is considered an entry-level product as well.
While not listing specific prices for the different
models, Skarzynski said the line will run anywhere from $100 to $200.
“That depends on where the carriers
decide to position it,” he said. “That’s a carrier-determined call.”
All are expected to be released
my mid-year.
Additionally, Samsung announced its SCH-1530 dual-mode phone, introduced at PCS ’98 last year,
will be offered by Bell Mobility in Canada early this year.
