US MVNO Helio has unvelied its initial two devices and given a few details about its service plans. It’s launching with two hot handsets from Korean manufacturers VK Mobile and Pantech that certainly live up to the high-tech specs earlier promised by Helio: 2-megapixel cameras, big QVGA screens, music playback, plenty of memory and more.
Helio also says it will offer MySpace Mobile, bringing the popular social-networking site to mobile phones and alllowing people not to just view the site, but interact with other members as well as upload content from the mobile device. As the Helio press release puts it, MySpace Mobile changes things from what you did last night to what you’re doing right now. MySpace is an example of the kind of services Helio says it will offer — stuff never before seen in the US, with a focus on social networks and communities.
The operator will officially launch in late spring, so expect more details to be forthcoming.
[...] The comment came in a panel talking about mobile content delivery, and the deal that Helio struck to offer exclusive mobile access to MySpace came up. Derrick Oien, one of the founders of Intercasting, the company that makes the Rabble moblogging-cum-social networking application, essentially said the deal was good for Rabble because it provides some validation of their market. My initial reaction (surprise, surprise) was skepticism — I’m not sure how many kids will give up MySpace and all the content they’ve put on it in favor of an application like Rabble that’s essentially closed off to anybody that’s not a subscriber (and since Rabble’s only currently available on two US carriers, that’s a problem here). Additionally, Rabble costs $3 bucks a month, whereas MySpace is free. [...]