(Click here for a larger view of Samsung's Mondi)

The Mondi, first announced in April, offers mobile broadband connectivity provided by Clearwire, whose WiMAX-based service is said to provide download speeds of 3 to 6Mbps, "with bursts over 10Mbps." Already available in Atlanta, Baltimore, and Portland, the service went live today in Las Vegas, and will be offered in 80 U.S. markets by the end of the year, says Clearwire.

While "designed for the Clear Mobile WiMAX service from Clearwire," according to Samsung, the Mondi also includes WiFi. However, it does not include a cellular modem or voice calling capabilities.


The Mondi has a slide-out QWERTY keyboard
The Mondi sports a 4.3-inch touchscreen display with 800 x 480 resolution, plus a slide-out QWERTY keyboard (above). Measuring 4.88 x 3.03 x 0.63 inches, the device has both a webcam and a three megapixel main camera, the latter featuring autofocus, anti-shake, and face recognition.

According to Samsung, which didn't provide details of the device's chipset, the Mondi features 4GB of flash storage, WiMAX, WiFi, and Bluetooth 2.1. The underlying Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional operating system has been dressed up with a proprietary "widgets" interface, the Opera Mobile 9.5 web browser, the Fring client for VoIP and instant messaging, and "instant access to social networking websites."

The Mondi also offers GPS, with preloaded maps from Route 66. In addition, the MID is equipped with sudoku and golf games, the company says.

Stephanie Ferguson, general manager of the business experiences team at Microsoft, "With the Samsung Mondi, people can take advantage of powerful broadband speeds to access familiar, easy-to-use software like Microsoft Office Mobile on a sleek, new mobile Internet device."

Features and specifications released by Samsung for the Mondi include the following:

• Processor -- n/s
  
• Memory -- RAM n/s; 4GB of flash storage
  
• Display -- 4.3-inch screen with 800 x 480 resolution
  
• Keyboard -- slide-out "full" QWERTY keyboard and optical mouse
  
• Cameras -- 3 megapixel main camera with autofocus, anti-shake, and face recognition; VGA-resolution webcam
  
• Networking:
  • WAN -- WiMAX (802.16e)
    
  • WLAN -- 802.11b/g
• Other I/O -- n/s, but presumably includes headphone jack and USB port
  
• Expansion -- microSD slot accepts up to 32GB
  
• Battery type/life:
  • 1500mAh lithium-ion
    
  • WiMAX usage time -- Up to four hours
    
  • WiFI usage time -- Up to five hours
    
  • Standby -- Up to 1000 hours
• Dimensions -- 4.88 x 3.03 x 0.63 inches
  
• Weight -- 5.39 ounces (137g)

Availability

According to Samsung, the Mondi will be available Aug. 1 in Clearwire retail outlets, and at Best Buy stores in Atlanta, Las Vegas, and Portland. Pricing was not disclosed.

More information on the Mondi may be found on the Samsung website, here.

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