O2 will launch its Asus-made 3G PDA phone, the XDA Zinc, in January 2007, the carrier has revealed. Zinc is the device most recently known by its codename, 'Mars 2' (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2006/10/27/o2_asus_prep_xda_launches/), and which appeared on the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) website in October this year.

O2 compares Zinc to the XDA Mini S but "with added 3G power for high speed Internet and video calling". Zinc sports a slide-out QWERTY keyboard and, according to the FCC posting, a 2.8in, 240 x 320, 65,536-colour display. It's based on a 520MHz PXA270 processor, backed by 64MB of RAM and 128MB of Flash ROM.

There's two megapixel autofocus camera on the back, a Mini SD slot for memory expansion, and both Bluetooth 2.0 and 802.11b/g Wi-Fi for connectivity beyond 3G and GSM (it's tri-band) networks. Zinc measures 10.9 x 5.8 x 2.3cm and weighs 165g with the 1,300mAh battery in place. ®

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