We guess that the luxury handset market is alive and well as Toshiba has jumped on board with the Cosmic Shiner, a $4,000 diamond-studded phone. Based on Toshiba’s 815T — and no, this one doesn’t transform — which features HSDPA, FeliCa — used for services like electronic wallet and identification — a 2 megapixel camera, and memory expansion via microSD. There are only 1000 of these gem-encrusted monsters available and to get one you’ll need to secure yourself a unique ID number — apparently will be found in Seven Hills magazine — to get in the running. We’re not gonna be getting in line, but feel free to let us know what you think if you’re crazy inspired enough to pick one up.

Right on time, T-Mobile has added another piece to the smartphone side of the HotSpot@Home puzzle with the 8820, featuring both WiFi and GPS in a single package — a somewhat rare combo from our friends at RIM, and a new, fresh answer to the 8800 and 8830 variants found on every other national carrier in the US (and, in the case of the 8800, on T-Mobile itself). The lack of a camera will be a detraction for some, but a boon for others given the device’s all-business roots — and naturally, no one’s going to complain about the microSD expansion, myFaves support, or the ability to hop on 802.11g networks for a little VoIP action, T-Mobile style. (more…)

As cool as the concept of the Samsung DuoS D880 might be, there’s a big problem: it runs in the $700 range at retail. Russian site Smape recently sat down with Samsung’s mobile chief for the region, and he plainly admitted that the high cost of the D880’s admission is leaving out a large segment of the dual-SIM market — folks who are looking to minimize costs by using different providers depending on who they’re calling — and the company’s looking to address that in the second quarter by adding another DuoS model, the P240 candybar. The new piece is expected to cost 20 to 30 percent less than the D880 while still offering its most important feature — the two SIM slots, that is — along with Bluetooth, a microSD slot, and a 220 x 176 display. The rep also mentioned that a WinMo-powered DuoS is in the works for this year, and Symbian’s on their radar as well — though probably not before 2008’s out. Samsung had previously shown a DuoS-based version of the Armani, too, but it looks like that’s now off the table because they found that managing two SIMs proved difficult with a touchscreen; we personally think we could’ve managed, but whatevs.