AT&T Launches LG trax HSDPA Phone

AT&T has launched the LG trax music phone, featuring a 1.3 megapixel camera and blistering HSDPA wireless data speeds.

AT&T has announced the availability of the new LG trax music phone, offering a thin clamshell design with high-speed HSDPA data access the companies hope will make tapping into mobile content and data service offerings all that more tempting—and practical.

"The trax by LG is more than a music phone," said Carlton Hill, AT&T wireless unit’s product management VP, in a statement. "With top-notch video and data capabilities, in addition to a sleek design, this device will hit the right note with many of our customers."

AT&T is pitching the trax as the ultimate music phone, pairing the phone with AT&T Mobile Music, which offers Music ID song-recognition software and the capability to tap into subscription music services from eMusic and Napster. The trax can also tap into MobiTV and the mobile-capable XM Radio service, so users can access live television and digital radio. These services are enables through AT&T’s HSDPA network, which—in theory and where available—offers data transfer speeds up to 3.6 Mbps. That’s data capability iPhone owners wish they had.

The LG trax also offers a video-capable 1.3 megapixel camera (and can use AT&T’s new Video Share service, so users can beam live video to each other using cell phones, potentially racking up massive data charges, and supports MP3, WMA, AAC, AAC+, eAAC+ audio formats, and sports USB connectivity and a microSD slot for expandable storage. The phone also offers Bluetooth 1.2, mobile email *Yahoo, AOL, AIM, Windows Live, and AT&T accounts), and IM via AIM, Windows Live, and Yahoo. The phone offers up to three hours of talk time, and sports a 176 by 220 pixel internal display, and a 128 by 160 pixel external display.

The LG trax will be available online and in selected AT&T retail outlets beginning August 14 for $129.99, but that price is only with a two-year service agreement and after a mail-in rebate.