i-mate’s new bumper crop

After a recent rumor circulated that i-mate was looking to thin down its Windows Mobile-based offerings, much of the tech world thought that the company was down for the count. Not yet, but they might be close to it, though. I-mate has just announced a total of 12 new Windows Mobile handset across 3 product ranges. Yeah, 12. The new product lines are as follows: The JAMA line will take care of the entry level, low-budget handset crowd. The JAMA phones will be small and relatively light. 2 JAMA models will drop sometime in the next 6 months. The Urban line will take care of the mid-range market. Few details, but expect to see 4 new phones dropping around the $550 price mark. I-mate Ultimate phones will be, you know, expensive. This high-end line will get an influx of 6 new handsets, though the phones will be differentiated only by their screen, keyboard, and form factor. The inner workings of all 6 will be more or less identical. Expect these monsters to drop somewhere in the range of $950. Seeing as i-mate and HTC have parted ways, the phones will be sourced from a variety of different manufacturers, though there’s no word on exactly who might be putting these things together. Expect 3 new handsets to drop soon at the upcoming Gitex exhibition, with a staggered roll out of everything else to follow soon. There ya have it. Now, let’s just hope they don’t all come out looking like the i-mate JAQ!

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