DVB-H, do you need it?

Do you need to carry a TV around in your pocket? THat was the 1st question I asked myself when I was given a demo Sagem Mobile TV device from Multichoice to test thier new Mobile TV offering.

The answer, in a nutshell, is NO. Unless you wait around in public transport for hours or you are one of those proffesional que waiters, then there isn't enough time. We don't have the public transport that Europe or the US has and I am not a proffesional quer. (Is there such a word?)

The screen is too small to view while driving, in fact, the screen is too small to see the score on the top left corner while watching a soccer match. Maybe I am a radio man at heart but I found that I woud rather listen to the radio commontary of a soccer match than watch it live on a tiny tiny screen.

The offerings from Multichoice is limited at the moment with the Fashion TV Channel being changed to a news update from the SABC. Watching or catching up with news is great on the device, but the picyire is too small, again, to reade any of the additional information that the news channels scroll across the screen.

Don't get me wrong, the picture quality is supperb. The images are sharp and the resolution is great. It's just too small. Elswhere in this blog, I wrote about what these small screens will do to our eyes. Maybe SAGEM should have had a look at that before releasing this phone.

As a phone, the SAGEM, My Mobile isn't great. I am a dedicated Nokia man and the change to Sagem was difficult. To put it one way, it's CUTE. I don't like CUTE phones. I am a business man, I don't want clever boops and bops when I press the buttons. I don't want silly ringtones or cute pictures on my screen. All I want ia a ring and a phone that I can watch TV on.

Signal coverage is limited at the moment with only the inner ring of JHB getting a signal and that is weak at the best of times. Unless you are standing in the Multichoice building, actually, outside the building. The phone struggles inside.

I have a free one, would I pay for one and what will the paying structure be? Who knows.