Not French
Chinese OEM Lenovo must have got a special deal on Snapdragon chips from Qualcomm, because at CES 2010 it just can't stop launching products containing them.
We've already had the first smartbook - the Skylight - and a hybrid notebook - the U1. But the product Lenovo was most keen to bring attention to at a packed event was LePhone - its first high-end smartphone.
Positioning it squarely in the iPhone/HD2/MILESTONE/Nexus One space, the LePhone (le means happiness in Chinese apparently) is a 3.7 inch AMOLED touchscreen phone running the Snapdragon SoC. It has all the usual bells and whistles like GPS and even has a front facing camera from impromptu video conferencing.
It has a proprietary communication interface that we understand is Android-based, and puts a premium on unified communications. It also has a customisable ‘Widget Space' that uses proprietary push technology to deliver a selection of services.
Lenovo is saying it is entering the global mobile market with the LePhone, but we understand it will initially be available only in China while Lenovo develops relationships with the global telco channel.
Here's Lenovo COO Rory Read sharing his enthusiasm with the gathered throng and a shot of the LePhone.