If you’ve been waiting to get your hands on a Helio Ocean — we know you’re out there — have we got a CrunchDeal for you. Helio’s got a special offer right now. A $199 Ocean with a $100 mail-in rebate with any qualifying plan. That’s the best deal we’ev ever seen on the Ocean, one of the CrunchGear staff’s favorite phones. We’ve blogged the shit out of it, and we keep finding new reasons to do so. If your current plan is up and you’re looking for a serious upgrade, snatch it up now. → Read More
There isn’t a whole lot to this one other than a quote from an SK Telecom official regarding the Helio and Virgin Mobile merger rumors. But it leads one to believe that the rumors are true. Make the decision for yourself, though. An SK Telecom official said nothing has been decided yet, but the two companies are “seeking various ways that would be mutually beneficial.” “What is certain is that SK Telecom will never give up on Helio, our foothold for business in the U.S.,” he added. Update: Reuters is confirming what was reported by the Chosun Ilbo earlier today. “(SK Telecom) is currently exploring strategic opportunities for Helio and has engaged in preliminary discussions with Virgin Mobile USA with respect to such an opportunity,” SK said in a clarification statement. Talks between SKT and Virgin Mobile are said to be in the preliminary stages and that it may not lead to anything in the end. It’s also unclear whether or not SKT will sell it’s stake in Helio to VM or that they would purchase VM. “SK Telecom has an aggressive stance on expanding its operation in the United States,” said Hyundai Securities analyst Lee Shi-hoon. “They have money to invest. It could be that SK changed its focus to Virgin Mobile after the deal with Sprint Nextel did not work out.” → Read More
A little birdie told me over the weekend a few details regarding the Helio and Virgin Mobile merger rumor that surfaced early last week. Sky Dayton, Helio’s former CEO and now Chairman, had a meeting with Best Buy during CTIA where I’m told Dan Schulman, CEO of VM, was also present. This is a big deal because Helio is making the play for mass distribution which adds a bit of fodder to the rumors about a merger. → Read More
We’ve heard weirder rumors about the future of Helio, our favorite MVNO, but this one’s got some interesting aspects to it. The buzz is that Virgin Mobile is looking to pick up Helio and merge the services, and in some ways the idea makes sense. Virgin is the leading MVNO for low-end handsets. They sell utilitarian phones and services to people who just make calls. You can buy their gear at 7/11. What it doesn’t have is a high-end or smartphone product line for sophisticated users. Helio is all high-end, with data-centric handsets and interactive features for power users. What it doesn’t have are low-end offerings or good distribution. Thus, they would be a good match. But will it happen? SK Telecom still owns Helio and has the cash to keep it afloat as long as it wants, but it can’t buy Helio’s way into the stores. So will the merger happen? We’ll see, but don’t count it out, it’s an interesting idea from many angles. → Read More
Helio today updated the YouTube client for its popular flagship phone, the Ocean. The update uses the same general interface, which is pretty good, and is rumored to be based on the new overall interface. The new client is faster, noticeably so, and it’s not just the interface; loading and buffering times are zippy indeed. It’s a free download for all Ocean users, and it the bandwidth is included in monthly all-in packages. → Read More
This is a nice little Wednesday treat for all of you Helio members out there. If you use an Ocean, Mysto, or Fin, then you have access to the “ultimate inbox” feature, which includes IMAP access to your gMail. IMAP is good, but on the go users want push email, and starting today Helio devices have just that for gMail accounts. Just check your gMail like you normally would and you’ll be asked if you want to enable push. Say “yes” and you’re set. I’ve been using it this morning and it works great. Helio is the first operator Google is offering this to, though our Google rep couldn’t be reached to say how long the exclusivity will last. → Read More
Mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) have been having one hell of a time over the past year. The biggest burnout among them was Amp’d Mobile, which lost $360M before realizing its customers couldn’t pay their bills. While Helio rode high for quite some time, that company has also lost Earthlink as an investor, seen CEO Sky Dayton depart, and accumulated a deficit of $560M. Now Sonopia, an MVNO that enabled communities and organizations to set up their own branded mobile services (so-called “mini-MVNOs”), has also shut down after failing to gain traction. According to a former business development consultant, Sonopia’s “approach was too ‘involving’ and too ambitious, offering targeted services and campaigns for segmented groups…which often lacked skills in running even a marketing program, let alone a mobile service.” Apparently the inflexibility of Verizon, its parent carrier, and the over-zealous optimism of founder Juha Christensen also led the company to ruin. Sonopia is now in the TechCrunch DeadPool. → Read More
Helio today updated the YouTube client for its popular flagship phone, the Ocean. The update uses the same general interface, which is pretty good, and is rumored to be based on the new overall interface. The new client is faster, noticeably so, and it’s not just the interface; loading and buffering times are zippy indeed. It’s a free download for all Ocean users, and it the bandwidth is included in monthly all-in packages. → Read More
[photopress:pantech_oz2_fcc_id.jpg,full,left]Regular readers know that we at CrunchGear love the Helio Ocean. At least three of us carry one with us at all times. The integrated GPS is the best I’ve ever used in a handset and the third-party software’s just fantastic. We’ve been eagerly awaiting the Ocean 2 and its rumored navigation technique that some say will rival the iPhone without copying it. And now we know (sort of) what it looks like, thanks to a filing that Heliocity found on the FCC database. It looks something like the Ocean. → Read More
I love the Helio Ocean, and I love Opera Mini. When some shadow devs used their fancy footwork to make the two work together, I was a very happy boy. Helio was impressed too, and today announced that the alternative browser would be officially supported on the Helio flagship handset. This is notable for a few reasons. This is a user-driven initiative; the vibrant Ocean community more or less said “we’re going to use Opera Mini on the Ocean, like it or not”. Helio then said, “Well, OK. We’ll help.” This is not the response most carriers would give, and it rather shows how into its users Helio is. It trusts their judgment. The free upgrade is also the first time any carrier has ever said, “Here, use Opera Mini.” It’s always been a third-party download. We’ve also heard that this could be the first of many deals between Helio and Opera. While the new browser doesn’t replace the built-in browser at this time, it might in the future. Those of you with the un-official version might want to upgrade to the official one, as it was made custom or the Ocean and runs a little smoother, or so we hear. Kudos the Helio and Opera for innovating for the users where most carriers and developers would be stingy. → Read More
It’s always weird that a business can lose money during a year but still call it a success. Such is the case with MVNO Helio, which saw $327million go down the tubes in 2007. The thing is, that was less than Helio had forecast, as it stated losses in 2007 should be $340-$360 million. The other good news is that it beat its own estimates in revenue, expecting $140-$170 million, but actually ending up with $171 million. It’s not much, but its the kind of things that point to a healthy growth. Couple with the recent restructuring and attractive rate plans and value-added services, Helio’s well ahead of its own roadmap for growth. 2008 is looking like it will be good for the MVNO, and 2009 is going to be the make or break point, as that’s the year Helio has likely picked as its time to make a profit. Helio: $560 Million In The Hole [Alley Insider] → Read More
Sprint has finally officialized its $99 all-you-can-consume plan for those with ravenous mobile appetites, but what’s interesting is that it’s Helio, an MVNO that lies atop the Sprint network, that first launched such plans. This means that Sprint is now undercutting one of it’s own partners at its own game. Or does it? While Sprints unlimited plan is the most generous of the major US carriers, Helio still has more value for the money. → Read More
[photopress:sluttypeter.jpg,full,center] One of the most-hyped, if under-used, features on Helio phones is the Buddy Beacon. Using the phones’ integrated GPS, you can use it to update your friends as to where you are, and request they do the same. The downside is they all had to be Helio members. But Helio sold Buddy Beacon to uLocate, who’s expanding the application to Sprint, Boost, Alltel, Metro PCS and the iPhone, while keeping it in the Helio family. What’s really cool is they’ve created a Facebook app that you update from your phone, so your peeps know where you are whenever you’d like them to. As you can see in the image above, Peter Ha’s at a Russian brothel in San Diego. It works. Free for Helio users, carriers will set their own prices when they launch their independent versions. Buddy Beacon [Facebook App] → Read More
Helio has once again dropped the price of their unlimited plan down to $99 from $145. You know the drill. Now drop on by your nearest store and take advantage while you can. The Ocean and Mysto are great choices in case you needed some advice on a handset. Helio → Read More
US based MVNO Helio has signed a deal with mobile focused entertainment aggregator Buzzd to offer real-time geotargeted information for bars, clubs and restaurants to its user base. The service from Buzzd, available to all Helio customers, delivers event and venue information and up-to-the-minute reviews and ratings from friends and other members of the Buzzd community. The service currently provides data from all “major” US cities with continuously updated event feeds which includes pricing, location, and event details. Events and venues are aggregated through partnerships with Flavorpill, TimeOut New York, and CitySearch. The Buzzd service also allows users to find, connect with and message friends with SMS and messaging features. Buzzd was founded in 2007 by two mobile media vets, Nihal Mehta, who started the first U.S. mobile marketing agency ipsh! acquired by Omnicom Group in 2005 and Deepen Shah, the founder of eZtext, a company acquired by ipsh! in 2003. The company is operating on an undisclosed private angel round it took on formation. → Read More
After a tough year in which partner Earthlink pulled back from its commitment to Helio, the virtual mobile carrier is now losing its CEO, Sky Dayton. (Dayton was also the founder of Earthlink). Although Dayton will become chairman, Helio’s remaining corporate partner, Korea’s SK Telecom, appears to be consolidating its control over the company (perhaps in an attempt to stem its losses). Dayton will be succeeded by Helio’s current president and COO Wonhee Sull, a former executive at SK Telecom. Running a mobile service on another company’s network is difficult to pull off financially because the operation is always at a cost disadvantage to the big mobile carriers that own the networks that the MVNO’s (mobile virtual network operators) are leasing—in this case Sprint’s. The company claims 200,000 subscribers, paying an average of $85 a month, and is among the leaders in getting subscribers to use data services. (Helio users, on average, send 550 text messages a month; 95 percent access the Web on their phones versus a 13 percent industry average; and 60 percent use their phones to access MySpace alone). But it is still not making money. That is with revenues of about $20 million a month, according to the company (a $240 million run-rate). In the mobile world, you need a much higher number of subscribers to hit critical mass, even if you don’t have to spend billions of dollars on building out networks. The short history of MVNOs is already littered with failed companies. The most inglorious of these was Amp’d, which went bankrupt after going through $360 million in capital, some of which went to buying ads on MTV and distributing promotional condoms. Hopefully, Helio won’t suffer the same fate. CrunchBase Information Helio Information provided by CrunchBase → Read More
Starting tomorrow – Wednesday the 16th of January for those of you not in the know – you will be able to pick up a Mysto anywhere they sell Helio gear. Yes, our little Mysto that we’ve followedfrom babyhood, and nurtured lovingly, is officially being released into the wild. It’s a great little phone that packs a lot into a small package (it’s heavy!) and Helio provides some awesome services, so find yourself a retailer or Helio dealio and go see what the hubbub is all about. → Read More
The Mysto has landed, and it is pretty hot. The slim slider is one of the best sliding phones I’ve seen yet. Samsung really knows what it’s doing with this form factor, and, with Helio, has made a pretty terrific mid-range phone that has high-end features. My first impressions of the phone came not just in how it looked — it’s Heigl-style attractive — but in how it felt. This phone is a serious featherweight, clocking in at roughly 1/3 the weight of the Ocean by my estimates. And it’s slim. “Lohan after a week long coke binge”-thin, but it doesn’t have that dime-store fake plastic feel to it lots of slender phones can have. It’s solid. And the spring-assisted slide mechanism is actually enjoyable to use. OCD kids, we’ve found your phone. → Read More
What’s small and slim and super-secret? The Helio Mysto. Just tore open the box. Review and video to come. → Read More
Not to toot our own horn or anything, but we’re going to have to on this particular occasion. The Mysto from Helio, which is keeping up with surf-related theme (I obviously dig that. Mysto is a ultra secret spot that no one else knows about and some may consider a myth), was outed by us a few weeks ago and we just caught wind that it’s hitting the market today. It’s not being widely released, though. Mysto is launching in the Korean American market today under the “Helio powered by SK Telecom” brand. But don’t worry because those of you residing in the NYC or Santa Monica area will get first dibs on one starting December 26th. You won’t find any demos and you have to tell them a secret password to get one from “behind the counter”. Like we told you before, Mysto is going to retail for $149. Oh yeah, about that password. Just tell the Helio employees CrunchGear sent you. If you don’t live reasonably close to either of these Helio stores then you’ll have to wait till next month. But we’re taking orders so just send us your CC info and we’ll get that right out to you. Heh. Spec wise, the Mysto loses the 3.2-megapixel camera with AF that’s found on the GSM version, u600. You’ll find a 2-megapixel camera sans AF and a microSD slot and some haptic touch controls. Look for an unboxing sometime today. → Read More
