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Haier's dual SIM card phone

Haier's HG-N99 can support two phone numbers at one time.

Kent German Former senior managing editor / features
Kent was a senior managing editor at CNET News. A veteran of CNET since 2003, he reviewed the first iPhone and worked in both the London and San Francisco offices. When not working, he's planning his next vacation, walking his dog or watching planes land at the airport (yes, really).
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Kent German
The Haier HG-N99 in Chinese Kent German/CNET Networks

Haier's booth was way in the back of one of the halls at CES, but we wanted to swing by to see if (and when) the company would be bringing its cell phones to the United States. The PR rep wasn't exactly forthcoming, but we did get a brief tour of the models the company is hoping to bring here. The most interesting of the bunch was the HG-N99, and we can only hope that it actually arrives on our shores (Haier says it is in talks with U.S. carriers).

The Windows Mobile handset may look like your average smartphone, but it ups the ante in a big way by offering double SIM card, double standby functionality. That means you'll be able to put two SIM cards in the phone, which will enable you to use the HG-N99 for two phone numbers at the same time. No, you won't be able to place calls simultaneously, but you can receive calls to both numbers at any time. While such a concept is hardly original to the HG-N99, compatible phones are pretty rare in North America.

Other features on the GSM device include support for GPRS and EDGE, a 2-megapixel camera, Bluetooth, messaging, polyphonic ringtones, a mini-USB port, a WAP browser with Java support, and a microSD card slot.