Although it is still only October, the first raft of mobile phones targeting the lucrative Christmas market has been released, with Samsung, Sony Ericsson and mobile operator 3 unveiling their latest handsets.

Samsung's SPH-V7900 is the first phone with a built-in 3GB hard drive, which the company claims can store two full-length movies or 700 music tracks.

Sony Ericsson is also ramping up its multimedia phone business with the launch of the W900. Branded as a Walkman phone it can hold up to 2GB of media on a Memory Stick and has a 2in screen and 2-megapixel camera.

Meanwhile 3 has added phones from Nokia, Motorola and LG to its existing range of handsets. All come with cameras and colour screens, and LG's offering is available in pink.

Up to a third of all new phone purchases are made in the run up to Christmas, and October is a crucial month for vendors and operators.

O2 has launched its iMode service for the Christmas rush, and Vodafone is undergoing a major advertising campaign for its services. 

"We are starting to see the channel stocked from October onwards," said Rachel Lashford, a mobile technology analyst at Canalys.

"Any vendors launching new phones want to be sure that they are out now. Phones launched in December do not tend to do well, and it does not leave enough time to hit the stores."