Archive for September, 2009

We’ve expected the Acer a1, powered by Android, for quite some time now and things are beginning to fall in place for the late 2009, early 2010 release to come to fruition. eXpansys is offering the Acer A1 for pre-order (in France and Germany) for roughly $570. The price may be a little steep but considering it’s not yet subsidized and that it supposedly rocks Android 2.0 and comes with some stellar specs, we think this is definitely an Android phone we need to keep an eye on.

The Acer A1 specs are:

• Android 2.0
• Qualcomm 8250 768 MHz Processor
• 512 MB ROM / 256 MB RAM
• 3.5-inch touch-sensitive screen with WVGA resolution
• HSPA/WCDMA: 850, 1900, 2100 MHz – Up to 2 Mbps up-link and 7.2 Mbps down-link speeds
• Quad-band GSM
• GPS, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi
• 3.5 mm headphone jack
• 5 megapixel camera with autofocus
• 1350 mAh Battery
• microSD
• 115 x 62.5 x 12.5 mm 115 x 62.5 x 12.5 mm

The processor gets a significant speed boost when compared to other Android devices and everything else seems standard Android-fare. What do you guys think? [Android Central]

While Verizon & AT&T have aligned themselves with LTE and T-Mobile is sticking with 21Mbps HSPA+, Sprint has heavily invested in a WiMax network by Clearwire for their 4G-speed offerings. So it’s really no surprise that Sprint is planning to release a WiMax-speed smartphone in 2010. What is surprising is that some reports are pointing that device to be a Samsung-built, Android-powered smartphone. Android, Samsung, and WiMax? We’re already sold.

Though Sprint is just starting to launch their Android portfolio (with the wonderful HTC Hero), a truly ground-breaking device like a WiMax speed, Android-powered smartphone would be an absolute game changer for the sinking carrier. With the speed of WiMax, we’re talking about data speeds 3-5x faster than what an iPhone 3GS can do. Yeah, that’s pretty fast. By the end of 2010, about 80 cities will be covered in the WiMax network, a fairly respectable number given the breathtaking speeds of 4G.

We know 2009 isn’t over yet but if a 4G/WiMax Android device is coming by the end of 2010, we won’t even mind pining for a device that’s more than a year away. What do you guys think? Android, Samsung, Sprint, WiMax for the win? [AndroidCentral]

Because we’ve yet to receive official word on the release date of the Motoroal CLIQ, we’re left with rumors, speculation, and leaked pamphlets. Tmonews has received an image of a purported Motorola CLIQ pamphlet detailing that pre-orders for the CLIQ will start on October 19th. Though we’ve previously reported that the CLIQ might release in October, this new leaked pamphlet is the most convincing evidence yet.

BGR independently reports that the CLIQ will launch on November 11th. This report would fall in line with the leaked pre-order date of October 19th because it would give T-Mobile a little over 3 weeks to fulfill the pre-orders. The timeframe makes sense because T-Mobile typically gives a little over 3 weeks for pre-orders (like for the myTouch 3G).

If the CLIQ does launch in November, that’ll give Orange UK nearly a month’s head start on releasing the latest Android phone. And though that isn’t much of a surprise given that the UK has previously received Android phones early, it makes us even more envious of UK Android Users. To have the CLIQ (or DEXT) for free and early? Yeah, we pretty much hate you guys right now. [AndroidCentral]

Google introduced Google Fast Flip today, a web service that fights the pain of slow loading news feeds. Because media-heavy sites often take up a lot of time to load, Google has sought to solve the problem by creating a virtual page flip for popular news feeds. With Google Fast Flip, Google is attempting to re-create the feel of flipping pages in a magazine in the web space. In their own words:

Fast Flip is a new reading experience that combines the best elements of print and online articles. Like a print magazine, Fast Flip lets you browse sequentially through bundles of recent news, headlines and popular topics, as well as feeds from individual top publishers. As the name suggests, flipping through content is very fast, so you can quickly look through a lot of pages until you find something interesting.

Google Fast Flip currently offers over 3 dozen feeds from top publishers in both web and print and it’s very likely that we’ll see more in the future if Fast Flip proves to be successful. We think Google has a pretty interesting take on improving quick news reading on the web and suggest you give Fast Flip a spin for yourself. Google Fast Flip is available through your Android browser at fastflip.googlelabs.com [AndroidCentral]

You can never say that Oprah doesn’t have your back. To celebrate the premiere of Oprah’s 24th Season, Oprah and T-Mobile have decided to offer a $100 discount to the T-Mobile myTouch 3G, bringing the total cost of the still-new mobile device to $99. What a steal!

To activate the savings, type in KICKOFF24 in the promo box, the deal will reportedly be valid until September 24th. What’re you doing? Go get it!

Thanks Oprah!

If you don’t remember the HTC Touch HD, we don’t fault you. It was a splendidly wonderful, beautifully delicious type device that for some reason or another, did not launch in the US. Our friends at WMExperts had a very brief hands-on video, so if you want a refresher, feel free to click on over. The Touch HD was stunning because the screen (800×480) was simply drop dead gorgeous. But the Touch HD was a downer because it ran Windows Mobile.

So now that you’ve caught up with the original HTC Touch HD, how would you feel if the HTC Touch HD 2 ran Android? And that’s not all, the HTC Touch HD 2 would also receive a CPU speed bump to 628 MHz (from 528 MHz)–all the more to make running Android and HD video off your phone that much easier. Amazing, right?

It’s only rumor at this point, and a very weak rumor at that, but just the thought of that HD screen running HTC Sense and Android makes us weak in the knees. We won’t even talk about it any further for fear of jinxing the whole deal. Glorious! [AndroidCentral]

Like seemingly every other phone in the world, the HTC Hero will be available at Best Buy. Best Buy Mobile has just announced that they’ll be offering up the HTC Hero on October 11th for the same price of $179.99. They’ll be the only non-Sprint store that’ll sell the Hero so if you have a Best Buy near you but not a Sprint store, you’re in luck!

So why is buying the HTC Hero from Best Buy a better deal than buying the phone from a Sprint store? Two words: Instant Rebates. When you buy the Hero from Best Buy the upfront cost is $179.99 (plus applicable fees) as opposed to Sprint retail stores charging you $279.99 with $100 off through mail-in-rebate. The end cost is the same but who wants to deal with mail-in-rebates? Hassle free instant rebates are the way to go.

Anyone still buying the Hero from a Sprint retail store? [Android Central]

It might just be us, but we’ve always thought Android Market looked a little too ‘beta’ for our tastes. We love the simplicity it offers but have been itching for a redesign for quite some time now. But worry no more, because a Motorola Sholes User has leaked what looks like a fresh new Android Market and we like what we see.

In the new design, there are clear options to show the Top Paid, Top Free, and Just In applications. There’s also a new search icon in the top right corner. Overall, Android Market remains the same, it’s just that key points of the UI have been brought to the forefront (and in a much cleaner way). Instead of being buried in menus, everything looks to be much more intuitive.

We like it, what about you guys? Are you happy with the current design of Android Market? [AndroidCentral]