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Apr

Samsung Announces A Mid-Range 4.7", Android 4.1 Phone Called The Galaxy... Sigh... The Galaxy 'Win'

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in News, Samsung

Don't let your eyes deceive you. That is not a Galaxy S III (or IV) you're seeing. No, that is a new phone from Samsung. Yes, it has a name. You know what else it has? A 4.7" 800x480 display powered by a 1.2GHz quad core processor. What's that? You want to know the name? No, you don't. You want to hear about the 5MP camera, or the 8 whole GB of internal storage!

Let me tell you all about how this phone is a decent device for mid-range customers. Not cutting edge, but not too terrible, either. Hmm? You still want me to tell you the name?

Mar

Galaxy S4 Mini Spotted, Rumored To Have 256ppi Display, Dual-Core Processor, Android 4.2.2

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in Leaks, News, Rumors, Samsung

Well, that didn't take long. Just a week after Samsung announced its newest flagship phone, we get rumors of the Mini version of the same. As before, it's not just a smaller version of the phone, but a lower-specced version as well. In fact, in terms of the display, the rumored specs are much lower. 960x540 to the tune of 256ppi. In other words, exactly half the resolution (the GS4 packs 1920x1080) and a little more than half the ppi (441ppi).

Here are the rest of the alleged specs:

Super AMOLED qHD display (est. 4.3")
1.6GHz dual-core CPU
TW Nature UX 2.0
Android 4.2.2

So far, that's all she wrote.

Mar

Sony Announces Xperia L And SP To Round Out Its Mid-To-High End Lineup

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in News, Sony

Today, Sony announced two new handsets to add to its existing smartphone lineups, led by the new SP. This handset has a 1.7GHz Snapdragon S4 Plus, 4.6" 'HD Reality Display' and Android 4.1. It's not the most awe-inspiring spec list we've seen, but certainly good enough to stand next to other highish-end handsets.

Here are the full specs for the Xperia SP:

1.7 GHz Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ S4 Plus dual core processor
Adreno 320 GPU
1 GB RAM
4.6” 1280x720 display
Android™ 4.1 (Jelly Bean)
LTE
NFC
8MP camera with HDR

In addition to the SP, Sony also announced the Xperia L, which is closer to a mid-range handset.

Feb

LG Refreshes Highish Mid-Range With The Optimus F5 And Optimus F7 Handsets

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in LG, News

While LG has started to make its way back into the hearts and minds of the average consumer with the impressive Optimus G Pro, and its sexier cousin the Nexus 4, the company still has other market segments to worry about. This is where things like the F-series comes in handy. Today the Optimus F5 and Optimus F7 were announced and, like their keyboard-dwelling namesakes, will probably be something we're aware of, but rarely pay too much attention to, despite their usefulness.

Here are the specs of the higher-end F7:

• Operating System: Android Jelly Bean 4.1.2
• Processor: 1.5 GHz Dual-Core
• Display: 4.7-inch True HD IPS (312 ppi)
• Size: 131.7 x 68.2 x 9.6mm
• Memory: 8 GB / 2 GB RAM / microSD (up to 32GB)
• Camera: 8.0 MP AF / 1.3 MP
• Battery: 2,540mAh

Aside from the dual-core processor and smaller amount of storage built in, this handset doesn't actually differ that much from the Optimus G.

Feb

LG Announces L Series II, Mid-Range To Low-End Phones For All

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in LG, News

While the Nexus 4 may be the LG handset getting everyone's attention, the company does have other market segments to think about. The L SeriesII (so that's what happened to the other letter from the Optimus G) fills that need with a trio of handsets that will debut with the Optimus L7II in Russia next week. The phone comes with a 4.3" 800x480 IPS display, dual-core Qualcomm processor and Jelly Bean 4.1.

Here are the full specs for the L7II:

• Chipset: 1GHz Dual-Core (Qualcomm MSM8225)
• Memory: Up to 4GB eMMC / 768MB RAM / Micro SD
• Display: 4.3-inch WVGA IPS
• Camera: Rear 8.0MP with LED Flash / Front VGA
• OS: Android 4.1 Jelly Bean
• Battery: 2,460mAh
• Size: 121.5 x 66.6 x 9.7 mm / 122.2 x 66.6 x 9.7 mm (Dual-SIM)

Following that initial release, the L3II and L5II (I'm noticing a familiar pattern here) will arrive.

Dec

Samsung Announces The Galaxy Grand, A 5" 800x480 Phone That Looks A Whole Lot Like The Note II

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in News, Samsung

Did you think that just because it was winter and all the major phone announcements had died down that Samsung was done releasing things? NOPE. Today, the Korean manufacturer released info on the brand new Galaxy Grand. Where "brand new" means "looks so much like the Note II that Samsung is probably suing itself for trade dress infringement." The phone will carry a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, a 5" 800x480 display, 1GB of RAM, 8GB of on board storage (expandable with a microSD card slot), a 2,100 mAh battery, and it ships with Jelly Bean (4.1.2)

Full specs in list form, for those who prefer it that way:

1.2GHz dual-core processor
5" 800x480 TFT LCD display
1GB RAM
8GB storage (expandable to 64GB via microSD
2,100 mAh battery
HSPA+
Android 4.1.2 (Jelly Bean
Single- or dual-SIM models

On the spec sheet, it looks like a mid-range phone at best.

Nov

LG Optimus L9 Arrives On T-Mobile, Available From Wirefly For $50, Or $80 Directly From T-Mobile

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in News, Optimus L9, T-Mobile

Sure, it's not a Nexus 4, but not everything can be a flagship, right? If you're shopping around on T-Mobile and you want to save a bit of money, the LG Optimus L9 has arrived to give you another option. Starting at $80 (after mail-in rebate) on T-Mobile's website, or $50 via Wirefly, this mid-range device still nets you a decent 1Ghz dual-core processor, a 4.5" qHD display and a relatively beefy 2150 mAh battery.

Here are the specs:

4.5" qHD display with Gorilla Glass 2
1GHz dual-core processor
1GB RAM
4GB storage
2,150mAh battery
Android 4.0

It's not going to win you any super nerd cred, but for the price it's not a bad piece of hardware.

Oct

Samsung Announces The Galaxy S III Mini, Same Nature-Inspired Design In A 4" Display

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in Galaxy S III Mini, News

We were expecting this, but today Samsung took the wraps off of the Galaxy S III Mini, though, as Cameron pointed out yesterday, this isn't the same beast of a phone in a tinier display. Packing an unnamed dual-core 1GHz processor, 1GB of RAM, an 800x480 Super AMOLED display, and a 5MP rear shooter, this device is designed to fit in a mid-range slot on carriers' lineups.

Here's a full spec list:

4" WVGA Super AMOLED Display
1GHz dual-core processor
1GB RAM
5MP rear shooter
8 or 16GB built-in storage, microSD card slot
NFC
1,500mAh battery
Android 4.1
HSPA 14.4/5.76 900/1900/2100 and EDGE/GPRS 850/900/1800/1900

Samsung hasn't shared any details on pricing or availability yet.

Sep

Samsung Galaxy Exhilarate Gets The Ice Cream Sandwich Bump, Available Via Kies Right Now

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in Galaxy Exhilarate, News

If you say nothing else about Samsung, the manufacturer is at least thorough about getting Ice Cream Sandwich out to as many devices as possible, if not punctual. Today's latest addition to the 4.0 stable is the Galaxy Exhilarate, a mid-range phone on AT&T. The update will be rolling out via Kies immediately.

The upgrade will not be sent out over the air, so break out those micro USB cables. The boost from Gingerbread should be a significant and welcome one for Exhilarate users. It's nice to see Samsung hasn't completely forgotten its mid-range line of phones. Even if the company does have about a million of them.

Sep

LG Splendor Will Come To US Cellular On September 12th For $79 After $100 Mail-In Rebate With 2-Year Contract

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in News, US Cellular

We've got another budget smartphone on the way for you, folks. US Cellular is now picking up the LG Splendor, a mid-range Android phone with a 4.3" display, 5 megapixel camera, and a 1GHz processor, yet 2GB of RAM, which is rather insane for a phone this far from the mainstream. We're also told the phone will come with a 4GB memory card included. The storage is expandable, but it sounds like there is no significant embedded storage without the included card. Hope you brought a spare.

There are also a few extra features LG has added. Including, and I swear I'm not making this up, "Cheese Shutter." This feature will allow users to take a picture simply by saying "cheese." It may sound silly, but on phones without dedicate camera buttons, spoken commands could be helpful.