02
Nov
droid-2-global-verizon
Last Updated: November 2nd, 2011

The Motorola Droid 2 Global is really turning out to be the worst-kept secret since the Bay of Pigs invasion, isn't it? We've been hearing inklings of it since mid-September, including rumors that the CPU would be clocked at 1.2 GHz. 

droid-2-global-verizon

Now, Droid-Life's legion of tipsters have spotted two more official Verizon documents featuring the Droid 2 Global: a holiday ad featuring the D2G (above), and nothing other than a sheet listing the tech specs.

droid-2-global-fact-sheet

And quite a nicely-equipped phone it is. Think of it as a beefed up Droid 2, with an alternative color option:

  • 1.2 GHz CPU
  • 3.7" 854x480 screen
  • 5 MP camera with 2 LED flash
  • 8 GB ROM, 8 GB microSD included (16 GB total)
  • Dark Sapphire or Winter White

Seems a little weird to launch an upgraded product so soon after launching the original, but hey - I suppose they're trying to get a leg up on their competition.

02
Nov
A43-rotateweb

If for some reason you were lusting after the Archos 43 upon ogling the company's lineup of Froyo tablets, good news, you can buy one right now from Archos, for a tidy sum of $250 (this is for the 16GB model, the 8GB model is not currently available). What does a quarter of a grand get you? We've provided Archos' full tech specs at the end of the post, as they're quite lengthy. Currently, Archos appears to only be shipping the 43 to Canada and the US, via their online store - somewhat odd, as they are based in France (the French store shows the device is still "Coming Soon").

01
Nov
t-mobile-comet-ofc
Last Updated: November 3rd, 2010

Well folks, we had a date for the launch of the T-Mobile Comet and now we have a price-$9.99 with a $50.00 rebate on contract. This, coupled with the carrier’s new $10.00/200MB data plan makes for a very good price point for this entry-level smartphone. The Comet will feature 7.2Mbps HSPA, FM radio, an integrated Swype keyboard, microSD expansion up to 32GB, and a 3 megapixel camera. On top of all of that, it will be powered by Froyo! All of this makes for a pretty bad ass device, with the only downside being the QVGA screen.

While this might not attract a hardcore smartphone enthusiast like myself, I can really see a lot of first time smartphone buyers being interested in this.

01
Nov
mytouch 4g

Are you an existing T-Mobile customer? If so, hurry up and head over to T-Mobile.com, for the new myTouch 4G is awaiting you, just a click away. It appears the official on-contract pricing will be a hefty $299.99, even after a $150 "instant discount." As for the rest of us... we'll just have to wait 'til November 3rd rolls around - or until we can't resist the temptation any longer and go with Wirefly's $149.99 deal.

via Engadget

01
Nov
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Can't say we didn't see this one coming - exactly on schedule, Sprint today officially launched its 4G WiMax service in The Big Apple. In addition to NYC, 5 other cities that went live today include Hartford and New Haven in Connecticut, New Brunswick and Trenton in New Jersey, and Tampa in good old Florida.

Epic 4G and EVO 4G users, fire up your devices and give these new networks a good test so that you can feel better about paying that $10 "premium data" fee for all those months before 4G.

As Sprint’s 4G network expands, be sure to follow its growth on our up-to-date 4G Coverage Tracker, right here at Android Police.

01
Nov
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Last Updated: November 11th, 2010

Right alongside the launch of the Galaxy Tab, Verizon prepared to launch two Android-running phones on November 11: the ticker-equipped Samsung Continuum and Motorola's latest lower-end handset, the Citrus.

Samsung Continuum

As previously reported, the Continuum is a member of the Galaxy S family, albeit a rather odd one. The technical specs are largely the same as previous Galaxy S phones, with a few big changes:

  • 3.4", 800 x 480 Super AMOLED screen
  • 1 GHz Hummingbird processor
  • 5 megapixel camera with LED flash
  • 720p recording
  • 2 GB internal memory
  • 8 GB microSD card pre-installed
  • TouchWiz atop Android 2.2
  • 96 x 480 "ticker" below main screen

Clearly, what sets the Continuum apart from the slew of other Android phones available is the secondary screen, which is said to be used for notifications, RSS feeds, Facebook, as well as music controls.

31
Oct
xperia_x10_thumb

Right on time, Sony Ericsson's begun rolling out the update to Android 2.1 Eclair (build number 2.0.A.0.504) for the Xperia X10, X10 Mini, and X10 Mini Pro. Judging by what we're seeing on Twitter and from what our tipster told us, it's only available in Scandinavia for now, so we can only hope that other regions will get to join in on the fun soon enough.

Our tipster also mentioned that Universal Androot does not work, although a bit of digging through the forums revealed that SuperOneClick does indeed root the phones, even after the update. On that note, where's our Froyo?

30
Oct
10-30-10applemotopt

 

At the beginning of the month (October 6 to be exact), Motorola sued Apple for infringing 18 of its patents, including ones as diverse as antenna design and multi-design synchronization. Of course, being a company run by El Jobso himself, Apple just couldn't help it - they just had to strike back.

10-30-10applemotopt

And strike back the fruit-themed company has, claiming Motorola's Android phones infringe on six Apple patents, including (but not limited to) the:

  • Droid
  • Droid 2
  • Droid X
  • Cliq
  • Cliq XT
  • Backflip
  • Devour A555
  • Devour i1
  • Charm

The patents?

  • 7,812,828, Ellipse Fitting for Multi-Touch Surfaces
  • 7,663,607, Multipoint Touchscreen
  • 5,379,430, Object-Oriented System Locator System
  • 7,497,949, Touch Screen Device, Method, and Graphical User Interface for Determining Commands by Applying Heuristics
  • 6,493,002, Method and Apparatus for Displaying and Accessing Control and Status Information in a Computer System
  • 5,838,315, Support for Custom User-Interaction Elements in a Graphical, Event-Driven Computer System

It's not surprising to see Apple re-enforcing its scrolling patent (that would be patent #7,497,949) yet again, and since the company filed the cases in the Western District of Wisconsin (a court with a reputation for being nice to the plaintiffs), Motorola might be in deep with the sharks here.

30
Oct
D204watermarked_thumb
Last Updated: November 3rd, 2010

Ever since the Motorola Droid Pro was made official, the rumor mill has been buzzing about a global version of the Droid 2, which was exactly what the Pro was originally rumored to be.

Let's start with a rather suggestive screenshot from Droid Life yesterday:

droid-2-discontinued-600x355

That's right - Best Buy's reportedly discontinuing the Droid 2 at the time of writing, and now it may be just a matter of time before other retail outlets follow suit.

droid-2-global-black-white

But fear not - BGR was just told by an "anonymous source" that the Droid 2 won't be entirely dead, for the Droid 2 Global is, apparently, just around the corner.

30
Oct
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While they may not quite have the buzz that Samsung's Galaxy Tab is generating, there has been still been plenty of interest in Archos's 2010 line of Android tablets - particularly among those who like to hold on to their money. Archos's pricing has traditionally been one of the hardware's most attractive points, and this year's "Generation 8" is no exception.

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L-to-R: Archos 101, 70, 43, 32, 28 - aka Generation 8

Now Archos is adding another feather to the Gen. 8 cap, with news that the line should be receiving an update to Android 2.2 within the next few weeks.