LG’s LU2300 set to challenge Samsung’s M100S for Korean Android dominance?

Eternal archrivals-to-the-death Samsung and LG have a tendency to match one another tit for tat in virtually every consumer electronic category, but for whatever reason, LG’s been far less interested in going for broke with Android over the past year — though a preoccupation with Windows Phone 7 Series is a solid guess at this point. Things may be changing, though, now that we’ve got news out of Telecoms Korea that they’re prepping a more brutal assault than the weakling GW620 could ever provide in the form of a so-called LU2300 for the domestic market (we’re assuming the actual thing will be a little more… well, “designed” than the snow-white mockup above). The site is playing up LG’s announcement that the phone will bundle a bunch of popular apps in ROM (awesome?) but the real news is the impressive spec sheet, which is said to include a Nexus One-like 1GHz Snapdragon and WVGA AMOLED display paired with Android 2.1 and a 5 megapixel cam capable of 720p video. It certainly sounds like it’s ready to give Samsung’s M100S a run for its money, but we’ll need to wait until its second quarter release to know for sure.

LG’s LU2300 set to challenge Samsung’s M100S for Korean Android dominance? originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 02 Mar 2010 17:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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How would you change Google’s Nexus One?

It hasn’t quite been out (in public hands, anyway) for two months, but Google’s Nexus One has managed to grab the world’s attention and focus it squarely on Android. Specs wise, it’s not the superphone that many had expected, but it’s certainly delightful in its own right. For those who have sprung for one, we’re bubbling over in anticipation to hear how you’d change it. Would you have snuck an overclocked processor in there? Would you have ditched the trackball for a sensor pad? Do you wish it were available on more carriers? Is the call quality up to snuff? Look — there’s a better-than-decent chance that you threw down some serious bills on this, so don’t hold back. The Nexus Two just won’t be the same without your pair of pennies.

How would you change Google’s Nexus One? originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 26 Feb 2010 22:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rogers getting Android 2.1-equipped Acer Liquid e this spring

Acer may make plenty of cellphones, but they’ve so far been a pretty rare sight on North American carriers. That’s now set to change this Spring, however, when Rogers will reportedly be the first carrier in North America to offer Acer’s new Liquid e phone — and, incidentally, the first carrier in Canada to offer an Android 2.1 phone (not counting the upgradable Milestone, that is). In case you missed its debut at MWC, the Liquid e packs a 3.5-inch touchscreen, along with a slightly underclocked 768MHz Snapdragon processor, a 5-megapixel camera, 7.2Mbps 3G and Wi-Fi and, of course, a basic implementation of Android 2.1. Still no indication of a price or exact release date, but Rogers is promising to say more as that approaches.

Rogers getting Android 2.1-equipped Acer Liquid e this spring originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 22 Feb 2010 12:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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T-Mobile Pulse Mini does cheap, tiny, prepaid Android for Europe

In the US, the concept of a prepaid Android phone is about as foreign as the concept of an effective high-speed mass transit system, but abroad, T-Mobile is following up its Pulse with a cuter, smaller sibling in the Pulse Mini. Like the original the Pulse is sourced from China’s Huawei and offers Euro HSDPA, but the similarities end there: the new model will run Android 2.1 out of the gate, step down from an HVGA to a QVGA display, and sport a Qualcomm MSM7225 core. Look for it to launch in the UK and Germany in April; pricing will vary by market, but Britons can look forward to shelling out £99.99 (about $155) contract-free.

T-Mobile Pulse Mini does cheap, tiny, prepaid Android for Europe originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 22 Feb 2010 12:09:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HTC Desire ROM shoehorns HTC Sense and Flash 10.1 onto the Nexus One

Want some of that colorful, homescreen-juggling, Android 2.1 Sense UI that HTC has prepped for the HTC Desire? Well, the previously promised hacked ROM is ready for your Nexus One’s consumption. It’s in alpha right now, so install at your own risk, and does indeed support Flash 10.1, so also beware of the risk of browsing the real internet. What more danger, excitement, and grassroots handset support could you possibly want out of life? Hit up the source link for the full instructions, video of the ROM in action is after the break.

Continue reading HTC Desire ROM shoehorns HTC Sense and Flash 10.1 onto the Nexus One

HTC Desire ROM shoehorns HTC Sense and Flash 10.1 onto the Nexus One originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 21 Feb 2010 08:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Motorola Devour to sell for $150 at Best Buy?

You’ve just got to love the slow trickle of information about your next smartphone, right? Just days after hearing that Best Buy would gladly accept your pre-order on Motorola’s Devour (without actually telling you the final price, comically enough), this leaked flyer has flown into our inbox to clear up the mystery. Unless we’ve got some seriously awesome Photoshop work going on here, it seems as if the Flash supporting handset will sell for $149.99 on a 2-year Verizon contract, and of course, that’s sans mail-in rebate if you snag one from the Big Yellow Tag. Not bad given the specs, wouldn’t you say?

Update: Looks like a case (shown after the break) has popped up as well. Thanks, H.R.!

[Thanks, Anonymous]

Continue reading Motorola Devour to sell for $150 at Best Buy?

Motorola Devour to sell for $150 at Best Buy? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Feb 2010 09:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Some Droid Eris owners getting Android 2.1 update?

We’re not entirely sure what’s going on here, but that’s a shot of a Droid Eris running Android 2.1, and we’re told the update came over the air — a story seemingly corroborated by a couple other people around the web. Unfortunately, it seems like things aren’t quite fully baked yet: the update doesn’t include Sense UI, and it apparently wipes all your data and doesn’t allow you to log back into your Google Account. Verizon tells us that the Eris update to a “newer” Android is still in testing and hasn’t yet been officially released, so we’re taking all this to mean that there’s been a slip-up along the line — especially since this obviously isn’t final software. In the meantime, we’d say Droid Eris users should probably back up their sets just to be safe.

[Thanks, Vido]

Some Droid Eris owners getting Android 2.1 update? originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 17 Feb 2010 18:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HTC Desire listed at Amazon’s German portal (update: €519)

Curious as to what HTC will be charging for its Sense-enabled Desire? If Amazon’s German portal is to be believed, it’ll go for a cool €419 ($572). Of course, the site doesn’t give any indication as to when it’ll actually ship to those that order, but it is clear that Amazon is doing the selling and not some third-party merchant. Just under six Benjamins for a souped-up Nexus One? You know you’re in for that.

[Thanks, Lars]

Update: We had a feeling this price was too good to be true and sure enough, Amazon.de now lists the Desire for a steeper €519 ($711), alongside the newly arrived Legend, which has shown up with a €459 ($629) asking price [Thanks, Sebastian].

HTC Desire listed at Amazon’s German portal (update: €519) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 17 Feb 2010 16:53:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sprint: Android 2.1 update for Hero, Moment coming in early Q2

And there you have it, folks — word straight from Sprint that the much-anticipated Android 2.1 update will be coming to the HTC Hero and Samsung Moment “early” in the second quarter of this year. As you may recall, Sprint has actually been talking about this update since December, but “early 2Q10” is at least slightly better news than the previous “1H2010” estimate the carrier’s been dishing out.

Update: Sprint has posted a follow-up tweet saying that OTA vs. PC-based or in-store upgrades are “still TBD upgrade options.”

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Sprint: Android 2.1 update for Hero, Moment coming in early Q2 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 12:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HTC Legend takes the Hero to new heights of aluminum

If you thought that machining a phone from a single block of aluminum might cause RF issues in a phone… well, you can apparently think again, because HTC just went there with its freshly-introduced Legend. The rumored and leaked device becomes a proper successor for HTC’s time-tested Hero by upgrading the LCD to a 3.2-inch AMOLED display (while still carrying over the old HVGA resolution) and moving up from a trackball to one of those newfangled optical trackpads, though this one’s got a bit of a twist: it’s surrounded by a clickable button. The phone runs Android 2.1 with a series of brand new Sense enhancements, most notably the addition of a “Friend Stream” widget that aggregates friends’ status updates across services (a trend we’ve been seeing a lot of lately). We’re not hearing about North American availability at this point, but it’ll hit Vodafone and direct sales channels in Europe in “early” second quarter.

Update: Check out the promo video after the break!

Continue reading HTC Legend takes the Hero to new heights of aluminum

HTC Legend takes the Hero to new heights of aluminum originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 05:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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