Feb 15

Zuckerberg: Expect ‘dozens’ of Facebook phones this year (update)

Posted in: mwc, mwc 2011, Mwc2011, Today's Chili, video

He’s said it before: there will be no Facebook phone. And now it’s clear what he meant — Zuck’s strategy is to integrate Facebook into every phone telling us today at the HTC launch event in Barcelona that we’re only seeing the first wave of Facebook-enabled phones hitting the market, with dozens of phones featuring deep social integration coming this year. See Mark (or is it?) lay down the law after the break.

Update: Facebook’s official blog just chimed in with some factual heat — some of those “dozens” of new Facebook phones will have the social network “as an element of the device hardware itself.” If you ask us, it sounds like the physical Facebook button is going to be a thing.

Continue reading Zuckerberg: Expect ‘dozens’ of Facebook phones this year (update)

Zuckerberg: Expect ‘dozens’ of Facebook phones this year (update) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 15 Feb 2011 16:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feb 15

HTC Announces Tablet, Facebook Phones

Posted in: tablets, Today's Chili

 

htc.JPGToday at Mobile World Congress, HTC unveiled two new Facebook based phones and a tablet, an odd change since the company’s statement last month that it wouldn’t be releasing a phone based on the popular social network. The phones are called Salsa and Chacha. HTC believes that the phones will give it an advantage in the battle against Apple and RIM. The Salsa has a full QWERTY keyboard, 3.4 inch screen, and runs on Google Android OS. The Chacha also runs on the Android OS, and, has a 2.6 inch touchscreen. 

The HTC tablet is called Flyer. It has a Sense UI, digital pen , 7 inch screen, and a Qualcomm 5 gigahertz processor. The Flyer also runs Android. 

For the last year, we have heard rumors about a Facebook phone-which Mark Zuckerberg always denied. These two phones appear to be the closest to an actual Facebook phone as you’ll be able to get.

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Feb 15

HTC’s Facebook-worshipping phones headed to AT&T later this year

Posted in: Android, att, cellphones, HTC, Today's Chili

HTC just unveiled its MWC lineup a few hours ago, including the ChaCha and the Salsa, which both possess dedicated Facebook buttons (all the cool kids have Facebooky phones these days). AT&T, however, just issued a statement to let the world know that it’ll have a Facebook-dedicated HTC handset by later this year. Now, there’s no word on which phones are AT&T-bound just yet, but a spokesperson told All Things D‘s Ina Fried that the carrier will have at least twelve Android phones on offer this year.

HTC’s Facebook-worshipping phones headed to AT&T later this year originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 15 Feb 2011 12:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feb 15

HTC Salsa and Chacha bring the dedicated Facebook button to Android (update: eyes-on)

Posted in: Android, breaking news, BreakingNews, gingerbread, hands-on, HTC, htc sense, HtcSense, launch, mwc, mwc 2011, Mwc2011, official, sense, Today's Chili

Yes folks, the leaks were for real, HTC really is bringing out a pair of new handsets adorned with a dedicated, delicately illustrated Facebook key front and (almost) center. HTC is very careful not to call its Salsa — a 3.4-inch, 480 x 320 touchscreen device — and portrait QWERTY-sporting ChaCha “Facebook phones,” however Mark Z’s highly successful social network is indeed the focus around which both are built. The OS is Android 2.4 underneath, however the Sense customizations have taken on an extra few tweaks and functions to accommodate a Facebook-centric lifestyle. That royal blue button is context-aware, with a pulsating light surrounding it any time there’s an opportunity to share whatever you’re doing with the phone through Facebook. A good example of that is you can long-press the F key to automatically check in with the social mothership.

In terms of specs, you’re looking at a lot of common components between these two. There’s a 600MHz Qualcomm MSM7227 — which didn’t seem to struggle unduly with basic functions during our quick play around with the Salsa — 512MB of both RAM and ROM, a 5 megapixel autofocus camera with LED flash, and a VGA front-facing cam. The resolution on the ChaCha is 480 x 320 as well, which should provide decent pixel density on that 2.6-inch screen. Both are expected to launch globally before the end of Q2 2011, at pricing points above the newly announced Wildfire S, but below the similarly fresh Desire S and Incredible S handsets. We’ll have more in-depth impressions and hands-on galleries for you as soon as we can get them, stay tuned!

Gallery: HTC Chacha eyes-on

Gallery: HTC Salsa first eyes-on

Continue reading HTC Salsa and Chacha bring the dedicated Facebook button to Android (update: eyes-on)

HTC Salsa and Chacha bring the dedicated Facebook button to Android (update: eyes-on) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 15 Feb 2011 02:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feb 14

HTC’s Facebook-loving phones show up in a series of press shots

Posted in: Android, cellphone, cellphones, HTC, Today's Chili

Just a few days ago we heard that HTC might be prepping some lower-end devices with dedicated Facebook widgets, and well, here they are. The two devices — one featuring a full keyboard and a less ugly one with full touchscreen — definitely have a Facebook button, and while we know nothing of specs yet, various sources have reported that Facebook updates will be streamed directly to the widget, the camera will upload directly to Facebook, and the phones, which will run a stripped down Android build, will have minimal storage. We’re not soothsayers, but we have a feeling we’ll know more tomorrow, when HTC’s MWC press event gets under way. Hit the source for a shot of the other phone.

HTC’s Facebook-loving phones show up in a series of press shots originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 Feb 2011 21:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feb 11

Is the Internet God? [Egypt]

Posted in: politics, Today's Chili, top

How could god let this happen? I am the Jewish child of Holocaust survivors, so that is a question that I have heard asked throughout my life. Everyone from the most revered religious leaders to George Burns playing the title character in Oh God, Book 2, has tackled that enquiry. More »

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Feb 10

HTC to debut Android phone with dedicated Facebook button that doubles as Winklevii irritant

Posted in: HTC, rumor, rumors, Today's Chili

Do you know how much time is lost having to jump out of an application to click on the Facebook icon (or widget) on your home screen? That 0.4 seconds, when done hundreds of times each and every day (assuming you ever leave the Facebook screen in the first place) can really add up — precious time you could spend updating your status and liking your girlfriend’s brother’s Business Cat wall post. INQ figured it out, and HTC may have found a way to restore those precious seconds, as well. According to The Financial Times, the company plans to introduce an Android device with a dedicated Facebook button (note: not a “Facebook phone”). We wouldn’t expect anything crazy out of the clicker, however, as the dream crushers known currently as “people familiar with the device” say its purpose is to take you to the Facebook front page — if you want something more. HTC is expected to introduce it this month, and if we were betting folk, we’d say that meant Mobile World Congress next week.

HTC to debut Android phone with dedicated Facebook button that doubles as Winklevii irritant originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 10 Feb 2011 12:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feb 10

Inq Cloud Touch preview

Posted in: Android, cloud, froyo, hands-on, impressions, preview, social networking, SocialNetworking, Today's Chili, touch, uk, united kingdom, UnitedKingdom, video

We can’t accuse Inq of having the best timing in the world — the company announced its new Facebook-centric Cloud Touch and Cloud Q phones at about the same time that HP was busy blowing minds with its new webOS range in San Francisco — but at least that gave us an excuse to get out of the Engadget bunker this morning and go check out some new gear. We’ve gotten to grips with the 3.5-inch touchscreen-equipped Cloud Touch and have broken down our first impressions of the device for you after the break. Aside from Facebook, Inq has chosen to integrate Spotify Premium into this phone along with Fluency, the typing prediction engine that powers SwiftKey. The two serve as significant upgrades on the default media player and keyboard software, respectively, and add a nice sprinkling of value to a phone that’s already expected to go easy on the wallet. The gallery below will illustrate anything else you may need or want to know, although you’ll have to check out the video to see the multifunctional unlock screen and Facebook widgetry in action.

Gallery: Inq Cloud Touch preview

Continue reading Inq Cloud Touch preview

Inq Cloud Touch preview originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 10 Feb 2011 09:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feb 10

The Facebook Phone Inspired by Stormtroopers and Wall-E’s Girlfriend [Cellphones]

Posted in: cellphones, Phones, Smartphones, Today's Chili, top

While most of us won’t swap our iPhones or top-level Androids for INQ’s two latest cellphones, the Cloud Touch and Cloud Q, anyone considering their first smartphone should definitely check these out. Especially if you’re F5-ing Facebook all day long. More »

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Feb 09

INQ launches Facebook-focused Cloud Touch and Cloud Q phones

Posted in: cloud, qwerty, Today's Chili, uk
We’ve been hearing a fair bit of buzz about INQ and Facebook getting all cozy-like and creating a Facebook phone. Well, that’s only half right: INQ has made its first Android 2.2 device, really focused on Facebook integration, and seem to have really nailed it. The two devices are the INQ Cloud Touch (pictured above) and a QWERTY device with exactly the same specs — but, with a QWERTY keypad, of course — named the Cloud Q. Features include triband HSPA for the European folks, 3.5-inch capacitive touchscreen display, 5 megapixel autofocus camera, all manner of mail support including Exchange, what appears to be legendary Facebook support, and Spotify onboard as the de facto music app with a dedicated key.

INQ’s two Cloud devices are apparently the first mobiles to use the Facebook Social Graph API, which will see all your most important Facebook content appear on your set’s homescreen. Another bonus in here is the keyboard tech — based on SwiftKey — which will not only predict what word you’re typing, but what words you may type based on some AI wizardry, science, and your writing tendencies. The Cloud Touch is set to launch in April at Carphone Warehouse and BestBuy in the UK with the Cloud Q landing sometime in Q3. We’re just about wheels-up for Barcelona to check out the haps at MWC next week, and you can be sure we’ll be all over these sets as soon as we land.

Gallery: INQ launches Facebook-focused Cloud Touch and Cloud Q phones

INQ launches Facebook-focused Cloud Touch and Cloud Q phones originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 09 Feb 2011 18:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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