Hasta La Gadget!

Shootin’ straight, are we Andy? For those unaware, Andy Rubin is the vice president of engineering at Google, and he’s had his fingers in Android before the mobile OS was taken mainstream by El Goog. He recently sat down to talk mobile with PCMag, and he left the world with a wealth of quotes to ponder. For starters, he practically calls out OEMs who aren’t keeping up with Android’s releases, noting that “there’s no advantage to the OEM of using an older version, and I’d say there’s a consumer disadvantage.” Clearly, he’s not a fan of all of this fragmentation, either. Moving onto Windows Phone 7, he really came out swinging. When asked what he thought about WP7 as a competitor, here’s what came flowing out:

“I think the screen shots I’ve seen are interesting, but look, the world doesn’t need another platform. Android is free and open; I think the only reason you create another platform is for political reasons.”

We’ll obviously need to wait for Windows Phone 7 to launch (and see a few quarters of sales numbers) to see if he’s just blowing hot air, but it’s interesting fodder at least. Hit the source link for much, much more where this came from — and keep it sensible in comments, okay? It’s just code, after all.

Google’s Andy Rubin on Windows Phone 7: ‘the world doesn’t need another platform’ originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 08 Oct 2010 19:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s been a long road to the T-Mobile G2 (and this review). Just two years ago, Android made its entrance into the smartphone market with the G1, a partnership with the fourth-place carrier, and a lot of promises about keeping things open. Since then we’ve seen the likes of the Droid family, Google’s Nexus One, and the powerhouses that are the Samsung Galaxy S line — to name a few. Yes, the Android landscape has become more than just a little crowded. But of those many, there are few who leap beyond what we’ve come to expect from the Google-backed enterprise into the realm of the top tier. For all the Android devices you can purchase, only a few rise above the noise. At a glance, the G2 looks like one of those handsets — designed and manufactured by HTC (and known as the Desire Z in Europe), outfitted with a (nearly) stock build of Android 2.2, and equipped with T-Mobile’s new HSPA+, which the carrier claims can offer network speeds nearly equivalent to 4G. So is the G2 the sum of its parts — the pure Android experience you’ve been waiting for — or does it fall short of the hype? Find out below in the full Engadget review!

Continue reading T-Mobile G2 review

T-Mobile G2 review originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 06 Oct 2010 18:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The note’s short and sweet, but it confirms that Google‘s buying spree is still on — BlindType was just acquired by the Big G. If you’ll recall, we were wowed back in July by the software’s ability to predict words regardless of how text was inputted, and it seems as if a few bigwigs within Google were as well. It’s unclear what Google’s Android team plans to do with its newfound IP, but you shouldn’t have to strain your imagination too hard to hazard a guess. As for the BlindType team? They’re “excited to join Google, and look forward to the great opportunities for mobile innovation that lie ahead.” Likewise, folks… likewise.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

BlindType acquired by Google, Android typists grin uncontrollably originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 01 Oct 2010 20:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Remember when Google opened up its own portal for purchasing the Nexus One? It was January 2010, and the URL was as simple as www.google.com/phone — ah, those were the days. Of course, the store has been down since late July when the phone sold out (permanently), so what’s the company to do with such a catchy web address? Simple: make a database of devices running your über-popular Android OS and help customers both compare and find where to buy. Only, it’s not just any devices running the platform: according to the Official Google Mobile blog, “all the phones in the gallery include Android Market, Google Search, and other Google Mobile services such as Gmail, Maps, and YouTube.” In other words, no phones that meddle with the Android Vision by opting for Bing or Yahoo instead. Maybe Fascinate can join the ranks after that purported Android 2.2 launch, but for now it’s conspicuously absent. Them’s the breaks — still, it’s fun to explore and draw up side-by-side comparison charts. Go on, give it a whirl, why don’t ya?

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Google opens Android database at former phone store URL, but only for devices using Google services originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 30 Sep 2010 00:48:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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What a day — yesterday, that is. Research in Motion finally announced its long-awaited BlackBerry tablet, the 7-inch PlayBook (thankfully not named the BlackPad). While there’s still quite a few missing details, and nary an unit in site for us to try first-hand, we’ve still got a sampling of specs for this little guy to go tête-à-tête on the quantitative field of proverbial battle, at least as it can be seen so far (that early 2011 release date is still a ways off). Looks very promising so far, lined up against Apple’s iPad, Samsung’s Galaxy Tab, and the Dell Streak, but our known unknowns — i.e. price, app support, and overall feel of using the QNX-built operating system — are what will really make or break the slate. Until that time, enjoy our number-crunching below:

	BlackBerry PlayBook	Apple iPad	Samsung Galaxy Tab	Dell Streak
Screen size	7 inches	9.7 inches	7 inches	5 inches
Resolution	1024 x 600	1024 x 768	1024 x 600	800 x 480
Pixel density (approx.)	170	133	170	187
Platform	BB Tablet OS	iOS 3.2.2 (4.2 in November)	Android 2.2	Android 1.6 (2.1 / 2.2 in future)
Adobe Flash support	10.1	Not Supported	10.1	Not supported
Processor	1GHz dual-core Cortex A9	1GHz Apple A4 (ARMv7)	1GHz Cortex A8	1GHz Snapdragon
Graphics	Unknown	PowerVR SGX 535	PowerVR SGX 540	Adreno 200
RAM	1GB	256MB	512MB	512MB
Internal Storage	16GB / 32GB (unconfirmed)	16GB / 32GB / 64GB	16GB / 32GB	512MB
Expansion	Unknown	None	microSD	microSD
Connectivity	802.11 a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR	802.11 a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR	802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0	802.11 b/g, Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR
Cellular data	3G and 4G promised for future	3G optional (AT&T)	3G (all carriers)	3G (AT&T)
GPS	None	3G models only	Yes	Yes
Camera	3MP front, 5MP rear	None	1.3MP front, 3MP rear	VGA front, 5MP rear
Weight	0.9 lbs	1.5 – 1.6 lbs	0.84 lbs	0.49 lbs

BlackBerry PlayBook vs. iPad vs. Galaxy Tab vs. Streak: the tale of the tape originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 28 Sep 2010 12:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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