GeeksPhone One in the wild, now packing a physical keyboard

Remember the Spanish-borne Android device GeeksPhone One? It was late June when we got our first (and so far only) look at the phone. Of course we’ve been wanting some more time, but apparently Xataka‘s beaten us to the punch, and lo and behold, she’s gotten herself a shiny new physical keyboard. The site stresses that the user interface isn’t done and the icons temporary, but does note that the keyboard is comfortable and the total weight and size is apparently comparable to the HTC Dream / Ion / MyTouch 3G. Additionally, our compadres at Engadget Spanish have read that One’s release been pushed back from fall until sometime in January. We’ll certainly be keeping an eye out, but given the bevy of Android options on the horizon, we can’t promise we’ll be waiting.

Read – One in the wild
Read – One delayed until January

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GeeksPhone One in the wild, now packing a physical keyboard originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 03 Oct 2009 10:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Android 1.6 Donut gets jazzy walkthrough, performance and Market tweaks on display

Video: Android 1.6 Donut gets jazzy walkthrough, performance and Market tweaks on display

Android 1.6 was just released to dev phones, and while you may not have a suitably configured handset to run it, YouTuber arsenito84 does. He’s installed the latest version on his T-Mobile myTouch 3G and was kind enough to create this nine minute video showing every tiny little tweak made to the OS. There’s not much in the way of presentation updates, most changes going on behind the scenes, particularly when it comes to performance. Those improvements are definitely noticeable when it comes to scrolling through apps, but the new Android Market is also on display, and the photo and video capturing has been improved. Why, the phone even does a fine job of loading up this very website, though scrolling is less than smooth. Still no firm word on when your average user will be able to get their Donut on, but if earlier reports are to believed it could be within a month.

Continue reading Video: Android 1.6 Donut gets jazzy walkthrough, performance and Market tweaks on display

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Video: Android 1.6 Donut gets jazzy walkthrough, performance and Market tweaks on display originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 30 Sep 2009 08:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Android Battle: CLIQ edition

CLIQ
Galaxy
Tattoo
Hero
Magic / MT3G
Dream / G1
CarrierT-Mobile— (GSM / HSDPA)— (GSM / EDGE)SprintT-MobileT-Mobile
Manuf.MotorolaSamsungHTCHTCHTCHTC
Price$179.99$99.99$149.99
ReleasedJuly 2009Oct 11, 2009Aug 5, 2009Oct 22, 2008
KeyboardSlide-outVirtualVirtualVirtualVirtualSlide-out
AndroidMOTOBLURStandardSense UISense UIStandardStandard
Processor528MHz MSM7201A528MHz ARM11528MHz MSM7225528MHz MSM7201A528MHz MSM7201A528MHz MSM7201A
Screen3.1-inch (est.), 320 x 4803.2-inch, 320 x 4802.8-inch, 240 x 3203.2-inch, 320 x 4803.2-inch, 320 x 4803.2-inch, 480 x 320
Headphone3.5mm3.5mm3.5mm3.5mmExtUSBExtUSB
TouchscreenCapacitiveCapacitiveResistiveCapacitiveCapacitiveCapacitive
Still Camera5MP with AF5MP with Flash3.2MP5MP with AF3.2MP with AF3.2MP with AF
Bluetooth2.02.12.02.02.02.0
ExchangeActiveSyncActiveSyncActiveSyncDepends on versionDepends on version
Storage256MB, microSD8GB, microSD512MB, microSD512MB, microSD512MB, microSD256MB, microSD
Battery1400mAh1500mAh1100mAh1500 mAh1340 mAh1150 mAh
Weight163g114g113g135g116g158g

It’s been over 11 months since the Android first hit the scene with HTC’s T-Mobile G1, and in that time we’ve come to the conclusion that, despite having more or less a clean slate on industrial design choices and specs, little progress has been made in the way of variation. Stacked up side-to-side, Motorola CLIQ manages to stand out with a slide-out keyboard and MOTOBLUR skin, but under the hood, it’s pretty much as uniform as a netbook. Peruse for yourself in the chart above.

Update: We had a typo on the Hero screen size — it’s 3.2-inches, not the other way around! Stupid keyboards.

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Android Battle: CLIQ edition originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 10 Sep 2009 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Android-based Archos gets pictured, briefly priced by B&H

We still gotta wait until September 15th for the whole scoop, but B&H has gone ahead and spoiled some of the mystery of Archos’ Android-based Archos 5, giving the internet tablet its own listing in a number of different storage capacity options, pictures in tow, as well as a $130 DVR station. Prices are currently listed as TBA, but fortunately it looks like the fine fellows at ArchosFans managed to capture the page when there were more concrete dollar signs on each model, to the tune of $294 for 16GB SSD, $370 for 32GB SSD, $320 for 160GB HDD, and $420 for a 500GB HDD. In the DVR station pic we spotted “HD” listed in the video names, which gives us hope that even more of those February leaks are coming to fruition. Screenshot of the with-price listings after the break.

[Via ArchosFans; thanks, Steve and Axel]

Read – 500GB HDD listing
Read – 16GB SSD listing
Read – 32GB SSD listing
Read – DVR Station

Continue reading Android-based Archos gets pictured, briefly priced by B&H

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Android-based Archos gets pictured, briefly priced by B&H originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 01 Sep 2009 16:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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T-Mobile MyTouch 3G Review

See Google Ion Review.

Done? Good. This phone is exactly the same, except that the myTouch has a slightly different finish, and T-Mobile released an App Pack filled with two handfuls of essential apps on the Android Marketplace for it. That’s what we’re going to review today. Also, keep in mind that this is running on T-Mobile’s 3G network, which isn’t quite as good as if you imported the device and used it on, say, AT&T’s 3G network, which has more coverage.

FreshFace: A theming app for your Android. It has the ability to add small widgets like an RSS reader and a notepad onto your desktop. The FreshFace desktop pretty much takes over your real desktop, which is good, because FreshFace offers five pages of apps instead of three, but bad, because it’s buggy.

Adds a little bit more functionality and theming, including new icons


Themes are mediocre


Occasionally buggy

imeem Mobile: Free streaming internet radio.

Decent enough for a free app, but not outstanding, considering Pandora and LastFM do this kind of thing much better.

T-Mobile Mobile Backup: A free contact list backup service from T-Mobile. Kind of unnecessary, since your phone already syncs with your Google account.

Not really sure what this app does that your Google account syncing doesn’t already do. Maybe if you want to switch to another phone that’s not an Android phone?

Movies by Flixter: A movie showtimes app that also lets you watch trailers, read reviews and browse DVD catalogs.

Pretty decent movie catalog app that does as much as you’d expect

T-Mobile My Account: Quick and easy access to all your phone’s account info, including your activity billing, your plan and any alerts you may have. For some reason this only works over your cellular connection, so you’ll have to shut off Wi-Fi.

Easier than loading up the T-Mobile site

Phonebook by Voxmobili: A replacement phonebook that sorts your contacts into a more usable manner. Plus, it’s colorful.

Better, in many ways, than the official Android dialer. Definitely replace your contact list with this

Sherpa: A fancy Yelp-like app that can help you find local shops (eateries, theaters, cafes, grocery stores) using your phone’s GPS.

It’s just like Yelp, and quite useful if you’re trying to find stuff within walking distance

Visual Voicemail: It’s visual voicemail.

It’s visual voicemail.

WorldTour: Periodically sets your wallpaper to live webcams around the world, like Paris

A little bit goofy. Would be better if the wallpapers were higher quality

T-Mobile myTouch 3G gets unboxed, user guide outed

Can’t wait until July to check out every nook and cranny of T-Mobile‘s version of the Ion / Magic? A couple of tipsters, including one anonymously, have lent us a hand in that department with pictures of an apparent myTouch 3G unboxing, as well as an entire user guide dating back to May 19th. We’re still rummaging through it ourselves, but so far we’re not seeing anything we didn’t already know or see for ourselves with the phone’s many other releases. Completionists can hit up the 113-page manual in the gallery below.

[Thanks, Derek]

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T-Mobile myTouch 3G gets unboxed, user guide outed originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 23 Jun 2009 19:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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T-Mobile myTouch 3G Gets Official, Preorders Start July 8

T-Mobile’s second Android phone, the myTouch 3G (previously known as the HTC Magic which we reviewed here), has finally been announced in an official capacity for $200. Its official official name is the “T-Mobile myTouch 3G with Google”.

It’s basically the same specs as we’ve seen in other incarnations, and it’ll work with T-Mobile’s 3G frequencies. We’ll take a look at what customizations T-Mobile has put on the phone, but for a general idea of what to expect of this one over the original T-Mobile G1, take a look at our review of the Google Ion.

Dell’s Mini 10v shown running a plethora of operating systems, Android Cupcake among them

Dell's Mini 10v shown running a plethora of operating systems, Cupcake among them

Need some further proof that Dell is working on an Android-powered netbook? How about a video featuring Doug Anson, Dell’s Technology Strategist, sitting next to a Mini 10v that’s running Android? And it’s not just any flavor of Google’s OS — oh no, this is the frosting-covered goodness of Cupcake. Sadly the demonstration is nothing more than showing the desktop with that big, iconic clock, but it’s proof enough that Round Rock’s finest are working on something special. Also shown are 10v’s running standard Ubuntu and the Netbook Remix, but they don’t taste nearly as good. Video after the break.

[Via Pocket-lint]

Continue reading Dell’s Mini 10v shown running a plethora of operating systems, Android Cupcake among them

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Dell’s Mini 10v shown running a plethora of operating systems, Android Cupcake among them originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 May 2009 08:21:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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ISB Corp assimilates Android into STB

Netbooks and digital picture frames aren’t the only new territory Google’s Android can be found exploring. ISB Corp is tinkering with the platform as a way of powering a set-top box. A reference board powered by TI’s OMAP 3530 processor was on display last week, strutting its video playback and web browsing capabilities at the 12th Embedded Systems Expo in Tokyo, and there the company said it was in the process of optimizing the software for a smooth HD video experience. It’s also reportedly demonstrating support for wireless keyboards and Bluetooth. Frankly, we haven’t been 100 percent sold on a lot of these Android implementations, but there’s definitely potential here. Hopefully we can get some more glimpses of it in the not too distant future.

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ISB Corp assimilates Android into STB originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 18 May 2009 19:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google and dozens of Android purveyors slapped with trademark lawsuit

Google and dozens of Android purveyors slapped with trademark lawsuit

Hold on to your positronic caps, readers. It seems our little green robo-friend may be in for a little bit of legal trouble. Erich Specht has sued Google and seemingly every company that has ever thought about using its mobile OS (like T-Mobile, Vodafone, Intel, Motorola, Samsung, and lots more) for infringing use of the name “Android.” He’s the owner of the trademark for Android Data Corporation, granted way back in October of 2002. Google came around and filed a trademark application for Android five years later and, wait for it, had that trademark application denied due to confusion with Mr. Specht’s. In other words, it looks like Google and its Open Handset Alliance cronies are on the defensive and, seemingly, not on particularly firm ground. Specht wants damages and a name-change for Google’s OS, and as of now we wouldn’t be surprised if he got at least one of his wishes.

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Google and dozens of Android purveyors slapped with trademark lawsuit originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 01 May 2009 08:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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