Hasta La Gadget!

Pretty self-explanatory really: the T-Mobile G2 is now available to buy for a measly 50 greenbacks from its carrier’s online store. It’s a web-only deal, but it’s sweetened by free overnight delivery for anyone ordering before the 20th of December. So, $50 and two years of your wireless freedom in exchange for a phone capable of exploiting T-Mobile’s HSPA+ network and offering an almost stock Android experience? Decisions, decisions.

T-Mobile drops the G2 to $50 on contract, really wants you to buy one originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 13 Dec 2010 16:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oh, you too, T-Mobile? Without delving into details, T-Mobile USA has gone tit-for-tat with Sprint by dropping the knowledge that it’ll be adding tablets (other than the Tab, of course) to its product portfolio in 2011 — and as you might expect, they’ll be using the network T-Mobile has taken to calling “4G.” Though it doesn’t meet any technical definition of 4G, the company’s ever-expanding HSPA+ network is definitely hanging with the big boys running WiMAX and LTE right now, delivering downlink speeds of 10Mbps or more in some areas if you’re lucky — and that’s just the kind of special sauce you’re going to want when you’ve got a big touchscreen to consume content. No word on brand or platform, but we’ve no doubt some of that Honeycomb noise will be in the mix. Here’s the full statement:

“T-Mobile is working closely with the majority of our OEM partners to deliver 4G products by integrating HSPA+ into roadmaps in 2011 as the dominant global standard. Consumers will continue to see HSPA+ fuel future innovation in a variety of mobile consumer electronics from smartphones and tablets to emerging devices. T-Mobile will continue to be at the forefront of wireless innovation, delivering an aggressive 4G product lineup in 2011, including 4G tablets.”

T-Mobile says it’ll launch ‘4G’ tablets in 2011 originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 10 Dec 2010 16:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’ve heard rumors that Novatel is working on an LTE-enabled version of its MiFi for Verizon, likely for launch early next year — but you’ve got to figure that a few other manufacturers would like a slice of that sweet, juicy 4G pie, right? We just noticed this so-called SCH-LC11 from Samsung has garnered FCC approval, offering CDMA / EV-DO compatibility alongside 700MHz LTE stuffed into some sort of WiFi-enabled mobile router, which would be perfect for Big Red’s new network… but then again, it’d also be perfect for MetroPCS’ LTE airwaves. MetroPCS has yet to launch any data-centric LTE products, but it’s got a good relationship with Samsung — its only LTE device right now is the Samsung Craft, in fact — so we could definitely imagine the little guys trying to beat Verizon to the punch with a sexy, pocketable 4G hotspot to do battle with Sprint’s Overdrive. One way or another, this is hitting an American carrier… and the sooner, the better.

Update: Okay, we can rule out MetroPCS — the device is approved for CDMA on 850 / 1900MHz, not AWS, which is what MetroPCS uses. Verizon, here we come.

Samsung’s SCH-LC11 CDMA / LTE mobile hotspot gets FCC approval, probably Verizon bound originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 07 Dec 2010 16:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Samsung may have missed its promised September (and November) ship dates for Froyo on the Galaxy S range, but at this point, we’re just pleased to see any progress at all. Sprint’s Epic 4G has just become the first US Galaxy S phone to nab an official Android 2.2 (v2.2.1, in fact) build, with the requisite files populating Google’s servers this evening. If you’ll recall, a near-final build actually leaked out around three weeks ago, but the DK28 version making the rounds at xda-developers looks to be the real deal. Head on over to get your update going, and be sure to let us know how everything turns out in comments below.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Official Android 2.2 (Froyo) update emerges for Sprint’s Epic 4G originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 04 Dec 2010 21:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It looks like this CES could be a hot one for Motorola. Can you believe it was only a bit more than a year ago that Motorola introduced the Droid? Now it has a whole lineup of incredibly hot phones, and CES seems like a perfect time for the beating of chests in front of an industry. Motorola CEO Sanjay Jha just went on record during a keynote at the Credit Suisse 2010 Technology Conference, saying Motorola will be entering the tablet space ‘in the near future.’ He also said that he sees both 7-inch and 10-inch tablets as viable sizes — something that seems perfectly logical to us, and might jibe with how we initially heard of Motorola’s “Stingray” tablet as a smaller device, but later heard it was a full 10-incher upgradeable to LTE. This all follow’s on Sanjay’s statement in September that Motorola wouldn’t be joining in on the tablet space until next year, a year which is rapidly approaching. Meanwhile, Sanjay also confirmed that Motorola would have 4G devices “early” next year, which also sounds like a CES hint to us, though it might just be 4G modems and hotspots at the outset. Still, bring it on.

Motorola planning 4G devices for Verizon, 7- and 10-inch tablets early next year originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 03 Dec 2010 20:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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