Hasta La Gadget!

Verizon Wireless has announced that they will begin taking pre-orders for the new Motorola Droid Pro, a new Android phone with a full QWERTY-keyboard beneath its 3.1-inch 320-pixel by 480-pixel display, on November 9th. The phone will run $179.99 with a two-year contract after mail-in rebate, and will use Verizon’s 3G network at home but also work with data networks abroad.

The Droid Pro will feature 2GB of on-board memory for apps and the Android operating system, and a 2GB micro-SD card installed that most users will likely upgrade as soon as they can. The phone also has a 5-megapixel camera on the back that supports video recording in 720p HD, and will serve as a Wi-Fi hotspot for up to five devices for an additional monthly fee on top of your voice and data plans. You can read more about the device, including a hands-on look at the Droid Pro, over at PCMag.com.

Recent intel suggests that Motorola’s Droid 2 Global will be coming in two colors — kind of a strange choice for a phone being tagged as “business-grade” — and now, it looks like we can expect to see at least one of those colors on next Thursday, November 11th. Specifically, the leak we’ve got here calls out the blue version of the phone (probably the same blue on the Droid 2 of old); the white model isn’t mentioned, so it’s unclear whether Verizon’s planning on holding that one back for a bit longer. We suppose it’s possible that the white looks just a little too much like the pricey R2-D2 edition for Big Red’s comfort, so they might want to give the spunky little astromech droid a bit more exclusivity before hauling in another white model (with better radios, no less). Seeing how the Droid Pro looks targeted for a week later on the 18th, this might be the very first CDMA / GSM dual-mode Android phone on the market — so who’s excited?

Droid 2 Global launching on November 11th? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 04 Nov 2010 11:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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What would we ever do without informative tipsters, eh? Android Central has received an internal Verizon document identifying Motorola’s Droid Pro as an iconic device and setting out details for its upcoming launch. November 9 is the date pinpointed for the commencement of pre-sales, which seem to be different from pre-orders insofar as they’ll actually ship out to buyers starting November 10, meaning quite a few will have their portrait QWERTY handset in their pocket before the proper November 18 release date. Bear in mind that this is still unofficial information for now, though given that Moto itself promised the Droid Pro for the first week of November, it’d be weird if this wasn’t the schedule for the handset’s release. Speaking of weird… “iconic device,” seriously Verizon?

Motorola Droid Pro tipped for November 9 pre-sales through Verizon, November 18 launch originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 04 Nov 2010 07:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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To say that it’s a contentious political season is a bit of an understatement. As we inch closer to the midterms, tempers are running high, and the slightest thing can set a candidate off. Take last night’s Florida gubernatorial debate on CNN between Democrat Alex Sink and Republican Rick Scott.

During a commercial break Sink’s aide shows her something on a smartphone–a Motorola Droid. In the video, you can see Scott becoming visible upset at the sight, making some barely audible comments.

When the debate returns from commercial, CNN’s John King briefly goes over the rules for time and then throws Scott a question about the state’s 11 percent unemployment. Scott answers with the following,

First Alex, you say you always follow the rules,” he said. “The rule was no one was supposed to give us messages during the break, and your campaign did with an iPad or an iPod.

The fact that he got the device wrong should have no impact on your final vote. Right?

Whoever said being on hold was a bad thing? Verizon customers who call in and get stuck in limbo right now are being treated to a minor device scoop: an ad for the mythical Droid 2 Global, which has leaked out here and there but hasn’t yet been officially announced. The ad doesn’t reveal much apart from the existence of the CDMA / GSM slider and the fact that it’ll work in 221 countries, but that’s all we needed to hear — listen for yourself after the break.

Update: Ha, as commenter Spider-Man points out below, that 221 number is mighty suspect, as there are only between 191-195 countries in the world today, depending on how you count them. Sounds like Verizon needs to take this one back to the studio. Thanks, Spidey!

[Thanks, Anonymous]

Continue reading Droid 2 Global ads now running on Verizon’s 800 number

Droid 2 Global ads now running on Verizon’s 800 number originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 18 Oct 2010 16:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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