Samsung Galaxy S II to be available May 1st in the UK

Samsung has just delivered a most welcome (and concrete) bit of news for British smartphone lovers. Its next do-it-all Android superphone will be available on May 1st in the United Kingdom. The Galaxy S II will emulate its predecessor by being made available “across all major networks and retailers.” The press release promises a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, which indicates we’re looking at the Exynos 4210 variant of this handset. We’ll try to track down availability information for the rest of Europe, but at least Brits can now stop fretting about the delay / non-delay of this marquee phone’s launch.

Continue reading Samsung Galaxy S II to be available May 1st in the UK

Samsung Galaxy S II to be available May 1st in the UK originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 11 Apr 2011 08:50:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Acer’s Iconia Tab A500 soaks up the WiFi rays, hits shelves April 24th for $450

Ladies and gentlemen, the days of spending $600 for an Android Honeycomb tablet are nearly done — on April 24th, the Acer Iconia Tab A500 will wash that price away with waves of brushed aluminum. That’s when the WiFi-only version of Acer’s Android 3.0 tablet will hit Best Buy and online retail for $450 sans contract, but with the same basic raft of specs as the WiFi-only Motorola Xoom: a dual-core 1GHz Tegra 250 SOC, a 10.1-inch 1280 x 800 LCD screen, 1GB of RAM, a 5 megapixel camera around back and a 2 megapixel imager up front, HDMI-out, not to mention a pair of 3260mAh batteries that Acer claims are capable of eight full hours of life while playing HD video. Sure, it’s a wee bit thicker and heavier and only sports half the flash storage (16GB), too, but if you’re attracted to shiny things, look for our review in the coming weeks — or wait until this summer to get one with AT&T. PR after the break.

Update: As Acer mentioned in its press release, pre-orders for the device are beginning exclusively at Best Buy today, and you can now get your order in online.

Continue reading Acer’s Iconia Tab A500 soaks up the WiFi rays, hits shelves April 24th for $450

Acer’s Iconia Tab A500 soaks up the WiFi rays, hits shelves April 24th for $450 originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 08 Apr 2011 08:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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T-Mobile G2x shows up on eBay with $799 price tag, tests your bartering skills (update: sold!)

We already knew that T-Mobile’s dual-core G2x won’t be arriving for another week, but it looks like some cheeky monkey managed to nab one early and promptly put it up on eBay. While the seller hasn’t posted photos of the actual handset, all the signs suggest that at least this sealed box is legit, especially the label on the back. If you’re willing to take the risk, then this Tegra 2 Froyo Android could be yours early for a cool $799, or maybe a bit less if you could work your magic on that “Make Offer” button.

Update: And it’s gone. Looks like someone really wanted this phone.

T-Mobile G2x shows up on eBay with $799 price tag, tests your bartering skills (update: sold!) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 07 Apr 2011 23:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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T-Mobile G2x priced at $200, coming April 15th online and April 20th in stores (update: Sidekick 4G date)

The official word has been spoken with regard the T-Mobile G2X. LG’s dual-core, pure Android handset will be hitting T-Mo’s online outlet on April 15th for $200, and the same price will also apply in stores when it lands on April 20th. There’s a pesky $50 mail-in rebate to negotiate your way around, but after that you’re looking at one of the finest and smoothest Android experiences we’ve laid our hands on yet.

[Thanks, Kyle]

Update: The Sidekick 4G has also received its date with T-Mobile destiny: April 20th for $100 on contract.

Continue reading T-Mobile G2x priced at $200, coming April 15th online and April 20th in stores (update: Sidekick 4G date)

T-Mobile G2x priced at $200, coming April 15th online and April 20th in stores (update: Sidekick 4G date) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 07 Apr 2011 09:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Qualcomm’s 1.5GHz dual-core MSM8660 destroys the competition in majestic benchmark run

Take the 1GHz Scorpion core residing in Qualcomm’s current flagship Snapdragon, the MSM8x55, duplicate it, overclock the resulting pair by 50 percent, and give them improved graphics in the form of Adreno 220. What do you get? A barnburner by the unsexy name of MSM8x60. Yes, the 1.5GHz Mobile Development Platform Qualcomm loosed on the world at CES earlier this year has found itself prostrate on a test bench, where it has produced some of the finest graphical performance scores yet seen on a mobile device. The taxing OpenGL ES 2.0 test you see above shows the new Snapdragon doubling the frame rates churned out by Motorola’s mighty Atrix 4G (which admittedly has to work harder thanks to its higher-res display) and completely embarrassing older generation hardware like the EVO 4G. That’s a theme carried on throughout AnandTech‘s benchmarking, which you may explore in full at the source link. If you’re wondering when this world-beating dual-core chip will be coming to market, the answer is that it’s already inside HTC’s imminently upcoming EVO 3D and Pyramid devices, albeit running at a tamer 1.2GHz. Exciting, eh?

P.S. – Do take note that the Qualcomm dev platform was plugged into the wall during these tests and was not subject to any power management software that may have otherwise restrained its performance as on the retail chips under test. Moreover, the Egypt benchmark can only run at native resolution, which is what’s causing some seemingly aberrant results such as the iPhone 4 (960 x 640) ranking below the iPhone 3GS (480 x 320).

Continue reading Qualcomm’s 1.5GHz dual-core MSM8660 destroys the competition in majestic benchmark run

Qualcomm’s 1.5GHz dual-core MSM8660 destroys the competition in majestic benchmark run originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 02 Apr 2011 06:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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LG’s dual-core Optimus 2X superphone now available from Expansys

The world’s most adored across-the-pond mobile retailer has just received its first batch of LG superphones, a gem by the name of Optimus 2X. As you well know by now, the company’s playing this up as the planet’s first dual-core smartphone, and while we’d hoped that the Tegra 2-based device would be everywhere by now, at least it’s sticking to its scheduled release date over in Europe. Those interested in picking one up can get a SIM-free version headed their way for £449.99, while a free-on-contract affair can be had with T-Mobile, Vodafone and a host of others. Your credit card’s been awful naughty of late — dish out a little punishment by visiting the source link below.

[Thanks, Robert]

LG’s dual-core Optimus 2X superphone now available from Expansys originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 01 Apr 2011 09:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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ASUS Eee Pad Transformer shows up at Best Buy for $400 (update: dock price)

Never mind the cringe-inducing advertising, ASUS has given us a much better reason to care about its Tegra 2-toting Eee Pad Transformer: a $400 price. The 10.1-inch Honeycomb tablet (with 1280 x 800 resolution on an IPS display) has quickly moved from its Taiwanese release, through yesterday’s UK pricing announcement, to today showing up at Best Buy in the US, so we suspect its global shipping can’t be far off at all. With a sticker that’s a clear $99 less than the cheapest iPad and a good deal more affordable than its Android competition like the Xoom and G-Slate, the Transformer could yet take the tablet world by storm. Do take note that the keyboard dock that inspires this slate’s name is an optional extra, but given the starting price, the whole package might still end up less than what others will ask.

Update: Whack attack! Best Buy has pulled the Transformer page and it no longer shows up in search results on the site. Was the price too good to be true? Thanks, Jaime!

Update 2: It’s looking likely that the price info was accurate, as 16GB and 32GB versions have shown up elsewhere on the web for $400 and $500, respectively, though both are currently out of stock. Thanks, Sam and James!

Update 3: Ah, and now we have the price for the dock alone: $149. Thanks, Peter C.!

ASUS Eee Pad Transformer shows up at Best Buy for $400 (update: dock price) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 31 Mar 2011 10:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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More HTC Pyramid pics leak, now with less blurrycam and extra specs

It looks like the steady stream of leaked HTC Pyramid pictures shows no signs of slowing down. While we’ve recently seen shots of the back and the front of the device, we’re now getting the full monty, courtesy of xda-developers. Thankfully, Mr. Blurrycam toned things down this time around: there’s a spread of the phone with its battery cover removed, and screenshots detailing additional specs. The HTC Pyramid is expected to land on T-Mobile at some point with a 1.2GHz dual-core Snapdragon processor, 768MB or RAM, a 4.3-inch qHD (960×540) display, font-facing camera, 8 megapixel camera with dual LED flash, HSPA+, and Android 2.3.2 (Gingerbread) with Sense 3.0. Hit the source link for more photos.

[Thanks, egypt and Andrew]

More HTC Pyramid pics leak, now with less blurrycam and extra specs originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Wed, 30 Mar 2011 21:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HTC EVO 3D coming to Europe, keeping the sexy name and specs

Earlier this year, HTC allowed its previously Verizon-exclusive brand name out to prowl the globe with the Incredible S, and now it’s doing the same with the heretofore Sprint-only EVO moniker. The EVO 3D, says a tweet from HTC’s French mouthpiece, is coming to the land of baguettes, stylish mustaches and stripy pullovers, though a little bit of mystery remains as to when exactly its arrival shall be. Whatever the schedule (the EVO 3D’s set for a “summer” release in the US), the rest of Europe’s unlikely to be left out, meaning a 4.3-inch superphone with a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, 1080p video recording in 2D and 720p in 3D, HTC’s newest Sense skin and Android’s freshest Gingerbread build, is headed out to the Old World. And that, fellow pilgrims, is a mighty awesome thing indeed.

Continue reading HTC EVO 3D coming to Europe, keeping the sexy name and specs

HTC EVO 3D coming to Europe, keeping the sexy name and specs originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Mar 2011 21:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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LG Optimus 3D reveals T-Mobile 3G frequencies in visit to FCC

If you’re an AT&T subscriber, you’ll know this handset as the Thrill 4G. And if you happen to be a T-Mobile devotee (yes, those are two distinct groups until the AT&T&T-Mo merger is complete), you’ll soon get a chance to familiarize yourself with it too, as it has just slipped through the FCC with support for AWS 3G. Specifically, the FCC has cleared an LG 920 smartphone, which a helpful video from LG itself informs us is the Optimus 3D — the dual-core OMAP 4-powered Android powerhouse that’s at the root of this entire affair. It’ll probably get its own, uniquely ghastly moniker if and when it’s launched by T-Mobile, at which point every US carrier bar Verizon will have a 3D smartphone on its books. How long do you think that omission will last?

[Thanks, Christian]

Continue reading LG Optimus 3D reveals T-Mobile 3G frequencies in visit to FCC

LG Optimus 3D reveals T-Mobile 3G frequencies in visit to FCC originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 23 Mar 2011 06:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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