Sep 07

Official: Samsung Fascinate launching September 9 for $199 (update: September 8 online)

Posted in: Android, availability, GalaxyS, launch, release, samsung, Today's Chili, verizon, Verizon Wireless, VerizonWireless, video, vzw

Put away your leaked Verizon documents, good folks, the Fascinate finally has an official release date: September 9. Verizon’s Galaxy S variant snuck up on all of us with a commercial appearance last night, which was accompanied by that appropriately blown out text at the bottom, indicating it’ll be in stores within a couple of days. That doesn’t leave much time for you to build up fresh anticipation, so hopefully you were able to sustain yours while everyone else was unpacking their Captivate, Epic and Vibrant handsets. Hey, you might be late to the party, but at least you’ll be there. See the ad (minus the launch date note) after the break.

[Thanks, Kyle]

Update: And what do you know, the official press release has just dropped, confirming the above in-store date and giving us an even earlier one: September 8 for online orders. Pricing is set at your usual $199 on a two-year contract, provided you have the patience to deal with a $100 mail-in rebate.

Continue reading Official: Samsung Fascinate launching September 9 for $199 (update: September 8 online)

Official: Samsung Fascinate launching September 9 for $199 (update: September 8 online) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 07 Sep 2010 07:05:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sep 02

The Samsung Galaxy Tab: more relief on the go

Posted in: galaxy, GalaxyS, GalaxyTab, samsung, Today's Chili

The Samsung Galaxy Tab certainly looks like it’s going to be a pretty sweet little tablet, but man — Samsung really needs to hire some better Korean-to-English translators. Hot on the heels of the charmingly obtuse T-Mobile Vibrant (“A Twitter approaches to synchronising data to allow access to your status”), Sammy’s new Galaxy Tab promo site is a virtual treasure trove of almost-but-not-quite English, starting with a launch animation that offers you “More relief on the go” straight through to a video call demo that suggests you and a co-worker share a “cosy time.” Uh, no thanks. Greatest hits in the gallery below.

Gallery: The Samsung Galaxy Tab: more relief on the go

The Samsung Galaxy Tab: more relief on the go originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 13:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sep 02

Samsung Fascinate arriving in Verizon stores, early September launch seems a given

Posted in: cdma, GalaxyS, launch, leak, Pre-Release, samsung, Today's Chili, verizon, vzw

Lest all the paper-based leaks weren’t sufficient evidence for you, we’ve now got ourselves an insider at one of Verizon’s brick-and-mortar outlets informing us that Fascinate launch kits are being distributed. VZW is said to be training up its staff (presumably that involves more than just pointing out where the above puzzle piece should go) and the whole thing’s looking “right on track” for the mooted early September launch. So that basically gives us about a week’s time to kill with 21:9 HDTVs, 3D prototypes, slinky tablets, and whatever else we can find at IFA. We might just be able to manage it.

Samsung Fascinate arriving in Verizon stores, early September launch seems a given originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 09:18:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aug 31

Samsung Epic 4G now on sale at Sprint (update: save $50 at Amazon)

Posted in: amazon, Android, GalaxyS, now available, NowAvailable, retail, sale, samsung, Sprint, Today's Chili

We told you it was coming, now the Samsung Epic 4G is on sale at Sprint for a cool $249.99 plus two year life commitment. In other words, it’s time to let Sprint know whether this Galaxy S variant (with — gasp — working GPS) is worth the $50 premium over HTC’s EVO 4G. Well, is it?

Update: As usual, Amazon’s offering a discount showing a $199.99 listing for new contracts. It still shows a pre-order status (with 2-3 weeks ship time) but that’s likely to change any minute now.

[Thanks, Jonathan P. and Jason J.]

Samsung Epic 4G now on sale at Sprint (update: save $50 at Amazon) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 31 Aug 2010 04:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aug 30

Samsung Fascinate launching on September 8?

Posted in: Android, GalaxyS, rumor, samsung, Today's Chili, verizon, Verizon Wireless, VerizonWireless, vzw

We’ve seen these kinds of Verizon launch decks before, so we tend to believe the September 8 date we’re seeing for the Fascinate here is legit — granted, Wednesday is an odd day to launch a phone, but not a lot weirder than the Thursday, September 9 date we’d had before. Either way, it’s looking like a sure thing that we’re going to see this on shelves come next week, completing Sammy’s impressive four-way coup to get its high-end Galaxy S line launched on all of the US nationals. Like the Droid 2 and Droid X, the Fascinate will feature Blockbuster Mobile to let you download full-length movies on the go — in other words, that’s a feature that won’t be a Droid brand exclusive — and Bing search will be installed out of the box, giving Microsoft a fun little foothold in Google’s kingdom. So, who’s buying? And while we’re on the subject, why isn’t this thing called the “Droid Fascinate?”

[Thanks, Bryan]

Samsung Fascinate launching on September 8? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 30 Aug 2010 17:58:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aug 30

Samsung Galaxy S update to Froyo leaks

Posted in: froyo, GalaxyS, leak, samsung, Today's Chili, update, upgrade

Far be it from us to use a screen shot as proof that Android 2.2 has been ported to a particular device — they’re impossibly easy to ‘shop and hack, after all — but there’s a groundswell of information today that a legit build of Froyo is in the wild for the Samsung i9000, better known as the Galaxy S. Early indications are that the build and the update process aren’t without their issues, suggesting we might be looking at a beta release — but if you’ve got a European version of the phone and you have no desire to wait for Samsung or your carrier to give you a proper build with proper instructions, this is your best bet at the moment (and it seems that GPS performance is improved at least a little bit). Owners of Vibrants and Captivates in the US need not apply here since the model numbers differ, but we’re foolishly hopeful that Sammy can bust all of these updates out in rapid-fire fashion.

[Thanks, Frederik]

Samsung Galaxy S update to Froyo leaks originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 30 Aug 2010 10:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink SamFirmware (Twitter)  |  sourceSamFirmware, xda-developers  | Email this | Comments

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Aug 29

Samsung Fascinate ready for Best Buy in-store pre-order ahead of rumored September 9 launch

Posted in: Android, availability, BestBuy, GalaxyS, launch, pre-order, retail, samsung, smartphone, Today's Chili, verizon, Verizon Wireless, VerizonWireless

Verizon can’t be feeling too hot about being the straggler to the Galaxy S party, but the wait seems to be almost at an end. Best Buy’s just started taking in-store pre-orders for the Fascinate, while the latest internal document leak from VZW indicates a specific September 9 launch for the 4-inch Android handset. That’s when you should be able to snap the Fascinate up along with a prepaid data plan from Big Red, which fits in nicely with earlier unsanctioned disclosures on the matter. Either way, Samsung’s quest to conquer all networks with its Super Gorilla phone will be coming to a victorious end pretty soon.

[Thanks, Brian G.]

Samsung Fascinate ready for Best Buy in-store pre-order ahead of rumored September 9 launch originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 29 Aug 2010 14:49:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aug 26

Samsung Fascinate shows up in Verizon warehouse manifest, destined for September launch?

Posted in: Android, GalaxyS, rumor, rumors, samsung, smartphone, Today's Chili

While Sprint, AT&T and T-Mobile customers have been enjoying their epic, vibrant and captivating Galaxy S variants for weeks, the only thing fascinating about Verizon’s take on the Samsung smartphone is how long it’s taken to arrive. Come September, however, that’s all liable to change, as a very familiar-looking SCH-I500 has just allegedly appeared in Verizon warehouse databases. Coupled with the fact that the MTV Music Video Awards (airing on September 12th) are now officially sponsored by “Samsung Fascinate a Galaxy S phone” and Verizon Wireless itself, we’re thinking it’s a safe bet that early September will find the 4-inch Super AMOLED handset on store shelves.

Samsung Fascinate shows up in Verizon warehouse manifest, destined for September launch? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 26 Aug 2010 18:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aug 25

Samsung Galaxy S Power Pack: when internal batteries are just too convenient

Posted in: galaxy, GalaxyS, germany, samsung, Today's Chili
Somebody at Samsung apparently forgot that its very popular Galaxy S handset (in all its varieties) has — are you ready for this — a user-replaceable battery. Now, we don’t mean a warranty breaking, two-screws-and-it’s-out replaceable battery. No, the battery in the Galaxy S is designed (and promoted) to be switched out by the user. Just pry off the back cover and there it is, ready to swap whenever more juice is required. So why anyone would slap a big, bulky, external slab onto their svelte S is beyond us, regardless of the extra 8.5 hours of talk time listed in the Samsung Germany newsletter. We’d understand if it had a working GPS radio, but like the Galaxy S, it doesn’t.

Samsung Galaxy S Power Pack: when internal batteries are just too convenient originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 Aug 2010 05:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aug 24

Samsung Galaxy S sporting Gorilla Glass to protect that precious AMOLED

Posted in: GalaxyS, samsung, Today's Chili

Remember this horribly painful video? The Gorilla Glass protection on the Dell Streak is undoubtedly a selling point, and now Corning, the maker of said glass, has announced that the Samsung Galaxy S (which includes the Vibrant, Captivate, Fascinate, and Epic 4G in its brood) employs the same alkali-aluminosilicate glass shield. The glass is similar to the “helicopter windshield” stuff Apple uses on the iPhone 4, which was rumored to be Gorilla Glass at one point, and while neither tech is impervious to shattering, they certainly can take a beating — but just try and do that pen stab torture test while we’re not looking, alright? We don’t have the stomach to witness another beautiful Android handset so roughly handled. PR is after the break.

Continue reading Samsung Galaxy S sporting Gorilla Glass to protect that precious AMOLED

Samsung Galaxy S sporting Gorilla Glass to protect that precious AMOLED originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 24 Aug 2010 11:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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