Hasta La Gadget!

Much to our surprise at the time, when Adobe sent us a Flash 10.1-enabled Nexus One for testing, the phone came preloaded with a preview build of Android 2.2 — a.k.a. “Froyo” — the apparent turning point for curbing Android fragmentation due for a very public unveiling today at Google I/O. We’ve had a day or two to dig into it, and while we’re surely missing some improvements here or there (Google was unable to provide us a changelog as of this writing), we’ve spent pretty much all our waking moments combing through every virtual nook and cranny. So what can Eclair alumni expect from the revised platform? Read on for more!

Continue reading Android 2.2 ‘Froyo’ beta hands-on: Flash 10.1, WiFi hotspots, and some killer benchmark scores

Android 2.2 ‘Froyo’ beta hands-on: Flash 10.1, WiFi hotspots, and some killer benchmark scores originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 20 May 2010 12:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Image credit: Seattle Times

[Thanks, Kris Hill]

Quartet of Dell Streaks spotted in the wild in Seattle, testing for AT&T originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 20 May 2010 10:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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What do you do if you’re CherryPal, and you’ve already released a $118 netbook named Africa? Uh, you replace it with a $99 netbook named the Asia, of course. Actually, CherryPal has slapped together its Asia in two versions, a 7-incher at $99 and a 10.1-incher with an integrated 1.3 megapixel webcam for right around $150, both running Android 1.6 paired to a “good-enough” (their words, not ours) 533MHz ARM9 core sourced from VIA; both are available now.

We had a chance to check out both flavors of the Asia at gdgt live in Chicago this week, and the phrase “you get what you pay for” definitely applies with these suckers — they’re not well-built powerhouses in any sense of the word, and we were told on no uncertain terms that the devices are geared at developing markets where price point reigns supreme. Closed, both smartbooks have the same slick, glossy appearance, but open, they’re quite different; the 10.1-inch version has a simple, upscale, matte, MacBook-ish look to it while the 7-inch version just looks like a straight-up toy. Both were running pretty choppy — a symptom of the low-spec processor, we’re sure — but Cherrypal told us that updates to newer builds of Android are in the works and will be available either online or via flash drive, so we suppose there’s a chance that could help smooth things out a bit. Check out some shots below!

Continue reading Cherrypal Asia runs Android on the cheap, comes in 7- and 10.1-inch flavors

Cherrypal Asia runs Android on the cheap, comes in 7- and 10.1-inch flavors originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 14 May 2010 16:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Hoping to get your hot little hands on the tinker-friendly edition of Sharp’s Snapdragon-powered IS01 Android MID? If you live in Japan, today’s your lucky day — assuming you’re willing to overlook the possibility that the developer’s version has been thoroughly neutered. According to a Japanese press release, JN-DK01 dev kits are now shipping, but apparently sans cellular modem (no phone calls, no 3G data) and without API support for FM and 1Seg connectivity. You’ll still get to play around with that 960 x 480 multitouch LCD, experiment with IrDA and download Android Market apps over WiFi, but we’re not quite seeing the point of working with a cheap-feeling Android 1.6 device stripped of its coolest toys.

Sharp ships 1GHz IS01 developer’s edition in Japan, minus all the goodies originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 14 May 2010 02:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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You know who can’t stop talking about (or showing off) the Dell Streak / Mini 5? Company CEO Michael Dell, that’s who. The man once again returned with his Android-powered 5-inch display of choice, showing it off on stage at the Citrix Synergy conference this morning. Sure, we’ve seen the handset ad nauseum at this point — we’re even a proud owner of one prototype — but here’s the quote that piqued our interest: “this [phone] will be available starting next month, first with our partner 02 Telefonica [sic] in Europe, then later this summer with our pretty good partner here in the United States, AT&T.” He couldn’t be much more direct, and we couldn’t get it from a more knowing source. Excited for the near future yet?

Dell CEO: Streak coming next month to Telefonica O2, ‘later this summer’ to AT&T originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 13 May 2010 21:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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