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Continue reading SK Telecom shoves Android onto a SIM, we check it out

SK Telecom shoves Android onto a SIM, we check it out originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Feb 2010 16:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Among Marvell’s many demos at MWC this year was a curious white tablet out of well-traveled ODM Foxconn — the so-called iWonder — that will see duty in China later this year. It’s got a pretty awful 10.1-inch display (resistive with nary a trace of meaningful brightness or contrast), but when you consider that they’re targeting an exceptionally thrifty price point in the low $100s, it’s actually a pretty reasonable package. It’s got Android 1.6, WiFi with a dedicated hardware on-off switch, an accelerometer (though it was totally flaky on the version we used), and a handful of touch-sensitive buttons around the bezel, including last- and next-page buttons for using the iWonder as an e-reader. Marvell touts that the tablet is using its reference design as a starting point — now the next trick is helping Foxconn find a decent LCD supplier. Follow the break for some video of the iWonder showing off its Donut prowess — if you can avoid the distraction of the curiously inverted logo, that is.

Continue reading iWonder why the logo is upside down

iWonder why the logo is upside down originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Feb 2010 11:49:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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This is arguably one of the cheesiest Android devices we’ve ever handled — and yes, we’re including KIRFs in that observation — but you’ve got to give Alcatel some credit here for taking the platform to a form factor that’s entirely under-served and doing so with an affordable price point in mind. The company plans to aggressively target HTC’s Tattoo when the OT-980 launches in its usual non-US markets later this year with Android 2.1, full HSPA, WiFi, AGPS, compass, and a 2.8-inch display. The thing is a straight-up fingerprint magnet (and the harsh lighting certainly wasn’t doing it any favors), but that’s not really any different from the Pre that it vaguely apes. The only prototype Alcatel had on hand had a busted display — if you look closely, you can make out the UI, so it seems the backlight may have passed on to the giant circuitboard in the sky. That doesn’t speak very highly of the build quality here, but then again, this is an homage to the Pre, right?

Alcatel OT-980 with Android hands-on, we feel frugal just looking at it originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Feb 2010 09:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aw, why don’t these CEOs say stuff like this in press conferences? Sony Ericsson’s head Bert Nordberg has shared with Swedish publication Sydsvenskan the rather salacious news that his company was asked to build the so-called Google phone before HTC… and it turned down the opportunity. Fearing brand dilution or something equally crazy, Nordberg states that Sony Ericsson is committed to building only its own-branded hardware and will not be a subcontractor to anyone. Haughty words from a company whose own Android device is still a good couple of months away from hipsters’ pockets, but we’re sure Bert knows best. After all, it’s not like HTC got a ton of positive press and brand awareness out of its partnership with Google, and it’s exceptionally clear that SE doesn’t need a dime of additional revenue. Oh, wait.

[Thanks, Michael N]

Sony Ericsson CEO: Google asked us to build the Nexus One, we refused originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Feb 2010 08:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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There are only two possible reasons for why a gadget freak like you would want a cheap phone: you’re either a very sensible person (who probably got mugged once), or you’re saving up for the phone of your life. Oh, who are we kidding? We all want a nice phone for next to nothing, right? The legendary Motorola MOTOFONE came close, but check out these new bad boys — the sub-$15 Vodafone 150 and the sub-$20 250, produced by TCL. Fine, they may look more like toys than your everyday eye candy, but you do get five hours of battery, SMS, two games on that mini monochrome screen, and even an LED torch on the back — and what’s more, the lowly 150 is claiming the holy grail “world’s cheapest phone” title that every manufacturer with an interest in emerging markets would kill to own. For an extra $5 there’s even a larger screen in color (!), not to mention FM radio. If you want one, you better start flying walking to either India, Turkey or Africa where the phones will be launched over the next few weeks, or you can just gaze at Fonehome’s hands-on video of the 150 after the break.

On a similar topic, ST-Ericsson has launched the U6715 mobile platform with 7.2Mbps HSPA modem for Linux-based OSes (Android and MeeGo, to name a couple), and expects participating manufacturers to deliver sub-€100 (about $137) smartphones in the first half of 2010. Apparently, the trick is to use “structurally-less expensive silicon, without compromising the end user experience.” With a 1000mAh battery, the platform will deliver up to 40 hours to musical entertainment — twice that of the Nexus One with 1400mAh — and up to seven hours of 3G talk time on one charge. Pretty sweet at first blush, except there’s no mention of what the CPU would be clocked at. Regardless, all we want is some smooth video playback from the “elegant and powerful multimedia engine” — is that too much to ask?

Continue reading Vodafone 150 lays claim to ‘world’s cheapest phone’ title, ST-Ericsson works on thrifty 3G

Vodafone 150 lays claim to ‘world’s cheapest phone’ title, ST-Ericsson works on thrifty 3G originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 17 Feb 2010 21:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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