Author: David Junior

The HTC EVO 4G won’t be alone in the ranks of Android 2.1 devices with an HDMI output. Pantech plans to release a Snapdragon powered, 2.1 Android device with this feature as well. This phone also packs in a few other surprises that most people would like in their next device.

This phone will be released for SK Telecom in Korea. It features a 3.7”AMOLED screen with a resolution of 800 × 480, a TV tuner, 5 Megapixel camera, 500MB of internal memory, compatibility with MicroSD memory cards (up to 32GB), Wi-Fi, HDMI output support DivX. And it appears to have a front facing camera as well. So it’s essentially a Nexus one type device with an HDMI and DiVX support, we need something like this to be released in the US.

[via fr.akihabaranews.com,pantech]

Since the release of the G1, highly anticipated Android has been given their own space full of information and teasery, that’s right, teasery. The HTC Incredible now has a coming soon site, but unlike its predecessors, there not much information on this site and you can forget about an emulator, for now.

Head over to the site and enter your email for updates from Verizon on this device. Pricing is not listed or a released date isn’t on the site. The only bit of information to be found is in the fine print on the page which reads:

Activation fee/line:$35 ($25 for secondary Family Shareplan lines w/2-yr Agmts).
IMPORTANT CONSUMER INFORMATION: Subject to Customer Agreement, Calling Plan & credit approval. Up to $175 early termination fee ($350 on Advanced Devices) & other charges.
Device capabilities: add’l charges & conditions apply. Offers & coverage, varying by service, not available everywhere. Some applications not available at this time.

By submitting the form, I agree that Verizon Wireless may contact me via email about the information I’ve selected above. I also agree that I am at least 13 years of age.

[via Verizon}

Since the release of Android, Google had made numerous updates to their core Android Apps (with the exception to the music player). All of the changes have made the Android experience more visually appealing. These changes usually slide by “stealthy” without the user being notified of the change.

Now the address field automatically expands, allowing users to see all email addresses entered. Similar to your desktop email experience, now an auto complete dropdown window provides contact choices. You can now type in the first few letters of the address then click on the selection of the person you want to send it too. To get the full updated Gmail Mobile experience, you have to access it from your phones browser, these features should make their way into the app soon.

Some other nifty new features which will help you compose your emails faster:

* Remove the contact you just added by tapping Backspace.
* Press the ‘+’ button to see your top contacts, or hide them by pressing the ‘–’ button.
* If for some reason autocomplete fails you and the person you are trying to reach is a Gmail user, just type their Gmail username and a comma, and we’ll take care of the pesky @ sign and the rest (so [hikingfan] becomes [[email protected]].)
* The page now fills the entire screen, giving you more space to see what you’re writing.

[via google]

The great fragmentation debate continues. The latest numbers show 2.1 gaining momentum but it’s still only the third most used version behind 1.6 and 1.5. These numbers are due to the fact that the popular Droid has recently been updated to Android 2.1.

More 2.1 updates are on the way, 2.1 should be on the majority of Android phones by the end of the summer. Froyo is supposed to address the fragmentation issue but it may further fragment the market. Phones sold from Google will surely receive the update months before the rest of the devices. It’s rumored to be released sometime in June or July. If that’s the case, it may be winter or even next year before we see it on every other phone.

[via android developers blog]

There have been rumors floating around that certain European carriers are working on their own Android handsets. Vodafone was rumored to be working on their own phone, looks like Orange has beaten them to the punch. The Boston will be released first and for the low price of 1 euro.

The price above could change depending on which plan you choose. This phone is rumored to be built for Orange by manufacturer Foxconn. Orange has yet to make an official announcement on the existence of this device, we expect it will come soon since the cat is now out of the bag.

The specs:

– 3.2″ screen at 480 x 320

– Wi-Fi 802.11b/g

– Qualcomm 600MHz processor

– 256MB RAM

– Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR

– GPS

– microSD

– 5megapixel camera

– Android 1.6

[via eurodroid]

Are you looking for a good budgeting and expense tracking app? Mint may be the solution to your problems. They are currently working on bringing this app to Android. Between Mint’s web-based service and their iPhone app, they provide great service to over 2 million users.

The Mint app will be connected to their website, you will be able to budget, analyze and track your spending right from your Android handset. This is very useful for when you want to track your account while you’re out and about. There is currently no release date set for this app, Mint has recently released the following statement on their site:

Customer feedback and requests help determine upcoming products and features from Mint.com. In the coming months, the Mint team plans to address user requests, adding support for thousands of additional financial institutions and an Android application to expand its mobile presence beyond its award-winning iPhone application.

[via Mint]

Let’s start off with the old. Keeping the trend started by the G1, the myTouch Slide will be available in a variety of colors. The standard black and white but this time around merlot has been replaced in favor of red.  If you’re a fan of the optical trackpad, it will make an appearance on the device along with a few capacitive buttons and a new “G” button.

And that brings us to the something new. Apparently T-Mobile has added the “G” button which has its own Android app. T-Mobile trademarked this G button back in March. The folks over at AndroidGuys have uncovered a picture of the trademark; nobody knows what this app will do. Hopefully it does something really cool unlike most carrier specific apps. Will this button an app be included in future Android offerings from T-Mobile? Only time will tell, more information on this “Genius Button” will hopefully leak out soon, I’m interested in knowing what it does.

[via cellphone signal]

The guys over at Droiddog leaked the picture below a few days ago. We had a discussion on the validity of this device in the forum. The story behind the leak was so odd that I assumed it was a fake. Now the screenshot below has surfaced and it seems to validate the existence of this ugly device.

Android France got a hold on the screen shot above, this device is called the Twist and is rumored to be released on June 10th. This device is 67×67mm, and is 16mm thick, with a 2.8-inch screen at 320×240 pixels. Quad-band EDGE and dual-band HSPA is listed with North American 3G bands. Also, there’s a 3MP camera, 512MB ROM/256MB RAM, Wi-Fi b/g, aGPS, a TI OMAP 3410 processor at 700MHz and a 940 mAh battery. The device listed in the spec sheet does have a square shape like the leaked picture and it is MotoBlur, 1.5 device.

This time the leaked accessories are for the highly anticipated HTC EVO 4G. This device isn’t even out and there are some great looking surprises in store for potential buyers. The only thing missing from the list is carrying cases and pricing.

Engadget has gotten their hands on the above screen shot. The two things I would like to know more about are the car dock and the HDMI video dock. I wonder if HTC will include Bluetooth capabilities in the car dock like Google has done with the Nexus One. The screen is so massive on this device that is will look awesome as a GPS receiver. Can you imagine watching movies on this thing in the car? Maybe they can integrate the HDMI to work with existing Head units that will turn this device into another monitor or maybe even a park assist monitor. The choices are endless, hopefully they can do something special with this dock.

The HDMI video dock is also interesting. This will likely just be an easy way to link your phone to your television or other monitor that has an HDMI jack for viewing videos. Or, you might be able to control your entire home entertainment system from the device, the big screen on this handset will make for a great universal remote. More information on these accessories should be out shortly.

Looks like my earlier suspicion of the LG LU2300 being renamed ALOHA, aka LG VS740 as it’s called in Verizon’s system, has come true. Verizon will have an impressive Android lineup this spring/summer with the addition of this, another 2.1 device that also has a 1GHZ Snapdragon and other great features.

This will most likely be a “Google Experience” phone, there are a lot of people that are fans of vanilla Android.  This phone is rumored to be release sometime in Q2 which is right around the corner. This device is rumored to feature a 1GHz Snapdragon chipset, 5MP camera and 720p video playback as well as WI-FI b/g/n.

[via phonearena]

The red myTouch slide picture has just been leaked. This device is indeed the rumored Espresso from T-Mobile that will sport none other than HTC’s Sense UI. Just a few days ago this device made its rounds over at the FCC and now we get a better look at the handset.

I sure hope that this phone will pack in a 1GHZ CPU and some impressive RAM. We are long overdue for an Android with a keyboard and some second generation power. This device is rumored for a May 19th release and from the looks of it, it’s almost ready for prime time. Guess HTC is going with the optical track pad this year for their future Android devices, the capacitive keys resemble those found on the Nexus One. I can’t wait for more leaked pictures and especially the specs. I hope they don’t disappoint.

[via tmonews]

This is good news and bad news. The Galaxy S is one of the most powerful Android handsets to be released in the near future. It will most likely be the phone to have for gaming, as it stands it has the best GPU out of all the current Androids and every other handset. Time for the bad news, it passed through the FCC with AT&T 3G bands.

This device features an AMOLED display with 800 x 480 resolution, 1GHz processor, 5 megapixel rear-facing camera with support for 720p HD video recording at 30fps, front-facing VGA camera, Swype keyboard, HSDPA connectivity, GPS, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, Wi-Fi, microSD expansion (16GB included, up to 32GB supported), and Android 2.1. The main highlight is the Hummingbird GPU that is capable of producing graphics that can rival those found on an XBOX 360 PS3.

We all would love to see this thing come stateside but for any carrier other than AT&T. They have a track record of locking down their Android devices and replacing some of Google’s apps with their own bloatware. Hopefully they will leave this device as is, most likely they are going to mess this device up also.

[via BGR]

This is arguably the best podcast app for Android. It has the ability to display video as well as traditional audio podcasts. New podcasts are being added all the time and you can save them to your SD card. Most of the popular podcasts are already available in this app. This app is still in beta but you wouldn’t be able to tell from the quality of it. It’s a free app available in the Android Market.

Market Description:

“PodKast lets you listen to your favorite audio and video podcats on the go. You will find in PodKast a selection of the most popular podcast feeds. We strive on adding new podcasts on a regular basis. Feel free to send us your suggestions and add a rating in the Android Market.”

Click here to view the embedded video.

Gang wars now have some good competition. Since this game was released not too long ago for Android, it has been gaining popularity and is one of the fastest growing games on Android. Start as a petty thief and rise to a Don, battle with other gangs and more. Also, this game is free and should work on all Android handsets.

Market Description:

“Start as a petty thief and rise to the Mafia Don by bringing others into your mob. Fight other mobsters in the most immersive massively multiplayer online game ever!

– Massively Multiplayer ONLINE Mafia Game!
– Join over 1.6 million players!
– Fight other player LIVE”

Foursquare for Android has been updated, this update now gives you the ability to check your friend’s “mayorship” and adds startup options. Personally, I have no use for this app but it is one of the most popular apps in the mobile world. If you have a foursquare account, and a charger handy, this is app uses your phones GPS constantly, dive in and start you’re sharing(stalking).

Market Description:

“Foursquare helps you find new ways to explore your city. See where your friends are, learn about the places they frequent and unlock rewards as you travel.

“Latest Release: Check mayorships, choose startup tab (Friends or Places) and more – check Preferences -> Changelog for more details!”

Click here to view the embedded video.

There has been a rumor around the Android world that the Droid Eris will be replaced by the HTC Incredible. This new screenshot seems to add fuel to the flame. If this screen is real then the Eris will stop being sold and supported in late May.

This is certainly bad news for everyone who recently purchased an Eris, if you are looking into getting one in the near future I would advise against it. Although, HTC themselves may decide to keep pushing updates to it and if not, there are some great devs that will surely continue to make custom ROM’s for it. On the bright side, those of you that have been waiting for the Incredible, it should be out within the next month.

[via berryscoop]

Android 2.1 for the Sprint Hero is rumored to be released on April 9th. Why wait when you can have it now (or the official test ROM)? The latest RUU from Sprint has been leaked by a member from the XDA.

Damageless from the XDA has released the official Android 2.1 test ROM for the Hero on Sprint. But this isn’t a simple flash update. Noobs do not attempt this or you may brick your phone. For those of you brave and skilled enough get the ROM from here. Being a test ROM, it already has root, follow the instructions listed and soon you will be enjoying all the goodies of Android 2.1. I’m sure an update.zip will be made from this soon.