Archives for "Phones"
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Samsung Galaxy S II with slide-out physical keyboard coming to AT&T (Updated: Verizon’s version coming too)
It’s been almost 3 months since the Samsung Galaxy S II was released in South Korea. Though this has been one of the most anticipated devices of the year and has been popping up all over the world, the US remains an exception. In the midst of rage and fury from North American techies, there shines a little spark of hope: leaked images of the Galaxy S II variant for AT&T.
We know it’s hard to believe the phone is just around the corner. But Samsung did mention the Galaxy S II would be here next month (August). We discussed this device yesterday, but now BGR has managed to get more details about the device–and photographic evidence. One of the images shows this as the model SGH-I927, the Samsung device everybody has been waiting for. The images also show the device comes with Android 2.3.4 Gingerbread and an 8 MP camera. And with a Quadrant score above 3000 and 58.5 MFLOPS on Linpack, this device is definitely a contender.
Gallery
It’s definitely interesting that AT&T’s Galaxy S II will come with a QWERTY keyboard. This should be great for physical keyboard fans; however, those who value aesthetics would probably want the thinner body. But as BGR mentions, the device is still quite slim compared to other physical slide-out keyboard smartphones.
There it is, guys! We finally know something about a US Samsung Galaxy S II, and we should be getting this bad boy soon. All we need to do now is wait for it to be announced and released! Other carriers should get their stuff together soon. What do you guys think? Like the idea of the slide-out keyboard, or do you prefer the “black slab” form-factor? Liking those benchmarks?
Update/Rumor: Verizon to be the first U.S. carrier to offer Samsung Galaxy S II[1]
According to Los Angeles industry analyst Paul Mueller, Verizon is also getting its Samsung Galaxy S II variant soon. Actually, he mentions Verizon will be the first U.S. carrier to release this highly anticipated device.
I’m not sure about the exact date, but I’ve been told that August 12 is a possibility. It will arrive first on Verizon and then the rest of the carriers within a month. Samsung will market this directly against the iPhone 5.Paul MuellerLos Angeles Industry analyst
As it has been rumored before, it seems the device will be called the Samsung Function. It will come with all the specs we’ve already been expecting (a dual-core 1.2 GHz processor, 1 GB of RAM, an 8 MP camera and that beautiful Super AMOLED Plus display).
Let’s wait and see which carrier gets it out there first. Some who commented on this article are on Verizon, so you should be happy to see this update! What do you guys think? Will Verizon get the Samsung Galaxy S II before AT&T? If so, where are our leaked images?! Make it happen, Mr. Blurrycam!
References
- Via LA Gadgets Examiner ↩
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Motorola Droid Bionic recap: here’s what we know
As the release of the Motorola Droid Bionic draws near, it may be a good time to sit back, relax and take in the journey that has become the pre-release hurricane of one of Verizon’s most anticipated devices. What kind of changes have we seen? Is there a solid spec sheet? Just when exactly will we see this thing? Let’s jump into it.
Delayed, pushed back, redesigned
If there’s one thing the Bionic has come to be known for, it may just be how long it’s taken to come to market. It’s still not for sale. And the most recent rumored release date may be off by a month. (More on this later). But before we get too ahead of ourselves, let’s start from the beginning. The scene: CES 2011. Our very own Sean Riley has just had his first hands-on experience with the Bionic, not long after Motorola initially announced the device.
Specs then:
The original verdict? “Reasonably impressed.” At the time the Atrix was the hot noise, and everyone was either rumored to show off a dual-core monster or already had. Sure, the 4.3-inch qHD display was nice, but 512MB of RAM and word of Android 2.2 at launch left most wanting more. As time went on, more is what we got.After the initial showing of the Bionic, news seemed to just fade away. It became clear that something odd was going on, and as news finally began to pick back up, rumors surrounding the Bionic proved it. By mid-April, blogs everywhere were reporting that the Motorola Bionic was dead. Thanks to the popularity of this rumor, someone from Motorola spoke up and we listened. On April 19th, a Motorola spokesperson was quoted as saying,
Based on compelling feedback since the show, we are incorporating several enhancements to make this an even better consumer experienceMotorola SpokespersonMotorolaIt took a minute to catch wind of these “enhancements,” but by late May word was the Bionic wouldn’t be using a Tegra processor as originally shown at CES. Instead, new rumors said the device would come out rocking an OMAP 4 dual-core processor. But the changes didn’t stop there.By early July, a complete redesign was leaked in some photographs of the device, as well as some updated specs and proof of Webtop compatibility.
Specs now:
As far as the redesign of the Bionic goes, that’s where the story ends. For now. We still don’t have all the details, but what we do know is that the Bionic should be ready to keep up with the best Android devices out there. That is if it’s released anytime soon.
Release date madness
After all the rumored release dates that have come and gone, one has stood out recently as the real deal. The date is August 4th, and the leaks are there to back it up. Just earlier this month, an internal screenshot was obtained showing this date as final for the Bionic. So all should be said and done, right? The Bionic comes out August 4th, and that’s the end of it? Of course not.
More information regarding a release date has made its way online just today. According to some documents from Sam’s Club obtained by Android Central, the release has been “pushed to September.”
Sure, the Bionic may have also been seen lurking in CelleBrite today, but that doesn’t mean much. It merely means a release is on the way–not necessarily within any sort of time-frame.
It’s possible that Sam’s Club may not get the Bionic until September, and the device will still see a Verizon launch on August 4th. But at this point, no one knows for sure. All we can do now is sit and wait for yet another leak, or hopefully, some real information from Big Red.
Wrap up
The story of the Motorola Droid Bionic is turning into a sad one. The longer it takes to see the light of day, the less people seem to want it. After all this time, there is one good reason to hold onto hope and give the Bionic a chance: it’s still going to be the first dual-core powered Android device on Verizon to use LTE. LTE devices on Verizon do exist, but none of them are dual-core. The Bionic will be.
Is that enough for you to keep holding out? Hopefully, it won’t be too much longer. For now feel free to slap this custom Bionic boot animation on your device of choice courtesy of DroidLife. It just may ease the pain a bit.
Rumor: Unknown QWERTY slider from Samsung is making its way to AT&T
Typically there are two times a year when devices start to leak so fast it’s hard to keep up with them. At the very beginning of the year before all the conventions and now, late summer. As the pre-production process for the holiday season moves forward, upcoming phones make their way through more and more people. This seems to be the case with an unknown slider from Samsung.
There’s not much information to throw behind the render you see above, but BGR is claiming the full-QWERTY beast will land on Ma Bell in the near future. Will it come with 4(faux)G? A dual-core processor? Super AMOLED Plus display? We’ll just have to wait and see.
Even though virtually nothing is known about the device, there’s bound to be at least a couple readers already pumped to know another full physical keyboard device exists. (They aren’t easy to come by, you know). Are you one of them?
Hardware modded Sensation is the bee’s knees
Software mods for Android phones have never been in short supply (in fact, they’re a way of life), but hardware mods are a little harder to come by. One of the greatest came from someone spraying a Nexus S battery cover in diplo to give it a rubbery grip. The G2 spring mod is still popular, giving G2s everywhere a snappier hinge. Evo battery door mods add some red flair to your device when stripped down. And possibly the craziest hardware mod out there? The ol’ adding a front-facing camera to your Samsung Vibrant trick. It now seems another device is about to join the elite ranks of hardware modification: the HTC Sensation.
Paul White from Whitesites Blog took some sand paper and stripped down the metal frame on his HTC Sensation. Then, with some metal polish and a few paper towels, he shined it up. And it looks amazing. The process doesn’t look too hard, and after you see the results it’ll be hard to imagine this not becoming a trend among more hardcore users. Of course, this does all sorts of bad things to any warranty you may have. But if you’re brave enough to attempt this mod, be sure to share the results in the comments below. While you’re down there, let us know of any other hardware mods you can think of.
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