android 2.3 gingerbread

Upmarket Huawei phones are rare on U.S. retail shelves, but the Huawei Vision, announced today in Beijing, may just provide that glimmer of light for Android enthusiasts looking for something new.

Running Android 2.3 Gingerbread, the Vision also touts a 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon MSM8255 processor, a 5-megapixel camera with autofocus and LED flash, and 720p HD video capture and playback. In addition, Huawei reaches for style points with the Vision's more premium-looking hardware design, a unibody chassis made from an aluminum alloy, with a curve in its design. It comes in rose gold, silver, or charcoal color. … Read more

Samsung has already begun revving up U.S. consumers eager for more details about its popular Galaxy S II smartphone.

With the GS II set to launch in the U.S. in August, Samsung has set up a sign-up page where potential buyers can fill out a form to receive more info on the phone and learn about special offers. Consumers are invited to submit their name, e-mail address, mobile phone number, and carrier of choice.

The Galaxy S II made its debut in its home base of South Korea on April 29 before reaching Japan and several European countries … Read more

Android 2.3, as our readers might recall, offers several enhancements over 2.2 Froyo. They include user interface refinements, a redesigned multitouch keyboard, better power management, and more. As many carriers and manufacturers are finally rolling out Android 2.3 Gingerbread firmware updates to compatible phones, we thought we would highlight the select handsets that actually ship with the Gingerbread OS from the very start. The list of phones below is by no means comprehensive, and only reflects a representative sample from each of the four major carriers.

The very first handset to ship with Android 2.3 is … Read more

HTC has been pushing the 8-megapixel camera on the T-Mobile MyTouch 4G Slide hard, mostly for its low-light capabilities and its "zero shutter lag." I won't dispute that it delivers excellent photo quality overall, and that it's a great camera to use, but calling it the "most advanced smartphone camera" on the market is going too far.

To see just where it triumphs and fails in executing still photography, I spent several days shooting outdoor, indoor, low light, and well-lit photos with four smartphones around the San Francisco Bay Area: the MyTouch 4G Slide, … Read more

Barnes & Noble Nook Color owners now have a new option that can turn their e-readers into full-fledged Android tablets.

Sold by a company called Nook2Android, a SanDisk microSD card preloaded with Android 2.3 Gingerbread and the Android Market essentially transforms Nook Color readers into Android tablets.

Available in three sizes and prices ($34.99 for 8 gigabytes, $49.99 for 16 GB, and $89.99 for 32GB), the SD card plugs directly into the Nook, letting the device boot into Android mode. A boot menu gives users the choice of loading Android or the Nook operating system, while removing the card will automatically transform the Nook back into its normal e-reader state.

In Android mode, Nook owners can use the built-in Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n to surf the Web and run various preinstalled apps, such as Gmail, Facebook, and Pandora, according to Nook2Android. Apps can be downloaded and installed directly from the Android Market. The company also promises that using the cards won't affect the Nook's internal memory or void the warranty from B&N.… Read more

HTC is mighty proud of the 8-megapixel camera and accompanying camera software it put on the T-Mobile MyTouch 4G Slide, enough so that it beat its chest that this phone has the most advanced camera on any smartphone around.

We haven't had the phone in our clutches long enough to perform every test, especially against all our other smartphone cameras (but stay tuned--we will!) We did, however, run enough tests to know an overblown claim when we hear one.

The 1080p HD video capture, dual-LED flash, HDR camera software, and extensive other shooting modes are great, don't get … Read more

Beginning today, the Huawei Ascend II is now available for Cricket customers. We first saw the successor to the original Huawei Ascend at CTIA last March, and immediately noticed some differences.

Huawei's second Android smartphone with Cricket is sleeker, without the physical buttons and trackball. It's also slimmer, lighter, and more up-to-date, running Android 2.3 Gingerbread.

Like the original Ascend, the Ascend II has a 3.5-inch HVGA screen (we were hoping for more advancements here), a 5-megapixel camera with camcorder, and a 600MHz processor (we had hoped Huawei would bump this up as well.)

The Ascend … Read more

We've been waiting a long time for that Huawei phone that puts the lesser-known manufacturer (at least in U.S. circles) on America's smartphone map. It's possible the Huawei Glory (Huawei M886) is the handset to do it.

Our friends at PC Magazine went hands-on with the device, a souped-up Android 2.3 Gingerbread smartphone with a 1.4-GHz Qualcomm MSM8655T processor (Huawei claims it's dual-core, but there's still some debate); a 4-inch TFT LCD screen with 854x480 resolution; and an 8-megapixel camera with LED flash.

The 3G-capable Glory will also come equipped with a 1900 mAH battery, which will hopefully translate into longer battery life, 2GB of onboard memory, and an expansion slot. There are apparently no TV or HDMI-out slots, but Huawei did tell PC Magazine that it has a "surprising" media solution up its sleeves. … Read more

Smartphone buyers who've been waiting for the 4G version of the Nexus S can now pick up the new model.

Making its actual debut yesterday, the Samsung Nexus S 4G is available directly from Sprint for $199 with a two-year contract or for $549 without a contract. But Best Buy is offering an even better buy, selling the phone for $150 with the two-year committment.

The new Android phone builds upon the same specs found in the Nexus S offered by T-Mobile but with the faster speed kicked in by Sprint's WiMax network. However, that 4G and other cool new features will take a bite out of your wallet.

Buyers will have to sign up for Sprint's Everything Data plan, which starts at $69 per month. It's an extra $10 a month for the Premium Data Plan add-on. And if you want the mobile hot-spot feature that lets you connect up to six wireless devices, you'll have to throw in another $29 per month.… Read more