android

On Monday, Samsung revealed its latest Google Android device, the Samsung Galaxy Spica (I5700).

Like its siblings, the Samsung Behold II and Samsung Galaxy, the Spica has more of a multimedia focus and is actually the first Android smartphone to offer DivX support. In addition, it includes DNSe 2.0 (Digital Natural Sound engine) technology to improve sound quality and features a 3.5mm headphone jack and a 3.2-inch (320x480) capacitive touch screen.

The Spica measures 0.51 inch thick and features a 1500mAh lithium ion battery. Other highlights of the smartphone include an 800MHz processor, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, … Read more

In the battle of the open-source mobile platforms, developers have at least two choices: Google Android, which is open source but (relatively) closed development, or Symbian, which is open source...once it gets around to releasing the full source code.

Guess which one is winning?

Gartner expects Android to become the second-most popular mobile platform within the next few years as it continues to gobble up Symbian's declining market share.

But why?

Symbian has been dismissive of Google Android, as well as smaller upstarts like the LiMo Foundation, arguing that the latter is overly focused on middleware for wireless … Read more

Windows Mobile lost 28 percent of its smartphone market share between last year's third quarter and this year's third quarter, according to market researcher Gartner.

Figures released Thursday by Gartner show that Microsoft's mobile OS had 11 percent of the global smartphone market in Q3 2008. A year later, it had 7.9 percent. Meanwhile, the iPhone's share rose from 12.9 percent to 17.1 percent, and Research In Motion's share jumped from 16 percent to 20.8 percent.

Symbian's share fell from 49.7 percent to 44.6 percent over the same … Read more

With the recent flood of new Google Android phones, some of you may be thinking of making the switch. You're right to consider it, as there are many advantages to the operating system, not the least of which is the growing line of attractive handsets. But for the uninitiated, Android can be a bit of a mess. It's supposed to be a uniform operating system across all devices, but in practice, the user interface on each device varies slightly. It offers third-party applications, e-mail syncing, and a media player; however, the capabilities of those features also will differ by handset. Lastly, while Android promises a high degree of user customization, that may not mean a whole lot to the average person.

Understanding the operating system Fear not, as Android takes only a brief period of acclimation. Even after a few minutes, you'll get the hang of the interface and you'll be able to navigate your way through your phone. Yet, you need to know a few things about Android before making the jump. Below I've told you what to expect, because I'd hate for you to be surprised by what you find. And equally as important, because your Android experience will vary by device, I'll break down the current U.S. handsets and give you the basic scoop of the Android features on each device.… Read more

We've seen the Motorola Droid and the HTC Droid Eris from Verizon Wireless so far, but apparently there is a third Verizon Android handset waiting in the wings, if rumors are to be believed.

Rumors are that it will be the HTC Passion, which is supposedly powered by a 1GHz Snapdragon chipset (the Passion might also be called the Dragon). The rumor mill (from Boy Genius, Phone Arena, and elsewhere) claims that the HTC Passion will feature a 5-megapixel camera, a large WVGA-resolution screen with multitouch, a 3.5mm headset jack, 256MB RAM, and it's said to run … Read more

Last June, I complained about the overused phrase "iPhone killer." I argued that it elevates the iPhone to a place that it doesn't deserve. Yes, it's a great device in many ways, but it's not the pinnacle of cell phone achievement.

As it turns out, I was a little ahead of myself. In the two-and-a-half years since the first iPhone , was born, I've seen quite a few supposed iPhone rivals pass through CNET. But I had to wait until two weeks ago before a real challenger finally landed on my desk.

The Motorola Droid … Read more

As if Apple and Microsoft didn't already make it clear (editor's note: by Apple, we mean the ever-pervasive rumors of their upcoming "slate"), 2010 looks like the Year of the Tablet. First viewed sitting on a table of an Nvidia executive, the Vega tablet will try to beat Apple's tablet (if the rumors are true), Microsoft's in-process Courier concept, and the semievaporated Crunchpad to the punch.

ICD, the manufacturer of the Vega, has confirmed the existence of the tablet as a real product, whose details will be more fully revealed at CES. Vega...Vegas...… Read more

After a string of weak quarters, mobile phone maker HTC is eyeing more of the same for the current quarter but is hoping for better results next year.

The Taiwan-based company expects sales for the fourth quarter to drop to between 40 billion and 42 billion Taiwan dollars (between $1.23 billion and $1.3 billion), around 15 percent lower than in last year's fourth quarter.

Competition from other smartphones, especially the iPhone 3GS released this summer, has tempered demand for HTC's products, which include the Hero, Droid Eris, Tilt 2, MyTouch 3G, Snap, and Ozone.

Prices on … Read more

On Thursday, Samsung and T-Mobile announced that the Samsung Behold II will be available starting November 18 for $229.99 with a two-year contract.

First announced at CTIA Fall 2009, the Behold II is Samsung's second Android device. It uses Samsung's TouchWiz interface and includes a 3D cube navigation menu for the phone's multimedia features.

The smartphone also has a 3.2-inch AMOLED capacitive touch screen and a 5-megapixel camera. While we're all about the AMOLED display, we think the price is a little high, considering that the Behold II is running Android 1.5 and … Read more