Come on, give us something!
2009 was supposed to be the "year of Android." But we are now five months into 2009 and not a single new Android device has landed in the United States. And outside our borders, only the HTC Magic has arrived at carriers.
It all started at CES, when rumors abounded that a gallery of new Android devices would debut at the show. Yet, CES passed without a single Android announcement. So the focus shifted to the GSMA World Congress, but only the HTC Magic landed in Barcelona. Like a skipping record, the buzz then repeated itself for CTIA. But that show passed--you guessed it!--without any new Android models.
It's not that new handsets aren't coming; it's that they're taking so much time to get here. The FCC has certified the HTC Magic for T-Mobile USA, and Samsung and Motorola have models on their way. T-Mobile has promised more models this year, and other phone manufacturer companies are joining the chorus. The latest is Acer, which only joined the smartphone game in February. Reuters reported yesterday that an Acer exec promised an Android device by the end of the year.
Well, I've got news for you, Acer and others. I want less talk and more action. Promises are great, but as we pass into summer (or winter, depending on your hemisphere) I want to see a real handset actually go on sale. It's been seven months since the release of the G1, so the time has passed for something new and better. I'm concerned that Sprint is a member of the Open Handset Alliance, but also hedges on if it will ever offer an Android device.
I love Android's potential, but I'm impatient and I fear that if we have to wait much longer the gadget world will move on. We're getting the Palm Pre next month and a new iPhone should be on the way. It's now Android's turn to deliver the goods
We finally have a release date for the Palm Pre.
(Credit: Palm)Update at Wednesday, May 20 at 10:00 a.m. PST: A few readers have asked about the North America version of the Nokia N97. It should launch June 2.
Though summer is always a busy time for new cell phones releases, so far the summer of 2009 is shaping up to be a doozy. We expect a full load of new handsets over the next three months with June being an especially hectic time for high-profile models. To help you keep track of the news, here's a handy list.
Palm Pre
After months of waiting (and plenty of rumors), we finally learned today that the Palm Pre will go on sale Saturday, June 6 for $200. Palm pushed its "first half of the year" deadline to the very end, but it appears they'll make it.
We're hoping to have a review unit by the time it hits stores so that we can give you the full scoop on this much-anticipated device. Indeed, we're very excited to finally be able to touch it. June 6 was a bit unexpected since Sprint typically releases new devices on a Sunday. But the date does give Palm a two-day jump on what should be the next incarnation of the iPhone.
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(Credit:
Android)
While many cell phone fans are awaiting the launch of the Palm Pre and details of a new iPhone, there's another segment of the community that's waiting for something else: more Google Android phones.
Their arrival seems imminent with a T-Mobile-branded HTC Magic passing through the FCC and now the Samsung I7500 getting the official stamp of approval. Also, there are rumors of a Motorola-manufactured T-Mobile G1 v2 slated for October. And let's not forget that Sony Ericsson, HTC, and Samsung have more than one Android device slated for 2009.
While the prospect of new hardware is exciting and we certainly need some new designs to add to lonely (and umm, clunky) T-Mobile G1, let's not forget the guts of the phone, the actual Android operating system.
A number of features and fixes are being added through the Android 1.5 Cupcake update, including an on-screen landscape keyboard, video recording, stereo Bluetooth, updated Webkit browser, and UI improvements. All were welcome and much-needed additions, but we'd like to see a few more things in the near future. Native Microsoft Exchange support would be a good start as well as Flash support. G1 users have also complained about the inability to save apps to SD cards and limited internal memory.
Android 2.0 (code-named Donut) is already attracting buzz, though we know very little about it except that it will support WVGA and QVGA screen resolutions. It may or may not address some of the issues above, but while we wait for the new devices to come out, let me ask you, dear Crave reader: what would you like to see in the next Android device? It can be about the hardware or software or both. I'd love to hear your thoughts.
Samsung I7500
(Credit: Samsung)On Monday, Samsung introduced its first Google Android device, the Samsung I7500. While many were disappointed to hear that Samsung had initially delayed its Android devices till the second half of the year, the I7500 will be available in major European markets starting in June. Unfortunately, plans for a U.S. release are still unclear.
There is, however, potentially good news for us here in the States. The Samsung I7500 is a tri-band HSDPA device, supporting the 900/1700/2100MHz bands, which makes it compatible with the T-Mobile's 3G network. We talked to Samsung's public relations company this morning to get more information about U.S. availability and a representative said the agency has a conference call planned with Samsung tonight where they hope to get some kind of confirmation about a Stateside release, so stay tuned.
In the meantime, we can share some of the Samsung I7500's impressive specs, including its 3.2-inch HVGA AMOLED touch screen, 8GB of internal memory, and microSD expansion slot (supports up to 32GB), and a 5-megapixel camera. The quad-band world phone also offers Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.0, GPS, and a 3.5mm headphone jack.
Of course, as an Android device, the I7500 supports Google's various services, such as Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Maps with support for Google Latitude, Street View, and more.
The I7500 is more similar in design to the HTC Magic, rather than the T-Mobile G1, in that it features a candy bar-style form factor and doesn't include a physical keyboard. The Samsung I7500 measures 4.5 inches tall by 2.2 inches wide by 0.4 inch thick. It appears that Russian site Mobile-review.com got some hands-on photos of the smartphone, which you can check out here.
In other Android news, it looks like G1 owners in Germany will be the first to get the Android 1.5 software update (aka Cupcake). According to Android Guys and T-Mobile Germany, the update will be available in May, bringing such enhancements as video recording, stereo Bluetooth, an onscreen keyboard, and more.
Once again, we have no word on when the update might be pushed out to other G1 owners around the world, but the fact it's ready for release in Germany is good news. Hopefully, the States won't be too far behind.
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