Tag Archives: Android2.3

Motorola and NII Holdings announce US launch of PRIP, a push-to-talk service for Android

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Sprint's iDEN network may have just recently shut off for good, but push-to-talk (PTT) technology isn't gone. Today, Motorola launched PRIP, a PTT platform that works using mobile data or WiFi networks. The service launched in Mexico a month ago, but now PRIP's available to US residents in Google Play, provided their phones are running Android 2.3 or later -- an iOS version's arriving in the coming weeks. For now, folks who sign up can use the service free for the first month, after which it'll cost users a $7.99 monthly fee. It's not exactly the cheapest form of communication, but hey, its a small price to pay for instant access to all of PRIP's users, right?

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Mobile Miscellany: week of October 22nd, 2012

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Mobile Miscellany week of October 22nd, 2012

If you didn't get enough in mobile news during the week, not to worry, because we've opened the firehose for the truly hardcore. This past week, T-Mobile announced the price and release date for the Optimus L9, carriers were announced in Canada for the ATIV S Windows Phone and ZTE released a low-priced Android smartphone for Virgin Mobile in the UK. These stories and more await after the break. So buy the ticket and take the ride as we explore the "best of the rest" for this week of October 22nd, 2012.

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Mobile Miscellany: week of October 22nd, 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 27 Oct 2012 19:20:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Huawei Ascend Y heads to US Cellular, is available now for $30 on contract

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Huawei Ascend Y heads to US Cellular, is available now for $30 on contract

Despite being involved in a recent national security controversy in the US, Huawei isn't quite ready to slow down its plans to bring as many handsets as possible over to Stateside shores. Today, the Chinese company is making its Gingerbread-packing Huawei Ascend Y available to US Cellular subscribers, giving folks who want to keep spending to a minimum yet another Android option on the regional carrier. The Ascend Y itself boasts a 3.5-inch, 480 x 320 screen, which is paired alongside a 3.2-megapixel rear camera and, for audiophiles, DTS Envelo -- a technology "for virtual surround sound to enhance audio experience." The Huawei Ascend Y is up for grabs now at a decent price of $30 (with a two-year contract, of course), though the carrier's site currently has it listed for a mere one cent. No word on how long this promo will last, so those of you interested may want to check out the source link below right about now.

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Huawei Ascend Y heads to US Cellular, is available now for $30 on contract originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 24 Oct 2012 23:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Alcatel One Touch Shockwave reaches US Cellular, takes your bumps and scrapes for $50

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Alcatel One Touch Shockwave reaches US Cellular, takes your bumps and scrapes for $50

Those of us picking budget smartphones in the US seldom have the choice of a toughened smartphone, and it's even more of a challenge when we're not signed on to one of the top four carriers. US Cellular is offering the cost-conscious a (hardened) olive branch by shipping the Alcatel One Touch Shockwave. Skip past the creaky Android 2.3, 800MHz processor, 3.2-megapixel camera and 3.5-inch, 480 x 320 display -- a shock- and water-resistant shell as well as Dragontrail-based glass should keep the smartphone working through most forms of casual abuse. We also don't mind having preloaded Amazon Appstore and media apps, although the frugal 2GB microSD card in the box won't leave much room for any downloading. We'd at least keep the Shockwave on the short list when the $50 price and long-lasting design will leave ample funds for just about everything else.

Continue reading Alcatel One Touch Shockwave reaches US Cellular, takes your bumps and scrapes for $50

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Alcatel One Touch Shockwave reaches US Cellular, takes your bumps and scrapes for $50 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 24 Oct 2012 15:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Parrot unveils Asteroid Smart, Tablet and Mini car infotainment systems, we go hands-on

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Parrot unveils Asteroid Smart, Tablet and Mini car infotainment systems, we go handson

We first laid eyes on Parrot's first Android-based Asteroid car infotainment system a couple years ago at CES. Then, at this past year's show, we got a sneak peek at a trio of successor Asteroid devices. Now, a mere 10 months later, the Asteroid Smart, Tablet and Mini have finally arrived in consumer-ready garb. First, there's a flagship in-dash system, the double-DIN Asteroid Smart. It features a 6.2-inch 800 x 480 capacitive display, a Texas Instruments 800MHz processor and runs a heavily skinned version of Android 2.3. The Smart also has four USB 2.0 ports (one which pushes 5V to charge an iPod) for connecting external devices like the included GPS antenna or a dongle for cellular data. Plus, there are 3.5mm line-in and microphone jacks to go with a host of RCA connections and a micro-USB port round the back. Bluetooth 3.0 is baked in, and an SD card slot sits behind the detachable security strip to the left of the screen.

Gallery: Parrot Asteroid Smart, Tablet and Mini press shots

The Smart's siblings, the Asteroid Mini and Asteroid Tablet are also coming to North America this month. The Tablet packs similar specs as the Smart, only it's got a 5-inch capacitive screen and is portable, as opposed to an in-dash solution. It runs the same skinned version of Gingerbread, has GPS and Bluetooth radios, and packs 512MB of RAM and 1GB of on-board storage, plus an SD slot. It also comes with a wireless touchpad remote so you can control the system straight from your steering wheel. Meanwhile, the Mini, with its 3.2-inch, non-touch screen has a similar form factor to the Tablet and comes with a wireless remote as well. However, its OS is built on Android 1.5 and it relies upon an external GPS antenna like its bigger, double-DIN cousin. The Asteroid Tablet will retail for $399, and the Mini will cost a hundred bucks less when they go on sale in a few weeks.

We got to swipe our way around the Parrot Smart, so join us after the break to see it in action.

Continue reading Parrot unveils Asteroid Smart, Tablet and Mini car infotainment systems, we go hands-on

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Parrot unveils Asteroid Smart, Tablet and Mini car infotainment systems, we go hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 04 Oct 2012 20:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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ICS and Jellybean now on a quarter of all Android devices, but over half still stuck on Gingerbread

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It seems like only yesterday that Google bundled Ice Cream Sandwich 4.0 in its little biscuit layers and sent it off into the world (it was December, 2011, actually). That Android flavor has since climbed the charts rapidly, around four percent each month for the last while, and now occupies the ROM on 23.7 percent of robot-based devices -- up from 20.8 percent last month. That's in part due to new devices (like many in China) still coming out of the box with it, on top of older warhorses like the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 finally grabbing some ICS. Meanwhile, its smooth-running younger sibling, Jelly Bean, made a slight gain to 1.8 percent of all Google-run slates and phones -- though that will likely change when the Galaxy Note II hits the market en masse and the Galaxy S III OTA 4.1.1 disseminates to all its owners. Meanwhile, Gingerbread still dominates Google OS installed devices at 55.8 percent, probably thanks to delays or denials of newer flavors to legacy devices.

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ICS and Jellybean now on a quarter of all Android devices, but over half still stuck on Gingerbread originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 02 Oct 2012 03:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Refresh Roundup: week of September 24th, 2012

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Refresh Roundup week of September 24th, 2012

Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging for an update. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it's easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don't escape without notice, we've gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery we could find during the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!

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Refresh Roundup: week of September 24th, 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 30 Sep 2012 20:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mobile Miscellany: week of September 24th, 2012

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Mobile Miscellany week of September 24th, 2012

If you didn't get enough in mobile news during the week, not to worry, because we've opened the firehose for the truly hardcore. This past week, Dan Hesse shared his turnaround vision for Sprint, Jim Allchin revealed where T-Mobile stumbled and AT&T welcomed a new GoPhone. Not to stop there, we discovered two updated launchers that've piled on inspiration from Jelly Bean. So buy the ticket and take the ride as we explore the "best of the rest" for this week of September 24th, 2012.

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Mobile Miscellany: week of September 24th, 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 29 Sep 2012 21:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mobile Miscellany: week of September 17th, 2012

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Mobile Miscellany week of September 17th, 2012

If you didn't get enough in mobile news during the week, not to worry, because we've opened the firehose for the truly hardcore. This past week, Sprint hit more than one milestone that it just had to share and Nokia teased the latest app that's exclusive to Lumia owners. We then discovered a very rare BlackBerry and also learned of the latest city to get prepped for T-Mobile's LTE service. Hell, we even stumbled on a new smartphone for old people! These stories and more await after the break. So buy the ticket and take the ride as we explore the "best of the rest" for this week of September 17th, 2012.

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Mobile Miscellany: week of September 17th, 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 22 Sep 2012 21:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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ZTE Anthem 4G unveiled for MetroPCS, has us singing a dual-core, LTE tune for $219

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ZTE Anthem 4G launches with MetroPCS, has us singing a dualcore, LTE tune for $219

Although ZTE is no stranger to the US, it hasn't been as quick to embrace LTE-based 4G as some of its rivals. The new Anthem 4G for MetroPCS puts the company back in sync, and then some. In addition to the faster speeds, the company's first American LTE phone touts a comparatively speedy dual-core 1.2GHz Snapdragon processor, a 4.3-inch, 800 x 480 screen and perks like HDMI video output with Dolby Surround sound. Our only immediate reservation is the use of Android 2.3, which really shouldn't be on any shipping devices almost two years after it first left Google's doors. Any takers may forgive the old software when they see their bill, though -- the Anthem 4G's $219 contract-free price will put it at the more affordable end of MetroPCS' spectrum when it arrives sometime within the next few weeks.

Continue reading ZTE Anthem 4G unveiled for MetroPCS, has us singing a dual-core, LTE tune for $219

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ZTE Anthem 4G unveiled for MetroPCS, has us singing a dual-core, LTE tune for $219 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 20 Sep 2012 14:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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