Samsung Galaxy S II official US launch on August 29

Samsung has scheduled a press event on August 29, 2011, in New York City, and judging by the conspicuous “II” on the invitation sent to Android Community, it looks like the Galaxy S II is finally ready to make its US debut. The “major product announcement” the invite promises is one that has been much-anticipated by US Android-lovers: the Galaxy S II has already set sales records for Samsung in Europe and Asia.

In fact, Samsung has had the Galaxy S II on sale outside the US for several months now – we reviewed the European version back in April - and it’s already on sale in Canada, too. You can still see the appeal: a 4.3-inch Super AMOLED Plus display, dual-core 1.2GHz processor and 8-megapixel camera with Full HD 1080p video recording still leaves the Galaxy S II at the top of its game.
We’ll be headed to New York for all the details on August 29, when hopefully Samsung will tell us exactly when the GSII will go on sale and for how much. Meanwhile, if you’re in the UK remember we’re giving away two Galaxy S II units courtesy of Vodafone!

Device Specifications and Information

Device Info

Device Name : Galaxy S II

Manufactuer : Samsung

Carrier : AT&T

Announced Date : February 13, 2011

Release Date : April 28, 2011

Also Known As :

Display

• Screen Size : 4.27 Inch


• Resolution : 480x800


• Screen Type : Super AMOLED Plus

Dimension & Weight

• Height : 4.93 Inch


• Width : 2.6 Inch


• Depth : .33 Inch


• Weight : 116 Grams

Battery & Power

• Battery Type:


• Lithium Ion

• Battery Capacity : 1650 mAh


• Talk Time : NA


• Stand By Time : 710 hours

Software

• Android OS:


• 2.3.x

• Audio Playback:


• AAC


• AAC+


• MP3

• Video Playback:


• h.263


• h.264 / AVC


• MPEG-4 (MP4)

• Messaging:


• SMS


• MMS

Hardware

CPU : Exynos

CPU Clock Speed : 1200 Mhz

Core : 2

Ram : 1000 MB

Internal Storage : 16 GB

Front Facing Camera :

Camera Resolution :8 MP

• External Storage:


• MicroSD


• MicroSDHC

• Camera Features:


• Auto focus


• Flash


• 1080p Video Recording


• 720p Video Recording

• Sensors:


• Accelerometer


• Proximity

QWERTY :

Cellular Network

• Network Technology:


• GSM

• GSM Band:


• 850


• 900


• 1800


• 1900

Device Connectivity

• Wi-Fi:


• 802.11b


• 802.11g


• 802.11n

• Bluetooth:


• Bluetooth 3.0

• Location Features:


• Compass


• GPS


• Cellular location


• Wi-Fi location

FM Radio :

)

Read more »

Research firm claims Android Market is driven by very active developers

Data from an app rating and discovery company called Mobilewalla has surfaced that digs into the Android Market and found some interesting details about developers for Android. According to the metrics firm, the Android market is led by a number of very prolific app markers. The company also found that the apps on Android also see more updates per app than apps on the App Store at Apple sees.

I am sure that has to do with the fact that developers on the Android Market can update and publish as they see fit whereas Apple forces all updates through an approval process. The data the company published shows that in May Android devs that have created more than 100 apps and are responsible for more than 53% of the apps on the Market.
On the App Store, by contrast developers that have more than 100 apps to their credit only represent 23% of all apps. The implication is that the fast growth of the Android market means that it is driven by a smaller set of developers that are pushing out lots of new apps.
[via Gigaom]

Read more »

Box.net updates Android cloud app with tablet support

The cloud storage choices are growing quickly out there and if you are a fan of the Box.net cloud platform that has been around for a while for sharing mobile data on the go using smartphones the app has been updated. The new version of the Box app has been updated and it now supports Android tablets. The app was only for Android phones before and this is the first time for tablet support.

The company said that its smartphone app for Android devices had been downloaded 100,000 times already. The service has a free trial offer and it guarantees 99.9% uptime. That means you won’t have to worry about the service being offline when you need it. Box offers contact management, the ability to share files securely, and the ability to sync files from the desktop.
The mobile access allows you to share documents with coworkers and friends on the go and it lets the user share folders and files with a simple tap. The app is available for iOS devices and the new update supports the Playbook tablet as well. It also has an online workspace for editing documents.
[via InformationWeek]

Read more »

Android steals 20% of tablet market from iPad over past year

Android-powered tablets have taken 20% of the global tablet market from Apple’s iPad over the past 12 months according to new data from ABI Research. While Android tablets have collectively managed to make a sizable dent in the iPad’s global market share, ABI says no single tablet vendor has managed to “mount a significant challenge” against the iPad at this point. “Many vendors have introduced media tablets, but none are separating themselves from the pack to pose a serious threat to Apple,” ABI Research mobile devices group director Jeff Orr said in a statement. ”In fact, most have introduced products at prices higher than similarly-configured iPads. Apple, never a company to be waiting for others, has introduced its second-generation iPad media tablet while keeping product pricing unchanged.” Orr continued, “De-featured, low-cost media tablets are being introduced by more than fifty vendors in 2011. This will certainly help bolster year-over-year growth for the category, but it also creates a negative perception in the minds of the mass consumer audience about the readiness of media tablets to be fully functional within the next several years. Good user experiences and product response are needed to propel this market beyond the ‘early adopter’ stage.” ABI Reseach’s full press release follows below.

Android Takes 20% Media Tablet Market Share from iPad in Last 12 Months
NEW YORK – August 11, 2011
Worldwide annual media tablet shipments are expected to top 120 million units in 2015. While not quite as strong as traditional PC or smartphone annual sales, media tablets are emerging from the shadow of non-handset mobile devices and rapidly coming into their own. Android media tablets have collectively taken 20% market share away from the iPad in the last 12 months. However, no single vendor using Android (or any other OS) has been able to mount a significant challenge against it.
ABI Research mobile devices group director Jeff Orr comments, “Many vendors have introduced media tablets, but none are separating themselves from the pack to pose a serious threat to Apple. In fact, most have introduced products at prices higher than similarly-configured iPads. Apple, never a company to be waiting for others, has introduced its second-generation iPad media tablet while keeping product pricing unchanged.”
Fragmentation within operating system software is hindering growth of this device category. Application developers must choose an initial software platform and may delay starting development if the market potential is not significant. Google’s Android OS has no less than three different software builds deployed across media tablets at the same time. The benefits of open software platform development have yet to be realized for media tablets.
“De-featured, low-cost media tablets are being introduced by more than fifty vendors in 2011,” Orr says. “This will certainly help bolster year-over-year growth for the category, but it also creates a negative perception in the minds of the mass consumer audience about the readiness of media tablets to be fully functional within the next several years. Good user experiences and product response are needed to propel this market beyond the ‘early adopter’ stage.”
ABI Research’s new “Media Tablets” study defines the product category, discusses market drivers and inhibitors, and provides information about distribution channels, go-to-market strategies, product pricing, and availability. The report also presents information about device features, capabilities, and use cases, and provides forecasts of media tablet shipments and price bands.
It is part of the firm’s Tablets, Netbooks, and Mobile CE Research Service.

Read more »

Apple may unveil iPhone 5 on September 7th

Apple plans to hold this year’s “iPod media event” on September 7th, Japanese-language news site Kodawarisan reported on Friday. The company’s September event has historically been dedicated to the iPod line, with Apple having unveiled its latest iPod touch, iPod shuffle and iPod nano models at last year’s event. With a new iPhone model due to be released in September or October, however, it seems very likely that Apple will use its annual September media event to unveil the iPhone 5 rather than just refreshed iPods. The spotlight has moved off of Apple’s iPod lineup over the past few years — Apple even removed its “iPod” branding from the Music app in iOS 5 — so it seems highly unlikely that the company’s line of media players will continue to warrant a dedicated event. Apple is also expected to launch the new iPad 3 in the near future, though a recent round of rumors suggest that might not happen until late November or even early 2012.
Read

Read more »

Acer’s 7-inch Iconia Tab A100 brings 3.2 Honeycomb for $330

The first 7-inch Android 3.2 tablet, Acer’s Iconia Tab A100, has gone on sale in the US, offering a compact Honeycomb experience in a Galaxy Tab rivaling form-factor. Priced from $329.99 when it hits US shelves today – it’ll arrive on Canadian shelves next month – the A100 will come in 8GB and 16GB versions each with NVIDIA’s Tegra 2 processor, a 1024 x 600 touchscreen, 5-megapixel main camera supporting 720p HD 30fps video recording, and 5hrs battery life.

Connectivity includes WiFi a/b/g/n and Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, along with microUSB 2.0 and a microHDMI port for hooking the A100 up to a bigger display. There’s also a gyroscope and digital compass, 3.5mm headphone socket and a docking station connector. Up front Acer has slotted in a 2-megapixel camera for video calls.
Three versions of the A100 will be on offer, with one a Walmart exclusive. The A100-07u16u has 16GB of internal storage and will retail for $349.99 in the US, while the A100-07u08u has 8GB of storage and will retail for $329.99; the A100-07u08w is Walmart’s special version, functionally identical to the 8GB regular model. All three have microSD card slots for extending storage.

Device Specifications and Information

Device Info

Device Name : ICONIA A100

Manufactuer : Acer

Carrier :

Announced Date : February 14, 2011

Release Date : June 21, 2011

Also Known As :

Display

• Screen Size : 7 Inch


• Resolution : 600x1024


• Screen Type : LCD

Dimension & Weight

• Height : 7.68 Inch


• Width : 4.61 Inch


• Depth : 0.52 Inch


• Weight : 470 Grams

Battery & Power

• Battery Type:


• Lithium Ion

• Battery Capacity : mAh


• Talk Time : NA


• Stand By Time : NA

Software

• Android OS:


• 3.0.x

• Audio Playback:


• MP3

• Video Playback:


• MPEG-4 (MP4)

Hardware

CPU : Tegra 250 Dual Cortex A9

CPU Clock Speed : 1000 Mhz

Core : 2

Ram : 512 MB

Internal Storage : 8.192 GB

Front Facing Camera :

Camera Resolution :5 MP

• External Storage:


• MicroSD


• MicroSDHC

• Camera Features:


• Auto focus


• Flash

• Sensors:


• Accelerometer

QWERTY :

Cellular Network

• Network Technology:


• GSM

• GSM Band:


• 850


• 900


• 1800


• 1900

Device Connectivity

• Wi-Fi:


• 802.11b


• 802.11g


• 802.11n

• Bluetooth:


• Bluetooth 2.0

• Location Features:


• Compass


• GPS


• Cellular location


• Wi-Fi location

FM Radio :

)

Read more »

Samsung gets court date for attempt to overturn Galaxy Tab ban in Europe

It has been a few days now since German courts banned the sale of the Samsung Galaxy Tab tablet in most of Europe. Samsung and Apple have been fighting a legal battle there over Apple’s allegations that Samsung is copying its design for the Galaxy Tab series. The courts in Germany set a date for Samsung’s appeal to try to get the ban overturned. The date is set for August 25 and a decision will likely come a few weeks after the court date.

Apple is also attempting to ban the import and sale of the Galaxy Tab tablets in other areas too. Apple filed an injunction with a court in The Hague reports Reuters that seeks to stop the Samsung gear from being sold in the Netherlands. That filing is also seeking to stop the import of the Samsung products into the EU via the Netherlands.
The judge in that case is going to deliver his ruling on September 15 and if he rules for Apple, the injunction would go into effect on October 13. The judge presiding over the case in the Netherlands is Edger Brinkman. Samsung has filed suits of its own against Apple.
[via Reuters]

Read more »

Dell Streak 5 axed

Dell has quietly killed the Streak 5, its 5-inch Android tablet/smartphone hybrid. Confirmed on the company’s site - with the message “Goodbye, Streak 5. It’s been a great ride” – the decision follows various discounting drives on the tablet as well as stock shortages.

The Streak 5 was already over a year old, having been initially released in the UK on June 4 2010. It arrived with Android 1.6, which Dell had reskinned, but was later – and after some delays – upgraded to Android 2.2 Froyo. Despite vocal support from a minority subset of users, the Streak 5 failed to achieve mainstream success, perhaps because of its “tweener” scale – falling in-between a phone, the functionality of which it offered, and a tablet – and non-tablet-centric OS.
Dell still offers the Streak 7, it’s 7-inch slate, and is expected to release further Android tablets in the near future. They will likely run Honeycomb, Google’s tablet-specific OS, rather than the phone build that the Streak relied on.
[via SlashGear]

Read more »

Acer Iconia Tab A500 Receiving Android 3.2 OTA Update August 25th

Acer announced on their Malaysian Facebook page that they will be releasing the 3.2 OTA update for their Iconia Tab A500 on August 25ht. Apparently, there was a minor setback due to a few policy changes from Google and that’s the reason for the delay.

Dear Fans, due to some policy changes from Google where Acer has to comply, the A500 Honeycomb 3.2 OTA update will be postponed to 25th August, we apologize for the dissapointments and upsets but we will be bringing the final and stable update to all of our A500 fans asap! Please be patient guys :)

First time I’ve heard of Google crackin’ the whip. Hopefully this isn’t just limited for Asian markets and this OTA will be pushed out stateside as well. Either way, it doesn’t look like all you Iconia Tab users will have to wait much longer to get your taste of Android 3.2 Honeycomb.
Thanks, Andrzej!
[Via TabletBlog.de]

Read more »