Android 2.3 gets ported to the iPhone 3G, breaks hearts left and right

Android getting ported to the iPhone may be old news by now, but Android 2.3 (a.k.a. Gingerbread) getting ported to the iPhone? Well, that's something... new, if entirely expected. As before, it's the iPhone 3G doing the honors, and the port is still based on the iDroid project, which means you can hang onto iOS in a dual-boot configuration so you won't be left in the cold when the less-than-stable port decides not to cooperate. And, yes, this once again means that the iPhone has gotten the latest version of Android before many Android devices have. Head on past the break for a video.

iPhone 3GS To Be $50 From AT&T Starting Tomorrow

*BAM* Just like that, AT&T destroyed the $50 smartphone market by dropping the iPhone 3GS down to the same level as Nokia communicators, teeny-bop Blackberrys and the bargain-bin Android devices. That whole market now has to compete with the big dog, the iPhone 3GS.

Well, they do starting tomorrow when the wireless carrier’s new pricing starts. Notice this pricing is just for AT&T as the carrier is dropping the price independently from Apple themselves. So yeah, shoppers looking for the $50 3GS need to head down to their local AT&T dealer rather than the Apple Stores. Of course these same buyers might want to hold off a bit to see what happens in the upcoming months with Verizon and the iPhone. There might be some more surprises planned. Apple likes surprises. 

AT&T Announces iPhone 3GS for $49.00

DALLAS, Jan. 6, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — AT&T* today announced a new price for the popular iPhone 3GS — $49.00 — available beginning tomorrow, Friday, January 7, for both new and upgrade-eligible existing AT&T customers. The offer will be available online at www.att.com/iphone, across more than 2,200 AT&T retail locations nationwide and through AT&T business channels, as well as Apple channels.**

Available only on the nation’s fastest mobile broadband network, iPhone 3GS delivers the following advantages unique to AT&T and its customers:

* Allows for true smartphone multi-tasking, such as talking and using applications at the same time, on AT&T’s mobile broadband network
* Provides access to our entire national Wi-Fi network with nearly 23,000 hotspots
* Provides the best global coverage with wireless voice and data access in more than 200 countries

“We want to deliver the best, most complete package for our customers — from price, to speed, to worldwide access and more,” said David Christopher, chief marketing officer of AT&T Mobility and Consumer Markets. “Combined with our new, lower monthly data plans beginning at just $15 a month, this new price brings even more value to one of the most popular devices in our leading lineup of smartphones. We’re very excited for more people to experience iPhone on the nation’s fastest mobile broadband network.”

iPhone 3GS gives users access to the latest iPhone iOS 4 software plus the revolutionary App Store. Additional information is available at www.apple.com.

*AT&T products and services are provided or offered by subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T brand and not by AT&T Inc.

**Price for 3GS sold in Apple channels is determined by Apple.

Requires new 2-year wireless voice agmt of $39.99 or higher with min $15/mo plan. Subject to wireless customer agrmt. Internal roaming rates or charges apply. Credit approval req’d. Activ. fee up to $36/line. Coverage & svcs, including mobile broadband, not avail everywhere. Geographic, usage & other conditions & restrictions (that may result in svc termination) apply. Taxes & other chrgs apply. See store or visit att.com for details and coverage map. Early Termination Fee (ETF): None if cancelled during first 30 days, but a $35 restocking fee may apply; after 30 days, ETF up to $325 applies (details att.com/equipmentETF). Regulatory Cost Recovery Charge up to $1.25/mo. is chrg’d to help defray costs of complying with gov’t obligations & chrgs on AT&T & is not a tax or gov’t req’d chrg. Wi-Fi: Access includes AT&T Wi-Fi Basic.

Sony Ericsson Xperia Play PlayStation Phone: Videos

Apparently Sony hasn’t bothered to unveil or showcase their Sony Ericcson Xperia Play smartphone which is of course the Sony PlayStation phone during CES 2011; however someone has managed to get their mitts on the device.

According to an article over on the Boy Genius Report by Zach Epstein, Chinese blogger IT168 has posted quite a long preview of the Sony Ericsson Xperia Play handset giving out such details as a 4 inch 854 x 480 pixel display, and 1GHz Snapdragon processor and Android 2.3 Gingerbread.

Other specs revealed include a Qualcomm Adreno 205 graphics processor, 8 megapixel camera with LED flash, 512MB RAM, 512MB ROM, microSD expansion and a 1500mAh battery. Apparently there was also some benchmarking done with the device which was quite impressive by reaching 1733 Quadrant score.

There is also an abundance of pictures of the Sony Ericsson Xperia Play PlayStation phone, s few of which we have here and the others can be seen by hitting up the BGR, but they didn’t posy any video footage.

However, not wanting to let our readers down we have source a few Sony Erixcsson Xperia Play videos for your viewing pleaure courtesy of YouTube user Yatagami0…enjoy.

Leaked Phone Roundup: Motorola Cliq 2, HTC Thunderbolt, More PSP Phone

Another day, another round of leaked phones.  Since they'll take up too much space to devote an entire post individually, we decided we'll just regularly round up all of the day's "outed" handsets in one fell swoop.

Motorola Cliq 2

The blog CellPhone Signal leaked a picture of the next phone in the Cliq series.  Like its predecessor, the handset will sport a horizontal slider form factor with a QWERTY keyboard.  If you look at the keyboard in the photo, it looks like some kind of weird embedded buttons thing -- expect Motorola to make much fuss about that one when this comes out.  No actual leaked specs, but the camera will be 5.0 megapixels (presumably, with 720p video recording).

HTC Thunderbolt

Verizon has been teasing this phone by putting a cloth over it on their website.  Well, here's the leaked image to ruin the surprise (and it's not all that pretty after all, as it turns out).  Likely specs include a 4.3-inch capacitive touchscreen, LTE network support and everything else that the HTC Evo 4G has.  There's an official press conference next week, so we'll know for sure anyway.

More PSP Phone

The latest in the PSP phone rumor mill is that it will be called either the Zeus Z1 (unlikely) or the Xperia Play (more likely).    Expected US and European release is set for Spring of 2011.  Not much more on the actual relevant questions, though, such as how it ties in with the regular PSP and  all that, so there's still nothing much to see here.  Happily move right along.

[CellPhoneSignals, Droid Life, Asahi Shimbun]

ViewSonic ViewPad 4 hands-on (video)

ViewSonic's taking tablets to great new lows here at CES, calling its new 4.1-inch ViewPad 4 a "tablet device with smartphone functionality." Whatever the description, though, this is a pretty handsome, angular Froyo handset with an 800 x 480 resolution, 5 megapixel camera that can record 1080p video, a front-facing imager, 2GB of ROM, and either 512MB or 1GB of RAM. The spec sheet we found online says the former, but the chap at ViewSonic's stand today told us the latter. Either way, we're really liking the smoothness of the Android UI on this tabletphone, it was very pleasantly responsive. The most shocking thing about the ViewPad 4, however, might be its launch date, which we were told will be somewhere around mid-June. Froyo in mid-June ... really? Get your video hands-on fix after the break.

ViewSonic ViewPad 4 hands-on

LG Unveils LG THINQ Platform to Manage Applicances via Smartphone and Tablet

LG has unveiled its latest platform for appliance control in LG THINQ, a communication platform designed to allow users the ability to manage their home appliances via smartphone. Devices that will be able to be controlled by the LG THINQ technology include vacuums and washing machines, as well as ovens and even refrigerators via a WiFi connection.

The optimization of home appliances is designed to save electricity by managing devices via a central computer, smartphone or tablet PC. Troubleshooting, repair and diagnostic systems will also be included. LG details several custom options for each application.

Supposed HTC Thunderbolt Specs Leaked: 1.2 Ghz Dual-Core CPU, 5 Megapixel Front Camera, And More!

At this point, Verizon’s upcoming 4G-friendly Android phone, the HTC Thunderbolt, is about as secret as my undying love for oxygen. While its gone by different names over time (from the Incredible HD, to “Mecha”, to the current Thunderbolt moniker), we’ve seen leak, after leak, after leak with this thing.

One thing, however, has managed to remain elusive: the spec sheet. In some sort of belated Christmas miracle, it looks like that might have just made its way out.

According to German HTC fansite HTCInside.de, these specs come straight from the inventory system of an unnamed German retailer:

1.2Ghz Qualcomm MSM8960 dual-core CPU

Android 2.3

LTE support

4.3″ Touchscreen

8 megapixel autofocus camera with Dual-LED flash (with HD video recording)

5 megapixel front-facing camera

Radio: Quadband UMTS/LTE/HSDPA/HSUPA

802.11b/g/n

Bluetooth

GPS/aGPS

Hotspot mode

16 GB internal memory

1800mAh battery

If all that holds true, this is shaping up to be one helluva phone — and fortunately, my trusty ol’ BS meter isn’t registering any hits with this. The MSM8960 chipset is indeed dual-core and clocked at 1.2Ghz — so if these aren’t real, the faker at least did their homework. The 5 megapixel front facing camera is a bit surprising, given that nearly all of the front-facers out there are either 0.3 Megapixels (VGA) or 1.3 megapixels, but perhaps Verizon is looking to boast about “High-def video calling” with this one.

Anything sound fishy to you? Let us know down in the comments

[Via SlashGear via Phonedog]

Bug Labs gets cozier with Verizon, announces LTE module for speedy DIY devices

Not satisfied with the smattering of LTE products announced at CES thus far? Why not build your own with Bug Labs' modular components? Yes, the open-source hardware manufacturer has teamed with Verizon to offer pre-certified wireless modules once again, though this time they take advantage of the new LTE hotness rather than Verizon's EV-DO network. No word on when we'll be able to sign up to prototype our own phones nor how much they'll cost, but know that even just the base platform will slurp $500 out of your wallet. PR after the break.

Show full PR text

Bug Labs Announces Support for Verizon Wireless 4G LTE Broadband Network

Open Development Platform Enables Rapid and Cost-Effective Wireless Device Innovation and Deployment on Next-Generation Network

LAS VEGAS and BASKING RIDGE, N.J., Jan. 5, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- From the 2011 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES), Bug Labs today announced that its flagship platform, The Bug System, now supports device innovation on the Verizon Wireless 4G LTE Mobile Broadband network. Product developers and software engineers can now quickly and affordably prototype and build devices that capitalize on the availability of the 4G LTE network.

In addition to faster data speeds, the Verizon Wireless 4G LTE network enables an elegant connection between users and data available in the world around them. For companies that are faced with the challenge of creating custom-built devices that take advantage of opportunities on the 4G LTE network, Bug Labs and Verizon Wireless will simplify the process by offering pre-certified modules for use in The Bug System without additional certification required.
"Users are demanding faster and easier access to information on the go, and the Verizon Wireless 4G LTE network signifies a major evolution in the market to meet this demand.

However, because the technology is new and still maturing, users are currently limited to the few 4G LTE compatible devices available today," said Peter Semmelhack, founder and chief executive officer, Bug Labs. "Working with Verizon Wireless, we have opened the possibilities of 4G LTE to the broader market. Bug Labs is excited to arm companies with the open development tools they need to quickly and affordably capitalize on all custom device innovations imaginable."

Bug Labs' products and services are designed to give companies the tools and support needed to prototype, pilot and produce innovative networked devices with ease. The company's Bug System consists of hardware and software solutions that can be readily combined and re-configured to enable immediate product experimentation and device prototyping. As a result, enterprise users are able to significantly reduce the timelines and costs associated with bringing a custom wireless device to market.

Bug Labs' support for Verizon Wireless' 4G LTE network is the second announcement made by the companies regarding their collaboration in recent months. In September 2010, Bug Labs revealed that it would offer pre-certified modules that allow developers to build, program and deploy new wireless technologies on the Verizon Wireless 3G wireless network. To learn more about Bug Labs' capabilities on the Verizon Wireless network, visit: http://opennetwork.verizonwireless.com/aboutOpenDev.aspx#working_bug.

The Verizon Wireless 4G LTE Mobile Broadband network, launched in December 2010, is the fastest, most advanced 4G network in the United States, providing speeds up to 10 times faster than the existing Verizon Wireless 3G network. Verizon Wireless' 4G LTE Mobile Broadband network currently reaches one-third of all Americans, with plans to expand the network to the company's entire 3G coverage area over the next three years.

Bug Labs' Bug System will be highlighted from Jan. 6-9 in Verizon Wireless' booth (#35216 in the South Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center). For more information about the LTE Innovation Center and Verizon Wireless' 4G LTE network, visit www.verizonwireless.com/lte.