April 6, 2009 by Tap
February's mobile browser share report showed Android gaining 1.24% on the previous month making it the fourth most popular mobile OS according to Net Applications. Figures for March show an even greater increase of 2.31% making it second only to the iPhone.
Whilst this continued growth is an achievement in itself, equally impressive and good news for the future, is a new report by Net Applications which shows that in the first four months of its launch, Android has achieved near identical growth to what the iPhone achieved during its launch. I guess all that remains now is to watch as Android slowly eats away at the iPhone's dominant market share.
Source: Net Applications
April 6, 2009 by Tap
What's this, a new contender for the best Android phone crown from Amico? Sadly not, at least not in its current guise. Firstly who is Amico? I've certainly never heard of them and a bit of Googling doesn't seem to reveal much. According to reports this is a Taiwanese company but the closest match I could find was for a listing on global trade site ecplaza for MP3 players from Allied Manufacturers International Corporation (AMICO). Could an Android phone be their latest venture?
From a looks point of view it's nothing new and what's with the Sony-like 'BRAVA' branding down the side? Although it sports a 624MHz Marvell processor (compared to the G1/Magic's 528MHz Qualcomm MSM7201A chip) it's let down by a resistive touch screen and lack of 3G support. Hopefully it's still early days for this phone and if/when it finally does make it on the official Android phone list, it will be a worthy contender. Visit engadgetmobile for more pics and a hands-on video.
April 3, 2009 by Tap
I've been watching, with interest, the news regarding the delay of the HTC Magic which initially surfaced on Mobile Today at the end of March. I actually first got to hear of this delay mid-March via a trusted source but was asked to keep it quiet as it had only been communicated within Vodafone up to that point.
I can now confirm that Vodafone's HTC Magic will be released in the UK on the 1st of May and will be available for pre-order from April 17th. The phone will be available on a £30/month tariff and will include 600 minutes, unlimited texts and unlimited Internet and email. Right now I'm assuming that the phone itself will be free although I'm waiting to hear confirmation on that and will update this post if that is not the case.
Update: The HTC Magic is now available here.
April 3, 2009 by Tap
At last, some decent Android-related news out of CTIA 2009. It seems that Samsung's plans are progressing nicely and although they had nothing to show at the event, it looks like we can expect their first handset to be released in Europe this June. Could that be the one Orange was referring to as coming shortly after the HTC Hero?
According to Dr. Won-Pyo Hong, executive vice president of global product strategy in the company's mobile communication division, Samsung plans to release several Android devices this year. In addition to the European phone, the company will roll out another two devices in the US, most likely with T-Mobile and Sprint.
Just as interesting as the news of new phones were comments regarding why Samsung has been relatively slow to market their Android phones. It seems that this had less to do with Samsung and more to do with operators who, although keen on Android, are less enthusiastic about the operating system's close association with Google. As a result, Samsung has made a clear distinction between Android phones and 'Google Experience' phones, and chosen the former. What this means in real terms is that although still running Android, Samsung's phones may look and operate differently to what we've become accustomed to with the G1 and Magic.
Source: Forbes
April 2, 2009 by Tap
According to the Chinese-language Economic Daily News (EDN), Foxconn sources have confirmed that the company has formed an R&D team to develop Android-based smartphones. On the one hand this does seem to be confirmation of speculation regarding Foxconn's deal to develop smartphones for Dell. The report however claims that Motorola is likely to be a potential first client for Foxconn's Android-powered phones. So who's it going to be then – Motorola or Dell? In the long run, most likely both given Foxconn's history as one of the world's largest handset manufacturing service providers.
Source: DigiTimes