The original Motorola DROID practically saved Motorola’s wireless division (though we suppose you could argue Verizon deserves the same amount of credit, if not more). Following up on their superstar handset is the Motorola DROID 2 — couple refinements here, couple changes there. It’s nothing breathtaking, more like another option in the getting-very-crowded Android section on Verizon Wireless. Here are some first thoughts and our unboxing gallery follows:

• The handset unfortunately feels a little bit cheaper than the original. It creaks along the sides a bit, and we’re not in love with the design identity of the phone. It’s almost like Motorola went backwards when trying to make the device have a bit more mass-market appeal with the chrome, blue color scheme, and now more rounded design — feels like their vision wasn’t carried all the way through.
• The keyboard is slightly more pronounced now (the middle of each key is domed), but we have to say, it’s not the update we hoped it would be. Comparing it to the old, flat keyboard, we’re not sure what we’d pick. You can feel each key more on the new keyboard, but we’re not sure if that let’s you type any faster.
• The screen is solid — seems identical to the original DROID.
• Android 2.2 doesn’t really feel like Android 2.2 since it’s been BLUR’d and MOTO’d. We’d have loved this to be a stock Android 2.2 handset. This is basically a DROID X in a different form factor.
• All in all seems solid, and a great product refresh, though we do wish that Motorola would have pushed the bar a tad bit higher.

Click on over to our Motorola DROID 2 unboxing gallery!

You know we had to do one… But now that we (and practically most of the human race) have got a unit in hand, what do we think? In the really short time we’ve had it:

• It’s definitely heavier than you’d think but too heavy. We carry around 4-7lb laptops all the time, so 1.5lbs doesn’t sound like much, but it’s definitely a decent amount of weight in such a thin package.
• The screen is gorgeous. It’s just as you’d expect — Apple’s best-in-the-business multitouch capacitive top layer with a great IPS LED-backlit display — we’re in love.
• The packaging, as you might have seen by now is pretty sparse, but it definitely has that Apple feel to it. Included in the box are the unit itself, USB cable, charger, and that’s it!
• We really can’t believe how much this thing flies and how much we’re liking it. You really, really have to pick one up yourself and try it out!

But we’re sure you didn’t come here just to read what we had to say — you want the photos — and we’ve got an awesome unboxing gallery all ready to go. So, who went out and got one today or received one from UPS?

Click on over to our Apple iPad unboxing gallery!

Like you thought we wouldn’t get our hands on it first… We’ve just scored some awesome unboxing photos of the AT&T Palm Pre Plus, and well, it’s a Palm Pre Plus on AT&T. Our connect says it’s identical to the Verizon Wireless unit as far as they can tell, and they like the fact that AT&T’s Address Book backup service is built in to Synergy. But we’re guessing not too many people use that or consider it a big selling point. We’re still waiting on a release date, but in the meantime, you know where to find those photos.

UPDATE: Our source just said this phone has rebooted on them twice in the first hour of use. Awesomeness.

Click on over to our AT&T Palm Pre Plus unboxing gallery!

One of our T-Mobile connects just blessed us with some HTC HD2 unboxing shots. With a looming release date, it should help cut down on some of your healthcare costs. You know, for those of you that have been hyperventilating since the official announcement. Hit the jump for the shots!

While it is set to go on sale November 22nd, business customers on AT&T have been able to order the 9700 starting yesterday morning. If you got in early enough, there’s a good chance your unit shipped out the same day just as ours did. Here’s a quick unboxing for anyone desperately waiting for their BlackBerry 9700s to arrive, and you can always re-read our BlackBerry 9700 review in case you really want to tear your hair out. Also, if anyone else picked up an AT&T unit, or even a T-Mobile unit for that matter, we salute you, friends. BlackBerry fiends need to stick together…

P.S. We’ve been told most AT&T store locations actually have BlackBerry 9700s in stock as of now, but they’re not supposed to sell them until the 22nd.

Click on over to our AT&T BlackBerry 9700 unboxing gallery!

Oh, you don’t remember? Well we’re back at it again, this time with one of our connects doing the unboxing ritual for us. There’s not all that much exciting to report, you know, with the handset shipping with a USB cable, charging adapter, instruction manual and battery. But hey, an unboxing is an unboxing damn it, and we’ve got the goods. We promised ourselves we weren’t going to take any shots but, with the Palm Pre going for $99 in Canada and the awesome HTC DROID Eris selling for $99 on Verizon, is anyone really going to spring for a $99-priced Palm Pixi? Only time will tell.

Thanks, Ninja J!

One of our connects already did one for us, but there’s nothing like having a handset (and a box) in your own possession. Also what our guy reported seems to be spot on: this thing is thinner, lighter, and a lot more pocketable than Sprint’s HTC Hero. The only other change, we’re told, is that the DROID Eris has a proximity sensor on the screen. We’ll put together something more formal in a little bit, but in the meantime check out a couple photos after the jump!

One of our connects just blessed us with a couple shots of the HTC DROID Eris and graciously unboxed the retail packaging. We could bore you with meaningless details about how the phone is thinner and lighter than the Sprint HTC Hero, feels much better in the hand, and is generally the best Android device besides the Motorola DROID our connect has used, but we’ll stop there. Enjoy the photos!

Thanks, Jon!

Well boys and girls (and especially CDMA BlackBerry-lovers), your much-awaited BlackBerry Tour launch date is getting closer and closer. To try and make it easier on you, we’ve got our hands on a retail Verizon BlackBerry Tour and put together a quick unboxing for you. Part 2 of our popular BlackBerry Tour review will be coming soon, but in the meantime, couple sneak peaks:

• The battery door isn’t all glossy anymore which was scratch city. It’s got soft-touch rubber on the outer part and the inner part is a carbon-fiber material. Really, really sharp.
• The dark chrome bezel which is also found on the BlackBerry Onyx looks stunning on the Verizon Tour.
• The device comes with a BlackBerry leather holster!

You’ll have to wait until the second part of the review is done for more, but in the meantime, check the gallery!

Click on over to our Verizon BlackBerry Tour Unboxing gallery!

We know, we know. This isn’t like last year when we were the first to have an iPhone 3G, but come on, we’re the first to have one that’s not supposed to have one yet. That’s got to count for something? Since the phone isn’t activated at the moment, there’s not much to show besides some glamor shots. So click on over to the gallery to get your fill of iPhone 3G S greatness, my OS X-loving friends.

Click on over to our iPhone 3G S Unboxing gallery!

Believe it or not, there is actually more than one Sprint handset being launched this weekend. No, seriously! Right on schedule, the HTC Snap has touched down in Sprint stores across the country and your pals at BGR decided to share a few quick unboxing pics. Courtesy of one of our ninjas, behold Sprint’s iteration of the Snap. Sure the pictures are a little blurry and sure it’s hard to get excited about the Snap when the Pre launch is the day before, but business users may be happy to see a pure business handset as it gets ready for lift off this Sunday. Hit the jump for a few more shots including a size comparison with the BlackBerry Bold.

We’re not going to lie — BGR definitely has its perks. One of them is that our pals from FedEx drop off a lot of packages at our office doors and today was no exception. Although it’s a Saturday, the FedEx truck just pulled up and handed us one heavy ass box (12lbs of heavy). Once we checked the shipping address and saw that it was from Rogers Wireless, we couldn’t help but tear away at the packaging. Inside we found an envelope containing a key, a compass and safe box labeled “Join the Revolution: 02-06-09″. Hit the jump for a sneak peak of what’s inside.

More to come tomorrow.

It’s fascinating how many people lust after gadget unboxings and Monday was no exception with some people going absolutely crazy over some not so great pics of the Palm Pre’s box. Well today a video unboxing of the Pre surfaced which is sure to make more than a few people wet their pants (or worse) from excitement. It’s not exactly what we pictured the first video unboxing would look like as it’s being done by a Palm rep at CES 2009 way back on January 13th (strange how it stayed under the radar until now, isn’t it?), but we’ll take what we can get and dish it out for all of the Pre-crazed nouveau Palm addicts out there. Hit the jump for the video.

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Not too much needs to be said here. Hit the jump for a bunch of pics.

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Not happy to let the T-Mobile Sidekick be the only device to keep its name, T-Mobile has, as you all know, released the update to the Sidekick LX named… the Sidekick LX. Similarities don’t end there, however. We’ve covered the device a little bit but we’ve now got a unit of our own and in addition to some unboxing photos, here are some of our continued first impressions:

The screen is possibly the best screen we’ve seen on a mobile device. RIM really nailed it with the Bold and 8900 but we think the ‘kick take it one level further. Anyone who has used a Sidekick before will obviously be right at home. The main navigation buttons like Jump, Back, Menu, Cancel are all in the same positions and the trackball makes navigating really simple. What about the keyboard? Any real ninja (not you fake ninjas) will know that the Sidekick holds the title for best mobile QWERTY. Ever. It’s not debatable and you will be banned for making a comment that says otherwise. So how is the LX’s keyboard? Fan-friggin-tastic! Really, really awesome. The thinness of the device is much appreciated nowadays but we really wish they’d step it up in the application department. Apple’s App Store approval process makes T-Mobile’s Catalog approval system look uncivilized and down right stupid at best, plus, it’s not like there are any great tools to develop applications with either on the Sidekick. At the end of the day it’s about the OS and we’re not sure Danger’s OS cuts it.

As far as the social aspect of the device, there’s still some major idiot decisions all around. First off, the 6MB mailbox. Do you even want anyone to at least try and take this seriously? It seems like you do. You added Exchange support finally. 6MB though? Get real. The browser is still pretty horrid and with no other 3rd party options, you’re out of luck. As usual, the Sidekick holds the crown for instant messaging. Yes, it does. Now with photo support (something that should have been added long ago), too. MySpace on the Sidekick is crack (if you uh, still use MySpace), but we need some time to dig into the new Twitter app and Facebook app.

All in all, the key phrase for the last two years for the entire industry (minus a very, very select few exceptions) has been evolutionary and not revolutionary. In a world where even Google is having trouble battling the BlackBerry, Apple and Nokia champs, the Sidekick brand (or Danger, or Dangersoft) really needed to come out swinging. It’s a completely different landscape than it used to be when the Sidekick reigned supreme, and we keep feeling like each new Sidekick product cycle should have happened an entire cycle ago — not where the roadmap currently sits. We’ll dive into this thing and get a review going. For now, check out some flicks in the gallery!

Click on over to our T-Mobile Sidekick LX Unboxing gallery!