We just swung on by the Dell booth here at MWC and wanted to report back on our quick encounter with the Dell Venue — which is basically the Venue Pro with Android and without a QWERTY slider. To quickly go over the raw specs: 1GHz QSD 8250 processor, 4.1-inch AMOLED display, 512MB RAM, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1, 8 megapixel rear-facing camera, 1400mAh battery, and micro-SD card slot. The device itself is a tad on the thick side — 12.9mm — but feels extremely solid in the hand. The chrome accents on the bezel, like those on the Venue Pro, are a nice touch and give the phone a little flair. The device is running Android 2.2 with Dell’s Stage UI and, much to our chagrin, Dell declined to comment on if/when the device would be updated to Android 2.3. The phone is pretty much exactly what you expect it to be. The device has pretty average specs and behaves like most other Android devices of its ilk. The lighting was terrible, but that didn’t stop us from snapping a few images for you to look over. Hit up our gallery and let us know what you think.

Sony Ericsson has gone through the trouble of creating a three minute thirty second video that showcases just what makes the 8 megapixel shooter on the Xperia Arc function at such a high level. SE details several improved features, such as an enhanced Sony sensor and f/2.4 aperture, that make the Arc’s camera ideal for indoor and low-light conditions. The camera has dozens of configurable options and, as an added bonus, the video was shot in 720p using a second Arc handset. Hit the jump, the video is waiting for you.

[Via Android Central]

What do we have here? It looks like an Android Forum member has acquired not one, but two LG Star handsets. The device has a 4-inch WVGA touchscreen display, 8 megapixel camera, front-facing camera, HDMI-out port, and runs a skinned version of Android 2.2. The device is rumored to have a dual-core Tegra 2 processor, 1500 mAh battery, and 1080p video recording capabilities; rumors that were not substantiated by the user who submitted the images. The photo-taker did post some benchmarks for the unreleased device and , to be honest, they look quite impressive. Hit the read link to check out the full compliment of images and let us know what you think.

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Well what do we have here? According to the gang over at Engadget, you are looking at none-other than the LG “Star”; LG’s upcoming, flagship, Android handset. What makes this DROID Incredible look-alike a flagship device you ask? Purportedly, the unreleased set will sport a dual-core, Tegra 2 processor along with a 4-inch screen, 8 megapixel rear-facing camera with flash and full 1080p video-recording, front-facing camera of an unknown pixel-count, microSD card slot, and 1500 mAh battery.

Now, we know what you’re thinking: “I hope LG doesn’t muck-up this handset with UI enhancements.” You’ll be happy to know that Engadget’s source mentions that the version of Android that runs on this bad boy is “nearly untouched.” Joy.

The device is pegged for release in early 2012 2011 in unknown regions on unknown carriers, but seeing as how LG has yet to make a big splash in the U.S. smartphone market… we’d say this would be a great way to start!

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Windows Phone 7 has been getting a lot of press as the new mobile OS on the block over the last few months, but webOS aficionados and smartphone junkies alike know that webOS 2.0 — and the Palm Pre 2 — will be storming the U.S. market in the very near future. How near you ask? Well, according to HP’s Facebook page, just six days from now on November 8th. The company posted the following message:

HP for Students – US: Check out the new Palm Pre Plus 2, pre-orders begin 11/8

It is unclear whether the “pre-orders” the post is referring to will be for the Verizon Wireless Pre Plus 2 or an unlocked GSM device that is rumored to exist for developers. Looks like we’ll find out soon enough!

[Via PreCentral]

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We’ve just confirmed with wireless carrier Sprint that the company will begin taking pre-orders for the HTC 7 Pro Windows Phone 7 device beginning on November 8th. Now, before you get too excited… the offer is for Microsoft employees only. Sprint did not share any additional details about the why the employee program exists, what general consumer availability of the device would be, or device pricing. Sprint’s statement contradicts rumors that have been circulating the web stating that the company would be offering pre-orders of the HTC device to the general public on the 8th.

Regardless of the employee pre-order date, HTC has publicly stated that the CDMA-capable 7 Pro would not be available until sometime in 2011. Combine that unambiguous statement with the fact that HTC did not have a working prototype of the device at the WP7 launch event last month, and: 2011 still seems like the proper timeline to us. Although, in this instance… we wouldn’t mind being wrong.

Read [Original Rumor]

According to Gizmodo, yes. The blog is reporting that a “friend” of theirs actually got some hands-on time with the Samsung heir to the Nexus throne. The device, which is being referred to as the Nexus Two, was described as “black and shiny” with a 4-inch AMOLED display (we would assume Super AMOLED since it’s Samsung), front-facing camera, and roughly the same proportions as the current Galaxy S offerings in the U.S. (not including the Epic 4G). The “friend” also said the device’s software, which was a stock version of Android, was “very buggy.” We have to admit, the thought of Galaxy S hardware running an unmolested version of Android has piqued our interest. Samsung has a media event scheduled for November 8th where, most blogs agree, the company will announce their Continuum handset. Could this be Samsung’s equivalent of “one more thing?” We hope so.

UPDATE: PCMag’s Sascha Segan just posted an article of his own on the rumored device. The post had this to say on the matter: “The unnamed, unlocked Samsung phone is not coming out at an event on November 8, my sources said.” Although earlier in the post he did admit, “Samsung is working on an unlocked Android device that looks like the one in Gizmodo’s pictures. But it may not be called ‘Nexus Two.’”

Note: Above image is a mock-up. Image credit to Gizmodo.

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When Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced the new AppleTV, back on September 1, there was no mention of the internal storage capabilities of the device. Mr. Jobs did mention, several times actually, that the device’s focus was on streaming content, not storing it. Today, thanks to a take-apart by iFixit, we know that while content storage may not be the AppleTV’s focus, it still has the ability. In dismantling the small, black box, iFixit found a Samsung 8 GB NAND Flash storage chip hiding inside; the same chip featured in the iPad. Obviously, the device needs storage for its operating system and room to buffer content, but 8 GB seems like an awful lot. Perhaps an indication of an AppleTV application store, or new OS down the road? Who knows. The only reason that it is out-of-place is due to the fact that Apple neglected to mention it.

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If you’re a T-Mobile BlackBerry user, and have no plans of jumping off the BlackBerry or T-Mobile bandwagons, listen up. T-Mobile has just announced, via Facebook, that they will be launching the BlackBerry Curve 3G on September 8th. The device runs BlackBerry OS 5 (but is BlackBerry 6 ready), has Wi-Fi, 3G, and a 2 megapixel shooter. The handset will retail for a mere $80 on a 2-year contract and will be available in grey and purple. There you have it.

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Microsoft announced the availability of Internet Explorer 8 today and the preliminary reactions around the net have been pretty good. While betas and RC versions have been floating around for quite a while, the final version of IE8 will be available for your download at Noon EST. With its promised security enhancements, color-coded tabbed browsing and the incorporation of add-on accelerators, IE8 may be worth a try for those who have not already sampled the beta or RC1 versions. Let’s hope Microsoft’s servers can stand up to the demand this time.

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Recent Internet Explorer 8 rumors being tossed around the Web loosely outlined what bloggers referred to as “porn mode”. Basically this new functionality would allow users to easily enable and disable a strict privacy policy, disallowing all cookies and disabling browsing history, search history, and form data / password memory. Microsoft has finally confirmed that the upcoming much needed update to their Web browser will indeed include a secretive browsing mode, though it seems to have opted to not go with the “porn mode” moniker despite its relevance. Andy Zeigler, Microsoft Program Manager, recently detailed what has been dubbed the “InPrivate” feature line within Microsoft’s upcoming eighth Internet Explorer version. Three new services combine to make up the InPrivate package; InPrivate Browsing, InPrivate Blocking and InPrivate Subscriptions. When enabled, these three components (along with an automatic history deletion feature) combine to ensure that you can go anywhere you want on the Web and no one will ever find out what a sick, twisted deviant you really are.

[Via The Register]

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