For the past two weeks, the Android scene has been all Hero this, Sense that but apparently there are a few other players in the Google game trying to make a name for themselves. Enter Vobis Computer’s HIGHSCREEN PP5420, the newest Android handset to hit the street complete with an IRS tax form sounding name. In terms of specs, the PP5420 is not exactly cutting edge but it’s still sharp enough to go toe to toe with the majority of its competition: Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE and dual-band 7.2Mbps HSPA connectivity, a 528MHz processor, 256MB ROM / 128MB RAM, 3-inch WQVGA touchscreen display, 3 megapixel auto-focus camera, Wi-Fi, aGPS, Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR and a 1080 mAh battery. The cost? $500ish unlocked.

[Via Unwired View]

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Right on cue, HTC has announced its latest Android device in the Hero. With many of the Hero’s specs being the same as the Magic, the handset does manage to beat out the Magic with its 5 megapixel camera with auto-focus, 3.5mm headphone jack (finally!!!), improved battery life and Adobe Flash support. But what makes the Hero really exciting is the fresh new GUI overlay. Much like with TouchFLO 3D for Windows Mobile, the new HTC Sense UI gives Android a much needed injection of style and functionality by allowing users to keep the content that matter to them — such as weather, contacts, photos, Twitter, Facebook, Flickr and bookmarks — at their fingertips.

Another feature found within Sense is Scenes, which essentially allows users to switch from “work to weekend mode” (think of it as Modes on Nokia’s Eseries but sexier) and also helps organize emails, texts, photos, Facebook updates, call logs and more per contract entry much like Palm’s webOS. The Hero’s dedicated Search button features Spotlight-like search, meaning finding the contact, email, app, Tweet and more you’re looking for couldn’t be more simple. One last thing — the Hero is coated in Teflon that not only feels soft to the touch and thus easier to grip, but also protects the devices paint job from your greasy hands.

The Hero will be available next month in Europe with Asian availability coming in the later summer months (Orange UK has already announced it will be carrying the Hero in graphite for as low as £0 on contract this July). As for North Americans, well, we’re just going to have to wait for a little while longer. Hit the jump for the complete specs, some pics and a video.

• Android with HTC Sense
• 112mm x 56.2mm x 14.35mm, 135g
• Qualcomm MSM7200A 528MHz processor
• Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE, dual-band 7.2Mbps HSPA/WCDMA
• 512 ROM / 288 RAM
• 3.2″ HVGA capacitive touchscreen
• 5.0 megapixel camera with auto-focus
• Gravity sensor
• Digital compass
• WiFi 802.11b/g
• GPS
• Bluetooth 2.0 with EDR + A2DP
• 3.5mm headphone jack
• microSD
• 1350 mAh battery
• 420 minutes talktime / 750 hours standby (WCDMA)

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Life’s a bitch and so is karma, but AT&T is hoping to change that with the Motorola Karma QA1. A goofy looking dumb phone that bears an uncanny resemblance to the Somerset, the Karma is a media-centric device that has home screen access to both Facebook and MySpace as well as support for email, IM, MMS and threaded SMS. In terms of hardware, the quad-band EDGE/dual-band HSDPA Karma packs a sliding QWERTY keypad, 2.5-inch QVGA display, 2 megapixel camera, aGPS, Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP, 3.5mm headphone jack and 100MB of internal memory with microSDHC support (up to 16GB). The Karma will be available online and in AT&T stores on the 28th of this month for $79.99 on a 2-year deal after a $50 mail-in rebate. Any takers?

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We’ve already given the world its first peek and Verizon’s upcoming HTC Ozone, nailed down its scheduled availability of June 29th/July 13th and pegged its pricing at $49.99 after MIR, but we’re not done yet because two of our VZW ninjas just hit us up with the complete spec list for the device — and plenty more. Just as we suspected, the Ozone features EV-DO Rev. A connectivity in addition to quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE. We’re also pleased to report that the GPS chip is not shackled to VZ Navigator and that Verizon will allow users to use the device as a tethered modem (for a fee of course). Hit the jump for the rest of the specs along with a sizable Ozone deck.

Thanks, anonymous and indelus!

Features

• Windows Mobile 6.1 Standard
• Dual-band 1xRTT/EV-DO Rev. A, quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE
• Pre-installed SIM Card w/ Global Support Kit
• Microsoft Office Mobile
• Adobe Reader LE PFT viewer
• Internet Explorer Mobile
• Windows Media Player Mobile
• 256MB ROM/128MB RAM
• WiFi 802.11b/g
• Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP
• 2.4″ QVGA display w/ 24k color
• Full-QWERTY with 5-way navigation key
• 2 megapixel camera w/ auto-focus and video capture
• microSD slot (up to 16GB)
• Voice command, notes/recorder capable
• Speakerphone
• Security locking features
• MMS
• AOL, WLM, Yahoo! IM
• Wireless Sync capable
• ActiveSync capable (v4.5) and Windows Mobile Device Center
• Mobile Broadband Connect capable
• VZ Navigator capable
• Visual Voicemail capable
• Device Insurance available
• Hearing aid compatible = M3/T3

Specifications

• 4.5″ x 2.5″ x 0.5″
• 3.7 oz.
• 1500 mAh battery
• 290 minutes talk-time
• 324 hours standby
• Head: 1.03 W/Kg SAR

Hot on the heels of the first rendering of the Samsung B7610 Louvre comes the first spy photo and some additional specifications on this mid-range offering from Sammy. The Louvre looks even better in person than it does in the rendering and it comes with an increasingly solid set of specs that include:

• 3.50inch AMOLED 16M color resistive WVGA (800×480) display
• 800Mhz CPU
• 5.1 megapixel auto-focus camera with LED flash
• Slide-out QWERTY keyboard
• 2 UIs (Pro & Media, with a dedicated button to switch between them)
• TV-out
• 3.5mm Headphone jack
• MicroUSB connector
• Divx/WMV/H.264 accelerations
• GPS/WIFI/HSDPA/HSUPA/BT
• FM Radio
• DNLA support
• 1GB internal memory + SDHC up to 32G
• 1500 mAh battery

The Louvre is expected to debut later this summer with Windows Mobile 6.1 and an upgrade to Windows Mobile 6.5 to follow in the September/October 2009 time frame. That is the good news, the bad news is that the current ROM is reportedly running slowly, even on the 800MHz processor. Slow performance may result in a slip of the launch date possibly until November, a fate that may also await the Omnia 2 (GT-i8000).

[Via wmpoweruser]

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While talk of Samsung’s upcoming B7610 Louvre has been floating around in quiet corners of the internet for quite some time now, the first image of the upcoming Windows Mobile smartphone has emerged alongside a list of specs. We’re not sure exactly how this handset pays homage to the famous French museum but maybe Sammy is just running out of code names. While it’s clearly not meant to be a flagship device, the Louvre looks as if it will be able to hold its own against similar devices in its class:

• 112mm x 5.8mm x 16mm
• Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE and 7.2Mbps UMTS/HSDPA
• 3.5-inch WVGA AMOLED touchscreen display
• 5 megapixel camera
• 1GB ROM
• 802.11b/g Wi-Fi and aGPS
• Accelerometer
• Bluetooth 2.0
• FM tuner with RDS
• microSD support
• miniUSB
• Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional
• 1500 mAh Li-ion battery

Having not yet been announced by Samsung, a release date, list of carriers and pricing are still unknown. The source of this leak however, believes that the Louvre will makes its debut this July with a price ranging from 250€ to 500€.

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A day after launching three new devices for emerging World markets including the cheapest 3G model the company has ever offered, Nokia has announced the 6600i slide. Essentially nothing more than an update to the 6600 slide with a 5 megapixel camera, brushed metal body, smaller pant size and 3G connectivity, the 6600i could be just what the doctor ordered as summer approaches and the thought of ruining your N85 at the beach floats around in your head. Here’s what the 6600i slide has going for it spec wise:

• Dual-band WCDMA (850/2100MHz) and quad-band GSM/EDGE
• S40
• 2.2″ QVGA display
• 5 megapixel camera with auto-focus, 8x digital zoom and dual-LED flash / VGA video recording at 15fps
• Bluetooth 2.0, FM tuner, accelerometer, microUSB
• 20MB internal memory and 1GB microSD card in box
• 1100 mAh battery
• 3 / 4 hours talk time (GSM / UMTS), 14.5 days stand-by
• 93mm x 45mm x 14mm, 110g
• Available in both black and silver in Q3 for approximately 200€ ($272 USD) before subsidies and taxes.

Not bad at… Oh who are we kidding — there’s only room for one slider today.

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A press release has yet to cross the wire, but a few of our eagle-eyed readers have sent us links to Rogers’ website which is now listing the LG Xenon. The Xenon becomes the latest addition to Rogers’ rapidly growing Quick Messaging line-up, which also includes the LG Neon, Samsung Gravity and Propel. The Xenon however, is arguably the pick of the pack as it features a 2.8-inch 240×400 resolution touchscreen display, sliding QWERTY keypad, 2 megapixel camera with video recording, Bluetooth 2.0, 80MB of internal memory, microSDHC support, an accelerometer and dual-band HSPA with quad-band EDGE connectivity. Not bad at all, especially given that the Xenon is going for $79.99 on contract and $279.99 contract-free.

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Mmm mmm do we ever love it when carriers pick up awesome handsets at awesome prices. Today, after a mind boggling number of delays, AT&T begun selling the Nokia E71x on its website for the incredibly attractive price of $99 on a two-year contract. And while the notion of using a phone that was announced in the summer of 2008 might be unthinkable to some who are accustomed to the very latest in tech, we find it pretty hard to argue against a full-QWERTY S60 device with a 3.2 megapixel camera, Wi-Fi, aGPS, Bluetooth 2.0 and HSDPA connectivity, especially when the device in question is Kate Moss thin at 10mm.

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We’ve known what the upcoming Motorola i465 iDEN has looked like for at least a month but upon seeing this leaked press release photo, it looks Motorola has succeeded in doing something we think is has secretly been trying to do for years — create a full-QWERTY phone that is uglier than Jocelyn Wildenstein. Specific specs are sparse but we think we’re going to see a VGA camera, Bluetooth 2.0 and that crazy iDEN PTT that so many love. Of course we suppose those bad specs aren’t too big of a deal considering that the main selling point is iDEN connectivity with a QWERTY keypad thrown in for messaging fiends. We can definitely see the i465 being somewhat popular for Boost which still doesn’t have a QWERTY phone in its bag, so we hope Sprint goes that route as opposed to having it compete with the BlackBerry 8350i. Because honestly…

[Via Unwired View]

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Vodafone and HTC came together today to announce the HTC Magic, the latest Android handset we named and outed yesterday. As the world’s first touchscreen-only Android phone, the Magic isn’t that much of an improvement over the G1 though it does have a nicer look to it and some spec improvements behind it. Details as to when the Magic will launch are hazy at best but the Vodafone UK website states it will be “Arriving in April.” Being a Vodafone exclusive, customers in the UK, Spain, France and Germany will be the first in line to get the Magic while Italian mobile aficionados will be able to purchase the Magic as a non-exclusive. After that it’s anyone’s guess as to where else thing thing will show up, be it under the Vodafone name or otherwise. Here’s to hoping it makes its way to this side of the world as soon as possible. Now to the specs:

• Android OS
• Quad-band EDGE / dual-band 7.2Mbps HSDPA (900/2100 MHz)
• 512MHz Qualcomm® MSM7201a
• 512MB ROM / 192MB RAM
• 3.2″ HVGA touchscreen display (though the presser and Voda say QVGA, Android does not play nice with QVGA displays)
• Virtual QWERTY keypad, trackball
• 3.2 megapixel camear w/ AF (no flash)
• WiFi 802.11 b/g
• GPS
• Bluetooth 2.0
• microSD
• 1340 mAh battery
• Talktime: 400 min 3G / 450 min GSM
• Standby: 660 hours 3G / 420 hours GSM
• 113mm x 55mm x 13.65mm, 118.5g
• Available in black and/or white depending on market

Not bad and not great, but we’re happy the Magic is a bit more refined compared to the banana-faced G1. Some of the basics however, such as a 3.5mm audio jack and an LED flash are unfortunately still MIA. Why HTC, why?

Jeté the jump for the full press release.

Vodafone and HTC unveil Android-powered HTC Magic

BARCELONA — Feb 17, 2009 — Vodafone and HTC Corporation today announced the HTC Magic smartphone, Vodafone’s first Android-powered mobile, which will be available in the spring.

The stylish new handset is exclusive to Vodafone in the UK, Spain, Germany and France (SFR) and available on a non-exclusive basis in Italy. Customers can ensure that they are the first to receive information about the HTC Magic’s availability, pricing and pre-ordering by registering their interest via their local Vodafone website from today.

The introduction of the HTC Magic is the result of a successful relationship between Vodafone and HTC, and Vodafone’s joining, late last year, of the Open Handset Alliance.

A tablet-style device, with a sleek design and unprecedented compactness for a smartphone featuring the Android platform, the HTC Magic enables a superior mobile internet experience, providing broad flexibility for personalisation via the application-rich Android Market. Available in white in the UK, Spain and France, black in Germany and in both colours in Italy, the HTC Magic will be for sale in several other Vodafone markets over the next few months.

“Delivering an unbeatable mobile internet experience for our customers is a priority for Vodafone, so we are very excited to be introducing our first Android-powered smartphone in the spring,” says Patrick Chomet, Global Director of Terminals, Vodafone Group. “Following our joining of the Open Handset Alliance, we have worked very closely with HTC to bring this cool new phone to the market. Our customers want to access a wide range of the most attractive mobile devices to help them make the most of their time – the HTC Magic helps meet that need.”

“The HTC Magic embodies the compact style and sophistication for which HTC has come to be known, with the powerful and intuitive internet experience for which the Android platform was designed,” says Peter Chou, president and CEO, HTC Corporation. “We are proud of our partnership with Vodafone and excited about making the Android-powered HTC Magic available to Vodafone customers in Europe.”

“The announcement of the HTC Magic is an important step for Android and the Open Handset Alliance,” says Andy Rubin, Senior Director of Mobile Platforms at Google. “With it, Vodafone is opening up the mobile web for consumers across Europe and giving more third-party developers a platform on which they can build the next wave of killer applications.”

Available from free on various price plans, the HTC Magic has a 3.2” QVGA touch screen display and features a trackball and navigational buttons for quick, easy access. The HTC Magic includes a variety of email options such as Google Mail™, POP3 and IMAP as well as Google Talk™ for instant messaging.

The HTC Magic has a variety of powerful mobile internet capabilities beginning with an Android-optimised Webkit browser. It also features the popular Google™ applications, Google Maps™ and Google Search™ as well as favourites like YouTube™. In addition, Android Market allows for quick and easy downloading of games and applications utilising Vodafone’s fast and reliable network.

Full details of availability and pricing will be available in the future in local Vodafone markets.

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