Joining the likes of the Nexus One and Samsung M100S, the HTC Incredible is the latest handset to run on the Android 2.1 platform. Apart from running on the latest version of Android, it also boasts of a 1GHz processor, optical trackpad, camera (rating still unknown) with dual LED flash, a WVGA touchscreen (3.5-inch or 3.7-inch) which might possibly be an AMOLED display, and comes loaded with HTC Sense. It’s confirmed on Verizon though pricing and an exact release date are both still yet to be known.

[pocketnow via unwiredview]
Head on past the break for pictures of the HTC Incredible.

This upcoming Android phone features a dual-slide mechanism with dynamically changing keys for multi-purpose functionality.

Here’s some additional info provided by the source of this image:

The keyboard keys are inset and probably have no tactile feedback, however, they should be quite easy to use. It looks like the cutouts are pretty finger-friendly, as they contour to the shape of a standard finger. Under those cutouts is a low-resolution monochrome touch screen, one for each side of the keyboard. This is where the finger presses. The contact area is small, but the plastic grid that surrounds it contours to the fingers. The label and function of each key can be changed to suit certain layouts and applications.

The keyboard has multiple orientations. The keyboard can be pulled from side to side for typing on a surface. A small kickstand angles the phone when typing in this manner. The keyboard can also be pulled to the left for a standard landscape layout. There is also a dial-pad layout.

The specifications are slightly different than previously posted. The MOTOSPLIT uses the same processor as the BACKFLIP. Every other spec is almost the same as the BACKFLIP.

So basically, this is more or less the same as the Backlip but packaged in a whole new form factor. The MOTOSPLIT should hit AT&T sometime in Q3 2010 with pricing still yet to be known. Hopefully, Motorola will have MOTOSPLIT prototype ready for this month’s MWC event in Barcelona.

[androidcommunity via slashgear]

What you’re looking at folks is what’s being purported as the LG Arena’s heftier brother, the LG Arena Max LU9400. It’s expected to come with a 3.5-inch touchscreen, 5-megapixel camera, WiFi, GPS, and a 1GHz Snapdragon processor running under the hood. The Cyon branding on it more or less confirms that the LG Arena Max will be released in Korea though there’s still no official announcement about it just yet. However, rumor is that it will be launched this coming March. That’s all the info we have for now, but hopefully, we’ll get more details about the LG Arena Max at the MWC set to rock Barcelona this month.

[cetizen via unwiredview]

This baby packs a 3.7-inch AMOLED display, 5-megapixel camera, 720p video recording, WiFi (802.11n), GPS, 3.5mm jack, 800MHz processor, T-DMB tuner, and the latest TouchWiz UI running in tandem with Android 2.1. SK Telecom will release the Samsung M100S in Korea this March with an uncertain future elsewhere. Pricing is still yet to be known as well.

In related news, Samsung has also announced that an Android 2.1 update will be released for their first Android phone, the Samsung Galaxy. This will happen sometime in the second quarter which should be a nice consolation for others if ever the Samsung M100S doesn’t make it out of Korea.

[unwiredview via cellphones etc]

The largest smartphone software has now officially become open source. Symbian has been the leading OS for smartphone for many years and has been migrating to become fully open source since 2008.

“When the Symbian Foundation was created, we set the target of completing the open-source release of the platform by mid-2010, and it’s because of the extraordinary commitment and dedication from our staff and our member companies that we’ve reached it well ahead of schedule,” said Symbian Foundation chief executive Lee Williams.

The Symbian^3 will be feature complete and should include a marked advance than previous Symbian versions particularly the popular Series 60 in Nokia smartphones. Nokia is a controlling investor in the Symbian Foundation spending hundreds of millions on the development of the Symbian software. The entry of the Apple iPhone and Google Android has put Symbian into an unenviable position of being a dinosaur.

[via zdnet]

If Google’s got Android, China Mobile’s got their Open Mobile System (OMS) aka Ophone platform to brag about, and even more so today as it’s now finally hit version 2.0. Yeah, you could argue that it’s still based on the Android OS, but hey, they’ve customized the heck out of it so that they can truly call it an OS of their own. So what’s new with this latest iteration? OMS v2.0 supports voice recognition, Scalable Vector Graphics UI elements, and get this, Windows Mobile API support as well. We’re not quite sure right now what this means as far the future working relationship between Windows Mobile and the OMS platform is concerned. Will Windows Mobile apps run natively on the Ophone or will OMS-friendly versions of Windows Mobile apps be released in the near future? These are just some of the questions we’re waiting to be answered alongside the date as to when it will be released and on what phones it will be featured on.

[mobiletechworld via engadget]

This isn’t quite the Nexus Two Enterprise phone, also known as Mirage and it will use a non-Snapdragon processor–in fact, it will be powered by the same processor used by the Palm Pixi. The Motorola Devour, though, will be the first Motorola Android phone that will have the Motoblur treatment, so the Calgary leak was right on the money. Here are the specs of the Devour, though price hasn’t been announced:

• 3.1-inch HVGA touchscreen
• Android 1.6 OS
• CDMA EVDO rev A
• WiFi, Bluetooth
• 3MP camera
• accelerometer, dual microphones
• QWERTY keyboard
• 16GB sd card included.

[via engadget, zdnet]

It’s about time Google officially gave the Nexus One the multitouch capabilities. The new firmware update for Android 2.1 gives Nexus One this awesome iPhone killing quality and a slew of other improvements:

• multitouch
• Google Googles–Google maps with visual search
• 3G fix
• virtual keypad just got “smarter”
• Android Mark II for the camera function
• Chrome has html5 compatibility
• merged inbox
• speech to text box in everywhere
• Gmail mobile client upgrade
• many more!

We’ve also read a favorable review on the new Google Nexus homescreen. Both Lifehacker and Smarterware thinks that the new graphic interface that comes with the Android 2.1 software update for Nexus One is absolute eye candy. We’ve just scratched surface with the Nexus One + Android 2.1 software upgrade. We’ll be following the reviews and update you on them.

[video: engadget]

Windows Mobile 7 is also expected to feature Windows Sensor and Orion, a cloud-based assisted GPS system which should help improve GPS performance. Orion isn’t exactly new as its already part of the Windows 7 desktop OS, and Microsoft is just integrating it into the latest version of their mobile OS platform.

As far as devices are concerned, we’ve got the LG Apollo and HTC Obsession to look forward to later this year. These two handsets are being considered as the first Windows Mobile 7-enabled devices out of the gate. The LG Apollo should be released sometime in either August or September and boasts of a 1.3GHz Qualcomm processor, a 3.8-inch AMOLED touchscreen, 10-megapixel AF camera with HD 720p video recording at 30fps, and CDMA and GSM network support. The HTC Obsession (aka HTC Diamond3) is a GSM phone that’s scheduled to come out in October with a 1GHz Qualcomm processor, 3.7-inch AMOLED touchscreen, 5-megapixel AT camera with HD 720p video recording at 25fps, and 4GB internal memory. Hopefully, we’ll get a preview of these two new Windows Mobile 7 mobile phones at the MWC this month.

So, based on what you’ve read, are you excited for Windows Mobile 7?

[via wmexperts]

The Google Android phone that charms me the most is a Motorola creation. No, not the best smartphone of 2009 (Droid) but the Backflip, also known as Enzo or Motus. Though we haven’t had a decent hands-on of the Motorola Backflip we find its uniqueness too tempting not to consider for this year’s smartphone purchase. That is, when it becomes available outside China. The Moto ME600 sells for around $630 unlocked with 8GB of built-in storage.

Specs of the Motorola ME600: HSDPA, WiFi (WAPI in China), GPS, 5MP camera, Android OS with Motorola customization and, of course, the backward flipping QWERTY keyboard.

AT&T will be able to release the phone in March. The wireless provide expects a lot of orders.

[via unwiredreview]