Kmart shoppers have the opportunity to pick up the Samsung Galaxy Tab for $99.99 with a signed 2 year contract with Sprint. The tablet with the 7 inch screen comes with Android 2.3 installed, despite what the ad claims, and offers both a rear and front-facing camera at 3MP and 1.3MP respectively. The tablet has 3G and Wi-Fi connectivity and there is a 1GHz single-core Hummingbird processor under the hood.

There is no confusing the Samsung Galaxy Tab with its larger and certainly more high-end brother, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1. On the other hand, Kmart isn’t exactly known as a place to find the most up-to-date technology. For those needing a small lightweight tablet for the upcoming school year, the discounter couldn’t have turned on its blue light at a better time.

source: SprintFeed via IntoMobile

Kmart is offering the Samsung Galaxy Tab for $99.99 with a signed 2-year pact

AT&T’s LG Thrill 4G might have been delayed until August 21st, but meanwhile it also showed up in Best Buy’s product catalog for August under the LG Thrill 3D moniker. The 3D-enabled handset was put up for pre-order at RadioShack, but the initial release date of August 7th was pushed and pre-orders were extended to August 15th.

A tipster of ours now confirmed that Best Buy is expected to launch the phone for pre-order soon, but had no further details about the device. Well, we already know plenty about the phone, which was launched as the LG Optimus 3D outside of the States. The 4.3-inch display on this powerhouse supports glasses-free 3D using a parallax barrier, which acts as a slit plate on top of the screen filtering content so your left and right eye see a slightly different variation of the same picture, thus achieving the 3D effect.

The Android-running LG Thrill 4G comes with a dual 5-megapixel camera setup for 3D image and video capture. Design-wise the phone mimics the Optimus 3D with both its solid heft and bulkiness – it weighs a considerable 5.92 ounces, but in exchange packs a lot of horsepower. Are you getting the Thrill 4G?

Thanks, optikawn!

Earlier today we reported that the Samsung Hercules appears to be the Samsung Galaxy S II variant for T-Mobile. But two more Android handsets seemingly set to join the lineup of the nation’s fourth largest carrier were both uncovered today. The ironically named LG Flip II is not a flip phone, but offers a side sliding QWERTY keyboard that is divided in two by a secondary display. It is not clear what the secondary display does in terms of functionality, and with specs for the phone fairly scarce, it is uncertain which build of Android will be on the model. Speculation centers on a September 14th launch.

The HTC Ruby is another Android model coming to T-Mobile. Lack of a genius button tells us that this will not be a ‘myTouch’ model. Without any hint of what the specs will be, we can’t file this as being a low-end or high-end model. Originally known also as the HTC Arrive, the Ruby actually started life as a Windows Phone 7 model as we reported back in January. Last month, leaked photos allowed us to say that the phone has a camera with dual LED flash and a 3.5mm audio jack, not the most important specs that you need to know about when picking a handset to buy. Four days later, we were able to tell you that the HTC Ruby is an Android flavored model. Unfortunately, that is where things still remain.

It is hard for T-Mobile customers to concentrate on anything right now besides the Samsung Hercules. And while the LG Flip II does have that unique screen that cuts the slide out landscape QWERTY in half, it will take more than a unique design to upstage the Samsung Galaxy S II. And as far as the HTC Ruby is concerned, it could be anything from a low-end budget special to a high-end Superphone. Right now it is Hercules who will be doing the heavy lifting for the carrier.

source: Pocketnow (HTC Ruby), TmoNews (LG Flip II)

The HTC Ruby

The LG Flip II

T-Mobile customers have gone from being pitied to being envied. When word first broke that the Samsung Galaxy S II was coming to the States, it at first appeared as though all of the top four carriers were covered except for T-Mobile. Now it appears that the nation’s fourth largest carrier could be getting the biggest and best prize of them all with a variant of the Galaxy S II called the Samsung Hercules. While we had questioned whether or not the Hercules would be the Samsung Galaxy S II for T-Mobile, a picture of the back of the unit with both T-Mobile and Samsung Galaxy S II branding would seem to confirm that both models are one and the same.

What makes T-Mobile customers smile is the larger 4.5 inch display on the Hercules. Touchwiz is running over Android and a source for Tmo News says that not only is the phone “fast, fast and fast”, the calendar, messaging and email apps are “amazing” and beat what is available on stock Android. Those who love to use their handsets for streaming movies will be happy to know that Netflix is pre-installed and apparently is working great.

So instead of feeling sorry for T-Mobile customers, you might end up envious of them, although to be fair, we haven’t really seen what the other carriers’ version of the Samsung Galaxy S II will look like completely.

source: TmoNews, Pocketnow

As of last night, there were three major questions left pertaining to the Motorola DROID Bionic. What we didn’t yet know about this eagerly awaited smartphone was the official launch date, the price of the phone and the size of the screen. But after FCC documents leaked the DROID Bionic’s user manual, we can not only scratch that last question off the list, we can even add some new information about the phone.

According to the user manual, the Motorola DROID Bionic will be rolling out with a 4.3 inch qHD display, not the 4.5 inches that some had extrapolated from leaked photographs of the handset. Furthermore, the manual seems to indicate that the DROID Bionic will be a World Phone. There is a section of the manual that discusses World Phone GSM functions. This would make the device the first CDMA/LTE/GSM smartphone which could be quite stressful to the battery. As an LTE device, the DROID Bionic was going to need a SIM card anyway, so why not add that GSM radio for roaming?

Also discovered in the leaked material is the micro-HDMI port, right under the micro USB port. Now all we need is an official launch date from Verizon and the price. After we get that information, it will be just a matter of will power to keep that Verizon upgrade in your pocket until the Motorola DROID Bionic can be purchased at last.

source: FCC via AndroidCentralForums

**UPDATE**

Just adding a couple of more pictures from the FCC documents

Want the Samsung Galaxy S II so badly that you can’t wait for it to be offered by your carrier? Well, if you are an AT&T or T-Mobile customer and don’t mind spending the money, an unlocked version of the phone offered right now by Newegg will let you use the pipelines belonging to the two GSM mobile operators (although AT&T users will have 3G only). The unit, available from the retailer for $649.99, has quad-band GSM (850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900) and quad-band UMTS (850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100) connectivity. And for those Canadians who don’t want to buy the phone from Virgin Mobile or Bell, Newegg Canada is offering an unlocked model for the same price.

Besides having to pay an unsubsidized price for the phone, you could also be missing out on certain design changes. For example, as we reported, the Samsung Hercules is expected to come to T-Mobile and there is speculation that the phone-with its larger 4.5 inch display-is a variant of the Samsung Galaxy S II for the nation’s fourth largest carrier.

We recently told you that speculation was centering on Verizon becoming the first carrier to offer the Samsung Galaxy S II with a possible August 12th launch date. With that day increasingly becoming more unlikely for the release of this summer’s hottest smartphone, the most likely scenario now is a September launch. And don’t forget, the recently leaked Verizon roadmap mentioned a September launch of the Samsung Stratosphere, a phone with specs that exactly match those of the Galaxy S II.

source: Newegg via UnwiredView

Newegg's unlocked model of the Samsung Galaxy S II will work on T-Mobile and AT&T's pipelines

At a concert Thursday night sponsored by Samsung and Telus, the Samsung Hercules was spotted. Actually, with its 4.5 inch WVGA Super AMOLED screen, it’s not hard to spot what is rumored to be the Samsung Galaxy S II variant for both T-Mobile and Telus. Launching with a dual-core 1.2GHz Qualcomm APQ8060 processor and with 1GB of RAM on board, the phone is appropriately named.

An 8MP camera on back captures video at 1080p and a 2MP front facing camera takes self-portraits and can be used for video chat. 16GB of storage can be expanded to as much as 48GB with a microSD card and the phone is NFC enabled. Android 2.3 is pre-installed. As both T-Mobile and Telus have different 3G bands, the Samsung Hercules is expected to be rolled out with T-Mobile’s AWS bands along with the more “standard” 850/1900MHz frequencies. All Telus will have to do is take an eraser to the T-Mobile name and write “Telus” over the empty space.

With a late September launch penciled in for the Samsung Hercules, it’s interesting that the carrier that at first seemed to be left out of the Samsung Galaxy S II sweepstakes in the States, might end up with a variant pushing some of the highest of high-end specs. For example, as we reported, the Hercules is expected to have 42Mbps connectivity.

source: MobileSyrup

The Samsung Hercules is T-Mobile and Telus' variant of the Samsung Galaxy S II

According to information given to CENS.com, Amazon expects to sell 3 million of its Android flavored tablets this fall. Quanta Computer Inc., the contract manufacturer putting together Amazon’s tablet, has been told to keep the assembly line running to the tune of 800,000 to 1 million units produced each month from August through October. As a point of reference, consider that Motorola said it expects to sell half that amount for the entire year.

Amazon’s tablet is easier to build with technical specifications not as complex as the competition. This makes the device cheaper to produce giving Amazon an advantage at the retail level. Amazon’s plan is to get its tablet distributed widely and then sell apps through the Amazon Appstore. And consumers are ready for a low priced alternative. As we reported, a survey showed that 55% of those asked would seriously consider buying an Amazon branded tablet. 79% said they would buy a tablet for $250 or less. That percentage drops sharply to 48% when the price goes up to $300 or less.

source: CENS via AndroidGuys

As we told you about a week ago, an increasing number of T-Mobile G2 smartphones are affected by power management problems. Reportedly, some unlucky G2 owners are witnessing their device’s battery being drained in a matter of hours irregardless of whether the smartphone is in use or in standby mode.

Fortunately, T-Mobile is already working hard on resolving the issue, and you are also invited to provide your feedback, if you wish. On its support web page, the carrier has started a thread where users are free to describe the symptoms that their T-Mobile G2 is experiencing in an effort to provide a solution in the shortest time possible.

Reading through the posts we noticed that switching the smartphone to 2G-only mode has worked for some G2 owners. Unfortunately, that doesn’t seem to be neither a universal nor a practical solution. Others say that it was the G2’s recent Gingerbread update is to blame, yet the majority of users confirm that they have been having battery problems even before the new software version rolled out.

If you are a T-Mobile G2 owner yourself, feel free to hit the source link below and help getting that problem solved soon.

source: T-Mobile via Electronista

It seems like Motorola has been busy registering domains lately, and all of them happen to revolve around the same key word – “Kore”. MotorolaKore.com, KoreMotorola.com, Moto-kore.com, MotoKore.com, and Motorola-Kore.com – all of these domain names belong to Motorola now, but what is that “Kore” thingamabob exactly?

The thing is that nobody has even the slightest idea yet, which is why the rumors have now started multiplying like rabbits. According to speculations, however, the Motorola Kore might be not just any device, but a LTE-packing, Ice Cream Sandwich-flavored successor to the Motorola XOOM. This claim, of course, is nothing more but a guess with pretty much no evidence to back it up. On the other hand, if the Kore turns out to be a tablet indeed, its name raises the possibility of seeing a quad-core Kal-El chipset beating under the device’s hood. Finding an ultra high-resolution display listed on its specs list is not impossible either.

Nevertheless, you should take all of the above with a huge grain of salt for now. The Motorola Kore shall remain a mystery, at least until the rumor mill strikes again.

source: Fusible via SlashGear