Already, we’ve managed to get a small preview of the Samsung Galaxy R, but now we’re finally getting an official word from both NVIDIA and Samsung in regards to its availability.

Actually, NVIDIA and Samsung announced today that the Gingerbread powered smartphone can now be purchased in Sweden – though, it’s going to be spreading out to other European markets as well. Additionally, the Asian markets will no doubt be graced with this latest member in the beloved Samsung Galaxy family.

Naturally, the handset itself appears to be out of the ordinary with Samsung’s usual Galaxy products seeing that it features a 4.19” WVGA Super LCD display and an NVIDIA Tegra 2 chipset. Still, those two specific items shouldn’t alarm loyal customers since it’s still classified as a high-end smartphone that should fit well with the family. Other features include 720p video capture, 1090p full HD playback, 8GB of internal storage, and a microSD card slot.

Unless you really want to be the first to sport this one, then you’d better make sure to get yourself into Sweden so that you can pick one up today. But if not, then you’ll simply have to make due until it arrives in other markets – in the meantime, you can watch the lovely video about the handset below.

via Android Central

When it comes to rugged phones, most of them would not offer you much in terms of software and functionality, but the newly-announced Samsung Galaxy Xcover does not follow that unwritten rule. Powered by Android 2.3 Gingerbread, the Galaxy Xcover is one full-fledged smartphone, yet it is tough enough to withstand the elements. The device is IP67 certified, which makes it resistant to dust, dirt and submersion in water at up to 1 meter for 30 minutes, so it would probably not mind hanging out in your pocket the next time you decide to go jet-skiing. Besides that, the smartphone’s display is made using scratch-resistant tempered glass meaning that it will take more abuse that you would imagine.

The complete hardware specs of the Samsung Galaxy Xcover are not official yet, but it we can tell you that it will pack a 3.65-inch display, GPS, Wi-Fi and a HSDPA radio that can reach downlink speeds of up to 7.2 Mbps, at least in theory. Another handy feature of the Xcover is that its 3.2-megapixel camera is backed up by a LED flash, that can double as a flashlight.

At this time, we cannot really tell you whether the Galaxy Xcover will ever reach the US. It will be the folks in Germany who will get to try the smartphone out first after it gets launched there on October 3.

source: Samsung Germany (translated) via Unwired View

Seriously! Who doesn’t love the fact when we see third party sellers offering pre-orders for an upcoming phone, but rather than sticking with the carrier’s original pricing, they simply blow them out of the water?

Well, if you happen to be eying the upcoming Samsung Conquer 4G for Sprint, you might want to check out what Walmart is offering right now. Specifically, they already have the 4G WiMAX enabled smartphone up for pre-order, but more importantly, early adopters choosing to side with the retailer are going to be knocked out by its sticker price.

Although Sprint is pricing the handset at the affordable price of $99.99 with a 2-year contract, early adopters will find it difficult to not side with Walmart on this one because they’re selling it for free! Considering that it packs some mid-range specs, the free on-contract pricing is undoubtedly astonishing on so many levels.

Indeed, it’s neither the biggest, nor the baddest Android smartphone on Sprint’s lineup, but the combination of a fantastic price and decent hardware will really catch the attention of anyone.
source: Walmart via Engadget

The whole injunction against Samsung for violating Apple’s intellectual property in design patents with its Galaxy Tab 10.1 has leaked now, and Apple is apparently using design drawings of its own tablets, in order to demonstrate the alleged similarities.

The pan-European ban of Samsung’s latest and greatest tablet excludes the Netherlands, but the trial there is going on right now, and might result in the slate being banned everywhere in the EU. The German law allows this, even without notifying the other side about the proceedings, but if the plaintiff doesn’t have a strong enough case, they might end up paying damages for the incurred loss of revenue.

The injunction document explicitly asks for a ban on “using, in particular, manufacturing, offering (including advertising), introducing into the market, importing, exporting and/or possessing for the said purposes” of Samsung’s gizmo, pictures of which are placed next to Apple design drawings in the motion as illustrated below:

The Dusseldorf court decision comes at a time when the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 was preparing an assault on the European market, and a promo about it has been spotted at the big consumer electronics retailer MediaMarkt already, which you can see on the right here.

Forrester Research even raised its prediction for non-iPad tablet sales from 20% to 30% of the market in Europe this year, unlike the US, where the iPad hold 80%.

The analysts attribute this to the fact that Apple doesn’t have as big of a retail presence in Europe as in the US, and, also, the European carriers had started offering pretty enticing bundles, where the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 is deeply subsidized if you purchase with a carrier contract.

source: FOSSPatents & Moconews

Oh, the horror! Following the patent bickering with Apple, Samsung has been banned from selling its Galaxy Tab line in the EU for now by a German court. Netherlands is the only country where it will be legal to sell Samsung’s best Android slate across the European Union.

A similar thing happened in Australia recently, where the first reports actually pegged Samsung as voluntarily stopping the sales and marketing of the Galaxy Tab 10.1, until the courts issue a statement on Apple’s claims.

Samsung’s Director of PR Kim Titus reacted immediately:

“Samsung is disappointed with the court’s decision and we intend to act immediately to defend our intellectual property rights through the ongoing legal proceedings in Germany and will continue to actively defend these rights throughout the world.

The request for injunction was filed with no notice to Samsung, and the order was issued without any hearing or presentation of evidence from Samsung.

We will take all necessary measures to ensure Samsung’s innovative mobile communications devices are available to customers in Europe and around the world.

This decision by the court in Germany in no way influences other legal proceedings filed with the courts in Europe and elsewhere.”, he comments.

The case is being reviewed in the Regional Court of Dusseldorf, a place where everyone uses iPhones. We kid, but due to its decisions being valid across the European Union, the ban only spares the Netherlands for some reason – in every other EU country the Samsung distributors will have to place a hold on the Galaxy Tab 10.1 sales campaigns.

source: Reuters

Everybody sing along. Take me out to the ballgame, take me out with the crowd. Rent me a Samsung Galaxy Tab…what?!! Yes, T-Mobile is changing the fan experience at L.A. Angel home games by offering to rent you either the T-Mobile G-Slate (made by LG) or the Samsung Galaxy Tab for $10. The tablet has an optimized program installed, replacing the old paper program that you use to keep score. Renters get free magazine content from Zinio and those that rent the G-Slate get access to T-Mobile TV. Tablets can be rented at the T-Mobile store at Angels Stadium.

Angels chairman Dennis Kuhl says he sees plenty of possibilities to bring technology to the fans and that the club is just starting to see what they can do with the tablet rentals. In a statement, T-Mobile Southern California VP Darrin Silveria said that the carrier is always happy to bring unique offerings to T-Mobile customers. Of course, T-Mobile benefits from sales of the tablets that come from a fan’s experience trying it out at a game. Special apps are pre-loaded such as a radar gun to measure how fast a pitcher is throwing the ball. Out of town games can be streamed from ESPN and of course, the lifeblood of any baseball fan-statistics-can be found, updated during the game.

Other teams in various sports have used mobile apps to educate fans. For example, the Portland Timber soccer club joined with app developer Meridian on an app for both iOS and Android that shows you your seat and even gives you the words to team chants. Meridian is expected to soon announce a deal to provide apps for  the NFL Jacksonville Jaguars’ EverBank field. At Safeco Field in Seattle, Nintendo DS rentals are available for fans to try out the Nintendo Fan Network, but also can be used as a distraction between pitches.

Recently the L.A. Times did a video as part of a written piece on the tablet rentals at Angel games. You can check it out below. And while using a tablet at a baseball game can come in handy for figuring out up to date batting averages and era figures, perhaps the best use of the device is as a shield when a foul ball is screaming toward your face.

source: LATimes via AllThingsD

The first time when we heard about the Samsung Admire was when it posed for the camera last month and revealed itself in a set of leaked spy shots. Today, however, the smartphone has stepped out of the shadows and has been officially announced by MetroPCS.

As it is above all a mid-range device aimed at budget-conscious customers, the Samsung Admire does not pack much of a hardware punch. It is powered by a run-of-the-mill 800MHz processor, which makes it a decent entry-level smartphone. Some of the other goodies that the device has to offer include a 3.5-inch HVGA display, 3.2-megapixel camera, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS and Android 2.3 Gingerbread to satisfy all your app cravings.

It has not been officially announced how much the Samsung Admire will cost, but if the rumors are to be believed, MetroPCS will be offering the smartphone for $150. What we do know for sure, however, is that the Admire will go hand in hand with the carrier’s no-annual-contract rate plans, which start at $40 per month.

source: MetroPCS via PRNewswire

The Samsung Galaxy S II has been selling like hot cakes – 5 million units flew off the shelves in the first three months after its launch, but imagine what sales would have looked like if the S II featured 4G LTE connectivity. Well, the Samsung Celox might make this a reality, as the device was spotted in South Korea and looks like a bigger yet similar version of the S II stuffed with 4G LTE radios. The devil is in the details and digging deeper in those you’d find out that LTE on the Celox is only supported in the 800MHz range, which pin-points Europe with its 800MHz 4G network as the possible final destination. Sadly, in the US carriers like AT&T and Verizon only support (or will support) LTE in the 700MHz range, so this device probably won’t land stateside.

The Celox surfaced in South Korea and its spec sheet lists a Qualcomm Snapdragon APQ8060 chip, a 4.5-inch Super AMOLED Plus screen with WVGA resolution and 16 gigs of internal memory. On the software side, the Celox features Android Gingerbread, backed up by a 1750mAh battery, which is actually more than the 1650mAh on the S II.

The camera in the Celox seems to match the one of the S II with its 8 megapixels of resolution, while up front the phone sports a 2-megapixel shooter. Actually, design-wise the phone somewhat reminds us the Galaxy R, which had the same home button in its pre-release version. The Celox doesn’t yet have a release date or a price tag, but it seems that the upcoming iPhone will get some serious competition over in the Old Continent.

source: IT Long (translated) via SammyHub

Oh, you gotta love those tipsters for all the leaks that they kindly share with the World. Sure, the spicy rumors that they bring to the table are anything but guaranteed to be true, but they can surely spark the imagination of pretty much every smartphone enthusiast out there.

Today, we came across a leak revealing the alleged names of three devices, all of which are said to be destined for Sprint. Starting with the most interesting among the bunch, the Samsung Epic 4G Touch is what Sprint’s version of the almost iconic Galaxy S II smartphone will be known like, according to the rumor. That, of course, lines up well with other insider tips that we’ve stumbled upon, so the leak that we are dealing with today might be onto something after all.

The leaked image revealing the names of the three upcoming devices

The second smartphone that we are getting familiar with today is known as the HTC EVO Design 4G, which is the name suggested for the upcoming HTC Kingdom. Now, we are witnessing somewhat of a paradox forming here as the Kingdom might also hit the market as the HTC Hero 4G, yet this monicker has not been officially confirmed either. What is said about the HTC Kingdom is that it will pack a 4-inch qHD display, 1.2GHz Qualcomm chipset, 5-megapixel camera and, of course, a WiMAX radio.

Last but not least, the Motorola Admiral is rumored to be another Sprint-bound cellphone, and by the lack of the 4G designation in its name we are assuming that it will not be sitting anywhere near the carrier’s top-tier smartphones. Sadly, the leak remains silent and does not reveal any further details about the device.

Bear in mind that all there is to back up the alleged names of these three devices is the black and white image you see here, so it would probably be wise if you file this under “rumors” for now. Chances are, however, that if the leak is on the right track, we will be hearing more news about these phones pretty soon.

source: Engadget

As if the T-Mobile Sidekick 4G’s initial coming out price of $99.99 on-contract wasn’t good enough from the carrier directly, they’re placing the messaging oriented Android smartphone on the chopping block for a limited time.

Seeing that it’s part of their 48 hour sale, the T-Mobile Sidekick 4G can be picked up for the price of free through T-Mobile’s web site – but of course, you’ll need to digitally sign a 2-year agreement to get it at that price. However, it’s worth noting that this astonishing deal is only available until tomorrow; August 9th. In addition, the ridiculous temporary pricing is available to upgrade customers as well!
So there you have it folks, you need to think fast on your feet with this one before it flies by you. Well, if you’re  not down with signing contracts, you’ll be faced with having to pay $399.99 to pick it up outright – so doesn’t that contract pricing look mightily alluring?

source: T-Mobile via TmoNews