Remember the Saygus VPhone V1, the mysterious Android smartphone that was spotted clearing the FCC earlier this week? The company have followed up the less-than-perfect FCC shots with some glamour photos of their own, and while opinion on the V1’s looks is split – one Android Community comment suggested it “looks like a VCR” – we’re still interested to see the fruits of what looks likely to be the first Verizon Open Development device.
Verizon’s BlackBerry Curve 8530 isn’t quite on sale yet – you’ll have to wait until November 20th for that – but Sprint would like you to know that they’ll also be offering the QWERTY smartphone. The Sprint BlackBerry Curve 8530 gets the same WiFi, GPS, 2-megapixel camera and EVDO Rev.A connectivity, which means the only thing really lacking right now is a price and a release date.
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Verizon have announced a new set of prepaid data plans that the carrier is hoping will lure in some occasional mobile users currently turned-off by the contract offerings. As of November 16th, the Verizon Wireless USB760 modem will be available with a $15 daily access rate (with a 75MB allowance); alternatively the carrier is offering weekly or monthly rates.
As well as their headline smartphone announcements this morning, Verizon have also officially confirmed a couple of featurephones that have each been rattling around the rumor mill for a while. The LG Chocolate Touch and Samsung Convoy – a touchscreen candybar and rugged flip, respectively – don’t have the Android magic or hardware QWERTY of the Verizon DROID Eris by HTC or the BlackBerry Curve 8530.
Verizon’s second smartphone announcement this morning is one for the heavy messengers (no, we’re not talking about fat couriers): the BlackBerry Curve 8530, tipped as dropping this month back in August. The Curve 8530 has not only EVDO Rev.A but WiFi b/g and GPS, together with a full QWERTY keyboard and 2-megapixel digital camera.
It comes as little surprise given we’ve already seen it unboxed and know the pricing, but Verizon Wireless have officially announced that, as of tomorrow, they’ll be offering the DROID Eris by HTC. Basically another version of the HTC Hero, the HTC DROID Eris packs a 3.2-inch capacitive touchscreen, 5-megapixel autofocus camera, EVDO Rev.A and the HTC Sense UI.
Remember the talk in early October about a third Verizon Android smartphone from a small company and certified through the carrier’s Open Development program? The HTC DROID Eris and Motorola DROID pushed that mystery device to the back of our minds, but an FCC filing has seemingly revealed the device as the Saygus VPhone V1, another sliding form-factor with a 3.5-inch 800 x 480 capacitive touchscreen, 624MHz Marvell PXA310 processor and a 5-megapixel autofocus camera.
If you can predict a device’s success by site stats then we’d say the Verizon DROID by Motorola is going to be a hit. A week after launch and the DROID is still topping the charts for reader interest, and you’ve been peppering us with questions and comments about the Android 2.0 device. Set to hit shelves this coming Friday, the Verizon DROID is already being heralded as the device that will change Motorola’s fortunes; is that hyperbole, or is the DROID really that good? We’ve been putting the smartphone through its paces, so read on for the full SlashGear review.
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We suppose we can't really fault Verizon too much for wanting customers to honor their contracts rather than paying an early termination fee (ETF) of around half the phone's value and then selling the handset for a profit on eBay, but our natural dislike of ETFs is perking up this morning. According to a leaked slide that found its way to the BGR, Verizon are now planning to charge up to $350 in termination fees on "Advanced Devices" - we're guessing they mean smartphones or high-end featurephones - whose owners don't complete the full term of the agreement.
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Verizon's apparent intention to show up AT&T and the iPhone at every turn continues, with the latest snook to be cocked being confirmed tethering for the Verizon DROID by Motorola. According to the CDMA carrier, early 2010 will see the Verizon Broadband Access Connect plan arrive on the Android slider, likely priced at the usual $15 per month on top of your regular data contract.
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