Today the Dell Streak is available in the US.  The Streak is Dell’s Android powered mobile device that Dell is dubbing as a smartphone / tablet.The 5 inch screen should be a welcome high point for mobile browsers and gamers, but may be a bit awkward holding such a huge device up to the ear or at least look awkward anyway.  At least Bluetooth is on board for hands free operation on the voice side of things.

Streak is powered by a 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor and 512MB ROM + 512MB SDRAM + 2 GB non-user accessible MicroSD for system & applications files.  Android 1.6 OS is on tap for web crawling, which is surprising given that Android 2.2 is available.  The Droid 2 that launched a few days ago is running 2.2.  Ok, now the rest.  Streak has some other cool stuff to like dual cameras with a dual LED flash.  A 5MP camera is on the back side and a VGA camera on the front for stuff like video calling and of course easy upload to YouTube, Flickr, Facebook, etc.  A built-in MicroSD card slot will hold a 32GB card (A 16GB card comes in the box) for additional storage.  A multi-format media player let you enjoy music, movies and more.  Streak also bring 802.11b/g WiFi connectivity on top of AT&T 3G to connect in the best hotspots.

The Dell Streak is available now at www.dell.com/mobile for $549.99 with no contract and $299.99 with a 2 year AT&T contract.

Check for availability at Amazon.

A photo gallery is at the bottom of this post.

Press Release

ROUND ROCK, Texas–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Dell (NASDAQ: DELL):

“The Dell Streak has found a way to fit your whole world in a 5-inch screen. Its unique size will help people discover new ways to enjoy the web, connect with friends, and navigate their lives.”

NEWS:

Orders for the Dell Streak Tablet open up for U.S. priority pre-sale registrants at www.dell.com/mobile this Thursday, August 12. General availability follows a day later at www.dell.com/mobile.

The Dell Streak is available for $299.99 with new two-year AT&T contract†, and $549.99 without. Customers who purchase the Streak, and signed up during the pre-sale program, will receive a free second-day shipping upgrade. Customers who redeem their pre-sale coupon can purchase a Plantronics Bluetooth earpiece for 99 cents while supplies last.

HITTING A SWEET SPOT

The Dell Streak, a carbon black Android-based tablet with a 5-inch display, is designed to provide an excellent “on-the-go” entertainment, social connection, and navigation experience. The spacious 5-inch screen is ideal for experiencing thousands of Android Market widgets, games and applications, all without squinting or compromising portability. Built-in Wi-Fi, Bluetooth capability and available 3G connectivity brings easy access for downloading and listening to music, updating social networking status in real-time, and staying connected to friends and family through e-mail, text, IM, and voice calls.

On-the-go students, mobile professionals, and active families will find Streak’s web-browsing capabilities as natural as a laptop. The 5-inch screen is large enough to present Web pages in their natural form, create a comfortable viewing experience, and make turn-by-turn navigation simple. The Dell Streak is powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon solution with integrated 1GHz processor to combine basic functionality and benefits of a laptop in a pocket friendly size.

The Dell Streak was designed with the future in mind to support future software, application and platform upgrades.

QUOTE:

“The Dell Streak has found a way to fit your whole world in a 5-inch screen. Its unique size will help people discover new ways to enjoy the web, connect with friends, and navigate their lives.” – Ron Garriques, president, Dell Communication Solutions

DELL STREAK FEATURES:

• Integrated Google Maps with turn-by-turn navigation, street and satellite views
• A full screen browsing experience with a 5-inch capacitive multi-touch WVGA display
• Easily integrated social media apps: Twitter, Facebook, YouTube
• High resolution 5 MP camera, VGA front facing camera, removable battery, built-in Wi-Fi, 3G and Bluetooth connectivity options
• 2GB* of internal storage provides plenty of space to access and download Google Android Market’s many options
• Packaged with cushions made from 100 percent sustainable, compostable bamboo

DELL STREAK SPECIFICATIONS:

• Android platform complete with Android Market and Dell user interface enhancements
• Powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon solution with integrated 1GHz processor
• 3G + Wi-Fi + Bluetooth
• UMTS / GPRS / EDGE class 12 GSM radio with link speeds of up to 7.2 Mbps*
• 5 MP Autofocus camera with dual LED flash. Easily point, shoot, and upload to YouTube, Flickr, Facebook and more
• User accessible Micro SD expandable memory available up to 32GB*. Store up to 42 movies* or 32,000 photos*, or 16,000 songs* with a 32GB* Micro SD upgrade
• Follow conversations in the blogosphere: #DellStreak

Key Links:

Dell Streak: Additional Product Information

Dell Facebook: Join the Conversation

About Dell:

Dell (NASDAQ: DELL) listens to its customers and uses that insight to make technology simpler and create innovative solutions that simplify daily activities and help people stay entertained, connected and in touch. Learn more at www.dell.com.

†2-year voice and minimum data plan required. Other restrictions apply. For more details, see www.dell.com/mobile.

*Offers subject to change, not combinable with all other offers. Taxes, shipping, handling and other fees apply. Valid for new U.S. online purchases through the Dell Home Electronics and Accessories site and for phone orders of electronics and accessories purchased without a system only. Free shipping and handling offer available in Continental (except Alaska) U.S. only. Dell reserves the right to cancel orders arising from pricing or other errors.

*Link Speeds: For comparative purposes only. Actual speed varies and will be less

*Media Storage Capacity: Number of songs, images and hours that can be stored varies depending on file size, OS and loaded software applications

*Micro SD Card: MB means 1 million bytes and GB means 1 billion bytes; total accessible capacity varies depending on operating environment

1. Dell is a trademark of Dell Inc.
2. Dell disclaims any proprietary interest in the marks and names of others.
3. Android, Android Market and Google Maps are Trademarks of Google, Inc.
4. Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/mmg.cgi?eid=6392750&lang=en

Verizon is now taking online pre-orders for the DROID 2, with in-store availability for Thursday, August 12.  The price is $199 after a $100 mail-in-rebate or an instant online discount.

The Motorola DROID 2 sports a 1GHz OMAP processor, a 3.7″ display, a 5MP camera, 8GB onboard memory, a microSD slot for up to 32GB additional storage, and a slideout QWERTY keyboard.  The new phone will come with Android 2.2 installed, Adobe Flash Player 10.1 and 3G Mobile HotSpot capabilities (although you’ll have to pony up another $20/mo for the 3G Mobile HotSpot feature).

You can find the DROID 2 now on VerizonWireless.com.

Sony Ericsson has thrown out the sleek Xperia X10 Android powered smartphone into the hands of AT&T. I am really no phone geek, but occasionally a new one comes out that grabs my attention and this one did. The highlights are a 4 inch display, 1GHx Snapdragon processor, GPS and an 8.1 megapixel camera.

The Xperia X10 is built on the Android platform so it should be a solid performer and integrate well with the social networks like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Picasa. The 8.1 megapixel camera is accompanied by an LED flash and auto-focus. Memory can be expanded to 32GB, but you’ll get a 2GB memory card in the box.

Sony Ericsson’s new Xperia X10 will be available in black August 15, 2010 from AT&T and authorized retailers for $149.99 with a 2 year contract and minimum data package.  (commercial below)

Press Release

DALLAS and ATLANTA, Aug. 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — AT&T* and Sony Ericsson today announced a dynamic multimedia experience with the Android™ based Xperia™ X10, available August 15. The Xperia™ X10 introduces Sony Ericsson’s unique and entertainment-driven Xperia™ platform to U.S. customers in a cutting-edge, beautiful and fun package.

The Xperia™ X10 comes fully loaded with a 4-inch crystal clear touch display, superfast 1GHz Snapdragon processor and aGPS. The smartphone also features an 8.1 megapixel camera with smile detection, face recognition, autofocus and LED flash. The device comes with a 2 GB in-box memory card with expandable memory up to 32 GB.

Sony Ericsson’s custom user experience is great for the intersection of communications and entertainment. Two signature applications, Mediascape and Timescape™, build on the Android platform to enhance the experience for users.

* Mediascape on the Xperia ™ X10 gathers music, photos, videos and content from your phone’s memory card and online, letting you browse, search, listen and share your media from one unified view. For example, view photos taken on the device as well as your Facebook® and Picasa™ web albums. Or, when listening to a favorite song on your phone, press Sony Ericsson’s infinite button to access related content about the artist pulled from the phone’s memory as well as albums, songs and video content from YouTube™ and search results from Google.

* Timescape™ is a unique communication application that automatically organizes social interactions in chronological order, leaving users free to concentrate on keeping in touch on-the-go. From Facebook® and Twitter® updates to photos, emails and text messages, a scrolling menu offers easy viewing and organization of all communications. Additionally, tap the Timescape™ infinite button to bring up and view all communications from a single person in a single place.

“Sony Ericsson has created a unique choice for our smartphone customers looking for a fun and smart device,” said Michael Woodward, vice president, Mobile Phone Portfolio, AT&T Mobility and Consumer Markets.

“Sony Ericsson is raising the bar for entertainment-rich phones with the launch of the Xperia ™ X10,” said Paul Hamnett, senior vice president, Sony Ericsson North America. “With the convergence of our user experience platform and the Android OS, we are bringing consumers a smartphone experience that is not only exciting, but also very refined. Following the successful global launch of the Xperia™ X10, we are pleased to partner with AT&T to launch this phone in the U.S. market.”

Pricing and Availability

The Sony Ericsson Xperia™ X10 smartphone will be available in black at AT&T stores, authorized retailers and www.wireless.att.com on August 15 for $149.99 after a two-year service agreement and minimum smartphone data plan.

For the complete lineup of AT&T offerings, visit www.att.com.

*AT&T products and services are provided or offered by subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T brand and not by AT&T Inc.

Viewable screen display area is measured diagonally.

A portion of memory is used for data management purposes.

Data charges apply for content and updates transferred through the mobile Web.

Limited-time offer. Other conditions & restrictions apply. See contract & rate plan brochure for details. Subscriber must live & have a mailing addr. within AT&T’s owned wireless network coverage area. Up to $36 activ. fee applies. Equipment price & avail may vary by mrk & may not be available from independent retailers. Early Termination Fee: None if cancelled in the first 30 days, but up to $35 restocking fee may apply to equipment returns; thereafter up to $325. Some agents impose add’l fees. Unlimited voice services: Unltd voice svcs are provided primarily for live dialog between two individuals. No additional discounts are available with unlimited plan. Smartphone Data Plan Requirement: Smartphones require a DataPlus (200MB) or DataPro (2GB) plan. If you exceed your initial data allowance, you will automatically be charged an additional $10 for each additional 1GB provided on DataPro or an additional $15 for each additional 200MB provided on DataPlus. All data allowances, including overages, must be used in the billing period in which the allowance is provided or they will be forfeited. An Enterprise Data Plan is required for corporate email, company intranet sites and business applications. For more details on Data Plans, go to att.com/dataplans. Offnet Usage: If your mins of use (including unltd svcs) on other carrier’s networks (“offnet usage”) during any two consecutive months or your data use during any month exceeds your offnet usage allowance, AT&T may at its option terminate your svc, deny your contd use of other carriers’ coverage, or change your plan to one imposing usage charges for offnet usage. Your offnet usage allowance is equal to the lesser of 750 mins or 40% of the Anytime mins incl’d with your plan (data offnet usage allowance is the lesser of 24 MB or 20% of the KB incl’d with your plan). Sales tax calculated based on price of unactivated equipment. AT&T Wi-Fi Hot Spots- Based on non-municipal company owned and operated hotspots. A Wi-Fi enabled device required. Other restrictions apply. See www.attwifi.com for additional services, restrictions and locations. Visual Voicemail – Data plan required for AT&T Visual Voicemail. Data used in replying to and forwarding voicemail messages via SMS, MMS or email is counted against your data plan. Applicable data charges apply if data plan limits have been exceeded. International data charges apply to receiving, replying to and forwarding voicemail messages while roaming internationally.

About AT&T

AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) is a premier communications holding company. Its subsidiaries and affiliates – AT&T operating companies – are the providers of AT&T services in the United States and around the world. With a powerful array of network resources that includes the nation’s fastest 3G network, AT&T is a leading provider of wireless, Wi-Fi, high speed Internet and voice services. A leader in mobile broadband, AT&T also offers the best wireless coverage worldwide, offering the most wireless phones that work in the most countries. It also offers advanced TV services under the AT&T U-verse® and AT&T |DIRECTV brands. The company’s suite of IP-based business communications services is one of the most advanced in the world. In domestic markets, AT&T Advertising Solutions and AT&T Interactive are known for their leadership in local search and advertising. In 2010, AT&T again ranked among the 50 Most Admired Companies by FORTUNE® magazine.

Additional information about AT&T Inc. and the products and services provided by AT&T subsidiaries and affiliates is available at http://www.att.com. This AT&T news release and other announcements are available at http://www.att.com/newsroom and as part of an RSS feed at www.att.com/rss. Or follow our news on Twitter® at @ATTNews. Find us on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/ATT to discover more about our consumer and wireless services or at www.Facebook.com/ATTSmallBiz to discover more about our small business services.

About Sony Ericsson

Sony Ericsson is a 50/50 joint venture by Sony and Ericsson established in October 2001, with global corporate functions located in London and operations in major markets around the world. Sony Ericsson’s strategy is to become the industry leader in mobile Communication Entertainment, through new styles of interaction across the internet and social media. Sony Ericsson offers exciting consumer experiences through innovative and feature rich phones, accessories, content and applications. For more information, please see: www.sonyericsson.com/press.

Note: This AT&T news release and other announcements are available as part of an RSS feed at www.att.com/rss. For more information, please review this announcement in the AT&T newsroom at http://www.att.com/newsroom.

© 2010 AT&T Intellectual Property. All rights reserved. 3G service not available in all areas. AT&T, the AT&T logo and all other marks contained herein are trademarks of AT&T Intellectual Property and/or AT&T affiliated companies. All other marks contained herein are the property of their respective owners. The Liquid Identity, Timescape, and Xperia are trademarks or registered trademarks of Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications AB. Sony is a trademark or registered trademark of Sony Corporation. Ericsson is a trademark or registered trademark of Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson. Facebook is a registered trademark of Facebook, Inc. Android, Google, and YouTube are trademarks or registered trademarks of Google, Inc. Snapdragon is a trademark or registered trademark of Qualcomm, Inc. Twitter is a registered trademark of Twitter, Inc. All other marks are the property of their respective owners.
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T-Mobile has launched a teaser page that touts the first HSPA+ smartphone will be arriving on its network later this year.  While previous rumors suggested that T-Mobile might be launching the Nokia N8, some code-sniffing from the BGR crew reveals that this teaser is most likely for the G1 Blaze (aka HTC Vision/Vanguard).

In areas where T-Mobile’s HSPA+ network is available, the G1 Blaze will theoretically support 14.4Mbps data transfers.  The G1 Blaze is expected to come packed with a 3.7″ display, 1GHz Snapdragon processor, QWERTY slider keyboard, trackpad and Android 2.2.

[T-Mobile via Boy Genius Report]

The Acer Stream is set to launch on August 9, 2010 on Expansys’ network in the UK.  It looks like Expansys will be the exclusive carrier for the Android 2.1-powered Stream in the UK.

Acer Stream Key Specs

• 1GHz Snapdragon Processor
• 3.7″ AMOLED Screen
• Android 2.1 OS
• 5MP Camera
• 720p HD Video Recording
• HDMI Port
• Full DLNA / UPnP Support for Streaming

More details in the press release below.

Acer Stream Press Release

London, 26th July 2010: Acer Stream is a high-end multimedia smartphone, optimized for watching movies, listening to music and enjoying web browsing – perfect for most demanding users who want the best in entertainment.

Elegant and minimalist in design, Acer Stream is made from highly resistant materials and offers truly outstanding technical features, all in just 11.2 mm, ensuring users a unique, unrepeatable experience, due to the following:

Superb display quality: the touch screen with AMOLED technology boasts 1.67 million exceptionally bright colors, through a generous 3.7″ WVGA display. Furthermore, its incredible contrast (superior 2000:1) makes for clear images and perfect legibility in any environment and light condition. Moreover, this type of display consumes less energy to help increase battery life.

Ultrafast connectivity 3G+ for streaming: HSDPA 7.2 Mbps in download, Bluetooth and WiFi n, enabling faster transmission of multimedia contents than ever!

Power and performance: the Qualcomm Snapdragon 1GHz processor, with its 512 MB RAM, makes Acer Stream one of the fastest and most reactive phones on the market. The operating system behind Stream is Android version 2.1, better known as Éclair.

Unique and high-quality multimedia features, enabling the recording of HD videos up to 720p. Listening to your favorite music or the radio with RDS has never been so pleasant; enjoy the Dolby Mobile quality, with powerful bass and crystal-clear clarity for an unparalleled purity of sound. UPnP technology enables sharing contents with other devices. Furthermore, a 5MP photocamera and integrated GPS system allow photos and videos to be geotagged. Last but not least, you can connect the Acer Stream to your home TV with HDMI port and watch a movie on a larger screen.

Extensive memory! 2GB of internal Flash memory are ideal for downloading a lot of applications and 3D games, while an 8GB memory card as free bundle and a micro-SD card slot support up to 32GB enable users to avail of their favorite multimedia contents at all times.

A completely brand new user interface focalized on what is essential to users and able to guarantee a simple and quick access to all the applications. The new Acer user interface will wrap the user up giving pure pleasure in using the phone and enjoying the discovery of all the stunning things he can do with his Acer Stream!

Main benefits:

_Read information straight from the lock screen’s widget;

_Quickly start favorite applications in one touch;

_Easily switch applications with the History panel;

_Customize the phone according to specific needs;

_Enjoy smooth animations and fine graphics.

Coupled with a three types of predictive keyboards, a smart dialer and a redesigned contacts list, the Acer user interface makes the use of smartphone an efficient and delightful experience.

Social and entertaining: All the most popular applications are pre-installed: Acer Spinlets free streaming service to browse and listen to songs from major music labels and instantly post what you find to your favorite Social Networking sites, nemo Player to enjoy multimedia content to the fullest, Acer urFooz to create your virtual “look-a-like”, add your profile and bookmarks and post it to your social networks, Facebook™ and Twidroid perfectly integrated in the phone address.

Acer Stream, a concentration of fun and entertainment! Open your eyes and start enjoying yourself with the best entertainment smartphone on the market.

The Acer Stream will be available as of the 9th August exclusively from online retailer eXpansys for an RRP of £399 Inc Vat.

[via Slashgear]

Steve Jobs has concluded his statements regarding the iPhone 4 reception in his press conference today.  Apple acknowledges the problem and is willing to give away cases to customers having already purchased the iPhone 4 and is willing to refund customers that have already purchased cases.  The free case giveaway to iPhone 4 customers will last through September 30, 2010.  Also noted by Mr. Jobs, customers not satisfied with a free case can return the iPhone 4 for a full refund.

In his press conference, Mr. Jobs explained that the reception problem has been blow way out of proportion and that only 0.55% of users have reported a problem.  He also went on to say that the iPhone 4 drops more calls than the iPhone 3GS but, drops less than 1 additional call per 100 as compared to the iPhone 3GS.  To me that adds up to a lot of additional dropped phone calls.  Jobs said he would not disclose the details of the number of calls the iPhone 4 and AT&T network dropped.

Mr. Jobs reiterated the quality of the iPhone 4, by stating the return rate of the iPhone 4 is 1.7 percent, about one third of the 6 percent rate of the iPhone 3GS.  Jobs also insisted that antennagate is not unique to the iPhone 4.  All phones have reception problems and are not perfect, but the iPhone 4 is the best smartphone in the world and Apple wants to make customers happy, according to Jobs.

[via CNN via twitter.com/cnntech]

Assurance Wireless is a free cell phone and a free 200 minute per month voice service from Virgin Mobile helping qualifying individuals the ability to stay connected.  According to Assurance there no bills, long-term contracts, activation fees, recurring fees, or surcharges for Assurance Wireless customers.

Assurance Wireless just recently added service to Florida and Louisiana.  To find out more about the service call 1-888-898-4888.  Assurance Wireless is available in the following states:

• Florida
• Maryland
• New York
• Tennessee
• Virginia
• Louisiana
• Michigan
• North Carolina
• Texas

Visit assurancewireless.com to find out more.

A flaw in the antenna design of the iPhone 4, leading to degraded reception has Consumer Reports at odds with the newest generation of the iPhone.

Earlier this month Apple acknowledged a problem with reception and cited in a letter that it was all a miscalculation in signal strength that has existed from the iPhone’s beginning.  Below is an excerpt from the letter in which Apple states that the reception drop is not really real, basically.

Upon investigation, we were stunned to find that the formula we use to calculate how many bars of signal strength to display is totally wrong.

We have gone back to our labs and retested everything, and the results are the same— the iPhone 4’s wireless performance is the best we have ever shipped.

-Apple

According to Consumer Reports the problem lies in the exposed metal band wrapping the edge of the iPhone 4, serving as the antenna.  The electrical conductivity of the human body interferes with reception when touching the metal band in certain spots.  A simple solution is to cover the antenna with a non -conductive material, says the magazine.

Consumer Reports did note that the iPhone 4 ranked highest on the list of smart phone ratings that it released Monday, aside from the reception issues. But the magazine said it will not recommend Apple’s new iPhone until the company releases “a permanent — and free — fix for the antenna problem.”

Apple has already stated a free software release to fix the on screen signal meter is in the works and will be available in the coming weeks.

Anyone who has suffered through the constant dropped calls with every iteration of the iPhone on AT&T’s craptastic network will appreciate the “credible” reports from Bloomberg that the iPhone will arrive on Verizon in January of next year. 

Bloomberg isn’t exactly a rumor-filled gadget blog, the likes of which pass along such speculation on an almost daily basis.  Reading Bloomberg’s report suggests that they’ve got the skinny on the Verizon iPhone news from someone within the big V. However, “credible” sources at major publications have been wrong on this story before.

I, for one, have been nothing short of militant toward AT&T’s crumbling network.  Honestly, I don’t talk on the phone that much.  But when I do, I want to actually be able to talk on the phone.  This is a challenge that AT&T, Luke Wilson and the “nation’s fastest 3G network” don’t quite seem to be capable of overcoming.

I had planned on bailing to Verizon for an Android phone when my contract is up in a couple of months; however, AT&T may suck a few more months of fees out of me with this report, as I wait to see what Verizon’s CDMA iPhone will look like in half a year.

No wonder AT&T offered everyone with contracts expiring in 2010 the ability to upgrade now to the iPhone 4.

Want to know how well the iPhone 4 can handle shooting, editing and publishing video? Check out the video below that shows off a short film by Michael Koerbel completely shot and edited with the iPhone 4.

Let this serve as a little reminder that it’s not always about the camera – it’s about the people on either side of the camera.

[Vimeo]