Modu makes Android

Modu's mini handset and clever jackets didn't really make much of an impact, slowly sneaking onto the market and without the wide range of accessories that we were hoping for (you can buy one here). But the concept of a modular phone was interesting and certainly a radical and new idea.

It's a surprise therefore to see an Android phone from Modu, but here it is.. or at least a prototype. As it stands, it's a tiny Android touchscreen phone competing against the Sony Ericsson X10 Mini which we guess gives it a certain appeal.

Via

Android share up 3% in UK

GfK reports that Android's share of the UK contract (post-pay) market grew 3% in Q1 2010 to reach 13.2%.

Sales of "Advanced Operating System" handsets (smartphones to you and I) accounted for a whopping 66.7% of contract sales in Q2, with latest figures indicating a 73.5% market share. Remember though that a lot of these smartphones are going to be Nokia S60 handsets, where the users may not even realise that they can download apps at all.

Although market share is still quite low, the growth of Android seems to have an unstoppable momentum in the UK market.

Via

$35 Android tablet rumoured for India

File this one under "rumours", because frankly we don't think that it is possible.. but AndroidOS.in  is covering a story about an alleged $35 Android tablet for the Indian market, with a 5" display, WiFi, 2GB internal memory and a USB port for $35.. what is even more unbelievable is the claim that it could go even lower.

Frankly, we don't think that this is possible.. even in large volumes. Things like 5" touchscreens are fairly pricey, and high demand for them would possibly even drive prices up due to component and raw material shortages. Even Nokia can only manage something like the Nokia C1-00 for that price. Anyway, good luck to them, we say..

Via

Sharp Lynx.: Android tablet plus QWERTY keyboard

Yesterday we looked at some upcoming Android tablets and said that we'd love to see one with a QWERTY keyboard. Well.. here's one, the Sharp Lynx which pretty much does everything that we want.

Before you get too excited, the Lynx is heading for NTT DOCOMO is Japan only. We can see no real reason why it couldn't be tweaked a bit for Europe though, and really we would very much like to see it over here.

The specs are very nice indeed - a 960 x 480 pixel screen, trackball, GPS, WiFi and a 5.3 megapixel camera (an odd number we guess). At 148 x 84 x 18mm and 230 grams it's certainly easier to carry around than a laptop, but a lot more convenient than a smartphone.

Via

Droid 2 dummy gives the game away

Do you want a Motorola DROID 2 for just $29.99? Well you can.. as long at you don't mind it being this dummy phone.

There have been a few leaks about the DROID 2 lately, but the dummy probably gives the best idea of what it different. The main change is a much larger and better looking keyboard, otherwise the changes are quite subtle. We do notice that the DROID 2 still has a 5 megapixel camera on the back though.

What's inside is more interesting.. we can only speculate about the internals, but Motorola really need to put a 1GHz processor and more RAM into the DROID 2 to make it truly competitive. And we also imagine that this means that the MILESTONE 2 is just around the corner too..

Via

Digital Trends roundup of Android Tablets

Android lends itself pretty well to the tablet format we think, and Digital Trends have this roundup of upcoming and rumoured tablet devices.

Although the Dell Streak is available now, we think that it's just an oversized smartphone.. and frankly we're not big fans of Dell's laughable approximation of customer service. Some of these other device are much more like the iPad, some are much more fanciful.

One criticism of these designs is that they are all very "me too". We'd love to see a subnotebook format Android device with a decent keyboard!

Via

LogMeIn Ignition for Android

Ever wanted to control your desktop PC from your phone? Now you can with LogMeIn Ignition for Android, available from the Android Market for $29.99. We can't vouch for how well it works, but one immediate downside will be that you have to leave your PC logged in all the time. Apparently this is a popular app for the iPhone too, whatever that is.



Via

Video: LG Optimus Range

LG intend to put out 10 new Android devices before the end of the year, including an Android tablet. Many of these will be branded as "Optimus" devices. No, it's not a Transformers movie...




Via

Comscore reports Android on the march

comScore has reported a significant boost in the percentage share that Android has in the US smartphone market, up from 9.0% in February 2010 to 13.0% in May (up 4%).

RIM is still top of the pile in the US smartphone market, with 41.7% (down 0.4%), followed by Apple at 24.0% (down 1.0%) and Microsoft just ahead of Android at 13.2% (down 1.9%).  Palm comes in at just 4.8% (down 0.6%) although their recent acquisition by HP may make WebOS something of a wildcard.

Apple's decline is probably due in part to anticipation over the the iPhone 4 which was launched last month, so we would expect to see the next round of comScore figures to show a big jump for Apple.

Android is clearly doing well, but it has a lot of work to do if it wants to grab even the number two position from Apple. A lot also depends on whether Microsoft's new Windows Phone 7 platform is a success or disaster, and that's something we will only really know in six months time or more.

Via

Video: Motorola CHARM

The Moto FLIPOUT.. without a FLIP.

HTC Vision Rumours

A blurry screenshot of something nice.. the HTC Vision is said to be an Android phone with a practical looking slide-out QWERTY keyboard, a 1GHz processor, Android 2.1 and a 3.7" display.

At the moment HTC have nothing that competes directly against the Motorola Milestone or DROID which has a pretty miserable keyboard and a slower processor. Think of this as a Desire with a decent keyboard.. and I certainly know I want one at any rate..

Via

Symbian-Guru.com defects to Android

Symbian-Guru.com has been one of the best blogs for the Symbian platform for some time, but a shock announcement that the blog has closed has certainly caused ripples in the Symbian community.. not least because editor Ricky Cadden has deserted Symbian altogether for Android.

AndroidSmartPhone.com tries to steer clear of fanboyism.. there are actually plenty of nice phones out there running something other than Android. So we have to say that we're sad to see Symbian-Guru.com but not surprised.

Personally, I believe that Nokia never made the best of Symbian despite having a lot of strengths compared to other OSes. Yes, Nokia have the N900 which runs Maemo - and Android-class OS - but put the N900 and a high-end Android device next to each other and Android certainly wins. The N900 is the first and last Maemo phone from Nokia, future high-end devices will run the untested Moblin OS.

Perhaps it is time for Nokia to swallow its pride and offer an Android handset alongside their Symbian and Maemo/Moblin ones. Would it sell? You betcha..