There is a lot to be said for small smartphones, to a point. None of us really wants a smartphone that is so small the screen is tiny and hard to use. Still, the smaller the components inside our phones the thinner they can be and smaller size often means less power is needed to run them equating to longer battery life.

A company called Icera has unveiled what it claims to be the world’s smallest HSPA+ voice and data platform for Android smartphones. The platform is the Espresso 450 and it uses the latest baseband and RF tech from Icera. Icera has unveiled what it claims to be the world’s smallest HSPA+ voice and data platform for Android smartphones. The platform is the Espresso 450 and it uses the latest baseband and RF tech from Icera. The platform promises up to 28Mbps with full quad-band 2G and 3G voice support.

The real news is the small size of the platform though with the smallest footprint in the industry at 700mm2. The Espresso 450 platform is the first from Icera to combine high-speed cellular data tech with a radio layer interface for Android. The platform will be shown off at MWC next month with products using it expected in late 2011.