Aesthetically there are a few new changes to the Galaxy S II style, mainly amounting to rounded off corners and some extra swoop up at the top rear panel. Samsung and T-Mobile are being coy with the full specs, however, though we’re guessing on an 8-megapixel camera with 1080p HD video recording, a front facing camera for video calls and the usual mixture of WiFi, Bluetooth and GPS.

Pricing and availability are also unknown, with T-Mobile saying the Galaxy S Blaze 4G will be “coming soon this year.” Our guess is somewhere around the $200 mark with a new, two-year agreement.

[via SlashGear]

Flipping the 4G LTE switch we now have access to the blazing fast speeds in a few key cities for AT&T. Those include NYC and San Francisco in particular — but it has also been enabled in Austin, Chapel Hill, Los Angeles, Oakland, Orlando, Phoenix, Raleigh, San Diego, and San Jose. This news has been a long time coming and ever since AT&T first started their rollout things have been moving quite slowly. We’ve been hearing reports of AT&T LTE live in NYC for more than a few weeks already but now that everything is ready to go and stable, the announcements are official.

AT&T promises to continue with their widespread 4G LTE rollout and expects it to be fully completed inside of 2013. Reaching 74 million American’s and just getting started means they’ll be passing 100m and more very soon. If they start updating as fast as Verizon has recently things should be even better in a few short months. AT&T also is the only carrier offering both 4G LTE and HSPA+ “faux 4G” speeds for what they are calling a double-layer 4G experience. When users aren’t in an LTE location they’ll be rolled back to AT&T’s wide HSPA+ spectrum across the entire USA.

With a few awesome LTE devices already in the Skyrocket and HTC Vivid, and more to surely be announced at CES next week AT&T should be looking bright and blue for 2012. Stay tuned as we’ll get all the details from AT&T live at CES shortly.

[via SlashGear]

The above cities will now enjoy HSPA+ with a maximum theoretical speed of 42Mbps down. That’s not to be sneezed at, since even on AT&T’s uncontested and relatively tiny LTE network, we could barely get above 20Mbps. T-Mobile says their network now covers 180 million Americans (which I’m sure is a wonderful comfort to the 120 million+ Americans who can’t get a single ever-loving bar). Notably for data-lovers, T-Mobile still offers unlimited data plans for smartphones, though customers are throttled after a certain limit.

T-Mobile has been particularly aggressive in expanding its 4G android lineup, currently lead by HTC’s Amaze 4G and the still solid Samsung Galaxy S II. T-Mobile’s tablet offerings are expanding as well: in addition to the Huawei-made Springboard, the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus is coming soon, both of which have HSPA+ 4G. After the Justice department denied AT&T’s approval to purchase its competitor, the future of T-Mobile is currently somewhat tenuous, but for the foreseeable future it remains an economical choice for those who spend most of their time in urban areas.

Before becoming official these phones were accidentally listed on T-Mobile.com and were quickly removed, now they are all official-like we should be seeing plenty more over the next few weeks. The myTouch will feature a 3.8″ display with a 1 GHz processor and a decent 5MP camera. Then the myTouch Q (above) will sport a 3.5″ display, slide-out QWERTY keyboard, the same 1.0 Ghz processor and 5MP camera and will be a nice little mid-range offering from LG.

Both of the new myTouch phones will be powered by Android 2.3 Gingerbread and T-Mobiles HSPA+ 4G speeds. The regular myTouch will come in black or white, while the Q slider will be offered in black or grey. Both are set to be released before the holidays and we don’t have more information on an exact date but a recent leak suggests they’ll be available for just $129 and come around November 2nd. Who wants one?

[via TmoNews]

Hardware

HTC is very well known for their exceptional build quality and hardware and as usual, this is no different. The Amaze 4G seems to even take it up a notch from recently released HTC smartphones because the build quality is truly stellar. This is one solid feeling phone in your hand, it’s actually a bit heavy if you ask me, especially since I’ve also been enjoying the extremely lightweight Galaxy S II for T-Mobile.

HTC Amaze 4G hands-on and unbox video:

So, the Amaze 4G, we have a 4.3″ qHD (Quarter High Definition) Super LCD display with a 960 x 540 resolution, 8 megapixel camera around back with dual LED flash and 2 MP front for video chatting, all on a device sized around 5.1 x 2.5 x 0.46 thick weighing in at 6.0 oz. The screen sticks out in a weird manor but more on that below. The back is covered in a soft-touch matte coating on the top and bottom, split and wrapped neatly with an aluminum frame and bezel just as the HTC Sensation before it. All of this is powered by a dual-core 1.5 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, 1GB of RAM, and comes nicely with 16GB of internal storage. Here’s all the info from our hands-on coverage.

One unique thing about the Amaze 4G is HTC’s decided to go with a dedicated camera button, something the Sensation didn’t offer. Not only that but we also have a dedicated hardware camcorder (video) button, they’ve provided both with the Amaze 4G to give us easy access to use the amazing 8 MP camera — a camera T-Mobile claims as “the most advanced camera of any smartphone”.

For a tour around the device I’ll start with the left side. We have nothing but the single micro-USB port from HTC. This is a proprietary micro-USB port from HTC, but it also works with all regular micro-USB ports and MHL adapters both. Its not shaped like most micro-USB ports but doesn’t make any difference I’ve seen thus far. Then around to the right we have the volume up/down rocker, and both of the dedicated camera buttons mentioned above.

Then up top as usual we have a 3.5mm headphone jack and the power button. The power/wake button here is at a slight angle and pretty far to the right edge, and its a big squishy and I find myself missing and having to hit it twice at times. I’m sure it’ll be fine once I’m used to it. I mentioned above that the display was a little different. The Amaze 4G’s entire aluminum body is in a frame and detaches from the screen and innards of the smartphone, just like the HTC Sensation. Only the change here is the display actually sits above the frame and is not flush. I’m not sure why HTC decided to go this route but you can clearly see what I mean in the images below. Not a con by any means, but just a hardware aspect I wanted to point out.

Around to the front of the Amaze 4G we have the usual light and proximity sensors, the earpiece grill, and then that front facing camera. On the bottom it features the standard four capacitive Android buttons that we all know plenty about so they aren’t worth mentioning.

Flip things over you’ll see that special 8 MP camera that does all the magic, the dual LED flash, speakerphone grill and some noise cancellation pinholes. Here is the soft coated matte rear and aluminum that wraps around the device giving it a very solid and durable feeling while in the hand. As I said before, it is a little heavy but nothing that should concern users.

Software

We have Android 2.3.4 along with HTC Sense UI 3.0 (no 3.5 here) and just as you’d expect things are completely smooth and fluid as always. HTC prides themselves on their exceptional user interface overlay we all know as Sense UI and we have nothing new here. Sense 3.0 has been around for a little while and we should all be plenty familiar with it. The overall experience is butter smooth and everything runs great, no lag or issues here but that’s never really been an issue for HTC Sense UI to begin with (hello blur).

As far as bloatware is concerned, as usual with HTC phones we have HTC Watch, Hub, Music and a few other things, the rest are all T-Mobile’s doing. The list is pretty short so that is nice — we have 411 & more (really guys, ever heard of Google), Lookout, More for Me, T-Mobile My Account, My Device, Polaris Office, T-Mobile Mail & TV, TeleNav Navigator and Zinio Reader. We do have a “tags” app for NFC but it appears to not fully function for me.

Performance

As usual we’ve ran a few benchmarks as well as speedtests. We wanted to test performance now we have an upgraded 1.5 GHz dual-core processor, and T-Mobile has enabled their fastest 4G network yet — HSPA+ 42 in select cities and the Amaze 4G is one of the few new devices to take full advantage of the faster network speeds. Initial impressions are highly favorable and T-Mobile seems to keep up with Verizon 4G LTE surprisingly.

First up here is our Quadrant results, the HTC Amaze 4G only scores a 2800 give or take. This is higher than most stock NVIDIA Tegra 2 devices running at 1.0 GHz, but sadly is no where near what the Galaxy S II gets in benchmarks, although the Amaze 4G does have a lot more pixels to deal with being qHD vs standard 480 x 800 on the SGSII.

We also tested Vellamo Benchmark as it tests the devices overall performance and how the hardware and software work together as one. Developed in part by Qualcomm, this shows page rendering, browser load times, JavaScript performance and more and is a great way to gauge performance. The Amaze 4G scored higher than any smartphone lately out of the gate, at stock results.

Speedtest

T-Mobiles new HSPA+ 42 improvements to their 4G network seem to really be blazing along quite well. I’ve ran multiple tests at home, and in different parts across Las Vegas and I’m getting great performance. I’m getting comparable download speeds, and often times beating that of Verizon 4G LTE and their new DROID Bionic — well done T-Mobile. The Amaze 4G has averaged around 7-9 Mbps download speeds, often peaking around 10 and 11. Upload speeds are a bit worse and rarely went above 1 Mbps for me, that is one area where Verizon 4G LTE still beats T-Mobile.

Here you can see I’ve ran multiple tests a few different days and at different locations and have experienced optimal speeds throughout. I’m loving the faster T-Mobile speeds so far and am very impressed with the stability in general. With 4G LTE from Verizon it often drops to 3G then back to 4G LTE and you have moments where you must wait for the connection to resume video playback or streaming of audio. With T-Mobile I’ve had solid speeds consistently here in Vegas.

Camera

We must talk a little about the camera especially because T-Mobile insists this is the best camera on any smartphone. So far I’d have to completely agree. It is either one of the best, or right at the top along with the Samsung 8MP camera on the Galaxy S II. The Amaze 4G has one of the best cameras coming in at 8 megapixels. We have excellent low light performance with a wide aperture lens that snaps quickly. Face detection, dual led flash, zero shutter lag, smart shot (takes 5 in a row and you choose the best one), ClearShot HDR when you need high-contrast lighting and more.

Like mentioned above — the Amaze 4G has a dedicated buttons for both pictures or video, just push and hold even if the phone locked and it instantly enters into camera mode for the user to capture that perfect moment on video or with an image. We also have full 1080p video capture and here is a quick demo video showing just how impressive both the Amaze 4G and the Galaxy S II really are with 1080p video recording thanks to our pal Vincent from SlashGear.

Amaze 4G vs Galaxy S II: 1080p recording and audio quality

While the audio quality is much louder from HTC, the Galaxy S II seems a bit more natural and easy to listen to but both are great with 1080p video capture as seen in the video above. HTC also looks warmer and more natural if you ask me.

Now for some images I’ve snapped a few photos with the Amaze 4G and its 8 megapixel camera and here are a few test samples below. (Isn’t my puppy cute?)

Battery Life

Battery life is pretty subpar actually. We have a 1730 mAh battery with the Amaze 4G, when comparing it to the Sensation 4G and its 1520 mAh battery the Amaze 4G seems to actually not last as long. I’ve used both all weekend and my Sensation lasted a few hours longer each day. This could be that powerful 1.5 GHz processor, or maybe the faster networks speeds, either way I wasn’t as impressed as I thought I’d be. Then if we really want to talk battery, I also have the Galaxy S II for T-Mobile here with me and it outclasses the Amaze 4G across the board. Here is both devices after about 9 hours of moderate to light usage, the Galaxy S II was actually used more and had the screen on much more than the Amaze 4G yet battery life was twice as good. I don’t even need to explain, just look at the image below.

The Galaxy S II has the same 1.5 GHz dual-core processor and actually a bigger display yet lasted longer. Even though it has a larger battery at 1850 mAh I still find the HTC results a bit worrying. Although for the average user we did achieve 9 hours of usage and that should last through any users day with a top off at night to get you through til morning.

Wrap-Up

It’s wrap up time and even though I mentioned the Galaxy S II a few times (hard not to) the Amaze 4G is a pretty stellar offering from T-Mobile and HTC. I only mention the SGSII here because they are both available from T-Mobile starting Wednesday, October 12th so I felt I needed to mention the competition at least a little bit.

Obviously smartphone purchases often come down to user needs and preference, I simply state what I see and give a few awesome photos for everyone to get a second look at the awesome hardware. Many readers already have their mind made up and just like to look. Some might want the exceptional and unrivaled build quality of HTC along with their awesome UI, others may want something thinner and lighter in the upcoming Galaxy S II. Both have awesome screens, powerful dual-core processors and the latest Android 2.3 Gingerbread, so the choice is yours. While I’ve always loved HTC build quality and use a HTC Sensation 4G for my daily phone, the extra weight from the Amaze 4G was a little bit of a concern for me. However, if you want to feel an extremely durable smartphone in your hand that both looks and feels like it’s worth more than a few bucks — the Amaze 4G is for you.

HTC doesn’t cut any corners and uses some of the best hardware around and it clearly shows with the Amaze 4G. We’ll chalk this up as another awesome, powerful, and delightfully well rounded smartphone from HTC. You can pre-order the HTC Amaze 4G starting right now for just $259 over at T-Mobile.com and it starts shipping on Wednesday, October 12th.

Now enjoy all the photos in their full sized glory in the full gallery below, then check out the detailed spec sheet at the end thanks to our http://device.ac android device database.

Device Specifications and Information

Device Info

Device Name : Amaze 4G

Manufactuer : HTC

Carrier : T-Mobile

Announced Date : September 26, 2011

Release Date : October 10, 2011

Also Known As :

Display

• Screen Size : 4.3 Inch
• Resolution : 540x960
• Screen Type : S-LCD

Dimension & Weight

• Height : 5.12 Inch
• Width : 2.58 Inch
• Depth : 0.46 Inch
• Weight : 126 Grams

Battery & Power

Battery Type:
• Lithium Ion

• Battery Capacity : 1730 mAh
• Talk Time : NA
• Stand By Time : NA

Software

Android OS:
• 2.3.x

Messaging:
• SMS
• MMS

Hardware

CPU : Snapdragon S3

CPU Clock Speed : 1500 Mhz

Core : 2

Ram : 1024 MB

Internal Storage : 16384 GB

Front Facing Camera :

Camera Resolution : 8 MP

External Storage:
• MicroSD
• MicroSDHC

Camera Features:
• Auto focus
• Flash
• 1080p Video Recording

Sensors:
• Accelerometer
• Proximity

QWERTY :

Cellular Network

Network Technology:
• GSM

GSM Band:
• 850
• 900
• 1800
• 1900

Device Connectivity

Wi-Fi:
• 802.11b
• 802.11g
• 802.11n

Bluetooth:
• Bluetooth 3.0

Location Features:
• Compass
• GPS
• Cellular location
• Wi-Fi location

FM Radio :

NFC :

First things first, the Galaxy S II from T-Mobile has a few things that make it stand out from the pack. It features the fastest processor of all the SGSII’s available and is rocking a 1.5 GHz Qualcomm dual-core processor while the others all have 1.2 GHz Samsung Exynos chips — why T-Mobile and Samsung chose this route we aren’t sure. I doubt anyone will complain about the faster processor though right? Next up, unlike the AT&T version, the T-Mobile model (codenamed Hercules) packs a 4.52″ AMOLED display instead of 4.3″ like the others. What we have is one of the biggest, fastest, and thinnest smartphones on the planet all neatly wrapped in one lightweight package. All powered by Android 2.3 Gingerbread and T-Mobiles newest 4G network — that being HSPA+ 42.

I wont get into all the dirty details yet because the Galaxy S II wont be available from T-Mobile until October 12th. Don’t worry though, I’ll have a full out review with all my thoughts and details and as many photos as you’d like in said review before the official launch date. As always you can expect a wide array of benchmarks and us testing the new HSPA+ speeds with speedtest when the time comes, so stay tuned. Below you’ll find our video and a few photos that should hold you over for now.

In order from left to right we have the T-Mobile Galaxy S II, the Epic 4G Touch with WiMAX, then the AT&T Galaxy S II on the right with the smaller display

Just for fun we’ve also took a few quick Quadrant benchmarks as I know everyone would love to see a few before our full review. The Samsung Galaxy S II from T-Mobile scored an impressive 3819 completely stock out of the box. The 1.5 GHz processor seems to do well here, but not only that, it is Samsung’s simple tweaks and EXT4 that gives them the edge. The Amaze 4G with the same Qualcomm 1.5 GHz dual core only scored 2900, probably because of the changes from HTC and Sense UI.

Samsung Galaxy S II hands-on and unboxing

Galaxy S II vs Amaze 4G: 1080p recording and audio quality

Device Specifications and Information

Device Info

Device Name : Galaxy S II (T-Mobile)

Manufactuer : Samsung

Carrier : T-Mobile

Announced Date : August 31, 2011

Release Date : October 12, 2011

Also Known As : Hercules

Display

• Screen Size : 4.52 Inch
• Resolution : 480x800
• Screen Type : Super AMOLED Plus

Dimension & Weight

• Height : 5.11 Inch
• Width : 2.71 Inch
• Depth : 0.37 Inch
• Weight : 135 Grams

Battery & Power

Battery Type:
• Lithium Ion

• Battery Capacity : 1850 mAh
• Talk Time : NA
• Stand By Time : 167 hours

Software

Android OS:
• 2.3.x

Audio Playback:
• AAC
• AAC+
• AMR
• MID
• MP3
• WAV
• WMA

Video Playback:
• h.263
• h.264 / AVC
• 3GP

Messaging:
• SMS
• MMS

Hardware

CPU : Qualcomm APQ8060

CPU Clock Speed : 1500 Mhz

Core : 2

Ram : 1024 MB

Internal Storage : 16.384 GB

Front Facing Camera :

Camera Resolution : 8 MP

External Storage:
• MicroSD
• MicroSDHC

Camera Features:
• Auto focus
• Flash
• 1080p Video Recording

Sensors:
• Accelerometer
• Ambient light
• Proximity

QWERTY :

Cellular Network

Network Technology:
• GSM

GSM Band:
• 850
• 900
• 1800
• 1900

Device Connectivity

Wi-Fi:
• 802.11b
• 802.11g
• 802.11n

Bluetooth:
• Bluetooth 3.0

Location Features:
• Compass
• GPS
• Cellular location
• Wi-Fi location

FM Radio :

NFC :

The Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 should be rocking T-Mobile’s 4G HSPA+ network but no other details or pricing has been revealed. We should see the same Tegra 2 dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM, 16 and 32GB variants like usual. The Wi-Fi Tab has received updates to the newest Tab Touch Wiz UX from Samsung but the 4G LTE version is still waiting. Hopefully we see their customizations come out of the box with the T-Mobile version that is coming soon.

This isn’t the only tablet T-Mobile has up their sleeves as we mentioned above. We recently saw a leaked Galaxy Tab Plus sporting T-Mobile frequencies as well so its safe to assume they have a few in the pipelines coming for the holidays. Samsung recently made the Galaxy Tab 7 Plus official, so we could see that hit T-Mobile shelves come this October too. Stay tuned for more details as October 26th gets closer.

Device Specifications and Information

Device Info

Device Name : Galaxy Tab 10.1

Manufactuer : Samsung

Carrier : NA

Announced Date : March 22, 2011

Release Date : June 08, 2011

Also Known As : Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, Galaxy Tab 10.1, Galaxy Tab 10.1 Limited Edition, Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Limited Edition, Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Google I/O Limited Edition

Display

• Screen Size : 10.1 Inch
• Resolution : 1280x800
• Screen Type : TFT

Dimension & Weight

• Height : 10.09 Inch
• Width : 6.81 Inch
• Depth : 0.34 Inch
• Weight : 595 Grams

Battery & Power

Battery Type:
• Lithium Ion

• Battery Capacity : 7000 mAh
• Talk Time : NA
• Stand By Time : 120 hours

Software

Android OS:
• 3.1.x

Audio Playback:
• AAC
• AAC+
• AMR
• MP3

Video Playback:
• h.263
• h.264 / AVC

Messaging:
• SMS
• MMS
• IM

Hardware

CPU : Tegra 2

CPU Clock Speed : 1000 Mhz

Core : 2

Ram : 1000 MB

Internal Storage : 32 GB

Front Facing Camera :

Camera Resolution : 3.2 MP

Camera Features:
• Auto focus
• Flash
• 1080p Video Recording
• 720p Video Recording

Sensors:
• Accelerometer
• Ambient light
• Proximity

QWERTY :

Cellular Network

Network Technology:
• GSM

GSM Band:
• 850
• 900
• 1800
• 1900

CDMA Band:
• 850
• 900
• 1900
• 2100

Device Connectivity

Wi-Fi:
• 802.11a
• 802.11b
• 802.11g
• 802.11n

Bluetooth:
• Bluetooth 2.0

Location Features:
• Compass
• GPS
• Cellular location
• Wi-Fi location

FM Radio :

NFC :

[via TmoNews]

On the back there’s a 3-megapixel camera with autofocus and an LED flash, while a 2-megapixel camera is on the front for video calling. Inside there’s Bluetooth 3.0, WiFi Direct and WiFi Channel bonding support, USB 2.0 and USB Host, and a microSD card slot to augment the 16GB or 32GB of onboard storage. It’s 193.65 x 122.37 x 9.96 mm and weighs 345g.

Power is courtesy of an unspecified 1.2GHz dual-core processor, paired with 1GB of RAM, and there are the usual proximity, accelerometer, digital compass, gyro and ambient light sensors. On top of Honeycomb, Samsung’s TouchWiz interface delivers its media, social, ereading and other hubs, together with some custom widgets and software like Kies Air.

No word, at this stage, on exactly how much the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus will cost. The company says it will land in Indonesia and Austria first, at the end of October, before seeing a progressive roll-out globally including Southeast and Southwest Asia, US, Europe, CIS, Latin America, Middle East, Africa, Japan and China.

[via SlashGear]

The Galaxy Tab 10.1 has only been released in two models — a Wi-Fi version and you can see our review here, as well as the Verizon 4G LTE we’ve also reviewed. This is the only other 3G/4G enabled Galaxy Tab 10 we have heard about as of late and hopefully we’ll know more soon. The Galaxy S II launched on multiple carriers and they all changed it a little, we don’t know if T-Mobile will do the same with the Tab 10 but most likely it will come in the same form factor and internals as the Verizon Model.

I’m glad to see T-Mobile getting another great Android Honeycomb tablet in to offer customers, because we all know the G-Slate wasn’t a big hit. They also have the HTC Amaze 4G, and the Galaxy S II slated for next month. According to another leak recently T-Mobile may also have a Galaxy Tab 7.7 to offer soon so we’ll have plenty of options over the next few months from the Magenta carrier.

If you thought T-Mobile was going to go quietly into the night with the AT&T acquisition, you were wrong because they just keep looking better and better.

Device Specifications and Information

Device Info

Device Name : Galaxy Tab 10.1

Manufactuer : Samsung

Carrier : NA

Announced Date : March 22, 2011

Release Date : June 08, 2011

Also Known As : Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, Galaxy Tab 10.1, Galaxy Tab 10.1 Limited Edition, Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Limited Edition, Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Google I/O Limited Edition

Display

• Screen Size : 10.1 Inch
• Resolution : 1280x800
• Screen Type : TFT

Dimension & Weight

• Height : 10.09 Inch
• Width : 6.81 Inch
• Depth : 0.34 Inch
• Weight : 595 Grams

Battery & Power

Battery Type:
• Lithium Ion

• Battery Capacity : 7000 mAh
• Talk Time : NA
• Stand By Time : 120 hours

Software

Android OS:
• 3.1.x

Audio Playback:
• AAC
• AAC+
• AMR
• MP3

Video Playback:
• h.263
• h.264 / AVC

Messaging:
• SMS
• MMS
• IM

Hardware

CPU : Tegra 2

CPU Clock Speed : 1000 Mhz

Core : 2

Ram : 1000 MB

Internal Storage : 32 GB

Front Facing Camera :

Camera Resolution : 3.2 MP

Camera Features:
• Auto focus
• Flash
• 1080p Video Recording
• 720p Video Recording

Sensors:
• Accelerometer
• Ambient light
• Proximity

QWERTY :

Cellular Network

Network Technology:
• GSM

GSM Band:
• 850
• 900
• 1800
• 1900

CDMA Band:
• 850
• 900
• 1900
• 2100

Device Connectivity

Wi-Fi:
• 802.11a
• 802.11b
• 802.11g
• 802.11n

Bluetooth:
• Bluetooth 2.0

Location Features:
• Compass
• GPS
• Cellular location
• Wi-Fi location

FM Radio :

NFC :

Original leaks suggested a 1.5 GHz Qualcomm snapdragon dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM, 16GB internal storage, 4.3″ qHD diplsay, an 8 MP camera with dual LED flash (same great camera as the myTouch 4G Slide), as well as a front camera for video chat. Those have all been officially confirmed along with Android 2.3.4 Gingerbread and HTC Sense UI. We originally thought this would launch with Sense UI 3.5 but the press shot above clearly shows that is not the case.

The HTC Amaze 4G will support the new, faster HSPA+ 42 network on T-Mobile for enhanced data speeds, and will also come with full NFC capabilities. We should see Google Wallet for the Amaze 4G shortly.

Over on T-Mobile.com the HTC Amaze 4G will be available starting October 10th, and will hit retail stores on Wednesday, October 12th for $259.99 and will come with a $50 mail in rebate.

T-Mobile opted to go with a different processor with their version of the much anticipated Galaxy S II. Along with the others it features a 4.52″ Super AMOLED display, but it is being powered by a Qualcomm 1.5 GHz dual-core processor rather than Samsung’s own 1.2 GHz Exynos like the other retail SGSII smartphones such as the Epic 4G Touch. It also comes with the same amazing specs of 1GB of RAM, 16GB internal storage, that awesome 8 MP camera on the rear, NFC capabilities and more all inside that super lightweight and sleek package. Running Android 2.3.4 Gingerbread the Galaxy S II is the thinnest and fastest smartphone around.

Like the just announced HTC Amaze 4G, the T-Mobile Galaxy S II will be able to take full advantage of T-Mo’s new HSPA+ 42 network with enhanced data connectivity and speeds. While this is no 4G LTE, it does offer great overall speeds and we’ll be sure to test them fully when we get the device in for review. Originally known as the Samsung Hercules, we can expect the T-Mobile Galaxy S II to act and look just like this recently caught on video SGSII X.

The Samsung Galaxy S II on T-Mobile’s enhanced 4G HSPA+ 42 network will be available for pre-order starting October 10th for just $229, and will also hit retail stores on October 12th along with the Amaze 4G. More details can be found on T-Mobile.com

Hardware

When a smartphone comes out on a carrier, especially one so populated as AT&T, the most common thing for a manufacturer to do is to make it look unique so as to attract attention away from the rest of the devices that have comparable specifications. What Huawei has done is to create a device that will be chosen by the person in your family looking for the device LEAST likely to grab attention. You’ve got a few curves here, a small camera on the back at 5-megapixels and auto-focus with a single LED flash.

You’ve got the option of adding a microSD card on the inside aside your 1500 mAh battery, and your display is a 3.8-inch WVGA 480 x 800 pixel resolution LCD display. This means its better than a large batch of the mid-range Android devices out there, but it’s certainly not going to compete with the top-tier handsets. The backing of this device is a nice soft plastic, while the entire front is a single touch panel. (save the border in black.)

In the box you get a microUSB cord, a wall jack, and some guides. This device is essentially the exact same phone as the Huawei IDEOS X5, a device revealed internationally in late 2010 when its specs were much more impressive. What we’ve got now is a device that might do well if it’s offered at a good price point – and note here that it certainly is, currently set to be sent out to customers at $30 a pop attached to a 2-year contract on AT&T. That’s cheaper than a night on the town!

Software

Huawei has essentially added nothing to the apps collection here while AT&T has added their familiar set of carrier-specific apps you know and love (or skip over, if you’re that sort of person). Huawei instead has concentrated, again, on joining the Android fold with a solid, completely Google-created Android interface, with no added changes from their own software design team (which we must assume is non-existent.) That said, things do not feel nearly as slick and perfected as they do on the Nexus S or the Nexus S 4G, devices made by Google and Samsung to show off Gingerbread.

Huawei comes loaded with FroYo, and 2.2.2 at that, meaning you’re not only behind the rest of the Android universe by a full version number, devices have been coming out with the next version for months and months now, your device here appearing to be a b-roll Huawei forgot to ship at the beginning of the year. That said, it’s always nice to have a nude version of Android, even if it’s the old one at its time of release.

You can see everyone’s favorite Mobile Minute guy giving you a rundown of the features on this device here – note his slight lack of enthusiasm in the face of a device that, compared to basically every other device he’s shown off, looks pale in comparison.

Camera

Like most modern smartphones, the camera on this device is OK. Have a look at some examples below and see if it suits your fancy:

Wrap-Up

This is not the nicest phone in the mid-range handset collection at AT&T. At $30 with a 2-year contract at AT&T, it certainly is the least expensive device running on its HSPA+ 4G network (except of course any such devices on super sale at $0, which does happen from time to time.) At this point you’ve got to think about how much the data plan is costing you and whether or not you want to be using this less-than-perfect device for a further 2 years. More than likely it’ll make more sense for you to either drop a few more bucks and pick something fantastic up from a different manufacturer, or just wait a few more months for the Huawei Honor to hit our shores – perhaps sometime before 2012? Ya never know.

That said, Huawei, we’re still excited for you to continue bringing in devices here to the states. More manufacturers mean more competition and better devices. This goes for Huawei, Pantech, and anyone else over there across the sea itching to get a piece of the USA market pie. The more, the merrier.

On the back there’s a 5-megapixel camera, while a 2-megapixel camera is up front for video calls. As well as the HSPA+ there’s WiFi b/g/n and Bluetooth, along with USB 2.0, HDMI and a microSDHC memory card slot. NVIDIA’s Tegra 2 processor keeps things running.

Acer says it will also be offering a 32GB version of the A501, though so far AT&T is yet to confirm it will be ranging the slate. OS is Android Honeycomb, and there’s access to the Tegra Zone of games and other downloads.

Device Specifications and Information

Device Info

Device Name : ICONIA Tab A500

Manufactuer : Acer

Carrier : Verizon

Announced Date : February 16, 2011

Release Date : April 26, 2011

Also Known As :

Display

• Screen Size : 10.10 Inch
• Resolution : 1280x800
• Screen Type : LCD

Dimension & Weight

• Height : 10.24 Inch
• Width : 6.97 Inch
• Depth : 0.52 Inch
• Weight : 730 Grams

Battery & Power

Battery Type:
• Lithium Ion

• Battery Capacity : 3260 mAh
• Talk Time : NA
• Stand By Time : NA

Software

Android OS:
• 3.1.x

Audio Playback:
• AAC
• AMR
• MP3

Video Playback:
• h.263
• h.264 / AVC
• MPEG-4 (MP4)

Messaging:
• SMS

Hardware

CPU : Tegra 2

CPU Clock Speed : 1000 Mhz

Core : 2

Ram : 1024 MB

Internal Storage : 16.384 GB

Front Facing Camera :

Camera Resolution : 5 MP

External Storage:
• MicroSD
• MicroSDHC

Camera Features:
• Auto focus
• Flash
• 720p Video Recording

QWERTY :

Cellular Network

Network Technology:
• CDMA

Device Connectivity

Wi-Fi:
• 802.11b
• 802.11g
• 802.11n

Bluetooth:
• Bluetooth 2.0

Location Features:
• Compass
• GPS
• Cellular location
• Wi-Fi location

FM Radio :

NFC :

The 4G LTE networks have been rolling out to test cities this summer and the first devices with access will be laptop sticks and mobile hotspots. While this news isn’t extremely surprising it will probably make a few users easily decide whether to stay with AT&T or head to another carrier like Verizon that is set to launch more than a few 4G LTE devices in the coming weeks and months.

Looking at this comment from the other direction at least we now can expect to see some 4G LTE devices from AT&T this year, although we thought that was the case this makes it seem more on track that we will at least see one by the end of the year. I do want to mention the HTC Puccini tablet headed for AT&T because last we saw it was packing AT&T 4G LTE. Does this mean we wont see it until very late 2011 also? If so they are way late to the game.

[via Phone scoop]

Sources in the smartphone industry tell DigiTimes that HTC won’t be alone in making smartphones for the new and faster T-Mobile network. According to the sources, Samsung will also be offering smartphones that will work on T-Mobile’s new data network. There are already a number of HSPA+ networks around the world in operation, but access to the networks is only with mobile broadband modems right now.

The industry sources also claim that LG Electronics will be making 42Mbps enabled smartphones in the second half of the year as well. Those LG smartphones are not specifically said to be heading to T-Mobile. The sources also claim that the HTC myTouch 4G Slide smartphone will be heading to T-Mobile soon to go along with the HTC Sensation 4G.

[via DigiTimes]

AT&T might still be trying to buy T-Mobile but they aren’t letting up anytime soon. T-Mobile continue to grow and launch blazing fast phones like the Sensation 4G, and now adding even more to 4G I’m thinking they should just buy AT&T (joking). T-Mobile has seen average download speeds approaching 10Mbps with peak speeds of 27Mbps on the T-Mobile Rocket 3.0 laptop stick and slightly lower speeds on their smartphones. See if your city is on the list below.

Allentown, Pa.
Anderson, S.C.
Asheville, N.C.
Ann Arbor, Mich.
Baltimore, Md.
Barnstable, Mass.
Bellingham, Wash.
Bloomington, Ind.
Boise, Idaho
Boston, Mass.
Bremerton, Wash.
Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, Conn.
Brunswick, Ga.
Carson City, Nev.
Charlotte, N.C.
Charlottesville, Va.
Chico, Calif.
Coeur d’Alene, Idaho
Eugene, Ore.
Flagstaff, Ariz.
Flint, Mich.
Greensboro, N.C.
Greenville, S.C.
Harrisburg, Pa.
Hartford, Conn.
Indianapolis, Ind.
Knoxville, Tenn.
Lafayette, Ind.
Lancaster, Pa.
Laredo, Texas
Lynchburg, Va.
Manchester, N.H.
Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.
New Haven, Conn.
Ogden, Utah
Providence; R.I.
Provo, Utah
Raleigh-Cary, N.C.
Redding, Calif.
Reno-Sparks, Nev.
Richmond, Va.
Roanoke, Va.
Rockford, Ill.
Salem, Ore.
Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, Pa.
Spartanburg, S.C.
State College, Pa.
Tallahassee, Fla.
Terre Haute, Ind.
Tucson, Ariz.
Washington, D.C.
Wichita Falls, Texas
Winchester, Va.
Winston-Salem, N.C
Worcester, Mass.
and York, Pa.

T-Mobile has continued to grow and expand and they are claiming to have a pretty big reach full of that 4G love, here is what they had to say.

T-Mobile’s faster 4G speeds (HSPA+ 42) now reach more than 170 million American’s in 152 markets from coast to coast—exceeding T-Mobile’s mid-year goal to reach more than 150 million Americans with increased 4G speeds. T-Mobile’s nationwide 4G network (HSPA+ 21) currently reaches more than 200 million Americans in more than 190 markets.

With recent 4G phones like the Sensation 4G, Exhibit 4G, and the just announced and already reviewed myTouch 4G Slide, they have just about every angle covered. With a mid-range 4G offering in the Exhibit 4G, or the blazing fast dual-core HTC Sensation 4G you will have plenty of choices. What phone do you want?

The big bad EVO 3D that just passed through the FCC is almost identical to the one we know. 1.2 GHz dual-core Snapdragon, Sense 3.0, 4.3″ stereoscopic 3D screen. The difference is instead of WiMax, this EVO’s packing T-Mobile’s HSPA+ frequencies for 4G.

This seems a little strange, as the EVO line has yet to grace T-Mobile’s network Additionally, the EVO 3D would be competing with not one, but two other dual-core HTC superphones, the Sensation 4G and recently revealed MyTouch 4G Slide on T-Mobile. Given the new, and rather novel nature of glassesless 3D though, this could be excused as the EVO may be aimed at a very specific market looking for 3D vs the fancy keyboard and camera of the Slide or the sheer power of the Sensation.

If the EVO 3D does launch for another carrier, it will be a pretty big break from US carrier tradition, even if it is welcome. Most carriers here cling tightly to their exclusive phones and rarely do they share them. It took almost four years for the iPhone to get to Verizon, and the Galaxy S had to have a different version made for each carrier. T-Mobile users, what do you think? Do you want the EVO, or are you satisfied with that shiny new sensation the the rest of us eye jealously?

[via CellPhoneSignal]

It is good to see carriers like T-Mobile and Verizon updating so fast and trying to get as much speed to their users as possible. I think a few other carriers should start taking notice, or just stand around and buy T-Mobile — that works too I guess. It isn’t a big list but it is a list indeed so here you go.

-Barnstable, Massachusetts
-Chico, California
-Lancaster, Pennsylvania
-Ogden, Utah,
-Redding, California
-Vineland, New Jersey
-Winchester, Virginia

I’m sure more will be announced soon as they are planning on bringing several new markets up to 4G HSPA+ speeds this summer. And if you’re lucky enough to live in Ogden, Utah or even Chico, California then start shouting for joy because you just got a speed boost. I could have used those HSPA+ speeds while traveling through Utah last week but it’s cool, no hard feelings T-Mo.

[via TmoNews]

The 8-megapixel camera – which has autofocus and a dual-LED flash – also gets a new f/2.2 wide aperture lens and a backlit sensor, both intended to improve low-light performance. HTC has also fettled its software, promising zero shutter lag as well as adding in-camera HDR support, SweepShot for easy panoramic photography, and BurstShot for firing off multiple frames in short order, and then allowing you to pick the best later on.

A front facing camera gives support for video calls, meanwhile, and the phone runs Android Gingerbread with HTC Sense 3.0. Other specs haven’t been announced, but we’re guessing WiFi b/g/n, Bluetooth, GPS and all the usual sensors will be included when the T-Mobile myTouch 4G Slide arrives in July 2011. It’ll be priced at $199.99 with a new, two-year agreement, and available in black or khaki.

Lets start with a brief bit of history about what all these G’s mean. “G” as its being used stands for generation. The first generation of mobile telephony, what we would no call 1G, was analog signals, your words would be turned directly to a signal, and an analog voltage would be broadcast by your phone. 2G was digital. Voice was sampled and digitized, and phone waves consisted of 1s and 0s. 3G mobile connectivity is what helped propel mobile data to the prominence it has today. For a network to be considered 3G it had to be capable of reaching a peak data rate of 200 Kbits/s. Networks such as EDGE (often called 2.5G by U.S. carriers), HSPA, and CDMA are examples of 3G technologies.

The ITU, the organization responsible for the minimum 200 Kbits/s peak for 3G, has a similar definition for 4G. 4G is supposed to be a new generation of mobile communication. 4G, according to the ITU, should support all information, voice and sms as well as data, over IP packets. Furthermore, a 4G network should be capable of achieving theoretical speeds up to 100 Mbits/s while mobile, and 1 Gbit/s when not. There is a big gap between theoretical and actual speeds, but none-the-less, not a single network in the U.S. meets those requirements.

In response to how muddied the situation has become, a bill is being presented to the U.S. House of Representatives to force carriers to be more transparent. The Next Generation Wireless Disclosure Act, should it pass, would have the FCC work with carriers to establish a legal definition of “4G.” Further restrictions would include a required posting of a devices speed, reliability, coverage, pricing, and technology standards at sales locations. The bill has the support of FCC commissioner, but the carriers have yet to make a statement. Should this bill pass, you can bet Android phones will be among those to have network information provided.

[via CNN]