The data cap is set at 5GB and will go into effect on October 2. The cap will apply to WiFi tethering on 3G or 4G networks and will not count on the actual phone data plan says Sprint. If this goes smoothly for Sprint though I would not be surprised in the least to see, caps come to normal data plans too. Sprint is mum on what any overages will cost the user.

It has been rumored that the overage charges will be in the area of $0.05 per megabyte, which will get expensive very Quickly. The new hotspot plan will apparently still cost $29.99 monthly to use. I guess it’s still good that the normal data plans are unlimited, but a cap on one part certainly puts a damper on things.

[via BGR]

After Samsung leaked the details earlier this morning we can now officially confirm those details were all accurate. The Galaxy S II offered by the Now Network will be the Epic 4G Touch and will come with some awesome specs and those include:

– 4.52″ Super AMOLED Plus Display
– 1.2GHz dual-core Samsung Exynos processor
– Ultra-thin (9.59mm) design
– Wimax 4G Connectivity
– 8MP rear and 2MP front cameras
– 1080p HD video recording
– Wifi calling
– NOVA 2 HD pre-loaded
– Swype pre-loaded
– Bluetooth 3.0
– Hotspot controls up to eight devices
– Android 2.3 Gingerbread
– Optional USB Host kit for connection keyboards, cameras, printers and thumb drives
– Optional HDMI adapter
– Multimedia and Car docks will be available soon

Pretty impressive right? Basically it is everything that made the original SGSII popular but with a bigger screen, I love it. Obviously with the 1.2 Ghz dual-core CPU performance was top notch and everything was extremely quick, speedy, and very fluid. We experienced zero issues or lag with our very limited time with the phone. You all know plenty about the SGSII so I’ll just skip down to the pictures. Video is coming shortly.

Device Specifications and Information

Device Info

Device Name : Epic 4G Touch

Manufactuer : Samsung

Carrier : Unknown

Announced Date : August 31, 2011

Release Date : TBA

Also Known As :

Display

• Screen Size : 4.5 Inch
• Resolution : 480x800
• Screen Type : Super AMOLED Plus

Dimension & Weight

• Height : 5.1 Inch
• Width : 2.70 Inch
• Depth : 0.38 Inch
• Weight : 129 Grams

Battery & Power

Battery Type:
• Lithium Ion

• Battery Capacity : 1800 mAh
• Talk Time : NA
• Stand By Time : NA

Software

Android OS:
• 2.3.x

Audio Playback:
• AAC
• AAC+
• MP3

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

Messaging:
• SMS
• MMS

Hardware

CPU : Exynos

CPU Clock Speed : 1200 Mhz

Core : 2

Ram : 1024 MB

Internal Storage : 32 GB

Front Facing Camera :

Camera Resolution : 8 MP

External Storage:
• MicroSD
• MicroSDHC

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

Sensors:
• Accelerometer
• Ambient light
• Proximity

QWERTY :

Cellular Network

Network Technology:
• CDMA

CDMA Band:
• 800
• 850
• 900
• 1700
• 1900
• 2100

Device Connectivity

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

Bluetooth:
• Bluetooth 3.0

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

FM Radio :

NFC :

The Galaxy S II with 4G WiMAX will be available from the team in Yellow first, they get exclusive rights as the first Galaxy S II to the US. Availability starting on September 16th for $199 with a new 2-year contract. The full details of the SGSII Epic 4G Touch can be seen here and just like everything else announced today it will be rocking that awesome 4.52″ Super AMOLED Plus display, a 1.2 Ghz dual-core Samsung Exnyos processor, 16GB internal storage with 1GB Ram. a Powerful 8 MP rear camera with LED flash capable of 1080p video capture, 2MP front facing camera and more.

Galaxy S II Unveiling Video

As expected these will all be running on the latest Android 2.3 Gingerbread as well as an updated Samsung Touch Wiz UX. The video above is the quick unveiling live from the NYC event just for fun, call it a bonus. Samsung will also offer an HDTV adapter and dock for those looking to get HD content from the phone to their HDTV’s and should have those available soon. We are also hearing since they are the first carrier they’ll also be offering pre-orders so stay tuned for full details.

We are just getting some hands-on time now and will be sure to update with plenty of pictures and videos shortly, but you already knew that right?

The HTC Desire finally received its very own update to Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) this past Monday. Also expect an update very soon for the LG Revolution; it should include many bug fixes but still no Gingerbread upgrade. A couple applications saw new versions this week as well, Skype and Google+. Skype’s update in the Android Market included support for many more smartphones. As for Google+, you should definitely check out the improvements included into Huddles and Notifications. Those who unofficially update their devices will be pleased to know that the Sony XPERIA, Neo, PLAY, and Arc will officially be supported by CyanogenMod 7 very soon.

AT&T recently informed it’s customers that it will move those with unlimited data to a tiered plan if they continue to tether their devices. This execution is most likely in response to their upcoming improved LTE data network. On that same note, the next generation Motorola ATRIX HD may run on AT&T’s 4G LTE towers.

We’ve wondered who will be the SoC (System-on-a-chip) manufacturer for Google’s next flagship device for a long while now; and now it seems we have a winner! They seem to have chosen the Texas Instruments OMAP 4 CPU; nothing is set in stone, but this is the most information we’ve seen on the device.

Wednesday, Chris Burns ran a hands-on and unboxing for the HTC Wildfire S on T-Mobile. The device hit stores later that same day. A more thorough review of the Wildfire S took place the next day (when we actually found out how good this mid-ranged smartphone actually was!) It turns out that the Wildfire S performed surprisingly well in the benchmarks with its 600Mhz single-core processor. Also unboxed this week was the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 with 4G LTE. This sleek tablet certainly won’t disappoint us in its upcoming in-depth review by Cory Gunther.

Some interesting gadgets and applications have emerged this week, and hopefully some will set a trend into the future of technology. It turns out Motorola may be working on a new “Smartwatch” that runs Android OS. I’m not the kind of guy that wears a watch, but if this product actually takes flight then that may very well change! The Seagate GoFlex Satellite HDD now supports the Android operating system for transferring data over a WiFi connection. To use this feature, you must download the official Android app from the market. Another application worth taking a look at if you are in the market for buying a used car is VIN Viper. Just take a picture of the VIN # to get a rough price of what the vehicle is actually worth. It syncs with your Carfax account to look up any damages and incorporate them into the price. Yet another auto-oriented application released was the Nissan LEAF official Android app. With this, the driver will be able to see detailed specs on the life of their battery, set climate control, and even start the car remotely from your smartphone.

We always try to end Android Community Weekly with any promotions/deals/savings to help bring you closer to owning anything Android! Currently, Verizon Wireless is offering $50 off a tablet when you purchase any cellphone, and with the fastest service around – it may be worth your while. Also, don’t forget to check back for the final winners of TABLETPALOOZA! They will be announced this coming Monday, August 8.

As the display might suggest, the rest of the Conquer 4G’s specs don’t exactly live up to flagship WiMAX smartphones we’ve seen before. There’s a 3.2-megapixel rear camera with LED flash and a front-facing 1.3-megapixel camera for video calls, WiFi b/g/n and GPS, along with a microSD card slot with a 2GB card pre-loaded. Mobile Hotspot functionality is supported, for up to five simultaneous clients, and the whole thing measures in at 4.57 x 2.38 x 0.46 inches and weighs 4.1 oz.

Samsung reckons the Conquer 4G will run for up to six hours of talktime on a single charge of the standard 1,500 mAh battery, which is decent enough. We’re not entirely impressed by the screen resolution, but otherwise you’re getting a fair amount for your money when the Conquer 4G arrives on August 21.

I know we all TXT plenty in this crazy world of technology, and apparently Sprint either forgot that for a few minutes (update: hours) or they are having a few issues that are taking more than an hour or so to fix. @SprintCare is getting plastered with complaints and they have replied with a few words such as: “our network team is aware and are working to get txts back up and running as fast as we can.”

For now it looks like users have two options, one being they can actually “call” someone, or the second option being you could cancel your service and run for the nearest 4G company. I’m thinking Cricket, what about you guys? Just a thought! Feel free to report below in the comments if you are also having issues, as well as updates if the service comes back online. If you’d like to voice your anger feel free to hit the source link and mention it to Sprint on Twitter.

[via SprintCare]

For those of you who frequently fly first-class, you may look forward to the new agreement between Samsung and American Airlines providing passengers with a Galaxy Tab 10.1 for in-flight entertainment. Chris Burns performed an extensive review of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1; though the same hardware was included as in the Google I/O edition, there were minor software tweaks embedded in this final polished version. Another device reviewed this week was the HTC ChaCha by Chris Davies; just like the HTC Salsa, this little device has a dedicated Facebook button.

Monday, Verizon gave the official word that Gingerbread would be rolling out for the Droid 2 Global. Surprisingly, not a single Droid 2 Global is known to have the update yet. The Samsung D600 seems to have resurfaced as the Conquer 4G, and is confirmed to be a mid-range phone (as previously speculated). The Droid 3 had a thorough hands-on according to a leak over at XDA.cn. Not only that, the same person seems to have even benchmarked the device for us. Swype 3.0 Beta with Honeycomb support was released this week, and Chris Burns got his hands on copy to present us a nice review. This version has been slightly buggy, but as soon as the glitches are ironed out, it should be a great alternate to the stock keyboard.

The Samsung Infuse 4G open-source code has been released! It looks like we may see some great developmental action on this power-packed device very soon. Some serious problems have risen after last weeks HTC EVO 4G update to 2.3 Gingerbread. From consistent force closes to applications becoming unresponsive – it was clear that the update had some serious glitches. Later on in the week, we were informed that another OTA Update will be coming June 20th to fix the bugs from the update. The EVO Shift 4G has been confirmed to also acquire Gingerbread on the same day, hopefully with fewer headaches. It was not long ago that the Motorola Droid X was fortunate enough to be updated to Gingerbread. But nowadays, what could be even better? You guessed it- CyanogenMod 7 is now officially in beta for the Droid X. With so many phones receiving updates to Android 2.3 Gingerbread, one would have thought it would hit the HTC Desire. Even after announcing it’s release, it seems that the project will never see the light of day. Those who can’t live without Gingerbread on their Desire can always root their device and acquire it unofficially from XDA Developers.

As you may have seen, our own Vincent Nguyen seemed to have cracked the screen on his Galaxy S II earlier this month. If you don’t have insurance for your phone then this could be a serious problem. Fortunately, the guys over at DirectFix have a great tutorial for replacing the screen on an HTC ThunderBolt. Tuesday, we stumbled upon an interesting bit of information regarding the fairly new Amazon App Store; it seems that any application installed directly from the store requires the Amazon App Store installed on your phone to run! Breaking news hit this week with details concerning the next Google Nexus device – the Nexus 4G. Information of what hardware may be included has surfaced. Also, don’t forget to tell us what YOU would like to see in the next “Nexus 4G” device.

Wednesday, Verizon let subscribers know that the use of their 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot will be extended as a free service until July 6th. Facebook chat integration was implemented into the Pinger Textfree 1.2 application; this app previously boasted free unlimited texts and pics through their service. The HTC EVO 3D was unboxed by Chris Burns Thursday, and expect a thorough review very soon. Later on, the winner for our “Unboxing War” between Vincent Nguyen and Ben Bajarin was finally selected – congratulations Jorge Conty on a brand new Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Wi-Fi! Finally, don’t forget to check out the Android Community App of the Week: News360 for Tablets!.

Apparently our friends over at Android Police stumbled into a few updates for the EVO line this evening and were nice enough to share all the juicy details. For those that don’t know much about the EVO Shift 4G you can see our original review on the device by clicking here.

The EVO Shift 4G is basically the little brother to the original EVO. It features a 3.7″ display with a slide out QWERTY keyboard, it is everything you loved about the EVO but in a smaller package and a updated but slightly slower CPU clocking in at 800 Mhz just like the HTC G2. The EVO Shift 4G should be getting updated to be very similar to the EVO 4G with Android 2.3 Gingerbread and will hopefully be a smoother update than the EVO had. Stay tuned for more information.

[via Android Police]

Monday, the HTC EVO View 4G and HTC EVO 3D were priced at $400 and $200 respectively; both should be available June 24 as previously rumored. Owners of the Galaxy S II, Droid Charge, HTC Flyer, and Nexus S (2.3.4) are now all capable of make group video calls with the Fring Mobile Group video chat application. Those of you that own a Galaxy S II and enjoy making the most of your devices will be thrilled that Samsung has sent a complimentary Galaxy S II over to the CyanogenMod team; hopefully we’ll see an official port of CM7 soon! In other development, the 2nd-init was ported to the Atrix 4G from the Motorola Defy; could we be seeing CM7 on the Atrix soon?! If so, you may want to snag one soon at AT&T – now on sale for $99.

After seeing Looxcie up close during the CES at the start of the year, I can’t wait to see the new sleek Looxcie 2 in action; from the photos it looks to be both smaller and lighter. Malware within Android software seems to be on the rise again according to NetQin; to protect your device either download the NetQin protection application, only download from trusted sites, and check your cellular bill closely and frequently. Consumers unite in a complaint to the FCC in hopes of unblocking tethering applications on the Verizon Wireless Android Market. If unlimited 4G LTE tethering on Verizon doesn’t seem enticing enough, then its available use on the upcoming phones like the Droid Bionic would be remarkable. The Bionic was recently benchmarked and does indeed seem to be the first dual-core 4G LTE soon to be available on Verizon.

A leaked phone teaser by LG very well may be the Nexus 3, yet no contour display seems to be present; after using the Nexus S, I sure hope it’s incorporated into future models. This May’s HTC sales figures proved to have more than doubled over last year’s numbers; this shouldn’t be too surprising — their smartphone lineup just keeps getting better. HTC is also working towards unlocking the bootloader for the Sensation 4G. I would love to see some overclocked dual-core benchmark comparisons against the Galaxy S II — especially if/when vanilla Android is ported to the Sensation 4G. News hit that the Sensation 4G will be available at Walmart for $148.88 with a new contract.

Don’t feel like purchasing some of those costly Android games from the market? The public may find interest in WildTangent’s plans towards renting games to Android users; as of now this may only be available on T-Mobile. The Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 was confirmed to hit Verizon in July and became available for pre-order this past Wednesday. There is still no date available for Verizon’s Galaxy S II, but a confirmation of it appearing on its network is comforting. Thursday, Motorola revealed three new smartphones; the Titanium for GSM networks, Triumph on Virgin Mobile (hands-on), and Photon 4G debuting on Sprint. A nice hands-on with the Photon 4G proves that it may be a nice alternate option to the EVO 3D after release (especially with some of the extras that will be available). Unfortunately, Motorola seems to have locked down its bootloader.

Our own Vincent Nguyen performed yet another hands-on/unboxing Thursday afternoon with the all-new NOOK e-reader; this new model is much more polished than its predecessor. An official SlashGear review was put into place by Chris Davies for the HTC Salsa, a phone centered around accessing Facebook information the most efficient way possible. Chris Burns graces us with a Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 (Wifi Only Edition) hands-on; this “official” edition of the device has proved to be more complete than the one handed out during Google I/O. Chris Burns also gives us the rundown on how his HTC ThunderBolt handled three months of daily use.

Rumors suggest an improved GTalk application may be in the works by Google that may allow Android owners to bypass SMS and MMS altogether. The original Galaxy S has an official Gingerbread 2.3.4 build floating around the net as of late for European users only. The Xperia Play is now available for $0.01 at Amazon, it doesn’t really get much better than that. Don’t forget to check out our reviews for the games available for it! My personal favorite is Asphalt 6: Adrenaline.

ComputerWorld has apparently been tracking this problem and building up a report for months now, getting in quotes from quite a few users, most of them appearing to come from the UK, pointing toward a problem not specific to a region, but to the manufacturer, if said problem is indeed a hardware problem at all. One particular UK user, Julian Bhardwaj, is detailed to the point of being a pro commenter:

“Photos are randomly deleted from the phone. There seems to be no apparent pattern or cause to what or when photos are deleted, only that anyone using the Nexus S or a phone which they have upgraded to Android 2.3 has this issue. This problem seems to be ongoing since around the beginning of the year, just after Android 2.3 and the Nexus S was released. The only word from Google on this issue so far seems to be that the problem is not ‘reproducible’ so they cannot investigate it. For myself and many other Nexus S users, this is extremely frustrating. This is a critical flaw with the phone/operating system….”

Next you can track the problem back to Janurary 3rd, 2011 in Google’s mobile help section of their messageboards. A Google employee named “MrEvan” noted the following about the problems, in comment form:

“[I'm not] seeing a ton of consistency in reports … I’m so sorry to hear about your troubles here … I know how important photos are!”

“Thanks for the responses. Seems like you are all having slight different experiences, but I’ll pass your reports along and see what we can find!”

Sound familiar to you? How’s your Nexus S experience been thus far? Do you think these problems are singled around one single carrier, the manufacturer, or Android 2.3? Or are they all just user errors and that’s that? Nexus S users, let us know what you think!

All of us Android nerds were surely excited to hear the possibility of it being unlocked as this opens the doors for customization and many other things like CyanogenMod 7 and other custom roms. Sadly that will have to be on another device, although progress has been made on the Atrix 4G so the possibilities are still open as we have an amazing development community.

According to a Motorola Global PR representative, the PHOTON 4G will NOT have an unlocked bootloader, we don’t have any more details regarding this but hopefully it will get updated along with the new bootloader policy later in 2011.

“As we’ve previously communicated, it is our intention to include the unlockable/relockable bootloader in software releases starting in late 2011, where operator and channel partners will allow it. However, this feature is not included in the software found on PHOTON 4G.”

[via Android Central]

This was mentioned by a few Motorola Reps from the event so hopefully we can get more confirmation in the coming hours and will report back as soon as we know more. This would be a major move by Motorola and probably only because of the recent policy issues HTC have been facing and now changed regarding bootloaders. Maybe HTC deciding to unlock all future devices has made Motorola do the same, we sure hope so.

While we are on the bootloader topic we must mention the Motorola Droid Bionic, does this mean we can also hope for it to feature an unlocked bootloader, and if so it just went to the top of the list for must have phone of the summer. We are reaching out to our sources at Motorola to hopefully get some more details regarding this so stay tuned and feel free to tell us what you think in the comments below.

This phone is basically a beefed up version of the Motorola Atrix, yet it comes with a nifty kickstand and all the same Motorola docks, keyboards and accessories not to mention is running Android 2.3 stock. If you missed the specs in my announcement post above I’ll mention them again. It features Android 2.3, a 4.3″ qHD high-res display, 1 Ghz dual-core Tegra 2 CPU, 4G Wimax on board, it has an 8MP camera with a front facing voice chat camera. A dual-core 4G phone that also has a kickstand — Yes Please!

I’d like to note that the Photon 4G also has international GSM capabilities making this a world phone. The kickstand is very similar in shape and size to that of the EVO 4G and functions the same. When you kick it out the Motorola desktop dock software initializes and goes into dock mode automatically for your convenience. We have tons of hands-on images below and will be sure to post the hands-on video as soon as possible.

Also have a look at our extended Hands-On with the Motorola PHOTON 4G’s car dock, multimedia dock, and webtop functionality in a whole ‘nother giant post on the subject or just check out the video here:

So much hands on you’ll flip!

The Motorola TRIUMPH is a 4.1-inch 800 x 400 pixel resolution WVGA touchscreen display having smartphone with a VGA camera on the front and a 5-megapixel camera on the back. It’s got the ability to capture HD video at 720p and has HDMI-out playback of 720p as well. The biggest first (besides the fact that this is the first Motorola / Virgin collaboration) is that this device has the Virgin Mobile Live 2.0 app which will allow you access to the Virgin Mobile branded music stream. What this app consists of is a social networking music application that’ll give you access to a music stream hosted by a fellow named DJ Abbey Braden, live music performance videos, and special “check in” features at special events. Basically this is a phone for people who love Virgin Mobile a LOT.

Additionally this phone has a basic 1GHz processor, runs Android 2.2 Froyo, and has Flash support, plus “Android Webkit Browser” as they’re calling it. The device is made with a soft touch design so it’ll be a comfort to be handling, it weighs in at 143g (5.04 ounces), and its dimensions are 4.8” x 2.5” x 0.4”, making it pretty dern thin. Certainly a good competitor for the rest of the Androids on Verizon, the last one we looked at being the LG Optimus V, certainly a powerful little bugger in its own right.

Stick with us here on Android Community as we continue to cover this device and get all the hands-on and review action you can possible handle throughout the next few weeks!

So what you see here is one, again, surprisingly hardcore little scrapper. It’s got a 5-megapixel camera on the back, Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR1, and Quickoffice out of the box. It’s got a 32GB capable microSD card slot stocked with a 2GB card installed, Wi-fi 802.11 b/g, and integrated GPS. This device weighs in at 5.2 ounces (147.2 grams), sizes in at 2.44 inch x 4.71 inch x 0.53 inch (62.2mm x 119.7mm x 13.5mm), and has a battery MUCH bigger than it needs at 1820 mAh.

Should you toss this device from your pocket unto the ground on a daily basis? Probably not. Could you? Perhaps! Will the battery last you from here until next week? With such a small display and basically nothing eating it up, it’s very possible! Will this be an Android fan’s next phone of choice? Probably not. This device is made for those people working on construction sites wanting a phone that can access the internet, plain and simple.

Will we still get our hands on it for you, the Android lovers? Of course we will! Stick with us for that and the rest of the Motorola devices we’ve seen today in New York!

The two main differences between this device and the DROID Pro are in the hardware: if you hold both devices together you’ll notice slight improvements in button placement and changes in the roundness of the overall casing. The second difference is in the battery: where the Pro held only a 1420 mAh battery for an OK amount of time without charging, the XPRT has a significantly larger 1860mAh battery for what’s certainly going to be a massive improvement in awake time.

Beyond that it’s just a really quite friendly and generously powerful device for messaging and professional productivity: 1GHz OMAP processor, world phone capability (I used the Pro whilst at Mobile World Congress 2011 in Barcelona – worked slick!), Android 2.2 Froyo, 5-megapixel camera on the back with dual-LED flash, Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR, and Wifi 802.11 b/g. Again the device has worldwide connectedness with CDMA (EVDO Rev. A), GSM/UMTS (HSPA), it’s got 3G hotspot capability, Quickoffice including Quickword, Quicksheet, Quickpoint, and QuickPDF files out of the box in addition to Device encryption, multi-headed VPN, and EAS security policy support out of the box.

This device of course has access to the Android Market, it’s got Adobe Flash 10, GPS, a high-res 3.1″ HVGA TFT LCD display at 320×480 pixels resolution, and a full QUERTY keyboard, and it weighs in at 5.1 ounces (145 grams.) This device comes with 2GB ROM, 512MB RAM, and a microSD card slot with a 2GB card installed and the capability of working with a 32GB card. And it’s running the newest version of MOTOBLUR over Android. Release dat for this phone is June 5, pricing: $129.99 w/ 2yr agreement.

Look like the phone for you? Are you in to the pro-factor here or are you more of a slide-out keyboard sort of Android lover?

You know what the most important feature is here, and one that makes yours truly stand up and yell YES!? It has a kickstand. That DOES make it the world’s first dual-core kickstand-having Android phone, and for that it can be proud. The PHOTON also has international GSM capabilities, a VGA camera on the front and an 8-megapixel camera on the back with the capability of capturing 720p video, and it’s got the ability to play 1080p video over HDMI, Motorola Media Link, “Mirror Mode” which is essentially HDMI mirroring again, and you’ll be doing just fine looking at the display itself at 4.3” qHD.

And why would we compare this phone to the ATRIX unless it’s got docking modes galore? Why, because it DOES have docking modes galore – plug it right into that special Motorola Multimedia Dock dock you love so well and work in mobile desktop mode. Plop the device in your standalone dock for some amazing HDMI out or stereo system action. Do whatever you like!

This device has the ability to have up to 48GB of storage on it. That’s more than you’ll ever use, right? The 48 comes from 16GB of onboard storage and a microSD slot that can accept up to a 32GB card, as is standard with these rock and roll phones from the future we’ve been seeing over the past few months. Don’t have 32GB microSD card holding ability? Get atta here!

This device connects over 3G and 4G speeds with the ability to have up to 8 devices connect to the internet via mobile hotspot. As this is a GSM ready device, you’ll also want to know that you can only connect one single device whilst roaming on GSM, and that this ability will not be available out of the box, coming instead in a later update down the line.

The PHOTON has a generous 1700mAh battery for lots of uptime, Enterprise Security including remote device management and data encryption, and of course the goodies: HD Multimedia Dock and Car Dock, both of them available closer to launch. Launch date for this device is at the moment still not revealed, but Motorola’s hinted at Summer 2011.

It’s interesting to see a phone like the Droid Pro, which is now over half a year old, get sent over to another carrier in the states. This is especially odd considering how rare it is for Android phones to be shared by any of the four major carriers in the U.S. at all. The Droid Pro, and now XPRT is a pretty unique device from a hardware perspective, and could be a welcome arrival for those Android users seeking a portrait keyboard and don’t want to hook up with Verizon for one reason or another.

The XPRT, like the Droid Pro, features a 1 GHz single core OMAP processor, 2 GB internal memory, a hardware keyboard, and a 3.1″ 320×480 HVGA touchscreen. The phone makes use of the US CDMA network (no 4G WiMax, sorry) and has a SIM slot for international travel. The phone also includes many of the standard features associated with any Android 2.2 device, including a 5MP rear camera, eCompass, and microSD slot, which in this case comes pre-loaded with a 2 GB card.

The EVO 3D has a 4.3-inch qHD 960 x 540 resolution glasses-free 3D display, for showing off 3D visuals, along with a dual 5-megapixel camera array on the back for recording your own photos and video. There’s also WiMAX connectivity. More details in the hands-on video below.

The EVO View 4G, meanwhile, has the same digital notetaking functionality as the HTC Flyer we reviewed recently – the HTC Scribe digital stylus will be initially bundled as a promotion, then sold separately for $79.99 – along with HTC Sense on top of Android 2.3 Gingerbread, a Honeycomb update in the wings, and WiMAX connectivity with hotspot sharing. Again, more details in the hands-on video below:

Press Release:

Two Newest Members of the Award-Winning HTC EVO Family, HTC EVO 3D and HTC EVO View 4G, Make Debut Exclusively from Sprint on June 24

HTC EVO 3D, with America’s first 4.3-inch, qHD 3D display and a powerful 1.2GHz dual-core processor, available for $199.99; HTC EVO View 4G brings the powerful HTC EVO experience to a 4G tablet for $399.99

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (BUSINESS WIRE), June 06, 2011 – Two of the “must-have” gadgets of 2011 are getting ready to make their debut. Sprint (NYSE: S) today announced the June 24 availability of HTC EVO™ 3D and HTC EVO View 4G™ on America’s Favorite 4G Network1. America’s first ‘glasses-free’ 3D 4G device will be available for $199.99, and HTC EVO View 4G, the first 4G tablet in market, will be available for $399.99. Both prices exclude applicable taxes, and the devices require a new two-year service agreement or eligible upgrade.

Customers can pre-order HTC EVO 3D or HTC EVO View 4G at any participating Sprint Store with the purchase of a $50 Sprint gift card (per device). On June 24, Sprint Stores nationwide will open doors at 8 a.m. local time for customers to get a jump-start on purchasing these hot new devices.

Additionally, Sprint Premier customers will have the opportunity to purchase HTC EVO 3D online three days before the national launch, while supplies last. Qualifying customers will receive an email on June 21, or they can log on to their account at www.sprint.com on June 21, click “show me my rewards” and then “Sprint Premier Community” for more information.

“Sprint takes device innovation to a whole new level with the two newest members of the EVO family, HTC EVO 3D and HTC EVO View 4G,” said Fared Adib, senior vice president – Product Development, Sprint. “HTC EVO 3D provides our customers the ability to capture and view content in 3D and share at 4G speeds; HTC EVO View 4G expands on the capabilities of tablets by introducing the digital pen, and allows our consumers to do more than they ever imagined was possible.”

Glasses-Free 3D plus Sprint 4G

HTC EVO 3D takes the mobile multimedia experience to a new level, providing the ability to capture and view in 3D and share at 4G speeds, offering consumers the ultimate glasses-free 3D experience. Built with the Android 2.3 operating system (Gingerbread), HTC EVO 3D features America’s first 4.3-inch, qHD 3D display and a powerful 1.2GHz Qualcomm® Snapdragon® dual-core processor. HTC EVO 3D also features dual 5-megapixel cameras, which can be used to capture high-quality conventional and stunning 3D images and videos, opening up new frontiers for user-generated content, social networking and streaming video.

Respected device critics agree Sprint has done it again with HTC EVO 3D. Here are a few of the accolades that poured in when it was announced in March:

LAPTOP Magazine honored HTC EVO 3D with its Best Smart Phone Award and the coveted Best in Show honor at CTIA this spring.
PC World added, “The design is gorgeous, and the combination of dual-core Snapdragon processors with 4G can’t be beat. Suffice to say, I can’t wait to get my hands on this phone this summer.”
Phonearena.com named HTC EVO 3D and HTC EVO View 4G as “Best of CTIA 2011.”
Boy Genius Report said, “The HTC EVO 3D and the HTC EVO View 4G tablet were among our favorite new gadgets shown off at CTIA.”
HTC EVO 3D requires activation on one of Sprint’s Everything Data plans plus a required $10 Premium Data add-on charge for smartphones. Sprint’s Everything Data plan with Any Mobile, AnytimeSM includes unlimited web, texting and calling to and from any mobile in America while on the Sprint Network, starting at just $69.99 per month plus required $10 Premium Data add-on charge – a savings of $39.99 per month vs. Verizon’s comparable plan with unlimited talk, text and web.2 The Mobile Hot Spot option is available for an additional $29.99 per month (excluding taxes and surcharges) supporting up to eight Wi-Fi enabled devices simultaneously.

An Unparalleled Tablet Experience

HTC EVO View 4G brings the best of the EVO experience to a tablet design with a 7-inch touchscreen, 1.5GHz Snapdragon processor and latest version of HTC Sense. It will launch with an Android 2.3 operating system (Gingerbread) and will be updated to Android 3.0 (Honeycomb) when it is available for a 7-inch tablet. As the perfect combination e-reader, media player and portable computing device, HTC EVO View 4G offers a premium entertainment experience with HD-like quality video and a rich web-browsing experience with the ability to browse the web on Flash-enabled sites.

Rate plans for the HTC EVO View start as low as $34.993 per month for 3GB of 3G data and unlimited 4G data usage while on the Sprint network. Unlimited text, picture and video messaging are included at no charge. Additional plans, including 3G-only plans, are available to meet customers’ needs.

Additionally, for a limited time, any customer who purchases HTC EVO View 4G will receive the HTC Scribe™ digital pen (otherwise sold separately) at no charge with a two-year service agreement – providing an additional savings of $79.99 on their purchase.

Optional add-on services include GPS Navigation for $2.99 per day or $10 per month and the Mobile Hot Spot option for $29.99 per month (excluding taxes and surcharges) supporting up to eight Wi-Fi enabled devices simultaneously.

As the first national wireless carrier to test, launch and market 4G technology, Sprint made history by launching 4G in Baltimore in September 2008. Sprint also ranks as the most improved company in customer satisfaction, across all industries, during the last three years4. Sprint currently offers 4G service in 71 markets in 28 states. For more information, visit www.sprint.com/4G.

UPDATE: Available now!

Here is a little tip, for those that are excited and just can’t wait until June 6th you can apparently get it starting Friday the 3rd. Yes that is tomorrow. According to the Sprint site users can “check for updates” right on the handset on the 3rd and the update will be initiated, otherwise it will be pushed over-the-air starting Monday. Pretty weird way to roll-out the update because I’m sure anyone that hears that will check for updates manually.

Gingerbread brings many changes and improvements as well as UI changes. A Download manager is included as well as some EVO specific Gmail, and battery drain issues have also been resolved. For all the information check out the press release below, or click here.

HTC EVO™ 4G from Sprint will receive the Android™ 2.3, Gingerbread, update through an over-the-air maintenance release beginning on Monday, June 6.

Sprint will send update notifications to users in waves. The notification will let users know the update is available and provide the simple two-step, over-the-air download instructions.

Users will receive a notification that Android 2.3 is available for download.

Once the user has downloaded the update, they will be prompted to install the update. The user will be notified that their device will be disabled during the installation process. The phone will be ready to use once the process completes.

Can’t Wait Until June 6?

For those who just can’t wait to get Android 2.3, there will be an easy user initiated option to download the upgrade starting on Friday, June 3. To access the update – from the home screen/Menu/Settings/System updates/HTC software Update. This will initiate the upgrade process.

The software release upgrades HTC EVO 4G to Android 2.3, Gingerbread. This version of Android improves download management through the Downloads application, offering the user easy access to any file downloaded from the browser, email or another application. It also fixes the devices ability to stream media through certain applications for the device.

Gingerbread restores HTC EVO 4G’s ability to sync multiple Gmail™ accounts, display email attachments in the email client and fixes battery discharge issues.