If we know you at all (and we think we know you pretty well) you'll probably be amused and titillated to learn that Vodafone has announced that its first Vodafone-branded Android phone will be available this May. The Vodafone 845 -- which we first saw in an FCC filing a couple weeks ago -- certainly is, in the UK idiom, a "budget blower." Featuring Android 2.1, a 2.8-inch (240 x 320) touchscreen, 3.2-megapixel camera, 128MB RAM, and 512MB storage, there is nothing too terribly wild here, but you know what? Sometimes a company just needs to hit a comfortable, middle-of-the-road benchmark. The kids at the UK mobile website Fone Home have a handsome gallery for you to check out, so do hit that via to get rolling... but not before you peep the video after the break.
Update: OK, maybe the title of this post was a little misleading. We meant to say that this is the first Vodafone-branded Android handset -- as you're probably well aware, this carrier is certainly no stranger to the beloved open source OS.
@spasewalkr I think they're talking about 'blowing your budget' when you go and spend way more than you intend to. But this wouldn't even blow a dole scum's budget.
Typical americans. just like with fanny, they got things the wrong way round again....
@Beatty 'Budget blower' would actually mean to me that it is a very very expensive phone, as in 'blow the budget'? Oh, unless the author is suggesting 'blower' means phone, as in 1970's East-End cockney 'Get me on the blower, son' in which case, 'Two-bob blower' would probably be better, but to be honest, I think 'cheap mobile' is probably the easiest to understand. I actually quite like this phone for some strange reason.
@hdawggy Hmm no, I did not see any resemblance whatsoever. Remember the iPhone was not the first touch screen in the market. The iPhone looked Prada-ish.
@N900 Agreed looks a lot like it! I think ppl on here are missing the point its a BUDGET Android phone, so why compare it to a Desire, Nexus or iPhone??? If it was £100 PAYG it might be worth a punt, but, its on Vodafone network so i'll move along now. BYE.
So this phone is pretty much garbage--but maybe I'll get lucky and it'll use some variant of the MSM7k chipset, so I can steal it's official 2.1 drivers for my hacked-up Vogue-Android?
Shame theres no price but im guessing its going to cost more than £100.
You can pick up a T-Mobile Pulse in the UK for less than £150 and it is an infinately better device, has 480x320 capacitive touch screen for one. Dont really see the point of this device.
@Sheppard How is the Pulse "infinitely better"? I had one, and with T-Mobile's stock ROM it was laggy with more than one or two programs open. The camera was flat out rubbish. The USB ports were prone to breaking. There are no spare batteries and accessories are hard to come by. I liked my Pulse in spite of these things, but I wouldn't say it was anything better than this offering.
I don't see the draw to this thing. The Desire and apparently now the Nexus One seem to be the hottest things in the UK at the moment. Unless HTC stops making either I don't see a future for this little guy.
@Darkseider Its draw is its price! The Desire and Nexus 1 are only free on 24month £35pm contracts, whereas this will be free on an 18month £10/15 contract. For someone who can only afford low end contracts this is much better than the usual nokia dumphone offered.
Wow, lots of negative comments here. This phone isn't meant for the kinds of people who browse Engadget, Vodafone's own brand phones in the UK are just cheap phones for people who don't want to spend a lot.
320x240? Ugh. Based on The Engadget Show last week, Paul Miller is probably shaking with rage right now.
Also, is this the first time we've seen such a poor resolution on a widely released Android device? The G1 had 2x the pixels, as does my beloved Magic.
Its okay for people looking for something basic but the UI is blah. I'm surprised its running Android OS 2.1 though. Usually these kind of lower end phones run 1.6 or something...
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posted April 28th 2010 12:59PM
"makes browsing a doddle"
ill admit i needed to look that one up. it means:
Brit., informal: a very easy task
silly british and their crazy english.
@spasewalkr Yankee Doddle went to Town Texting on a Pony. Put a Nexus on his Hat and called Macaroni.
@spasewalkr
You mean silly English and their crazy English :P
@spasewalkr
Silly americans and there crazy english.
Anyway, I'm british so I got it.
@spasewalkr
You piffle spouting nincompoop. (Tilts bowler hat and sips Tea)
@Wolfticket
He meant British, since English implies England. British implies all of the UK.
@CDice
Actually English, British and UK are three separate things.
England is not Great Britain is not United Kingdom
@spasewalkr
I live in Britain and Ive never heard anybody use that term, Its mainly the english that use it not the rest of britain
@spasewalkr
'certainly is, in the UK idiom, a "budget blower"'
I've never heard this term and I live the UK, or Great Britain, or England, or whatever...,
@spasewalkr
Never heard 'budget blower' either..
doddle however is pretty normal.
@spasewalkr I think they're talking about 'blowing your budget' when you go and spend way more than you intend to. But this wouldn't even blow a dole scum's budget.
Typical americans. just like with fanny, they got things the wrong way round again....
@Beatty 'Budget blower' would actually mean to me that it is a very very expensive phone, as in 'blow the budget'? Oh, unless the author is suggesting 'blower' means phone, as in 1970's East-End cockney 'Get me on the blower, son' in which case, 'Two-bob blower' would probably be better, but to be honest, I think 'cheap mobile' is probably the easiest to understand. I actually quite like this phone for some strange reason.
what are you going to store with 512mb of storage? 12 pictures?
@country1911 it has a mem card slot
@country1911 I am pretty sure it is more than 12 pictures. And as said. Memory card.
Looks Iphone clone-ish
@hdawggy Hmm no, I did not see any resemblance whatsoever. Remember the iPhone was not the first touch screen in the market. The iPhone looked Prada-ish.
@hdawggy
/s? Looks nothing like an iPhone.
If anything, it looks like a baby Nexus One :D
@hdawggy
You best be trollin'.
@hdawggy Looks like an HTC Smart http://www.ces-show.com/news_images/00415_htc-smart.jpg
@N900
Yes! I thought it looked like another device I had seen recently and couldn't think of it. Thanks, that was really bothering me haha.
@N900
Agreed looks a lot like it!
I think ppl on here are missing the point its a BUDGET Android phone, so why compare it to a Desire, Nexus or iPhone???
If it was £100 PAYG it might be worth a punt, but, its on Vodafone network so i'll move along now. BYE.
So this phone is pretty much garbage--but maybe I'll get lucky and it'll use some variant of the MSM7k chipset, so I can steal it's official 2.1 drivers for my hacked-up Vogue-Android?
Hmm..
@Shidell
@tobsmonster2
Well said.
Really bad music choice. I was like.. Where's the broken record?
Thanks goodness for mute.
The phone does look solid. I like the sleetish look. It is not HTC Sense, but it is still Android.
wow, i'll look so cool waving that about on my roof, trying to find a vodafone singal.
@iCallum Who needs lighters at concerts?
@iCallum
it isn't that bad in the Netherlands
Shame theres no price but im guessing its going to cost more than £100.
You can pick up a T-Mobile Pulse in the UK for less than £150 and it is an infinately better device, has 480x320 capacitive touch screen for one. Dont really see the point of this device.
@Sheppard How is the Pulse "infinitely better"? I had one, and with T-Mobile's stock ROM it was laggy with more than one or two programs open. The camera was flat out rubbish. The USB ports were prone to breaking. There are no spare batteries and accessories are hard to come by. I liked my Pulse in spite of these things, but I wouldn't say it was anything better than this offering.
Clearly an iphone killer/
There should be an international law banning the use of QVGA screens on smartphones. And ban HVGA too, while they're at it. It's 2010.
I'd take an unlocked Android 2.1 handset with those specs for ~$200 USD (not a typo). They'd have to pay me to take it on-contract, though.
I don't see the draw to this thing. The Desire and apparently now the Nexus One seem to be the hottest things in the UK at the moment. Unless HTC stops making either I don't see a future for this little guy.
@Darkseider
well some people like thier phones to be painfully unattractive. i think thats the draw for this one
@Darkseider
Its draw is its price! The Desire and Nexus 1 are only free on 24month £35pm contracts, whereas this will be free on an 18month £10/15 contract. For someone who can only afford low end contracts this is much better than the usual nokia dumphone offered.
Touchscreen fail at 1:52 and 2:22, for something that seems to be clearly promoting this phone maybe they could have cut these out?
128 MB RAM? They're kidding right? That's worse than the G1.
@Dafrety And it has 2.1, but it looks sorta fast in the video
Wow, lots of negative comments here. This phone isn't meant for the kinds of people who browse Engadget, Vodafone's own brand phones in the UK are just cheap phones for people who don't want to spend a lot.
320x240? Ugh. Based on The Engadget Show last week, Paul Miller is probably shaking with rage right now.
Also, is this the first time we've seen such a poor resolution on a widely released Android device? The G1 had 2x the pixels, as does my beloved Magic.
looks like a decent feature phone. I like it. might just be the nicest attempt at making a "cheap" Android phone.
so much....dead...space
Looks like there's an HTC Tattoo hacked up underneath that Vodafone skin.
"and you can fill up on Android apps"
...
Given they support your pathetic, tiny resolution.
Balderdash and fiddledeedee!
Its okay for people looking for something basic but the UI is blah.
I'm surprised its running Android OS 2.1 though. Usually these kind of lower end phones run 1.6 or something...
I loved the song on the video:p:)
I'd buy it but I love my iPhone 3gs 32 gb jailbroken:)