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Engadget's back to school guide 2011: smartphones
Welcome to Engadget's Back to School guide! We know that this time of year can be pretty annoying and stressful for everyone, so we're here to help out with the heartbreaking process of gadget buying for the school-aged crowd. Today, we're tapping away on our smartphones -- and you can head to the Back to School hub to see the rest of the product guides as they're added throughout the month. Be sure to keep checking back -- at the end of the month we'll be giving away a ton of the gear featured in our guides -- and hit up the hub page right here! Now more than ever, collegiate studies require a wide variety of devices to help you get that prized "A." The thirst for knowledge you so desperately seek can strike at any time, and you're not always going to have that desktop or laptop nearby to find the answer to a burning question. Perhaps you just need to hurl birds at pigs for a while to blow off your stress. Whatever the case, you'll need something to help you study, store (and edit) all of your important term papers, keep you in touch with classmates or family, and everything in-between. What better way to get all of that than with a smartphone? We've picked nine respectable candidates that can help you through your upcoming semester -- three for each budget level. Oh, and while you're looking, we're giving away $3,000 worth of essential back to school gear to 15 lucky readers, and you can be one of them by simply leaving a comment below! So, which phones are most likely to help you get smart? Head past the break to find out.
Motorola Triumph review
When we first laid eyes and hands on Motorola's first Android offering for Virgin Mobile, we were pleasantly surprised. The Triumph proved to be one of the better looking and performing pre-paid handsets we'd had the pleasure of holding in our sweaty mitts, but we had one major hangup: the name. Call us old fashioned, but we're of the mind that it's unsportsmanlike to claim victory before the race has even begun. After all, we aren't looking at an iPhone killer here. To the contrary, the Triumph is a decently outfitted, Motoblur-free Froyo phone, with a suitable 4.1-inch WVGA screen, a workable 2GB of storage, and a fairly attractive (and contract-free) $300 price tag. So, after a week in our palms and pockets, did the Triumph really affirm its arrogant appellative or did it fail to live up to its name? The answers to this and other, less alliterative, questions await you after the break.%Gallery-129474%
Refresh Roundup: week of July 25, 2011
Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging to get updated. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it's easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don't escape without notice, we've gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery from the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy! Official Android Updates: Remember the Gingerbread update that's rolling out to the T-Mobile myTouch 4G? If waiting for the OTA download doesn't mesh with your level of patience (or lack thereof), you'll be able to head to a corporate-owned retail store starting August 5th to receive the update manually. [via T-Mobile] The Kyocera Echo's rollout of Gingerbread may be starting tomorrow and getting pushed out to customers over a four-day period. The new refresh also adds Swype 3.0 and security enhancements. [via SprintFeed] Gingerbread is also currently heading to Verizon's Motorola Droid X2. [via AndroidCentral] Sony Ericsson announced that users of the Xperia X10 won't be left off of the Android 2.3 bandwagon either -- it's been confirmed that global and carrier-unlocked versions are receiving the update, though it's up to specific carriers to decide if they want to push the update out as well. [via MobileBurn] Verizon's Droid Incredible 2 is the recipient of a minor software update that aims to improve server connection for email and contacts. The OTA download can be yours by going into settings and having the phone check for updates. [via AndroidCentral] The original HTC Desire's getting its turn for Android 2.3, but the OTA update is currently going out to unbranded devices only. [via HTC Desire Portal] Users have been reporting an issue with their Samsung Fascinates receiving incoming calls after the latest update, and the latest update, called ED05, will be pushed to phones over the next few days to help resolve that concern, while fixing a couple SMS bugs as well. [via Droid-Life] Unofficial updates, custom ROMs, and misc. hackery: A new leaked Gingerbread update for the Samsung Epic 4G, EG22, can be had now. The leak bumps the device up to Android 2.3.4. [via PPC Geeks Forum] The Motorola Triumph hasn't even been out for ten days, but it already has ClockworkMod Recovery. [via AndroidForums] Peter Alfonso's released Android 2.3.5 as a custom download for the original Droid. Follow the via link for instructions on how to download and install it. [via Droid-Life] The Revolutionary S-OFF tool has now been released as an early developer preview. The tool will give you full access to download and install custom ROMs for several devices, including the HTC EVO 3D and Sensation. [via AndroidCentral] Other Platforms: T-Mobile pushed out a firmware update to the HTC HD7 this week, though no change log was provided. If you didn't receive a notification on your phone informing you of the update, connect it to your Zune Desktop and check for updates. [via WPCentral] The Dell Venue Pro's also on the receiving end of a firmware refresh, which brings with it a load of various bug fixes. [via Twitter]
Engadget Mobile Podcast 096 - 07.23.2011
What other technology podcast hosts would let a bunch of fruity news sink into the background as they trudge deep into the waters of new Android and MeeGo phones? We think you know the answer to that one.Hosts: Myriam Joire (tnkgrl), Brad MolenProducer: Trent WolbeMusic: Daestro - Light Powered (Ghostly International)00:01:22 - Sprint readies Nexus S 4G update with improved WiMAX performance, we go hands-on (video)00:08:32 - T-Mobile MyTouch 4G Slide00:21:03 - Motorola Droid 3 review00:40:16 - T-Mobile G2x Gingerbread update running through employee trials, "coming soon" just got closer00:44:03 - HTC Status review00:49:42 - Sony Ericsson Xperia Neo review00:53:34 - AT&T Nexus S coming to Best Buy July 24th, available for $100 with contract01:12:28 - Sprint's Fared Adib: we made a conscious decision to scale back bloatware on smartphones01:14:23 - Motorola Triumph01:16:50 - T-Mobile unveils flexible new Value plans: unlimited talk, text, and / or data for any device01:19:45 - Fujitsu to launch first Windows Phone Mango handset in... August?01:21:55 - Nokia 'Sea Ray' WP7 handset revealed on a factory floor? (Video)01:22:25 - Nokia N9 arrives at FCC, opened up to see where all the MeeGo comes from01:24:37 - Apple outpaces Nokia in global smartphone shipments01:26:58 - AT&T 'confident' T-Mobile deal to close in Q1 2012Hear the podcastSubscribe to the podcast[iTunes] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes[RSS MP3] Add the Engadget Mobile Podcast feed (in MP3) to your RSS aggregator and have the show delivered automatically[RSS AAC] Add the Engadget Mobile Podcast feed (in enhanced AAC) to your RSS aggregator[Zune] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in the Zune MarketplaceDownload the podcastLISTEN (MP3)LISTEN (AAC)Contact the podcastpodcast (at) engadgetmobile (dot) com.Follow us on Twitter@tnkgrl @phonewisdom @engadgetmobile
Motorola Triumph ascends to Virgin Mobile, can be yours for $300
Freedom can sometimes feel confining: you want to have a top-notch data device and be loosed from the shackles of two-year contracts at the same time, but the selection of zero-commitment smartphones can seem downright laughable. The Motorola Triumph may be your hero; it tops the Android lineup on Virgin Mobile, and all it'll cost you is three Benjamins. The newest flagship smartphone offers 4.1-inch WVGA display, a 1GHz Qualcomm MSM8655 CPU, 512MB RAM, and dual cameras with 720p video capture. If prepaid isn't your preferred style, a $300 handset of this caliber (and no contract to boot) may be enough to nudge you in that direction. Just be sure to enjoy your unlimited data as much as possible before October comes around. Full PR after the break. [Thanks, Devin]
Motorola Triumph for Virgin Mobile goes up for pre-order at Best Buy for $300
Fans of Virgin Mobile's prepaid plans were mighty jazzed over the Motorola Triumph, a 4.1-inch, vanilla Froyo-packing handset that might seem ho-hum on paper, but is a marked improvement over what you'd normally be able to score without the shackles of a two-year service agreement. At the time, more than a few of our readers swore that once they dutifully fulfilled their contractual obligations, a Motorola handset sans Motoblur would be enough to send them packing to Virgin. Well, it's time to put your money where your mouth is: she's up for pre-order at Best Buy for $299.99. In the world of unlocked phones, of course, that's a steal. Why, the Droid Charge costs the same with a two-year contract, and the (admittedly higher-end) Dell Venue fetches $500 unlocked, with the iPhone 4 topping it at $649. Order now and you're in for several weeks of thumb-twiddling -- Best Buy estimates it'll arrive sometime between July 19th and July 26th. As always, commitment-phobes, hit the source link to order and peep the spec list while you're at it.
Motorola Triumph release date leaked by 'People' magazine, coming to Virgin on July 19th
You've seen many views of the Motorola Triumph in our recent hands-on segment, but perhaps no angle is so tempting as the release date itself. Fortunately, that tidbit arrives courtesy People's current issue, where Virgin Mobile's July 19th release date is outed on page 77 -- in the StyleWatch Concierge section, if you just have to know. Given the "379 hot summer looks" to fawn over, it's easy to overlook this Blur-less handset, but the proof awaits at your local news stand. Sadly, we're still waiting on pricing for this newcomer, but perhaps it'll show in the next edition of The Economist, no?
Virgin Mobile lets Android run Blur-free on the Motorola Triumph
Motorola hopes to rescue its tarnished MOTOBLUR UI with a name-change. We, however, think the rust runs deeper than that -- and it seems we're not alone. Virgin Mobile has decided to give its prepaid customers the "true Android experience" from now on, which means you'll find no proprietary shell whatsoever sitting atop its new Motorola Triumph handset. Aside from a few bits of Virgin bloatware, the Triumph escapes with a relatively standard install of Android 2.2. Meanwhile, MOTOBLUR will still be foisted on pay-monthly customers who buy a Photon 4G or XPRT from Sprint, Virgin Mobile's parent company. Some of them might like the shell and its add-ons, but others will be better off without such OS contamination.
Motorola Triumph for Virgin Mobile hands-on (video)
We're live here at Motorola / Sprint's press event in New York City, and while most of the folks are swarming around the newly minted Photon 4G, we wanted to give some love to the Motorola Triumph, the first Moto handset to land on Virgin Mobile's network. While the 4.1-inch, Froyo-packing phone and its 2GB of storage might seem ho-hum to spec junkies, it's a shockingly solid option for a prepaid carrier. And it comes Motoblur-free! How many Photon 4Gs have that to say for themselves? Take a stroll past the break for a tour, and see why we think the Triumph could actually be a pretty solid score for those who detest strings and fine print. Update: Looks like it's coming in July, per Virgin's site. %Gallery-125986%
Virgin Mobile welcomes 4.1-inch Motorola Triumph, brings Froyo to the prepaid side
Fear not, pay-as-you-go fans -- Virgin Mobile saw a hat tip of its own at today's Sprint / Motorola event in the form of the Triumph, a 4.1-inch Android 2.2 handset that perhaps doesn't quite live up to it's hyperbolic name. Virgin Mobile's first-ever Motorola handset has 2GB of built-in storage, 512MB of RAM, a five megapixel camera, WVGA display, 1400mAh battery, A-GPS, WiFi, a Qualcomm MSM8655 CPU and HDMI output. It also comes pre-loaded with Virgin Live 2.0, a musical social networking feature that gives users access to exclusive musical content -- not quite the stuff victory laps are made out of, but it's certainly a welcome addition to the prepaid market. Triumphant press release after the break, which is triumphantly devoid of any pricing / release information. %Gallery-125986%
