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Mobile Miscellany: week of April 9th, 2012

Zachary Lutz
Updated ·4 min read

Not all mobile news is destined for the front page, but if you're like us and really want to know what's going on, then you've come to the right place. This past week, we've seen clues to suggest the Galaxy Nexus will arrive at Sprint in a matter of days, and leaked materials suggest Rogers will have the HTC One X in stock by April 20th. These stories and more await after the break. So buy the ticket and take the ride as we explore the "best of the rest" for this week of April 9th, 2012.



Samsung's pink Galaxy Note hits South Korea

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You may remember this one from our hands-on at CeBIT, where we were given a sneak peek at Samsung's upcoming pink Galaxy Note. The company made its rosy handset official this week, and was proud to show it off with the assistance of its booth professionals. [Samsung Tomorrow (translated)]

Update: And here's a quick hands-on with Samsung's pink phablet, delivered straight from the company's flagship store in Seoul.



AT&T's Lumia 900 campaign may be its most expensive effort to date

AdAge reports that AT&T will spend upwards of $150 million to promote the Nokia Lumia 900, which would make it the most expensive campaign to market a single device in the carrier's history. It's quite a large bet for what could be a relatively niche smartphone, but with the iPhone now available on Sprint and Verizon, the move suggests that AT&T is once again looking to differentiate itself with a company exclusive. Meanwhile, both Sprint and Verizon remain alarmingly frigid to Microsoft's mobile platform, and AT&T could do well by promoting itself as the carrier of choice for Windows Phone users. [TechnoBuffalo, AdAge]

LG Optimus L7 to arrive in Europe this month, Optimus L5 to follow in May

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A few of the smartphones that we first met at Mobile World Congress are starting to become available to the masses, and soon enough, both the Optimus L7 and L5 may count themselves among the bunch. LG France announced on its blog that the Optimus L7 will arrive in late April for an unsubsidized price of €319, and the Optimus L5 will arrive at the end of May -- no price was mentioned for it. For a bit of a recap on both devices, be sure to check out our hands-on from Barcelona. [Unwired View]

Leaked training docs suggest HTC One X to hit Rogers on April 20th

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We previously reported that Rogers has made the HTC One X available for pre-order, and as part of that promotion, all customers who stake their claim before April 30th may pick up the handset for $170 on a three-year contract. Now, however, a bit of training material received by MobileSyrup suggests the carrier has targeted April 20th as the official launch date for the smartphone -- not long until we find out for sure. [MobileSyrup]

Dolphin Browser HD 8.0 hits the Play Store


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The popular alternative web browser for Android, known as Dolphin Browser HD, officially turned 8.0 this week. Most notably, users will discover a new menu bar, a refreshed side panel and easier access to Dolphin Sonar -- the browser's attempt to behave like Siri. Developers also managed to squash a few known bugs along the way. [Droid Life]

Galaxy Nexus launch at Sprint becomes more imminent


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Chatter across the grapevine gives strong indication that the Galaxy Nexus will arrive at Sprint within the next eight days. Debut posters are thought to hang in the windows of Sprint dealers as of tomorrow, and similarly, Best Buy's internal planning documents reveal that the big box retailer expects to have devices on its shelves by April 22nd. [Phandroid, BGR]

Motorola debuts dual-SIM XT390 Android smartphone in China


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Motorola introduced a dual-SIM capable smartphone for customers of China Unicom. Known as the XT390, it runs Android 2.3 and includes an 800MHz CPU, a 3.5-inch HVGA display, 512MB of RAM and a 3.2 megapixel camera. [Unwired View]


Other random tidbits

  • Like their AT&T counterparts, Rogers subscribers who've already purchased a Lumia 900 -- or, who will purchase the handset before April 21st -- will similarly receive a $100 credit from Nokia. [WMPoweruser]

  • AT&T expanded its LTE coverage in Staten Island this week, and "officially" drowned St. Louis in the same 4G airwaves. [Phandroid]

  • According to the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association, Canadians sent 78 billion text messages in 2011. [MobileSyrup]

  • The Google Play Store expanded to four new markets: Czech Republic, Israel, Mexico and Poland. [Android Central]

  • Leaked internal materials suggest the BlackBerry Curve 9380 has reached its end-of-life at Bell Mobility. [MobileSyrup]

  • Verizon expanded its LTE coverage in Reno, Nevada and a number of markets across California this week. Now, Californians in Modesto, Visalia, Sacramento, San Francisco, San Luis Obispo, Salinas, Monterey, Fresno, Stockton and Bakersfield will all find additional 4G coverage from Big Red. [Phone Scoop]

  • RIM updated BBM Music to version 1.2.0.16 in its Beta Zone this week with a new intelligent shuffle mode. [PhoneArena]

  • Nokia's stock slid to a 15 year low this week on the New York Stock Exchange. [WSJ]