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Ice Cream Sandwich update won't be coming to HTC's Incredible S, says Bell Mobility
Even though Jelly Bean's the latest mobile OS to come out of Mountain View, there are still OEMs and carriers working on delivering the not-so-fresh Ice Cream Sandwich update to some of their earlier handsets. Now, unlike what we'd previously heard, it appears HTC's Incredible S won't be on the receiving end of said 4.0.x refresh, with Bell Mobility taking to Twitter to reveal that the Taiwanese outfit "will not be updating the Incredible S with ICS." Still, things could potentially take a turn for the best, as the Canadian carrier told a cheerless S owner, "If that changes, I'll let you know." As for us, well, we'll have to hold off on making any changes to our current Ice Cream Sandwich list.
Custom ROM brings Android 4.0.4 to the Desire HD, does what HTC wouldn't
HTC wasn't too popular when they denied Desire HD owners a hearty mouthful of Ice Cream Sandwich, but as usual, the community over at XDA Developers has stepped up to make it happen. Despite HTC claiming various technical issues as barriers for the upgrade, Team Blackout's Android 4.0.4 build (aka Blackout ICS Incredible) is said to work perfectly on the device. The complete ROM is based on an ICS build for the Incredible S, and it requires you sacrifice your data in a full wipe before you can enjoy that Sense 3.6 UI. However, if you've got the knowledge to take advantage of this gift, you probably know how to backup all those bytes anyway. Hungry? Then head over to the source for your desirable dessert.
Refresh Roundup: week of July 2nd, 2012
Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging for an update. 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 we could find during 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!
HTC's first ICS update rolls out in late March, Sensation and Sensation XE call first dibs
Ice Cream Sandwich is slowly trickling out to the masses, but we're still waiting on the major phone vendors to come out with their own tweaks of the latest Android dessert. We've known that HTC's busy plugging away at its Sense-ified version of Android 4.0, but the company's finally ready to start discussing specifics. According to the outfit's UK Facebook page, the update will begin rolling out to the HTC Sensation and Sensation XE by the end of March, with the Sensation XL following suit. Additionally, owners of the EVO 3D, Incredible S, Desire S and Desire HD still haven't been forgotten, but their long-awaited upgrades to Ice Cream Sandwich will come sometime "later this year." That sure narrows down the timeframe. Hopefully we won't have to wait until the end of March to officially cast our eyes on the new Sense, as we're keeping our fingers crossed that we'll see some ICS love in new devices at Mobile World Congress later this month. Update: HTC's US Facebook page also announced the update, and added the Rezound, Vivid, Amaze 4G and EVO Design 4G to the list of devices that should receive ICS later this year. [Thanks, Willy]
Refresh Roundup: week of December 5, 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!
HTC Droid Incredible 2 lightens up with new silver wardrobe
Tired of your ho-hum black original HTC Droid Incredible? Thinking of trading up for a shiny new Gingerbread model? Well, this may influence your decision a bit. Pocketnow is reporting that Verizon will soon be offering a new silver version of the HTC Droid Incredible 2 (Incredible S) to be sold alongside the original black edition. Keeping suit with many other lighter phones we've seen these days, the company chose a pretty standard two-tone design and will keep the same specs as its elder sibling. Pricing should be the same as well, although, with a number of new devices due out soon, perhaps a discount could be in order. No word yet on a release date, but keep your eyes peeled -- especially if frustrations over a lack of color choice led you to purchase one of these.
HTC makes Incredible S, Desire Z source code available, throws Flyer in for good measure
Aftermarket ROMs for the Incredible S and Desire Z (and their US variants) aren't exactly breaking news -- the rooting community's been cracking away at those handsets since their launch. Release their Gingerbread maintenance source code, however, in addition to the Flyer's kernel code and you'll have developers foaming at the mouth. Which is exactly what HTC did over the weekend, paving the way for a new flood of ROM-flashing options to hit your hacked handsets. Android modders should hit the source below to download the AOSP goods.
Droid Incredible 2 review
It wasn't that long ago that we were jonesing for a Nexus One on Verizon. What HTC gave us instead was the Droid Incredible, with the same 1GHz Snapdragon CPU and gorgeous 3.7-inch AMOLED display -- not to mention a better camera (8 megapixel vs. five), 8GB of built-in flash storage, an optical trackpad, HTC's Sense UI on top of Eclair, and a dash of funky industrial design. The Incredible was an impressive phone with a lovely camera, marred only by questionable battery life and lack of supply, forcing HTC to build a Super LCD-equipped model to satisfy demand. Judging by the popularity of the Incredible, it came as no surprise that following HTC's announcement at MWC, the Incredible S eventually became Verizon's Droid Incredible 2. With a 4-inch Super LCD display, global CDMA / GSM radio, front-facing camera, updated internals (including 768 MB of RAM), trick capacitive buttons, and a Froyo-flavored serving of Sense, the Incredible 2 seems like a worthy successor to last year's Incredible. Does it live up to our expectations or is it just another fish in the crowded sea of Android? Does it significantly improve upon the original formula or is it merely a refresh? Hit the break for our review. %Gallery-124397%
HTC bumps Sync software to 3.0.5517, adds support for Incredible S and Desire S
HTC's last Sync software release (version 3.0.5511) finally saw one package supporting most of HTC's new sets in one build. The launch of version 3.0.5517 while shattering that unity adds support for both the Incredible S and Desire S to the mix. Of course there's nothing new and terribly thrilling here, just your run-of-the-mill Outlook -- and Outlook Express -- sync for contacts and calendar and the ability to whisk all your movies, music, pics, and other sync-ables to your newfangled handset. Interested? Sure you are, and the installation joy is but a quick click away. Follow the link below and do let us know if anything strange happens in the process.
HTC Incredible 2 prepares for imminent launch, Casio's Commando provides backup
If you'd been crushing hard on HTC's Incredible, cool that burning desire just a smidgen -- we've got evidence that suggests an imminent release of the Droid Incredible 2. Following its appearance in Verizon's internal system and leaked training docs, Best Buy has begun receiving accessories for the re-purposed Incredible S, ensuring you'll have all the requisite goodies at launch. Additionally, the folks at Droid Life report Verizon stores are receiving retail shipments of the device, along with Casio's G'zOne Commando. The expected release date is April 28th, so it looks like you'll be playing with those capacitive buttons soon enough. We've included a pic of the retail box after the break, and you'll find additional snapshots in the source link.
HTC gives Italy's Incredible S a generous portion of Gingerbread
In February we were told the Incredible S would be updated to Gingerbread by the end of Q2 2011, and HTC has the first batch out of the oven well ahead of the deadline. Rather than having to wait until June for the refresh to get pushed out, Italian owners of the flagship device are already on the receiving end of an over-the-air update bumping them up to Android 2.3.3. Call it a hunch, but we suspect this is a foreboding that the build will witness a global launch much sooner than any of us had planned. If the above picture isn't legit enough, hop down to the video after the break. [Thanks, VidoArdes]
HTC Sensation versus Incredible S and Desire S... a family scuffle
We just so happened to have our review units of HTC's Incredible S and Desire S on hand during today's Sensation launch event, so what else to do with them than to throw them in with the new 4.3-incher and shoot some photos? The gallery below should give you a pretty good idea of the physical differences between HTC's trio of foremost Android devices for the European market. You won't be able to tell much about the difference a dual-core processor makes, but then what's life without a little mystery? %Gallery-120969%
HTC Droid Incredible 2 struts its stuff in leaked press shots? (Updated)
If you had any doubts about HTC's Incredible S making it to our shores, they're probably dissipating as we speak -- not only has the phone obtained Verizon's shiny red checkmark, it's now got the robotic eye of Sauron staring at us with ferocious intensity. PocketNow obtained these pictures of the likely Droid Incredible 2 without naming so much as an anonymous source, and we wouldn't be surprised if it's Verizon's way of reminding us that the handset is rapidly on its way to market. You'll find two more pictures at our source link. Update: Android Central got hold of some new shots of the actual phone itself, which shows off its model number ADR6350 and firmware 2.2.1. Thanks, Bla1ze.
HTC Incredible S hits Bell for $99
Dear Canada, today's your lucky day! The HTC Incredible S we just reviewed is now available from Bell for $100 on contract (that's for three years, folks) or $500 unsubsidized, complete with its magical and revolutionary auto-rotating buttons. Not only can you be proud to be Canadian, but you can be the first in North America to enjoy this, well... incredible GSM handset -- at least until Verizon's CDMA cousin, the Incredible 2, joins the party. As a reminder, the Incredible S packs a 4-inch WVGA Super LCD display, the latest 1GHz Snapdragon CPU, 768MB RAM, 14.4Mbps HSPA+ support, a front-facing camera, and an 8 megapixel autofocus main camera with dual-LED flash and 720p video capture, all topped with a dash of Froyo. An 8GB microSD card is included, and the Gingerbread update is on its way. So go ahead and hit the source link if you dare. [Thanks, Spencer]
HTC Incredible S coming to Virgin in Canada for $500?
After reading a heartwarming review of the European-spec HTC Incredible S we're left wondering when we, the colonies, will get ourselves a taste. The US-spec Incredible 2 looks to be coming soon enough, but our neighbors to the north will keep the S moniker, and are said to be getting it soon. It's believed to be hitting Bell on April 4th, and now the above image purports to show the phone also listed in Virgin's inventory system. The price is $499.99, while a carbon fiber shield is going for a bargain $24.95 -- useful if you want that Atrix look but are hoping for PlayStation certification thanks to the Adreno 205 graphics here.
HTC locks down Incredible S against custom ROMs too, starts a fight with its best friends
The Thunderbolt, you might have noticed, marked an unpleasant change for HTC by making it a tiny bit difficult to replace the company's own Android software with your favored community-sourced alternative. Well, turns out it's not alone and could in fact be just be the tip of an unhappy iceberg heading our way. The AndIRC guys responsible for cracking it open have also noted with some distress that the Incredible S -- likely to become the Droid Incredible 2 in the States -- features a similar signature check when flashing recovery images. In short, that means any ROMs that don't know HTC's "open sesame" password, won't be allowed to ride on your device. Bogus? Totally, dude.
HTC Incredible S render surfaces in red
Of course you've all had a peek at the HTC Incredible S by now, but what you might not have seen is this, a potential red variant. Of course we're saying potential because until word flutters down officially, this is something any kiddie with a red Crayola could craft in a quick minute. As a reminder we're at CTIA this week, and if there was ever a good time to show off a recently launched device in a new color: this week's it. [Thanks, Alex]
HTC Droid Incredible 2 smiles pretty for the camera, shows off its fresh VZW tat
It hit Verizon's system a few weeks ago and now it's hitting a white corner for some pictures, showing VZW branding no less. It's the US-spec version of the Incredible S, said to be running Android 2.2 but word is that Gingerbread will be on-tap before it ships. The rest of the specs on this four-inch slab line up with what we've learned before, meaning the only question now is the all-important when.
HTC Incredible S, Desire HD, Desire Z and original Desire will all be eating Gingerbread by the end of June
When it launched the Incredible S at MWC a couple of weeks ago, HTC promised the new 4-inch device would be quick to get a Gingerbread update and now it's giving us a definitive schedule for it by saying that Android 2.3 will be distributed to its new flagship phone by the end of Q2 2011. We're not sure four months of sitting by the window waiting for the OTA update to float in necessarily matches up to our definition of "quick," but there are much better news for owners of HTC's older devices. The Desire HD and Desire Z -- both released in September 2010 -- will also be leaping away from Froyo and up to Gingerbread and will be joined by the original Desire, which was announced way back at last year's MWC. That handset was essentially HTC's own-brand Nexus One, so we already knew it was capable of running Gingerbread, but it's still rare to see a device go through two significant Android updates (the Desire began life with Android 2.1). All these old Desires are placed on the same update schedule as the Incredible S, whereas the newly announced Desire S and Wildfire S will ship with Gingerbread preloaded. [Thanks, Johannes]
HTC Droid Incredible 2 shows up in Verizon's system
Well, look what we've got here! Seeing that HTC just introduced the Incredible S -- a world phone only available in the UK -- it was only a matter of time before the phone hit the stateside. A trusted tipster just hit us with screen shots of Verizon's internals containing a device dubbed HTC ADR6350. The other screenshot below has a listing for the HTC63503 with a description of "INCRD2." Putting two and two together, we'd say with great confidence that the Incredible 2 is coming to Verizon in the near future -- and we certainly wouldn't be surprised if it had something to do with that "buttonless" shot we saw a while back. Stay tuned as we try and dig up more details... and in the meantime, peep the second screenshot after the break!
