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LG Optimus 2X to be upgraded to Gingerbread in summer, says Danish support site (updated)
Other than saying Gingerbread will be forthcoming for its dual-core Optimus 2X Android handset, LG has been pretty mum on the subject of software updates. It's good, therefore, to finally extract a timeframe out of the company, albeit from a somewhat obscure source. LG's Danish support site tells us that the P990 (the internal code number for the 2X) will be updated to Android 2.3 "in June-July 2011." That's a fair bit later than we might have expected or hoped for the upgrade to happen, particularly given the various software foibles that the device we reviewed suffered from, but the summer of 2011 will always be preferable to the summer of never. A final warning is perhaps merited here to say that LG has been a bit inconsistent when it comes to software roadmaps, so consider this one scribbled down in pencil until we hear more concrete confirmation from the company. [Thanks, Michael] Update: LG's marketing chief for Denmark and Iceland, Morten Aagard, has responded to this intel by saying that actually the Optimus 2X will be updated to Android 2.3 in "mid-May." Update 2: Morten's been misquoted, apparently. LG has now told us directly that it's targeting this summer.
LG Optimus 2X and Optimus Black priced at €499 by Amazon Germany, not yet available to buy
Amazon's German outlet has started listing LG's two latest and undoubtedly greatest phones: the Optimus 2X (seemingly renamed the Optimus Speed here) and the Optimus Black. Both run Android 2.2 on 4-inch screens, with the former offering a dual-core Tegra 2 processor capable of 1080p video recording and HDMI output, and the latter cranking up the display brightness to a quite unreasonable 700 nits. The Optimus Black also has one of the thinnest profiles on a smartphone of its class at 9.2mm, and will be one of the first phones to offer WiFi Direct connectivity. Intriguingly, Amazon's Optimus Speed / 2X listing also shows a brown color option for the handset, though only its black SKU is subject to a neat €50 discount bringing its price to €499, the same as the cost of the Optimus Black. We don't know when either one will drop, but you can go and reserve yourself one (or a dozen) at the links below. [Thanks, Julian]
LG Star preview
<div style="text-align:center;"><a href="http://www.engadget.com/lg-star/preview/"><img border="1" hspace="4" vspace="4" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2010/12/10x1210fbfu5xbd.jpg"/></a></div> The LG Star. The dual-core beast from the east that was once a mere <a href="http://www.engadget.com/2010/11/16/exclusive-lgs-4-inch-android-phone-with-dual-core-tegra-2-and/">twinkle in our eye</a> has managed to find its way to the Engadget mansions, having been lent to us by a very generous (and very anonymous) tipster. It's clearly a test device, as evidenced by its diagnostics menus and lack of a lockscreen, but there's no disguising the power that lies within it. We put the Star through a battery of common Android benchmarks and the results were, in a word, outstanding. Basically, <a href="http://www.engadget.com/all/tegra2">Tegra 2</a> will give anything your <a href="http://www.engadget.com/2010/12/10/smartphone-buyers-guide-the-best-phones-for-atandt-verizon-spr/">current phone</a>'s running an inferiority complex. Join us after the break as we delve deeper into this upcoming powerhouse of a handset from LG. One thing's for sure: CES 2011 can't come soon enough.<br /> %Gallery-110305%
LG Star struts its stuff on film, toys with an iPhone 4 (video)
We can't get enough of the world's first Tegra 2 smartphone, the LG Star, so if the 4-inch diva wants a closeup while parading about Tel Aviv, who are we to argue? GSM Israel somehow managed to obtain the same dual-core Android 2.2 handset we glimpsed earlier this morning, complete with 8 megapixel camera and HDMI port. Though we don't have the foggiest idea what they're saying in the video after the break, the LG-P990 certainly seems to be a speedy little machine in side-by-side webpage load tests with the fan-favorite iPhone 4, though we seem to detect a hint of hesitation when the Star's capacitive touchscreen gets brushed. Chalk it up to faux embarrassment, we suppose. Video after the break.
Sony Ericsson flip-flops, P990 and W950 will see updates
Who said the squeaky wheel doesn't get the grease? Sony Ericsson has pulled a 180 on its decision to halt development for the P990 and W950. Sony Ericsson's official statement reads "In response to recent feedback from users and as a result of additional internal testing, Sony Ericsson has determined to offer a further firmware update for the P990 and W950 Walkman® phone ..." No word on if any love is coming for the M600, but the next -- and likely last -- update should roll out in August via the Sony Ericsson Update Service.[Thanks, Tom]
Sony Ericsson stops firmware development on P990, W950, and M600
If you have a misbehaving P990, your last chance at firmware salvation will be in version R6D23 released June 15th. Either Sony Ericsson has decided it really has gotten it right this time, or has decided it just can't be sorted, but either way the aforementioned mobiles development has ceased. There is some clarity available from a developer post at Sony Ericsson's developer forums, and the picture we wrangled is that due to memory limitations, not much more can be done, it's a hardware problem. It's a bit of a shame that the oft delayed, eagerly anticipated upgrade to the venerable P910 seems to have left so many feeling a bit burnt in the end. So if you have a P990 (the others in the list apparently aren't such troubled creatures) and can't get no satisfaction, upgrade it to the newest FW and if that's still a bust, move on to a P1.[Via Just Another Mobile Phone Blog]
Ubuntu running on P990i?
Put your sleuthing caps on dear readers, we've got a new case for you. A blurry video has surfaced of a Sony Ericsson P990i running a mobile version of Ubuntu. With the aid of a soldering gun and "special software," someone by the name of Wizolabo (already credited with a homemade theremin) seems to have produced a working copy of the favored Linux distro running on the favored SE superphone. It all looks promising enough, but it's not the first time we've seen video edited and choreographed to look like final product. Made all the more dubious from a dearth of instructions or detail. Check the video after the break and let us know what you think.[Via Techeblog]
Sony Ericsson rumors aplenty
Member shaliron over at Esato appears to have done some serious homework compiling a list of all known Sony Ericsson handsets in the pipeline, complete with nifty color coding to indicate verified, debunked, and new intelligence. We encourage Sony Ericsson fans and non-fans alike to go check out the real deal, but in the meanwhile, we've put together a Reader's Digest peek here at some of the highlights. First up, the music-oriented Walkman series could be growing by a solid six devices in the coming months, topped off by a successor to the UIQ-based W950 codenamed "Maria," a (possibly UIQ-based) clamshell dubbed W910, and the oft-discussed Ai. The camera-focused (no pun inteded) Cyber-shot series will be enjoying a bumper crop itself: a successor to the K800 is allegedly already in the works, "Sofia," packing a 5 megapixel shooter, UMTS, and QVGA recording, while a possible Handycam-branded M600 variant would obviously reign supreme for its video capabilities. Other highlights include a promise that HSDPA will factor into the company's 2007 plans, a wide-scale migration of the FastPort connector to the sides of the handsets, and a shortening of the span from announcement to release of UIQ-based models (a move we applaud). As we said, there's plenty more juicy tidbits to digest over at Esato -- but even with what we've presented here, it's safe to say Sony Ericsson's shaping up for a killer '07. Any UIQ or 3G love for the US of A, folks?
Sony Ericsson P990 gets LocationFree support
It looks like the Symbian Smartphone Show is shaping up to be a bit of a showdown betwixt placeshifters today, with both Sling and Sony announcing Symbian support for their respective products' players. Unlike Sling, which announced both UIQ and S60 versions of its SlingPlayer Mobile, Sony is only going as far as UIQ support for its LocationFree on the wings of its fresh P990 smartphone -- a very Sony-like (read: proprietary) move, considering Sony Ericsson isn't down with the Nokia-backed S60 platform. Odds are Sony would've liked to have cut a version for its smartphones a year or two back, but the P990 is the first phone in the P series to rock data fast enough (via UMTS and WiFi) to handle the heavy-duty bandwidth requirements LocationFree -- or most any other placeshifting tech, for that matter -- requires. Sony Ericsson's claiming immediate availability of the Symbian client, though it's not yet live on the P990's download site. Of course, a LocationFree player doesn't do much good without the device itself, and a US version of the P990 is nowhere in sight, so just keep on toolin' around with those PSPs until further notice.[Thanks, Alex]
Sony Ericsson P990i review roundup
Impressive -- just six short months have elapsed from our initial hands-on of Sony Ericsson's latest superphone to the first set of honest-to-goodness reviews rolling in. Obviously, we kid; most every UIQ fan east of the Atlantic has been clamoring for this thing for a while now, but only recently have production units begun finding their way into loving homes. Delays aside, All About Symbian and phoneArena were more than happy to take delivery of the shiny new handsets in the name of putting them through their proper paces. All About Symbian seems to have come away with the more positive impression of the two, suggesting that the device is among the best PDA / phone combos currently on the market; phoneArena liked the keyboard and camera less, but thanks to freezes and crashes aplenty, both sites agreed that the P990 could've used a couple extra firmware revisions before getting pushed out the door.Read - All About SymbianRead - phoneArena
Sony Ericsson's P990i gains FCC approval
Announced way back in October, that Sony Ericsson P990i just got tagged with the FCC's good housekeeping seal of approval. With that out of the way, we might actually see this tri-band GSM 900 / 1800 / 1900 with UMTS (2100) handset with Symbian OS 9.1 / UIQ 3 Stateside sometime in Q1, Q2, Q3 after the 2100MHz spectrum comes off the auction block and into the greedy little hands of your fave (or not so fave) wireless provider. And with a 2.8-inch touchscreen, 802.11b WiFi, Bluetooth 2.0, 2 megapixel cam, media player, QWERTY keypad, and suite of corporate email connectivity options, well, we're guessing that even with all the delays, you might still care. [Via Mobile Whack]
Hands-on with the Sony Ericsson P990
Yeah, we know it hurts that Sony Ericsson has no plans, at least as of right now, to ever release the P990 here in the States, but here's something that might make you feel better: the QWERTY keyboard on this phone is pretty crappy. To be fair, five minutes is definitely not enough time to make a proper assessment, but the impression we were left with after playing with the P990 at the Sony Ericsson booth is that the keys are way too small and not tactile enough for easy typing. Anyway, to refresh your memory on the specs, the P990 runs Symbian OS 9.1 with the UIQ 3 software platform, and has a 2.8-inch QVGA touch screen display, built-in WiFi (802.11b), Bluetooth, a two megapixel camera with a "photo light," video calling, FM radio, MP3 and MPEG-4 player, and a keyboard (QWERTY, QWERTZ, AZERTY, or Russian) underneath the flip-down keypad. Click on for a few more pics.
