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Droid 2 being prepared for launch, set to arrive August 23rd?
The Droid 2's been leaking out all over the place in the past few weeks, but it looks like it'll be another month before it officially hits shelves -- we just got these shots from a packaging facility that's handling the phone, which puts it right on schedule for that rumored August 23rd launch. We're also told that the phone will definitely ship with an 8GB microSD card, and that pricing appears to be $199 on contract and $599 standalone, although those numbers could change. Just a few short weeks left, we suppose -- although give the rate at which this thing is leaking, we're thinking Motorola and Verizon might do well to push that date up a couple weeks. We'll see.
Verizon leaks another Droid 2, getting BlackBerry Storm 3, Curve 3, 10.1-inch tablet later this year?
Now that the Droid 2 has officially reached "leaking like a sieve" status, we thought we'd toss you another couple shots of the Droid X's QWERTY-equipped cousin, which we're being told is locked for an August release on Verizon. If you're more of the BlackBerry type, though, we've got some news for you, too: our source is telling us that both a Curve 3 and Storm 3 are "possible" for the holidays this year. If we had to guess, the Curve 3 is likely a variant of this 9300 we've been seeing lately, whereas the Storm 3 could be a version of the 9800 slider or an entirely new keyboardless slate. There's also a 10.1-inch tablet on the docket; the carrier has already confirmed that Android tablets are in the pipeline, but this could also be a version of the rumored BlackBerry beast. More on this noise as soon as we get it; in the meantime, follow the break for another shot of that Droid 2, won't you? [Thanks, RWN]
Verizon catalog reveals Motorola Droid 2, new dumbphones
We knew the original Droid's replacement was coming, but we were never able to nail down the market name with confidence -- until now, it seems. The Droid 2 makes a prominent appearance in an official catalog of Verizon devices leaked to BGR, talking up its 5 megapixel cam, 8GB of onboard storage, and 1GHz processor, positioning it just ever so slightly below the mighty Droid X. Also finding their way into the catalog are the recently-launched Pantech Jest, the self-branded Verizon Salute, and the Intensity II and Gusto both from Samsung, all dumbphones that just add more evidence to the theory that all the good names for mobile devices have already been taken. No date's given for the Droid 2, but we imagine it can't be long now that they're openly talking about it, right?
Droid 2 rumored to be launching August 23rd with Android 2.2
We've certainly gotten a peak at quite a few Droid 2 details so far, but word of a release date has unfortunately never been among them. That now looks to have changed, however, with the folks at Android and Me reporting that a "trustworthy source" has informed them that the phone will be launching on August 23rd. According to the site, that date was apparently chosen so the Droid 2 would be the first phone to ship with Android 2.2 out of the box, although that of course remains to be confirmed (current test versions of the Droid 2 are said to be running Android 2.1). If recent rumors pan out, however, the Droid 2 wouldn't be the first Droid to make the jump to Froyo -- the original Droid is said to be getting the update in "late July," while the Droid X will have to wait until late August.
Motorola Droid 2 stars in its first video, touts 1GHz CPU and 512MB of RAM?
It was inevitable, really, that a phone as widely leaked as the Droid 2 would end up caught on video. Doing the honors for us today are Android and Me, who've compared the new Droid to the classic variant. Funnily enough, they didn't find too much deviation from Motorola, describing the two handsets as "virtually identical," with the major physical change being the replacement of the previous keyboard's navigation pad with arrow buttons. The front end's soft buttons have also changed to Moto's Blur options, but otherwise you're still looking at a 3.7-incher with a 5 megapixel imager. The big improvement seems to have been under the hood with a new 1GHz TI OMAP3630 processor and 512MB of RAM (PowerVR SGX530 graphics unit remains the same) driving the Droid 2 to some robust benchmark scores. Of course, we don't see the handset booted up in this hands-on video, so treat these specs and results as provisional until we hear from the official horse's mouth in a couple of days. [Thanks, Naveed]
Droid 2 (or whatever it's called) for Verizon breaks cover once again
Nothing new here, but at this point, Motorola's delicious duo of fresh Android phones for Verizon is leaking like... well, like a leaky faucet, we suppose. We've already got the full scoop on the keyboardless 4.3-inch Droid X -- a beast ready to take on sworn enemies from HTC like the EVO 4G and the Droid Incredible -- and we've seen plenty of details on the so-called Droid 2, too. The latter appears destined to replace the original Droid with a better keyboard layout and ever-so-gently refined ergonomics, but the latest leak from a Gizmodo tipster confirms that the cam's still 5 megapixels and it's currently running Android 2.1 atop Moto's new-look Blur (interestingly, the "Droid 2" name couldn't be confirmed). Apparently it's set for release in the "next few weeks," which would line up with rumors we've heard in the past of a launch windows somewhere between July and August -- so here's the real question: X or 2?
Motorola, Verizon announcing 'next generation of Droid' on June 23
We don't know whether this is going to be the Droid 2, the Droid X, or both, but Motorola, Google, Verizon, and Adobe -- yes, Adobe -- are all getting on stage out in New York on the 23rd of the month to announce some new Android gear. Should be exciting, so keep it locked -- because naturally, we'll be on-hand for all the festivities.
Motorola Droid X purportedly hitting Verizon on July 19th
Take this with a mouthful of NaCl, but Droid-Life has it on authority that Motorola's Droid X is gearing up to make the Droid Incredible seem a bit less Incredible next month. The big-screened unicorn-of-a-smartphone is purportedly set for a July 19th launch on America's most subscribed-to carrier, with ads to start popping up on the 18th. We're expecting to hear something official out of VZW next week, but till then, we'd suggest talking your current Android phone down from that ledge. Broken egos can lead to desperate measure, homie.
Engadget Mobile Podcast 042 - 06.12.2010
Of course we've had our retinas glued to the iPhone 4 this week, but that lil' thing certainly couldn't plug the leaky leaky faucet shooting out unofficial news about new Android phones all over the place. Join us, won't you? Oh, and stay tuned to the end where we answer your burning questions about mobile communications technology. Hosts: Chris Ziegler, Myriam Joire (tnkgrl)Special Guest: Ross MillerProducer: Trent WolbeMusic: Daestro - Light Powered (Ghostly International)00:01:55 - iPhone 400:24:50 - Motorola Droid X00:25:35 - Motorola Droid 200:32:05 - HTC Liberty for AT&T revealed during routine testing video00:36:37 - iPhone 4 vs. EVO 4G... fight!00:46:20 - OpenBTS @ Burning Man00:51:16 - Sprint misstated EVO 4G sales, by a lot00:59:00 - HTC EVO 4G's graphics capped at 30FPS?01:04:07 - Listener questionsHear 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@zpower @tnkgrl @ohnorosco @engadgetmobile
Motorola Droid 2 fully exposed?
And finally, the puzzle pieces are coming together. There's been a lot of confusion the past few weeks about these two new models for Verizon in Motorola's pipeline, but by all accounts, this seems to be the A955 Droid 2 in its entirety -- the true successor to the original Droid, of course, and a distinctly different product than the more slate-like Xtreme. It looks like Moto has killed off the Droid's major pain points, giving the new model a more tactile keyboard and eliminating the nearly useless d-pad; the shiny bezel around the top half is a matter of personal opinion, but we don't think we mind it from the blurry shots we've seen. As specs go, we're looking at a faster 750MHz OMAP core -- probably similar to the 720MHz silicon quoted in the XT720's data -- along with a 3.7-inch display, 8GB of internal storage paired with an 8GB microSD card in the box, and a 5 megapixel camera. What's missing is an HDMI port and Froyo -- current test units are said to be running 2.1, so hopefully we'll see a 2.2 upgrade in the near term. So, Droid owners: is this the golden ticket to get you to shell out another couple hundred dollars? As a bonus, follow the break for alleged video of the Droid 2's boot sequence, which shows a reworked version of the scary red droid eye we're accustomed to.
Motorola A955 Droid 2 teased, definitely different from the Xtreme
Telling the blurry spy shots apart and keeping the codenames straight as we lead up to this Android duo from Motorola for Verizon next month has been next to impossible, but we think we're getting the hang of it here. What you're looking at above is apparently the A955 Droid 2, a phone whose keyboard we saw a little while back. That's opposed to the Xtreme -- which may or may not also be known as the Shadow -- that's been leaked a handful of times in the past couple weeks and clearly looks different than the A955 from the front. If anything, the Droid 2 looks like a streamlined, possibly chromed version of the original Droid, which would make a lot of sense seeing how it's being called... well, the Droid 2. Verizon, would you please step in here, make some announcements, and clear up all this confusion?
Motorola Droid 2 found in Verizon system, keyboard makes an online cameo? (update: specs)
While we've got no way to confirm at the moment, here's some proverbial food for thought. A friendly reader last night published in our comment thread for the two rumored Verizon-bound Motorola devices with the above picture (subtitles added by us), claiming the bottom image is the Droid 2's upgraded QWERTY keyboard. The story goes that his friend had one but no other information is currently available -- the font on the keys is identical, and the mic icon on the bottom left is distinctively Android. If it's legit, we gotta say we're hopeful; the keys look to have a more protruding center à la the CLIQ, which should make typing on the little guy much easier than before. And if it's not the Droid successor, well, it's still something we haven't seen. Could this be the updated QWERTY-fied Android solution we've been waiting for? Time will tell. Update: Droid Life has what it claims to be a screencap from the Verizon inventory system showing the M1955, a.k.a. Droid 2, hanging out in Ontario, California. Easily fakeable? You betcha, but it's not like the Droid name is going to any other carrier. Interesting food for thought. Update 2: The original source of the image just got back to us with some purported specs -- and yet again, let's remind you that we can't confirm any of this yet. What we've heard: it's out in the field for testing purposes, it has a 3.7-inch screen, is nearly identical to the original Droid in size and shape, and is chrome instead of black (though that might just be the prototype). And in case you weren't convinced yet, this is definitely not the same as the Shadow. [Thanks, mabbikeel and Tuan Tran]
