Wednesday, 6 July 2011

Android Community

Android Community

Google Maps Updated, Download Map Data Before You Travel

Posted: 06 Jul 2011 11:56 AM PDT

Google Maps has just received another update in the Android Market and some exciting and useful new features have been added. GPS stop-by-stop public transit directions is a big feature and currently in beta, a great help for you city goers that use public transit daily. The feature I like but doesn’t seem widely mentioned is the new download map area option under Google Labs.

What this means is you can download complete map info locally to your phone right from Google Maps, then when you go on a vacation or somewhere without coverage you will still have full map data to keep you on track. This is only in Google Labs for now but the feature seems to work great. You can download a 10 mile radius at a time from whatever point you choose. The phone stores multiple downloads so you can have plenty saved for your next trip ahead of time.

For more info on the public transit features check out this video:

The new map download feature would have came in handy for me recently as I just traveled to Jackson Hole, Wyoming and T-Mobile didn’t have what I’d consider a strong signal way up there. Downloading the maps for directions ahead of time would have been great. I’m excited to see all these new features coming into Google Maps and can’t wait to see what else they have in store. Get the latest map from the market at the source link below.

Thanks for the tip Vince!

[via Google Maps]

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Sony S1 and S2 In the Wild Again, S2 Caught on Camera [Video]

Posted: 06 Jul 2011 11:30 AM PDT

Over the past few days we have been hearing more and more regarding these tablets. Last week we saw the S2 in a few videos and now we have another today to show you yet again. In case you don’t know we are talking about the Sony S1 and S2 Honeycomb tablets. You can see them both in this commercial here.

Pictured above is the unique Sony S2 with dual 5.5″ screens and its clamshell design. It may not be the thinnest device but it will be ultra portable that is for sure. We got a pretty large picture gallery of both tablets again yesterday and you can read about that by clicking here.

The pictures and video today come from our friends DDAY and they make a few interesting notes about the Sony S1 Tablet. It is a 9.7″ with a 1280×800 resolution. Another unique design here and the back folds under like a magazine. According to the source the battery was placed around the joint on top to move the center of gravity toward the support arm. Holding the device in portrait mode around that bend or “joint” is to actually feel less fatigue than with a tablet weight evenly distributed. It makes sense but I also see cases being an issue especially if the device is really that top heavy.

Latest reports are showing some people reporting the Sony S1 will cost 599 euros, while the departure of Sony S2 will retail for 649 euros. Those translated to USD are pretty high prices over $800 and $900 but those are not confirmed and pricing is always different in the U.S. so we will take those with a grain of salt for now. Check out the video and source below for all the information.

[via DDAY]

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Motorola Droid Bionic Confirmed in Best Buy Leak

Posted: 06 Jul 2011 11:03 AM PDT

We have been hearing bits and pieces about the Motorola Droid Bionic over the past few months but it looks like things are about to change today as we might finally have something a little more official. Latest leaks have revealed some nice improvements to the redesigned Bionic and you can see those here.

First off we can confirm from the photo above that we see it listed as coming with a dual-core processor and that ties nicely with previous benchmark leaks. If this holds true this phone looks to be a real killer.

"With the ferocious force of Verizon 4G LTE, the Droid Bionic is an all-powerful, unstoppable machine." That is the opening line on the flyer and we couldn’t agree more. With 4G LTE, a dual-core CPU and that huge 4.5″ qHD display this sounds like every Android fans favorite device. Now we can only hope the bootloader gets unlocked one day right? The Droid Bionic recently passed the FCC, and recent reports state it may be launching come August 4th. This is a good sign and we hope to see more in the coming days.

[via thisismynext]

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Samsung Galaxy S II Hits the FCC with Nvidia Tegra 2 CPU

Posted: 06 Jul 2011 10:40 AM PDT

Samsung has a lot of devices and it is easy to get lost in the piles of smartphones, and all the similar variations on other carriers. Today we are focusing on the Galaxy S II GT-I9103 that just cleared the FCC. The kicker here is this version is running on NVIDIA’s Tegra 2 CPU instead of a Samsung Exynos chip like the current Galaxy S II.

Samsung originally launched with their own Exynos chip and performance was great but the Tegra 2 wasn’t all that behind and early benchmarks showed them pretty even. Going with multiple chipsets is most likely due to location, cost, and availability rather than performance.

We have seen many leaks and news reports regarding the Galaxy S II heading to places like Canada and on Virgin Mobile so we could very well see one of those devices launching with the Tegra 2. It could be one of the many U.S. versions as well so we will have to wait and see.

[via PocketNow]

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Games are the most popular apps on Android

Posted: 06 Jul 2011 08:59 AM PDT

The latest data from Nielsen is in and it shows that the most popular type of mobile apps are video games for the Android platform and on iPhone too. I doubt that anyone will be surprised that games are the most popular apps. We would all probably rather play games than have to use some productivity app for work or school. Nielsen shows that the vast majority of app downloader are willing to pay for games.

The percentage willing to pay for games is 93% and 64% of users admit that games are the most common apps that they have used in the last 30 days. The data also shows that 76% are willing to pay for news. I am more than a little surprised at that number. I would have thought the percentage willing to pay for news would be much lower.

Other app categories that users will pay for include entertainment apps with 87%, productivity at 84%, and navigation at 84%. On both Android and the iPhone the most time spent on an app are games with iPhone users spending 14.7 hours monthly playing games and Android users spending 9.3 hours monthly on games. The survey was of 300,000 people and about 4,000 app downloaders.

[via ibtimes]

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Foursquare adds notification system telling when a user comments on a check-in

Posted: 06 Jul 2011 08:45 AM PDT

Foursquare has added a new feature to its Android app that is its latest attempt to move beyond check-ins alone. The new feature is a notification tray that will alert the user whenever a friend comments on their check-in. The feature looks a lot like the iPhone Facebook app to me from the screen you see here. The app also has a lot more interesting notifications that it will offer.

The notifications will alert when a user follows a tip that you left behind and when a friend adds the same place to their to-do-list. It will also keep track of how many times you visit a place and check-in and name you mayor if you visit more than your friends do. The app will then alert you when you are ousted as mayor by a friend.

The notification alerts can be suspended for an hour or until the next day using the mute button. The update should be popular with the 10 million users of Foursquare. Foursquare check-ins are over 3 million each day right now.

[via FierceMobileContent]

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Motorola XOOM now $499 from the Source

Posted: 06 Jul 2011 08:42 AM PDT

SO you remember a few days ago when it was a huge deal that there was a $100 discount on the normally $599 Android 3.1 Honeycomb NVIDIA Tegra 2 dual-core 10.1-inch HD widescreen tablet known as the Motorola XOOM? Well, turns out that the group themselves has the tablet at that same price starting today. They’ve also go the Verizon 3G w/plan version at $599 and the Verizon 3G w/o plan version for $799. This is another clue as to how soon it’ll be before we see the “4G” version of the tablet being released, that being the upgrade to the version you’re seeing on the market right this second. The question stands now though: will the re-release of this tablet cost $599 again?

You can purchase the US Cellular version of the XOOM for $599 still as well, and if you’ll take a look back at the supposed Verizon MAP from a little over a week ago, you’ll see that Verizon’s LTE branding of the XOOM is coming on quick. Of course, those of you wishing for the 4G world (or even this of you just on Verizon in general) should beware of the tiers: just yesterday we got confirmation that the Verizon tiered data plans are indeed real and are coming your way SOON, soon as in tomorrow soon. What you CAN do though, if you act fast, is get yourself locked into the unlimited data plan that’s still active today, but you’ve gotta run to your local Verizon NOW – this deal ends at the end of today!

Now as for those of you that still don’t know the full deal going on with the XOOM, boy have we got a collection of posts for you! First of all, you’ve got to hit up the most read XOOM review on the internet, that being the BIG ONE right here on Android Community. Then you’ve got to hit up another post we did back when the tablet was first released: Motorola XOOM and Honeycomb: All questions answered. It’s a goodie! Then of course there’s the obligatory iPad 2 vs Motorola XOOM post, the Android 3.1 Honeycomb review and benchmark list, and of course our full range of Honeycomb-related reviews so that you can see all the competition as well as the sweetest apps like News360!

Head over to Motorola’s online store to pick up the tablet right this moment if you’ve not already, and note that you’ll be getting the official Motorola portfolio case for free with purchase.

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comScore numbers show Android is still smartphone market leader by a big margin

Posted: 06 Jul 2011 08:31 AM PDT

The last time we talked about comScore numbers was in June and they showed what the market looked like in May. The new comScore report compares the growth in the segment for the quarter ending in May versus a three-month average for the ending in February 2011. The numbers found that the Android platform was the dominant OS on the market with 38.1% in the quarter ending in May 2011.

For the three months ending in February 2011 Android had 33% of the market. Android is growing still and at a faster rate than the iPhone is growing. For the quarter ending in May 2011, Apple had 26.6% of the market while during the three months ending in February 2011 Apple held 25.2% of the market. RIM had third place in the chart with 24.7% of the market as of May.

That number for RIM is a decline from 28.9% for the period ending in February. Microsoft also saw its share of the market share drop from 7.8% in February to 5.8% in May. Palm also saw a decline from 2.8% in February to 2.4% in May. Google and Apple were the only companies to grow smartphone share.

[via SlashGear]

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Microsoft flexes Android patent muscle to squeeze loot out of Samsung

Posted: 06 Jul 2011 05:48 AM PDT

Microsoft is flying high with its patents that go along with Android devices. So far the biggest rumored payday from Microsoft from an Android smartphone marker has been the $5 per device that HTC is said to be paying for its licensing fee. Microsoft also landed a patent agreement with Wistron this week and now has its sights set on a much bigger target – Samsung.

Reuters reports that Microsoft is wanting Samsung to come to the license agreement fold and pay a whopping $15 for each smartphone it makes that runs Android. The high fee may be a scheme in some part to get Samsung to agree to produce more handsets that run Windows Phone 7. Reuters reports that Samsung would likely seek to cut that license fee to $10 per device with a promise of more WinPo 7 smartphones.

Samsung is the big fish in the Android sea with a huge number of the devices it makes running Android. Samsung is the world’s second largest mobile phone maker right behind Nokia. Samsung is also expected to become the world’s largest maker of smartphones soon with many of those devices on Android. Forecasts by analysts predict that Samsung will have sold 19 million smartphones in the quarter of April to June alone.

[via Reuters]

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Words With Friends Back in Android Market for Honeycomb Tablets, Looks Great Too

Posted: 05 Jul 2011 05:16 PM PDT

Early last week Words With Friends out of the blue disappeared from the Market for Honeycomb tablets, but right before that they had pushed an update. Many users myself included could not get the game to work and it would instantly force close after that. Zynga claimed to have no idea why it was no longer in the market, we aren’t sure if that is true or not but the game is now back today.

Today Words With Friends appeared in my list on my Motorola Xoom and had an update available. After updating it still would instantly close like before but at least it was showing up in the Android Market when I search from my tablet. I uninstalled and re-installed the game and now all is working great. Words With Friends looks great on my Xoom and the panel view sure is nice.

We aren’t sure what the deal was, nor why it was pulled in the first place although it was pretty glitchy and had a few problems. From the looks of things you can now download Words With Friends again for your Honeycomb tablet and enjoy the amazingly addicting game. It is showing compatible with all my devices now, and previously all the Honeycomb tablets were greyed out. Things look to be much more stable but the refresh times still need a little work. Now lets just hope people don’t keep cheating with all those apps in the market.

[via Android Market]

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Sony S1 and S2 Tablets Looking Pretty for the Camera [Gallery]

Posted: 05 Jul 2011 02:20 PM PDT

Have you seen the new Android 3.1 Honeycomb tablets that are headed our way from Sony lately? For now they are named the S1 and the S2 and we have seen them more than a few times. We just got word of an entire gallery showing these beautiful tablets in all their glory and you wont want to miss it.

Sony recently released a few awesome videos showing off these tablets you can see them here, and here. We also got a little view of them back in June and even saw the S2 on video.

The latest photos show some great views and angles of these upcoming Honeycomb tablets and you wont want to miss them. Up for display by our friends over at Notebookitalia you might want Google Translate to help you read the entire story or you can click here. According to notebookitalia the S2 will have Qriocity as well as bundled games thanks to the PlaystationSuite. The dual 5.5″ screens on the S2 actually look pretty fun and I think I would enjoy it but would love the bezel between the two to be smaller.

We should be seeing more and more of these tablets over the next few weeks and months. I hope to get some hands on time with that S2 eventually here so keep checking back for the latest in Android news. Check out the source for the rest of the photo gallery.

[via NotebookItalia]

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Native Screen Shots Coming to CyanogenMod

Posted: 05 Jul 2011 02:01 PM PDT

I love CyanogenMod. Its the ROM I’ve been running on my poor little Aria since the day I got it, and thanks to CM that poor little Aria has done things AT&T never dreamed of. The great thing about CyanogenMod is that as a community driven and supported project, new features are being added all the time, and via Google+, Cyanogen himself has announced a few new ones worth getting excited about.

Screen shots on Android are a bit of a sore spot. To be able to take a screen shot you’ve previously needed not only root, but a separate app to take them. CyanogenMod will be officially integrating the feature into its OS, allowing global screenshots via a long press on the power button.

With screen shots a feature on iOS since its beginning, Android has been missing the feature. Recent devices, such as the LG G2x and Samsung Galaxy S II have had the function built in by its manufacturers. Now any phone lucky enough to have CM will get to take pictures of their screen once the feature is merged into the next release. If you needed another reason to look forward to the final release of CM 7.1, here it is.

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Samsung Dart Review [T-Mobile]

Posted: 05 Jul 2011 01:16 PM PDT

What we’ve got here is one of three new efforts on the mid-range smartphone front coming straight outta Samsung. This is the Samsung Dart, the tiniest of the three, all three of these new devices of which we speak coming out on T-Mobile. The first thing you should be considering when taking a peek at these devices is how they add up to similar devices such as the LG Optimus V, LG’s mid-range superhero. Will this be your entrance into the world of Android? Should you buy one for your grandmother? Let’s have a talk about it.

Before we begin, let’s take a look at how this device fits in the hand and feels sitting next to the rest of the Samsung mid-range pack. The following video comes from our hands-on and unboxing post from last week:

Hardware

What you’ve got here is one of the most compact Android devices on the market, weighing in at 3.80 oz (108 g) and sized at 4.09 x 2.40 x 0.51 (104 x 61 x 13 mm). It’s for a 3.14-inch TFT 240×320 pixel display, giving it a nice change from what you’re used to if what you’ve been using is crappy feature phones, but looking like a rather low-class contender if you’re putting it next to the top-tier devices with their best-in-class brightness and resolution. It’s small and it does not pretend to be large in any way at all.

It’s got a 600 MHz processor and a 1200 mAh battery, which means that you’ll be getting more than the average day we’ve been seeing on recent smartphones and superphones, but you won’t be playing many bigtime games on the device – Angry Birds works OK, but it’s certainly not as smooth as you’re going to see it running on more expensive devices.

The casing is on-par with lower-tier devices, but the display, glass, and overall industrial design in the device is this reviewers favorite of the three Samsung devices in this same class. While the Gravity Smart does have a pull-out keyboard, it seems slightly cheaper in its construction than the Dart, and the Exhibit 4G makes us wish it was a Nexus S – furthermore, this is the one of the three with all four Android menu buttons instead of the odd large physical button in place of the home button. That one button appears on these other devices to be a joystick sort of situation, but as it turns out to just be a button, it’s a bit disappointing. Thusly, Dart wins!

Software and Performance

This device is running a version of Samsung TouchWiz that, by all means, sits nicely in a device that’s meant to be an entry drug into the world of Android. Once people use TouchWiz for the 2 years or so they’ll be using this device then realize there’s a much more stripped-down version of Android out there, they’ll be more than willing to continue their journey into the rest of the manufacturers worlds OR, if it’s Samsung’s intent to show off the better newer versions of TouchWiz by providing this device with the lower-requirements earlier versions, they’ve done it right here.

This device comes with the fewest amount of third-party apps of the three Samsung devices we’re talking about here, allowing you to be the judge of what you want to be working with via the Android Market.

Camera

The camera is a tiny 3-megapixel no-flash multi-shot panorama smile detector, but it does take surprisingly OK shots at such a small resolution. Have a peek at one or two here:

Phone and Battery

The speakerphone here is as mid-range as you’d expect it to be, but the call quality is just as high-class on both ends as any upper-range device on the market today. Smartphones are smartphones when it comes to call quality for the most part, and the Dart plays along nicely. The battery also sticks up for itself, not surprisingly because the device has such low power requirements that there’s no way you’re NOT going to get more than a day out of the device.

Wrap-Up

The Samsung Dart, again, is part of a suite of three Samsung mid-range smartphones coming out on T-Mobile in the USA. The other two are also being reviewed here in Android Community, links to both being added below in this post once they’re up. In this reviewer’s opinion, you’ll get the most for your money out of the Dart if you’re comparing it to the other two Samsung devices. While it still doesn’t match up to the power and near-perfect construction of the Optimus line (such as the Optimus U, for example,) of mid-range Android smartphones, it beats out the other Samsung devices in this set because it makes no false claims at being more than what it is.

The Dart is tiny because there’s no reason to make it larger, has the bare minimum of apps and power for one of the most basic Android experiences you’ll be able to find on a US carrier today. This device is made for people already on T-Mobile who hope to upgrade to an Android device with a low cost. If a person wanted to get into Android and would be switching from a different carrier, there’s always deals for Android devices that cost next to nothing on 2-year deals, thusly making these mid-range devices and their low costs obsolete. That said, the Dart is decent for what it is, the most basic, simple, low power Samsung Android on the market.

androidcommunity_P1130568 androidcommunity_P1130567 androidcommunity_P1130566 androidcommunity_P1130565 androidcommunity_P1130564 androidcommunity_P1130563 androidcommunity_P1130562 androidcommunity_P1130561 androidcommunity_P1130572 2011-06-30 16.56.44 2011-06-30 16.55.54 )


Win $500 Courtesy of Samsungs “It’s Time to Tab” Video

Posted: 05 Jul 2011 01:16 PM PDT

It looks like Samsung is getting busy now that the 4th of July weekend has ended. Earlier they posted up an official demo video of the Galaxy Tab 10.1 and now they are offering a $500 prize for sharing their “It’s Time to Tab” video with the world, so get sharing guys.

If you follow @SamsungMobileUS on Twitter you would have seen the tweet a few minutes ago. It takes you to another neat video and you must share it with all your friends for a chance to win. Here is the link to that video as well.

You can enter to win, but they aren’t the only ones giving things away. Your good friends Android Community and SlashGear are also giving away a few tablets for the next few weeks so feel free to enter our Tabletpalooza Giveaway. For more information on the Samsung $500 giveaway check out the Samsung Twitter source link.

[via Twitter]

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HTC Marvel Headed to T-Mobile, Hits the FCC

Posted: 05 Jul 2011 01:02 PM PDT

You may have heard of the HTC Marvel before but if not we first got wind of it back in May in a leaked roadmap for T-Mobile. We heard it would be launching close to or right along with the HTC Doubleshot also known as the myTouch 4G Slide, with that phone coming sometime in July the Marvel might hit this month also.

You can see the HTC Marvel pictured in this story here. It is basically the twin sister to the HTC Wildfire S that we have some hands-on time with.

The Marvel will be sporting a 3.2″ display as well as a 800 Mhz qualcomm processor, a small bump in speed over the Wildfire S so we can’t complain. It will also have a 5MP camera on the rear but no front facing camera. This is a nice little device for those that don’t need or want a huge 4.3″ phone like the HTC Sensation 4G. We should be hearing more any time now and will report back as the news flows in.

[via SlashGear]

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Google+ Android App Has Support for NFC

Posted: 05 Jul 2011 12:50 PM PDT

Google has a tendency to use their different technologies and services to promote one another, and it sure looks like Google+ will be no exception. It turns out that phones with NFC, a small list at the moment, are capable of reading NFC tags with the Google+ app, to allow for quicker sharing. Obviously this won’t be any sort of killer feature until NFC spreads a bit, especially to other phones.

Google has been promoting NFC, or near-field communications, for a while now. The last we heard of the super short range (think 1-2 centimeters) wireless communications for Android was when Google announced Google Wallet. With all the excitement around Google+, we couldn’t fault you for forgetting about NFC, but clearly Google hasn’t forgotten about NFC. The benefit for integration with Google+ would presumably shine brightest for location sharing, a la Google Places.

Click here to view the embedded video.

In the video above, we see a demo from a custom NFC tag. Here the NFC has text, which upon contact with the Nexus S launches the Google+ app, with that text set to be shared. In the future I imagine this would allow people to create NFC tags specifically for the purpose of being shared on Google+, should Google get their way. There are still a couple technologies that need to mature first for NFC and Google+ to be together in the perfect harmony Google has envisioned.

[via Near Field Communications World]

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T-Mobile myTouch 4G Slide Possible Release Date of July 27th

Posted: 05 Jul 2011 12:45 PM PDT

The T-Mobile myTouch 4G Slide has seen its fair share of news lately and with good reason. It is the big brother to the popular myTouch 4G but with a full slide out keyboard and a powerful 1.2 Ghz dual-core processor as well. You can see the official news right here. Some new information has been brought to light and it may be launching come July 27th.

The myTouch 4G Slide (aka HTC Doubleshot) is shown in the image above with the July 27th date along with it, making us believe it may be coming sooner than later. For a few photos of the actual device you can check out this story. With that powerful dual-core CPU and that beefy 8MP camera on the rear this phone is aiming for the top.

We have heard about the Doubleshot for a while so hopefully T-Mobile will come out with some complete details regarding the release date soon as I’m sure there are more than a few people waiting. If not you can get the original myTouch 4G right now for FREE from T-Mobile. Stay tuned for more info.

[via Android Central]

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Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Official Demo Video with Touch Wiz

Posted: 05 Jul 2011 12:35 PM PDT

Samsung is at it again and it is officially “Time to Tab”. The official SamsungMobile YouTube channel has just sent us another treat and it is a full out 12 minute 1080p HD video showing all sorts of eye candy with their new Galaxy Tab 10.1 as well as the upcoming Touch Wiz UI update that is coming soon.

You have all probably seen plenty about this amazing tablet but in case you’ve missed it check out our full review. Samsung has a great video they have put together and it shows all the beautiful multitasking aspects of Android 3.1 Honeycomb as well as the enhancements coming from the Touch Wiz UI update. They have updated many widgets and bring some sweet changes to make things slick, and pretty.

Don’t take my word for it, check out the official video below. Oh and while you are here enter to win your own 10″ Android Tablet in our Tabletpalooza Giveaway.

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T-Mobile myTouch 4G Free as Web-Only Special til July 7th

Posted: 05 Jul 2011 12:18 PM PDT

Looks like T-Mobile has another web-only special going and this time it’s on the myTouch 4G. Still one of the best phones around, especially from T-Mobile. As you’d expect the amazing price of free is with a new 2-year contract as always, but that is a great price for an amazing phone.

The deal will only last until July 7th so time is running out for those interested. Hurry and head over to T-Mobile and get your own. This has me wondering if they are trying to get rid of some of the myTouch 4G stock to make room for the upcoming myTouch 4G Slide.

Both are great phones and would make any user plenty happy. If you don’t want the hardware keyboard or to wait for the Slide then your best bet is to snag this web-only deal while it lasts. They are offering both the black and white model for FREE but you better hurry.

[via T-Mobile]

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