We’re about to enter a period in smartphone technology where minimum specs are going to become more important than ever.  There are so many quality options currently on and headed to the market that it has become difficult to decide which phone should be the next to grace the lining of your jean pockets.  We see a lot of conversation over whether or not this AMOLED screen is better than that qHD screen and if this single-core processor can compete with that dual-core version.  There are few phones out there that seem to completely satisfy every single one of your needs, but which one ultimately leads you to a decision?

 Loading ...

Poor special edition R2-D2 DROID 2.  It’s now available for $99 after instant discount and having started it’s short life at $249.  The device was supposed to sell out in minutes and even had parties thrown in its honor, but that apparently wasn’t enough to move the “limited” numbers available.  Anyone interested?

Via:  BGR, Verizon

The LG Optimus 2X has found its way into the hands of a few developers which means that all of its goodies are being stripped out and redistributed for the rest of us to enjoy.  If you aren’t sure what the Optimus 2X is, just know that it is the world’s first Tegra 2 phone made by LG and so far has not been announced for any U.S. carrier.  It’s a beast of a phone, has a ton of cool stuff packed into it, and thanks to XDA member GHOST99K, we can install it all.  

We received information from Verizon over the weekend suggesting that the HTC Thunderbolt would launch without the ability to act as a mobile hotspot for up to 8 devices, but boy can things change quickly.  As of this morning, VZW seems to have flipped their stance on hotspot availability and are now welcoming in the feature, which is great news for anyone hoping to pick up the device.  No word on if this was a technical issue or a company ruling, but we’re glad to see it back.

And to see how the TBolt stacks up against the rest of the smartphone big dogs including the EVO and i*hone 4, check out these comparison charts.

Via:  Engadget

Did the Super Bowl ad for the Motorola XOOM just pop up on YouTube?  It sure looks that way.  The ad is as expected, directed at the iPad and how it’s time for people to have choices.  Specs are splashed across the screen and a slogan of “It’s time to live a free life” is introduced, but no actual pictures of the XOOM can be found.  I’m actually not a fan of the ad, but we’re thinking it’ll be in 3D if shown at the Super Bowl.  It has all of those in-your-face flying graphics to appeal to the new wave of television viewers, but still, we better see more on game day than this.

Update:  We should point out that this is likely just a teaser and not the ad we’ll see on Sunday.

Oh and maybe we just missed this, but the XOOM’s site seems to be extra spicy these days.   

A brave soul took to YouTube over the weekend to release an unofficial unboxing and quick walk-through of the HTC Thunderbolt.  We’re calling this “unofficial” because it is definitely not coming out of retail packaging and could be from a tester or someone else deep in the pre-release phone ranks.  He even mentions the fact that the phone is running an older version of the final software we’ll see in the next couple of weeks, so let’s not get too crazy about it.

In the video though, you’ll basically just see a re-hash of what we did at CES, but he does touch on the fact that Skype video chatting will be built into Sense, which could be the reason it’s delayed.  The rest is stuff we’ve seen in our crystal clear hands-on video and gallery, so overall, this video should just help you realize how amazing it will be once it hits store shelves.  The guy makes reference to it crushing the DROID BIONIC in benchmarks, but again, we’ve heard rumors that the CES versions of that phone were not utilizing dual-cores, so take that as non-sense for now.  

We’ve been doing a lot of comparison charts lately (like this one and this one), but we’re apparently not alone.  Verizon is also doing their own set of comparison charts for the new HTC Thunderbolt which we’re all expecting to see some time in February.  With the TBolt looking like it’ll be the first 4G LTE device on Verizon, they’ve taken the opportunity to compare it to the rest of the big time devices available internally and externally including the i*hone 4 and EVO 4G.

While we already know that the TBolt is an amazing device (hands-on gallery and video) this chart also confirms our report from the weekend that the TBolt will launch without mobile hotspot and Skype Mobile being active.  We’re sure that both will be available shortly after, but just wanted to make sure you were all aware.  Verizon is also reminding everyone that there are alternatives in the market like Qik and Fring.