Samsung Stratosphere owners are the latest target for Verizon’s new Backup Assistant Plus service. Many of them are receiving text messages from VZWNMN, something that we understand to be annoying, to say the least. We actually wrote about this exact same tip in June for the Incredible 2, but for whatever reason, it’s Big Red’s other 4G LTE slider that is being attacked today.

Like I said, the messages have to do with Backup Assistant Plus which is VZW’s new subscription service that allows you to store more than just contacts. You can manage multiple webmail accounts, store media (pictures and video), and access them all from anywhere. It may sound neat, but your Android phone already does all of the contact backup automatically to Google’s cloud. And if you want to backup media, there are plenty of options like Dropbox or Box that will do just fine. There is really no reason to sign up for this service other than to make your life hell when setting up your next Android phone. 

Did anyone purchase the Samsung Stratosphere when it was released two weeks ago? If you did, know that you can now root the lil’ guy and attempt to have even more fun with your LTE speeds and physical keyboard. The instructions look massive and are not for just any casual hacker though. You need adb, Heimdall or Odin, and to follow the entire process that is listed at the source link below.

If only rooting could add a second processor, Super AMOLED Plus screen, and 1GB of RAM, this would be really hot.

Via:  RootzWiki

Cheers knightcrusader!

It may not be the Galaxy SII, but if you love Samsung, slideout keyboards, low prices, and 4G LTE, the Stratosphere is your only option for the time being. We all know that a set of powerhouse devices is on the way including the HTC Rezound, DROID RAZR, and Galaxy Nexus, but there are a handful of people out there that can’t live without a physical keyboard. None of those devices has one. For $149 on 2-year contract, this little guy and its 1GHz single-core processor can be yours.

Buy.

No surprises here, but we still wanted to point out that the Samsung Stratosphere is finally “official” on Verizon. Available this Thursday (October 13), this is one of the cheapest 4G LTE phones at just $149 after $50 rebate. It is essentially the Samsung Fascinate but with a keyboard and 4G LTE. Full specs can be found here and here.

More pics and other specs after the break.  

The Samsung Stratosphere stopped being a mystery long ago, but after a couple of missed release dates, we now have the official one thanks to our friends at Verizon.  You can purchase this mid-tier 4G LTE slider next week on October 13.  Pricing has not been announced, but we are expecting or assuming at least, that it will swing in around the $149 mark on 2-year contract.

We have full specs (again) for you below, as well as the user manual and some side shots.  

With accessories now arriving in stores for the Samsung Stratosphere, I’d say we may just see it this week on October 6 after all.  We essentially already know just about everything there is to know about this phone now, including the official specs and what it will look like.  It’s a mid-tier 4G LTE phone for those that can’t live without a physical keyboard and will likely sneak in around the $149 mark on 2-year contract.

Keyboard fiends, are you ready for it?

Cheers ___!

When the Samsung Stratosphere first popped up on DL, most of us had fingers an toes crossed that it would be Verizon’s Galaxy SII variant.  We now know that not to be the case and will instead see a device more on-par with the Epic 4G on Sprint than anything.  That doesn’t mean it is a total flop though – remember that there is a pretty good sized group of people that cannot live without a physical keyboard and also want 4G LTE.  This will be their option, for now.

We just received the comparison specs sheets for the device from our friends at Verizon, so that those interested can get an idea as to what they might expect when the device launches on October 6.  What we have is a single-core 1GHz processor, Android 2.3, 1.3MP front camera, 5MP rear camera, 512MB of RAM, 4″ Super AMOLED display, and 4G LTE capabilities.

Verizon is calling it a “mid-tier” option, so we can hope that means it will come in around a $149.99 price point.