After a week or so of teaser announcements, Verizon Wireless officially unveiled the new DROID smartphone by Motorola – the first smartphone powered by the new Android 2.0 OS (which Google just recently released the SDK for). So let’s get down to the features shall we? According to VW, here’s what you’ll be able to do with the DROID:
- Multi-window browser
- Large touch-screen display (3.7 inches) with an incredible resolution of 854 x 480
- Access thousands of apps over at the Android Market
- Voice-activated search delivered via Google
- The first device to feature Google Maps Navigation (Beta) which provides turn-by-turn voice guidance as a free feature of Google Maps. Use voice shortcuts and simply say “Navigate to [destination]” and you’ll be on your way. You can see live traffic, street view, or satellite imagery to view your route
- Built-in apps include Google Maps, Gmail, YouTube, Google Talk, Android Market, Calendar, Amazon MP3 store, and Verizon Wireless Visual Voice Mail.
The specs to the DROID are as follows (and according to BGR, this is absolutely the fastest Droid-powered handset yet!):
- Arm Cortex A8 processor 550 mHz
- 3.7″; WVGA (480 x 854 pixels); 16:9 widescreen
- 5 megapixel camera with 4x digital zoom, dual LED flash and auto focus
- Built-in music player with support for AAC, H.263, H.264, MP3, MPEG-4, WAV, WMA, eAAC+, OGG, AMR WB, AMR NB, AAC+, MIDI file formats
- Audio/video streaming support
- Video capture at DVD quality (720×480 resolution) up to 24 fps capture; up to 30 fps playback
- 1400 mAh Li-Ion battery with 385 minute usage time and up to 270 hour standby time
- Email support – Corporate (Exchange 2003 and 2007), Gmail, IMAP, POP3, Attachment and browser document viewer (Microsoft Office and pdf)
- MMSG, SMS, IM, voicemail
- Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR support with HFP, HSP, A2DP, AVRCP, PBAP, and OPP profile support)
- Synchronization support for Corporate calendar, email and contacts (Exchange 2003 and 2007), Google contacts, calendar and Gmail, Facebook contacts
- 802.11 b/g Wi-Fi
- microUSB connector
- aGPS along with Google Maps, Google Maps Navigation Beta, Google Latitude, Google Maps Street View, eCompass
- Built-in web browser
- 3.5 mm headset jack
- Speakerphone
- Advanced speech recognition, Automatic redial, conference calling, emergency dial, noise reduction, speed dial, vibracall, voice dialing, phone book
- Haptic feedback
- Light-responsive display
- QWERTY keyboard
- Measures 2.4 x 4.6 x .5 inches
- Weighs 6 oz
- Built-in accelerometer
- Network support includes: CDMA 1X 800/1900, EVDO rev A
- 16 GB microSD pre-installed; supports up to 32 GB microSD expandable
- Sensors include Proximity, ambient light and eCompass
OK.. enough about features and specs – what about pricing and availability?
The DROID will be available starting next Friday November 6th in the U.S. exclusively at Verizon Wireless Stores and online for $199.99 with a new two-year customer agreement after a $100 mail-in rebate. Customers will receive the rebate in the form of a debit card which they can use as cash anywhere debit cards are accepted.
Customers will need to subscribe to a Nationwide voice plan and an Email and Web for Smartphone plan. Nationwide voice plans begin at $39.99 for monthly access for 450 minutes and an Email and Web for Smartphone plan is $29.99 for monthly access.
Finally, if you want to see a preview of the DROID handset, makes sure to head over to the Boy Genius Report where they’ve got an excellent preview of the handset. Those of you waiting for a solid iPhone competitor to arrive for Verizon Wireless might finally have their handset.
Here’s a video of the DROID handset courtesy of Verizon Wireless:
[Check it out]
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