Android this week: $29 smartphones; Droid Bionic arrives; Netflix updated

This week saw both a $29 and a $299 Android phone launch, showing the extreme range of handsets that run Google’s mobile platform; something that’s helping it grow smartphone market share. Although there’s a wide variance in the price between the two, both are capable of connecting consumers to fast mobile broadband networks, a large app store, and social networks. The difference is in the experience.

Huawei’s Impulse 4G for AT&T is aimed at current feature phone users looking to step up to the smartphone world. At $29 with contract, you wouldn’t expect much in the way of hardware, but the device has some hardware features that were standard on more expensive phones last year: A 3.8-inch 800×480 touchscreen, 5 megapixel camera with HD recording capability, and GPS to name a few. The 800 MHz processor won’t set any speed records, but should be good enough for most tasks on a first-time smartphone.

At the other end of the spectrum is Verizon’s new Droid Bionic, made by Motorola. For $299 with contract, the handset is generally considered to be cutting-edge; at least for a few months, given the fast paced mobile technology cycle, particularly with Android phones. The phone’s 4.3-inch display uses a 960×540 resolution display, is powered by a 1 GHz dual-core processor with a full gigabyte of memory, has 32 GB of storage out of the box and connects to Verizon’s LTE network.

I’ve only spent a short time using a review unit of the Bionic, so I can only share some initial impressions for now. Overall, the phone is fast and responsive. The camera may be the best yet in Motorola smartphone. And so far, the Bionic handles network transitions reasonably well: it has switched between 3G and 4G networks (due to coverage) faster than other LTE devices I’ve used in the past.

The Bionic has a number of docking accessories, including the one that looks like a laptop but is powered by the phone, offering expansion options. I’ll have more thoughts in a detailed review soon, but for now, I’m generally impressed with the Bionic.

I’m also impressed with Netflix for Android, but the problem for many has been one of device support. When Netflix finally launched in May of this year for Android phones, it was only available for a half-dozen handsets. At that time, the company said it would have to test the software on each individual phone model.

That seems to have changed this past week as Netflix updated the application, saying it can now run on any Android 2.2 or 2.3 device. At last check, 81.9 percent of Android devices hitting the Android Market ran those two versions, meaning around 4 of every 5 current Android phones and small tablets can enjoy Netflix on the go.

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Verizon Droid Bionic launches Sept. 8, $299

Verizon launched the Droid Bionic, another 4G LTE phone, on Wednesday, just a day before the handset will be available in stores. The Bionic, built by Motorola, complements 4G network support with a dual-core processor and a large, high-resolution touchscreen. Verizon will offer the Droid Bionic for a contract price of $299 starting on Sept. 8.

This high-end handset was shown off by Motorola back in January at the Consumer Electronics Show, where Sanjay Jha, Motorola’s CEO, said it would launch in the second quarter of 2011. That didn’t happen, but Android enthusiasts on Verizon’s network may forgive the carrier based on the hardware features and functions in the Bionic:

Similar to the Motorola Atrix that debuted earlier this year on AT&T’s network, Verizon will offer a lapdoc solution for the Bionic. The $300 accessory is an 11.6-inch notebook shell that is powered by the smartphone when docked. A $99 dock option charges the phone and pipes video to a connected HDTV.

Stay tuned for a first-look video and full review of the Droid Bionic; we have a review unit in-house and will follow up with more details and impressions of Verizon’s newest LTE smartphone.

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Samsung Stratosphere: Verizon’s next LTE phone?

Verizon subscribers may have their first handset with both LTE and a slide-out keyboard to choose from this week. The Samsung Stratosphere is reportedly about to launch on the largest carrier in the U.S., according to PocketNow, which has images of the handset. To the disappointment of many, Verizon chose not to carry the most popular Samsung phone, the Galaxy S II.

The Stratosphere’s support for LTE should appeal to those wanting a smartphone with a mobile broadband connection that averages around 12 Mbps, faster than many home broadband connections. The five-row hardware keyboard will separate Verizon customers into two camps, however. Some will want the keyboard feature while others won’t want the added bulk and weight it brings.

Few other Stratosphere specifications are known, although back in July, some details began to appear. The handset was seen running Android 2.3.4 at that time, and an Android Central tipster described the screen as “awesome” after taking a hands-on look. I’d say that means Samsung’s Super AMOLED Plus technology is on board, but we’ll have to see, since the phone looks much like last year’s Sprint Epic 4G.

If the handset has a 5 megapixel camera, as noted in July, the phone may be part of Samsung’s new Galaxy R line, introduced last month and touted as a premium category model with a combination of power, performance and productivity. I’d equate that to one step below the Galaxy S line, or between the mid- and high-end smartphone range, which could still appeal to some who had hoped for a Galaxy S II on Verizon.

When Verizon announced last month that it would forgo the Galaxy S II, I suggested it was due to the phone’s lack of support for Verizon’s new LTE network. There are few other logical reasons not to offer the phone, given that it has received stellar reviews and arguably has the highest specification combo in any single smartphone to date. A new Stratosphere may not replace a Galaxy S II, but it would show that Verizon would prefer to push handsets with LTE, even in the mid-range line.

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Motorola Xoom LTE upgrade reportedly due in September

Seven months after launching with the promise of using Verizon’s LTE network, the Motorola Xoom tablet is finally going to deliver the goods. The Droid-Life blog has a screenshot indicating that Xoom owners will be able to upgrade their Android tablet in September to gain access to Verizon’s faster 4G network. Verizon has said the upgrade would be shortly after the Xoom’s launch, which was back in February. I suspect that news of another LTE tablet launching this week, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, might have added pressure to offer the upgrade sooner rather than later.

The hardware upgrade will be free although there is some inconvenience involved: Xoom owners must send in their tablet for the upgrade. The device return can take up to six business days, after which time it can access the LTE network, which supplements the device’s Wi-Fi and 3G connections. There is no price increase from Verizon (as of yet) to use the operator’s 4G network, so Xoom owners who do upgrade will gain faster speeds at no extra monthly charge.

My testing of the network has routinely shown mobile broadband speeds between 10 Mbps and 12 Mbps, making it fast enough even to potentially download an entire operating system. Of course, faster speeds often means greater overall network use; after the LTE upgrade, Xoom owners could bump up against their monthly bandwidth tiers and pay $10 for each additional GB of data.

With the mail-in process and lengthy amount of time it has taken to get an LTE radio in this device, I still feel the Xoom, and Honeycomb for that matter, was simply rushed to market. As the first Android Honeycomb tablet, the Xoom could have shined out of the gate. Instead, I found the software to be buggy with many application crashes, the 4G wasn’t enabled and the memory card slot wasn’t usable. This being the first year for the new Motorola Mobility spin-off, I expected a bit more. Regardless, current Xoom owners will finally get what they were promised nearly half a year ago.

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Which is Verizon’s first LTE tablet? (Hint: not Xoom)

Verizon is launching an LTE-enabled Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Honeycomb tablet on July 28, available in two configurations. The 16 GB model will cost $529.99, and a 32 GB version adds $100 to that. Both models are priced with a two-year contract; customers can choose one of Verizon’s mobile broadband data plans that offer a set amount of 4G data, ranging from 2 GB ($30) to 10 GB ($80) in a month. A 16 GB Wi-Fi-only version of the Tab will also be sold by Verizon for $499.99 on the same day.

Samsung’s Galaxy Tab may offer the best challenge to Apple’s iPad in terms of build quality, weight, thickness and aesthetics, although some may not like the plastic back cover. In terms of hardware specs, there’s also a lot to like: 1 GHz dual-core Tegra 2(nvda) processor, 1280×800 display, two cameras and an LED flash, for example. Adding in the LTE radio brings a more mobile experience to the Android device while also putting more customers on Verizon’s shiny new 4G network. Adding these customers will help the carrier begin recouping its large infrastructure investment.

But this product launch has to be a virtual slap in the face for customers that bought a Motorola Xoom. When the Honeycomb tablet was introduced at January’s Consumer Electronics Show, support for Verizon’s new LTE network was touted as a selling point. But when the Xoom actually launched in February, it didn’t come with LTE; instead, it came with news of a 4G hardware upgrade “soon after launch.” It’s now five months later and the Xoom still doesn’t support LTE, leaving many Xoom owners with Verizon’s slower 3G network and, so far, an empty promise of faster future speeds.

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