14 DAY TRIAL // Mobile Virtual Network operator Straight Talk, which is exclusively offering prepaid mobile phone service to WalMart stores due to a joint-venture program between the two companies, has just announced that it will launch its first Android smartphone, the Samsung Galaxy Precedent.
Straight Talk is one of the four brands owned by TracFone, a prepaid mobile phone provider that also owns the NET10 and Safelink Wireless brands of service.
While the MVNO carrier does not reveal the Galaxy Precedent's release date, the smartphone can be reserved by those who are interested in a mid-entry Android device.
According to Straight Talk, the handset will be available for purchase for a suggested retail price of $150 and requires the carrier's $45 monthly unlimited plan.
Details about the phone's hardware and software configurations are a bit scarce now, but from the look of it the Galaxy Precedent strongly resembles the Samsung Galaxy Prevail, which is now available for purchase from Boost Mobile.
It is also unclear if the Galaxy Precedent will be delivered with CDMA or GSM support, as the MVNO operator is known for providing both services.
However, if this is indeed Boost Mobile's Samsung Galaxy Prevails, then we should expect an Android 2.2 (Froyo) smartphone, along with mid-size 3.2-inch capacitive touchscreen display with 262k colors support and 320 x 480 pixels resolution.
The Android-based smartphone should be equipped with an average 800 Mhz Qualcomm MSM7627-3 processor.
The phone only packs 117 MB of internal memory, but also embeds a microSD card slot for memory expansion (up to 32GB).
According to the manufacturer, the phone should be retailed with a free 2GB microSD memory card in the sales package, but Straight Talk does not make any mentions in this regard.
Furthermore, the Galaxy Precedent sports a mediocre 2-megapixel camera with QVGA video recording capabilities and is powered by a 1500 mAh Li-Ion battery that should provide up to 216 hours of standby time or up to 6 hours of talk time.