14 DAY TRIAL // Wireless carrier Sprint announced last week the near launch of new mobile phones running under Google's Android operating system, including the Sanyo Zio and Samsung Transform, two handsets that were already put on sale at the operator. Both new smartphones come to the market with the Android 2.1 operating system on board, on top of which the wireless carrier pre-loaded its new Sprint ID solution, meant to enable more customizations of the mobile experience one receives from the handset.
“Sprint ID, the latest Android innovation from Sprint, allows you to instantly personalize your phone to complement your needs and interests,” the wireless carrier announced.
The new Sanyo Zio was made available for purchase at Sprint with a price tag of $99.99 attached to it upon the signing of a two-year contract agreement and after a $100 mail-in rebate.
The handset sports a 3.5-inch WVGA touchscreen with virtual QWERTY, an intuitive trackball for easy navigation, and a 3.2-megapixel photo snapper with video recording capabilities.
At the same time, the new mobile phone comes with Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g) and Bluetooth connectivity options, as well as with GPS receiver, and with a microSD memory card slot with 32GB of additional storage space.
Not to mention that the handset comes with integration with various Google services, including Google Goggles, Google Maps, Gmail and Gtalk, YouTube, as well as with access to the Android Market.
Samsung Transform comes with a price tag of $149.99 after a $100 mail in rebate and upon the signing of a two-year contract agreement.
Its specs list includes a 3.5-inch HVGA touchscreen display, a slide-out QWERTY keyboard, 3.2 megapixel camera with flash and video recording, and a front-facing camera for video calling.
Moreover, the handset comes with WiFi (802.11 b/g), Bluetooth and GPS receiver, support for various Sprint services and applications, and a microSD memory card slot with support for up to 32GB of additional storage space.
All in all, the new smartphones should prove a nice addition to the carrier's offering, even if they are not high-end devices, since they can provide access to the Android OS to a wider range of users.
The new Android-based Sanyo Zio and Samsung Transform can be seen on Sprint's website here.
