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T-Mobile USA Feb. 2 released more information about the LG G-Slate and Samsung Galaxy S 4G devices it plans to offer soon and took some shots at the Verizon Wireless iPhone 4 slated for launch next week.
T-Mobile formally introduced the Galaxy S 4G two weeks ago at a media event in New York City, but the wireless carrier confirmed the Android 2.2-based smartphone with the 4-inch Super AMOLED display and peak download speed of up to 21M bps will launch later this month.
T-Mobile still has not offered pricing for this 1GHz processor-powered phone, though a $199.99 price point with a two-year contract sounds about right for the high-end handset.
T-Mobile, which is touting the multimedia experiences of gaming and movies on its 4G-enabled devices, has preloaded the film “Inception” on the Galaxy S 4G, along with the T-Mobile Video Chat application powered by Qik. The handset also features a 5-megapixel camera, a preinstalled 16GB microSD memory card and a 1,650 mAh lithium ion battery.
T-Mobile argued that its 4G HSPA+ (Evolved High-Speed Packet Access) Android handsets and affordable data prices-starting at $10 a month for the Galaxy S 4G-make it well-positioned to compete with Verizon’s iPhone.
In a competitive jab at No. 1 carrier Verizon, T-Mobile said in a statement:
“While there’s been a lot of talk about Verizon’s iPhone recently, T-Mobile’s perspective is-why upgrade your smartphone and downgrade your network? It’s no fun having a great device running on a slow network.”
However, Verizon’s iPhone 4 shouldn’t be T-Mobile’s competitive focus. T-Mobile’s attention should be on the Motorola Atrix 4G coming this month from AT&T and Motorola Droid Bionic launching next quarter on Verizon. These devices are intended to run on 4G networks from their respective carriers.
More exciting for many consumers is T-Mobile’s introduction of the G-Slate with Google by LG Mobile Phones, which the carrier expects to sell this spring.
Based on the Android 3.0 operating system optimized for larger screens, the tablet is powered by the dual-core Nvidia Tegra 2 mobile processor and includes an 8.9-inch, multitouch display.
The G-Slate is primed to show 1080p HD content on its display and via HDMI to an HDTV, and 720p 3D content on its screen and via HDMI.
Native support for 3D graphics will be a boon for online gaming and will allow consumers to “capture and share their own 3D videos and experience 3D HD content right on the device with the aid of 3D glasses,” T-Mobile said.
The device sports a rear-facing stereoscopic video recorder and a 5-megapixel camera with LED flash. The front-facing camera enables users to video chat with people over T-Mobile’s network or WiFi with Google Talk.
The G-Slate comes with 32GB of internal memory and features a built-in gyroscope, an accelerometer, and adaptive lighting for indoor and outdoor use.
The G-Slate will hit the market after the Motorola Xoom, a 10.1-inch tablet with Android 3.0 coming from Verizon Wireless later this month or early March. Toshiba is also launching an Android 3.0 tablet later this spring, probably after the G-Slate.
Google is providing a demo of Android 3.0 on the Xoom at its Mountain View, Calif., headquarters today.