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HTC Dream (Android) Video Emerges
Posted by
timothy
on Mon Aug 11, 2008 10:37 AM
from the future-looks-bright dept.
from the future-looks-bright dept.
Barence writes "A video purporting to show the new Android-based handset from HTC has surfaced online. The video claims to show the HTC Dream, with its orientation sensor in action, automatically flipping the screen as the user changes from holding it horizontally to vertically. HTC announced earlier this month that it would be ready to release an Android handset before the end of the year, with speculation that this referred to the Dream handset."
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Technology: Google Revs Android, FCC Approves First Phone 259 comments
Cycon writes "Google has announced, 'We're releasing a beta SDK. You can read about the new Android 0.9 SDK beta at the Android Developers' Site, or if you want to get straight to the bits, you can visit the download page.' A new Development Roadmap has also been released to help developers understand the direction the software is taking (as this is still only a Beta release). In addition, the FCC has approved the HTC Dream, and it is believed Google and T-Mobile will launch the phone in the US on November 10, since a confidentiality request attached to the application asks the FCC to keep details secret until that date."
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Vido no longer available? (Score:3, Informative)
I get the message that the video in the URL is no longer available. Happens almost all the time when linked from /. :-(
The phone is just one piece... (Score:5, Interesting)
In all the coverage that I have seen, they keep talking about the phone itself. In my opinion, the reason the ipod was so successful was not as much because of the device, but rather on the integration of an easy to use platform of services for consumers. The ease of use App Store for the iPhone is a great example of this, but is only a small piece long term. In Apple's case, you can bet they have big integration plans for their OSX/iPod/iTunes/iTV product lines.
Meaning, I really question is the industry can effectively challenge Apple in a long term sense without the full underpinning support of Microsoft and eventually the Linux community... I guess we will see, though...
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
The App Store will need considerable improvement if Apple is to keep up.
Keep up with what? No one else has anything like it yet. At least wait until the first big competitor emerges to decide what Apple has to do to "keep up" with them.
Yes, the App Store needs refinement. On the other hand, Apple now has a HUGE amount of data they can sift through to improve things. They know where referrers are coming from. They know how many hits each page is getting relative to the number of purchases. They have a
Lousy video (Score:5, Insightful)
Automatic Flipping???? (Score:4, Informative)
I Want To Want This (Score:5, Insightful)
I want to make love to this handset.
The touchscreen looks solid, plus there's a full, slide-out keyboard. Beautiful.
It's an open architecture, so there's none of this "sorry, we'll let this guy sell his 'I'm An Idiot' app for $1,000, but if you try to port a web browser over, we'll murder your children" crap.
It runs Java, so there's none of this "you can program in any language you want, as long as your one of the ten people in the universe that uses Objective-C" crap.
Please, Google, *please* don't screw this up. Cool it with the "for your eyes only" SDK shenanigans. Get a decent build out the door, and start getting some handset makers in the game.
Give me something better than an iPhone.
Re:I Want To Want This (Score:4, Funny)
Given their open development environment and the types of programmers it attracts, I think you'll only have to wait a few weeks after the release date...
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Could be... (Score:5, Interesting)
Both the Boy Genius Report [boygeniusreport.com] and Engadget [engadget.com] are fairly skeptical that this is the "final" Dream, mostly because the phone in this video isn't nearly as attractive as HTC's other recent phones.
I hope it's not final. Why would HTC release something that looks like the generic phone in this video for their first android handset when the company is perfectly capable of making something as attractive as the Touch Diamond [htc.com]?
Also, I know that Youtube comments are generally about as useful as catshit, but the uploader claims in the comments below his video, "i Think Semi-final but not Sure. And there is a black one. i'll upload the live demo of it."
The real news: No mention of iPhone in the article (Score:5, Insightful)
Folks, folks, the REAL news here is that the word iPhone doesn't appear in the article. We've reached a point where a phone w/ new technology (Android, in this case) can be mentioned without the comparison being made. I don't know if it was an oversight by the author, or if iPhones have passed the hype-cusp or what, but this is a big day for cell phone news.
I loves my iPhone, btw, but I'm not a fanboi that thinks that it has an inherent greatness because of its origins. The most exciting thing to me about the iPhone is the effect it's having on the rest of the industry. Competition makes things better, and if future phones make serious inroads to usability of the caliber the iPhone did, then we're in for some great stuff.
The challenge for Android seems to be making it compelling for the user. The news I've read and documents I've reviewed suggest that the emphasis is on the developers, making it powerful to code on and providing a heavy duty framework. The UI demos I've seen so far have left me cold, though, and remind me more of Windows Mobile.
Anyhow, I digress. No mention of iPhone: Good. Not because I hate the iPhone (I loves it), but because I think the focus should be on the user, not on one specific device.
orientation sensor? (Score:3, Informative)
I'm not seeing the orientation change when he tilts from from landscape to portrait and back. The only change I witness coincides with sliding out the keyboard; guess what, an actual switch - such as that on the HTC Wizard (I have one) - will do that much.
But even if it had a proper orientation sensor - so what. This is a blurry video of a seemingly rather ugly flimsy (saw that slide-out wiggle? yikes) device that has trouble registering taps (see beginning of video).
I know that Android is a platform, not a phone - but for the sake of the platform, I hope this device (whatever it is - I have a hard time believing it's an HTC product... even a model study) is not what is going to be associated with it.
Where's the (Open) source? (Score:4, Insightful)
Android apparently runs a load of Apache and GPL licensed stuff - so where's the source guys?
I want to run it on my Neo Freerunner as it's not looking like the openmoko guys are going to be geting a solid phone platform available any time soon...
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
From the Android FAQ page: http://code.google.com/android/kb/licensingandoss.html [google.com]
Re:Where's the (Open) source? (Score:5, Informative)
Chris
Parent
We've got a few demo models at work (Score:5, Informative)
For the most part the experience is pretty slick. Coming from using the iPhone for a year now some of the navigation paradigms seemed foreign so it took a little getting used to.
For one thing, the screen rotation is not detected but dependent on whether or not the screen is slid out. When the handset is closed the screen is in a vertical orientation and when the handset is open and the keyboard is exposed the screen is in a horizontal orientation.
There is no onscreen keyboard so the only way to actually do input is with the screen open. It's kind of annoying because you might be using it with one hand in vertical mode and come to a point where you have to type in something so you have to stop, rotate the device, open the screen and then start typing.
One big feature it has over the iPhone is copy/paste. It only works on input fields but at least you've got something.
The google maps street view compass thing was pretty slick and worked just as I had seen demoed. Overall I think it will be some good healthy competition and hopefully force Apple to open up their platform a little more.
As far as development goes there's no approval process or dictator mandating unpublished UI rules. You can download the eclipse IDE, plug in the phone via USB and deploy apps right to the phone or publish a file that can be downloaded and installed.
For people who require a physical keyboard, this will be the phone to have.
Re:Wow, it can take a signal from a sensor, and re (Score:5, Insightful)
I own an iPhone. I don't think it's very good. At least until it's jailbroken, whereupon it becomes pretty damn cool. Or, at least, useful. Call me when Apple finally realizes that they can't pull a 'razorblade business model' with MobileMe, when the data that is being sync'd is likely proprietary to a business customer or under grant of 'attorney-client privilege.' I'd also like to know when they'll get back to selling utility and functionality instead of flash and show.
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Re:Wow, it can take a signal from a sensor, and re (Score:4, Interesting)
I'm kind of curious -- now that the App Store is ramping up with useful stuff (there are, for example, at least two SSH apps posted now, with more to come), what's the compelling reason to jailbreak? Is it just tethering?
And I don't get what "attorney-client privilege" has to do with MobileMe... surely a law firm would run something like Exchange and use the iPhone's ActiveSync support, or alternately, Lotus Notes with the upcoming Notes client for the iPhone? It's not as if Apple's model suggests that enterprise business customers would use MobileMe.
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Re:Wow, it can take a signal from a sensor, and re (Score:4, Informative)
I still jailbreak mine, even though the big reason was ssh. The remaining reasons that keep me doing it:
1. Customizing the interface (i.e. personalizing the graphics & such).
2. SSH daemon on the phone itself, something Apple will never allow on App Store.
3. 'Cause I can
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Re:App Store vs jailbreak (Score:4, Funny)
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Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
No, I don't remember that at all. And I've been using Apple products since 1977.
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Wow, it can take a signal from a sensor, and re (Score:5, Funny)
If your account number were 2000 units lower, I'd ask you to return your geek card.
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oblig Philip K. Dick ref (Score:5, Funny)
So is the Android Dream capable of generating Electric Sheep? [wikipedia.org]
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Re: (Score:3, Funny)
No, but it runs on a blade. Geddit?! boom! cha!
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
Well, it's GPL [electricsheep.org], so it certainly is possible. Imagine your Android Dream phone in sleep mode generating Electric Sheep. That's as close as it gets :)
Re:THe video sucks (Score:5, Informative)
Did you watch the same video I did? The phone definitely has a touch screen.
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