After the Optimus Black, LG launches in The Netherlands the Optimus White

An alternative color and an alternative name for one of the best LG Android phones, for now only in Holland.

LG announced the Optimus Black last January and released it in May, advertising it as the thinnest smartphone (Samsung Galaxy S II was announced a month later being slightly thinner) and with the brightest screen thanks to the 700nit NOVA display. Now the Dutch operator Sizz announced the very same device for the Dutch market, excepted for its color and the new name: LG Optimus White.

With a 1GHz TI OMAP 3630 chipset, 512MB RAM, 2GB storage, a 5Mpx camera capable to capture 720p@30fps videos and a secondary 2Mpx front-facing camera, a 4-inch Gorilla Glass touchscreen NOVA display, the LG Optimus White may not be the most powerful device around but it’s definitely a good choice and a great performances/price combination. Android version is still Froyo, but an update to Gingerbread is expected in the Fall.

We don’t know if future releases will include the Optimus Pink, Silver or Blue, but for sure they would be good addition to the line-up of LG Android smartphones.

Samsung Galaxy Z Hitting The U.K. As the Galaxy R This Month

The Samsung Galaxy Z was revealed by a Swedish cellular provider as a lower-end Galaxy S II with its 4.2-inch screen and a slower but still dual-core processor. It appears that the Galaxy Z will be landing in The U.K. this month as the Galaxy R. 

The main difference between the Galaxy S II and the Galaxy R is the screen, which on the Galaxy R is .1 inches smaller (4.2 version 4.3 on the Galaxy S II) and is allegedly Super LCD instead of Super AMOLED Plus. Additionally, the powerful dual-core Exynos CPU on the SGS2 has been reportedly replaced by an nVidia Tegra 2 dual-core processor. The camera is also smaller: five-megapixels with 720p HD video recording capability. On-board you will also find WiFi, GPS, FM Radio, 8GB internal memory and microSD card slot supporting up to 32GB. 

As far as pricing is concerned there are no details as of yet but, given the lower than SGS2 specs, expect it to be cheaper than Samsung's flagship phone. 

Motorola Droid 3 Sports Same Qualcomm Chip as Apple iPhone 4

The recently launched Verizon Motorola Droid 3, currently on a great BOGO deal at the carrier, has been dismantled to expose the same 3G chip that Apple is using in its iPhone 4. 

Deep under the plastic of the Motorola Droid 3 lays silicone from Qualcomm. The chip is the Qualcomm MDM6600 3G model which is the same as the one to be found in Apple's CDMA iPhone 4 variant for the same carrier. Unlike the Cupertino product though, the Droid 3 is a world phone that can be used in Europe too over GSM network. For those of you enjoying device teardowns, head over to the source link and see the Motorola Droid 3 internals as the phone is dismantled. 

Android Application Weekly 15 Jul 2011

In this episode of the Android Application Weekly we demonstrate some apps that will help you edit your photos, play music from your computer to your Android, and entertain with some challenging puzzle games. To download these directly to your Android smartphone or tablet just take a picture of the QR-Code using Google Goggles or any other QR-Code scanner or click on the app title link to be taken directly to the Android Market.



Apparatus – A lite and $1.95 full version



Apparatus is a fun and challenging 3D puzzle game. The object of the game is to position various planks and tools into a position to get the marbles into the blue crates. Build complex structures or use as little of the tools as possible to achieve the goal.



ColorUp – Lite and $0.99 full version



If you enjoy artistic photos with gray scale and color but haven’t had the skills to create your own masterpieces then ColorUp is the photo app for you. Just select a photo and with the simple tools you will be able to remove and add color to highlights in your photos. Share with friends or family and save to your SDcard.



Refraction – A lite and $1.49 full version



Refraction is a challenging puzzle game in which you must position various mirrors and prisms to redirect or change the beams of light to their particular orb. Some levels are very difficult to be forewarned but along with that comes a lot of time missed trying to solve the puzzles.



Audiogalazy – A free application



Audiogalaxy is a great app for anyone that likes to have access to their music files on the go. While storing music on the SDcard is great, being able to access your other countless tracks on the go is ever better. The app does require to sign up for a free Audiogalaxy account and install the helper tool to keep your music synced and updated.



Equalizer – A free application



Even though many Android developers are creating their own audio equalizers, many are not as easy to use as this free Equalizer app. If you like your music to have a heart thumping sound then you will enjoy Equalizer. The app is simple to use and will run in the background so that any audio playback will use the Equalizer preset.

UK Getting Gingerbread For LG Optimus 3D In October

It's been seven months since the debut of Android Gingerbread, and we continue to see brand-new smartphones released running Froyo. We appreciate the lengthy development cycles phone manufacturers must plan for, but we're really starting to get to the point where our tolerance for seeing Android 2.2 on a new smartphone is dropping sharply. LG's Optimus 3D, for instance, despite its eye-catching display and powerful processor and memory configuration, will still arrive with Froyo on board. At least now we have an idea of how long users will have to wait before they can finally upgrade, with LG revealing that Gingerbread will be coming to the Optimus 3D in the UK this October.

There is some good news in all of this, that LG will supposedly bundle that Gingerbread update with an auto 2D-to-3D app converter that should get you some more mileage out of the smartphone's no-glasses-required 3D display. The company didn't reveal when regions outside the UK would gain access to the update, but we certainly hope it would be sooner, rather than later.