Penny Mobiles – Mobile phone news, reviews & information

There are plenty of reasons why Samsung and Sony Ericsson should be happy. After all, the past few months has seen the companies release a whole new line of Android devices and of course, the continued growth of market demand for the Google made platform.

Sony Ericsson has been in financial turmoil last year and has taken most of 2010 getting back in the game. But with both feet now planted firmly back on the ground with a strong line up of new devices selling plenty in the past couple of quarters, it is not surprising that the Swedish Japanese joint venture is enjoying it newfound success. Of course, the icing on the cake would have to be the award from EISA which celebrates the XPERIA X10 Mini smart phone.

Obviously, the X10 Mini is not as powerful as the XPERIA X10. In fact, compared to that powerhouse, the device seems very much like a toy. But looking closer at the specs, one realizes that the Mini is far more practical –especially when price is concerned. The phone is much cheaper than the X10 and it is almost as functional. Sure, the processor is slower and the screen is much smaller. But given that the device is far cheaper –then it is a better choice.

Samsung also got a little award as well. While Sony Ericsson got off with the best mobile phone award, Samsung was still able to nab the best smart phone award. The recipient is none other than the Galaxy S with its’ impressive high end specifications. Naturally, the phone’s impressive touch screen display technology which makes use of super AMOLED technology surpasses most screens available –including the retina display on the iPhone 4.

Expect to hear more about these two devices as the EISA awards are certain to bring the spotlight back on them.

According to recent reports, there are two new additions to Samsung’s Galaxy series of mobile phones. The first is a mid range handset that is a lot like a super upgraded Corby handset, while the other is a massive tablet device that still keeps mobile phone features.

First off, the i5801 Galaxy Apollo; this new handset has been shown off at the Orange Mobile UK website, though the full details have yet to be confirmed. So far, it has been revealed that the smart phone will come with the new Android 2.1 Éclair open source mobile platform, a 3.15 mega pixel snapper and a decent sized 3.2 inch TFT capacitive touch screen display. Overall, it is very HTC Legend like, though it could use a better 5 mega pixel camera and the super AMOLED touch screen which will be used in the i9000 Galaxy S.

While a release date and CPU details have yet to be revealed, expect to see Orange get a semi exclusive version of this smart phone (or possibly even full exclusivity of the device itself).

Last week, Samsung also showed the tech industry that it has been busy planning for the upcoming tablet wars. With the successful launch of the Apple iPad last May, it is no longer a surprise that other companies want a share of the tablet market, and being armed with Google’s Android OS is certainly a great plan.

The new Galaxy Tab has a 7 inch touch screen display. While it is slightly smaller than the iPad (which has a 9.7 inch screen), the Galaxy Tab has a feature that the iPad can never match, the ability to make calls. This is why the Samsung Galaxy Tab is still considered as a smart phone despite its very tablet-like features.

Korean manufacturer Samsung has yet to confirm when the device would be in production, but many tablet fans are hoping to try out the device very soon.