Samsung Goes Sci-Fi With Galaxy Android PhoneSamsung Goes Sci-Fi With Galaxy Android Phone

The onslaught of Android devices is fully under way. The latest salvo comes from Samsung, which announced the Galaxy Spica i5700 Android device. The Galaxy totes an 800MHz processor and a couple of multimedia surprises under the hood.
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Samsung Galaxy Spica i5700

The Galaxy Spica i5700 (that's some name, eh?) has a fair-to-middling feature set. Perhaps the most disappointing is that the Galaxy will ship with Android 1.5 "Cupcake" on board, and not the newer 1.6 "Donut" release of Android that's widely available. Why no Donut love, Samsung?

It's nice to see that Samsung has stuck an 800MHz processor in there, but not all that surprising since Samsung's own Moment Android device has the same processor. Network compatibility includes quad-band GSM/EDGE and support for the 900/2100MHz Asian and European 3G bands. (That means it won't work on U.S. 3G networks.)

According to Samsung, the most interesting aspect of the Galaxy is its multimedia powers. It supports DivX for the first time on an Android-powered phone, which will eliminate the hassle of file format conversions. It also has DNSe 2.0 for better sound quality and 3.5mm ear jack. DivX and DNSe 2.0, nicely done, Samsung.

The Galaxy has a 3.2-inch, 320 x 480 pixel display. No AMOLED screen technology here. It also has a 3 megapixel camera with autofocus, support for microSD cards up to 32GB, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, Wi-Fi and GPS.

It's available in certain European and Asian markets starting today.