Though a holiday in the US, Wednesday has marked Sprint's release of the Sanyo Katana II on its network. The release follows a short turnaround from the phone's appearance as the Katana DLX in leaks and is now known to include a few minor but useful internal changes beyond a more stylized look. Bluetooth has been upgraded to 2.0 for support of faster and newer headsets; memory has also grown significantly to 20MB, providing just enough room for extra photos from the 1.3-megapixel camera or for ringtones.

As expected, the device provides full support for some of Sprint's premium services, such EVDO Internet access, video streaming, and assisted GPS route finding. Black, pink, and steel gray versions of the Katana sequel will be available at the end of the holiday for either $100 with a two-year contract or $250 as a stand-alone device for contract-free subscribers.