A leaked internal document shows T-Mobile launching the Samsung Exhibit 4G and Gravity SMART on June 22. Both phones have been linked to the same launch date as the high-end HTC Sensation 4G. T-Mobile has not announced an official launch date for any of the smartphones.
T-Mobile on Thursday brought out a pair of Android phones raising the bar for its entry level. The Samsung Exhibit 4G should be one of the most affordable phones on its network to support its full 21Mbps HSPA+ data speeds. It shares the 1GHz processor of the Galaxy S line but is the only other phone on T-Mobile beyond the Nexus S to ship with Android 2.3, giving it most of the latest features, even including video chat from a front VGA camera.
Samsung is planning a sequel to the Gravity T that would upgrade it to the smartphone class. A leak has shown the GT2, likely Gravity T2, using Android 2.2. T-Mobile's phone would use the opportunity to upgrade the hardware underneath, TmoNews learned, including a slightly larger 3.2-inch touchscreen over its slide-out keyboard and an 800MHz processor.
T-Mobile has bumped up the prices of many of its handsets as of yesterday, TMoNews reported on Wednesday. Following just after the launch of the Galaxy S 4G, the company has that bumped the myTouch 4G in price, along with the T-Mobile G2, to $250 on contract.
Best Buy's current Free Phone Friday in October has focused heavily on Android and includes the HTC Aria for AT&T, the Samsung Intercept for Sprint, and LG Ally for Verizon with just one feature phone, the Samsung Gravity 3 for T-Mobile. Best Buy launched the program for the month of October and includes a choice of smartphones that only require a two-year contract. The Aria is the best deal judging by the specs, as it includes a five-megapixel camera, GPS and Android 2.1.
Best Buy Mobile on Tuesday announced it will start a Free Phone Fridays promotion on every Friday in October, starting October 1. There will be four phones available to represent AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon. They will cost nothing but will require signing a two-year contract.
Provider T-Mobile and Samsung on Wednesday unwrapped three new messaging phones. The Samsung Gravity 3, Gravity T and :) (Smiley) have a slide-out QWERTY keyboard and a social networking feature called T-Mobile Social Buzz. It runs in the background and delivers message notifications to the home screen.
