This holiday shopping season is dominated by Android. Smartphones running Google (NSDQ: GOOG)’s mobile operating system are flooding the market, and we really couldn’t be happier. The latest Android smartphone to find its way into our eager hands is the Samsung Behold II. Just in time for the holidays, T-Mobile (NYSE: DT) is offering the Samsung Behold II for $229.99 when purchased with new 2-year contract. It’s slightly pricier than the iPhone and the Verizon (NYSE: VZ) Motorola (NYSE: MOT) Droid, but with a sleek design and a quirky new 3D Cube UI, you might not mind shelling out the extra bucks for the Behold 2.

Unlike the original Samsung Behold, the Behold II sports Android 1.5 OS. It sports an impressive 5-megapixel camera (with LED-flash), 3G data, WiFi, GPS and microSD card slot. But, the one feature that outshines them all is the Behold 2’s 3.2-inch capacitive AMOLED touchscreen. The display doesn’t need a backlight, so it draws less power than traditional LCD displays, but manages to deliver a brighter, crisper, more color-rich picture.

The camera is a bit laggy, but serves up some impressively crisp and well-balanced pictures. The 3D Cube UI is quirky, to say the least. We’re sure some people will find it useful, but we just don’t see ourselves using it for more than just showing off to our friends. But, with a speedy browser and an incredible OLED display, the Behold II will more than make up for its confusing UI.

Enjoy the hands-on/unboxing gallery and video!

The upcoming Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE) Kurara, which got a brief glimpse of last week, just got an extensive review. This is clearly Sony Ericsson’s competitor to Samsung’s OmniaHD i8910, and meets the challenge on a few levels, such as processor (Cortex A8) and camera (8 megapixels), but the display loses a few points for not being AMOLED. The Symbian-based OS is similar to the Satio, complete with Facebook and Twitter integration, but the reviewer’s final conclusion is that this handset’s success will depend entirely on the price point – there’s not a lot of innovation going on, but a 300 Euro price point would likely be enough to win over a few folks. Even with the pricetag taken into account, I’m not sure why anyone would pick up the U5 over the X10…

[via Mobile-Review]

I’m always looking for good accessories to make sure my iPhone is protected – and I’ve lost track of the amount I’ve been through including:

• Rubber surround cases
• Leather flip-out cases
• Screen protectors
• Two-piece clip together plastic cases

However, it was largely a poorly-performing area of accessories as far as I was concerned, until I came across what I thought was the ideal type of cases – the Vertical Leather slip case. This genre of case works ideally for me, since I need the iPhone out of it’s case (say to dock in the official Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) charger mount) as much as in it. Now, most leather slip cases don’t afford any protection for the top of the phone (since that is where it ejects), but, overall a good compromise.

Fortunately, I think I’ve found a good performer in this genre of case, in the Beyzacases ‘Slimline Vertical Leather Case’, being retailed by MobileFun.

There actually isn’t that much to say on the case, other than to summarise that it does what it says on the tin – but, I’ll try and give you the highlights:

• Made from real leather
• Snug fit for iPhone 3G/3GS so it won’t fall out
• Cut-out at bottom so charger can still be plugged in, and, phone can be ejected with finger
• Refined styling
• Good protection for all but top of phone!

Actually MobileFun do a range of Beyzacases that you can see here. However, the case I am using is this one here.

In summary, great quality, and a reasonable price – you can get one here.

Anyone that reads IntoMobile regularly will know that I’m a real accessories freak – I love to test the latest innovations and products in the accessories arena – partly because it’s a hotbed of activity (certainly around smartphones at the moment anyway), and also because a good accessory can really enhance the value of the device you own.

Case in point: Altec Lansing’s Orbit range of speakers – currently there are two, the Orbit-M, and Orbit USB. Both are entirely portable, and hence mobile, but are targeted at slightly different audiences. The Orbit-M (which I’ve reviewed, see here) has a 3.5mm jack, and connects to (ideally) your Mobile (though it can connect to other stuff, obviously). The Orbit USB has (surprisingly enough) a USB connector, and hence is for you Laptop – but again a portable accessory you might use when out and about.

The two speakers do have other subtle differences too – the Orbit-M is grey in colour and uses batteries (since no power comes over the 3.5mm connector), whereas the Orbit USB is black in colour, takes its power from the USB port, and also has a nifty little kickstand which can angle the sound trajectory. But, clearly the biggest difference between them is that the Orbit-M takes an analogue signal and then boots it out the speaker, whereas the Orbit USB takes a digital signal, and converts to analogue inside the speaker.

I’m happy to report that both ways round, the sounds is really excellent from such diminutive little speakers! The Orbit USB might just possibly edge it in sound quality, but it’s minimal – much more important is the quality of the source (be it a mobile or laptop) and also the quality of the source files you are playing back.

Personally though, I think that the Orbit speakers, and in this case the Orbit USB, are well priced (£39.99 in the UK), and do the job of providing music on the move, a lot better than a lot of other speakers that I have heard of a similar size.

I think, in conclusion,  the Orbit USB continues the great run that Altec Lansing is having with producing quality audio accessories, at great prices!

For more information on the complete autumn 2009 audio collection from Altec Lansing, you can visit www.alteclansing.com

I wrote a piece yesterday about first impressions the N900, which really seemed to upset some people – chief amongst the objections were the fact that not everyone believed I have the N900 – well it’s picture-time, check it out:

Other objections included black-and-white statements that resistive screens don’t support multi-touch – with a couple of minutes Googling, I think you’ll find that multi-touch on a resistive screen is entirely possible – it just happens not to be on the N900 – shame …

Others were of the opinion that I must be an Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) Fanboi – something I strenuously deny. Oh, BTW, the pictures above were taken using an iPhone 3GS

Ben

Sometimes you know when you are going to get a quality iPhone gaming experience, and Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs  was no exception – developed by and Two Tribes (and distributed by Chillingo) for Fox Mobile Entertainment, this game oozes quality! In case you were wondering what the game is about:

In Scrat’s new iPhone adventure, life is not looking any easier, but at least this time he has you to lend him a helping hand. Set across four perilous and puzzle-filled zones — including ice caves, snow, mist-filled caves, and jungle — Scrat pursues delicious acorns as players use a revolutionary on-screen control system to direct him to his goal.

Not so very long I posted up that ‘Big Buck Hunter Pro’ for iPhone had got a release – well now I’ve got to play it!

There’s not a great deal to explain as regards the central concept – you are deer hunting, and you’ve got take down as many of the little suckers as possible – interspersed with that are some fairground-like games, including flipping frogs, and whacking moles. I’ve got to say though, even at this point, it’s all done with a great deal of style and panache – even down to the authentic voiceover from a ‘hunter’

The scenery is actually done really well in this game – they’ve used the graphical capabilities of the iPhone to generate some sweet-looking backgrounds. On top of that, the movement of the various deer are animated extremely well. So all’s good on that front!

There they are.... I've got the drop on them!

I have to say, and maybe I’m becoming rubbish at gaming in my old age, that the difficulty level is right up there – much like clay pigeon shooting simulation games, you’ve got to aim ahead of the target, to account for bullet-travel time. But hey, that’s part of the challenge right!

... but I'm a rubbish shot and now they've got away.

As I said, overall the game is very well put together, and I think for £1.79 it’s a good spend of money – if of course, you’re in to shooting animals

You can get ‘Big Buck Hunter Pro’ from the App Store on iTunes by searching for ‘Big Buck’

RIM today announced at their BlackBerry Developers Conference in San Francisco that the BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM) OS will soon support OpenGL ES for 3D graphics acceleration. The arrival of 3D graphics support should finally bring the BlackBerry platform out of the dark ages, where BrickBreaker and other 2D games reigned supreme. RIM and EA Mobile took to the BBDC keynote stage to show off the still-in-development “Need For Speed: Shift” 3D game, giving the world a glimpse of what’s to come. The game looked impressive, to say the least, so we figured a hands-on video was in order.

We sat down with EA Mobile and gave the game a solid once-over. Before we continue, we should mention again that Need For Speed: Shift is still in early stage development, and what you see below is actually the first ever playable version of the game. As such, there weren’t too many cars to pick from, and the game had only a single playable track. Still, the accelerometer-based controls were easy to use – they were responsive but not twitchy (like a lot of racing games on the iPhone). In-game audio was impressive and really gave the game a more polished feel than the two weeks worth of development time would have suggested.

EA Mobile promises to have Need for Speed: Shift polished off by the time it hits the BlackBerry App World. By that time the game should support more computer rivals (AI enemies), a drift-turn feature to slide around corners and player-points to upgrade your ride. Check out the video below!

We’ve already had a chance to play with the HTC Droid Eris from Verizon (NYSE: VZ) Wireless, but there’s nothing like a retail package unboxing ceremony to really get up close and personal with a new handset. As the “ying” to the Motorola (NYSE: MOT) Droid’s “yang,” the HTC Droid Eris offers Verizon customers a fully capable Android smartphone at half the price of Moto’s headlining Droid, and it deserves some of our undivided attention.

The HTC Droid Eris is a lot like the HTC Hero from Sprint. Just like the Hero, the Droid Eris packs a 3.2-inch capacitive touchscreen, 5-megapixel auto-focusing camera, 3G data, WiFi, GPS and a microSD card slot. It also runs the Sense UI, HTC’s custom Android homescreen skin, which gives the Droid Eris a bunch of extra HTC widgets to play with – and it doesn’t hurt that Sense UI looks way prettier than the vanilla Android homescreen.

Surprisingly, the HTC Droid Eris isn’t much thinner than the Motorola Droid, which sports a slide-out QWERTY keyboard. That’s not to say that the Droid Eris is a brick, it actually sits really comfortably in the hand. Still, the Eris could stand to lose a couple millimeters around its waist.

The Droid Eris’s 5-megapixel camera is faster and less laggy than the Motorola Droid. It also supports touch-focusing, which gives it a another small but significant leg-up on the Droid. The 3.2-inch display is smaller than would be ideal, but it’s plenty big for day-to-day use. Above all, there’s no sliding mechanism on the Droid Eris, so build quality is top-notch – no jiggling or creaking here.

The Droid Eris is available from Verizon Wireless for $99.99 with new 2-year contract. Or, you might be able to find a better deal here.

Unfortunately, the Eris runs Android 1.5 OS. The Motorola Droid features Android 2.0 OS, which has the Google (NSDQ: GOOG) Maps Navigation app pre-installed. Android 1.5 isn’t bad, especially with HTC’s Sense UI riding on top, but it’s no Android 2.0.

Anyway, acquaint yourself with the Droid Eris below!

If you’ve had your eye on the Android-powered HTC Hero and its customized Sense UI, but just couldn’t bear to leave Verizon (NYSE: VZ)’s warm embrace for Sprint (NYSE: S)’s network, you’re in luck! Verizon went official this morning with the Hero-esque HTC Droid Eris. The Eris is a lot like the Hero, just for the Verizon Wireless network. And, at just $99, the Droid Eris is the more affordable alternative to both the upcoming Motorola (NYSE: MOT) Droid and the Sprint HTC Hero. The Eris even sports the same Sense UI that we’ve come to love on the HTC Hero.

The Motorola Droid might be hogging all the hype this week, but the Eris deserves some time in the limelight. So, without further ado, here’s a hands-on look at HTC Droid Eris for Verizon Wireless.

Here’s a quick spec-sheet rundown on the HTC Droid Eris:

• 3.2-inch capacitive touchscreen (320×480)
• 5-megapixel camera (with autofocus)
• Android 1.5 OS
• 3G data
• WiFi
• GPS
• 3.5mm headphone jack