Earlier today Google announced the launching of Unlocked Nexus One  Android 2.2.  While this is good news for the smartphone community you may be less than excited if you recently bought an Android 2.1 powered Droid Incredible or already placed a pre-order for the HTC EVO 4G.  However, there is no need to worry as it appears that any phone that started shipping in 2010, which include the Droid Incredible, myTouch Slide, EVO 4G and Desire, will almost certainly get an upgrade to Android 2.2.

In a statement sent to the people at Android Central HTC said:

[...] if your phone was launched this year, we will most likely offer an upgrade for it to the Froyo version. This includes popular models like the Desire and Droid Incredible as well as hotly anticipated phones like the Evo 4G, MyTouch slide and upcoming models. We will announce a full list of phones and dates once we are closer to launching the upgrades. We are working closely with Google and our other partners to ensure we have the earliest access to everything we need to provide a complete and solid Sense experience on Froyo. We expect to release all updates in the second half of this year but can’t be more specific yet.

While this does leave a bunch of handsets unaccounted for it is highly unlikely that HTC will eventually stop supporting these older handsets.  We will just have to wait and see if any of the older HTC Unlocked  devices get the upgrade treatment after these first few handsets get the new OS.  The best part of the announcement is that it appears this update is going to happen sooner rather than later as the “second half of this year” is right around the corner in a little over a month.

Earlier today Adobe announced the availability of Flash Player 10.1 for the Android platform.  The new Flash Player reviewer beta works on Google Nexus One Unlocked devices running Android 2.2 Froyo and up. The player has been built into the browser, and allows web-based Flash content to play and work as it does on desktop browsers.  According to Adobe the player supports touch gestures, accelerometers, and smart scaling to fill the screen with content as is the case on a stand alone player.

Adobe claims that most sites with flash should “just work” though it has compiled a list of Flash-optimized sites with which the player works best.  Adobe also said that the player has been optimized to work with most major platforms and chipsets such as ARM, AMD, nVidia, Qualcomm, Marvel, Intel, Texas Instruments and Freescale.  The player can also decode H.264 video on the fly and also includes a number of power saving features such as smart rendering and sleep mode.

Adobe will start to offer Flash Player 10.1 as a public pre-beta start this week.  Currently Flash Player 10.1 requires Android 2.2 which Adobe claims will be available to the Nexus One and Motorola Droid “immediately” with other devices such as the Unlocked HTC ( EVO ), Incredible, Desire and Motorola Milestone following in the coming months.  Adobe also expects Flash Player 10.1 to become widely available to the Android platform and laptops starting in June.  Adobe is also working to bring Flash Player 10.1 to other mobile platforms such as Windows Phone 7, webOS, BlackBerry and Symbian but did not provide any sort of timeframe for when these would be available.

It looks like Google’s plan to dramatically change the way consumers purchase cell phones and service has completely fizzled out.  Google has recently announced they will eventually stop selling handsets online and instead partner with carriers to the sell the Nexus One in stores while using its website to promote “a variety of Android phones available globally.”

Google says it has found out the hard way that consumers want a hands-on experience before buying a phone but I am sure there were other factors that played into the low amount of sales for the Unlocked Google  Nexus One.  Some of these factors could include a lack of subsidies from any carrier and some serious customer service issues.

It is pretty rare for a company to completely give up on a business model like this.  Usually if a company is having difficulties selling their product the initial way they had planned they will just add more sales channels in an effort to sell more units.  So the fact that Google is completely abandoning their online sales portal is a pretty big announcement.  It is unknown if Google plans to follow up with a successor to the Nexus One but as it stands right now the Google Phone is dead.

Google does plan to continue providing support for Nexus One consumers who purchase through the web store.  This is good news for those of you who have recently purchased this device or were thinking of doing so in the immediate future.

I would be pretty surprised if Google gave up developing new Android devices altogether.  Now that they know their online sales model is not the best way to launch a product they can expect better success with their next handset should they ever develop one by partnering up with carriers and selling the devices in brick and mortar stores.

Recently a video was launched on the internet that showcased Flash’s ability to run perfectly without any problems using the Android 2.2 Froyo operation system.  From the video we can see that we will be given an updated launcher, android tutorial and global search box with the new operating system. Google Nexus One  Android 2.2  Unlocked gadget  is expected to be launched in time for Adobe’s planned June release of Flash 10.1.

It is great news that initial tests of both Android 2.2 and Flash 10.1 are running smoothly together.  With reports that the two programs are running without any problems is a good sign that both upgrades should hit the market place as expected.  Smartphone fans have been waiting for a long time to have a device in which they can use Adobe’s Flash technology.  With Apple openly stating they will not be supporting the software Android devices have welcomed the opportunity to add this feature to their product line.

With the introduction of Flash 10.1 Android devices will be taking the lead when it comes to streaming video in the smartphone world.  Combined with the highly advance Android 2.2 “Froyo” operating system Android devices figure to become the best phones for streaming video over the web.  Perhaps after Apple sees what kind of reaction the general public has to the potential massive upgrade to Android’s line of smartphones they will reconsider their stance on not utilizing Adobe’s Flash technology even though their devices do support it.  I would not be surprised if Apple saw some of their customers leave the iPhone behind in favor of the  Google Nexus  One Android device for the sole reason of being able to use Flash 10.1 on their mobile device.

LogMeIn is joining the masses and launching a beta version of its Ignition application for the Android Operating System.  Similar to the Unlocked iPhone version the new Android version will let LogMeIn users connect to their desktop computer systems using their Android handsets.  Once connected users can control the remote computer, share files and edit documents remotely.  Anyone interested in this newest app can grab it in the Android Market.

LogMeIn has been one of the better apps for the iPhone especially those users who are constantly on the go but would like access to their personal computers.  LogMeIn allows people to not have to worry about forgetting any important document or file on their computer as they can easy access or share that document from their mobile device.

LogMeIn is certainly one of my favorite smartphone apps and I am extremely excited for it to finally come to the Android OS.  This new app is sure to be a big hit among the business crowd as people will no longer have to worry when they forget a file while on the road for a business trip or sales call.  They will now be able to access their computer’s entire hard drive, both home computer and work, with this great new app.

More and more exciting apps are hitting the market place for Unlocked Google Nexus Android devices and LogMeIn is another edition to this list.  I am extremely excited to see what application developers have in store when the newer version of Android 2.2 is finally released.  I am sure that there will be a handful off applications that just blow our mind and will utilize the expected Flash technology that is going to be included with the new Android handsets.

While Google quietly takes over the smartphone market place three new handsets have emerged over in Asia with its Android operating system preloaded on each device.  LG has recently made official two Snapdragon based handsets, the LG-LU2300 and the LG-SU950.  Both of these new devices will sport a 3.5 inch WVGA display, DivX playback, 3.5mm headphone jack, DMB mobile TV, multimedia playback and a May/June release in Korea.

While LG has been busy launching these two new mobile devices Samsung has also been working on a new Android device themselves.  Samsung just announced its first Android powered smartphone for the Korean market with the Galaxy A, otherwise known as the SHW-M100S.  This mobile device is set to ship with Android 2.1, a 3.7 inch WVHA AMOLED display, 720 MHz CPU, mobile TV onboard, DivX playback, a 5 megapixel camera, HD video recording, A-GPS, Bluetooth and WiFi.  Availability on the SK Telecom network is scheduled for the end of this month.

Judging by the specs of the these three new mobile devices the Korean market is set to get their hands on some high quality Android devices.  The Samsung device appears to have the best features with their 720 MHz CPU, 5 megapixel camera and HD video recording.  While the Galaxy A may be the most powerful device out of the three the two devices from LG are certainly not lacking in high quality smartphone features.  The 3.5 inch WVGA display and DMB mobile TV will be sure to excite many consumers in the Korean market.

It has been a long time coming for these smartphone manufacturers to release new Android devices to the Korean market LG and Samsung appear to have set the bar pretty high with this latest trio of Android smartphones.

Europe’s first carrier of the Nexus One is all set to start offering the superphone from Google for free with a two year contract.  Preorders for the phone are already being taken and the new mobile device is set to hit store shelves on April 30th. 

While the release of the Nexus One Vodafone is a little bit anticlimactic with the release of the Incredible in the United States I am sure that there are a few Brits out there that have been waiting for a while to get their hands on one of the Android devices from Nexus One. 

There will be varying levels of contracts available for British subscribers.  The Nexus One is expected to be available for an 18 or 24 month contract with prices starting at 25 pounds per month.  Also, it looks like there will be 1GB of 3G data allowance that is included with a 1GB WiFi allowance via BT Openzone hotspots.  While these are not exactly the best price plans I have come across it is hard to complain when you can get this great mobile device for no money up front.

For all of the smartphone junkies in Britain this announcement that the Nexus One is set to launch in the UK on the Vodafone network will come as pleasant news.  Google has been a little slow in rolling out some of their top end Android devices in the UK but have finally come around to releasing one of their most popular devices with the Nexus One.  This great handheld device will surely attract more customers to the ever growing Android market and is poised to help Google continue its growth in the mobile device community.  Maybe the HTC Pure will show up next.

The good people over at Snaptic have launched a new developer challenge that is designed to get people up and moving.  The premise behind the challenge is quite simple.  All you need to do is develop an Android app to use even on your HTC Pure, that gets people up and moving and you can win an all expense paid trip to the TED Global 2010 conference.

This is a great new contest that the people at Snaptic are putting on.  While obesity continues to become a larger and larger problem in this country it is very rare that we will look to our mobile devices, like the Nexus One,  to help us get out and exercise more.  Sure there are already a few apps out there that are designed to make exercising easier and thus more likely to happen but there are no apps currently designed to get people to exercise regularly.

I certainly applaud Snaptic for their initiative here with this new contest they are putting together.  It would be great if this project set off a whole new line of Android apps that were designed to get people outside and exercising more frequently.  Since smartphones are becoming such a huge part of our every day lives it only makes sense to try and include some sort of applications that will help people better themselves and get into shape.  Of all of the various ways we are trying to fight obesity this is one of the more creative things I have seen.  I think this is a great idea and can not wait to see what type of apps are developed so that I can use them myself to help push me to get outside and exercise this spring and summer.

Just in case you needed more evidence that the Android market is thriving AndroidLib.com, which closely monitors the Android Market, noted that 9,330 free and paid apps appeared within the 31 day period.  This grow represents a 68% increase over February’s 5,532 new applications.  March’s growth also amounts to a mind boggling 58.5% increase in the number of available applications as a whole.  If these trends continue at their current pace April will see an increase of 6,700 new applications.

While many of us were aware that the Android phones were starting to gain popularity it might not have been known just how popular these new types of mobile devices have become.  With their ease of use and accessibility it is pretty easy to see why the Android Marketplace is seeing such a huge growth in the number of free and paid apps.

With the continued increase of new Android handsets hitting the market seemingly every month it is highly unlikely that we will see any sort of decrease in the popularity of these mobile devices and unlocked cell phones.  Also, with the way that the Android OS has been developed it is quite easy for programmers and developers to come up with new apps all of the time.  Throw in the easy way to submit these apps for approval and you are left with a very efficient marketplace that easily allows for the continued growth of various Android apps.

One of the best parts of owning an Android phone is all of the new apps that are coming out each month.  As these types of phone become increasingly popular more and more developers will focus their efforts on creating great apps for these Android phones that many users will love and appreciate.

For those of you have been patiently waiting for the Droid to get the upgraded 2.1 version of the Unlocked  Android OS there may just be a way to get that update before Verizon rolls it out to your devices.  As is often the case with Android devices you can usually find a quick, easy and painless way to circumvent these planned rollouts from wireless providers.  If you can no longer wait for Verizon to get around to updating your mobile device there is a manual way that you can get the new 2.1 version of the Android operating system on your mobile device.

In order to get this new Android version onto your phone you will need to download the binary code straight from Google’s website.  It is nice that it is coming straight from Google so we know that it is legit and will not cause any harm to your mobile phone.  Next you will want to rename the file and transfer it to your microSD card.  Once you have transferred the file to your memory card you will need to reboot your device to the recovery mode screen.  The rest should be pretty self explanatory.  After a few more easy to follow steps you will have a Droid device that is fully equipped with the latest and greatest Google has to offer.

This manual update option for your Droid device is just another example of how these Android Unlocked Phones are quickly becoming an industry leader in the smartphone space.  No longer will customers have to wait for their respective wireless providers to rollout new updates of the Android software as many times consumers can just manually install the newer versions themselves.  This is a great way for customers to stay current with technology and utilize all of the latest features their smartphone has to offer.