There is no shortage of Android devices in various sizes, and form factors, but this one is definitely new to me. The Acer Iconia Smart is a whopping 4.8″ display, but what makes it unique is that it comes in a 21:9 aspect ratio. That means the screen runs at a very awkward 1024×480. Acer’s tagline for the device is “100% Smartphone, 100% Tablet”, so the idea seems to be that it tries to be the best of both worlds, but I’m not sure it works on either end of the spectrum.

As a phone, the form factor seems like a better idea than say the Dell Streak 5, because the length makes it easier to slip in your pocket. It also seems like it would make some tasks easier in portrait mode, though more difficult in landscape mode. And, either way you slice it, media and games would either be stretched out or be surrounded with black bars of wasted space. The press release claims that “you can watch a movie in its original format, for an engrossing cinema-like experience”, but movies are shot in 16:9, not 21:9. That said, the clip in the hands-on video does look pretty nice.

On the plus side,the Iconia Smart comes preloaded with:

• Gingerbread
• DLNA support
• HDMI out
• 1 GHz Snapdragon processor
• 6-axis motion sensing (gyroscope & accelerometer)
• 8 MP rear camera and 2 MP front camera

Should be interesting to see how consumers feel about this one. The Iconia Smart will cost $499, and be available in Europe in April and the U.S. in June or July.

[Phandroid]

Today at a New York City press event, Acer announced no less than three new devices: two tablets running Android 3 Honeycomb, and a particularly stylish 4.8-inch smartphone with a curved back and full metal body. Acer also revealed its own application market which the company plans to have ready when these units launch.

The bigger of the two tablets rock a 10.1-inch capacitive touchscreen with a 1280 x 800 resolution (WXGA) and is powered by a dual-core 1GHz Tegra 2 CPU. The device comes with dual cameras: a 5MP shooter on the back, as well as a front-facing cam for video calling.

The other Acer tablet features a smaller 7-inch screen (like the Galaxy Tab), but with the same 1280 x 800 resolution, and instead of a Tegra 2 processor it packs a dual-core 1.2 GHz Qualcomm CPU. Both tablets will support Flash Player 10.1 and run Acer UI 4.5 on top of Honeycomb. They’re expected to hit shelves in April 2011.

Acer also revealed a 4.8-inch smartphone that the Taiwanese manufacturer calls “100 percent smartphone, 100 percent tablet.” The device was demonstrated running Acer’s latest custom UI and an unknown version of Android.  Its screen has a quite unusual 1024 x 480 resolution with an equally atypical 21:9 aspect ratio. Other specs include a 1GHz Snapdragon CPU, a 8MP rear camera with 720p video capture, a 2MP front-facing camera, a six-axis gyroscope, HDMI out, Bluetooth 3.0 and “LED edge lighting.” The good-looking handset will start shipping to customers everywhere in April. Curiously, it seems that no names for these devices were announced, but they will surely get monikers in time.

Finally, Acer joined the likes of Verizon and Amazon and announced its own Android app store. It’s called Alive, and will feature games, movies, music, e-books and naturally applications as well. It will be available in the UK next month for Acer’s Windows 7 customers, and the Android version is said to launch in Q2 2011.

Via [Engadget, Android and Me]

Acer added to its Android line-up by announcing the upcoming release of the Acer Liquid Metal. Sharing some basic form similarities with the original Liquid, the Liquid Metal is more fashionable with smoother curves, chrome trim, and a stainless steel rear door.

The Liquid Metal also packs some strong stats internally. The device runs a Qualcomm 7230 800 MHz processor, Android 2.2, and HSDPA connectivity that supports up to 14.4 Mbps downloads. A 5 megapixel camera will be able to snap photos with auto-focus, image stabilization, facial and smile recognition, and an LED Flash. It records HD video in 720p at 30fps.

The device is also very media-friendly thanks to built-in Flash support, Xvid video playback, Dolby Surround audio with EQ profiles and Dynamic Bass Boost. And just for the heck of it, the Liquid Metal supports DLNA/UpnP for sharing or controlling media from the phone to a PC or other compatible device.

All of this and more is available with Acer’s “Breeze” UI that puts more information on your lock screen, switch between apps more elegantly, gain more customization options of the homescreen, and browse your Facebook and Twitter feeds with a dedicated widget.

Acer plans to sell the Liquid Metal for £299 in brown, coming mid-November, or silver, which arrives in stores this December.

A few details and pictures of a forthcoming Acer device that is said to be called “Liquid Metal” have appeared, courtesy of Russian site habrahabr.ru. The new Android handset has the same form factor as the previous model in the Liquid series, but Acer has built its casing of stylish brushed metal.

The phone will have a 3.61-inch capacitive touchscreen with a WVGA (480×800) resolution, and it’s powered by Qualcomm’s new budget MSM 7230 chip with a 800 MHz Scorpion processor and a GPU called Adreno 205. According to Qualcomm, the updated Adreno is up to four times faster than its predecessor Adreno 200, which is featured on most current Snapdragon devices, and it supports hardware accelerated Flash and SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics). Where and when this nice-looking unit will be available is yet to be announced.

Specs:

• Android 2.2 Froyo
• 3.61-inch WVGA capacitive touchscreen
• 800 MHz Qualcomm MSM 7230-1 CPU
• 512 MB RAM
• Camera with LED flash
• Multi-touch support
• BlueTooth 3.0
• Dolby Mobile speakers

Via [Talk Android, Swedroid]

The official announcement for the Acer beTouch E130 came back in mid-June and since then new information has remained quite. Well, it now looks like the beTouch E130 has received the approval of the FCC. In short, that is good news for anyone that may have been hoping to be able to make a purchase.

Otherwise, the E130 may come as a mixed blessing for some. Lets just say it like this, the handset has a nice form factor, and one that could help to convert some users that have stuck with the BlackBerry for design as opposed to software. In other words, the Acer beTouch E130 sort of looks like a BlackBerry. Then again its going to arrive with the already dated Android 1.6, and so far there has not been any mention of a planned upgrade.

Moving on though, other features of the beTouch E130 include a 2.6 inch QVGA touchscreen display, 416MHz processor, 512MB ROM, 256MB RAM, Wi-Fi and a 3.2 megapixel camera.

With that, we are still left wondering which carriers will end up picking up the beTouch E130. That and, there was still no FCC mention of the beTouch E120, which was introduced at the same time as the E130.

[via Wireless Goodness]

Acer has officially announced two new phones, one of which could meet the needs of a woefully-underserved form factor. “Trendy, youthful, and attractive,” the Acer beTouch line now includes the E120, which is a 2.8inch touchscreen device, and the E130, which includes a portrait keyboard and a 2.6-inch touchscreen.

The E130 instantly grabs my attention because of the form factor. Android devices have traditionally been all touchscreen or featured slideout, landscape QWERTY keyboards, neglecting users who may prefer the simplicity or familiarity of a portrait keyboard that’s great for shooting off emails and text messages. I’ve been a fan of this style of phone since I had a T-Mobile Dash and I’m sure plenty of BlackBerry converts like it as well.

Less encouraging are the specs of the E120 and E130. Both devices run Android 1.6, have 416 MHz processors, 3.2 MP camera, WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS, 512 MB ROM, 1500 mAh batteries, and a microSD slot expandable to 32GB. Things get drearier when users factor in the problem of less apps being available because of the screen resolution and processing power of the devices. This is definitely something to attract regular consumers rather than a device for current Android users to pick as an upgrade.

The beTouch E120 will go on sale this July; the E130 in August. Both devices will be available in black or white.

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What’s the difference between an Acer Liquid E Ferrari edition and a regular Acer Liquid E? A whole lot of red and what’s likely going to be a slightly higher price tag.

Acer has officially announced the special edition Liquid E Ferrari, which will bring Ferrari’s traditional of cross-promotional gadgetry to the Liquid E. The special edition E will feature prominent red for the back and side accent colors, with the Ferrari and Acer logos emblazoned on the glossy back cover. It will also come with an official Ferrari wallpaper, music and ringtones that sound like a Ferrari engine, and a microphone reminiscent of the “air intake inlet.”

The Ferrari edition essentially dresses up the Acer Liquid E that we’ve covered previously. The phone has a Snapdragon 1GHz processor (may be underclocked), Android 2.1, 5 megapixel camera, and a 3.5-inch WVGA touchscreen. You can even profess your Ferrari obsession further with a luxury case and Bluetooth earpiece with the Scuderia Ferrari  logo.

Acer has yet to announce price or availability. It will definitely cost more than the standard Liquid e, but you’re not supposed to discuss price whenever Ferrari is involved. Visit Acer’s website to learn more about the device.

Mobile Syrup heard from a “reliable Rogers tipster” that the phone will lunch in June. They even got a slide showing the price next to the LG Eve, which highlights the comical fact that you can get a more powerful, 2.1-running Acer Liquid E for only $30 more than 1.5-running, older Eve.

Just for a refresher for anyone thinking of getting a Liquid, here are the specs that we’ve covered previously:

The Liquid e has Android 2.1, a Snapdragon 768 MHz processor, 512 ROM, and 256 MB RAM. The phone has five home screen panels, Quick Contacts to go between the phone’s contacts and social networks, Live wallpapers, a new keyboard layout, and a 3.5-inch WVGA touchscreen. It also has a 5MP camera, Wi-Fi, GPS, up to 32GB microSD slot, FM radio, and a custom UI built by Acer.

Meanwhile, the Acer beTouch E110 is also up for pre-order on Expansys. The 110 costs only  Larger Image £159.99, but you’ll be giving up quite a bit for this phone. Its processing power falls to 400MHz, it ships with Android 1.5, and it has only 256MB storage space. This is definitely NOT for power users as its specs are less attractive than the first Android phone that debuted 17 months before it. The E110 can be appealing if you want a cheap phone with a few more virtues than the average feature phone, but all others should reach for something different. Full specs available here.

[ElectricPig]

The Acer Liquid e is an upgraded version of Acer’s debut Android phone. Shown off last week at Mobile World Congress, the Liquid e has Android 2.1, a Snapdragon 768 MHz processor, 512 ROM, and 256 MB RAM. The phone has five home screen panels, Quick Contacts to go between the phone’s contacts and social networks, Live wallpapers, a new keyboard layout, and a 3.5-inch WVGA touchscreen. It also has a 5MP camera, Wi-Fi, GPS, up to 32GB microSD slot, FM radio, and a custom UI built by Acer.

The phone looks enticing but it will be interesting to see if people flock to the Acer Liquid e. Rogers has had its share of PR stumbles and frustrated customers concerning Android, so it remains to be seen if this phone will attract a 3-year commitment.

[Acer] via Electronista