T-Mobile prides itself on a wide, deep selection of Android devices (then again, so do all carriers these days) -- and the selection’s going to get better later this year with the introduction of a Samsung model codenamed “Hercules.” This one’s still a ways off; it’s not even entering the carrier’s test labs for another month and isn’t slated for acceptance until mid-August, but here’s an overview of what you can expect.
Exclusive: Samsung ‘Hercules’ for T-Mobile is like a dual-core Infuse 4G
- 4.5-inch 480 x 800 Super AMOLED Plus display
- Android 2.3 (Gingerbread)
- NFC support, though compatibility with the forthcoming ISIS mobile payment standard is “to be determined”
- Category 24 HSDPA (42Mbps) and Category 6 HSUPA (5.76Mbps) for extremely fast HSPA+ support -- faster than any HSPA+ phone currently sold in the US
- AWS plus 850 / 1900MHz compatibility for support on AT&T’s “4G” network if the merger succeeds
- Preliminary measurements place it at 5.16 x 2.76 x 0.37 inches -- within a few hundredths of an inch of the Infuse
- 16GB internal ROM, 1GB internal RAM, external microSD up to 32GB
- Here’s where it outdoes the Infuse: it’s quoted with a Qualcomm 1.2GHz dual-core APQ8060 application processor, which is extraordinarily unusual for a Samsung -- particularly considering the availability of Samsung’s own multi-core Exynos line; it’s paired with an MDM8220 modem processor
- 8 megapixel primary camera with flash and 1080p video capture, secondary front-facing camera
- Like the Galaxy S II, the Hercules won’t have a dedicated HDMI port -- it’ll move high-def video over Micro USB using MHL
Sound like a beast? Indeed -- which would explain the fact that the Hercules is listed in the “over $350” price category. (Let’s hope that’s an off-contract number.) More on this as we get it.
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