closeAuthor: Ernest Doku Name: Ernest Doku
Email: ernest.doku@omio.com
Site: http://blog.omio.com
About: I like gadgets, loads! I like talking about them, writing about them, using them, watching other people use them though binoculars… Some would say it was an unhealthy fascination, but then I’d be all like, “Shh…,” and go back to doing gadget-related things. Hit me up on Xbox Live or PSN, I’m EJStyleS. I promise to give you a good match as well as talk about things that aren’t gadgets. A bit.See Authors Posts (1307)

Just as we were wondering what on Earth (or in space, ha!) happened to the Samsung Spica, the other Android handset available from the Korean phone maker, it’s popped up on T-Mobile’s UK site as the Samsung Galaxy Portal.

Available for free from £23 per month on an 18 month contract, the Galaxy Portal offers a 3.2 megapixel autofocus camera, media player with support for DivX and Mp3 formats, 16GB of storage (via microSD), as well as access to the Android Market and over 20,000 apps.

Unfortunately the Portal is still sporting the v1.5 ‘Cupcake’ build meaning that it doesn’t pack some of the impressive features of later Android phones, but Samsung has promised to issue software upgrades to both the Galaxy and the i5700/Galaxy Portal next month, making this Google-powered blower a bit of a bargain!

So if you want to make a tentative step into another dimension – namely one filled with customisable homescreens, decent mobile internet and e-mail connectivity – then the Samsung Galaxy Portal is the phone to take you there.

Samsung’s Galaxy i7500, the manufacturer’s first Android handset, is due to make a debut on UK network O2 as early as next week.

According to Reg Hardware, and contrary to reports that the handset had failed network accreditation, the Samsung Galaxy i7500 is currently hiding in the accessories section of O2’s website, lending credence to the fact that it will soon be available.

The i7500 is already available in various territories around the globe, including O2 in Germany and Israel under the Cellcom network.

O2 – the exclusive retailer for the Samsung Galaxy – apparently already has the handset in the stock management system in retail stores, so a release in all but certain for the week beginning 17th August.

No details or pricing of Samsung Galaxy i7500 deals have been released at this time.

Android phones runneth over! The first non-HTC Android phone to do the rounds, the Samsung Galaxy is fresh from impressing in Germany, and now seems set for an August launch on O2 UK.

The Galaxy i7500 also has a wealth of connectivity options, a 3.2″ AMOLED touchscreen and a 5 megapixel autofocus camera. With 8GB of internal memory as well as a microSD slot and a 3.5mm headphone jack, the i7500 is as media-savvy as it is appealing to the eye.

We are yet to see which other networks the Galaxy will see a release on as well as any information on pricing, but given the slender form factor and uncustomised Android interface, the Galaxy is bound to be competitively priced on pay monthly.