Yeah, the HTC Magic launch tour has officially begun! Even Austria's A1 has joined the party and announced that they'll be releasing the HTC Magic and all its magicness sometime soon. There is no confirmed date but hey, an announcement is better than nothing right?

Now tally that up: Italy, France, and Austria have all announced their HTC Magic plans. Spain already released theirs and of course the UK was the country first tied to the Magic. Now if only T-Mobile US can get an invitation for the Magic party...

[a1 via phandroid]

It looks like an HTC Magic party is brewing! France is joining in the fun with SFR releasing the HTC Magic on May 6th. Apparently it's going to be available online on that date but won't hit stores until 2 weeks later. We don't know French so we can't tell you pricing but expect some European flavor pricing scheme.

[sfr via phandroid]

Wahoo! The Second Android Device is officially official: Vodafone Spain has made the HTC Magic available through their online store. This is a full week (and change) before the purported May 1st release on Vodafone UK.

Excited to be one of the firsts to grab the HTC Magic? Well, it's going to cost you a pretty penny.  We're not sure of the exact details since European Carriers tend to have a varying, flexible tier-based system but some reports have it as high as €399 ($519). If anyone can clarify on the pricing, we'd love to hear from you!

Expensive or not, it's great to see some new life in Android after months and months of waiting!

[via engadget]

You've heard the news: Samsung's I7500 is going to be the company's First Android Device. You've seen the specs: the Samsung I7500 packs a good punch. Now here's some hands-on photos courtesy of mobile review.

Some observations: there looks to be a 3.5mm headphone jack which should be a welcome addition considering HTC's current affair with ExtUSB, it seems to use microUSB for charging, and from the photos, it looks pretty good to us.

Hit the jump for more hands-on pictures of the Samsung I7500 and be sure to tell us what you think in the comments!

[via androidcommunity]

Oh yeah! We're getting another Android Device people! O2 Germany has just announced that the Samsung I7500 will be Samsung's (and the carrier's) first Android device. Hopefully this announcement will bring a HUGE wave of Android device announcements. 

Now for more details on the Samsung I7500 which comes with some pretty decent specs:

• Android 1.5 OS
• Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE, dual-band UMTS/HSPA
• 528 MHz Qualcomm MSM7200A CPU
• 3.2-inch HVGA capacitive OLED touchscreen display
• 5 megapixel camera with LED flash
• Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS
• 8GB internal flash memory
• microSD slot
• 3.5 mm stereo jack
• Metal case, 11.9 mm thick

Taking a look at the product shot of the Samsung I7500 it looks like it's missing the traditional Android Menu button. Also, it looks like Samsung decided to use a d-pad over a trackball. In either case, we're just happy to hear official word for an Android device--we'll fret the details later.

So what do you guys think, on first impression, of Samsung's first Android Device?

[o2 germany via androidcommunity]

Oh yes! Italians can get in on the Android HTC Magic fun! Italy's TIM has put up a website for the HTC Magic for a low, low (read: high, high) price of €449 which is roughly $595 (yowza!). But hey, we're sure some people are willing to pay that hefty price to get their hands on the Second Android Device.

No launch date is posted so who knows when this is releasing but at least it's better than being left in the dark like us T-Mobile US customers!

[via engadget]

Here's a funny image to brighten your Monday--that picture above isn't a shot of the T-Mobile G1 but rather of a fake, knockoff version that not only fakes the hardware but also runs some knockoff version of Android. It doesn't come with a slideout hardware keyboard and um, what's the point of faking Android? It's free to license!

Either way, it's pretty hilarious and if anyone was to ever spot one of these in real life be sure to send it in!

Hit the jump for more pictures!

[via engadget]

Hey, hey! Another Cupcake release rumor! But this time it comes from a more reputable source: T-Mobile Germany. How's that for (semi) official?

According to T-Mobile Germany's website, it looks like they're showcasing the Cupcake update to release in May. It doesn't really state US release plans, but hey if Germany is getting Cupcake in May, we can't be too far off right? If you forgot what Cupcake was, educate yourself:

• Additional on-screen keyboard
• Video recording and playback
• Pictures and video include one-click Picasa and YouTube uploads
• Automatic adjustment of the touchscreen when the G1 is held horizontal or vertical
• Support for Bluetooth stereo headsets

[via gizmodo]

We're pretty sure that if you're reading this, you're the sort who likes exclusive, breaking details on Smartphones. We had that aplenty this week. Nokia Experts got the full skinny on the AT&T Nokia E71x in the form of PDF guides and a confirmation of a May 4th release. PreCentral.net scored an internal head-to-head between the iPhone and the Palm Pre. CrackBerry.com saw yet another Storm OS leak.

We're also pretty sure you like free stuff. So you'll want to check out the What Would You Do for a Palm Pre Giveaway. We're also incredibly proud that CrackBerry.com reached - wait for it - One Million Members! They'll be tossing out celebratory gifts to them this week. WMExperts will be giving away a phone (check there on Monday). Also, did you know that The iPhone Blog is approaching their 1 year anniversary in a couple weeks? Expect some fun to happen there soon, too!

Much more more happened in the smartphone world, so as usual, we bring you our "Best of SPE roundup." Come take a look at what's news!

We're all excited about Android 1.5 here at Android Central but Google has just notified us that not all current apps may work in Android 1.5. Luckily, they've provided a few reasons on why certain apps may break and how to "future-proof" your applications. For a full read up you can head to the official Android Developers Blog but the rules to live by are as follows:

1. Don't use internal API's
2. Don't directly manipulate settings
3. Don't go overboard with layouts
4. Don't assume all hardware (i.e. physical keyboard) will be available
5. Make sure you allow "graceful" re-orientations of the screen

Got it guys? Good! If you avoid these 5 problems your app should be fine! If you don't, be sure to read up on the Android Dev Blog to see what to do.