Motorola Droid X / Droid 2 and Samsung Galaxy S

Still holding on to a Nokia e71 waiting for something that really stands out. These phones almost fit the bill but the Droid X ends up being a smaller upgrade than initially thought. Verizon fans considering a Droid X or Droid 2? Hold out a month or so longer to give the Samsung Fascinate a fair shot.

First a look at the details of the new Droids. Droid 2 takes the more evolutionary upgrade route which still houses a physical keypad and a 3.7” LCD display. Droid X attempts to please multimedia enthusiasts with a 4.3” LCD display, HDMI out, and 720p HD video capture. Both Droids receive a processor bump with the TI OMAP3640 and also 512 MB RAM (up from 256). Compared to the original Droid (TI OMAP3430) it’s a smaller die size which allows an increase from 550 MHz to 1 GHz. Unfortunately, the upgraded processors still use the same integrated GPU (PowerVR SGX530).

In swoops the Samsung Galaxy S line that will wind up on all four major US carriers (each slightly different and with custom names). Main attractions to this phone include an upgraded GPU (SGX540) to go along with the 1 GHz Cortex-A8 processor and a stunning 4” Super AMOLED display. The Samsung Vibrant (T-Mobile’s version) is already confirmed for July 21st release. Captivate (AT&T;), Epic 4G (Sprint), and Fascinate (Verizon) should follow shortly.

The Samsung display and better graphics processor definitely makes it a contender. Early versions of the Droid Incredible used the same Super AMOLED. However, Samsung manufactures them and appear to be keeping the majority for themselves. Motorola had to switch to Sony Super TFT LCD in an attempt to catch up with demand. They have not even advertised the change in hardware.

Most of these phones will be out over the next couple of months so it will be interesting to see hands-on reviews. However, I still find myself holding back for the dual-core processors coming out late this year and early next year. Those include the OMAP 4400’s by TI, Tegra 2 by NVIDIA, U8500 by Sony Ericsson, and dual-core Snapdragon by Qualcomm.