Dallas –
will upgrade all of the postpaid
Android smartphones launched this year to the Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) OS
following the July 17 launch of the HTC-made Status, the carrier’s first
Android 2.3 smartphone.
As part of the Android 2.3 update available
beginning today for the Motorola Atrix 4G, the Atrix will be able to download Android
applications from third-party stores, the carrier added.
The other AT&T
smartphones launched this year and slated to get the Gingerbread update are the
HTC Inspire 4G, LG Phoenix, Pantech Crossover and Samsung Infuse 4G. The
planned 4G version of the Samsung Captivate will also get the upgrade.
Improvements
provided by Android 2.3 over Android 2.2 include faster operation, user-interface
refinements, improved copy/paste functions, improved power management, and an
improved onscreen keyboard with multi-touch support for faster, more accurate
typing, the carrier said.
For some of the
phones, upgrades will be delivered over-the-air (OTA) via cellular, but file
size in some cases will require a Wi-Fi download or the use of a PC.
Starting today and
continuing for a few weeks, Motorola Atrix 4G users will be prompted to install
the update via Wi-Fi. In August, HTC Inspire 4G users will be notified of a Wi-Fi-downloadable
update. The timeframes for the other phones wasn’t announced.
The $49.99
HTC-made Status is the carrier’s first smartphone with Gingerbread OS and the
industry’s first smartphone with dedicated physical Facebook share button. Depending
on which application the user has open, when the Facebook button is pressed, a
different Facebook function appears.
