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Kogan Agora

If you remember my last post about Kogan we talked about the announcement made about a new Android phone available to Aussies. In that announcement they noted a detail release before Christmas, and it looks like they achieved that goal. They have just announced two phones that are available for purchase now and shipped out January 29th, labeled the Kogan Agora Pro. Right now they are accepting pre-orders of the phone for $399AUS ($256USD), which is an unlocked phone that will be able to be used on any network in Australia. For $100 less you can get this from Kogen to be used on their network.

The phone features some pretty neat features that make it stand out from the G-1 by T-Mobile. The Agora features 3G connectivity, a 2.5mm touchscreen, physical QWERTY keyboard, GPS, Wi-Fi, 2MP Camera, bluetooth and more. These are great features that give you bang for your buck! Alternatively you can pick up the Agora that does not include the camera, GPS, or Wi-Fi connectivity, it is selling for $100 less.

We are looking forward to hearing more about the phone, and wishing for a review unit, *hint hint*, or even a reader from Australia that nabs one of these to give us a review!

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EA games are the world’s leading games publisher and have produced many fantastic applications for the iPhone including Spore, Tetris, Bejeweled and Monopoly. All of which have been a big hit in the App Store. For those of you with a new T-Mobile G1 who feel you might be missing out somewhat, do not fear.

The Smart PDA have reported that Tetris, Bejeweled and Monopoly are all due to make an appareance on the Android platform in the not-so-distant future. EA’s Mobile Vice President, Adam Sussman, said “Android is another exciting new platform to offer customers great games with enhancements like touch and tilt capabilities.”

It seems like the Android Market will soon be filled with some great quality games and the G1, just like its rival the iPhone, will be a big hit in the mobile gaming market.

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The Android team has recently opened its doors to allow developers the chance to submit their applications, as promised last week.

Just like the App Store for the iPhone, downloading software to your G1 is a simple process via the Android Market. It is also claimed to be just as easy to submit applications — just click here and follow the simple steps. It will cost developers $25 to get in!

Unlike the App Store, there is currently no approval process for submitted applications. This means that the Android Market could see a surge of innapropriate and useless applications, just like the many that swamped the App Store… I wonder how many flashlight applications we’ll see? The structure of the Anroid Market is similar to the App Store and users can rate applications, however, there is no guarantee the best applications will be easily found, expecially since users are restricted to the built-in store on the G1 as opposed to having the ability to search for decent applications from their computer.

No approval process means developers can submit anything they want for download, with no prohibitions or restrictions. Developers also have full access to the phones hardware which is excellent for applcations that allow tethering, something I for one would like to see on the iPhone. The downside of course to no approval process means it would be possible for harmful and unsafe applications to enter the Android Market, which could affect the stability of the end user’s handset.

A few days ago, Google accepted the first patch to Android… Only 4.5 hours after the initial release! The patch was contributed from someone outside of the Open Handset Alliance, and it added 6 more lines to the source.

Last I heard was that 5 patches have now been accepted, out of 8 submitted. I can just see developers foaming at the mouth over the open source code here. I’m sure Google is more than pleased with the feedback and development from around the world thus far. Seems as though a lot of things are happening.

The Android Market got off to a great start as well with some heavy download numbers. A promising start for a promising OS!

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T-Mobile G1 owners will be pleased to hear that the Android Market has officially opened its doors. G1 owners are able to browse and download all kinds of different apps and games. Last I heard there were 50 or so apps in the Market. Not bad for an initial offering.

Starting next monday, October 27th, Android developers will be able to register and upload their own apps to the Android Market. Developers need to register and pay a one time $25 application fee however. I’d pay it. What the heck… a one-time payment for access to the Android Market? Sounds like a great deal.

Starting in early 2009, developers will apparently be able to charge for their applications. 70% of the revenue goes to the developer, while the other 30% goes to carriers and billing settlement fees. I’m really interested to read more about the Android Market/Developer agreement once it becomes available.

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