Inside, the Droid 2 has some striking similarities to the Droid X–which isn’t a bad thing.
Motorola’s Droid 2 will be in stores Thursday for $199.99 with a two-year contract, after a $100 mail-in rebate (like the Droid X). The phone packs the Android 2.2 operating system, which has support for Adobe Flash Player 10.1. (The Droid X shipped with Android 2.1.)
Though the two phones differ physically–the Droid 2 is a slider smartphone, the Droid X eschews the physical keyboard–there’s a lot inside that’s the same, if not identical. (And note that the Droid 2 is quite similar to the original Droid physically, with the exception of relatively minor tweaks such as changes to the keyboard, as this animation shows.)
Processor: So, what’s inside the newest high-end offering from Motorola and Verizon? Like the Droid X, it uses Texas Instruments’ OMAP 3630 1GHz processor. This is a step up from TI’s OMAP 3430 processor inside the original Droid, which ran at 550MHz.
Wi-Fi hot spot: And the Droid 2 sports the TI chip that supports a built-in Wi-Fi hot spot, a nifty feature also on the Droid X. TI’s WiLink chip allows a user to create a hot spot similar to the access point in a Starbucks. Except, of course, that it’s not as fast as a typical hot spot since it’s 3G–not a DSL, cable, or T1 connection–and limited to five devices. (The hot spot costs an extra $20 per month.)
Digital Living Network Alliance: The similarities don’t stop there. Both phones support DLNA, or Digital Living Network Alliance, which enables them to stream video to a home consumer electronics device, such as a TV. This is also integrated into TI chips.
RAM and flash: The Droid 2 also comes with 512MB of RAM, like the Droid X. As to flash memory-based storage, on the Droid 2, a 32 GB microSD option is listed. Like the Droid X, it comes with 8GB on board.
Despite all of these chip-based similarities, there are some differences. The Droid X is spec’d with an 8-megapixel camera, while the Droid 2 has a 5-megapixel camera. And the Droid 2′s display is smaller at 3.7 inches versus 4.3 inches on the Droid X.
What’s next for high-end smartphones like the Droid 2 and Droid X? Dual-core processors, which would boost multitasking capabilities (not to mention performance) are coming in 2011. TI, for its part, plans to begin shipping a dual-core OMAP 4430 chip in the fourth quarter, which should make its way into phones in the first half of 2011.
