Dell has delayed the launch of the Streak Android smart device from its initial late July release to an undetermined timeframe, based on its product page.  This follows confirmation of pricing from a recently pulled blog post on Dell’s portal and confirmation of the delay via Twitter.  Pricing is expected to be set at at $299.99 with a new two year AT&T contract, or $549.99 retail, while the Aero is set for August 9th for $99.99 with a new 2 year agreement and $299.99 without

The Android Developer blog has posted details on the ongoing changes to digital rights management for developers of Android applications distributed and sold through the Android Market. 

The changes involve a server side license authentication method being deployed meant to completely replace the current digital rights management method currently used to distribute paid applications.

The new licensing scheme is currently available for interested developers to implement into applications.

Motorola has announced two new forthcoming clamshells launching on Boost Mobile next month on the 11th in the Rambler and now available online and retailers in the Bali.  The Rambler features a QWERTY keyboard with 1.3 megapixel camera, speakerphone, microSDHC expansion slot and Bluetooth with stereo audio support while the Bali has a nearly identical featureset with a standard dialpad and front-mounted touch-sensitive media player controls for $149.99.

Clearwire has announced a new wholesale agreement with Best Buy whereby the electronics retailer will offer WiMax service under its recently launched Connect mobile broadband service in 2011. No immediate word was given regarding pricing or specific availability of hardware and service, as Clearwire currently covers 43 markets served by Best Buy.

Best Buy launched its current Connect mobile broadband service for Gobi modem equipped netbooks earlier this month.

A Chinese company by the name of Yosion has developed a sleeve for the iPod Touch that is manufactured with an Infineon GSM radio and battery pack that enables it to function as a normal iPhone complete with microphone and SMS messaging, though it does not support data access. 

The sleeve features an 800mAh battery and provides 4.5 hours of call time/ 120 hours of standby time with an expected price of $44-$74 with no word on release or GSM band compatibility.

The FCC has revealed a branded ZTE sleeve for the iPod Touch with built-in Wi-Fi and GPS radios that allows the device to act as an EV-DO enabled mobile broadband router for up to five devices.  The prominent Sprint branding suggests that the carrier will launch the accessory in the near future.

Neither Sprint nor ZTE have officially announced the ZTE Peel at this time.

Called the GENTOUCH78, Augen’s Android tablet may have been lost in a sea of cheap tablets. After all, the name of the device is in all-caps, the company has little track record, and the device is going to be exclusively sold at Kmart at launch.

The good news is how this tablet is different. Unlike Archos’s first wave of Android tablets, it’s priced competitively at $169.99, and it also is shipping with Android 2.1. That’s a first for any Android tablet.

Google has yet to provide formal approval of tablets, refusing to offer the so-called Google Experience (Market, Gmail, Maps, YouTube, etc) on tablets. That hasn’t stopped tablet manufacturers from jumping the gun and shipping these devices. This is a critical time for tablet manufacturers, building name recognition and challenging iPad with a device less than a third of its $499 entry price tag.

Early reports do indicate that Augen has managed to gain some of the Google Experience, with the Android Market appearing on the device. Other apps however are still absent.

Augen boasts good specifications, with an 800 MHz processor, 256 MB of RAM, and SDHC card slot. Hackers will undoubtedly deliver Google’s full set of apps. The device’s main downsides are a lack of video output and 800×480 pixel display. Augen claims the device can handle 720p video, despite not having a true 720p display.

Here’s the problem. Kmart doesn’t have any yet. The device was featured on their weekly ad, complete with a $149 price tag (a $20 launch discount). Kmart explained on their company blog that Augen’s shipment had been delayed, but that Kmart would honor the price for people who request rainchecks.

So, we went to Kmart to get our raincheck. Others report that some stores have taken stock of Augen’s Android 1.6 netbook, which is a much less sophisticated ODM affair. At $99, it delivers a 400 MHz CPU and is far less interesting. Unlike Augen’s tablet, this device goes beyond the Google performance requirements internally (a 528 MHz CPU being their internal baseline, as shown in the recently-discontinued T-Mobile G1). Also, it smacks of generic-y, we saw about 10 of these at different Chinese booths at CES.

The raincheck process did not go well. It took four employees and two trips to locate the SKU number for the tablet. This, despite the company’s own blog telling customers to go in-store and simply request a raincheck. Others at stores nationwide report to PhoneNews.com similar difficulties.

So, to help you out, here’s the SKU: 811470015254. Take that to the electronics counter and ask for a raincheck.

If you have a Verizon Network Extender, you might be asking the infamous ‘Can you hear me now?’

Verizon has confirmed to PhoneNews.com that all Network Extenders nationwide are down, due to an outage. Representatives for Verizon could not provide an estimate as to when the service would be restored.

Verizon may be preparing to release an EV-DO version of the Network Extender, first shown to the public by PhoneNews.com earlier this year. Both the current femtocell and Verizon’s next-generation Network Extender are manufactured by Samsung.

Cricket has opened up a dedicated page for its forthcoming launch of the Kyocera Zio Android smart device first announced early this year during CES and CTIA.  The Zio will launch on August 6th with pricing set at $249.99 and a new service plan expected to cost around $55 a month which will be announced three days earlier.

Technical specifications consist of tri-band CDMA EVDO Rev. A support on the 800/1700/1900MHz bands, making it compatible with networks operated by all major US CDMA carriers underpinned by Qualcomm’s MSM 7227 chipset with 512MB of RAM and 256MB of ROM.  The device also features Android 1.6 (up from 1.5 in the initial announcement) a Wi-Fi radio, Bluetooth with stereo audio support and GPS support. It also features a 3.5-inch capacitive WVGA resolution display, a 3.2 megapixel camera with dedicated camera key and video capture at 30 frames per second, a digital compass, accelerometer and support for microSD cards up to 32GB.

Google has updated Maps for Mobile on Android to version 4.4, which adds integration with its Places location-aware search functionality along with other fixes and improvements such as Place Pages that also lists hours of operation for businesses.  The updated application requires Android 1.6 at minimum and is now available via the Android Market.