Verizon’s new Pantech Breakout is one of the least expensive Android-powered phones on the market with a direct price of $149 minus a $50 mail-in rebate. 

However, Wirefly has the Breakout for free, both for new Verizon Wireless accounts and eligible upgrades.  Shipping is also free.

Amazon has the Breakout for $0.01, too, same conditions.

Learn more about the Pantech Breakout Android Phone…

Find more free and discounted smartphones @ FoneMatrix

After a year of speculation, today Amazon took the wraps off its first tablet device, the Kindle Fire.  The Kindle Fire is a skinned Android tablet with a dual-core processor, a 7-inch IPS touchscreen, Wi-Fi, and software geared for Amazon-powered content consumption.

Of course, the Kindle Fire will have an eBook reader app, much like tablet versions of the software already available, but there will also be support for watching streaming video, and purchasing and listening to music.  And, of course, there’s a web browser. 

Unlike many Android tablets on the market, the Kindle Fire isn’t trying to be all things to all users; it’s a content consumption device first and foremost.

You can add additional software to the Kindle Fire via the Amazon Appstore.

The Kindle Fire will sell for $199 and will include a one month trial of Amazon Prime(Review), the $79 yearly membership that allows $3.99 per item overnight shipping of Amazon-stocked products as well as streaming movies and TV shows from the Amazon Instant Video library.

A new touch-enabled version of the eInk Kindle, called the Kindle Touch, was also announced.

Sources: Bloomberg, thisismynext.com

All microSD / microSDHC memory cards are not created equal; for example, many 32GB microSDHC flash memory cards are rated Class 2, meaning they have relatively slow data transfer speeds to and from the card.  But if you want faster read/write performance, you do have options.

For example, PNY has a Class 10 32GB microSDHC memory card with 20MBps (megabytes per second) read speed and 10MBps write.  This card will work well in newer Android-powered smartphones and tablets, as well as digital cameras (with an SD adapter) and other devices with memory card slots.  You can check your product literature to see how fast a card your device supports. 

But you’ll pay a premium for faster performance; a 32GB Class 2 SanDisk microSDHC card can be purchased for just over $40, while the Class 10 PNY will set you back $68. 

If you spend a lot of money on a high-end device, it may be worth your while to avoid data transfer bottlenecks with a faster memory card.

It’s been a week since the first Samsung Galaxy S2 handset, Sprint’s Epic 4G Touch, launched in the U.S – and it’s taken that short a time for the Android phone to fall $50 in price, at least from some online retailers.

Today, Amazon, LetsTalk and Wirefly are each offering the new phone for $149, $50 less than the Sprint-direct price.  The $149 price is good at Amazon and Wirefly  for both new accounts and eligible Sprint upgrades, while LetsTalk’s price for an upgrade jumps to $179.

Learn more about the new Galaxy S2 Epic 4G Touch (whew… that’s a long title).

Browse all U.S. Galaxy S2 Android smartphones…

AT&T’s Galaxy S2 Android phone will launch on Sunday, October 2, 2011, according to BGR.  The new Samsung smartphone will sell for $199 with a two-year contract.

Features of the AT&T Galaxy S2 include a 4.3-inch Super AMOLED touchscreen display, a dual-core 1.2GHz Exynos SoC processor, 1GB of RAM, 16GB of internal flash storage, an 8MP rear-facing camera for photo and 1080p HD video capture, and support for AT&T’s “4G” HSPA+ data network.

Sprint’s Galaxy S2, the Epic 4G Touch, debuted a few days ago for the same direct-price, $199 on contract, while the T-Mobile model has yet to be given a release date.  It is widely believed that Verizon Wireless will pass on offering an S2 model of its own, though the carrier has many of the most popular Android phones already in its lineup with more to come.

The direct Verizon Wireless price for the the Motorola Droid Bionic remains $299 with a two-year contract; but LetsTalk has a new price that beats even Amazon’s $179…

With a new Verizon account and a two-year service agreement, you can get the Bionic for just $149 at LetsTalk.com. This price includes shipping. If you’re already a Verizon customer and are eligible for an upgrade, the price jumps to $189, still $110 off the Verizon price.

Visit FoneMatrix for the best daily smartphone deals from the four major U.S. wireless

Verizon Wireless will launch the Pantech Breakout on September 22, a budget-minded Android smartphone with LTE “4G” connectivity.

The Pantech Breakout will feature a 4-inch touchscreen, a single-core 1GHz ARM CPU, LTE and EV-DO “4G” and 3G wireless data connectivity, 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 3.0 and a 5MP primary camera.  There’s also a front-facing VGA camera and an 8GB microSD card in the mix.  The Breakout will run Android 2.3 “Gingerbread.”

At launch, the Pantech Breakout will sell for $149 on contract with a $50 mail-in rebate in the form of a debit card.  But you can be sure that this budget phone will be available shortly after release for far less from third-party retailers.

Motorola is releasing several official Droid Bionic accessories alongside the new smartphone, one of which is the Vehicle Navigation Dock (Model 89499N).

In addition to providing a powered home in your car or truck, the Vehicle Navigation Dock allows easy audio output to your car’s sound system via the included 3.5mm audio cable (if your vehicle has an AUX jack) and integrates with the phone’s software to instantly display a more car-friendly menu when docked for choosing between various in-car functions.  

Includes both a windshield (shown above) and dashboard mount.