AT&T will launch its first two smartphones supporting its 4G Long-Term Evolution (LTE) service on Nov. 6. The Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket is a larger (4.5 inches) and faster (1.5GHz) version of AT&T's earlier Galaxy S II offering, and the HTC Vivid features a 1.2GHz processor, 4.5-inch screen, and dual cameras, one of which is an eight-megapixel model.

The Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket is a faster, larger-screen follow-up to the company's first Galaxy S II, joining similar variants from Sprint and T-Mobile. While the originally announced AT&T and Sprint models offered a 4.3-inch display and a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, the Skyrocket follows the T-Mobile version's lead in moving up to a 4.5-inch Super active-matrix organic LED Plus (Super AMOLED Plus) display with 800 x 480 resolution, powered by a 1.5GHz dual-core processor.

Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket, front and back
(Click on either to enlarge)

The Skyrocket runs Android 2.3.5 ("Gingerbread") and is equipped with 16GB of on-board memory and a microSD slot expandable to 32GB, according to AT&T. The phone also has an eight-megapixel camera with LED flash and 1080p video recording, complemented by a two-megapixel front-facing camera for video chat. AT&T will begin selling the Galaxy S II Skyrocket Nov. 6 for $250 with a two-year deal.

HTC Vivid features low-light camera support

The HTC Vivid, meanwhile, will ship with an unstated version of Android running on a 1.2GHz dual-core processor. The phone offers a 4.5-inch 960 x 540 (qHD) display, says AT&T.

The Vivid has an eight-megapixel camera with an f2.2 28mm wide-angle lens for low light photos, says AT&T. In addition, the camera is said to offer 1080p HD video recording at 60 frames per second, as well as slow-motion playback.

HTC Vivid in black and white, front and back
(Click on either to enlarge)

The HTC Vivid is equipped with 16GB of on-board memory, expandable to 48GB  via the microSD slot. The phone offers HTC's Sense user interface layer, featuring a customizable lock-screen. The Vivid will arrive in AT&T stores and online Nov. 6 for $200 with a two-year deal, says the carrier.

Customers can choose from dual, two-tiered data plans for the Vivid and Skyrocket. The DataPlus plan provides 200MB of data for $15 per month, while an additional 200MB of data usage is $15. The DataPro plan provides 2GB of data for $25 per month. An additional 1GB of data is $10.

AT&T's 4G LTE push

With the Vivid and the Skyrocket, AT&T beat its January promise to launch over 20 devices with 4G support this year by bringing the total Android device count to 22. Until now, however, all of these have supported the company's HSPA+ 4G network, which is considered to be somewhat slower than LTE.

On Oct. 31, AT&T announced it was launching its LTE network Nov. 6 in Boston, Washington, D.C., Baltimore, and Athens, Ga. Those cities will join the company's existing markets of Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, and San Antonio.

AT&T expects to reach 15 markets by the end of the year. Verizon easily beat AT&T's 4G LTE rollout coverage, but AT&T has the advantage of having over 100 million subscribers in its pocket. Verizon isn't far behind.

Availability

The Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket and HTC Vivid will be available Nov. 6 on AT&T's 4G LTE network for $250 and $200, respectively, both with two-year deals and data plan commitments, says the carrier. More information may be found at AT&T's Skyrocket and Vivid announcement, although we'll have to wait until Nov. 6 for full specs. 

Clint Boulton is a writer for eWEEK.

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