The cell phone is a universal part of American culture now, wouldn’t you say? I am more likely to forget my keys or wallet then my cell phone & so is everyone I know. So when I had the chance to review the new Droid Mini I was ecstatic! I’m going to go over just a few of the features that grabbed my attention right away.

One of the simplest features but one that I absolutely love is being able to get a quick glance at my phone status without unlocking the screen. I can just pull the phone out of my pocket & the time pops up along with icons for missed calls, messages, emails & other notifications. Are you kidding me!!!! Where has this been my whole life? If the screen only shows the clock then I haven’t missed anything. I can also get more info on the notifications that do pop up by sliding the lock up to the target.

The next mini feature that has me completely hooked is the home screen. It is elegantly laid out & allows space for 8 shortcuts (not including your 4 stapled shortcuts) or you could add folders to contain extra shortcuts on the home screen. I set up my home screen with the weather widget & battery percentage widget (all of them flip to double as other shortcuts…genius!) The weather widget is great on the home screen especially since you don’t have to open an app to see what the current temp is! If you want a more detailed forecast then you simply touch the weather widget & viola! This alone is enough for me to stick with this new droid. However it doesn’t stop there. This phone is jam packed with features too many for me to detail in just one post. You will just have to stop by soon for the next. But I will leave you with this thought. The resolution & graphics that this phone is capable of are nothing short of remarkable but we can talk about that another time!

Check out the specs for yourself & see why I am loving my new Droid Mini & I bet you will too!

Camera

• 10MP RGBC camera with quick capture

Video

• 1080p HD Video capture, up to 60FPS
• 2MP Full HD Recording Front Facing Camera
• Video Formats: H.263, H.264, MPEG4, RV v10, RV v9, WMV v10, WMV v9

Music

• Google Play Music – store up to 20,000 songs for free and buy millions of new tracks from the Google Play Store, or enjoy unlimited music for $9.99/mo
• Create and Manage playlists
• Music/Audio Formats Supported: AAC, AAC+, AAC+ Enhanced, AMR NB, AMR WB, MIDI, MP3, RA v10, RA v9, WAV, WMA v10, WMA v9, XMF
• Headset: 3.5mm Audio Jack

Bluetooth 4.0

• Bluetooth® 4.0 LE +EDR, Bluetooth Class 2
• Bluetooth® Profiles Supported: A2DP1.2, AVRCP 1.4, BPP1.2, FTP1.2, HDP 1.0, HFP 1.6+WBS, HID1.0, HSP1.2, MAP1.0, OPP1.2, PAN–NAP1.0, PBAP1.1, SAP1.1, SDP1.1, BLE: HRM

Web

• Global Ready™
• Mobile Hotspot – Connect up to 8 Wi–Fi enabled devices in 4G or 5 in 3G
• Wi–Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, 2.4GHz and 5GHz Capable
• Shop, Pay & Save with Isis Mobile Wallet. NFC SIM required. Available in select markets only*.
• Preloaded Apps: Amazon, Amazon Kindle, Amazon MP3, Amazon Appstore, Integrated Google Mobile Services (Gmail™, Google Maps with Navigation & Local, Google Hangouts, Google Drive, Play Books, Play Movies, Play Music, Play Store, Google Search, Google Calander, Google+, YouTube™)
• Preloaded Verizon Apps: Back–up Assistant +,My Verizon Mobile, Verizon Tones, Voicemail, VZ Navigator, VZ Security.
• Verizon.net, MS Exchange, Yahoo, AOL, Windows Live Hotmail, POP3/IMAP, Gmail App Integrated Google, Google+, Exchange, & Facebook Contacts
• Unified Google Calendar & Corporate Calendar (supports Exchange 2003, 2007, and 2010 protocols)
• Push Email Support: Gmail & MS Exchange
• HTML Web Browser: Google Chrome for Android
• aGPS capable for E911 emergency location, aGPS (assisted), sGPS (simultaneous), Standalone GPS, eCompass, GLONASS
• Device Software Update – over the air updates supported

Communication

• DROID Command Center lets you quickly view information you need. See battery level and weather details. Use it to easily access Wireless Display and Droid Zap setup, your alarm clock and other settings. (DROID Exclusive)
• DROID Zap uses gestures and the cloud to seamlessly share content with other Android™ enthusiasts. DROID Zap offers a hassle–free way to share content with one person or a group of people without having to bump phones. (Sending Content is DROID Exclusive)
• Wireless Display allows you to conveniently and wirelessly mirror everything on this smartphone’s display to an HDTV. Get more from your phone on the big screen: Enjoy games, share HD movies, browse the web and more (Miracast™ – enabled TV or separate accessory required)
• Active display low–power notification system displays alerts so you can avoid constantly waking your phone.
• Touchless control for hands–free access to Google Now
• Motorola Assist application for extending battery life and automating everyday tasks. Motorola connect for instant forwarding of notifications to your Chrome browser when away from your phone.
• Motorola migrate instantly imports contacts, photos, videos, call and text history from your old phone, in just a few simple steps, wirelessly.
• Video Chat Capable
• Text, Picture & Video Messaging with Threaded Feature
• Calculator, Calendar, Contact List, Alarm Clock
• Embedded Ring Tones, Vibrate Alert & Silent
• Face Unlock
• Multilingual User Interface: 15, French, Portuguese, and more. Including Dialects: 20
• Advanced security features including device encryption
• Speakerphone
• TTY/TTD Compatible
• Hearing Aid Compatibility = M3/T3

Specifications

Design

• Compact and Uncompromising: That’s the DROID MINI by MOTOROLA. Compact and lightweight, it offers all of the power you expect from a DROID, in a pocket friendly size, for those that understand great things come in small packages.

Display

• 4.3” edge–to–edge HD TFT display, 1280 x 720 Screen Resolution

Dimensions

• 4.81”(H) x 2.41”(W) x 0.34”(D) inches
• Weight: 4.59oz

Network

• Network: LTE, CDMA/1xEVDO Rev. A (800/1900 MHz)
• Global Network: EDGE/GSM (850/900/1800/1900), HSPA/UMTS( 850/900/1900/2100), HSDPA 42.2 Mbps (Category 20), HSUPA 5.76 Mbps

Operating System

• Android 4.2, Jelly Bean

Ingress

• Every new DROID comes with an exclusive beta invite to Ingress, the game of mystery, intrigue, and competition played in the real world.

Memory / Processor

• Processor: Motorola X8 Mobile Computing System (1.7 GHz dual–core application processor, 400 MHz quad–core GPU, natural language processor, contextual computing processor), Power/Audio Management: PM8921
• 4FF preinstalled SIM
• Memory: 16GB on board memory + 2GB RAM

Battery

• Battery: Non–removable 2000 mAh Li–Ion
• Usage: Up to 28 hours OR
• Standby Time: Up to 14 days