MOBIPRESS

Acer has unveiled its latest Android smartphone - the Acer Stream. Earlier known as the Acer Liquid Stream, the company seems to have dropped the "Liquid" moniker.

When launched, the Stream will run Android 2.1. However, it is certain that it will receive the Froyo treatment by the end of the year - like most other high-end smartphones in its class.

The Stream is quite a thin handset and measures just11.2 mm. It is quite a decent looker as well. It features a large 3.7-inch WVGA AMOLED display. Other features include Acer Touch 3D UI, an Accelerometer, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, UPnP, GPS, Social networking integration (Facebook, Twitter), Nemo multimedia player, and Dolby Mobile sound. There is Bluetooth and HDMI port thrown in as well.

Flipping the Acer Stream over reveals a soft-touch-coated backside and a 5MP camera without a flash, but with HD 720p video recording. Should you remove the back cover, you'll gain access to the 1400mAh Li-Ion battery, which has to be gotten out of the way in order for you to be able to install SIM or microSD cards. By the way, our unit came preloaded with an 8GB microSD - nice touch.

Overall, the Acer Stream feels good in the hand (seems like we've gotten used to holding BIG phones), while its plastic build seems reassuring, though not really premium. Still, it would have definitely been nicer if it was just a tad more compact. It is possible to operate the handset with one hand only, if you stretch your fingers a bit, but it's way more comfortable if you use two hands.