You have to hand it to Google. Even though it’s a fight between their Android OS and Apple’s iOS for dominance of the smartphone, they do come up with the better names for their software releases.

Apple pretty much sticks to numbers, with iOS 5 being the latest, while Google is now at Android 4.0 — which has the much cooler name of Ice Cream Sandwich. It is about that very delicious-sounding Android release we are talking today.

HTC has announced via their Facebook page that an Ice Cream Sandwich update will be available for some of its devices by the end of March. First in line to get the update will reportedly be the Sensation, Sensation 4G and Sensation XE. Then, a little later, the Sensation XL.

The Rezound, Vivid, Amaze 4G, EVO 3D, EVO Design 4G, Incredible S, Desire S and Desire HD will all be updated “later this year.”

So HTC users, how does this make you feel? Are you excited for some Ice Cream Sandwich action?

What’s in a number? Well, if you’re Apple or Google, quite a bit apparently, According to the Nielsen research company, Android continued to move forward as a popular OS for smartphones showing significant gains and retaining its position os the top smartphone OS in the United States.

According to the survey, Android currently has 39% of the market. Apple’s iOS is number two with 28% and RIM is third at 20%. Windows Mobile and Windows Phone combined for 9%, while webOS and Palm OS combined for 2%. Nokia’s Symbian OS also held a 2% share in the June quarter.

Turning to hardware, Apple’s in the lead this time with 28% of the total U.S. market. HTC was second with 14% of Android smartphones and 6% of the Windows Phone/Windows Mobile smartphones, making it the top vendor in both categories and number two overall.

Samsung followed with 8% of the Android market and 2% of the Windows Phone/Windows Mobile market in the U.S. last quarter, while Motorola topped Samsung’s Android share with 11% to slide into the No. 2 spot among Android device manufacturers.

That’s a lot of numbers and we realize you probably don’t like numbers. So, here it is in a nutshell: Android is number one in OS and Apple is number one in hardware. Any questions?

For those of you lamenting the lack of cool 4G smartphone offerings available for the Verizon Wireless network, this is the day you’ve been waiting for. Verizon Wireless’ first LTE handset, the HTC ThunderBolt, is now available on store shelves and online, ready to push the boundaries of wireless access.

If you plan on being one of the very first consumers to acquire the 4G handset, you have options as to where to pick it up. Verizon Wireless, Best Buy, and several others will be selling the handset for $250 with a two year contract.

However, if you don’t mind waiting for the device to be shipped to you, Wirefly will be selling it for $199.99. In addition, Amazon Wireless has it priced at $179.99. Plus, unless you live in certain areas of the country, no sales tax if you purchase at Amazon. Who doesn’t love that?

In case you’re not familiar with this 4G powerhouse, here’s a few stats to help get you excited:

• Powered by Android 2.2
• Latest version of the HTC Sense UI
• Support for Google Mobile Services, including Gmail, YouTube and Android Market
• 4G LTE optimized apps such as EA’s Rock Band, Gameloft’s Let’s Golf, Tunewiki and Bitbop
• 4G LTE – customers can expect download speeds of 5 to 12 Mbps and upload speeds of 2 to 5 Mbps in 4G Mobile Broadband coverage area
• 4.3” WVGA display
• 8- megapixel rear facing camera and HD (720p) video recording

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Yesterday during the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas Verizon unveiled a bunch of upcoming devices built for its 4G LTE network. Some of the devices include smartphones, tablets, laptop computers and mobile hotspots. Here’s a quick rundown of each 4G device covered during the announcement, compiled by the folks at BGR:

• HTC ThunderBolt – HTC Sense 2.0, 1GHz Snapdragon processor, 4.3-inch WVGA display, 8-megapixel camera with HD video recording, DLNA capability, video chat support

• LG Revolution – 4.3-inch touchscreen, Android 2.2, video chat, mobile hotspot support (up to eight devices)

• DROID Bionic 4G – Android, video chat, rear-facing 8-megapixel camera, 4.3-inch display, HDMI connectivity, dual-core 1GHz processor, 512 DDR2 RAM

• Unnamed Samsung Smartphone – Android 2.2, 4.3-inch Super-AMOLED Plus display, 1GHz processor, rear-facing 8-megapixel camera with LED flash, video chat

• Motorola XOOM tablet – 10.1-inch display, Android 3.0 Honeycomb OS, 1080p HD video, front-facing 2-megapixel camera for video chat, 5-megapixel camera with video capture, mobile hotspot capability (up to five devices)

• 4G LTE-enabled Samsung Galaxy Tab – 7-inch TFT display, Android 2.2, 1.2GHz Cortex A8 Hummingbird processor, rear-facing 5-megapixel camera, front-facing 1.3-megapixel camera

• Novatel MiFi® 4510L Intelligent Mobile Hotspot – 3G and 4G LTE compatibility

• Samsung 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot – 3G and 4G LTE compatibility

• Compaq CQ10-688nr – 10.1-inch display, Intel Atom N455 processor, up to 8.5 hours of battery life, multi-format digital media card reader, webcam and multiple connectivity options

• HP Pavilion dm1-3010nr – 11.6-inches, HP CoolSense Technology, up to 10.75 hours of battery life, 320 GB of storage, multi-format digital media card reader, HDMI port, Dolby Advanced Audio and GPS for mapping and navigation

Click through to check out the full press release from Verizon. But take note, its pretty massive.

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Indeed it is the time of year when inevitability the lists appear and people pick their favorites of 2010. Some have already done their lists and some, like me, like to wait a bit. That said and since I don’t want to be accused of not following trends, I will also be making a list (or two) of my picks of the best of 2010. However, in the interest of clarity and brevity (or neither), I’m going to pick my top 5 (or so) things in the main categories we cover here at The Flickcast.

Although, as our own John Carle covered the best of 2010 in games so well already, I won’t make much (if any) a list of those and will just mention my two favorites. In case you’re not familiar with those main categories we cover, they are as follows: Movies, TV, Comics, Games, Tech and all things Geek.

So, to that end, here’s my list (or lists really) of my picks of the top stuff of 2010.

Movies

Inception – I love smart movies and this one is pretty damn smart. Featuring great performances, a mind-bending plot and twists galore, director Christopher Nolan delivers with one entertaining ride I was talking about for weeks (and months) afterward. And with all the ways I can get distracted by other things, to still be taking about this movie now is a testament to just how great it is.

True Grit – I love Westerns and this one will go down as truly one of the best I’ve seen in a long time. Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon and the rest of the cast are superb and newcomer Hailee Steinfeld owns the screen. She is definitely one to watch. Plus, the Coen brothers have a genuine love and reverence for the classic Western conventions, even when they twist and turn them into new and even more compelling shapes.

The Social Network – When I first heard of this movie I was skeptical, as probably most were, about how interesting a movie about Facebook really could be. I had nothing to worry about. This brilliant film, directed by David Fincher and written by Aaron Sorkin, delivers on all levels and tells a compelling story of one of the most impressive success stories in history. Along the way it also shows us a little something about the nature of greed, friendship and the real cost of success.

Winter’s Bone - This tale of a real heroes journey to find out what happened to her father before the bank forecloses on her home resonated with me for quite some time after watching this film. Jennifer Lawrence as the young mother and John Hawkes as her meth-snorting uncle really deliver top performances. Part crime movie, part thriller and part coming-of-age-story this film’s stark realism takes you into a world you didn’t know existed and holds you there until the lights come up.

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As of late last night (Mine came in around 11PM) Verizon Wireless began rolling out a new minor software update for the HTC Incredible. This update is more of a minor update that includes bug fixes and a few new features.

Chief among these new features is Verizon’s V CAST Apps store. The new store will allow HTC Incredible users to download and install applications to their devices. This new service works similarly to the current Android Market but also allows users to pay for new apps via their monthly Verizon cell phone bill instead of using a credit card.

The update, which is delivered over the air, is an 18 MB file and brings the software to Android Version 2.2 (3.26.605.1/Baseband Version: 2.15.00.07.28). It should be pushed out to all users over the next few days.

For the complete list of big fixes and improvements, click through.

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Seems like there’s been a non-stop parade of hot new Android-powered phones releasing in 2010. We reported on the Droid Incredible back in April, the ginormous Droid X with its drool-worthy screen back in June, but check out what Motorola is about to release on Verizon customers now. The all-new Droid 2, an update on the Droid that started it all.

Unlike the Incredible and the X, the new Droid 2 has an improved flip-out keyboard, a must for texting and emailing enthusiasts. I have to say, as a Droid Incredible user, I long for a real keyboard every single time I have to pound out more than a few words on my virtual keyboard. The Droid X at least has a much larger screen and consequently a much larger virtual keyboard, but there just is no comparison to how efficient you can be with a real keyboard.

The specs are reminiscent of the original Droid, but updated in some key areas: Android 2.2 (AKA “Froyo”), 3.7″ touch-screen, 3G Mobile HotSpot capability, Flash Player 10.1, an enhanced 5MP-cam with image-stabilization, dual LED flash and DVD-quality video capture, 8GB of onboard memory and a 8GB microSD card and onboard DLNA media sharing.

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If you’re an HTC Incredible user then this info is for you. According to an article at The Boy Genius Report, the Incredible is expected to get the brand new Android OS 2.2 (code name Froyo) in August. This information, taken from an email sent in by a tipster, goes into detail about the update and what users can expect from it.

Take a look below at the email and see if you believe what’s being said.

I wanted to pass along that the upcoming Incredible MR will also include Froyo (originally it was going to be two separate MRs). We are targeting the end of the month/first part of August. As a reminder, below are the highlights:
• Froyo
• 802.11 n
• 3G Mobile Hot Spot
• HTC Widget: Email
• HTC Widget: News
• EAS Updates
• 720p Video Recording
• Amazon MP3
• Skype
• My Verizon

If ultimately true, this update is very good news for current Incredible owners. these are features they will certainly all want to have as soon as possible. Of course, this means the rumored OS update that was supposed to roll out last weekend was either untrue or was halted to make ready for this improved one.

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During Apple’s recent iPhone 4 press conference, they made some pretty hefty claims about other smartphones having similar problems as the iPhone 4, including devices manufactured by HTC, Blackberry, and Nokia. Devices that they singled out, such as the HTC Droid Eris and HTC Nexus One, supposedly have their own history of reception problems.

Apparently I wasn’t the only one who heard this and went “Huh?”, as I have had no reception issues with my recently purchased HTC Droid Incredible, because HTC has started fighting back with numbers of their own.

While only 0.55 percent of calls received by Applecare are about the iPhone 4′s reception issues, HTC’s numbers were at a measily 0.016 percent of calls about the HTC Droid Eris. Though the phone was recently discontinued, it has been out far longer with fewer complaints than Apple claims to have received.

Regardless, any issues that the iPhone 4 has cannot be compared to phones like the HTC Eris, as its antenna is located on the top of the phone while most new smartphones have them on the bottom.

Nokia and RIM have both commented on the situation on their own, but Nokia stressed that reception interference due to human hands was a problem across the smartphone market and wasn’t limited to just Apple and the iPhone 4. Regardless of what phones have this problem, it’s unfair for Apple to just say “It’s ok that our phone has a reception problem, because these phones do too”, without first looking at the numbers.

Are you a user of the the awesome and, well, incredible HTC Droid Incredible? Are you a little jealous of your iPhone 4 using friends who get to record video in 720p or of other smartphone users who can create hotspots with their devices? If so, time to forget those concerns and get happy.

HTC has confirmed an OTA update is on the way for the Droid Incredible that will not only fix a few security and grounding issues it will also, if the following pic is be believed, enable the device to create mobile hotspots and, wait for it, unlock the capability to record video in 720p HD, just like the upcoming DROID X. The update will also reportedly change the boot screen to the new Droid eye, as seen in the video we’ve got for you.

If the update actually unlocks these features, it’s not that surprising. HTC wants to make sure it can compete with the iPhone 4 and DROID X, so having this functionality up it’s sleeve and able to be unlocked via an update at an opportune time goes a long way to ensuring that.

Check out the video and pic after the jump. We’ll keep you informed on this update and also let us know if you get it and if it really adds this functionality.

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The alliance between Verizon and Google just seems to be getting stronger. First, they partnered to offer several Android powered smartphones like the Moto DROID and the HTC DROID Incredible and now the two companies are reportedly teaming up to being a tablet computer to market to compete directly with Apple’s iPad.

According to reports in the Wall Street Journal, Verizon and Google’s partnership aims to bring the “next big wave of opportunities” to the U.S. wireless industry. The Verizon-Google tablet is intended to “clip the wings of the ever-soaring iPad” Nice.

Sadly there’s no word on who will make the hardware for the tablet or when it may be available. Still, it’s interesting to speculate. What I would love to see is a tablet device made by HTC, featuring Android OS topped with HTC’s Sense UI to make it look cleaner.

Plus, a wireless card from Verizon that did combo 3G/4G. Now that would be a tablet I would be interested in and one that could give the iPad a definite run for its money.

If you were one of the many people waiting for Google’s Android powered Nexus One smartphone to hit Verizon so you could finally get your hands on one, you’re not going to be very happy after reading this post. Sadly, it seems, Verizon has decided to get out of the Nexus One business and instead, will stick with HTC and the pending release of the DROID Incredible.

While this move may not come as a surprise to some, particularly the folks over at Tech Crunch, it did seem to come out of left field a little. After all, up until the last few days, the release of the Nexus One was trumpeted as coming soon by Google at the site where they sell the phone. Now it directs potential customers back to Verizon’s website to buy a competing product in the Incredible? Again, seems a bit out of left field.

As highlighted over at Tech Crunch, it seems Verizon is choosing to offer the latest and greatest device to its customers and doesn’t seem to think the Nexus One is that device. When it came out, it was the best Android phone on the market. Then, Motorola released the DROID, which has reigned supreme. Now, the Incredible looks to be the top Android phone, at least for now.

Competition is a good thing and often leads to great innovations as companies strive to come to market with better and cheaper products. I the end we may not understand Verizon or Google’s reasons for making certain decisions, but in this case at least, it looks like Verizon’s decision will benefit consumers who want the best Android phone they can get.