The news emerged because of a slip up by Orange which accidentally published pages on its site detailing the help and support which will be offered to customers who buy the San Francisco II handset following its release.

The original Orange San Francisco, or the ZTE Blade as it is known in some regions, won plaudits from the professional reviewers and fans alike thanks to the fact that it featured a 3.5 inch touchscreen display and a largely untouched Android user experience at a very affordable price point.

Now the San Francisco II is here and it will retain the same 3.5 inch display with its 800×480 resolution. The simple black chassis also seems to be quite similar to that of its predecessor, although there are many significant changes which have occurred beneath the surface.

The first is the inclusion of a faster processor, which is now running at a clock speed of 800MHz rather than the 600MHz of the original. This should give the San Francisco II the oomph it needs to run Android 2.3 without too many issues.

Flipping the phone onto its front will reveal the rear-facing five megapixel camera, which is again an improvement over the 3.2 megapixel snapper of its prequel. You will even get to use the built-in LED flash to brighten up shots taken in dim environments, which is a nice touch to see on what will presumably be a handset aimed at the pay as you go market.

ZTE and Orange have had quite a fruitful relationship of late, with the recent Monte Carlo handset, also known as the ZTE Skate, showing that you can get hold of a smartphone with a 4.3 inch display and the Android 2.3 operating system without breaking the bank. The San Francisco II will follow on in this tradition, wowing those who would not expect to find such capable features on a pay as you go handset.

At the other end of the scale is the news that the Samsung Galaxy Nexus is just about to launch around the world, bringing users bang up to date with Android 4.0 and engaging them with a 4.65 inch Super AMOLED display.

With a dual core 1.5GHz processor the Galaxy Nexus is going to be quite a bit slicker and faster than the Orange San Francisco, but then it will also be quite a bit more expensive if you want to buy it outright. Of course with Samsung contracts, you will be able to get the Galaxy Nexus free of charge for a basic monthly fee rather than forking over the cash upfront. If you want a smartphone with a screen that is more than an inch larger than that of the latest Orange/ZTE handset then the Galaxy Nexus should fit the bill.

Source : Orange San Francisco II – Budget Android from ZTE and Orange