My Android Stuffs: August 2012

Friday, 31 August 2012

Looking to mod the Galaxy Note 10.1, as first custom ROMs arrive?

THe Galaxy Note 10.1 sure has had a lot of customization already, with a root arriving long before the tablet even hit the market. Shortly after, ClockworkMod was ported to Note 10.1, and now the first Galaxy Note 10.1 custom ROMs have begun to surface.Looking to get your mod on with the Galaxy Note 10.1? XDA Developers forum has some of the first custom ROMs already. There are three different builds, each with its own different features and appeal.First up, we have zedomax‘s

[New App] Autodesk ForceEffect Motion – Create Fully Articulated, Movable Mechanical Designs From Your Mobile Device

Autodesk, the company behind AutoCAD and hugely impressive Android apps like Design Review, Buzzsaw, and Sketchbook, brought another awesome app to the table recently with ForceEffect Motion.Improving on the original ForceEffect for Android, ForceEffect Motion offers the same quick, smooth freehand sketching, construction, and constraining capabilities but with the added ability to simulate motion, allowing users to create complete mechanical system designs on mobile devices, using tools like

Five great Android time-wasters for this weekend

Hey, it's Labor Day weekend. And as far as we're concerned, we're going to do everything we can to not lift a finger. In fact, we're not even going to bother writing any more. Without further ado, here are five Android apps that will help you waste away the weekend and not take up too much brain power:Don't think. Just ski. You're controlling Sven, who's doing all he can to escape the avalanche. You have to help him hop, flip and catch rides to keep ahead of the rushing snow. You've got some

Blood & Glory: Legend now available in Google Play

After releasing a teaser video last week, Glu Mobile has released their newest game, Blood & Glory: Legend, in the Google Play store. The title follows up the original Blood & Glory game. Gameplay features one-on-one battles against computer controlled opponents. Most battles take place in an arena patterned after an ancient Roman stadium, though some other environments are present in the game. As players win battles they can earn money that can be used to buy new gear or they can plunk down

Hands-on with the HTC Desire X

The HTC Desire brand has a history stretching back to the dark depths of early 2010. The original Desire was the flagship of its time, but since then the name has been re-purposed for HTC's entry-level and mid-range smartphones. The latest phone in this range is the Desire X, which the company's showing at IFA 2012 this week.The Desire X incorporates a classic HTC design, with rounded corners in a polycarbonate chassis. Around the back there's a large, stylized camera lens alongside branding

Modern Combat 3, NOVA 3 and Gangstar Rio go on sale for a buck each

Gameloft has just kicked off a Labor Day sale featuring Modern Combat 3, Gangstar Rio, and NOVA 3. These are some of their biggest titles, and they're available for a buck each in Google Play. Sure, they're "homages" to Call of Duty, Saint's Row, and Halo, respectively, but they're all extremely well polished and the closest you'll see to those franchises finding a home on Android. I've personally put a fair bit of time into Modern Combat 3, and found the accelerometer controls to be really

Huawei MediaPad 10 FHD Will Be Shipped In September, Come Fully Loaded With Quad-Core Processor And 16-Core GPU

HUAWEI MediaPad 10 FHD to Ship Globally from SeptemberBerlin, Germany, August 31 2012: Huawei, a leading global information and communications technology (ICT) solutions provider, has announced that it will ship its much-anticipated 10-inch HUAWEI MediaPad 10 FHD quad-core tablet to selected markets from September, with other markets to follow. Running on Android 4.0, the HUAWEI MediaPad 10 FHD provides and unsurpassed entertainment experience with its visual and audio features, power

LG's Flexible Cable Battery Prototype Could Bring Much-Needed Innovation To Power Supplies

There's been a fundamental problem holding back the development of gadgets for the last decade or so. While processing power, storage capacity, wireless speed, and even display quality are growing at a phenomenal and steady rate, lithium ion batteries really haven't changed at all. The best that manufacturers can do is either create smaller components to make more space for the battery bay or make those components more efficient. LG Chem has created one of the first truly exciting innovations

Thursday, 30 August 2012

Droidax Power Pack for the Samsung Galaxy S3

Like many a first wife in Texas has said, you can never have too much power. (At least that's what I assume first wives in Texas say. But then again I watch a lot of "Dallas.") To that end, we present the Droidax Power Pack for the Samsung Galaxy S3.If this idea looks familiar, it should. It's in the same vein as arguably the most important iPhone accessory -- the Mophie Juicepack. This is a dual-function accessory -- it's a case and an external 2300 mAh battery combined, prolonging life in

Cricket's Huawei Mercury Ice gets redesigned, hitting Radio Shack Sep. 5

Huawei has redesigned, renamed and re-released the Mercury (aka the Huawei Honor), and Cricket is bringing it to Radio Shack on September 5. In addition to the new handle, the phone's face is now offered in a pearl white, and just like we told you yesterday, unlimited MUVE music is part of the package. Fifty dollars a month for unlimited talk, text, data, and music streaming isn't a bad deal at all.Unfortunately, the software doesn't seem to have been updated and it's still running on

Pantech Magnus (P9090) For AT&T Pictured In All Its Asymmetrical Glory

South Korean manufacturer Pantech still hasn't made it big in the U.S. market, but their partnership with AT&T has proven to be a steady one so far. The Magnus, AKA the P9090 that we spotted earlier this week, would seem to be Pantech's first high-end device for AT&T, and the first photos of the device have now hit the Internet. It looks like a pretty standard slate phone, with the interesting addition of an asymmetrical duo-tone plastic back. Details are pretty scarce at the moment, though it

Speck PixelSleeve review

I'm loving the Speck PixelSleeve Plus for my full-size Android tablet. A 10-inch Android tablet is too big to put in a pocket. For a lot of folks, the screen real-estate is more important than portability, so a 10-incher is the choice. Since you can't stuff one into the cargo pocket on your pants, you'll need a way to carry it around once you venture outside. If you're like me, that means a backpack filled with other gear that can (and will) scratch up the screen and do other ugly things to

Evernote App Updated To Version 4.2, Brings Jelly Bean Notification Enhancements

If you've ever needed to jot down a quick note on the go, I hope you used Evernote to do it. The Evernote service, and the accompanying app, make it easy to keep all your notes in the cloud. This app has long had great features like audio notes, notebook categorization, and tagging. Now Evernote is getting a little more awesome for anyone running Jelly Bean. Android 4.1 supports expanded notifications so you can trigger actions right from the drop down. In the case of Evernote, you can

Hands on with the new TomTom for Android satellite navigation app

TomTom for Android has been an awfully long time coming. Having been available on iOS now for a number of years, the global satellite navigation giant has been somewhat tardy in bringing it to Android. But, it's officially official now, we're getting it on Android in October. The biggest question still remains the same though -- why buy this on an OS that comes with a perfectly good satellite navigation system built in for free? We went hands on at IFA 2012 in Berlin to see if maybe we could

Amazon App Store comes to Europe

Amazon have today announced they will launch their App Store in the UK, Germany, France, Italy and Spain giving European customers more options to purchase Android apps for their smartphones and tablets. As well as getting fast access to Amazons 'free app of the day' content will be localized and each countries app store will differ slightly.Amazon will do their own app testing to ensure the quality of the product they are delivering. In addition, customers will be able to view recommendations

The normal-sized Sony Xperia Tablet S ... and a giagantic Vaio Tap

Yes. That's not an Android tablet. But it's such a monsterously huge freak of nature, we're not going to ignore it, either. It might look normal, but that's the 20-inch Sony Vaio Tap Windows 8 tablet that was just announced at IFA in Berlin.Here's the good part: Alex popped this guy up next to the relatively normal-sized (and Android-based) Sony Xperia Tablet S, also announced this week. Check out the hilarity after the break. "Phil is a recovering print journalist, editor of Android Central,

[Download] Jelly Bean Test Build (JRO03O) Available For The Verizon Galaxy Nexus

While the GSM Galaxy Nexus has been running Jelly Bean since Google I/O, there hasn't been a single word of the update for the Verizon Nexus. Until now.Last night, one lucky XDA member received a system update on his phone to install build JRO03O, which is the newest Jelly Bean build we've heard of.It's pretty evident that this is just a test build, as there's nary a word about the update anywhere else; even Verizon's support channel is void of any info. What this does indicate, however, is

Wednesday, 29 August 2012

Smartphones to dominate by next year

According to a recently published IHS iSuppli Wireless Communications Market Tracker Report, by 2013 half of all mobile phones sold will be smartphones. Although the eventual rise and dominance of smartphones was always predicted, this latest forecast brings the tipping point forward by a whole two years. The same report also predicts that by 2016, smartphones will make up more than two-thirds of all mobile phone sales.“This represents a major upgrade for the outlook compared to a year ago,

OtterBox Defender Series case review - multi-layer protection and a locking holster clip

The OtterBox Defender Series case for the HTC One X offers three solid layers of protection in a tight, compact package. Beyond the usual hard plastic/silicone skin hybrid set-up, there’s also a screen protector integrated with the inner case. This means no more futzing around with sticky screen protectors, and having to line things up perfectly or squeezing out air bubbles. The case comes with a clip-style holsters that rotates a full 360 degrees while keeping your phone securely in place -

TomTom coming to Android - possibly as soon as October

When it comes to voice guided satellite navigation the one company that springs to mind for most people is TomTom, but sadly we haven't had any Android love - until now. Today at IFA in Berlin TomTom are previewing their long awaited Android version. Pricing and availability is yet to be confirmed but clearly it needs to be an attractive package to tempt us away from using Google's own solution, although Tom Tom will certainly have more features.“We aim to make TomTom content and services

Easy to use video editing app Magisto makes its way to Google Play Store [Video]

Editing videos on your smartphone can be quite challenging and frustrating. Magisto aims to make that easier for you with their new Android app now available for free in the Play Store. All you need to do is just shoot and upload a video from your device, choose a soundtrack, give your movie a title and Magisto will automatically edit your movie for you. Here’s what else the app can offer you:Unprecedented AI Technology that analyzes and edits the best parts of your videosEasily share to

James Bond will use the Sony Xperia T in Skyfall

James Bond has run the gamut of sweet tech over the years, from kitchy, no-name Q-special, to Nokia -- and back to Sony. Sony Mobile president and CEO Hazuo Hirai today at IFA in Berlin announced that 007 will sport the Sony Xperia T in the upcoming "Skyfall" movie.Seen the Skyfall trailer yet? Check it out after the break. "Phil is a recovering print journalist, editor of Android Central, subtitles and street signs."
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LG unveils the Optimus L9, differentiates it with OCR translator app

LG has been busy lately having only yesterday unveiled the Optimus G which will serve as their flagship device for the next little while. Another LG announcement has arrived though, and it brings the Optimus L9. Packing a 4.7-inch IPS display, Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich with 1GB DDR2 (RAM) / 4GB e-MMC and a high-density 2,150mAh battery as well as a 5MP shooter all wrapped in a 9.1mm thin body the Optimus L9 isn't a lot to write home about but LG has tossed in a few other goodies as well to

Android 4.0 ICS update arriving on Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 WiFi in the U.S.

Back in July, Samsung said that they will push out the Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade for the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 in August. After months of anticipation for Android’s once coolest iteration to arrive, the new firmware is finally available for the Galaxy Tab 8.9 (P7310) WiFi model.The Android 4.0 OTA update for Galaxy Tab 8.9 is currently being rolled out by Samsung, which means it’s only a matter of time before you see the notification update on your slate. If you’re getting impatient

Buy Asus Transformer Pad TF300T and get free keyboard dock from Sears

If it has just dawned on you that a 10.1-inch tablet is better suited for your needs than a 7-inch one, you definitely want to check out the offer that Sears has on the Asus Transformer Pad TF300T – one of the first quad-core tablets introduced to the market.For every online Asus Transformer Pad TF300T purchase, not only will Sears waive the standard shipment fee, but it will also add the original Asus docking keyboard for free. All you have to do is make sure that both items appear in cart

Android and iOS devices adopted faster than any other consumer tech ever

If you need any proof of the popularity and desirability of smartphones and tablets right now then here it is. Across the world we have been buying Android and iOS devices faster than any other consumer technology in history. That’s according to research by Flurry, which estimates that there were over 640 million Android and iOS devices in use during July 2012.To give a comparison, Flurry is claiming that Android and iOS adoption is:10 times faster than the PC revolution2 times faster than

Tuesday, 28 August 2012

MetroPCS gets the Coolpad Quattro for $149

MetroPCS this morning announced it's carrying the CoolPad Quattro 4G, a 4-inch Android 2.3 smartphone. The Quattro 4G also sports a 1GHz processor, rear 3.2-megapixel camera and a VGA front-facing camera.The phone runs $149, and plans begin at $40 a month. MetroPCS, for a limited time, also is offering a $50 rebate on the second of any two 4G smartphones you purchase. (So if you buy two Quattros, the second would cost $99.)Source: MetroPCS
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Barnes & Noble Bringing Nook Simple Touch E-Book Readers To John Lewis Stores In The UK, Nook Tablet Makes An Appearance On The UK Website

Barnes & Noble announced last week that its Nook Simple Touch e-book readers were coming to the UK, and it's now been confirmed that John Lewis will stock the devices from mid-October.Although Barnes & Noble is an established name in the US, this will be the first time that the company has made itself known on this side of the pond. With no brand recognition, it will have a tough time competing against the likes of Amazon, who just recently partnered with Waterstones to bring the Kindle to the

HTC One XL, One S and EVO 4G LTE now have Jelly Bean-based CM10 nightly builds

To say we were surprised more than a month ago when hearing from HTC on the company’s “official plans” for updating its “heroes” to Jelly Bean would be a huge understatement. At the time, pretty much no OEM had the guts to speak up about Android 4.1 upgrades, so to see HTC promising software leaps for three of its best phones was really something.Unfortunately, HTC has mentioned nothing on the subject ever since, which is frustrating as heck, but not that surprising. One X, XL and S

Apple seeks ban on eight Samsung smartphones in the US

In the wake of Samsung’s guilty verdict, Apple has filed a notice with the court naming a slew of devices it plans to ban in the US. Considering most of the devices found to be in violation of Apple’s patents aren’t being sold anymore, the Cupertino-based company is only seeking a ban on eight smartphones.Galaxy S 4GGalaxy S2 (AT&T)Galaxy S2 (Skyrocket)Galaxy S2 (T-Mobile)Galaxy S2 Epic 4GGalaxy S ShowcaseDroid ChargeGalaxy PrevailTo better depict its reasoning, Apple has also included a

Motorola Droid Razr M 4G LTE pic and spec sheet leaked

Motorola’s and Verizon’s plans for the September 5 special event haven’t been a secret for a while, but a couple of details have been kept under wraps until now. We’ve known basically all there was to know about Moto’s future flagship, the Droid Razr HD, for some weeks, but the second device to be unveiled next week was still a mystery.The XT907 was first spotted in a supposed leaked pic back in July, getting FCC certification a couple of weeks ago. The phone’s official name was

Is Lyft a shabby ripoff of Sidecar?

Let’s not get confused. Lyftis about the same kind of service as Sidecar. The two services both cater to the iOS and Android communities. Both services deal with transportation and propose to do so at a fraction of the average cost. This begs the question, what does Lyft do that Sidecar does not?Let’s start off with Lyft’s site. It’s minimal. I mean, very minimal. There’s a link for the iOS app (Android app is rumored to be available on the 29th) and a link to sign up as a driver.

Apple and Samsung can still make money together and they will

Some of the best relationships are fiery and combative, but passionate arguments can also lead to irreconcilable rifts. Now that Apple has beaten Samsung in a U.S. court the company still needs its South Korean partner to produce lots of components for the iPhone and iPad. In light of Apple’s and Samsung’s patent war, and Apple’s claims about Samsung copying everything it does, you’d be forgiven for thinking that a working relationship might become untenable.As we know, Apple and

Samsung Shares Drop $12 billion In Lieu of Verdict and Potential Ban

Samsung Electronics Co.’s market value dropped a whopping $12 billion today in lieu of Friday’s ruling which ordered the Korean electronics company to pay over $1B in damages from patent infringement. Despite Samsung’s wide array of products and services, phones and tablets make up roughly 70% of the company’s earnings.The ruling isn’t the only factor affecting the plummeted shares as Apple is currently seeking a ban on eight of Samsung’s smartphones, among them the widely popular

Samsung Galaxy S3 is simply the best, according to PhoneDog rankings

With most smartphone manufacturers reluctant to release exact sales figures broken down by devices, there isn’t much we can use to find out what are the most popular and successful gadgets around. We could look at blog reviews, but these sometimes reflect the opinions of people with a very vast technical expertise, which, let’s be honest, is not the case of most regular users.What about some weekly ranking charts where normal people and “experts” can express their opinions separately?

HTC Proto re-emerges in leaked retail documents and photos as the Desire X

HTC’s rumored Proto smartphone has been outed in a set of leaked retail documents and photos as the Desire X. The device is slated to take over as the company’s entry-level smartphone, effectively replacing the uniquely-styled One V. In terms of specs, the Desire X won’t break any records, though it seems to pack quite the bang for your buck.4 inch WVGA (Super LCD)5-megapixel camera with Auto focus and LED Flash1 GHz dual-core processor4GB internal storage768MB RAMMicroSD SlotDropbox 25GB

Samsung Introduces Drive Link, An App To Simplify Smartphone Use In The Car

Let's see a show of hands: how many of you use your smartphone while driving? It's OK, we won't judge you. Yeah, you do it. We all do from time to time. And we all know it's not safe, too.The interface of a smartphone is meant to be simple, but not simple enough to use while driving. For that, an app that turns your smartphone into something that your grandmother could be comfortable using would be much better. A simple interface that gives all the information you need at a glance and offers

LG Optimus G is officially official

Well, that didn't take long. Following the leak we saw just a couple days ago, LG has released information regarding the launch of its latest superphone, the Optimus G. The finalized pictures look just about the same as the leaks we saw, which we'd assume considering how quickly the release has come. It's always good to know for sure what you're getting though. The Optimus G is looking to be quite a speedy phone -- assuming LG can step up its software game -- with specs that are top of the

[New Game] Kairosoft's 'Oh! Edo Towns' No Longer Region Locked, Now Available In The Play Store For All Users

Back in July, popular game developer Kairosoft released a new game called Oh! Edo Towns. Much to the surprise of Kairosoft-lovers, however, it was region locked to Japan.But not anymore. Now, Oh! Edo Towns is available in the Play Store for all users. Oh! Edo Towns keeps that familiar (and loved) Kairosoft style, but goes back in time to the Japan's Edo days. Build houses, castles, and all other sorts of old-school architecture, and place building side-by-side to create "combos." It's your

Samsung Adds New Color Options To The Samsung Galaxy S III, Soon To Be Available In 'Amber Brown', 'Sapphire Black', and 'Titanium Grey'

We already knew that the Samsung was planning to release a black version of the Galaxy S III, but it's just been announced that the company's flagship phone will also be available in three additional colors soon.Continuing the "inspired by nature" theme of the Galaxy S III, Samsung's blog says that the new color variants are "derived from man’s relationship with natural materials and perfectly compliment the handset’s organic experience."The Garnet Red model has already been available

Sunday, 26 August 2012

Lenovo, ZTE pip Apple in China smartphone share

It’s always good to see Apple beaten at an actual game: marketshare. And this time around they’ve been handed a defeat by Lenovo and ZTE. Lenovo came all the way from #7 to #2 in the Chinese smartphone marketshare rankings, while ZTE moved up from #4 to #3. Samsung’s got the top-spot with a 19% share of a market that saw 87 million units shipped, which made it the first time more smartphones have been shipped than feature phones in the country. All statistics were provided by IDC.

Latest Dropbox beta adds 2-step verification

Many of us use Dropbox in varying capacities (see what I did there?), and when we do, we often use it as crucial backup storage for data that's important to us. If it wasn't important, we probably wouldn't bother backing it up now would we? If you take your security seriously, and by now we hope you all do, you should be jumping for joy that Dropbox has added 2-step verification sign in to its latest betas.The latest Dropbox beta follows the same principle that Google's 2-step verification

Kirby Ferguson On Music, Apple And Android: “Everything Is A Remix”

In the spirit of the recent jury verdict in favor of Apple… and the subsequent follow-up opinions regarding the matter, it’s only fitting that we hear other individuals give their two cents regarding the idea of patents and true innovation. In the TEDTalks (Technology, Entertainment and Design Talks) video podcast, Everything Is A Remix founder Kirby Ferguson offers some perspective on the idea of true innovation. He believes music is evolved by copying and transforming melodies, combining

LG confirms display specs of upcoming device, as well as claiming 'longer battery life'

The tale of the forthcoming LG 'Optimus G' superphone continues, only this time, it's the Korean OEM that is telling it. Following up from the recent leaked prototype of the device, LG has released a statement today confirming certain details that had previously been leaked, and new details of the gapless display it shall house. As it happens, the Snapdragon S4 Pro powered device will definitely have a 1280x768 True HD IPS+ display, coming in at 320ppi. Theres some science that goes along

[Update: Complete device-by-device breakdown, jury instructions added] Samsung planning various arguments for its appeal

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Reason to root that Nexus 7 – how about overclocking to 2.0 GHz?

It is safe to assume many of you are rocking those shiny Nexus 7 tablets by now, as Google has been struggling to keep up with demand. There is nothing to complain about, the tablet has amazing specs, it features a very portable 7-inch form-factor and costs only $200. But there is always that user that wants more, which is why you might want to start rooting your tablet.We have seen the Nexus tablet being overclocked to 1.64 GHz (tablet is factory clocked to 1.3 GHz) and that quad-core

Fruit vs. Robot game pits Apple against Android [If only companies could settle out of court this way]

Apple has just had a big win in the landmark Apple vs. Samsung patent infringement case, which leaves consumers wondering whether a single company can claim ownership of rounded rectangles after all. If you want to get involved in the epic legal war, you can now have a say even if your name is not Lucy Koh or Florian Mueller. A new mobile game pits the iOS and Android platforms against each other in a fun (and less expensive) way.Apple fanboys/girls and Fandroids now have a better outlet

The LG Optimus G might have an all new True HD IPS+ display, new battery

Looks like the all new quad-core Snapdragon S4 won’t the only component to make it’s debut in the LG Optimus G, images of which were leaked yesterday. LG has put out a news release stating that their upcoming flagship (not naming it, but do mention the first quad-core S4 device) will contain some of the latest innovation from the other LG subsidiaries, including a new display and new battery technology.The new “True HD IPS+” display can apparently display a white background at 470

Apple vs Samsung verdict: Android devices to ban after Apple $1 billion win in U.S. court

Earlier today we told you that Apple has obtained a huge victory in its U.S. case against Samsung, with the latter being delivered a devastating defeat – not because of the $1 billion in damages awarded to Apple, which can be considered pocket change by Samsung compared to its profits from the mobile business, but because what the victory means for Apple, the whole mobile ecosystem, and, most importantly, consumers.Sure, Samsung may fight the verdict in further appeals, but Apple will also do

Square Enix to release Final Fantasy Dimensions on August 30 for $29 (yes, twenty nine dollars)

Buoyed by the success of the last two Final Fantasy games on Android, Square Enix is boldly going where no game developers have done before on the Android platform. The Final Fantasy Dimensions is going to cost more than the original Final Fantasy and Final Fantasy III combined.Here’s what Square Enix wrote on their official blog:“FINAL FANTASY DIMENSIONS is delivered as episodic content. The prologue will be free for everyone to enjoy. You can purchase the first chapter for $2.99 / £1.99

Saturday, 25 August 2012

These rumored Sony Xperia Tablet devices look pretty sweet

One thing that cannot be denied about Sony: they make some beautiful hardware. And that continues to be the case with the accessories of the upcoming Xperia Tablet if the pictures distributed by Tablet-News is anything to go by. We’ve got a keyboard case, a stand that allows the tablet to be used in both portrait and landscape mode and a media dock with a remote control.
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Here comes Hurricane Isaac: Charge 'em if you got 'em

Some 364 days ago, we talked a little bit about how your smartphone can help you prepare for natural disasters. (At least for the ones that you have time to prepare for.) That was Hurricane Irene. Now, we've got another I-storm (excuse the pun) headed for United States, with Isaac. (And, yes, more specifically, the Gulf Coast and your's truly.)Here are some of the tips we brought you last year, updated with some new ones.Charge your phones. Now. Keep them charged. And once the storm starts,

Was Samsung’s defeat its best advertising campaign to date?

Samsung may have lost the battle against Apple in Northern California, but this doesn’t necessarily prove that the South Korean manufacturer could be losing the war. In fact, it could be argued that Samsung’s billion dollar loss is one of the best advertising investments it has made (seems to work better than Asian models). That is right, this defeat against Apple could turn out beneficial in some ways.As the hype settles down, newspapers across the world start reporting on the Apple vs.

LG begins teasing a 4.7 inch quad-core smartphone

LG’s expected to have a solid outing at IFA in Berlin next week, and they’ve started the excruciating, unbearable teasing. A new site has been set up to tease a smartphone that has a Snapdragon S4 Pro processor, a quad-core chipset said to be unrivaled in the current space of mobile computing.The timing is notable because LG is rumored to be unleashing a very powerful device at their upcoming showing in Berlin at IFA. It’s the LG Optimus G and it’s said to be coming with a quad-core

Easy SIM unlock for Galaxy S3 released, but wait …

Network locks are a way for carriers to ensure subscribers finish up with their contracts (networks can easily block the IMEI of handsets that belong to delinquent accounts). However, having your phone opened to other networks does have its benefits. For example, if you’re traveling abroad, you can avoid hefty roaming charges by buying prepaid SIM cards.Samsung’s flagship Galaxy S3 is usually released in the U.S. on-contract, which means it will be locked to your carrier. While some

Smartphone users rarely exceeding 2GB data usage per month, according to NPD

Though the move towards tiered and shared data packages has been met with much resistance and grumbling from smartphone owners, a new study by NPD suggests the vast majority of users are just fine without access to unlimited data plans. Using an Android app to collect info on the data usage of 1,000 smartphone users, NPD found that users on T-Mobile’s network are the most bandwidth hungry. Even still, only 11 percent of subscribers use more than 3GB of data per month.For AT&T and Verizon,

Blood and Glory: Legend will bring you gladiatorial honor in video game form [VIDEO]

Glu Mobile seems to be working on a new game and they’ve dropped their first teaser for it. Dubbed “Blood and Glory,” the short trailer does little to explain what’s going on outside of the visuals.What we do notice is a gladiator getting ready to battle to the death, likely in an epic stadium filled with thousands. The game is a sequel to the original Blood and Glory, a game that did very will for itself in the Play Store.But that’s all we know for now. What they did show looked

ASUS Transformer Pad TF300 gets Jelly Bean in the UK

ASUS surprisingly began to roll out Jelly Bean for the ASUS Transformer Pad TF300 this past weekend, but UK users found they weren’t invited to the party. Well, all of that is changing today as it seems those in the world over are now seeing the gooey goodness that comes with Android 4.1.With it, you’ll be getting improved performance on the pre-installed applications, global search, and some new power options. And beside all that, Google Now, Project Butter, and all the other standard

Friday, 24 August 2012

Samsung spills their emotion over Galaxy S3 design [VIDEO]

While you may think that these OEMs are little more than corporate machines out to make a buck, you have to remember that there are real people behind these different phones, tablets, and other devices we enjoy on a daily basis.Samsung employed a passionate bunch of individuals to design their most impressive smartphone yet, and they got those folks on video to talk about their experience designing it.I’m talking about the Samsung Galaxy S3, of course, and while some may have their own

Timer Is A Beautiful Holo Themed App – New Update Brings Jelly Bean Notifications and Dark Theme [Video]

One of the features you may have noticed lacking from the Jelly Bean experience was a complete absence of of timer functionality in the stock Clock application. As a man who’s been known to fire up a batch of impromptu brownies on occasion, I dived into the Google Play Store and I came back with this treasure. It’s called Timer and as the simple name suggests, minimal is the name of the game.The developers have constructed one of the most beautiful Holo themed applications I’ve come

South Korean court rules on Apple v. Samsung patent infringement

Just in case you can't get enough Apple vs. Samsung news, the Seoul District Court has now laid out a split decision for both parties involved. Both Apple and Samsung have been found guilty of infringing on each others patents.As part of the decision, Apple will no longer be allowed to offer their infringing products in South Korea that include the iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4 as well as the first two generations of the iPad. Something that shouldn't bother Apple all that much, given those devices are

Angry Birds Space update hijacks NASA Curiosity Rover

NASA and Rovio have enjoyed a nice working relationship on the Angry Birds Space version of the blockbuster hit game. With the popularity of the Mars Curiosity Rover, Rovio stepped things up and incorporated Curiosity into the game in a big way. Curiousity has a major role in the teaser video Rovio released for this latest update. It is also incorporated into the storyline which has the Piggies hijacking Curiosity to go in search of eggs. The changelog for the update released today indicates 20

Buffer review - the antidote for oversharers

In a nutshell, Buffer helps social media fans from oversharing by allowing you to schedule when items are published to your networks, be it a Facebook profile or page, Twitter feed, or LinkedIn account. There’s even App.net support. Users can add items to their Buffer from a bunch of different mobile apps, and if you’re in a the social media business, there’s a premium version that allows teams to cooperatively fill the queue. Buffer is in serious need of a visual upgrade. There’s

Custom keyboard mapping, Changing lock screen options [From the Forums]

Just in case you missed out on some of the Android news today, now is the time to go ahead and get yourself fully caught up. Here on the blogs and in the Android Central Forums there is plenty to talk about. Have some questions? Need some help or just looking to chat Android? You know where to go, check out some of the threads below to get started.We've got nearly 1 million members helping members and nearly 2 million posts in our Android Forums. Are you one of them? Join today! "Born and

Love Android? Add these Ice Cube trays to your collection!

I enjoy it when I get to write a bit of Quick News about something that is fun and a little silly. Some of you regular readers may recall I reviewed a ‘Duck Beak‘ stand for Android and iOS devices a few months ago. Well, today I’ve got something slightly more practical to share with you, Android Ice Cube trays!Coming in at $12 for one tray and $20 for two, they are hardly cheap! However if you love Android a lot, it may be something you’ll want to add to your collection. These little

IFA 2012 preview - Galaxy Note 2, Xperia TX and more!

Image: James CridlandNext week we’ll see a wealth of new Android devices announced in Germany in the run up to IFA 2012. For the uninitiated, IFA is an annual consumer electronics show held in Berlin, which often serves as a launching platform for smartphone and tablet manufacturers -- think of it as a mini-Mobile World Congress. Last year’s IFA hosted the launch of the original Samsung Galaxy Note and Galaxy Tab 7.7, as well as the Xperia Arc S from Sony and two new Windows phones from

Thursday, 23 August 2012

Flickr For Android Gets Updated, Brings HTML Capabilities And Custom Filters

Those of you Flickr users can look forward to a massive update that was released recently. The update includes a revamped UI that includes a new photo stream that allows users to easily share your life through your photos, while adding an even simpler way to share your photos via social networks like Facebook or Twitter. In addition, the latest update brings a custom filters (think Instagram) which allows you to further enhance your photos. Oh and last, but certainly not least— users can now

With one week to go the Humble Bundle for Android 3 adds four more games

With just one week to go the Humble Bundle team have added another four games to the Humble Bundle for Android 3. The four additional games, which originally appeared in the Humble Bundle for Android 1, are Anomaly: Warzone Earth, EDGE, Osmos, and World of Goo! This now means that the current bundle contains nine games (the original five games were: FieldRunners, SpaceChem, Uplink, Bit.Trip Beat, and Spirits). The bundle is truly cross platform and all the games work on Android, Linux,

Optimus Vu could come to Verizon as LG Intuition

We already know a Verizon-branded 4G LTE Optimus Vu is on the way, and now a leaked internal screen suggests the device will go to market as the "LG Intuition." The image above, obtained by Droid-Life?, suggests an on-contract price of $199.99 for the LG's 5-inch square slab, or $549.99 if you were to buy one outright. So far the specs of the "Intuition" are something of a mystery. We think it's unlikely that Verizon will stick with the Snapdragon S3 that comes in the Korean and Japanese

Motorola says no bootloader unlocking for older devices

It’s been close to a week since Motorola launched its user-friendly bootoloader unlocking tool, but we haven’t seen any changes in the list of supported devices yet. If you own some of these older devices, there’s a likelihood that your devices may not be supported at all.According to a Twitter exchange between Motorola and a customer, the Google-owned company isn’t currently planning to make the tool compatible with the Droid 3, Bionic, and Droid X2. If these models aren’t supported,

Galaxy Note 10.1 review of ‘embarrassing, lazy, arrogant money grab’ review

Back in late February when the Samsung unveiled two new 10.1-inch tablets I believed that neither model would be able to compete against the upcoming iPad that was to be announced in early March, which is pretty much what happened with their predecessor. I am obviously talking about the Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 and the Galaxy Note 10.1.The latter, a new member of the Galaxy Note family, appeared to be the higher end model between the two. And with Samsung, alongside Google execs, confirming

FBI shutting down pirated Android app sites, will continue to do so

We've seen it happen with movie and music sites in the past but the The Department of Justice has now set their eyes on some newer forms of piracy out there. Android apps. With the help of Dutch and French law enforcement, the FBI has now seized three popular Android app sharing sites (Appbucket, Snappzmarket and Applanet) that offered illegal downloads. As noted in their press release, they will continue to seize such sites as part of their cracking down on the piracy of copyrighted works

Perfectly Clear: Easy image correction for pros and amateurs

Choosing the right camera app for your Android phone is tough. You have to go through different camera apps on the Google Play Store and if an app doesn’t live up to your expectations then you jump to the next one. Yes, we totally understand! We would like to find a camera app that is easy-to-use, is user-friendly, has a great user interface, and of course, has great features. One of the great features that a camera app should have is the ability to take great, clear, high-definition

Wednesday, 22 August 2012

Google Wallet cranks up the advertising machine

Paypal took the world by storm years ago and hasn’t decreased its dominance ever since. A handful of players have entered the mobile payment game, but Google Wallet has been the only one that’s really threatened to be competition. With the advent of new mobile payment apps now becoming a hot convenience item, the big G-Dub is certainly paying its cards right
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Google Wallet cranks up the advertising

Google Canada launches official blog to keep Canadians informed

Although many folks may not be aware of it, Google actually has a few offices in Canada. Toronto , Kitchener-Waterloo and Montreal are all homes to Google in Canada and finally, they've gone ahead and launched the official Google Canada blog. Chris O’Neill, Managing Director of Google Canada had the pleasure of doing up the first post and shared some details about what Google's plans are for the blog: We'll be using this blog to share some of these stories from Canada and about Canadians, to

FBI shutting down pirated Android app sites, will continue to do so

We've seen it happen with movie and music sites in the past but the The Department of Justice has now set their eyes on some newer forms of piracy out there . Android apps. With the help of Dutch and French law enforcement, the FBI has now seized three popular Android app sharing sites (Appbucket, Snappzmarket and Applanet) that offered illegal downloads. As noted in their press release, they will continue to seize such sites as part of their cracking down on the piracy of copyrighted works

Facebook for Android updated to include faster photo uploads, easier event creation

A new Facebook for Android update is now rolling out and for those of you who like to share photos and events, this is one you'll want to ensure you get installed. The noted changes include easier event creation along with a faster photo upload flow and the capability of adding emoji and photos into messages. That new flow they mention pertains to the fact you can upload multiple photos within messages as well as directly to your photo area on Facebook
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Facebook for Android

Disappearing APN settings, Why should I buy a tablet? [From the Forums]

Just in case you missed out on some of the Android news today, now is the time to go ahead and get yourself fully caught up. Here on the blogs and in the Android Central Forums there is plenty to talk about
Follow this link:
Disappearing APN settings, Why should I buy a tablet?

HTC says it's not shedding Beats audio

This is pretty cut and dry, folks. HTC tells Android Central that a rumor going 'round today about it cutting Beats Audio out of its smartphones simply isn't true. Here's the full line from HTC: "HTC remains strongly committed to Beats Audio and including their innovation in our devices.
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HTC says it's not shedding Beats

Green Day themed Angry Birds episode coming When September Ends

No, you won’t need 21 guns to fend off pig attacks, and we definitely don’t want you to lay down your arms and give up the fight. This Fall, Rovio is launching an episode of its hugely popular Angry Birds franchise that rock fans are going to love. Rovio has partnered with Green Day for a special 10-level episode of Angry Birds Friends that features music from the band.Band members Billy Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt and Tire Cool also appear on this episode, lending their likeness to the

Xiaomi on its way to Europe by 2013?

Android fans are probably aware of Chinese brand Xiaomi, which has been considered the Apple iPhone of China. The smartphone is described as such because of the tight integration between hardware and software, and because of how the phone is dependent on in-house services and apps.For the price of $315 for a premium device, who wouldn’t bite? Still, other smartphone users are likely to be oblivious to the device, even though it had been selling like hotcakes in China. That’s becaues the

Motorola Defy Pro tumbles onto Rogers today

After a bit of a wait, the rugged Motorola Defy Pro is now available at Rogers for free on a three-year contract, or $274.99 if you're going month-to-month. As you might expect, the Defy Pro is just as tough as its predecessor, the Motorola Defy, except it has a QWERTY keyboard. The specs are about in line with the pricetag, which is to say that they're on the lower end. Here's a run-down. 2.7-inch 320 x 480 HVGA display with Gorilla GlassAndroid 2.3 Gingerbread1 GHz processor5 megapixel

Rogers opens up, shares Android 4.0 update timeline for numerous devices

While most carriers in Canada have become rather open about their device software update timelines, Rogers has for a long while now declined to offer even a glimpse of their scheduling. Somewhere along the line though, that changed and now they offered some transparency. If you have a device on Rogers, here is what you'll be looking at in terms of release times for Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich:HTC Raider - Ice Cream Sandwich (4.0) - Now availableHTC EVO 3D - Ice Cream Sandwich (4.0) - Now

New Pictures of Nikon Android camera surface?

We’ve gone from phones to tablets, to smart watches and media players. The camera space is another up and coming realm for Android to shine, and it looks like we may have a new major player coming to the ring.Nikon’s Coolpix series may be getting a bit of an upgrade as new rumors abound suggest they’ll be making an Android-powered point and shoot. It’s said to be called the S80C, and it will be a great marriage of lens and robot to make for a very flexible experience. We’ve heard

MIUI gets Jelly Bean treatment, available for the Galaxy Nexus and Nexus S

MIUI is one of the biggest ROMs in the Android world, and it has gotten even better starting today. The MIUI team has updated the code base to Jelly Bean, and except for the inclusion of Google Now and other Jelly Bean tweaks, things are largely as they used to be.Users on the Nexus S and Galaxy Nexus are first to the plate for this fast ball. The version you’re looking for is 2.8.17 and you can find it for your respective edition of the aforementioned devices over at the MIUI forums. Let

Tuesday, 21 August 2012

BlackBerry Music Gateway review

Here's a little gem that's been hiding in the back of ShopAndroid.com. Ignore, for the moment, that the BlackBerry Music Gateway is, well, from BlackBerry. And that it's got a BlackBerry logo on it. Instead, let's focus on what it does: It's an extremely simple way to wirelessly stream music from your phone to any device that accepts a 3.5mm headphone jack.That's streaming music in your car. To your entertainment center. To computer speakers. Anything, really. And it does so with a little trick

Jetpack Joyride review - the gleeful rampage of a disgruntled bureaucrat

Jetpack Joyride’s classic one-touch endless running action is finally available on Android! The free game puts you in command of Barry Steakfries, a disgruntled bureaucrat who decides to run amok in his place of employment: a top secret laboratory full of dangerous toys.Using a jetpack powered by minigun propulsion, Barry dodges the facility’s various security precautions while gaining more and more speed. Along the way, Barry picks up coins which can be used to buy various gadgets as well

xScope Browser Pro Review: Big on features, light on its feet [WIN A NEXUS 7]

When it comes to browsers for Android, it seems we consistently get two main options: lightweight, low-featured implementations for quick browsing and more robust offerings full of tricks but coming with some added bulk. But striking a line between the two is xScope Pro, a browser that aims to “redefine” surfing the web on a mobile device. xScope manages to feel quick and light despite a range of enhanced features from a wide range of input gestures to more experimental elements like a

500,000 devices in China infected by SMS payment malware

Smartphones are on the rise in China. With a billion mobile phones, a fast-growing proportion of which are smartphones, this mobile ecosystem is ripe for the picking for malicious hackers. According to an assessment from a security company, almost half a million smartphones in the country have been infected by an SMS payment malware coming from Android app marketplaces.Google Play is banned from within the so-called Great Firewall of China. As such, Chinese Android users would usually get apps

Galaxy Nexus ‘minuscule’ compared to iPhone sales – Samsung defense against Apple’s copy claims

In addition to the main U.S. Apple vs Samsung case that we’re following closely these days, there are other patent-based battles between the two giants – in total there are over 50 cases spread across four continents.Today Bloomberg informs us on a different U.S. legal predicament between Apple and Samsung, this one related to a Galaxy Nexus sales ban that was recently obtained by Apple in the USA, only to be stayed on second appeal by Samsung pending Apple’s appeal.Apple has made its

photup for Facebook: Quick and easy Facebook photo uploader

People who snap shots of all their important life events and manually upload their images to Facebook have a lot of time to spare. Some of them even take the time to tag each photo individually and add a caption to them. Unfortunately, not everyone has the same amount of free time. The fewer the steps it takes for me to upload to Facebook, the better. It seems that Chris Banes, developer of photup for Facebook, had the same idea in mind.Say goodbye to wasting too much time uploading an image to

Monday, 20 August 2012

OnLive releases statement about Friday's ownership change (sky not falling)

The folks at OnLive have reached out this evening, in an attempt to put an end to all the rumors and speculation since Friday's change of ownership. If you weren't paying attention (or were smart enough to ignore rumors), the Internet was filled with accusations, images, and all sorts of general nonsense about OnLive's purchase. That sort of thing isn't good for business, so were glad to see OnLive step forward over the weekend to address some concerns.The full press release is after the

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 gets the iFixit Teardown Treatment

The folks over at iFixit have given the newly unveiled Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 one of their usual tear downs. Overall they give the new tablet a repairability score of 8 out of 10. Some of the highlights of the teardown are as follows:16 connectors – a boon for repairability!The front glass and LCD can be separated and replaced individually (take that iPhone!)Easily replaceable battery, even compared to the Nexus 7Unscrewable EMI shield – first time seen by iFixitOne downside to note

Sony Teases Its Playstation Mobile Gaming Service With Screenshots Of Its Exclusive Titles

For all you obsessed Playstation gamers, Playstation Mobile is here. Well— it’s more or less a renaming of Sony’s existing Playstation Suite for Playstation-certified devices and there looks to be plenty of promise for Sony’s revamped service. Droid Gamers reports there is an ever-growing list of titles set to be available to those gamers including Tractor Trails, Twist Pilot, Tipper, Aqua Kitty, Samurai Beatdown, Underline and Beat Slider. Sony decided to tease everyone and show off a

Samsung dual-SIM Galaxy S Duos gets a September launch, will hit Europe first

Samsung has announced the launch of its dual-SIM Galaxy S Duos, which will hit the European market by September this year. While not likely to be a market leader in terms of sales volume like the Galaxy S III, the Galaxy S Duos could nonetheless be a hit in emerging markets, where dual-SIM setups are popular.Samsung is known for a wide range of devices, which cater to almost all market segments. The lower-end Galaxy line is mostly meant for emerging markets that prefer cheaper mobile phones.

Carphone Warehouse launches Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1

A little after it made its worldwide debut in New York City, UK retailer the Carphone Warehouse has announced that it's now selling the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 online and in stores across the country. Prices start at £399.99 for the Wifi-only version, going up to £499.99 for the Wifi and 3G model.That's no small amount of money, but if you want the best stylus experience you can get on a tablet, with Samsung's Wacom-powered S Pen, the Galaxy Note 10.1 is the only place you'll be able to get

Google looking into 3D video conferencing from mobile devices

3D video conferencing from notebook computers (Image credit: Patent Bolt).Video conferencing is an enabling technology for both enterprise and consumer markets. For professionals, video conferencing makes telecommuting more convenient — you can hold meetings with people across states or continents. For the regular mobile user, it’s a great way to talk to friends and loved ones.But even with Facetime, Skype, Google Talk and a host of other products that provide video chatting services out

Samsung Galaxy Note 2 teaser video posted ahead of IFA Unpacked media event

We have already seen a couple of leaked Galaxy Note 2 images that turned out to be fakes, so we’re back to waiting to get a glimpse at Samsung’s second-generation phablet ahead of the August 29 Unpacked media event that will take place in Berlin, Germany, a couple of days ahead of IFA 2012’s official kick off.Luckily for us, Samsung is ready to start showing off the device, but, unfortunately, we’re only given small bits and pieces of the next-gen tablet in the first Galaxy Note 2

LG Optimus Vu making its global debut in September with Tegra 3

LG has announced that its newest flagship phone, the Optimus Vu (see our review), will be available globally in September. It has been available in only Japan and Korea thus far and will see a release next month in the Middle East, Africa, Europe, Asia, Latin America and then the U.S. sometime this quarter. This news comes on the heels of LG's announcement that they have sold more than 500,000 worldwide already, which is quite impressive. That number will likely see a big increase once it hits

Sunday, 19 August 2012

Uniquely Android: SwipePad

Uniquely Android is a series we started last month to shine the spotlight on those apps that take advantage of the unique capabilities of the platform and provide an experience that you wouldn’t find in most other phones. So far, we have featured Plug In Launcher, AirDroid, Shush, Llama and Swiftkey 3.Thanks to a lot of popular demand, I’ve finally decided to add SwipePad to the Uniquely Android series. The app allows you to create a drawer of sorts, containing any app, shortcut

New info on Heroes of Order & Chaos MOBA game from Gameloft, scheduled for October release

Gameloft revealed details about their forthcoming multi-player online battle arena (MOBA) game Heroes of Order & Chaos. Heroes will be a free-to-play online game in the tradition of typical MOBA games. Players will join together in teams of 3-5 players to battle other teams with the same goal – destroy the enemy’s base. Players will be able to control NPC characters as they push through the arena, destroy towers, collect loot, and help the player power up. The arena will have three major

Acer rolls out Android 4.0 ICS update for Iconia Tab A501, Rogers’ included

Believe it or not, the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade for Acer Iconia Tab 500/501 was hinted back in November of last year, with January being set as the possible date. It wasn’t until May that a variant of the tab got the promised scoop of ice cream, but ICS on the A501 was still nowhere to be found. Fast forward to today, it appears the Android 4.0.3 OTA update is finally being rolled out by Acer.The Ice Cream Sandwich update has been received by owners of the Acer Iconia Tab A501

A better view of the Samsung Galaxy S Relay 4G (Official Images)

The device has received a whole new name and official documents have been leaked, but we haven’t really raken a good look at the Samsung Galaxy S Relay 4G. Some of the images we have are… alright. But if you want some high-def, official shots of the Relay 4G, we now have them for you.A TmoNews reader has managed to get a hold of an official link from Samsung. In this support site, the device is shown from multiple angles and its components are labeled. Always a good day for some juicy

Florian Mueller listed as the only blogger on the payroll of either Oracle or Google in patent litigation case

Folks, patent litigation is currently one of the more profitable enterprises today, at least if you’re a patent lawyer, one of the plaintiffs, or if your name happens to be Florian Mueller. In an interesting turn of events, Oracle has confirmed Mr. Mueller, a patent blogger who runs FOSS Patents, to have been a paid consultant who had been assisting in looking into “competition issues.”This issue came into prominence in Oracle’s appeal to the negative ruling against the company’s

Saturday, 18 August 2012

Applorer offers new way to discover games on Google Play [Infographic inside]

Games are very much a part of the Android experience as other features and apps. But while games have seen explosive growth in the Android ecosystem of late, the creators of Applorer say that discovery can be difficult, due to the fact that the top or featured games have longer shelf-life on Google Play’s featured page, and therefore gives newcomers lower chances of receiving some attention.Applorer attempts to fix this by using a predictive system based on social activity, gameplay and other

Samsung Galaxy S III Android 4.1 Jelly Bean Update Brings New and Innovative TouchWiz Features

Just as the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich brought along new features to its users, including The “Premium Suite” of applications (for the Galaxy Note), the Samsung Galaxy S III Android 4.1 Jelly Bean update brings new TouchWiz applications and features. As we reported previously, the Jelly Bean update (not the final) already leaked, and the folks over at AndroidCentral put a list together of all the enhancements. Hit the break for the complete rundown.Redesigned date and time

Instagram privacy bug fixed, many users wary of app

Yesterday when we brought you news on Instagram’s newest version, we had no idea what was about to break open. At the time of this writing, Instagram has successfully repaired a serious privacy glitch with the service.Instagram says the issue has been resolved, but in the wake of all this, it makes users wonder how serious they are about their privacy policy?“ private users’ images, even when geotagged, are hidden from the public.”Specifically, the new Photo Map feature allows approved

Google goes after Apple via Motorola patents

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Motorola has filed with the International Trade Commission (that's the same one that blocked the HTC One X and EVO 4G LTE for a spell) to sue Apple over seven undisclosed patents. The patents relate to the iPhone, the iPad and the iPod touch, for which Motorola is seeking an import ban.So far, the only official word from Motorola has been "We would like to settle these patent matters, but Apple's unwillingness to work out a license leaves us little

Sprint's Motorola Photon Q one of the first phones to grace Moto's bootloader unlock page

Remember the Motorola bootloader unlock site we talked about just an hour or two ago? We've got some great news to share direct from Moto -- the Sprint Photon Q will be one of the first phones eligible to use it. Per Motorola:As of August 2012, the only Motorola devices which can be unlocked are:Photon Q 4G LTE (Sprint)RAZR Developer Edition (Europe Only)XOOMThis leads to one huge question, which Moto addresses -- what about other phones? Moto says that they have to evaluate that on a

Gameloft's new Order & Chaos spin-off will be lane defense

Gameloft has been teasing a spin-off of their World of Warcraft clone for Android, Order & Chaos, for a few weeks now, and today took off the the wraps. It turns out Heroes of Order & Chaos will be a lane defense game (or MOBA), similar to Defense of the Ancients, League of Legends, and others in that sphere.For those unfamiliar, you pick one of many flavorful, unique heroes, and use them to defend your headquarters against waves of mindless drones coming to do destroy your towers through three

Saygus says it has $8m funding, ready to manufacture

I remember checking out my first Linux-oriented phone, the Qtopia. At the same time, phone would-be manufacturer, Saygus was busy pulling its corners together to unveil its device, the almighty Vphone. This was back in 2009, as feature phones popularity were dying out. Since then, we haven’t heard much from the maker.The company just announced it has procured $8m in funding. In August 2011, it had said Verizon’s “open development initiative” had been met with a thumbs up from both

CyanogenMod 10 nightly builds now rolling out for certain devices

If you’ve been waiting patiently to get your hands on experimental Jelly Bean-based ROM for your phone, today could be your lucky day. The team behind popular custom firmware CyanogenMod has opened the floodgates and started churning out CM10 nightly builds for some supported devices.Nightly builds are highly experimental, probably unstable and likely not suited to being used as a daily driver. However they do give owners of supported phones the chance to try out near-vanilla Android 4.1

Friday, 17 August 2012

Samsung Galaxy S2 and Galaxy Note to get Jelly Bean by October?

Samsung seems to be by far the busiest bee in the Android “hive,” preparing us all a hotter than hot end of 2012.
Excerpt from:
Samsung Galaxy S2 and Galaxy Note to get Jelly Bean by

Motorola XT907 heading to Verizon with 4G LTE

Now that we think we’ve unraveled everything there was to know about Motorola’s upcoming Droid Razr HD , we would have expected a bit of peace and quiet from Google’s subsidiary.
See more here:
Motorola XT907 heading to Verizon with 4G

Motion-based smartphone UI possible within the year with Leap Motion

Pretty soon, we can control our computers, tablets and smartphones this way. Without the three-fingered gloves, of course. (Promotional image for Minority Report, 2002) Touchscreens are currently the preferred way of interacting with smarphones and tablets
Original post:
Motion-based smartphone UI possible within the year with Leap

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 unboxing [From the forums]

Someone once said that unboxings are lame.
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Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 unboxing

How does NASA keep time on Mars? With an Android app of course!

The Mars Curiosity Rover mission is big news, and rightly so enjoying fantastic coverage around the globe. Keeping things ticking along when it takes a signal 14 minutes to travel to and from the red planet is no mean feat. And, that's without taking into account having to keep track of the time, on Mars. While a Martian 'day' is split into the same segments as an earth day -- 24 hours, 60 minutes per hour, 60 seconds per minute -- on Mars, a second lasts longer than on Earth
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Google Voice Search adds 13 new languages

International Voice Search users rejoice! Google's ever-evolving search service has been updated to add another 13 languages, bringing the total to an incredible 42 languages supported.
Taken from:
Google Voice Search adds 13 new

T-Mobile's Galaxy S Blaze Q tipped to become Galaxy S Relay 4G

Out with one awkward name, in with another. It looks like Samsung and T-Mobile’s Galazy S Blaze Q, the rumored QWERTY slider has been renamed, after it failed to hit its rumored release target of Aug. 15
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T-Mobile's Galaxy S Blaze Q tipped to become Galaxy S Relay

Samsung Galaxy R ICS update reportedly starts today

Samsung’s Tegra 2-powered Galaxy R is set to start receiving its update to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich today. According to reports from SamMobile , the Galaxy R (GT-i9103), which aside form its CPU is almost identical to the Galaxy S2 , will begin rolling out ICS-based firmware today over-the-air and through Kies, starting with phones sold in Sweden
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Samsung Galaxy R ICS update reportedly starts

Thursday, 16 August 2012

Gift cards likely headed to Google Play, APK teardown reveals

Gift cards for the Google Play Store have been a much-requested feature for the service, and now it seems Google may be preparing to launch them. The Play Store APK (application file) was recently updated to version 3.8.15.After finding that the new version was a few kilobytes heavier, the guys at Android Police decided to decode the APK and start digging around, and they uncovered a wealth of evidence in support of the existence of Play gift cards.The new APK apparently intercepts links to the

New rumors: Droid Razr HD to come with 8MP camera, no Maxx version with super battery

We’ve been hearing about Motorola’s follow-up(s) to the Droid Razr and Razr Maxx for many months now, with rumors and leaks sometimes contradicting one another. We’ve had quite the controversy on what processor will power the new Razr HD, but also about the upcoming flagship’s rear-facing shooter. Two very different sets of “leaked” pics have also helped increase the confusion, though it was pretty obvious they were from different pre-production stages.In another dazzling turn of

Ubi is a speech-powered plug-and-play internet device for your home [Kickstarter]

Speech recognition seems to have taken off after Apple launched SIRI with the iPhone 4S. Other platforms have followed suit, such as Nuance’s own Nina (Nuance powers SIRI), as well as Angel Labs’ Lexee, both of which we recently wrote about. Kickstarter seems to be rife with all sorts of innovative projects, and one of them is also banking on the potential of speech-controlled interfaces.Ubi is basically an internet device meant for the home. The device is powered by Andriod and connects to

Easily Crack Android’s Pattern Unlock, No Root Required

Hey modders, devs, and hackers! You know how you keep that “USB Debugging” option checked in settings? Sure, it’s useful when you need to root a device or test an app you’re developing, but you might want to consider unchecking it when not using it.XDA developer M.Sabra says that anyone with a little ADB knowledge can easily hack Android’s pattern unlock, essentially getting access to your entire device. Apparently it’s not that difficult to do either. Root isn’t even required.We

How to manually install Adobe Flash Player on your Android device

From today, for some new devices, Adobe Flash Player will no longer be available from Google Play, marking the end of Flash’s brief flirtation with Android. That means if you want to get hold of Flash on an Android device that doesn't ship with it, you’ll need to resort to a little bit of trickery. Fortunately, though, it’s pretty easy to get Flash up and running manually, assuming you understand the risks.Join us after the break to find out how to manually install a legacy version of

Android 4.1 Jelly Bean leaks for the Samsung Galaxy S3, we go hands-on

Ladies and gentlemen, we have our first Android 4.1 leak for an existing phone. Following the appearance of a blurry-cam video of the ROM yesterday, a pre-release Jelly Bean firmware for the international Galaxy S III (Galaxy S3, GT-i9300) has leaked out online over at SamFirmware?. The ROM is based upon Android 4.1.1, carries the build name I9300XXDLG4, and was built a couple of weeks ago on July 31.On the surface, the Galaxy S3 running this leaked firmware is still a Galaxy S3, and the

Wednesday, 15 August 2012

Kyocera Rise hits Sprint August 19 for $20, Virgin Mobile on August 31

Sprint is adding a new entry-level handset to their lineup this weekend with the launch of the Kyocera Rise. The Rise is an Ice Cream Sandwich smartphone featuring a 1GHz single-core chipset, 3.5-inch HVGA display, and 3.2MP camera with LED flash while tapping into Sprint ID to offer users a customizable experience. The phone joins the Motorola Photon Q 4G LTE for an August 19th release and will be priced at $20 on contract. Fun fact: both devices feature a slide-out QWERTY keyboard. Virgin

Samsung: Over 10 Million Galaxy Notes Sold Worldwide

Despite naysayers predicting a flop, it turns out the 5.3-inch Galaxy Note was a success with consumers all around the world, with Samsung selling more than 10 million units world wide since the device’s debut last October.If that number sounds impressive to you, don’t forget that its cousin, the Galaxy S3, managed to sell 10 million units in less than 2 months — but that might have something to do with the device being made available on every carrier as opposed to only AT&T (here in the

Tuesday, 14 August 2012

Acer Iconia A110 bumped up to Jelly Bean before launch

When Acer announced its 7-inch Iconia Tab A110 back in June, it was running Ice Cream Sandwich -- at the time, the latest version of the OS. Now, with the tablet’s October release approaching, it seems it’s undergone a software upgrade, bringing it up to the shiny new Android 4.1 Jelly Bean.The tablet has appeared in new renders over at online retailer eBuyer, showing a the Jelly Bean launcher and Nexus 7-like home screen setup. If accurate -- and it certainly looks it -- the A110 would be

First custom ROM based on Sense 4.1 available for HTC One X

The One X is one of the most popular Android devices around, and one that benefits from a large and active community of enthusiasts developers. It’s no wonder that the One X sub-forums on sites like XDA-developers and Rootzwiki are teaming with mods, custom ROMs, themes, and all sorts of other community-generated goodies.The latest such development for the HTC One X comes from XDA-developers user mike1986, who created the first custom ROM that incorporates the newly launched Sense 4.1

Best Android apps for biking and cycling

With Android’s apps for cycling and biking, you’ll have full control both of your cycling or biking destinations and scheduling of these activities. Everything you’ll need for a convenient and fun way to enjoy a ride is provided. You don’t need to experience the inconvenience of having to bring a map to help you navigate your path. All you need is one of the apps below, and you’re ready to go.Just want to have fun while sitting down? No problem! Cycling and biking games can provide

RealPlayer review - old-school media streaming goes 1.0 on Android

RealPlayer’s Android app exits its lengthy beta today, and we got the chance to play around with the final product. Just like the beta, it handles all sorts of media types, including, audio, video, and images, though the user interface has been changed up a bit.Beyond handling the usual stuff like playlists and track sorting by artist, genre, or album, RealPlayer brings a few extras to the table. One of them is track control from the lock screen. It does mean that you’ll have another lock

How to hack your Nexus 7 the right way

For many, the Nexus 7 will be their first experience with one of Google's own branded Android devices. If you're interested in hacks of any sort on your phone or tablet, there really is no other option than to go Nexus. As we like to point out, we're constantly amazed by the posts our forum members put up when it comes to hacks, rooting and loading custom ROMs. This one is no exception.Forum moderator dmmarck has put together a fantastic guide to help you along the path of all things Nexus 7,

YouTube for PS3 adds Android remote control ability

Watching videos on YouTube has been a social experience for a number of years now. It started with a little crowd of people squeezing in around a 4? screen which we all know is less than ideal. Thankfully the experience has evolved with YouTube making its way on to the big screen. Applications for Xbox, Tivo and various Blu-ray and media players have become common place in the average lounge.Ps3 owners are in for a treat this week as their big-screen YouTube experience has just been bumped up a

CoPilot Live review - a trunk-full of navigation features

If you’re planning to squeeze in one more roadtrip before the summer dwindles out, you might be shopping around for GPS navigation apps. Google’s own Navigation for Android may do the trick, but is there still a market for traditional GPS nav apps? One of the many options available is CoPilot Live, and you might be surprised at how deep its functionality runs.CoPilot Live does a great job of maximizing in-car visibility with large icons, text, and graphics. he app icons all have a

ASUS and Wikipad get PlayStation Mobile support

Sony is currently holding its Gamescom 2012 press conference in Germany, and it's just announced that two new Android device manufacturers will be joining its PlayStation Mobile (formerly PlayStation Certified) program -- ASUS and Wikipad. The former needs no introduction, as it's the biggest player in the Android tablet market right now. The latter is a lesser-known organization responsible for the Tegra 3-powered Wikipad tablet, which sports an integrated gamepad. So it's a big win for the

Monday, 13 August 2012

Neuroshima Hex review - not your robo-mama's board game

Neuroshima Hex is a board game with a particularly unique sci-fi setting full of story, cyborgs, and strategy. It’s been on Android for a few months, but just recently enjoyed a much-needed stability update. The far future war game pits the scrappy armies of mankind against several factions, ranging from marauding mutants, well-equipped gangs, and the very mechanical menace that plunged the human race into anarchy hundreds of years ago.The turn-based gameplay is a simple back-and-forth

Android 4.0 now available to LG Optimus 4G LTE owners on Bell

With its American relative the LG Nitro HD already having received its update, LG Optimus 4G LTE owners on Bell in Canada have had to wait a little bit longer. But no more, according to a tweet sent out by from the official Bell Twitter account. LG Optimus 4G LTE owners can go ahead and grab Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich through system updates.Source: Bell "Born and raised in Nova Scotia, Canada. Chris is fluent in all mobile languages and loves anything with a power button."Related devices:

Samsung: Galaxy Note 10.1 coming to UK on Aug. 16

Looks like Samsung wasn't kidding when it said the Galaxy Note 10.1 would be getting a global release later this month. The stylus-toting tablet is expected to be officially unveiled at an event in the U.S. this Wednesday, but already Sammy's taken to Twitter to confirm its international launch plans.Samsung Mobile UK tweeted -- 'Be one of the first to buy the New Note 10.1, only at at the Westfield Brand Store in Stratford from Thursday 16 August. “Note the New way.”'The "Westfield brand

Barnes & Noble lowers NOOK Tablet and NOOK Color pricing to its lowest ever

For all you deal hunters out there who like nice things but aren't really looking to buy in when prices are high, you're holding out for a NOOK Tablet or NOOK Color may have paid off. Barnes & Noble has announced a price drop on both the NOOK Tablet or NOOK Color, just in time for back to school.NOOK Tablet 8GB for $179NOOK Tablet 16GB for $199NOOK Color for $149The pricing is in effect across all of Barnes & Noble 700 locations. Barnes & Noble hasn't noted if the price drop is permanent or

Incipio SILICRYLIC Case for Galaxy S3 review

The Incipio SILICRYLIC case gets its name from providing two separate layers of protection for your Samsung Galaxy S III (S3.) The inner layer is made of silicone and the outer layer is a shell made of acrylic.Incipio cases are knows for their style and use of quality components. Unlike the Incipio Feather case which I reviewed recently, the SILICRYLIC case is a case that is designed to really protect the Galaxy S3.Incipio SILICRYLIC case Incipio an approach similar to Seidio and Case -Mate by

Jot review - the simplest note-taking widget ever

Jot is a simple, lightweight note-taking widget for Android that recently had a user interface overhaul. It is an absolutely pared-down set of widgets that very simply provide fast, clear access to a notepad from the home screen. You aren’t going to find a ton of fancy features here, but you will get fast, easy access to plain text.Jot takes minimalism to an extreme. There are three home screen widgets total. Two of them (one 4 x 2, one 4 x 1) show your latest Jot, and the other is a single

Sony Xperia S to get a new color, dark silver added to the lineup

Another day, another batch of Sony related news. For once however, this latest piece of news concerns an existing device -- the current flagship to the 2012 Xperia line, the Sony Xperia S. Until now, the Xperia S has only been available in two different colors -- black and white. Sony has announced today a third color choice, imaginatively titled "Dark Silver." OK, so the name might not be that inspiring, and for many the device itself may provoke a similar reaction. It's a good looking thing

Google buying Frommers, should fit nicely with Zagat

Google's already helping you find out where to go -- now it's going to help you get there. Publisher Wiley & Sons has agreed to sell the travel publication to Google for an undisclosed sum, the Wall Street Journal reported today. It isn't clear what el Goog will do with Frommers -- it could be folded into the Zagat end of things, the WSJ opines, and that's certainly a possibility.Google has made some pretty big strides in the travel sector, with the Zagat purchase as well buying flight

Sunday, 12 August 2012

Uniquely Android: Swiftkey 3

Uniquely Android is a series we started last month to shine the spotlight on those apps that take advantage of the unique capabilities of the platform and provide an experience that you wouldn’t find in most other phones. So far, we have featured Llama, Plug In Launcher, AirDroid and Shush.Compared to the others in the series, Swiftkey is a rockstar that just about every one of our readers has probably heard about. For that reason, a part of me wanted to go with some other app today,

Motorola Rumored To Launch DROID RAZR HD And DROID RAZR MAXX HD In October

Motorola’s upcoming DROID RAZR HD sure is doing its best to tease us isn’t it? We’ve seen a leak here and another there… a benchmark here and another there. Heck, we even know it’s on its way sooner than we think because of how it just finished taking a stroll through the FCC. But now we may have a better indication of when exactly it is to arrive. According to Hot Hardware (via our friends at DROID Life), MOTO is intent on bringing not only the DROID RAZR HD smartphone— but the

A Nexus 7 dash-mount that is beautifully simple

We've already seen how you can tear things apart and use some fancy wiring to install a Nexus 7 into the dash of a Dodge Ram, but some of us aren't interested in something that permanent. Also, some of us can't get permission from the wife, but that's another story. For us, the folks SoundMan Car Audio in Santa Clarita, CA. have a method that looks just as sleek, is removable, and involves no wiring or other permanent modification to your expensive vehicle. Android Central member Nightline

Control your device remotely with the Tasker AutoRemote app

Fresh from introducing the Tasker App Factory, Tasker gets a new companion app that makes it an even powerful and smarter tool. The AutoRemote app lets you gain full control over your phone – even when it’s sitting miles away.We’re pretty sure you know what an awesome app Tasker is in providing that extra boost of intelligence. From something simple as setting your phone to automatically switch from 4G to 2G or WiFi when the screen is off, to something more elaborate, it’s all within

Sony Xperia TX to launch August 29 as Sony’s next flagship Android smartphone

Sony LT29i, also called “Hayabusa” has been in the news for a few months now as the upcoming Sony flagship smarthpone. The actual market name of the device has been hidden so far, though, and it looks like it’s going to be named the Sony Xperia TX. The X in the name probably means the superior version of another model, say the Sony Xperia T. At least I hope that’s what it means, because otherwise, their names are starting to become a little confusing (SX, GX, TX).Just like HTC prior to

Q&A with WhitePages - making caller ID social

WhitePages recently launched a new app that tied in a bunch of social networks to a contacts and caller ID app. With it all incoming calls from contacts show the latest status updates across Facebook and Twitter, most recent title from LinkedIn, and local weather and news. We shot a few questions to the development team about working on Android and take the oportunity to dig a bit deeper into Current Caller ID.We all know about WhitePages, but can you tell us a bit about how you've been active

Saturday, 11 August 2012

Black Galaxy S3 appears in Carphone Warehouse inventory, backs up Samsung Facebook pics

Those disappointed with Samsung's initial choice of colors for the Galaxy S III (Galaxy S3) may be in luck, as information has emerged suggesting a black version of the popular handset may be on the way. The shot above is part of a set that's been doing the rounds for a few days now. It first appeared on Samsung's Facebook page alongside some promotional blurb for the Olympics, and it certainly looks? like a black Galaxy S3. However, it's difficult to tell for sure -- if you've seen the pebble

Websnap: Capturing screenshots of full or partial webpages

Taking snapshots on your phone has never been easier, thanks to the Ice Cream Sandwich update. While others still choose to use the traditional ICS-native method of capturing screenshots, others have resorted to using apps. One such application dedicated only to capturing screenshots is Websnap, developed by Web2mine. Basically, the app makes capturing selected parts of a web page easy..Websnap comes with a built-in browser that will let you explore and capture any part of a webpage instantly.

Samsung Exynos 5 dual details released, fast chip is fast

Samsung has announced and published the whitepaper for their upcoming Exynos 5250 SoC (System on a Chip), and it looks like the stuff a hardware geek's dreams are made of. Sporting a dual-core 1.7GHz CPU, paired with a quad-core Mali GPU. The full feature list reads like the side of a desktop computer box.A15 CPU dual-core 1.7GHz CPUMali T604 quad-core GPU800 Mhz LPDDR3 RAM supportUSB 3.0 supportOpenGL ES 3.0 support; OpenCL 1.1 full profile support; DirectX 11 supportSupport for

Sports scores not showing up in Google Now, Customized S3 [From the Forums]

Just in case you missed out on some of the Android news today, now is the time to go ahead and get yourself fully caught up. Here on the blogs and in the Android Central Forums there is plenty to talk about.
See more here:
Sports scores not showing up in Google Now, Customized S3

LG Eclipse makes an appearance at the FCC, just a stop on the way to Sprint

The LG Eclipse specifications may still be placed in the rumor category, but the network it's going to be on is now a matter of public record, as the phone has popped up at the FCC's website today. What we now know for certain is that the phone will be CDMA/EVDO/LTE capable, using Sprint's bands; along with the standard stuff like GPS, Bluetooth, and Wifi (dual-band 2.4 and 5GHz style). The LTE radio operating in the 1900MHz band locks this one as a Sprint LTE exclusive, though we wouldn't

Flipboard for Android updated with improved navigation and in-app hints

Flipboard for Android has already gone through several iterations since it first appeared on the Samsung Galaxy S III (Galaxy S3) back in May.
More here:
Flipboard for Android updated with improved navigation and in-app

Android Central international round-up - August 11, 2012

In international Android news, it's been a solid week of update news and IFA leaks. Sony confirmed its release plans for ICS on the Xperia P, as did Motorola with the GSM RAZR and RAZR MAXX.
Read the article:
Android Central international round-up - August 11,

The best damn Android Central T-shirt in the world

It really needs no introduction. Buy your Lloyd Gear T-shirt today!
See more here:
The best damn Android Central T-shirt in the

Thursday, 9 August 2012

Intel to bring wireless charging to smartphones and ultrabooks in 2013

According to DigiTimes' "upstream supply chain," Intel is readying technology that will wirelessly charge Intel powered smartphones via over-the-air induction. To put it in layman's terms, hardware inside the phone will be able to grab low power electricity from mid-air and charge the battery. It's safe, and already has a standard in the Wireless Power Consortium's Qi method, which we've seen in action with contact induction charging on the Thunderbolt. The real barrier, according to the

With Kickstarter behind it, Ouya continues pre-orders for $109, with April launch targeted

The Ouya Kickstarter campaign certainly had a strong run, ending last night after generating roughly $8.5 million in pledges with over 60,000 backers.During Ouya’s time on Kickstarter, we all certainly had a pretty interesting ride. What started out as a small, meager attempt at building a $99 Android gaming console, soon turned out to be a unique Tegra 3 device that has quickly won its way into several partnerships with companies such as Square Enix, TuneIn, XBMC and possibly Namco

Amazon Cloud Player now available on Sonos

Amazon has been busy making improvements to its Cloud Player. The company recently announced the ability to scan and match music and now it has made the service available on Sonos. So now if you store your music through Amazon, you can register and start playing your collection anywhere in the house, directly from your Sonos system.To get started, you'll need a five-digit code from your Sonos controller, which will allow you to register through Amazon.com. Once it's registered, to find your

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