Friday, February 17, 2012

Google News


Posted: 16 Feb 2012 04:40 PM PST
One of the most incredible games I can remember playing is Max Payne. Occasionally I even go to lengths in order to replay it, years later. You play as Max Payne, an ex-DEA and NYPD officer whose wife and child were brutally murdered at the hands of addicts high on “Valkyr”. On top of that, while on the Valkyr case, you’re framed for the murder of your partner, Alex. You’ve got to run from the feds while trying to piece together your family’s murder.
The game is reportedly making it’s way over to mobile devices in the near future, and Rockstar says it will have a release date settled soon. I for one am extraordinarily excited for this one, since the game utilizes a matrix-like bullet time mechanic that should give you no shortage of slow-motion justice. Complimented by an incredibly narrated plot that really pulls you in, Max Payne should be the culprit of many dead batteries once it’s released.
source: rockstar
Posted: 16 Feb 2012 04:32 PM PST
For those of you following everything Android and Android gaming for that matter, should be familiar with Double Fine’s latest adventure endeavor, “Double Fine Adventure”.  The new point-and-click project has been funded by not the publisher, but by the soon to be user fan base who are patiently awaiting its arrival on Android and iOS.  Thanks to the help of KickStarter, the devs were able to secure close to a whopping $2 million, overshooting their budget of $400,000.  So, in an effort to justify the massive budget, the team is expanding the project to multiple platforms.  You may be wondering why Double Fine sounds so familiar, it’s because they are the guys responsible for popular hits like Psychonauts, Monkey Island and Grim Fandango. Some of the members of the dev team include Tim Schaefer (video), David Dixon and Jonathan Menzies.  So stay tuned to Talk Android for the announcement of the game’s arrival as they spout which select Android devices will be supported, initially.  In addition, voice acting will be implemented and those who helped fund the project will receive free access to a closed beta.  Furthermore, the developers want to make the process of completing the project as fun as possible by including you, the fan, via a constantly updated vblog.  So, here’s to an awesome final project.  Feel free to let us know what you think in the comments below.
Click here to view the embedded video.
Posted: 16 Feb 2012 03:18 PM PST
If you’re the proud owner of a Motorola ATRIX from AT&T then you should be checking to see if you’re phone has an update waiting for you as many folks are starting to report that they are receiving an update notice. While we told you about the update on Groundhogs day and there was a soak test a few days later we’re now seeing it being pushed to the masses. Even though it’s not Ice Cream Sandwich it fixes some of the issues that folks were having with their phone. It also pushes the the software version to 4.5.141 in the process. Here is what it fixes:
So if you own this phone you can check the Settings> About phone> System update option on your device. While we are still waiting for Motorola‘s release of ICS as noted in their new time table, it’s still nice to see that they are still working on improving your current experience. For those that have received the update do you notice an improvement?
Posted: 16 Feb 2012 03:16 PM PST
Rocking a Galaxy Nexus? Missing being able to create some fun Android themed avatars? Well fret no more as Google have you covered… sort of.
For reasons unknown, Androidify always refused to play nicely on Android Ice Cream Sandwich with frequent force closures on launch. Google has released a minor update in the Android market to take care of bug fixes and memory usage however the app still misbehaves on ICS devices. There is a simple workaround that will have you designing your own Droids in no time at all. All you need to do is navigate to the settings menu and select the ‘developer options’ menu. Scroll down to ‘Force GPU rendering’ and ensure the box isn’t checked. All that’s left to do now is fire up the app and get your creative juices flowing.
Check out the link below to grab the update.
Posted: 16 Feb 2012 02:27 PM PST
With a few hundred thousand apps available in the Android Market, you’re liable to see a few that are somewhat repetitive in function and use. The same is true for iOS devices as well as Windows Marketplace or BlackBerry App World (although the last two mentioned are substantially less in number). When you find an app you want to install, you’ll try it out for a bit, and see how efficient it really is. After a while, you’ll hear from other Android users, friends, blog posts, even right here on TalkAndroid the apps that may be great alternatives to try. Once you find the app you love, it’s time to remove the ones you hate (or maybe just not like as much). This guide will help you uninstall and remove apps from your Android device safely.
There are a few different ways of removing apps from your devices, so we’ll go through three of them that are as easy as pie to get done.

Using the Android Market:

1) Open up the Android Market app on your device.
2) Once you have the Market open, press the “Settings” button, then press “My Apps”
3) Scroll in the list of My Apps until you see the app you wish to uninstall and Press it once found.
4) You’ll see something similar to what is pictured below. Press the “Uninstall” button to the right upper side on screen.
5) The Android Market will remove and uninstall the app from your device along with any shortcut you may have had for it on your screens. Simple.
Using Android Applications Menu:
1) Once you know which app you’d like to remove, simply Press the “Menu/Settings” button on your device. For tablets, Press the “Time“, then “Settings“.
2) Now that you’ve done that, you’ll see a list of Settings to choose from, similar to what you see below. Scroll down and Press Applications, then Press Manage Applications.
3) The safest way to remove an app that doesn’t need to stay installed within Android’s OS, is to keep the tab on “Downloaded“, and scroll until you see the app listed. Once you find it, press it.
*If you select the “All” tab, you’ll find many more apps listed than what you may have installed yourself. Many of these apps are a part of the Android operating system, and should not be removed. Accidentally removing one of the apps in this list can have destructive consequences to the normal operating of Android. Best not to touch it unless you know exactly what it is and how it can affect the device after removing it.*
4) Once you have selected the app from the last step, you’ll see something like what is pictured below. Press the “Clear Data” and “Clear Cache” buttons in the middle of the screen.
5) After those have been cleared, Press the “Uninstall” button in the upper right side of the same screen.
6) The app is now uninstalled and removed.
You may find that there are widgets on your homescreens after uninstalling that app which are blank. Simply Press and Hold it until the Trash Bin shows at the top or bottom of the screen, and drag it over the trash to remove it.
Another way to remove apps are by installing an uninstaller application from the Android Market. I know, that sounded both ironic and confusing all at the same time. An app that I’ve used in the past to do this painlessly is called Easy Uninstaller. It’s free and you can grab it with the QR code or Android link below.
Posted: 16 Feb 2012 02:16 PM PST
Are you a fan of Samsung’s flagship Galaxy Nexus and popular 3rd party keyboard Swype? Well it’s time to celebrate as they’re about to become a match made in heaven. We brought you news last week that the developers over at Swype were working hard on an ICS update before the end of the month and they’ve delivered on that promise.
With so many top notch, 3rd party keyboards available in the Android Market, Swype’s incompatibility with ICS hadn’t gone unnoticed. The clever folks over at XDA managed to tide us over when they delivered a working, hacked version as an early Christmas present but it’s always nice to pick up the real deal.
If you’re already registered with Swype then you can head on over to their website to download the new Beta. For those of you who haven’t tried it, (you really should!) the Beta is currently open so click the link below and get registering to see what all the fuss about.
Posted: 16 Feb 2012 02:04 PM PST
Add this to the back and forth and the ever growing battles between Apple and whomever they’re suing the pants off of this month. This month the lucky company to lose their pants is Motorola. While Motorola won one of their battles back in November, Apple has skated off with the most recent of victories. Judge Dr. Peter Guntz of the Munich Regional Court ruled in favor of Apple which means that Motorola is now faced with a permanent injunction regarding its use of the slide-to-unlock feature in their smartphones.
Judge Gruntz sided with Apple in its claims that Motorola’s UI element violated patent EP1964022. This is Apples patent regarding its slide-to-unlock software element. You know, the one that they were awarded last year. By losing this battle, Motorola could see certain devices of theirs banned in Germany. Even though this is a big win for Apple it wasn’t perfect. Only two out of the three, the ones pertaining to smartphones, were awarded. The third one was in regards to the XOOM tablet which in his ruling, Guntz felt that this fell outside of the patent’s realm.
There isn’t word on if Motorola will make an attempt to appeal this ruling and we will have to wait and see. This is certainly a big blow to Motorola and anyone else faces similar lawsuits. Like Samsung currently is. As Apple continues its quest to sue anyone that develops anything rectangular and resembles a smartphone it will be interesting in seeing what they’ll pull out of nowhere next time. Who knows maybe they’ll be awarded a patent for their use of the power button. If so, look out world.
source: FOSS patents
via: Phandroid 
Posted: 16 Feb 2012 01:58 PM PST
There are tons of remote apps on the market, but Clik takes this idea to a new level. Brought to you by the developers of Kik Messenger, Clik will sync any screen with a browser (a smart TV or a computer, for example) with your phone, and allows you to run Youtube videos on that screen remotely. It will run on 3G, 4G or WiFi. Right now, Clik is only syncing Youtube, but the future possibilities are many, including Hulu, Dropbox, Flickr, Netflix or Facebook.
Here’s how you get started: Download the Clik app onto your phone. Guide your browser on your media-playing device to www.clickthis.com. The website will show you a QR code that you scan with your phone. Voila, you’ll now be able to choose and control a Youtube video on your phone to play on your TV, computer or whatever device you’ve chosen. You can search for a particular clip, or browse categories. You’ll have the capability to play, stop, pause, fast forward, control the volume or place the video into your favorites.
Users have been reporting an instantaneous response between their phone and media player. Clik can be a godsend for those of us who have experienced the frustration of connecting devices from different manufacturers. The developers are looking for partners to expand this app to other content. That’s really where Clik shows huge potential, as Fred Wilson, managing partner at Union Square Ventures and investor in Kik, explains:
“The ability for highly personal mobile devices like phones to easily take control of computers, TVs, cars and other expensive and complex devices is one of the most important megatrends in technology right now. Clik’s approach to this problem is novel and slick, bordering on magic. You have to see it to believe it. It’s a game changer.”
Keep your eyes peeled for future expansions of this platform. Give the current version a try and let us know what you think!
source: Clik
via: Androinica
Posted: 16 Feb 2012 01:13 PM PST
The original DROID will always be an icon when it comes to Android phones because so many earlier adopters of Android owned one. For me, it was the phone that brought me to Android, and I never looked back. The main feature of the DROID series has always been the slide-out QWERTY keyboard, which was either loved or hated in the original. With each version, Motorola improved it. With the DROID 2, it was better keys, and with the DROID 3, we were blessed with 5 rows. Now the DROID 4 has laser cut edge lit keys that make it the best keyboard on a phone to date. 2 1/2 years later, the keyboard is still the main focal point, but what about the rest of the phone? This is my full review, but you can also check out my initial hands on video as well.
Design
With the DROID 4, Motorola brought in the styling of the DROID RAZR which is the new theme for Moto devices. After the thinness of the DROID RAZR, I was hoping that the DROID 4 would come in a lot thinner. I know it’s not easy to do with a QWERTY slider, but if anyone could do it Motorola could. To their credit Motorola has improved in this department since the original Droid, which was 14mm thick. The DROID 4 is 12.7mm thick, but there isn’t an improvement from the DROID 3. Again, in their defense they did put a bigger battery in the DROID 4 so it’s understandable. As far as weight goes, the DROID 4 is a little heavier probably because of the addition of LTE and the bigger battery. It’s 180 grams as opposed to 169 grams for the DROID 3.
Typically Motorola hardware feels solid, and the DROID 4 is no exception. It’s not as elegant as the DROID RAZR with the Kevlar coating, but its probably less slippery which is a good thing. The DROID 4 really outshines when you open the slider. The keyboard is sexy and gorgeous. The edge lighting is so beautiful, you almost hate typing in a bright room. The buttons are just the right size with the right amount of distance between the keys. It’s an absolute pleasure to type on.
Hardware
Other than the keyboard the other major enhancements with the DROID 4, over the DROID 3, is a better processor (1.2 GHz dual-core vs 1.0 GHz dual-core), more memory (1GB of RAM vs 512MB), and the addition of 4G LTE compatibility. The rest of the specs include a 4-inch qHD (960 x 540) display, 8MP rear camera (with 1080p video recording), 1.3MP front camera, 16GB internal memory (8GB reserved for OS and apps), microSD slot for up to 32GB of additional storage, micro HDMI, micro USB, Bluetooth 4.0, WiFi, and Android 2.3.6.
Battery
The DROID 3 had a 1540mAh battery whereas the DROID 4 has 1785mAh. The reason for the larger battery is to help combat the major battery drain issues with 4G LTE. Yes, 1785mAh is close to today’s standards, but unfortunately if you want superior battery life, you won’t find it on this phone or any other LTE phone except the DROID RAZR MAXX, which features a 3300mAh battery. If you’re a light user, you should get 10 hours of usage while connected to LTE. I also ran continuous video to see how long it would last (again connected to LTE), and I was able to get 5 hours. That’s not bad when you look at most other LTE phones. It really comes down to how much you value the battery vs the keyboard. If it’s the keyboard, then this is your phone. If it’s the battery, then your choice is the DROID RAZR MAXX.
Performance
Performance is solid. The 1.2 GHz dual-core is as smooth as the DROID RAZR and RAZR MAXX. The AnTuTu benchmark came in at 6030, which is right on par with the 6006 score the DROID RAZR MAXX had. These scores are inline with the Samsung Galaxy S II as well. Overall the DROID 4 is snappy and I can’t see anyone complaining about it.
The display is probably the biggest negative of the DROID 4. For whatever reason, Motorola decided not to go with the same Super AMOLED display found on the DROID RAZR and RAZR MAXX. This one is similar to the penTile display on the Bionic and Atrix 2. The colors are just awful when you compare it to most other devices. I suspect Motorola did this to keep the price at $199, but right now the RAZR is at $199, so it doesn’t make sense. I get to look a lot of phones so it’s hard to put myself in the typical consumer’s shoes, but I suspect the average person wouldn’t find too much fault with it as long as they don’t look at any of their friend’s phones. Again, if the keyboard is really important, and you aren’t hardcore when it comes to displays, you will be alright.
Software
The DROID 4 has Android 2.3.6, and probably won’t see Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich until sometime in quarter 2. I’ve already said it in my previous reviews that I think Motorola has really stepped it up with their UI. It isn’t as “in your face” like it used to be, and they’ve added in some really nice and useful applications like MotoCast and Smart Actions. For more about these, see my review on the DROID RAZR.
As far as bloatware, you can expect these apps: Amazon Kindle, Blockbuster, Go To Meeting, Let’s Golf 2, Madden NFL 12, MOG Music, My Verizon, Netflix, NFL Mobile, Quickoffice, Shazam, Slacker, Slingbox, Smart Actions, Social Location, V CAST Tones, Verizon Video, VideoSurf, and VZ Navigator. As to Motorola applications, I already mentioned MotoCast and Smart Actions, but you will also find MOTOACTV and MOTOPRINT.
As far as removing or uninstalling any of these apps, you will be able to remove Blockbuster, Go To Meeting, Let’s Golf 2, Madden 12, and Shazam. You can’t remove, but you can hide Amazon Kindle, MOG Music, MOTOACTV, MOTOPRINT, My Verizon, Netflix, NFL Mobile, Quickoffice, Slacker, Slingbox, Smart Actions, Social Location, V Cast Tones, Verizon Video, VideoSurf, and VZ Navigator.
Camera
Motorola has never wowed anyone with their cameras, and that trend continues with the DROID 4. For quick and simple photos, it will get the job done, but don’t leave your point and shoot at home. Here are some sample photos (the last one was dimly lit and required flash):
Closing
The DROID 4 is a solid phone with the one negative standout being the display. Since the original DROID, I haven’t owned another QWERTY style phone, but I missed those days. For me, the display size and thinness is more important now. Those that still want a QWERTY, this is the phone to have. If you’re a Verizon customer and don’t feel like the keyboard is a necessity, then you would probably be better off with the DROID RAZR MAXX or Galaxy Nexus. The DROID RAZR MAXX will give you unbelievable battery life and the Galaxy Nexus will give you the latest and greatest Android OS, Ice Cream Sandwich.
Posted: 16 Feb 2012 12:28 PM PST
 
NTT DoCoMo, the major Japanese mobile phone company, has announced a new smartphone and tablet. The Aquos Phone SH-06D, and the MEDIAS Tab N-06D will be Android based. Both devices will be waterproof, and are compatible with Japan’s new and much-hyped V-High multimedia broadcasting service. They will only be available in Japan, and the smartphone should be on the market in March while the tablet will be available for purchase in April.
The Aquos SH-06D smartphone will feature a 4.5-inch high-definition 3D display and 1280 x 720 pixels resolution. It sports a 1.2 GHz dual core processor, and it comes with a charging stand with a built-in antenna so you can watch multimedia broadcasts while the phone is charging. The SH-06D has a 8 MP rear-facing camera, and you can choose from Magenta Red, White or Blue Black. The smartphone is compatible with DoCoMo's mobile-wallet services and can receive one-seg mobile TV.
The MEDIAS Tab N-06D has a 7-inch screen WXGA high-definition screen and a 1.2GHz dual core processor. It is the world’s thinnest tablet at 9.9mm, but that’s only when you’re comparing it to other waterproof tablets. It will have speakers with high quality audio, and it is compatible with DoCoMo’s “Xi” LTE service. Just like the smartphone, it also uses DoCoMo’s wallet and one-seg mobile TV services. What do you think about these new devices? Let us know in the comments.
source: NTT Docomo

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