Wednesday, February 8, 2012



Posted: 07 Feb 2012 04:51 PM PST
One of the best Android apps just got better. The Google Voice app has just gotten updated to version 0.4.2.44 brings some minor tweaks, a complete UI overhaul for Honeycomb & Ice Cream Sandwich devices and wait for it— the ability to now queue outgoing text messages. That means if one message fails to send at first it will be sent once you regain data connectivity. Sweet deal. Be sure to grab the updated app at the Market link below or by scanning that QR code.
source: The Verge
Posted: 07 Feb 2012 04:28 PM PST
One of the lesser known Android brands, Pantech, recently released the Burst on AT&T. Priced at $49.99, I would classify as this as an upper tier mid-range phone. It certainly isn’t high end, but it’s a mixed bag with the specs. On one hand, you have a 4-inch (800 x 480) Super AMOLED display, a 1.2 GHz dual-core processor, 1GB RAM, 16GB of internal memory, and 4G LTE compatibility. On the other hand, it has a 5MP rear camera, a VGA front camera, it’s 11.4mm thick, Android 2.3.5, and a 1650mAh battery. As you can see it’s a mix of high-end and mid-tier specs, but for $49 on contract or $399 off contract, it seems to be a bargain. It’s available in titanium or ruby red. Our own Joe Sirianni will post a full review soon, but for now here’s our initial hands on look.
Click here to view the embedded video.
Posted: 07 Feb 2012 03:45 PM PST
Fresh from the release of Dead Space, the good folks over at EA are bringing another premium title to the Android Market. The one time iOS exclusive is expected to arrive on the market before the end of the month.  You may wonder what the difference is between this latest version and the currently available Sims 3.  The clue is in the title. Despite being a fully loaded version of the game, it’s free to download and play.
Can’t wait to start spending your Simoleon whilst on the move? Keep tuned in to TalkAndroid and we’ll be sure to let you know as soon as the game hits the market.
Click here to view the embedded video.
Posted: 07 Feb 2012 03:35 PM PST
The super skinny Huawei Ascend P1 S will be available in mainland China at the end of March, according to website Tech.Sina.  The phone will most likely appear in Europe next, and hopefully on a US carrier in the near future.
We at Talk Android were mightily impressed when we previewed the Ascend P1 S at CES 2012.  The world’s thinnest smartphone packs a ton into its casing, including a 1.5Ghz dual-core OMAP 4460 processor, 4.3 inch Super AMOLED screen, 1GB of RAM and an 8MP rear camera.  It should be running Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich.  All that, and it’s only 6.68mm thick.
Huawei has vowed to best their already incredible Ascend P1 S handset with the “Diamond Series“.  We’re having a hard time imagining what Huawei is planning, but we’ll let you know the minute we hear!
Posted: 07 Feb 2012 01:35 PM PST
Mark February 11 on your calendars because T-Mobile is going to have one of those really big sales. This time they are celebrating Valentine’s Day just in case you need to get that special someone a really nice Android phone or tablet. Of course there’s nothing stopping you from taking advantage of this promo for yourself. Notice how I said “get” instead of “buy” because this sale is all about FREE.
T-Mobile is giving you the chance to pickup their latest 4G smartphones and select tablets for free. There is one minor catch, and that it’s free after rebate. You will of course need to sign up with a new 2-year contract with either the Value or Classic plan, and both new and existing customers are eligible. So if you’re in the market for the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S II, The HTC Amaze 4G, or the Huawei Springboard, this Saturday is the day to grab one.
Full press release after the break:
Cupid's Arrow Hits Mark: T-Mobile Offers Free 4G Phones to Celebrate Valentine's
For one day only, on Feb.11, all of T-Mobile's 4G smartphones and select mobile broadband devices are free with the switch to a qualifying two-year plan
BELLEVUE, Wash. — Feb. 7, 2012 — In the spirit of the season, T-Mobile USA, Inc. will show consumers lots of love with another jaw-dropping promotion for its "Valentine's Day Sale." For one day only, Saturday, Feb. 11, T-Mobile will give customers the chance to get their hands on the latest 4G smartphones and select tablets for free, making a perfect gift for loved ones or themselves. The promotion includes T-Mobile's fastest 4G smartphones and select tablets running on America's Largest 4G Network® such as the Samsung Galaxy S™ II1 and the T-Mobile® SpringBoard™ with Google™.
New and existing eligible customers can take advantage of this deal receiving their device for free after a mail-in rebate card when they sign up for a new two-year contract on any qualifying Classic Plan™2 or for a $0.00 down payment after mail-in rebate card when signing up on a qualifying Unlimited Value™3 Plan.
"T-Mobile has a commitment to make the 4G experience affordable and accessible to everyone, so this sweet deal on smartphones and tablets is our Valentine's gift to consumers," said John Clelland, senior vice president of marketing, T-Mobile USA. "No matter where loved ones live, T-Mobile wants to bring them closer with unlimited talking, photo sharing, video chatting, texting, and more."
A recent online Omnibus survey4 with Harris Interactive found that four-in-ten (44%) of first time smartphone buyers in 2012 say the cost of the data plan associated with the smartphone is the most influential reason they have not purchased a smartphone before. The value for customers extends beyond the "Valentine's Day Sale" as T-Mobile offers the best rate plan pricing on America's Largest 4G Network.
The following is a sample of the exceptional devices available during the "Valentine's Day Sale" if customers choose to sign up on a two-year Classic Plan™:
Device (Classic Plan™) Out of Pocket Mail-In Rebate Card5 Net Cost (After Rebate)
Samsung Galaxy S™ II $249.99 $250.00 $0.00
BlackBerry® Bold™ 9900 $249.99 $250.00 $0.00
HTC Amaze™ 4G $274.99 $275.00 $0.00
T-Mobile® SpringBoard™ with Google™ $399.99 $400.00 $0.00
If customers choose to sign up for an Unlimited Value™ plan, the following is a sample of device pricing and EIP payments:
Device (Value™ Plan) Out of Pocket Down Payment Mail-In Rebate Card5 Net Down Payment (After Rebate) EIP Monthly Payment
Samsung Galaxy S™ II $199.99 $200.00 $0.00 $20.00
Nokia® Lumia 710 $49.99 $50.00 $0.00 $15.00
T-Mobile® Sonic 4G Mobile Hotspot $24.99 $25.00 $0.00 $5.00

The "Valentine's Day Sale" will be available on Feb.11 at participating T-Mobile retail stores nationwide and T-Mobile will support the promotion with a national television advertising campaign. For more information about T-Mobile's "Valentine's Day Sale" and details about qualifying plans, visit http://bit.ly/z36M9c.
1 Devices must be supported with the following data requirements: voice phones: 200 MB data; most smartphones: 2 GB data; 42 Mbps devices (Amaze and Galaxy S II): 5 GB data.

2Standard upgrade eligibility rules apply for existing Classic customers that stay on a Classic plan; standard migration fees will apply for existing Classic customers that switch to a Value plan and have less than 18 months contract tenure.

3 $0 down payment offer not applicable in RI, CT, or Miami-Dade County, FL; customers in these regions will be eligible for a different offer. Equipment installment plans: On approved credit and 0 percent APR. Down payment and unfinanced portion required at purchase. Remaining balance paid in 20 monthly installments. Total post-rebate price of each device equals down payment amount plus monthly payment amount times 20.

4This survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Interactive on behalf of T-Mobile USA from December 20-22, 2011 among 2,573 adults ages 18 and older, among whom 235 will be first time smartphone buyers in 2012, and 988 are current smartphone users who will remain smartphone users in 2012. This online survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated. For complete survey methodology, including weighting variables, please contact kmcfadzean@waggeneredstrom.com.

5Mail-in rebate not applicable in RI, CT, or Miami-Dade County, FL.

About T-Mobile USA, Inc.
Based in Bellevue, Wash., T-Mobile USA, Inc. is the U.S. wireless operation of Deutsche Telekom AG (OTCQX: DTEGY). By the end of the third quarter of 2011, approximately 129 million mobile customers were served by the mobile communication segments of the Deutsche Telekom group — 33.7 million by T-Mobile USA — all via a common technology platform based on GSM and UMTS and additionally HSPA+ 21/HSPA+ 42. T-Mobile USA's innovative wireless products and services help empower people to connect to those who matter most. Multiple independent research studies continue to rank T-Mobile USA among the highest in numerous regions throughout the U.S. in wireless customer care and call quality. For more information, please visit http://www.T-Mobile.com. T-Mobile is a federally registered trademark of Deutsche Telekom AG. For further information on Deutsche Telekom, please visitwww.telekom.com/investor-relations. For more information about T-Mobile's 4G products, services and network availability, please visit http://www.t-mobile.com.
Posted: 07 Feb 2012 12:52 PM PST
Google’s new bouncer-service that was announced last week is supposed to have dropped the number of malware apps in the Android Market by about 40% already. While that is a great number the Bouncer service isn’t perfect and it probably is the beginning to one of many back and forth battles between the Search Giant and malicious hackers in the making.
However, it appears that hackers may have already found a work around to this service. According to North Carolina State University professor Xuxian Jiang, he and his team have discovered a new malware variant that pulls off a pretty sneaky maneuver. The malware contains no malicious code when it’s first installed on a device. By doing this it evades scans or permission requests that could pick up on its intentions in the first place. Here’s the trick. After it’s downloaded the app is then able to download new code from a remote server and it can hide this in the data transfer from the phone’s communications.  
Part of the code downloaded in the exploit is known as “Gingerbreak.” Yes this is the same Gingerbreak that is used to gain root access on some Android 2.3 devices. This is used to gain full access to the device as root access does, allowing hackers, criminals and whoever else use of any of the phone’s functions whenever. This includes calling paid numbers, reading data, listening through the microphone or installing other malicious apps. Jiang’s team was able to find DroidLive secretly installed. This exploit profits by sending text messages to paid phone numbers.
Known as “privilege escalation” this exploit is quite difficult to achieve on Apple’s more restrictive OS as they only allow approved code to run on their devices. Android devices however have already seen these exploits demonstrated in a research atmosphere by security researcher Jon Oberheide, who was able to previously hide the ability to download this malicious code in two proof-of-concept Android applications. One impersonated a Twilight movie photo app and another was disguised as an Angry Birds “sequel.”
Thanks to this research, Android privilege-escalation has been proven to be more than theoretical. According to Jiang, “Jon had just showed this was possible.” He continued by saying ” This is the first actual malware that we found in the wild that uses this technique.” Jiang calls the new exploit “Rootsmart,” based on the prototype “Rootstrap” made by Oberheide combined with “com.google.android.smart” used by malware authors.
Rootsmart itself isn't much of a threat to American Android users. In its current form, it doesn't package itself as anything a user might be tempted to download, and it wasn't found in the official Android Market, only on a Chinese app download site. However these apps could potentially evade the bouncer service. Given that the program scans all apps uploaded to the market for known malware that’s then simulated as running, it may get a free pass as Rootsmart doesn’t initially contain malware. This means the app could then wait out the Bouncer wait period before malicious code is downloaded. Whether or not the Android Market scans would catch this is untested.
When Forbes contacted Google for comment, a spokesperson pointed out that Rootsmart hasn’t been found in the official Market and right now falls outside of the bouncer’s zone of protection. But Jiang believes that a version could be uploaded to the Android Market that could evade the malware filter. He said: "At the very least, this would cause some challenges for a Bouncer-like system. I expect we'll see more of this in the future."
source: NCSU
via: Forbes
Posted: 07 Feb 2012 11:43 AM PST

Verizon has officially announced the 5.9.902 update for the Motorola DROID Bionic.  There have been rumors for a few weeks on just what Verizon had up its sleeve for the Motorola handset.  There is some good stuff packed into this update, including more stability.  The black screen lockups, camera lockups, idle resets and multimedia dock lockups should be a thing of the past.  The update will add Amazon MP3 and the VCAST App Store.  Also on the list of improvements are data, HDMI and Bluetooth connectivity.  The battery life should also be enhanced.  Unfortunately, this update won’t be bringing Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich to the Bionic.   We’ll let you know here at Talk Android when that update happens.
The update is 57.6MB in size, and is available if you’re part of the Motorola Feedback Network and have registered your DROID.  If not, you should see the update go OTA in the next few weeks.
Source: Verizon
Posted: 07 Feb 2012 11:18 AM PST
The ultra sleek Honeycomb tablet, known in the US as the Excite X10, has landed in the UK and will be available exclusively from Carphone Warehouse.
The AT200 claims to be the slimmest 10″ Android tablet on the market (7.7mm) and weighs in at an impressively light 535 grams. The tablet also boasts a premium build, boasting durable gorilla glass up front and a polished magnesium alloy backing. “What use is a good looking tablet without impressive tech specs” I hear you say? Well thankfully the AT200  packs the technical prowess to match its svelte exterior. The screen is a 10.1″ backlit LED boasting a resolution of 1280 x 800. Processing is handled by the popular dual core TI OMAP 4430 clocked in at 1.2ghz, RAM checks at 1gb and there are 16gb or 32gb storage options available. There are two cameras on board, a 5MP on the back for capturing snapshots on the move and a 2MP up front for those ultra sharp video calls. The AT200 is available to buy online now with the 16gb priced at £399 and the 32gb priced at £449.
Toshiba’s entry to the competitive Android tablet market has been a difficult one, the AT200 could be the killer product they’ve been looking for to turn around their fortunes.

Source: Carphone Warehouse
Posted: 07 Feb 2012 11:18 AM PST
Contrary to widespread speculation, the Samsung Galaxy III will not make an appearance at the company’s March 22 event in France. Samsung has confirmed that no new devices will be unveiled at the press event, rather it will be one of Sammy’s bi-annual showing of the existing product lineup. This will likely be an opportunity for people to  get a better demonstration of what was announced at MWC for those who missed out on the Barcelona launch.
This means we’re back to the guessing game, when will we actually get to see this thing? Being that Samsung has said we would not see the device at MWC in Spain, and we can now cross the France theory off the list too. It’s looking more and more likely that Samsung may be targeting a launch closer to the iPhone 5 unveiling, which reports suggest will appear at this years WWDC at the beginning of June. Also, this would just barely fall in line with Samsung’s statement about unveiling the device within the first half of the year. It looks like we may just have to wait it out a bit longer than we hopped.
The Galaxy S III is definitely going to be worth the  wait, though. It is said to be thinner than its predecessor at roughly 7mm thin, internally waterproofed, sport a Super AMOLED Plus display, rock a quad-core processor, and possibly even a 12MP camera. Couple that with a proposed HDMI output and you got one of the hottest, if not the hottest, phones on the market. I know I am excited, you?
source: The Next Web
Posted: 07 Feb 2012 10:52 AM PST
Fashion week is all about glitz and glam, but this year 8 models will be using the Samsung Galaxy Note to give fans a behind-the-scenes look. Samsung is partnering with Next Model Management to give the 5.3-inch beast to Anja Rubik, Karlie Kloss, Arizona Muse, Abbey Lee Kershaw, Kendra Spears, Aline Weber, Ruby Aldridge, and Shanina Shaik. From New York, London, and Paris, these models will share candid moments and videos through Twitter and Facebook. What will make this different is the personal touch that the S Pen adds with notes.
It won’t be all about the models because Derek Blasberg, Editor at Large of Conde Nast's Style.com, Senior Fashion News and Special Projects Editor at V and VMAN, and a contributing editor for Harper's Bazaar, will also be using the Galaxy Note for all his reporting from New York, London, Milan, and Paris.
This is an interesting marketing campaign for Samsung. It seems as though they are really pushing the S Pen (stylus) over the size of the Galaxy Note. I know a lot of people were poking fun at Samsung’s Super Bowl commercial because the stylus is so dated, but Samsung is looking to prove that it’s making a comeback.
Full press release after the break
Top Models Share all the Glitz and Glamour of the Fashion Show with Samsung's Powerful and Stylish GALAXY Note
High-profile fashion insider Derek Blasberg and Next Models Use the Galaxy Note to Take Fans Behind the Scenes at Fashion Week’s Top Show
SEOUL, Korea – February 7, 2012 – To those of us outside of the tents, Fashion Week looks like one glamorous spectacle after another. Behind the scenes, it's a whole other story. This year, Samsung Mobile and Next Model Management are partnering to bring that story directly to you, straight from some of the fashion world's biggest talent – all thanks to the revolutionary Samsung Galaxy Note.
Samsung Mobile and Next Models are arming some of the world's top models along with high-profile fashion editor Derek Blasberg with the powerful new super phone that will keep them organized and make it fun and easy for them to share their fashion week experiences.
Instead of towing around bulky devices as they race from show to show and city to city, Next Models' catwalk stars including Anja Rubik, Karlie Kloss, Arizona Muse, Abbey Lee Kershaw, Kendra Spears, Aline Weber, Ruby Aldridge and Shanina Shaik will be using the Galaxy Note to give an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the biggest events in the fashion world. In New York, London and Paris, this sleek, do-in-one device will help the models do more while carrying less.  They'll share candid moments and videos through their twitter feeds, Facebook pages and more. And the Galaxy Note’s built-in S Pen will let them give their photos, notes and ideas the extra-personal, hand-written touch in way no other smartphone can match.
Derek Blasberg, Editor at Large of Conde Nast's Style.com, Senior Fashion News and Special Projects Editor at V and VMAN, and a contributing editor for Harper's Bazaar, will be leaving his pen and pad behind as he reports from fashion week in New York, London, Milan and Paris. Instead, he'll be covering the very latest word – pictures and video too – on the best of fashion and parties, the top models and celebrities, all using the Galaxy Note.
Experience all of the excitement from on the catwalk and off, with exclusive photos, videos, interviews and more at www.samsungmobilepress.com. Follow the action on Twitter with@Samsungmobile, @DerekBlasberg, @anjarubikblog,  @karlie_kloss, @AbbeyKershaw,@Kendra_Spears, @Alineweber_real, @hidynamite and @ShaninaMShaik or watch for hashtag #GalaxyNoteFW.

Posted by at 9:19 AM

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