Posted: 20 Feb 2012 04:28 PM PST  We're kicking off the final week before Mobile World Congress and it started off pretty busy thus far. If you happened to miss out on anything from today (there was a lot) make sure you get caught up, and don't be afraid to hop on into the Android Central forums:
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Posted: 20 Feb 2012 03:15 PM PST  Ah, the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue has arrived. It's the time of year when men head to the mailbox and back a little quicker, and young teens sneak peeks before sneaking entire magazines. (You know you've done it.) Only, it's 2012. And as we saw from Sports Illustrated as early as Google IO in May 2010 as part of Google's HTML5 and WebM push, the publisher's expanding far beyond the print product. We got our first taste of that on the mobile side at Google's Honeycomb event in early 2011. Today, you've got several options for Sports Illustrated, and a little something extra for the Swimsuit issue. For those who subscribe to the print product, you can use the Android smartphone and tablet apps just like you normally would. Fire it up, log in, and download the week's take. SI's also offering the Swimsuit issue a la carte, for $6.99.But what we were interested in is the new (and free) SI Swimsuit Viewer app, which works in conjunction with the print product. A smattering of pages have a little video icon on them. Fire up the app (it doesn't work on Ice Cream Sandwich, by the way), and let it focus in on the page. (It might take a try or two, and as you can see it might make you feel a little funny, like when you climb the rope in gym glass.) Once it locks on, you get bonus video of whatever model you just ogled. It's gimmicky, to be sure, and it's overly sponsored by Direct TV. Though we're surprisingly willing to put up with that sort of in-your-face advertising, considering the bodies that those faces are attached to. On one had, yeah. We're talking about bikini models here. We're not exactly propelling the species foward or anything. But on the other hand, it's nice to see a traditional print product embrace the digital and mobile space. Sports Illustrated has certainly done that, and done it well. We've got some hands- and eyes-on video after the break. Download: Sports Illustrated (smartphone, tablet); read moreSwimsuit Issue standalone app; SI Swimsuit viewer 
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Posted: 20 Feb 2012 02:10 PM PST  Hardware-wise, it's a standard black slab with a 4.3-inch display at qHD (540x960) resolution. Internally, it's powered by a 1GHz TI OMAP dual-core chip, with 1GB of RAM and 8GB internal storage. Imaging needs are taken care of by the 8MP rear camera, and there appears to be no front-facing shooter on the Eluga. The device runs a lightly-skinned Android 2.3.5 Gingerbread, and is due an upgrade to Android 4.0 from "Spring 2012." NFC is also included, which will allow European buyers to use Google Wallet (when it's launched), smart tags and other services. So it's running fairly standard mid to high-end gubbins. Panasonic's bringing some interesting hardware features to the table, though. We already metnioned water and dust-proofing, and the device looks like it's going to be surprisingly thin and light too, weighting 103 grams and measureing 7.8mm thick. That's within a hair of the Huawei P1S, the thinnest smartphone around at the moment. We're a little concerned that the battery is a mere 1150 mAh, though time will tell how that pans out. Given the timing of today's release, we'd expect to see the Panasonic Eluga at Mobile World Congress next week. If it's there, we'll track it down and bring you full coverage. 
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Posted: 20 Feb 2012 01:32 PM PST  Google may be developing a voice activated remote for Google TV devices, if we're to believe the rumors around the Internet today. Last year Google filed for a patent with the USPTO for a new remote and/or Android application that uses Google's cloud assisted voice recognition technology to navigate through the menus on your Google TV. Of course, everyone is comparing it to Siri, but Google has been working on this technology since they were first to market with Voice Actions in August of 2010. According to the filings, users will be able to speak into their Android smartphone or dedicated Google TV remote, transmit their speech to Google's servers to be analyzed, then the correct intent will be sent back through the network to the GTV unit. There's also indications here to allow the process to work up to a quarter-mile away, so we can tell our television to be on and have Wheel of Fortune playing when we walk in the door. From the patent filing:
Add in additional uses like music controls and application commands, and you'll have a full featured voice remote. Using your Android phone as a remote for Google TV is something we expect from the people in Mountain View. Tying the two together is natural, and we've already seen an Android app remote that uses voice input, and it works well. Having Google take this further can only mean good things for anyone who's interested in talking back to their television. Hopefully, we see something more about this in the near future -- I'm ready for it. Source: Patently Apple 
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Posted: 20 Feb 2012 01:16 PM PST  Google released the first beta version of Chrome for Android a couple of weeks ago, giving Android 4.0 phone and tablet owners the chance to try out the new mobile version of its web browser. Today Google's senior vice president of Chrome, Sundar Pichai, gave the first hints about which features to expect in upcoming releases, in an interview with CNET. Answering a question on consumer reaction to Chrome for Android, Pichai said that two features in particular had been frequently requested -- full-screen browsing and a "request desktop page" option. Both features are present in the stock ICS browser, but neither is available in the current Chrome beta, but Pichai seems to indicate that may change in the future -- "both fully make sense", he says, but "we just want to do them correctly and well." Of course, there've also been a few complaints about the lack of Flash support in Chrome for Android. On that subject, the king of Chrome says that the fate of Flash has already been decided by Adobe -- "following their road map, [Adobe] clearly said they'll not support Flash for mobile in the future." Elsewhere in the interview, Pichai restates Google's commitments to Chrome OS and Chromebooks, despite continuing suggestions that Google's second OS should instead be rolled into a future Android release. He says, "we got a lot of positive feedback, and we are really looking forward to the next generation of Chromebooks." Source: CNET 
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Posted: 20 Feb 2012 12:52 PM PST  The folks over at GTV Hacker have released a root exploit for Sony Google TVs. The NSZ-GT1 Eagle (that's the Blu-ray player) and the Asura stand alone TVs can use this method, requiring only some software modifications and a little wizardry with the remote -- no soldering or other hardware modification is needed. Devices running the latest 3.2 Honeycomb firmware are required, and the detailed instructions will have you running a custom kernel that brings a number of new features:
In layman's terms, this means that your GTV is rooted with full write permissions to the file system, won't auto-update and break things, uses a desktop identity for site that use flash to play streaming video (like Hulu), and has some sort of surprises for us. We like surprises. As mentioned, the process doesn't require any hardware modification. That doesn't mean it's easy, and the instructions look like this is something you'll want to carefully read. You'll be downgrading the software and exploiting it via some image files you burn to four individual USB thumb drives. Once complete, you'll be able to boot your GTV normally and the thumb drives are no longer required. Of course, any warranty is gone the minute you start doing these sorts of shenanigans, so keep that in mind. If you're the curious type, head to the source link and have a look. Source: GTV Hacker 
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Posted: 20 Feb 2012 11:21 AM PST  Today's free Android Wallpaper of the Day comes from Android Central member mpinter, who got this wonder shot with his Galaxy Nexus.We had a beautiful spring-like day in Wisconsin last weekend. Took the new Galaxy Nexus out and shot off a bunch of pix trying it out. Got this terrific shot of the bridge over the Fox River in Burlington, WI. As a Nexus wallpaper, it sweeps perfectly from side to side as you swipe. The Nexus camera picked up the rust texture, water and grass perfectly. 
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Posted: 20 Feb 2012 11:07 AM PST  The time draws ever nearer to the launch of the first Sony branded phone, the Xperia S. In Europe we expect to see it both on and off contract for sale by mid-March. But what about the rest of the world? Well, the guys over at SoyaCincau in Malaysia have got their hands on a review unit of the white version of the Xperia S. Like Europe, Malaysia are expecting the release of the device in March, albeit without any indication of when in March as yet. They've put together an unboxing video for everyone to see. OK, so unboxings aren't the most interesting things to watch. But the SoyaCincau guys have put together a two-part, detailed look at the retail version of the device. All that remains now is to actually get the Xperia S into hands. It is a feast of specs, it has the looks, and that screen. Well, that screen looks amazing. Check out both videos -- complete with demo fail -- after the break. Source: SoyaCincau thanks Hadip! read more
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Posted: 20 Feb 2012 10:23 AM PST  As we approach the launch of the Sony Xperia S, we're starting to see more details of how Sony has refined its software experience for its new flagship product. Two videos leaked today over on XperiaBlog show that much of the user interface -- dubbed UXP NXT -- has been given a lick of paint. The gallery, music player and TimeScape features in particular being dramatically changed, with plenty of animations and 3D effects throughout. Underneath all the visual finery, though, the Xperia S still runs on Android 2.3 Gingerbread, although an ICS update is expected shortly after launch. The Xperia S is due to launch in Europe from early March. In the U.S., AT&T will carry the Xperia Ion, a device closely based on the Xperia S, but with a larger 4.7-inch display. We're expecting to see more of the Xperia S, along with rumored devices including the Xperia P and Xperia U, at Sony's Mobile World Congress press conference in just under a week. We've got both videos after the break. Source: XperiaBlog read more
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Posted: 20 Feb 2012 09:53 AM PST  I'm turning into a Google TV junkie. I freely admit it, have no shame in saying it, and am having a ton of fun while it happens. I thought things couldn't get better, until I stumbled across Able Remote in the Android Market. It's a simple concept, and one we've seen before direct from Google -- use your Android smartphone as a remote to control your Google TV. Where the official Google TV remote app begins, Able Remote grabs the reigns and pushes things further in a way that's intuitive, full featured, and a mix of geeky and fun. Yeah, I never thought I'd use the word fun to describe a remote control, either. But it fits. All the basic features you would want and expect are there. You can search, control playback of video (and your DVR if you're so equipped), enter text and control the pointer and all the other functions you need and want to control your GTV, both as a television as well as an Android-powered funbox that happens to sit in your living room. Setup is a breeze, you simply install the Able Remote app on either your phone or your GTV and fire it up. If you installed it on your phone, firing it up will give you a button to click and install it directly to your GTV from the Market. If you installed it on your Google Television, you scan a giant QR code to install it on your phone. There is no guesswork, and nothing to screw up. Trust me, I tried. So far, everything looks good. Fully functional, foolproof control of your GTV from your phone. Then it gets cool. A quick trip into the settings and you'll see something that immediately catches your eye -- a setting to forward notifications from your phone to your Google TV. You have to enable Able Remote as an accessibility service (again, click and you're directed right to the correct place to do so), then restart the app and when a notification comes in while you're using it, it pushes right to your television. On paper, this sounds annoying. Especially if you get a lot of messages. But the first time you watch a movie while you're supposed to be working, and instead of having to pull your phone out of your pocket to see what's up, you get a small unobtrusive pop up near the bottom of the screen. From there, you can decide if you need to answer, of just ignore it until your show is over. I recommend the latter -- life is short. If that weren't good enough, the folks at Entertailion have built voice control into the app. Yes, voice control. Change channel by name or number if you're watching TV, start an application by saying "app Google Music" or "app Netflix", search by keyword and even run macros you've set up if you buy the $0.99 premium version. Add in the ability to forward photos and video from the gallery on your phone to your television, and push a website from phone to TV, and you have a real winner here. Able Remote is more than just an app -- it ties your Android phone and Google TV together to make an entertainment ecosystem. Grab it for free in the Market, you'll be glad you did. Download links, a video, and screenshots are after the break. read more
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Posted: 20 Feb 2012 09:52 AM PST Welcome back to another week of the ShopAndroid.com Daily Giveaway! Today we'll be looking at the HTC Tatami Hard Shell Case for EVO 3D, Seidio CONVERT Combo for Samsung/Verizon Galaxy Nexus, Mobi Hard Shell Case for Rezound, and the Seidio SURFACE Case for EVO 4G. Leave a comment letting us know which of these featured accessories you'd like to get your hands on, and we'll announce the winner of today's daily giveaway next Monday. HTC Tatami Hard Shell Case for EVO 3DThe EVO 3D Tatami Hard Shell Case is made from a durable plastic featuring a custom-styled design on the back. The case snaps on around your EVO 3D, leaving the screen exposed for full functionality, and openings for all ports and controls. With the Tatami's thin form factor there's virtually no bulk added to your EVO 3D, while still protecting against drops. read more 
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Posted: 20 Feb 2012 08:54 AM PST  Tmo UK is offering the phone for free on its 24-month, £36-per-month "Full Monty" contract, which includes unlimited texts, unlimited data and 2000 minutes. If you want to spend a little less, it's also available on a number of £31-per-month deals with unlimited texts, data allowances between 100 and 1500MB, and 300-900 minutes. Source: T-Mobile UK 
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Posted: 20 Feb 2012 08:17 AM PST   We've gotten reports from a number of you about the official YouTube app being updated, though no notification was given in the Market. We've seen the same thing here. If you go to the "My Apps" section of the Android Market, you won't see that an update's available. Go to the app listing directly, and there it is. And according to that listing, devices on Android 3.2 and up have an update waiting, and you can now sign in with your Google account. (Really? You couldn't do this before?) Other bugfixes are listed as well. A little confusing, to be sure. But we'll take an update over no update any day of the week. read more
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Posted: 20 Feb 2012 08:15 AM PST  An interesting email just dropped into my inbox from British independent phone retailer Phones4U. On top of claiming the exclusive rights to sell the white Sony Xperia S -- on contract at least -- they have now decided to up the ante a little to pre-order customers. The first 250 people to pre-order themselves a shiny new Xperia S will receive a free, Android powered, Sony Smartwatch, valued at £99. The Smartwatch is pretty much the successor to the Sony Ericsson LiveView.Connecting to your phone via Bluetooth, it can run apps, keep you upto date with your Twitter, Facebook, Email, and perhaps we shouldn't forget -- it can also display the time in traditional watch fashion. There is a range of different coloured wristbands available ranging from black through to pink. As with the LiveView, the Smartwatch won't everyones cup of tea. But if you already thought about getting an Xperia S at launch, it might be worth pre-ordering one here. After all, we all like free stuff, right? Expected delivery date is March 13. Hit the source link to find the order page, and there's a Smartwatch video for your viewing pleasure after the break. read more
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Posted: 20 Feb 2012 07:41 AM PST  Here's another shot of the LG Optimus Vu -- the Korean manufacturer's upcoming 5-inch Android smarpthone with a 4:3 aspect ratio -- that we'll get to see up close and personal next week at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. Look, we know it's big, just like the Samsung Galaxy Note. Anything with a 5-inch screen is gonna be large and in charge. But here we get a great look at how that 4:3 aspect ratio shows how the display is wider than what you're probably used to. You almost certainly won't be one-handing this bad boy. But we're certainly going to try next week in Barcelona. Stay tuned. Source: @visitken 
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Posted: 20 Feb 2012 07:30 AM PST 
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Posted: 20 Feb 2012 06:44 AM PST  The world of the E-Reader/Budget Android tablet is a battleground between Barnes and Noble and Amazon. The Nook Tablet is an excellent device with one key drawback. It costs $50 more than the Amazon Kindle Fire. The battle looks set to ignite once more though as there are apparent plans in place to launch an 8GB variant of the Nook Tablet. According to documents obtained by The Verge, Walmart will be launching this device at 12.01am, on Wednesday Feb. 22. The key in all this is with that reduced on-board storage, should come a reduced price. The 16GB Nook is priced at $249, so realistically we would expect an 8GB version to be priced similarly to the Kindle Fire. Wednesday isn't that far away, so we don't have too long to wait to find out. Source: The Verge 
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Posted: 20 Feb 2012 06:38 AM PST  True to their word, the Motorola Motoluxe has arrived on schedule and is available to purchase today in the UK. Retailer Clove Technology has received their first stocks of the device a day earlier than expected, and are offering up a new Motoluxe for £234 ($371). The mid-range Motoluxe brings along Android 2.3.7 for the ride, with a 4-inch screen, a modest 800MHz processor, and the new version of Souce: Clove Technology 
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Posted: 20 Feb 2012 06:18 AM PST  Spec-wise, the Xperia U is rumored to pack a 1GHz dual-core CPU, a 3.5-inch qHD or WVGA display and 512MB of RAM, with a 5MP rear camera. Like the Xperia S, it'll run Android 2.3 Gingerbread with the latest Xperia UI, and we'd expect a bump up to Android 4.0 soon after release. We're expecting to see the Xperia U unveiled at Sony's Mobile World Congress press conference next Sunday in Barcelona. In the meantime, you can find more photos after the jump. Source: XperiaBlog read more
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Posted: 20 Feb 2012 06:14 AM PST  Expansys UK often run special deals on items from their catalogues on a Monday. But what they're offering today is a Samsung Galaxy Nexus. Brand new, off contract, for today only you can pick up your very own 16GB GSM Galaxy Nexus for just £399.99. With other retailers still looking for between £450-£500 this is a really good offer. Expansys have made a point of publicising how limited this offer is. One day only, and they only have 200 items to sell at this price. But if you've been holding out and really want you some pure Ice Cream Sandwich, today might be the day to join the club. Hit the source link below for more, but be quick. These really won't be around for long. Source: Expansys 
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Posted: 20 Feb 2012 06:04 AM PST  MOTOACTV is available at such shops as Wertheimer Sports, gym clubs like Go-Active, or Shvoong & O-store. You can also find it at various major sporting events, Motorola says. read more 
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Posted: 20 Feb 2012 05:56 AM PST  read more 
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Posted: 20 Feb 2012 05:30 AM PST  Right now, the list of officially-supported devices limits Sky Go to a handful of phones, namely HTC's Desire, Desire S, Desire HD, Incredible S and Sensation, and Samsung' Galaxy S and Galaxy S II. However, we also noticed that the Android Market showed it as compatible with the Sony Ericsson Xperia Neo, so you may want to double-check the Market even if your phone isn't listed. It's also worth noting that the app doesn't support Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich), so if you're running ICS-based software, even on an officially-supported device, you're out of luck. Equally, if you're rooted, you'll be denied access. And Android tablet support is missing from this initial release, though Sky has made vague noises about considering adding this in the future. The rooting issue is a contentious one -- Google's own video rental service, for example, continues to be inaccessible from rooted devices -- however, we hope to see broader support for Android 3.x and 4.x from Sky in the future. We've got Android Market linkage and a QR code for you after the break. read more 
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Posted: 20 Feb 2012 05:09 AM PST  LG Mobile already has confirmed a couple of new phones coming next week to Mobile World Congress. There's the Optimus Vu -- a 5-inch, 4:3 behemouth -- and the just-announced Optimus LTE Tag, which a lower-spec'd version of the Optimus LTE, with near-field communication thrown in for good measure.  But LG Mobile on its Facebook page also has been teasing some sort of other campaign. It's fairly cryptic -- the only real clues have to do with a bunch of tag lines accented with capital-letter Ls in all the words. "GenuineLy Compassionate." Esteemed VaLue." Perfection with DetaiLs." TimeLess FuLfiLLment." And that's just the latest teaser.Today's post says that "Tomorrow, we'LL teLL you what aLL the L has been about!" There are fourt other teasers which include YouTube videos of "A River Runs Through It," chinese architecture, the "Bicentennial Man" trailer and an interview with Audrey Hepburn. We've got no idea if this means yet another piece of new hardware is on the way, or if it's some sort of new marketing scheme or core values from LG. (My gut's telling me it's the latter.) Guess we'll find out tomorrow. Source: LG Mobile on Facebook 
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Posted: 20 Feb 2012 04:32 AM PST  Today is President's Day in the U.S., and that means it's the final day to save 15 percent on all your Android accessories from ShopAndroid.com! To get your 15 percent discount, be sure to use the coupon code pres12 during checkout. This offer is not valid with any other coupon and expires at Midnight PST tonight, Feb. 20, 2012. Don't forget about our Fast Free Shipping on US orders of $50 and higher! 
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Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Update - 22
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