Android Phone Fans |
- Google Wallet Gets Serious – Acquires Payment Technology Company TxVia
- LG Optimus 3D Max Hits The FCC – On Its Way To AT&T?
- MOTOBLUR Launcher Now Available for Any Ice Cream Sandwich-based ROM
- DRONE Bluetooth Controller Seeks Funds on Kick-Starter
- Rumor: HTC EVO 3D to Go to Virgin Mobile as HTC EVO V 4G
- Highly Rated Apps and Games Could Be Due to Violations of Amazon’s Mechanical Turk System
- Sprint Resumes Gingerbread Rollout for LG Optimus S April 4th, Bugs Should Be Zapped
- ClockworkMod Touch Now Available for ASUS Tablets
- Once pricey HTC Rezound now $49 at Verizon
- Samsung Galaxy Pocket takes its 2.8-inch display to the FCC
- Update already prepped for Verizon’s newly available LG Lucid
- HTC One X headed to Rogers sometime this month
- Get a free extended battery when purchasing the Galaxy Nexus through Samsung Direct
- MOTOACTV companion app now available for all Android devices with added features
- Sprint’s LTE Galaxy Nexus launching April 22?
| Google Wallet Gets Serious – Acquires Payment Technology Company TxVia Posted: 02 Apr 2012 06:18 PM PDT
Google Wallet hasn’t exactly blow up into the mobile payment revolution as the few of us with NFC equipped devices would have hoped. But in a blog post today, Google is hoping to turn that around, announcing that they have purchased TxVia, a payments technology company, that will help kick Google Wallet into high gear. Well, higher gear anyway. Google didn’t mention exactly how much they bought up the New York-based company for, announcing only that:
TxVia has been known for their work with prepaid and giftcard technologies. Could this mean Google Play Store gift cards are in the… uh, cards (as Rob once suggested)? I can’t even tell you the amount of my friends/family who would never even consider purchasing a 99 cent app in the P-Store. Maybe soon, I’ll be able to purchase TSF Shell for my mother’s birthday.
|
| LG Optimus 3D Max Hits The FCC – On Its Way To AT&T? Posted: 02 Apr 2012 05:11 PM PDT
In case you thought you had seen the last of LG here in the states, the LG Optimus 3D Max (LG-P720h) looks like it could be heading to AT&T in the very near future thanks to the device clearing the FCC today. Revealed as the LG-P720H in its paperwork, the device oddly enough, appears to be lacking the required bands for AT&T’s new LTE network, but the rest of AT&T’s regular 4G (HSPA+) are all intact. This leads us to question if the device really will make it to these shores via AT&T, or if we’re simply looking at the international version of the device. I guess the next question is, do you guys think another 3D device would even do well here? LG seems to have addressed most of the glaring problems with the original LG Optimus 3D (LG Thrill) and has even promised the 3D Max would be seeing Ice Cream Sandwich during its life. I can only wonder if another failed 3D device could mean the end of that wonderful third dimension for smartphones in the future..
|
| MOTOBLUR Launcher Now Available for Any Ice Cream Sandwich-based ROM Posted: 02 Apr 2012 04:02 PM PDT
Motorola’s Ice Cream Sandwich ROM has long been leaked for a couple of different handsets, and the XDA community has been hard at work bringing some of its elements to the masses. They’ve finally been able to adapt the Motorola-customized launcher from latest builds for any phone running Ice Cream Sandwich. It doesn’t look different at first, but a few Motorola-specific things can be found such as the ability to add and remove homescreens and more options in the launcher. Various settings are included to help make the launcher fit your needs. There’s no telling if this is final but hopefully Motorola keeps their influence on the launcher as light as they currently are. Head to XDA for the download. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]
|
| DRONE Bluetooth Controller Seeks Funds on Kick-Starter Posted: 02 Apr 2012 02:42 PM PDT A company named Evolution Controllers took to Kickstarter, a fund-raising site, to gather interest in and funds for something called a DRONE Bluetooth controller. The controller would be an open-source model to allow developers to easily integrate it into their games and to allow developers to support mapping in emulators and other such apps and programs.
Aside from it being open and flexible, it also looks very nice. Shown above, is guts are packed inside a glossy chassis, has a directional pad, four face buttons, one analog stick, button for back and start, and two shoulder buttons. They even include four screws on the bottom and extra holes for mounting the device and other soldering jobs. This would literally be the most open controller you could find, but they need money to do it. They need $60,000 to get this thing off the ground and have already gotten close to $10,000 of that. And, as usual, there are some perks for pledging money. Prizes differ by the amount given – $65 will get you one of these controllers at launch, while $3500 gets you gold and silver-plated controllers (24 karat gold and 99.99% Pure Silver) and a host of other things. Find the full list of perks at the Kickstarter site and give a helping hand if you want this stylish accessory to come to market. [via Droid-Life]
|
| Rumor: HTC EVO 3D to Go to Virgin Mobile as HTC EVO V 4G Posted: 02 Apr 2012 01:33 PM PDT
It looks like Sprint might be lending its EVO brand to its offspring Virgin Mobile here in the United States. PocketNow1 is reporting that Virgin Mobile will offer the HTC EVO 3D as the HTC EVO V 4G sometime later this year. Not to be confused with the 1GHz single-core EVO 4G, Sprint’s first 4G phone, the EVO V 4G will come with a 1.2GHz dual-core Snapdragon processor, a 4.3 inch qHD glasses-free 3D display, 1GB of RAM, two five megapixel 1080p HD cameras capable of recording 3D video in 720p and a lot more. While the phone is a little dated, it’s not a bad option up against Virgin’s other offerings. We imagine it’ll eventually receive Android 4.0, but it likely won’t see Sense 4.0 as that is reserved for devices using Qualcomm’s S4 chipset or NVIDIA’s Tegra 3.
|
| Highly Rated Apps and Games Could Be Due to Violations of Amazon’s Mechanical Turk System Posted: 02 Apr 2012 12:55 PM PDT Uh oh. It looks like a developer was caught red-handed breaking policies detailed in terms of use statements in both Google and Amazon software. Game developer Noosoft Games used Amazon’s Mechanical Turk system, a system which allows companies to pay everyday users for doing menial and tedious tasks, to get users to rate one of their games in the Google Play Store
A user would be paid $1.35 for successfully completing the task. Something like this affects the integrity of reviews in the Play Store. A user can trust nothing but reviews when looking at an app (particularly paid apps) and using this form of manipulation is very sad. Google feels the same way as they specifically prohibit developers from doing this sort of thing in their terms of use. (You cannot manipulate downloads and ratings for better placement in the Play Store.) Amazon also prohibits its Mechanical Turk users from forcing users to download software to complete a task. The HIT, what the actual task and listing are called in the Mechanical Turk system, has since been removed, but the app still remains in the Play Store with unbelievably high ratings. Is it a game deserving of five stars? It might be, but that isn’t up to developers to decide – it’s up to the users who are actually downloading and playing these games and using these apps. It’d be great if you could completely fool-proof a ratings system and prevent developers from gaming the system, but the sad fact is that you can’t. If you notice things like this, though, you should definitely reach out to Google and Amazon to let them know of the wrong-doings. Amazon’s already done their part on this specific issue, and we expect Google will, too, once they’ve taken notice. The least we can hope for is that they clear the ratings history and force these developers to start from zero. [via Android Police]
|
| Sprint Resumes Gingerbread Rollout for LG Optimus S April 4th, Bugs Should Be Zapped Posted: 02 Apr 2012 12:15 PM PDT
When Sprint originally pushed Gingerbread to their army of LG Optimus S users, the update broke a lot more than it fixed or improved. All sorts of issues plagued users, including one where the phone would refuse to charge. That’s a pretty grave bug and Sprint was forced to pull the update and fix it. It appears that they’ve ironed all of those issues out, though, as they’ll soon be resuming updates via a staggered over-the-air process. Here’s a long list of the changes you will find:
All of this is coming to users April 4th and will be rolled out in stages. It’ll take up to 21 days to get the update to everyone so don’t panic if it doesn’t show up at 12 AM on the aforementioned date. [Sprint]
|
| ClockworkMod Touch Now Available for ASUS Tablets Posted: 02 Apr 2012 11:14 AM PDT
Those of you ASUS Transformer and Transformer Prime owners who hate giving your buttons a workout while in recovery will be happy to know that a new touch-based option is now available for you. ClockworkMod Touch gives you the ability to navigate recovery mode by tapping on list items and using virtual buttons. It’s still your same ClockworkMod recovery, but just a bit easier to use now. Find the download in the ROM Manager app.
|
| Once pricey HTC Rezound now $49 at Verizon Posted: 02 Apr 2012 08:44 AM PDT
The HTC Rezound was one of the better handsets to drop last holiday season, but came to Verizon overshadowed by the Droid RAZR and Galaxy Nexus. With an HD display, Beats Audio, and LTE connectivity it started life priced at $299, but a few months down the road Verizon looks ready to clear some of their idle stock. The Rezound is now on sale at $49.99, a great buy if you don’t mind having a slightly older handset. As Droid Life points out, it may also be an indication of Verizon’s future lineup. The HTC Droid Incredible 4G seems a likely candidate to replace the Rezound, and the sale pricing does align with a rumored spring release. Whether that is reading into things a bit too much we can’t say, but it makes plenty of sense.
|
| Samsung Galaxy Pocket takes its 2.8-inch display to the FCC Posted: 02 Apr 2012 08:17 AM PDT
Samsung has a little something for the haters out there who say the Galaxy Note’s 5.3-inch display is laughably large. It’s the Samsung Galaxy Pocket, the Android smartphone with a 2.8-inch display that just passed through the FCC. There has been no word of plans to unleash the small fry on the US population, but its GSM 850/1900 and UMTS Band V radio support certainly makes AT&T a possibility. The Pocket is specced out at the entry-level, as you might expect for a handset of its size. It features an 800MHz processor, 2MP camera, and Android 2.3. [via Engadget]
|
| Update already prepped for Verizon’s newly available LG Lucid Posted: 02 Apr 2012 07:42 AM PDT
Verizon and LG already have a minor update ready to roll for the newly release LG Lucid. No major changes can be expected, as it appears to only disable the Enhanced Caller Name ID application. No word on why the app needed to be disabled, be it bug or other reason. Hitting shelves just last week, the Lucid is an affordably priced option for users looking for a 4G LTE handset. [via DroidLife]
|
| HTC One X headed to Rogers sometime this month Posted: 02 Apr 2012 06:35 AM PDT
Rogers is touting the launch of LTE in Calgary and Halifax, an exciting prospect for those residing in the two locales. A tidbit slipped in at the end of the press release announcing the network expansions should catch the attention of a far wider swath of Canadians. The HTC One X, which was previously only said to be launching this spring, will be hitting Rogers this month. A RedBoard post further confirms the news, stating that the One X will launch “over the next few weeks” alongside the Nokia Lumia 900. The HTC One X launches in a number of markets today, including several regions in Europe. Along with Canada, the United States should round out a North American launch in early May. [via MobileSyrup]
|
| Get a free extended battery when purchasing the Galaxy Nexus through Samsung Direct Posted: 02 Apr 2012 05:57 AM PDT
Samsung has put together a little deal to entice a few more smartphone buyers to pick up the Galaxy Nexus. A bundle is now available via Samsung Direct that pairs Verizon’s LTE version of the handset with an extended battery for $299.99 when purchased on a new two-year contract.. The offer is good through May 10th, though interested parties may want to do some hunting around before clicking the buy button. Various deals can be found on both the Galaxy Nexus and its extended battery that very well could add up to even greater savings. [via SamsungDirect]
|
| MOTOACTV companion app now available for all Android devices with added features Posted: 02 Apr 2012 04:53 AM PDT
When Motorola first announced the MOTOACTV fitness tracker it was suggested that the device’s companion app would be available on all Android smartphones. Whether it was intentional or not, the app instead remained limited to a handful of Motorola devices. Not only is Motorola finally making the app available to all Android phones, but they are adding features that should make MOTOACTV owners actually want to download it. Though the app was once relegated to little more than forwarding notifications from a smartphone to the wrist-worn gadget, the new version will allow users to track and manage workouts as well as pair the MOTOACTV with a WiFi network. The update should be available sometime today, though it hasn’t been refreshed in the Google Play store as of the time of this writing. Also coming soon to all MOTOACTV users is a beta update that will bring the golf-tracking features of the special edition unit released last month. Motorola had posted the changelog late last week only to remove it. The beta software will be available as a free download through April 16th, at which point users will have to pay to add the ability to track their golf score. Google Play Link: MOTOACTV
|
| Sprint’s LTE Galaxy Nexus launching April 22? Posted: 02 Apr 2012 04:40 AM PDT
Sprint’s Samsung Galaxy Nexus has been in a holding pattern ever since it was revealed that the carrier would introduce the handset along with their new LTE network. That 4G network prepped to go live sometime during the middle of the year. A new leak caught by The Verge suggests that both the release of the Galaxy Nexus and launch of Sprint’s LTE network could be right around the corner. In a document purported to have been circulated to employee’s at Sam’s Club, the Galaxy Nexus is tagged with an April 22nd release date.The Sprint version of the LTE Nexus will be identical to the version hosted by Verizon, though Google Wallet should be openly supported. There is also talk of a slight bump in processor speed to 1.5GHz. Also mentioned in the leak is a April 15th release date for the LG Viper, the second LTE smartphone announced earlier this year by Sprint. For a bit of a refresher on that one, see our hands-on from CES. [via The Verge]
|
| You are subscribed to email updates from Android Phone Fans To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 | |
No comments:
Post a Comment