Sunday, April 15, 2012

Update - 230



Posted: 16 Mar 2012 03:28 PM PDT
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If you grew up playing sports videogames during the 90′s you probably remember the phrases “Boomshakalaka”, “He’s heating up”, and “He’s on fire!” NBA Jam was one of my favorite games as a kid, so I was thrilled to see that EA Mobile ported the iOS version to Android this week.
Unfortunately it doesn’t appear that NBA Jam supports Android 4.0 devices, so I can’t play it on my Galaxy Nexus or Transformer Prime. From the early reviews coming in, it looks like this port lives up the the classic. NBA Jam features an average review score of 4.5, which is rare for EA Mobile games.
Highlights of NBA Jam include:
  • 3 modes of play let you ball the way you want: Play Now – Select a team and jump right into the ballgame. Classic Campaign – Defeat all other teams to win the championship, and unlock legends, hidden players, and outrageous cheats. Local Multiplayer – Go big head 2 big head against a friend via  local WiFi or Bluetooth
  • Play as your favorite Stars from all 30 NBA Teams
  • Featuring the voice of Tim Kitzrow (the original NBA JAM play-by-play announcer), you'll hear all the classic catchphrases plus a few new ones
  • Unlock legends from the classic arcade and Open up outrageous cheats.
If your device is supported, you can pick up NBA Jam right now on the Google Play Store for $4.99. It’s nice to see multiplayer mode over local WiFi, but I’d love to see EA add online play.
This week EA also released FIFA 12. I’ve never been a fan of soccer games, but I know the sport is huge in about every country but the United States. So far the early reviews are what we have come to expect from EA’s Android ports, as the game averages a mediocre 3.7. If you are looking for a good soccer game, keep in mind Gameloft has Real Soccer 2012 available for free.
Highlights of FIFA 12 include:
  • Experience vibrant graphics and ultra-realistic animation like never before
  • Play like a superstar with famous footballers like Kaka, Rooney, and more
  • Dominate leagues like the English Premiership, La Liga, MLS and beyond
  • March toward glory in 32 real stadiums
  • Handle the ball with precise new controls optimized for Android
  • Stay in the game as you take on daily challenges


Posted: 16 Mar 2012 02:48 PM PDT
htc_rezound
Here we go again. It seems like every time we’ve written a story about HTC this week, it had something to do with Android 4.0. This time around, the HTC Rezound is getting in on the Ice cream Sandwich action with a leaked Android 4.0 update which includes HTC Sense 3.6 and updated radios. There’s no guarantee that this will be the final build that Verizon and HTC will be pushing out to the HTC Rezound in the near future, but we are hearing that this build is a lot more stable than previous leaks.
In order to flash the update (including the new radios) to your HTC Rezound, you will need to have a completely stock device. Those who have a custom recovery or have used the HTC bootloader unlock tool will need to flash a modified build of the leak which is already rooted. If you own the HTC Rezound and want to flash the leaked Android 4.0 update to your phone, click on the source link below for the files and detailed instructions. Don’t forget, flashing a leaked Android build to your phone can be dangerous and may void your warranty.
We’ve known that the HTC Rezound would be updated to Android 4.0 from the day it was announced. We’re not sure how much longer HTC and Verizon will need to finish up their testing, but we wouldn’t be surprised if the Android 4.0 OTA update for the Rezound showed up during the first few weeks of April.
Do you think AT&T will push out the Android 4.0 update to the Vivid next, or will Verizon’s Rezound owners get it first?


Posted: 16 Mar 2012 01:46 PM PDT
six-guns-630
Today Gameloft released their popular iOS hit Six-Guns to the Google Play Store. I haven’t played the game and you probably won’t read what I write anyways, so just check out the video below. It looks like a pretty good number of devices are supported, but unfortunately the Transformer Prime is not.
As some of you know I love Gameloft, so I’ll be off for the rest of the afternoon playing this on my Galaxy Nexus. Check out the game and then come back to let us know what you think.



Posted: 16 Mar 2012 01:36 PM PDT
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Welcome back to our weekly Top 10 Android App Updates column, where we take a look at the most upgraded apps for the week. I've found that one of the best ways to discover useful apps is to look at what people are actually updating, and not focus on which apps have the most installs.
To find the most updated apps, I turn to AppAware. It’s a great tool that shows me which apps have active support from their developers and sometimes reminds me of an old app that I might have removed long ago. Make sure to install it so your activity can help determine our weekly top 10 list.
The following is a Top 10 list of apps which were updated in the last seven days and received the most updates during that time period on AppAware. Based on previous feedback, I am filtering out apps that have over 10 million installs since most are well known. I hope you enjoy this weekly feature and discover some apps that you might find useful.

AppAware – Version 3.1.0


What’s new in this version:
  1. By popular demand: Bookmarks have been turned into Likes and made public to engage with your friends
  2. Added: possibility to share apps also by email
  3. Added: full compatibility with Google Play Store
  4. Fixed: minor bugs
Have you seen the new AppAware website? This service is so amazing if you are an app lover and I’m surprised it hasn’t passed 100k installs yet. Get the app now, check out the desktop site, and let us know what you think.

Wifi Analyzer – Version 3.0.6


What’s new in this version:
  1. Improved translations.
This is a neat little network tool that can help boost your local WiFi network. If you are still using 2.4 GHz 802.11b WiFi, there are only 11 channels available and it’s easy to get interference with your neighbors. This app lets you scan the networks around you and suggest which channel to place your WiFi router on for least interference. Check out the how-to video in the Google Play Store if you need help.

Pulse News – Version 2.8.2


What’s new in this version:
  1. Tablet bug fix
  2. Performance enhancements
  3. Fresh reading view and easy to use options!
  4. Combined sharing view to share to multiple networks at once!
I still prefer Google Reader for keeping up with my news sources, but Pulse is a great reader if you prefer something a little more visually pleasing. The latest update is pretty minor, but download Pulse if you have never tried it before. Make sure to add Android and Me to your feed to get all our latest stories.

Beautiful Widgets – Version 4.0.2


What’s new in this version:
  1. Multiple weather forecast
  2. Web skin market with cloud to device technology
  3. Web skin mixer and few others new features
  4. Bugfixes such as hiding the background for numbers, etc.
Beautiful Widgets was the first paid app to surpass 1 million downloads and it keeps going strong with new updates. The latest update allows you to add multiple forecasts to a single widget. The app price is back up to $2.79, but it’s worth it if you like to customize your homescreen.

Go Calendar Widget – Version 2.99


What’s new in this version:
  1. (Fixed) It may get crash when paging the widget.
  2. (Improve) If you are not using the GO Launcher EX, you will find an icon in your screen.
The Go Launcher Dev team continues to amaze me. Their Go Launcher EX is one of the most popular home screen replacements and all their apps are of the highest quality. Go Calendar Widget is similar to the default widget, but it supports switching between months by flipping like a real calendar. Just like all the other like other GO Widgets, themes are also supported.

Firefox – Version 10.0.3


What’s new in this version:
  1. Improved Sync set-up
  2. Bug fixes
  3. More: www.mozilla.org/mobile/10.0/releasenotes
Poor Mozilla. They keep updating Firefox, but it’s really falling behind the other alternative browsers like Dolphin HD. Firefox downloads have slowed down and the app maintains a poor average rating of 3.5, while Dolphin has soared past 10 million installs and boasts an amazing 4.7 review score.

Foursquare – Version 2012.3.9


What’s new in this version:
  1. Updated translations.
This is a minor update to Foursquare, but I tossed it in because I love this app. Since I started to filter out apps with over 10 million installs, I’ve been surprised at some of the apps that still come up in this list. Foursquare remains my number one app when I travel and I can’t wait to see the overhauled version that is coming soon. Even if you don’t like check-in apps, Foursquare is still very useful for its explore feature that shows you the best places around your location.

TeamViewer for Remote Control – Version 7.0.335


What’s new in this version:
  1. Fixed an issue on app startup on certain devices (i.e. Samsung Galaxy Note)
Android has a lot of remote access apps, but not many of them are free like TeamViewer. I’ve never used it, but it already has 1 million installs with an average review score of 4.7. It supports multiple desktop operating systems including Windows, Mac, and Linux and the viewer works on mobile devices with Android 1.6 or higher. The latest update adds support for the Galaxy Note, which I bet provides an amazing remote access experience with its 5.3 inch HD display.

File Expert – Version 4.1.4


What’s new in this version:
  1. Fix bug that pictures can't display in the middle in landscape mode
  2. Fix bug that the dialog box can't slide on Android 4.0 OS
  3. The donate plugin was renamed to Pro Key plugin for using exclusively features. Please go to Google Play to update.
  4.  Add Memory Manager for all Pro Key owners(need root permission).
File Expert comes from Geek Software, makers of Root Explorer. The claim it’s the ultimate file manager and it looks to have the features to back it up. It’s designed for both advanced and entry level users and allows them manage files  stored on a local SD card, local WiFi network, or cloud storage servers like Dropbox and Box.net.

SoundCloud – Version 2.2.4


What’s new in this version:
  1. Maintenance release
  2. refreshing streams to get rid of incorrect items
  3. small bug fixes
SoundCloud allows users to record, listen and share their sounds privately or publicly on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and Foursquare. The app also includes a social stream that lets users listen to, favorite and comment sounds from others. This latest update is a maintenance release that mainly includes bug fixes.

Go Weather – Version 1.9.16


What’s new in this version:
  1. (Fixed) Some MOTO devices are unable to play cloudy video.
  2. (Improve) Color of text in default video.
  3. (Improve) User experience of updating weather data.
  4. (Improve) Save your battery in Position operation
  5. (Improve) Add feedback option in the Menu
What more can we say? It’s a weather widget from the Go Launcher Team. If you like their other work, then you will love these widgets.

Honorable mentions

Did you see any Android apps that received notable updates in the last week? Share your suggestions in the comments below and we will add them to our honorable mentions list.


Posted: 16 Mar 2012 10:04 AM PDT
Samsung Galaxy Rumor
Want to see a test photo from the Samsung Galaxy S III? We are not expecting the device until June, but rumors suggest the design has been finalized and now recent photos seem to confirm it’s currently being tested by Samsung employees.
German blog AllAboutSamsung spotted a picture that was uploaded to Picasa from a device with the model number GT-I9300. Recent speculation has suggested that GT-I9300 will become the model number of the Galaxy S III, so these could be the first photos from the highly anticipated device.
So what can we learn from the photo? It appears to be taken by a Samsung employee located in New York City. We can see a Samsung laptop, Samsung tablet, Samsung phone, and a row of Samsung chargers located in the picture. The resolution of the picture is 3264 × 2448, which suggest an 8.1 megapixel camera.
The current Galaxy S II also features an 8 megapixel camera, but we know that megapixel count is not that important anymore when talking about picture quality. Keep in mind that this photo might have been snapped with a lower resolution, and the Galaxy S III could still feature a 12 megapixel camera like rumored.
Whoever uploaded the photo to Picasa already took it down, which could suggest this is real and got online by accident. We only have the lower resolution image below to go by, so don’t let this single photo be the judge of the final camera quality. Some sites have already pointed out that this photo was captured with an HDR effect, which could explain the blurriness.
Overall this isn’t much to get excited about, but the Galaxy S III is the hottest upcoming phone and we will devour any bit that gets tossed our way. Check out the picture below and let us know what you think about it.

This photo from the GT-I9300 was uploaded to Picasa with the title "20120308_175456_HDR(1).jpg"


Posted: 16 Mar 2012 07:58 AM PDT
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If you hadn’t heard, today is a big day for tablets. No, I’m not talking about that other tablet. I’m talking about the fact that we’re giving away a pair of quad-core Transformer Primes. We’ve paired with @NVIDIATegra to make sure this is a Friday you’ll never forget.
To ensure we kept it big, these are the 32GB model AND they come with the matching keyboard dock. Taylor and I both run a Prime as our primary tablet. So if you don’t know how awesome of a prize this is, let me tell you: this is an awesome prize. As such, we’ve got a pretty kickass method for getting these bad boys into your hands.

How to win

Since we’ve got two Primes, we’ve also got two ways to win. The first is simple and just requires leaving a comment on this post. We’ll leave comments open for 24 hours, after which point we’ll select a random winner.
The second tablet? That’s where things get interesting. To give it out, we’ll be hosting a live game show tomorrow over on our Google+ page. To win, users will need to join us in a live Hangout on Air and play a game of chance. In addition to the Prime, we’ll have a whole slew of other prizes, including free tees, cases from @speckproducts and even a Powerbag.
To participate, you’ll need to circle +Android and Me on Google+, but you’ve probably done that already, right? Tomorrow afternoon we’ll make a post on our G+ page looking for contestants. If you’re in the right place at the right time, that could be you. The only requirement is a camera and microphone so you can join us in the Hangout.
Aside from giving away a fresh Prime, we’ll also use the Hangout to be announce the winner of today’s comment contest, so make sure you tune in even if you don’t want to join us live on air. If you’re somehow still not excited, check out the rad TegraZone game montage below that shows just how Tegra 3 rolls:

So that’s it! Leave a comment on this post for a chance to win a new 32GB ASUS Transformer Prime from @NVIDIATegra. Then join us again tomorrow on Google+ to see if you won. Or if you can win the other. Or if someone else will. The suspense is killing me!
This contest is US only.


Posted: 16 Mar 2012 07:36 AM PDT
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Earlier this month we revealed that Google had chosen ASUS to produce their upcoming “Nexus tablet.” This report was later echoed by Digitimes, who said the 7-inch tablet could arrive as early as May. This has been the hottest Android rumor of the month so we have continued to ask around and dig up more details. We just received some new information, so read on for the full report.

The Rumor

The ASUS MeMo 370T that was revealed at CES has been scrapped after Google contracted with ASUS to produce their “Nexus tablet.” Earlier reports said the device would retail for $249-199, but we are now told the target price is $149-199. The quad-core Tegra 3 version that was previously leaked is no more. Other than the 7-inch display, no additional information has been provided on the specs.

The Source

This latest rumor comes from a senior employee at a supply chain company based in the United States. They wish to remain anonymous.

One Android Insider's take on the rumor

“It’s a done deal,” said the supply chain source. We have already heard countless rumors that Google was working on “a tablet of the highest quality,” and this latest report give us further confidence it’s going to happen.
What’s most surprising about the latest rumor is to hear that the target price has been lowered to $149 and that the quad-core Tegra 3 processor is out. I’m going to assume these two bits are related.
It sounds like Google wanted to undercut the Kindle Fire, so they lowered the bill of materials by going with a processor that was cheaper than Tegra 3. We heard similar stories last year that Amazon had originally chosen Tegra 2 to power the Kindle Fire, but they went with Texas Instruments’ OMAP4 at the last moment because they got a better volume deal.
ASUS has a strong relationship with Qualcomm, so we might see a Snapdragon processor end up inside this “Nexus tablet.”
We also found it noteworthy that our source called this device the “Nexus tablet.” The final product name has not been revealed, and we were curious if the Nexus branding was going to be used. I originally thought that this device might be called Google Play, but it turned out that was the name for Google's new online content store. I'll still go out on a limb and predict this tablet might be called Nexus Play.
Many of our readers were excited about the ASUS MeMo 370T tablet as it stood, and I’m sure most will be upset to hear that it could be canned. Hopefully our source is wrong about that information. It could be that the MeMo 370T was slated to become the “Nexus tablet”, but Google wanted something cheaper so ASUS scrapped it and configured a lower spec’d device.
I know a lot of people would buy a quad-core tablet at $249, so I hope ASUS still gives customers that option. However, ASUS did not show off the device at Mobile World Congress and they have been quiet about it, so who knows what’s going on with it.
Wrapping up, we still expect this device to be announced at the CTIA Wireless show which takes place in New Orleans from May 8-10. Sources say it will ship with the latest version of Ice Cream Sandwich, but if this is truly a Nexus device it might become the flagship platform for the next version of Android, codenamed Jelly Bean. More information on Jelly Bean is expected to be revealed at Google IO on June 27-29th.
Let us know what you think about this latest report in the comments below. Does the lower target price increase your chances of buying one? Will the lack of a quad-core Tegra 3 processor turn you away? Would you rather buy the $249 ASUS MeMo 370T as it was originally announced?


Posted: 16 Mar 2012 06:42 AM PDT
nexus-s-ice-cream-sandwich-tilt
Word on the street is that Google will start rolling out the Android 4.0 update for the Nexus S and Nexus S 4G within the coming weeks. This new information comes from one of Engadget’s trusted sources which we assume has provided accurate information in the past.
As Dustin pointed out a few days ago, Google did push out an Android 4.0 update for the T-Mobile (i9020-T) Nexus S in December which was quickly pulled due to a number of bugs. We’re hoping that Google has finally been able to sort things out and will be able to deliver a stable update before the end of March.
Will the Android 4.0 update for the Nexus S and Nexus S 4G restore your trust in the Nexus brand or will you consider an OEM branded phone the next time you make a purchase?


Posted: 16 Mar 2012 06:39 AM PDT
cyanogenmod
CyanogenMod is one of the most popular custom ROMs in the Android ecosystem. There is a plethora of options out there, but this team has managed to get a great reputation. The CyanogenMod 9 ROM based on Android 4.0 is still in the works. But root and custom ROM users are dying to know whether their devices will be supported with Ice Cream Sandwich goodness.
It seems the CyanogenMod team gets the same question a lot. “Will the _____ get CyanogenMod 9 support?” To make the answer simpler, they have just released a nice flow chart. It displays the possibilities of your smartphone getting CM9 support, based on general specifications.
We have a feeling this chart won’t exactly stop users from asking. But if you want to see your odds, go ahead and follow the chart questions below. What percentage does your device fall under?



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