Monday, May 21, 2012

Google Android News Android Forums

Google Android News Android Forums

Samsung Mobile Chief Open To Cross-Licensing Deal With Apple

Posted: 20 May 2012 03:11 PM PDT

Apple and Samsung are set to meet May 21st for settlement talks, and Samsung’s mobile head JK Shin is sounding optimistic that talks can be fruitful, though he does warn that there’s still a lot they are not seeing eye-to-eye on. At the Seoul airport on the way to the U.S. talks, Shin told reporters the following:

“There is still a big gap in the patent war with Apple but we still have several negotiation options including cross-licensing.“

This is definitely a softening of the language used by Shin in March when he promised “no compromise.” It’s hard to believe tomorrow’s talks will end in rainbows and unicorns.

When asked about the 4G chip shortage Samsung is currently experiencing, Shin said it was expected to continue until early in the fourth quarter of this year, meaning some time in October. This could be a big problem as the LTE-capable Galaxy S III is on the horizon in the United States and could be forced to use other vendors’ 4G chips to keep production numbers up.

source: reuters
via: engadget

Some HTC ‘products’ are allowed to enter the U.S. Market after passing U.S. Customs review

Posted: 20 May 2012 02:07 PM PDT

A few days ago we reported that the AT&T One X and the Sprint EVO 4G LTE were being held up at the U.S. Customs, and were being investigated for infringement for Apple patent #5,946,647, which involves the messaging application. This resulted in obvious delays and a complete cancellation of the EVO 4G LTE launch on Sprint.

Taipe Times is reporting that some of HTC’s “products” are now allowed to enter the U.S. market after passing the customs review.

"Some of our products have passed the review and have been delivered to our telecoms operators' clients in the US," HTC said in a statement submitted to the Taiwan Stock Exchange yesterday.

Which products we don’t know. It’s interesting that they used the word “products” not smartphones. Were there other product categories that were held up? It seems unlikely that the Apple patent involved would hold up anything else, but I guess it’s also possible that the shipment might have included accessories that were “automatically” held up as a result since they were part of the same shipment. Maybe the statement is referring to those “products.”

It’s also possible that other phones were held up as well. For example, the T-Mobile One S wasn’t mentioned in any previous stories, but I would assume it’s subject to the same patent issue. Other older models could have been held up as well.

Also in an odd statement is this:

"The company is closely working with the US customs to speed up the review," HTC said in the statement. "The company is confident that the problem will be resolved soon."

It’s obvious that all the “products” or smartphones haven’t been released so we really don’t have much else to report. We really don’t know what products or smartphones have been cleared. Could the release of the EVO 4G LTE be immanent? Either way it’s at least positive news since HTC was expecting up to 3 weeks to pass the Customs review, and the fact that it appears HTC already corrected the problem to begin with, doesn’t hurt.

Stay tuned as we will report it as soon as we hear it.

source: taipeittimes

Cheers @CoffeeRoomNews

 

Dozens of games to go on sale May 24th through June 1st in the Google Play Store ‘Because We May’

Posted: 20 May 2012 12:16 PM PDT

How about a really hot gaming sale to kick of your Memorial Day Weekend? Because We May is celebrating those app stores that give developers the ability to price their accomplishments however they wish. As a result there are 39 titles that will go on sale between May 24 and June 1 in the Google Play Store. It’s not limited to the Play Store as you will also find a bunch other titles for the iOS App Store, Steam, the Mac App Store, and others.

There still could be even more games by the time the 24th rolls around since developers have until the 22nd to jump onboard. So far the list has some really good titles like World of Goo, Shadowgun, Riptide GP, and Osmos. This is a great opportunity to try out some new games. Unfortunately we don’t have the sale prices yet, but hit the break for the complete Google Play Store list along with links for each game.

 

source: becausewemay
via: androidpolice

China gives the final thumbs-up on Google’s Motorola Mobility acquisition

Posted: 20 May 2012 10:35 AM PDT

After months of deliberation, Chinese antitrust and competition authorities have finally given the green light on Google’s acquisition of Motorola Mobility. The Chinese approval of Google’s latest venture was one of several that were required in order for the deal to go through. It’s not a secret that China and Google have had some beef in the not too distant past and it was unclear whether Google would ever get China’s blessing on the matter. China was the final obstacle in the series of regulators to authorize the merger, officially sealing the deal.

This should be especially good news for Google stock holders and Android movement activists everywhere. Though there is still some worry about Motorola getting favored above the other manufacturers, the future of Android is a little more secure thanks to the several thousand patents acquired from the merger.

source: WSJ

 

GameStop to Launch a Bring-Your-Own Device Cellular Service

Posted: 20 May 2012 10:30 AM PDT

Here’s a bit of news I bet you had no idea was in the pipeline. It appears as though GameStop is getting ready to enter the cellular arena as GameStop Mobile and will front as an AT&T MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator). No, you will not be able to buy new phones from the video game retailer, but you will be able to bring in your own carrier-unlocked device as long as it can work on AT&T’s 850MHz and 1,900MHz bands. I guess at one point in time you could actually see GameStop Mobile’s webpage but it has since been pulled down. Lucky for us Engadget was able to grab a few details surrounding the upcoming service, and according to them the plans will be contract-free and will begin at $5 and go on up to $55 for a monthly plan with unlimited voice, text and just 500MB of data. For those who are interested in a data-only plan, you can choose the 1GB a month deal at the high price of $55 a month.

As far as the webpage goes, we will include the link below so you can see what it looks like, but at this point in time you will notice it requires a password to go any further. I guess we will just have to wait for the official details as they emerge. Stay tuned…

source: GameStop Mobile
via: Engadget

 

Full Firmware Of Samsung Galaxy S III Now Available, Brings Us One Step Closer To Custom ROMs For The Smartphone

Posted: 20 May 2012 07:53 AM PDT

As soon as a leak happens, it turns to an eventual pour. Such is the case with the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S III smartphone. Following the excitement of S Voice being available for all, the gang at XDA forums went one step further and got a hold of the device’s full stock firmware. What this means ladies and gentlemen is we won’t have to wait long to see custom ROMs for the smartphone after the initial release. In addition, it’s been confirmed developers have wasted no time and are already hard at work trying to take advantage of the device’s new features– so hopefully we could see some of Samsung’s features ported to other devices.

The firmware is pretty hefty— 786MB to be exact— but it’s definitely worth it. If you’re interested in partaking in any tinkering, please do visit the XDA Forums at the source link below.

It’s a glorious moment in the land of Android, isn’t it?

source: Phandroid

Motorola Won’t Update Its Devices To Android 4.0 If It’s Too Much Of A Hassle And Won’t Improve The Device

Posted: 20 May 2012 07:31 AM PDT

We mentioned recently that Motorola updated its timeline for when some of its premium devices would get ICS— even though you know, it was first found in December 2011. If you own a smartphone or tablet such as the DROID RAZR/RAZR MAXX, Atrix 4G or XYBOARD series of tablets, then you have a lot to look forward to– starting next month. On the other hand, devices like the DROID 3 and DROID X2 were left out of the exclusive Android 4.0 club, despite being released within the past 12-15 months as well. Motorola certainly ruffled more than a few feathers as many owners of those devices were furious. MOTO took some time and elaborated on why devices such as those won’t be getting the coveted update:

“You may be wondering why all devices aren't being upgraded to Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich). Here's the deal. We work very closely with Google and cell phone carriers for every software update. And, obviously we want the new release to improve our devices. If we determine that can't be done—well then, we're not able to upgrade that particular device.

Happy upgrading”!

To sum everything up: if it’s too much of a hassle going into the R&D as well as the cost of updating a device, MOTO won’t even bother trying to update– especially if it knows ICS won’t improve the device. Definitely a bummer I know folks, especially the release of the DROID 3 and DROID X2 had a poorly timed release, but is more than capable of handling the update. While you all won’t be tasting MOTO-infused ICS, all is not lost for those owners. There’s always the act of rooting and flashing a custom ROM which can definitely suffice and even prolong the life of your smartphone. Here’s hoping MOTO doesn’t leave a sour taste in the mouth for owners of devices not receiving the update.

source: Inside Motorola Blog

Verizon To Turn Rezound, DROID 4 and DROID RAZR Into Global Handsets

Posted: 20 May 2012 12:55 AM PDT

We’ve already heard about Verizon converting certain 4G LTE devices, namely the LG Spectrum and DROID 4, to become global phones by enabling international radios embedded into these devices. The folks at Droid Life have sources that tell them there may be more devices with this hidden capability.

Check out the info sheet above for the HTC Rezound, which was previously rumored to have hidden global radios. It clearly shows a “global feature” that enables an additional 185 countries. The source also states that the DROID RAZR will be getting a new info sheet with this feature added, and according to the tipster, this is coming soon. Sounds like a cool bonus if you own or plan to own one of these handsets.

source: droid life

 

 
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