Android Authority |
- Holo Everywhere, a website resource for all things Holo
- Relive: Photo syncing app for Android and other platforms
- Listen & Speak: Your personal, multilingual teacher for learning foreign languages
- Rage of Bahamut shows that Android apps can make just as much money as on iOS
- Samsung Galaxy S3 delayed in Canada due to “unprecedented global demand”
- Remember the $74 Android PC? Now it has a $53 little brother
- Pocket for Android gets “True Black” theme and other improvements
- Motorola unveils RAZR V XT889 phone for China, comes with ICS
- Kinectimals for Android is Microsoft’s first mobile game launched in the Google Play store
- T-Mobile 4G LTE network coming in early 2013, testing to start this summer
| Holo Everywhere, a website resource for all things Holo Posted: 15 Jun 2012 08:30 PM PDT
The release of Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich signifies a major milestone for Android, not only from the feature and function standpoint, but also design. The newly introduced Holo user interface — alongside Roboto, a font that was specifically designed from the ground up –completes the sleek and aesthetically pleasing look of the platform. Being a fan of the Holo interface, you may wonder to yourself just where to find a place that's dedicated to all things Holo and tick all the right Holo boxes – making it easy to track for apps that adhere to Android’s specific design guides on the new user interface. Your search is over, because there's Holo Everywhere that will answer all of your Holo needs. Holo Everywhere is basically a website that "focuses on apps that exemplify the vision of the ‘Holo Everywhere’ mentality.” Google wants its new Ice Cream Sandwich to run only apps that combine simplicity, purpose and beauty to create an effortless and powerful experience. So it's to be expected that the apps that are listed on the website meet those criteria; the standard has been set quite high for Holo. As listed on Google developer's website, the ideal apps should be able to enchant people, simplify their lives, and make them feel amazing.  Description and design highlights example It appears there are only a handful of apps listed on the website so far that have met the above requirements. There's SoundHound, Tasks, Safe in Cloud, WootCheck, Taptu, File Explorer, and a slew of others. You can read description and design highlights of the apps. Aside from leaving comments there, you can also submit your suggestion of apps that are worthy of being listed on Holo Everywhere. This article, Holo Everywhere, a website resource for all things Holo , was originally published at AndroidAuthority.com - Your Android News Source.
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| Relive: Photo syncing app for Android and other platforms Posted: 15 Jun 2012 06:00 PM PDT
If you’re one of those photo aficionados who always fancy looking at their own collection of pictures from time to time but constantly experience the dilemma of how to contain them in one place, then we’re pleased to introduce you to a great solution. Using the cross-platform aggregator Relive, you can now explore all of your precious photos regardless of what platform they are on. As long as you have any Android-, iOS-, or any Windows-powered device at hand, then you’re now ready to go. Before you can use the Relive service, however, you’ll need to authorize it to access your Facebook account. This allows you to access Relive from any desktop browser just by providing your Facebook info. The service has a desktop client (Windows-only) called ReliveSync. Its main purpose is to make sure that your desktop photos are synced to the cloud and that your cloud photos (which you may have uploaded via other devices) are also synced to your computer. Once you’ve set up syncing, you can practically access your synced photos through any computer browser, or through the Relive app for Android.
What’s more interesting about Relive is the fact that its storage capacity’s limit has not been specified, which could only mean that you are free to store as many photos as you like from various platforms. Apart from that, this is a free app, so you don’t really need to spend a cent to use this service. You won’t have to worry about being selective about which photos you want to be seen here and there. With Relive, you can now have access to all of your beloved photos online. Oh, and you can even browse your photo album by week, month, year, or source!
The requirement of a Facebook account is not just something to fill in some gaps. The moment you log into Facebook, and make some changes to your photo album, Relive automatically updates its content accordingly. Images will then be displayed on your mobile’s homescreen with its corresponding source device. And, of course, you always have the luxury to browse the photos based on the week, month, or year you’ve uploaded them. You can even share photos with your desired email contacts.
Relive lets you access the entire photo collection even if your device is not connected to the Internet. Though, that photos synchronized via Relive can only be seen from within the app’s interface and not via your Android device’s Gallery app. Nevertheless, Relive’s present features serve as a very reliable and portable solution in providing back-ups for your photo collection. With Relive, you save energy and time in checking your photos across different platforms. In a matter of seconds, you’ll have a full view of your memorable experiences captured by the camera’s lens. Try the Relive app from the Google Play Store today, and experience mobile reliving of your precious moments. This article, Relive: Photo syncing app for Android and other platforms , was originally published at AndroidAuthority.com - Your Android News Source.
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| Listen & Speak: Your personal, multilingual teacher for learning foreign languages Posted: 15 Jun 2012 03:00 PM PDT
Are you up to the experience of learning English, Spanish, or French without having to go to any school or training center? How about for an immediate analysis of your speaking skills? Both are now made easy with the Listen & Speak app, a free app which allows users to gauge their speaking skills through various exercises that are readily available in the application. But does it all end there? Of course not. The app also allows you to translate all the available sentences or phrases to the language of your choice. So, you don't really have to worry even if you're living in France and want to speak the Spanish language. With the aid of the Listen & Speak app, it's now just a matter of a single click. Speaking skills analysis results will be given to you after you record your oral reading session with sentences given by the app. This analysis serves as the overall evaluation of your reading skills, which in turn will give you an idea of the areas of your speech that need to be improved. Many people in this fast-paced, technologically advanced world desire greener pastures. Alongside this desire comes the almost-too automatic drive for wider conveyance of one’s thought and opinion. Wouldn’t it be more fulfilling and practical to start learning other languages, as well? Listen & Speak will help you with that. Not only is it trendy, it's also highly accessible for everybody around the world. You don't need the typical classroom setting anymore, where a teacher would recite her or his lecture in front of students. Nor will you need your pen and notebook to take down your teacher's lectures. All you need is the Listen & Speak app, and you'll have your teacher right there in the palm of your hand. Listen & Speak also has a Learning tab, which provides a variety of topics that you wish to study. English proverbs? Basic Spanish phrases? English quotes? Common medical terms? Routine conversation bits? All of these are readily available in the app. Of course, you have the luxury to see the translation of the test material for better understanding. Feedback for your oral recording is also instantaneous, which will be projected through scores in decimal figures. By then, you’ll have the choice whether or not to continue to the next exercise, repeat your previous exercise, or perhaps cancel the entire practice session. The best part is that Listen & Speak is a free Android app. With Listen & Speak installed on your Android phone or tablet, you can use its full service as often as you like, at any time you want. You are now, in other words, the overall controller of your class. Your choice, your lesson. Now why don’t you start taking in control of your own learning, and enjoy the Listen & Speak app for Android? No related posts. This article, Listen & Speak: Your personal, multilingual teacher for learning foreign languages , was originally published at AndroidAuthority.com - Your Android News Source.
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| Rage of Bahamut shows that Android apps can make just as much money as on iOS Posted: 15 Jun 2012 01:42 PM PDT
We’ve heard plenty of times in the past about how Android doesn’t make as much money for developers as iOS, and some examples raised valid points, like the fact that there are not as many Google Wallet/Checkout users as there are iTunes account users. Therefore in theory, fewer people bother to pay for an app. There were also some very misleading ones that used data from 2010, when Android was still much smaller in quarterly sales, but even more importantly in total user base, and the data used is somehow supposed to prove that Android is not making money for developers now. First off, I still believe the Play Store hasn’t reached the same level of monetization as the Apple app store, and the difference is still significant on average, but I also think that the Play Store has come a long way to help developers make money off their apps. Now, it’s important to remember, that just like in any other type of market, most developers will not make any money from their apps, some will barely break even, and only around 20% or so will actually get rich from their apps. This goes for books, music, movies, you name it. It’s the way the world works. Only the best/most promoted content makes money.
For some of the top developers, though, like the Angry Birds maker, Rovio, and DeNA’s Rage of Bahamut, which is currently the #1 grossing developer in both Google’s and Apple’s stores, both the ecosystems are making around the same amount of money for the developers. It’s important to note though, that Rage of Bahamut is a free-to-play game (on iOS also). This might lead to the insight that if you want to make as much money from Android as you do from iOS, you need to offer your app for free, and make money from ads (like Angry Birds) or in-app purchases like Rage of Bahamut. At least for now, this is probably the way to go. The players who are really interested in buying content in this game will take a few moments of their time to make a Google Wallet account. Unfortunately, at least until ICS makes up a majority of the Android devices, most Android users will not even know what a Google Wallet account is, and therefore they will not pay for apps. With ICS you get asked from the moment you set-up your phone, to make a Google Wallet account, which you can still skip if you want, but it’s also a great incentive for many people to make their account then. Later they can start buying apps with just a push of a button. I think this is Apple’s big advantage for now in monetizing apps, and until ICS gets a lot more than only 7% market share, things will remain about the same. The simple fact that Android is still growing twice as fast as iOS will help push those numbers in Google’s favor, thanks to the sheer amount of Android users that will exist in the future (right now each having around ~350 million users). This article, Rage of Bahamut shows that Android apps can make just as much money as on iOS , was originally published at AndroidAuthority.com - Your Android News Source.
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| Samsung Galaxy S3 delayed in Canada due to “unprecedented global demand” Posted: 15 Jun 2012 01:17 PM PDT
In just a short paragraph, Samsung has just crushed the dreams of countless Galaxy S3 fans in Canada. OK, not really crushed their dreams, but still, I bet it's irritating to have to wait an extra week to get the S3. Here's the full statement:
Notice how they said "unprecedented global demand" twice? I know that Samsung has all the reasons to exaggerate the demand for the Galaxy S3, but a slew of independent sources have confirmed that the S3 is selling unlike any other Android smartphone had sold before. Samsung's superphone was supposed to come on June 20 to Bell Mobility, Virgin Mobile, SaskTel, TELUS, Rogers Wireless (SGH-i747 model, with LTE), as well as Videotron, Wind and Mobilicity (SGH-iT999 model, no LTE). Now, the question is could the delays extend to the US? The phone is supposed to come on June 21 at AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile and July 9 (then changed to July 10) at Verizon. The United States is a much larger market than Canada, but the two have something in common – the prevalence of LTE networks. So far, there are no signs that the US launch of the Galaxy S3 will be postponed, but we'll keep you posted if anything develops. This article, Samsung Galaxy S3 delayed in Canada due to "unprecedented global demand" , was originally published at AndroidAuthority.com - Your Android News Source.
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| Remember the $74 Android PC? Now it has a $53 little brother Posted: 15 Jun 2012 12:58 PM PDT
The $74 Android PC now has a newer version, called CX-01, that goes only for $53, and it’s actually still about as fast as the original, thanks to the switch to the more modern and more efficient Cortex A5 processor. The old one was using a Cortex A8, which was a larger chip, more expensive, and less efficient. Cortex A8 was made a long time ago for high-end devices (at the time), while Cortex A5 is meant for low-end devices, but since it’s a newer design, it still gets to keep the same performance. The full specs of the device are the following:
The device comes with the same Mali 400 GPU that was in the original version (and also in Galaxy S2), and thanks to the powerful GPU, it might be a good machine for multimedia. But there are also some differences such as the lack of a microSD card slot, so you won’t be able to add external storage beyond the 4GB of storage you get with the device. For $53 the device is more than enough to browse the web, watch videos, and even play Android games. You can even try installing another Linux operating system, such as Ubuntu or Linux Mint on it, if you want a more desktop-like experience. You can find the device online at PandaWill Store. No related posts. This article, Remember the $74 Android PC? Now it has a $53 little brother , was originally published at AndroidAuthority.com - Your Android News Source.
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| Pocket for Android gets “True Black” theme and other improvements Posted: 15 Jun 2012 10:19 AM PDT
Even though the popular Instapaper launched recently on Android for $2.99, Pocket (formerly named Read It Later), has been available for quite a long time on Android, and it has been free. The maker of Instapaper for Android, Marco Arment didn’t think Android was worth his time, unless someone decided to make the app for him, and split the money 50-50. It looks like he’s finally found someone to do that, but Pocket team is not going to sit idle and wait for Instapaper to take any users from them, even if they are starting way behind and it costs money to get it The new Pocket app has been updated recently to include a “true” dark theme, as well as other UI improvements to help your reading, and some bug fixes: New Settings:
Reading Improvements:
Fixed:
So what’s this True Black theme all about anyway? It’s an option you can enable that helps users with AMOLED screens to save battery life. Before you could only get a darker grey as background for articles, but now you get true black, which should turn off most of the pixels on the screen, and thus save battery life on AMOLED displays. Pocket offers a good experience and great functionality for free, so why don’t you give it a try if you like saving your articles to read later! This article, Pocket for Android gets “True Black” theme and other improvements , was originally published at AndroidAuthority.com - Your Android News Source.
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| Motorola unveils RAZR V XT889 phone for China, comes with ICS Posted: 15 Jun 2012 10:10 AM PDT
Motorola might not be one of the most popular Android device manufacturers in the US (not anymore), but over in China, it's still fairly successful. We shouldn't, therefore, be very surprised to see Moto unveiling the China-exclusive Razr V XT889, one of the most fashionable Motorola-designed phones of recent time. The RAZR V rocks a very sleek design, with rounded edges and a display wrapped in tough Kevlar fiber. And while it doesn't look like the thinnest or lightest gadget around, the overall look is rather unique and stays with you, which is not something we can say very often about today's smartphones, unfortunately. Running Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich outside of the box, the RAZR V XT889 has another thing going for it, which will most likely draw the attention of Galaxy Nexus fans. Moto's new handheld does not come with any physical keys under the screen, which adds to the phone's industrial look and makes it even more attractive. While we don't know much about the RAZR V's tech specs and features (Motorola's press release only mentions a 4.3-inch screen, an 8 MP camera, 3G connectivity and splash-guard nano-coating), we can assume that this new guy will be at least similarly equipped to the RAZR XT910. You can therefore expect a Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen with 960 x 540 pixels resolution, a dual-core 1.2 GHz processor, 1 GB of RAM and 16 GB of internal memory. Units should start selling in China today, on June 15, from China Telecom carrier. No words on pricing or outside Asia availability yet, but keep in touch and we will be letting you know if we spot this device in the US or Europe anytime soon. Aside from the RAZR V, Moto has unveiled another more modest handheld, also set to start selling in China today. The MOTOSMART MIX XT553 will sport a 4-inch capacitive touchscreen and feature a 1,735 mAh battery, as well as EVDO and GSM support. No words on the rest of the phone's tech specs and features for now. Does any of these two new phones sounds in any way intriguing? Let us know below! This article, Motorola unveils RAZR V XT889 phone for China, comes with ICS , was originally published at AndroidAuthority.com - Your Android News Source.
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| Kinectimals for Android is Microsoft’s first mobile game launched in the Google Play store Posted: 15 Jun 2012 10:01 AM PDT
Initially a game conceived for Kinect console play, Microsoft's Kinectimals pet simulator became the company's first game for both iOS and Android devices. After launching the My Xbox Live app for Android a few days ago, the Xbox maker decided to bring Kinectimals to Google Play today. The application is available to download for $2.99 and can be installed on smartphones and tablets that run Android 2.2 Froyo or higher. In case you have already played Kinectimals on the Xbox 360, then the Android app will help you unlock five new cubs on the console, which will surely be waiting for your love and attention. But what is Kinectimals all about? In the Kinect version, gamers can interact with gestures with a variety of cubs, just like they would with a real animal. Players can teach the animal tricks, feed them and take care of their chosen pet. As expected, since mobile devices do not have advanced gestures recognition support like the Kinect does, the Kinectimals for Android game will offer players a touch-based gaming experience – not that this should be a reason not to purchase it. In fact, considering that the original game costs $50, you'd be better off trying the mobile version first.
The mobile game features various challenges for you and your pet as you progress through the game; completing them will get you experience and coins that can be spent on more items for your animal. Overall, Kinectimals for Android is rather a simple game that targets a young audience, rather than mature players, but it may bring a smile to your face no matter how old you are. What's more important to notice is the fact that Microsoft seems more and more interested to bring its mobile apps to more mobile platforms rather than making them Windows Phone exclusives. Therefore, we wouldn't be surprised to see more Microsoft apps make it to Google Play and other digital content stores for mobile devices. This article, Kinectimals for Android is Microsoft's first mobile game launched in the Google Play store , was originally published at AndroidAuthority.com - Your Android News Source.
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| T-Mobile 4G LTE network coming in early 2013, testing to start this summer Posted: 15 Jun 2012 09:54 AM PDT
While various U.S. carriers have already started to cover various markets with their true 4G LTE networks, T-Mobile has been relying on its false 4G HSPA+ network to lure in customers looking for speedier mobile data. But it looks like T-Mobile is finally read to deploy its own LTE network, as the company has officially announced plans to launch its LTE service in early 2013. The mobile operator has inked “multi-year agreements” with companies like Ericsson in Nokia Siemens Networks in order to upgrade 37,000 cell sites to support LTE connectivity in the following months, an investment that amounts to $4 billion. In June, the company will upgrade 400 GSM/HSPA+ sites to LTE, with the number expected to increase to 2,500 by the end of July. The company also revealed that in addition to LTE cell tower upgrades it's also working on deploying its own 1900MHz 4G HSPA+ spectrum which is expected to be rolled out on a larger scale by the end of the year. The new spectrum would bring faster data speeds – 3G and false 4G – to certain devices including unlocked iPhones. These smartphones can be used only on the carrier's 2G network right now.
But what's even more important for T-Mobile customers is that the carrier is not happy to offer them just LTE support starting with next year. Instead, the company will deploy an optimized LTE version called LTE-Advanced, which is supposed to offer an overall better, more efficient performance than “simple” LTE networks. However, the carrier did not mention in its press release (available below) when its first 4G LTE devices will be available in stores, although we certainly expect various Android smartphones and tablets to be found on that list once T-Mobile's real 4G network is launched. Anyone excited?
This article, T-Mobile 4G LTE network coming in early 2013, testing to start this summer , was originally published at AndroidAuthority.com - Your Android News Source.
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