Android Central |
- Huawei's Emotion UI site goes live, not yet available outside of China
- Nexus 7: The internationally challenged tablet
- Nexus S 4G officially an AOSP device once again
- Verizon Galaxy S III available July 10
- Ordering the Nexus 7 as a gift? Careful not to send it with your account already linked
- Google Maps go indoors in the UK
- Keep Calm and Flash Jelly Bean
- HTC One V now available from US Cellular
- NoiseHush NX80 Stereo headset review
- Sonic 4 Episode II now available for all Android devices
- Crank your volume to 11 with Volume+
- Deal of the Day: Amzer Skin Case for HTC One S
- Nexus 7 torn down, found to have tablet parts inside
- Let your Android device teach you how to tie your tie
- July 4th Celebration Sale - Use Coupon j412 to Save 15% on ALL Android Accessories!
- Ice Cream Sandwich hits double digits and is now on 10.9 percent of Android devices
- Porn producers eyeing Google's Project Glass for POV films
| Huawei's Emotion UI site goes live, not yet available outside of China Posted: 03 Jul 2012 04:49 PM PDT
We first heard about Emotion UI -- Huawei's new, custom interface -- back in May, ahead of it's supposed, planned release in June. The Chinese OEM now seems to be about ready to push it out though as of today, as the official site has gone live. Download links are present, but at the moment, only Chinese consumers can get the software. Emotion UI is compatible with Huawei devices running Android 4.0, and at this time only the Honor, Ascend P1 and Ascend P1E are showing as being supported. The P1 also still shows as "coming soon." Notably missing from that list, is the as yet un-released, Ascend D-Quad. It's highly likely that Emotion UI will be coming to the upcoming Huawei flagship too. Emotion UI promises to bring a (Chinese only) Voice Assistant, cloud services, an "intelligent contact finder," and unique homescreens, customizations and animations. From the images we've seen so far, it looks like it might not be too bad, it's a shame that for now at least, we don't get to play around with it. Source: Huawei (translated) via Unwired View 
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| Nexus 7: The internationally challenged tablet Posted: 03 Jul 2012 01:11 PM PDT
I like my Nexus 7. It’s speedy, well-designed and runs a pure, unmolested version of Android 4.1 Jelly Bean. But since I’ve returned with it to the UK, Google’s flagship tablet has seemed just a little less magical than it was in sunny San Francisco. To understand why, you have look at the main purpose of the tablet. As we repeated throughout our coverage of the new Nexus devices at Google I/O, they represent a window into the content-rich world of Google Play. But a content consumption device is only as strong as the stuff it allows you to consume, and outside of the U.S., the Nexus 7 is severely impaired in this area. 
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| Nexus S 4G officially an AOSP device once again Posted: 03 Jul 2012 12:21 PM PDT
Hooray! It looks like Google, Samsung, and Sprint were able to iron out the difficulties in redistributing the closed source radio code for the Nexus S 4G and it's now officially a part of the AOSP (Android Open Source Project) again! Says Jean-Baptiste Queru, Technical Lead, Android Open Source Project --
Enjoy we will. Welcome back to the family, Nexus S 4G. We've missed you. You might remember back in February, support for CDMA devices was dropped from the AOSP. Dan Morrill explained that this was because binaries for proprietary radio code was signed by a different private key, and projects built from the AOSP would use the standard platform key. This would lead to all sorts of difficulties, and official support for the devices had to be dropped. Legal issues tend to conflict with open-source more often than not. It seems that the issues have been resolved, and Google can now deliver binaries with the correct key, and the Crespo 4G is alive and kicking in AOSP. It's worth noting that there's no mention of the Sprint Galaxy Nexus, which uses LTE for the 4G network in place of WiMax. Hopefully, those issues can be resolved as well and we're one big happy Nexus family again. Source: Android Building Group 
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| Verizon Galaxy S III available July 10 Posted: 03 Jul 2012 12:03 PM PDT
Verizon has officially announced release details for the Galaxy S III, and we'll be seeing the device on Big Red on July 10. Pricing is $199.99 for the 16GB version, and $249.99 for the 32GB model. For your money, you're getting the same great internals (dual-core S4 SoC, 2GB of RAM, 4.8-inch Super AMOLED) on Verizon's nationwide LTE network. At this point there's not much else to say about the Galaxy S III. Everyone loves it, and now (well, seven days from now) everyone can have one. The good news is all the rumors and wild speculation can be put to rest. Read Verizon's full press release after the break. 
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| Ordering the Nexus 7 as a gift? Careful not to send it with your account already linked Posted: 03 Jul 2012 11:11 AM PDT
Just a quick heads up for those of you who might be preordering the Google Nexus 7 tablet as a gift. Just like with the Amazon Kindle Fire, there's an option in the ordering process that allows you to link the tablet you're ordering to the account that you're ordering from. That makes initial setup go that much quicker, but it's not something you're going to want to do if you're giving the tablet as a gift. The good news is that you'll still need to enter your password to purchase anything (unlike the Kindle Fire, which at one point allowed for minor buying without re-entering a password), but this one's still something to be aware of. More: Google Play 
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| Google Maps go indoors in the UK Posted: 03 Jul 2012 11:02 AM PDT
Indoor maps has been announced today by Google for UK Android users. Currently 40 maps are now available ranging from train stations to indoor shopping centers. It may not be a feature that we all use very often but as more and more indoor maps become integrated with Google, the more I see its use increasing. And it is a pretty handy thing to have at your disposal. There is nothing worse than arriving at a large train terminal for example and having no idea where the platform you need is. Especially after a few drinks! Now all the information is right at your fingertips. It is just a case of zooming in on the location in question and the map will automatically adjust to show you the floor plan. Simple. And it works beautifully. I just tested it on the Samsung Galaxy SIII. Clever stuff. Thinking about it I can't understand why we didn't have this feature before. I reckon I can shave some time off of taking the Mrs shopping with this! 
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| Keep Calm and Flash Jelly Bean Posted: 03 Jul 2012 10:07 AM PDT | ||
| HTC One V now available from US Cellular Posted: 03 Jul 2012 10:04 AM PDT
U.S.Cellular customers can today pick up the HTC One V online and the device will be in-store starting Friday. While the Android handset may be a little overshadowed by its big brothers the One X and One S, the One V, as you'll recall from our review, does pack a pretty good punch for its price, which is $129.99 after a $100 mail-in rebate . Running Android 4.0 out of the box and complemented with the latest addition of Sense UI the One V is great looking and feels wonderful in the hand. It has the familiar 'chin' that we saw on the HTC Hero and Legend and whilst its 1GHz processor may not be as powerful as the One X and One S it certainly does a good job of making things run smoothly. You can order the HTC One V online here and we have the full press release below for your viewing pleasure. 
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| NoiseHush NX80 Stereo headset review Posted: 03 Jul 2012 09:45 AM PDT
Your New HTC One X or Evo 4G or Galaxy S III all have amazing audio features built in, yet the phones are bundled with terrible headphones or none at all.Just like with a nice home stereo, usually the single biggest “upgrade” for the sound of your music is your speakers. For Android phones, that means the headphones. Because this is for your phone, you need an included microphone with a control to take calls and control your music. There are lots of options, but the NoiseHush NX80’s are worth a look. NoiseHush makes all kinds of headsets, car kits, Bluetooth accessories and more. The NX80 is touted as a bass-driven headset with a noise-cancelling microphone for taking calls. While competitively priced, this is a crowded market – so let’s see if this is the headset to buy. 
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| Sonic 4 Episode II now available for all Android devices Posted: 03 Jul 2012 07:52 AM PDT
Back in May we took our first look at Sonic 4 Episode II, and at that time the game was only available for Tegra 3 devices, which made a lot of folks upset. Today Sega has announced that the popular title is now available through Google Play for all Android devices. That is right, you can now head right into the Play Store and grab some Sonic 4 Episode II for yourself for $6.99. While the price tag may sit a bit above what you would normally think of spending on a game, can you really put a price tag on the nostalgia this brings along with it? Be sure to check out our full review of the game and then hit the link below and grab your own copy today! Download Tegra Version 
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| Crank your volume to 11 with Volume+ Posted: 03 Jul 2012 07:46 AM PDT
Ever wish you could crank the volume on your Android device up to an 11 so you could actually hear the notifications or boost the volume during calls? After purchasing my Galaxy Nexus I found that the sound level was a little low for my preference, and I immediately began looking for ways to boost the volume. There are a bunch of sound applications in the Google Play Store, but unfortunately many of them just seem to help change the sounds, and not actually boost the volume. Luckily for me a search of the Android Central forums led me to a great application, Volume+, that just so happens to have a free and paid versions. I began with installing the free version to see what types of enhancements it could bring me, and I was immediately pleased with the results. One the application is launched there are options to change speaker, headset or Bluetooth settings, as well as giving the option to upgrade to the full version. If you are looking to get louder notifications from the device speakers, or crank the music a bit higher, click on speaker modification then check the first option. Towards the bottom it gives you a volume level option in which you can add +1 - +4 to the sounds, depending how loud you want it to go. The paid version will bring you all the way up to +8, which is likely more than any of us will really need. In addition to volume enhancements you can change the bass levels and in the paid version there are EQ settings as well. If you desire to have louder volume during calls on your headset or Bluetooth you can make modification to those in the same fashion as the speaker. This allows you to make things a little louder than the headset you are using wanted it to be, so proceed with caution while cranking this up. Overall the application is great, it is super simple and that is all it needs to be. Let those pesky quiet notifications be gone, and take control of your sound levels today! Download: Volume+ 
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| Deal of the Day: Amzer Skin Case for HTC One S Posted: 03 Jul 2012 06:47 AM PDT
The Amzer Skin Case is available for just $4.95, 75% off today only. Supplies are limited so grab yours today! 
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| Nexus 7 torn down, found to have tablet parts inside Posted: 03 Jul 2012 06:17 AM PDT
The spudger-wielding technology sadists at iFixit are at it again, this time dissecting one of the new Nexus 7 tablets, presumably obtained from Google I/O, seeing as how they're not shipping yet. (Fun fact: We're expecting production quality to improve a little bit once these things go retail, so keep that in mind as you flip through their teardown.) There's nothing surprising here -- it's a tablet, with tablet parts. But it's still pretty cool to see it splayed out all over the place. Source: iFixit 
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| Let your Android device teach you how to tie your tie Posted: 03 Jul 2012 05:59 AM PDT
Ever find yourself getting ready for a big date, or an important dinner, only to realize you have no idea how to tie your tie? Now you need to grab some ties, run across the house, hop on the computer and hope that YouTube has a good video for you to follow, right? Well, wrong. Grab your Android device, download a free app and boom -- learn how to tie one of many knots while on the go. Whether you want a Kelvin, a Windsor, or maybe just a Simple Double, you can learn with ease all from one free application. The application itself is quite simple, launch it, check out the pictures to see which kind of knot you prefer, and then click on that one. Once you have opened a knot it will then teach you in a few simple pictures how to properly tie it, and then you are ready to go. If you are unsure of which type of knot to use for which occasion, clicking on the knot will bring a quick summary of when it is ideal to tie that type, and that will help you decide. As far as options go you won't find many of them here. From the main page you can access a small menu that allows you to view the pictures normal, or as you would view them in a mirror. This can be a huge help since many will probably be attempting this in front of a mirror, and with the pictures showing as such it will make it easier to understand. The application is free, and ad supported, and while you won't use this type of thing regularly throughout your day, it could definitely come in handy. Grab the application from the download link provided, and challenge yourself to a new knot today! Download: How to Tie a Tie 
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| July 4th Celebration Sale - Use Coupon j412 to Save 15% on ALL Android Accessories! Posted: 03 Jul 2012 05:21 AM PDT
The Fourth of July falls on a Wednesday this year (as in, tomorrow), so we're going to have some additional celebration savings on either end, for the ultimate Android accessories sale! To save 15 percent on your orders, which includes all Android accessories -- cases, batteries, chargers, Bluetooth, everything! -- all you need to do is use coupon code j412 at checkout (note - software not included, not available in Canada store). Offer ends midnight PST on Thursday, July 5. That's all there is to it. Jump over to ShopAndroid at the link below and let the savings begin! Take me to ShopAndroid.com so I can take advantage of the savings! 
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| Ice Cream Sandwich hits double digits and is now on 10.9 percent of Android devices Posted: 02 Jul 2012 08:19 PM PDT
Google has released the latest platform version numbers tonight, and things are as expected -- still slowly trending up. Before we go any further, we have to note that Jelly Bean (Android 4.1) is not on any retail devices yet and is not included in these numbers. Having said that, it's nice to see ICS finally hit double digits on its slow race to adoption. Every version lower than 4.0 saw losses since last month, and 4.0 to 4.0.4 saw an uptick of 3.8 percent as phones and tablets got their long-awaited Ice Cream Sandwich updates and phones like the HTC One series were released with the latest (at the time) version. So what does this mean? A couple things -- OEM's still take forever to update their software, people are still using ancient hardware with cupcake on it, and the Galaxy Nexus doesn't seem to be selling enough units to harm Apple financially after all. Things may start to get more interesting in August with the Galaxy S III released in the US recently, and the Nexus 7 coming this July. Source: Android developers 
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| Porn producers eyeing Google's Project Glass for POV films Posted: 02 Jul 2012 07:53 PM PDT
Hey, you knew this was going to happen, right? The adage rings true: A tech product isn't really successful until the porn industry, erm, hops on it. And while Google's Project Glass -- that space-age monocle that shoots video as well as brings info to eyeball level -- won't be available publicly for a couple of years, the adult industry is already licking its chops over the, erm, practical value of Project Glass, particularly for point-of-view (aka POV) scenes. Pink Visual's Quentin Boyer told PCMag that "a device that allows you to shoot high quality video in a truly hands-free fashion will make shooting POV porn that much easier." A spokesperson for MiKandi, which provides a sort of porn portal in the form of an Android app, told industry pub XBIZ "we're already dreaming up ways to use the glasses to get shots (sex-related and otherwise) that just aren't feasible using a traditional camera setup." As for us? We're just hoping we don't end up seeing the point of view shots of the bottom of a Cheetos bag with all the nerds that'll be playing with this thing. Here's to the future. 
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