Android Phone Fans |
- OUYA Backer Rewards: Phandroid Given Special Access To Dev Team and Launch Event, GameFans Branded On Consoles
- Court of Appeals sends Galaxy Tab 10.1 injunction decision back to Judge Koh
- On average, Android users go through 870MB of data per month
- Samsung Galaxy S3 now available from C Spire
- …and then Sprint released Android 2.3 for the Motorola XPRT
- Antenna problems causing delay of Droid RAZR HD, RAZR MAXX HD?
- ASUS denies rumors of $99 Nexus tablet
- Texas Instruments still plans to deliver OMAP 5 processors
- Here is an even clearer look at the HTC One X+
- HTC DROID Incredible 4G LTE now $99
- Samsung, AT&T announce Galaxy Express, Galaxy Rugby, Galaxy Note 2, and Galaxy Tab 2 10.1
- PowerAmp continues music player dominance with latest upgrade (rich notifications)
- Tim Cook apologizes for Apple Maps on company website, suggests alternatives like Google Maps
- Sony Tablet S gets feature-adding upgrade in the US
- Xperia Go, Xperia U, and Xperia Sola getting Ice Cream Sandwich
| Posted: 28 Sep 2012 04:27 PM PDT
As we inch closer to the launch of the world’s first Android mini-console, today OUYA announced a few updates for early backers. First off, we all know the OUYA has been generating some buzz with consumers, and yes, even gaining support from a few big name game publishers like Square Enix. But what about smaller game developers and studios? Has the OUYA been met with the same warm reception as consumers? The answer is a resounding, yes. OUYA announced today that over 1,000 developers have contacted their team looking to get in on the game changing console. Keep in minds that’s in addition to the 800 developers who have backed the console on Kickstarter, looking to get early access to the OUYA development kits. Now after a bit of calculating, that brings the new grand total to about 2,000 developers optimistic about the OUYA’s future and you know what else? We are too.
So much in fact that our parent company Neverstill Media has backed the OUYA at the highest tier on Kickstarter meaning you’ll see our newly launched sister site GameFans emblazoned on the back of every first run console. What’s more is Phandroid was able to get in on some of the action as well, qualifying for the “Elite Developer Special.” That means we’ll not only have direct access to OUYA’s developer team, but we’ll be on hand for the launch event in March. There’s also some whisperings that a Phandroid gaming app could soon be on the way as well. OUYA also mentioned they’re already in talks with 50 international distributors that will help spread the console to the four corners of the globe. Seems the OUYA is playing all their cards right, gearing up for a huge release, and more launch titles than you can shake a controller at. March couldn’t come fast enough.
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| Court of Appeals sends Galaxy Tab 10.1 injunction decision back to Judge Koh Posted: 28 Sep 2012 02:30 PM PDT
Despite the fact that a jury found Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 10.1 not guilty of infringing on Apple design patents, Judge Lucy Koh refused to lift a sales injunction on the device in a recent trial revisiting the issue. Now the Federal Court of Appeals has stepped in, sending the issue back to Jufde Koh’s bench, where it can once again be considered. The difference now is that Samsung can argue that the injunction should be lifted due to the results of the larger trial. Whether or not Koh reverses her decision remains to be seen. She hasn’t necessarily been the most forgiving of Samsung throughout these proceedings. [via Engadget]
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| On average, Android users go through 870MB of data per month Posted: 28 Sep 2012 02:07 PM PDT
For those still a bit miffed about the gradual phasing out of unlimited data plans by carriers such as AT&T and Verizon, check out a new study by NPD Connected Intelligence. According to their research, the average Android users goes through 870MB of data per month, less than a gigabyte and within the realm of what most service providers offer as their base data tier. The explanation is simple: the same study found that each user, on average, blows through 2.5GB of data via WiFi. The stats breakdown shows that younger users between the ages of 18-24 are responsible for the majority of cellular data usage, though even then the average only comes to 1.05GB per month. All other users typically consumer 0.8GB per month. Data was collected by SmartMete, an app that monitors data usage and reports the results back to NPD in exchange for incentives. The study was small, however, surveying a mere 1,000 Android users. Still, the results suggest that only the most hardcore truly feel the pain of data caps and tiered pricing plans. The average user should feel fine saving a few bucks and signing up for a lower data tier. [via DroidDog]
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| Samsung Galaxy S3 now available from C Spire Posted: 28 Sep 2012 12:47 PM PDT
Folks looking for a Samsung Galaxy S3 with a bit more regional flair can now pick up the flagship handset from C Spire. The provider of wireless access to a decent swatch of people residing in the southern United States has both the Marble White and Pebble Blue with 16GB of internal storage for $199.99 on contract. Just as Samsung has done with all previously released Galaxy S3 handsets, the phone remains virtually identical to those available from carriers such as AT&T and Verizon. Follow the links above for more details. [Thanks, Bobby!]
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| …and then Sprint released Android 2.3 for the Motorola XPRT Posted: 28 Sep 2012 12:31 PM PDT
With most company’s focused squarely on updating their recent product lineups to Ice Cream Sandwich and Jelly Bean, Motorola and Sprint have delivered us a bit of a throwback. The Motorola XPRT, released back in the early summer months of 2011, is now seeing its update to Android 2.3 Gingerbread. The positive is that Motorola and Sprint have not forgotten about those folks still locked into a two-year contract with the XPRT, an admittedly niche device. But we’re left with the question: why is this thing is just now getting upgraded to Gingerbread? It’s true, most manufacturers would have abandoned software updates for the XPRT a long time ago, so we applaud the effort, but in today’s world its Ice Cream Sandwich (at least) or bust. Anything less feels underwhelming. XPRT users will no doubt appreciate the new software, but it’s interesting to see Moto still devoting resources to the handset. [Sprint via TechCrunch]
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| Antenna problems causing delay of Droid RAZR HD, RAZR MAXX HD? Posted: 28 Sep 2012 11:55 AM PDT
There might be a hitch in Verizon’s plans to release the Motorola Droid RAZR HD and Motorola Droid RAZR MAXX HD. According to a rumor originating at Howard Forums, antenna issues could have forced Moto and VZW to delay the handset. According to the report, the antenna design of the two devices puts it in contact with the edges of the phone’s casing, creating a situation not unlike that of the iPhone 4′s “death grip.” Given that the problem pertains to actual hardware design, the fix likely isn’t as easy as a software patch, and thus could create a lengthy delay. Rumors have positioned the phones as launching towards the end of October, but if the antenna problems are real, it is more likely that we won’t see the new RAZRs until after Thanksgiving at the earliest. [via HowardForum]
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| ASUS denies rumors of $99 Nexus tablet Posted: 28 Sep 2012 11:36 AM PDT
Twenty-four hours after rumors surfaced of a $99 Nexus tablet launching by the end of the year, manufacturing partner ASUS has gone on the defensive, denying such claims outright. ASUS told Digitimes, the source that originally broke the story, that they have no plans to release a sub-$100 slate in conjunction with Google, calling into question rumors that one is currently in development. While the statement sheds some doubt on the claims initially put forth by Digitimes, a denial by the manufacturer might not necessarily mean that new Nexus models aren’t on the horizon. The same report also said an ultra-thin version of the Nexus 7 would take over at the $199 price point. [via Digitimes]
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| Texas Instruments still plans to deliver OMAP 5 processors Posted: 28 Sep 2012 11:13 AM PDT
Though Texas Instruments plans to downsize their mobile operations and shift focus towards embedded processors in other products such as cars, the company says the release of their OMAP 5 platform will go forward as planned. TI clarified that development will go forward on the processor and while they did not provide a release timeframe, most reports point towards early 2013 for the Cortex A15 chipset. It initially wasn’t clear what the status of OMAP 5 was in light of TI’s newly announced plans, but it would have been a shame to see the chipset squandered away this far along in development. Elements of the latest OMAP platform will no doubt find their way into future TI endeavors, but the bump in power the fifth generation chip will provide would be sorely missed from smartphones and tablets. [via DroidLife]
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| Here is an even clearer look at the HTC One X+ Posted: 28 Sep 2012 10:40 AM PDT
After a rather blurry image leaked a couple days back and a slightly better picture emerged alongside highlighted specs, we now have just about the clearest look at the HTC One X+ we have seen thus far. No surprises here, as the phone again looks to be blacked-out One X, with the major changes occurring under the hood. Those changes include a 1.7GHz quad-core processor and Android 4.1 Jelly Bean out of the box. The phone should be touching down in both the UK and the United States, though an exact launch date escapes us at this time. [via PocketLint]
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| HTC DROID Incredible 4G LTE now $99 Posted: 28 Sep 2012 09:41 AM PDT The Motorola DROID Incredible 4G didn’t launch as one of HTC’s 2012 “Hero” devices (meaning a top of the line flagship device), but it sure was priced like one. While the device wasn’t bad by any stretch of the imagination many people felt like it was worth Verizon’s original asking price.
Welp, the device has come down to a more reasonable $99 following a new two-year agreement. It features Qualcomm’s 1.2GHz dual-core processor, and although the chipset was enough for most of the HTC Sense 4 features it left out the ImageSense chip that allows continuous/burst shooting. That was the only major flaw under the hood, however. It also had a 4 inch qHD display, 1GB of RAM, 16GB of storage, and more. Take a look at Verizon’s site if you’d like to take advantage.
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| Samsung, AT&T announce Galaxy Express, Galaxy Rugby, Galaxy Note 2, and Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 Posted: 28 Sep 2012 08:27 AM PDT
Samsung and AT&T have come together to announce three new Galaxy smartphones for the carrier. The Samsung Galaxy Express (above) is a 4.5 inch Super AMOLED device that sports a 1.5GHz dual-core processor, a 5 megapixel camera, and Android 4.0.
The next phone up is the Samsung Galaxy Rugby Pro (above), and as its name suggests it’s a durable smartphone built for hits and bruises. It has shock resistant, water proof, and dust proof qualities and comes with a 4 inch WVGA display, a 5 megapixel camera, and more.
Finally, they also reminded us that the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 (above) is on its way — we should be hearing more info right around late October when Samsung showcases the device for all in the US to see. But that’s not all — AT&T will also be carrying Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 (below). All of these devices will run on AT&T’s 4G LTE network, of course, and most of them are expected to launch by the holiday season.
Unfortunately we still don’t have pricing and dates for any of them so we’ll be waiting for those juicy details to arrive shortly. In the meantime be sure to ponder over these phones and tablets and let us know if any of them interest you at all (we have a feeling at least two of these devices will). Read on for full press details.
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| PowerAmp continues music player dominance with latest upgrade (rich notifications) Posted: 28 Sep 2012 07:14 AM PDT PowerAmp for Android has been a mainstay music application in the Google Play Store since it’s launched. With a very powerful feature-set in its beta alone the app was destined for greatness. The updates since then have kept on rolling and they won’t stop today. A new version of PowerAmp is available in the Play Store and it adds a lot of nice changes. For starters, those running on Android 4.1 will now see rich notifications for controlling music playback straight from the notification pane.
Music apps are one of the main categories that we knew would benefit from rich notifications so it’s no surprise it was added as quickly as it was. Other changes include improved .wav and .wma support, audio in .flv support, deeper levels of music folder navigation (up to 10 folders now), and more improvements and bug fixes. While this app doesn’t have support for things like cloud storage or other bells and whistles it still remains one of, if not the best app to have from a pure music listening standpoint. You can find it in the Google Play Store.
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| Tim Cook apologizes for Apple Maps on company website, suggests alternatives like Google Maps Posted: 28 Sep 2012 06:40 AM PDT The temporary death knell for Apple Maps has finally taken place. Following Google chairman Eric Schmidt’s thoughts that Apple should have never left Google Maps, it looks like CEO Tim Cook might be feeling the same way for now. Cook wrote an apology for the blunder that is Apple Maps to all of Apple’s customers on the company’s own website. It’s rare to see Apple admit a mistake so bluntly and in such a public manner, but let’s not forget that Tim Cook isn’t Steve Jobs. While we’re not sure the late mastermind would have taken the same approach, we know Tim Cook is a lot more easygoing than Jobs and we’re not too surprised he has no problems living up to the mistake.
Apple Maps debuted in iOS6 and effectively phased out the app which used Google’s mapping data. While that app didn’t have the navigation features, or other features, as Apple’s Maps have, it did have, at the very least, more accurate maps. It is believed that Apple wanted to cut all ties with Google in terms of pre-installed software. Aside from searching, Google’s presence on iOS going forward will be limited to the App Store. As much fun as we’ve had making fun of Apple for this mistake, seeing this apology makes it all feel so… dirty. To see Apple in an apologetic and vulnerable state is new to us so we’re still wondering how to process all of this. But make no mistake about it: Apple knows it screwed up, and while they can’t do much about it at this very moment except offer alternative maps services like Waze, Bing, or Google Maps Web, we’re sure they won’t be off their mapping feet long. (I know more than a few of you remember how Google Maps started out.) [Apple]
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| Sony Tablet S gets feature-adding upgrade in the US Posted: 28 Sep 2012 05:35 AM PDT Following its announcement that a handful of devices would be receiving Ice Cream Sandwich starting today, Sony has also announced a new upgrade for the Sony Tablet S. Its purpose is to bring a lot of the same features owners of the newly-available Sony Xperia Tablet S have been enjoying.
Changes include new media player applications, a guest mode, new “small” apps as well as the ability to make any widget into a small app, new macro-functionality for the remote app, socialife, watch now, and more. You can find more information on each of these features at the link ahead. Go ahead and check for the upgrade in your “About Tablet” menu and let us know how you’re liking what they’ve done with the place in the ocmments section below. [Sony]
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| Xperia Go, Xperia U, and Xperia Sola getting Ice Cream Sandwich Posted: 28 Sep 2012 05:07 AM PDT Sony’s steadfast on keeping their promise of upgrading most 2011 phones and tablets to Ice Cream Sandwich, and three more devices have been added to the list. The OEM announced that the Sony Xperia Go, Xperia U, and Xperia Sola will all be geting the OTA starting today and, of course, only unlocked versions are guaranteed the upgrade right away. Those on carrier-branded devices will have to wait a little longer, but the wait is never usually long.
Alongside the general benefits of Ice Cream Sandwich you can look forward to a new media playing experience, an improved lock screen, an “extended standby mode” to increase standby time by four times, and more. Also, specially for the Sola is “Glove Mode,” a new mode for the device’s floating touch feature that will now work while users are wearing gloves. This site will have everything you need as far as downloads go, and while not everyone will be able to find it right away Sony says the rollout will be in full swing in the middle of next week. Click here for more info.
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