Android Authority |
- New Nexus 4 batch shipping to U.S. early buyers, smartphone still out of stock in Play Store
- Competitions galore in Sony’s exclusive Xperia Lounge
- ZTE Avid 4G for MetroPCS leaked, an ICS phone with possibly a 4-inch display
- HTC’s CEO is absolutely furious at what the media is saying about the Apple deal
- Amazon’s Kindle Fire HD 8.9 gets taken apart
- Google set to compete with Apple’s AirPlay and Microsoft’s SmartGlass
- Nexus 7 shipments to top 5 million by the end of the year, says DigiTimes
- Android Authority On Air – Episode 38 – Now with less F5! (Nexus 4 Giveaway Part 2)
- Google Music gets boost in Europe with 5.5 million additional songs
- US Cellular now offering unlimited 4G LTE data plans
| New Nexus 4 batch shipping to U.S. early buyers, smartphone still out of stock in Play Store Posted: 20 Nov 2012 02:48 AM PST
The Nexus 4 is the latest Google pure Android smartphone in town and the device is selling like hot cakes in various markets. At the same time, we'll note that we have no idea how many of those cakes Google and LG produced in their initial batch, as neither company announced Nexus 4 sales numbers for the launch week. We'll also remind you that Google managed to annoy early Nexus 4 buyers, by telling some of them that their new toys will ship in up to three weeks instead of the expected 3-5 business day initial shipping estimate. Obviously Google wasn't able to make sure that everyone that ordered a Nexus 4 in the first minutes after launch will get the smartphone in a timely manner and we have no idea why that happened.
We can tell you though that a new batch of fresh Nexus 4 units is shipping to consumers and should reach their homes in the very near future. According to Phandroid, shipping confirmation emails have been sent to Nexus 4 buyers that purchased the device "three minutes after it went live in the Play Store," had their orders confirmed, but have never received a following shipping email. We have no idea whether international Nexus 4 buyers in similar situations are also receiving such emails, and we have no idea whether all existing Nexus 4 orders will be honored in the following days. But we're certainly going to keep you updated. As for Nexus 4 availability, the device is still out of stock, one week after being officially launched. Related Posts |
| Competitions galore in Sony’s exclusive Xperia Lounge Posted: 20 Nov 2012 02:34 AM PST
Sony has been working hard to raise its game in the Android smartphone market. The company has to pull out all the stops if it expects to sell 50 million smartphones next year. A big part of that strategy has revolved around offering exclusive content and big name marketing tie-ins. We've just had Bond using an Xperia T and now Sony is launching the Xperia Lounge which features a range of exclusive content and competitions that give you a chance to win VIP experiences. The app is currently in beta, but it is available for any Android smartphone running 2.3 Gingerbread and above. I snagged it from Google Play for my Galaxy S3 to see what all the fuss is all about. It's a fairly sleek and simple looking interface with three tabs along the top for View all, What's hot and By month. Then there's a list of events and competitions which range from the chance to win exclusive framed artwork from a Coldplay video, to tickets for a FIFA Club World Cup match in Japan, to an exclusive VIP experience in Hawaii where you'll watch 45 surfers compete in the Billabong Pipeline. If you're a fan of sports, music or film then you'll probably find something to spark your interest. Sadly a lot of the content is actually exclusive to Xperia device owners. I clicked on the first competition that caught my eye and it popped up "Sorry Xperia users only". It would be nice if it filtered the available competitions by what you can actually enter on your device because tapping on them in turn to find out is rather tedious. When you find a competition that you can enter without an Xperia phone you'll find a choice of sign-ins. You can use your Xperia account, your Facebook account, or your Google account, and the app will want some basic info and your email (make sure you don't tick the "spam me" box). The competitions generally have an easy multiple choice question to answer first. Thankfully after entering my log in for Google once the app remembered it and I could enter a bunch of other competitions with a tap. Beyond competitions you'll find some exclusive video content in there which was mostly a mixture of skateboarding and adverts showing off how awesome the Xperia range is. It seems like a pretty tidy app and free competition entry is always welcome. It's obviously best for Xperia users, but it's worth a look for other Android users. I'm keeping my fingers crossed about those Club World Cup tickets. Related Posts |
| ZTE Avid 4G for MetroPCS leaked, an ICS phone with possibly a 4-inch display Posted: 20 Nov 2012 01:50 AM PST
If you're looking to get a 4G-equipped phone on MetroPCS that won't put too much pressure on your budget, you might want to add the ZTE Avid 4G to the wish list. Thanks to the ever-resourceful folks at @evleaks, the Avid 4G has made its first pictorial debut online. The leaked picture of the ZTE Avid 4G doesn't reveal much, except that it will be heading to MetroPCS. From the name alone we can expect the phone to pack a 4G LTE radio.
As for the rest of the specs, details are still scarce. The Avid 4G seems to sport a 4-inch display (or slightly smaller) and run Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. We can also see a front-facing camera and three on-screen buttons. The ZTE Avid 4G is set to become the smaller cousin of another 4G phone on MetroPCS, the dual-core ZTE Anthem 4G. It is likely that we’ll be looking at a less than $200 price point. Our guess is the regional carrier will have the phone up for sale before the end of the year. We'll keep you posted. Related Posts |
| HTC’s CEO is absolutely furious at what the media is saying about the Apple deal Posted: 20 Nov 2012 01:39 AM PST Two Saturdays ago, Apple issued a press release saying that they’ve settled all their patent issues with HTC and that the two have entered into a decade long licensing agreement whereby both companies can share each other’s patents. That press release took everyone by surprise because we all thought Apple would never, ever, settle. Steve Jobs told his biographer, Walter Isaacson, that he would do everything in his power to wipe Android off the face of the planet. Now that Tim Cook is in charge, does the company have a new policy towards competitors? Forgetting about Tim for a second, today HTC’s CEO, Peter Chou, told reporters at a press event in Tokyo that he’s absolutely furious with how the media handled the news of their agreement with Apple. Shortly after the deal between the two companies was announced, rumors started circulating that HTC would have to pay Apple anywhere between $6 and $8 per Android handset shipped. Chou says those numbers are “outrageous” and that the rumors are “baseless”. HTC has repeatedly said that their Q4 financial results will not be impacted by the deal with Apple, so we don’t know where that $6 to $8 figure came from in the first place. Truth be told, we don’t really know why anyone cares about this HTC deal. The company is in dire straits. They’re not performing as well as they used to in 2010, and these days, all the Android devices worth buying are made by either Samsung (Galaxy S3, Note 2) or LG (Nexus 4). That’s not to say that we don’t acknowledge how awesome an achievement the recently launched Droid DNA is, but it’s not going to be too long until we see 1080p smartphones from other companies. Does HTC need to replace Chou in order to succeed? That’s a rumor that was first published by the Taiwanese publication Next Magazine. According to the Financial Times, not only is the rumor grossly incorrect, but HTC has said that they’re going to take the magazine to court! Related Posts |
| Amazon’s Kindle Fire HD 8.9 gets taken apart Posted: 20 Nov 2012 12:26 AM PST
If you are intrigued by the Kindle Fire HD 8.9 and wonder how it holds up against other slates, we've pitted the biggest member of the Amazon tablet family against one of its fiercest foes in the market, the iPad 3. But taking the tablet apart is one thing we haven't done – and probably will not be doing. Thankfully, it's one job that the folks at PowerbookMedic have no problem tackling. Let's find out what the $299 tablet packs inside! It seems the talk of the town is true, Samsung does like to get around. The teardown of the 8.9-inch Kindle Fire HD reveals that the tablet uses several key components from Samsung. The list includes the display, RAM, and flash memory.
Interestingly, most of the components are attached to the back cover of the tablet. And as noted by the website, the slate comes with a unique dual-battery setup inside, though the capacity only tops out at 6,000mAh. The Amazon Kindle Fire HD 8.9 already went for sale last week, while the 4G LTE version should be available in the coming days. As a refresher, the 8.9-inch display (1,920 x 1,200 resolution) is accompanied by a dual-core 1.5GHz TI OMAP 4470 processor, 16/32GB internal storage, 1GB RAM, WiFi a/b/g/n, and a customized version of Android 4.0. If you want more teardown goodies, feel free to hit the source for more explicit pictures. Related Posts |
| Google set to compete with Apple’s AirPlay and Microsoft’s SmartGlass Posted: 20 Nov 2012 12:14 AM PST
Getting what you see on your phone to show up on your television has been something that companies have been trying to do for years. Nokia used to make smartphones with special headphone jacks that could pump out video over the now ancient yellow, red, and white cables that we all remember from our childhood. Then companies jumped on board the whole DLNA thing, but it was ridiculously complicated to configure, so only the nerdiest of nerds got it to actually work. Not long after that, we started seeing HDMI ports on smartphones. Fast forward to September 2010, which is when Apple introduced the world to AirPlay. Your iOS device and your Apple TV are connected to the same network, so whenever you’re listening to a song or watching a video on your iPhone or iPod, you just tap one button and boom, it magically gets displayed on your television. We saw Google’s response to that just a few weeks ago with Miracast support in Android 4.2 and the Nexus 4. But there’s more to AirPlay than just mirroring your screen. Apple wants developers to create apps where one UI is on the device in your hands, and another UI is on the television in front of you. Microsoft too, they’re trying this with what they call “SmartGlass”. They’re pitching it as a “second screen” solution so you can interact with your media in ways you couldn’t before. According to an interview that Google Product Manager Timbo Drayson did with GigaOM, Google is set to release their own two screen standard that will be open for anyone to use. Details are light at this point, so we can’t even tell you when it’s going to be a reality, but you guys should definitely be excited. Apple invented AirPlay to sell more devices. Microsoft invented SmartGlass to get more people to buy content from their new content stores. Google on the other hand, Timbo says it best:
Indeed. Related Posts |
| Nexus 7 shipments to top 5 million by the end of the year, says DigiTimes Posted: 19 Nov 2012 11:35 PM PST
Google’s Nexus 7 is a product that’s received a ton of praise from the Android community, and it looks the mainstream is definitely taking notice. According to DigiTimes, who isn’t the most reliable source of information, but still manages to get quite a few number of things right, they say that shipments of the Nexus 7 are going to top 5 million units by the end of the year. It’s worth noting that shipments shouldn’t be confused with sales, but we have a hunch that every Nexus 7 being manufactured is ending up in the hands of someone who wants it. So why is this product such a smash hit? We would be lying if we didn’t admit to ourselves that the ultra low price tag had something to do with it. Forgetting about how awesome Android Jelly Bean is for a second, Google really did something special by offering consumers a product that’s perfect for most everyday needs for a starting price of just $199. The high end model, with 32 GB of storage and cellular connectivity, is just $299, making it cheaper than the entry level iPad mini from Apple! And as for the software, well what’s not to like about the newest version of Android? Google Now makes getting answers to your questions an almost Sci-Fi like experience. In fact, Google Now won the Popular Science “Innovation of the Year” award. Some people might bring up the lack of tablet apps argument, but on the 7 inch Nexus it’s far less of a problem. Those same apps on a Nexus 10 might look a bit off, but on the Nexus 7, they look like they’re being displayed on a jumbo phone. What’s Google going to do to the Nexus 7 next year? All we want is a better screen. It doesn’t have to be higher resolution, but improved color reproduction, viewing angles, and clarity in general should be addressed. Here’s hoping. Related Posts |
| Android Authority On Air – Episode 38 – Now with less F5! (Nexus 4 Giveaway Part 2) Posted: 19 Nov 2012 06:53 PM PST
This past week, the Android world wore out their F5 key, refreshing and refreshing the Google Play Store, their GMail accounts and their UPS Tracking results. Some of you were very lucky and able to order your brand spanking new Nexus device without a hitch. Many of you had all sorts of issues from page timeouts, to items disappearing from your cart, to receiving back-order emails to receiving no emails at all. So, sit back, relax, and enjoy the show. No F5 required. This week as mentioned above was the week that the new Nexus 4, Nexus 7 and Nexus 10 dropped on the world. And man, did they create an amazing buzz and hype around the Android world. These gadgets sold out in every market they debuted in. In the USA, they sold out in under 25 minutes. Did you get one? Let us know. Android 4.2 dropped on the world this week. You know what that means? Adding app compatibility. We saw a TON of apps get updated this week. Besides Android Apps, we saw some major enhancements to two apps for Google TV. We saw YouTube and Google TV’s TV and Movies Search App get a major overall and re-branding. The new YouTube app allows users to fling videos to their tv. It’s awesomely fun. We had some drama in the rootin’ and ROMin’ world this week. I’m happy to say it seems the guys over at CyanogenMod have everything under control once again. Keep up the great work CM Team! TWRP got Android 4.2 support and we’re seeing Android 4.2 ROMs pop up for devices everywhere. The first non-Nexus device to rock Android 4.2? The Acer Iconia A500. Not bad. Speaking of Nexus devices, it looks like the Nexus S and Motorola Xoom have reached the end of the AOSP line. Carriers continue to LTE all the things, lighting up roughly 50 new markets between all 3 major carriers here in the USA, HTC and Apple agree to play and pay, and Samsung and Apple continue to litigate. All this and more on this week’s show. Miss the show? Tune in or watch below: YouTube Related Posts |
| Google Music gets boost in Europe with 5.5 million additional songs Posted: 19 Nov 2012 06:02 PM PST
Licensing is a complicated process, especially when you consider accessing content from across borders. For instance, a certain song may be available in the U.S., but not in Spain, or vice versa. As such, media companies are usually keen on getting into licensing deals with copyright holders. Google, for one, has successfully entered into an agreement with IP holders in Europe, and an additional 5.5 million songs have been added to Google Music. The broad licensing deal covers IP rights from Armonia, a European alliance involving French, German and Spanish licensing groups, and will enable Google to distribute an additional 5.5 million songs in 35 countries in Europe. These include works from artists like Lady Gaga and Rihanna. While it may not be as obvious — or even relevant — to most readers, industry representatives say this may set a precedent for other deals and companies. Google’s deal is considered as the broadest of its kind. In contrast, other companies, like Apple and Amazon, pursue country-specific licensing deals, which means they license content on a per-country basis. Google’s European deal essentially puts several countries under an umbrella license, giving access to a broader audience. Google Music launched in 2011 with 8 million tracks from major labels. But while EMI and Sony Music Entertaiment joined in early, Google launched without Warner Music Group as a content partner. That changed in late October, when Warner finally entered into a deal with Google to distribute their catalog. This European deal includes licenses for British and American music from Sony’s Latin works and Universal Music Publishing. With this deal, is Google going to pose a bigger challenge for iTunes in terms of marketing muscle and actual content delivery? Related Posts |
| US Cellular now offering unlimited 4G LTE data plans Posted: 19 Nov 2012 04:00 PM PST
While US Cellular has a nationwide footprint in terms of phone and text service, their 4G data is still kind of sparse. According to their coverage map, there are blips of 4G scattered around the eastern, central, and western United States. Having a 4G unlimited plan will be great for people in those areas. The plans themselves are simple. For $40 a month, customers can have unlimited data. That’s $10 more than T-Mobile’s data package and $30 more than Sprint’s mandatory $10 unlimited data add on for smartphones. In terms of overall pricing, they all fall into the $89.99-$109.99 range. If you’d like unlimited 4G tethering, it’ll run you an extra $20. Will US Cellular gain some market share with unlimited 4G?Well, they are certainly going to try. Their plans are competitively priced with other national carriers, so they likely won’t get people to switch based on price. In areas where their 4G service is, they may be able to get customers off of AT&T and Verizon, who still don’t have unlimited plans. Unlimited data is always a positive thing when it comes to deciding which carrier to select. Now US Cellular is among those where customers don’t have to worry about overages. Does this make US Cellular a more viable option for your service? Let us know. Related Posts |
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