Android Community |
- Google drops Android 4.2.1 factory images for Nexus 4, 7, and more
- Angry Birds Star Wars Hoth update now available
- Predators the Game by Fox Entertainment on sale in the Play Store
- Jelly Bean update lands on Samsung Galaxy S Advance in January
- YouTube adds automatic closed captions in 6 new languages
- Amazon Appstore update brings new UI and fixes battery drain bug
- Google Play app revenue grows 17.9% while iOS shrinks
- Barnes & Noble reports huge increase in Nook sales over Thanksgiving weekend
- Samsung and Peel announce international expansion of second screen remote app
- Verizon praised by Consumer Reports; AT&T only given credit for LTE
- Galaxy Note II launches on Verizon Wireless with LTE
- Rdio update brings new user interface
- Nexus 4 shipping times delayed into 2013
- Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean leaks for the original Galaxy Note
- Chrome for Android updated with performance improvements
- Samsung Galaxy S III Jelly Bean update heads to Canada December 3
- Nexus 4 gets first nightly CyanogenMod 10.1 build
- Samsung Galaxy Note II Flip Cover hands-on
- Ballistic unveils Every1 case for Galaxy S III, Galaxy Express
- Google Play Books now available for pre-order
| Google drops Android 4.2.1 factory images for Nexus 4, 7, and more Posted: 29 Nov 2012 11:42 AM PST We knew this was coming, but this morning it’s finally here. After Google started pushing out Android 4.2.1 Jelly Bean to multiple devices, then followed it up by pushing the newest version of Android to AOSP, we now have factory images for almost all of the recent Nexus devices. If you head to Google’s factory image page you’ll find everything you need.
For those wondering what factory images are, you might just want to download a game like the just lowered Predators instead. All jokes aside factory images are extremely helpful for modders, hackers, and developers alike wanting to get their device back to absolutely the same factory stock state as they arrived. As usual, the good news comes from Jean-Baptiste Queru in the Google Building Group and it looks like they are supporting everything but the Nexus 10 at this moment. Factory images to Android 4.2.1 are available for the Nexus 7 (3G included) LG Nexus 4, and the Galaxy Nexus. The Nexus 10 was having a few issues so we’ll have to wait for that factory image to be released according to Android Police. It looks like Google’s also dropped driver binaries for Android 4.2.1 for all of those devices today too. Most importantly however is it also appears that they are sharing the Galaxy Nexus (toro) Verizon driver binaries too. If you need a factory image for any of these devices you can start by clicking here. Enjoy!
|
| Angry Birds Star Wars Hoth update now available Posted: 29 Nov 2012 11:21 AM PST Yesterday, we learned that Rovio was primed and ready to release the first major update to Angry Birds Star Wars. This new update adds a number of new levels set on the ice planet Hoth, along with a new character in the Princess Leia bird (who is really just Pink Bird all dressed up). Even better is the fact that this update is available right this minute.
Another perk of the update releasing today: we finally get to see some gameplay footage. When the update was announced yesterday, all we got is a teaser trailer featuring footage from The Empire Strikes Back. Today’s trailer isn’t much longer, but at least we get to see how some of the Hoth levels will play out, with our fearless bird heroes taking down all manner of Imperial structures, from probe droids to AT-AT walkers and even a Star Destroyer or two. In all, there are 20 new levels to work your way through in this update, adding significantly to the levels found in the Tatooine and Death Star segments of the game. As well, the Princess Leia bird brings a whole new power to the table: eye lasers. Yes, you heard right, we said “eye lasers.” Princess Leia can apparently shoot a ton of powerful lasers from her eyes, which is something we don’t remember being in the movie but are just going to roll with anyway. The Angry Birds Star Wars Hoth update is available right now from the Google Play Store [download link], but if you’re on the fence when it comes to the game, you can check out the trailer above to get a feel for how it plays. It probably won’t be long before we’re hearing about the next Angry Birds Star Wars update, so three-star all of those levels fast. Check out our timeline below for more information on Angry Birds Star Wars.
|
| Predators the Game by Fox Entertainment on sale in the Play Store Posted: 29 Nov 2012 10:51 AM PST If you’re a fan of the popular Predator Movie series, or just love classic games for Android we have an awesome one worth mentioning today. Brought to you officially by Fox Digital Entertainment is the official Predators game for Android. It’s tons of fun and today is on sale for just $0.99 for those interested.
You can go ahead and make your Arnold or Governor jokes right now, because we won’t be playing as him. Instead in this epic game for Android phones and tablets we actually get to be the Predator! We get to be the ultimate hunter and destroyer in this iconic sci-fi film right from our couch. We’ve heard good things about the game and now that it’s on sale, you should certainly check it out. You’ll be tracking down and hunting elite human assassins as you learn to be stealthy and deadly like the rest of the Predator clan, and eventually become one of them. There’s bonuses for kills, you can collect trophies, and even collect alien technology to hone your attacks. The environment in game is rather intense, the graphics are pretty impressive and gameplay is extremely smooth and easy to navigate. You’ll be hacking and slashing in no time. The game is actually developed by Angry Mob Games, the creators of Guerrilla Bob and Muffin Knight. This means you can expect some quality graphics and a good time. This initially hit the Play Store for $2, but now can be yours for just under a buck. Give it a try today from the link below and let us know in the comments what you think.    [via Droid-Life]
|
| Jelly Bean update lands on Samsung Galaxy S Advance in January Posted: 29 Nov 2012 10:44 AM PST In a world where Android manufacturers are rushing to get Jelly Bean updates out the door, Samsung has been one of the best. The company is or will be supporting a lot of its handsets with Jelly Bean updates, including the Galaxy S Advance. We’ve known for a little while that the Galaxy S Advance was going to be updated to Jelly Bean, but today we’re getting an actual release window for the update.
Samsung’s German Facebook page has posted a status update with all of the juicy details. Running the update through Google Translate, we discover not only when the update is scheduled to land, but also that it will be available through Kies and over-the-air. Here’s what the status update said:
Unfortunately, no exact release date was given, so we’ll have to wait for that rather important detail. Also unknown is which version of Jelly Bean Galaxy S Advance users will be getting, but it seems pretty safe to assume it’ll be Android 4.1 instead of Android 4.2, considering Android 4.2 is still very young. Regardless, this is a pretty big step up for Galaxy S Advance owners, as the phone ships with Android 2.3.6 Gingerbread. So, this update should receive a pretty warm welcome from Galaxy S Advance owners. Naturally, we expect Samsung to focus on its newer and more successful devices when it comes to Jelly Bean, but this news shows that it’s serious about supporting its older and more mid-range devices as well. We’ll be keeping an eye out for more news on this Jelly Bean update for the Galaxy S Advance, so keep it tuned here to Android Community for additional details. Device Info
Display
Dimension & Weight
Battery & Power
Software
Hardware
 Cellular Network
Device Connectivity
 [via SamMobile]
|
| YouTube adds automatic closed captions in 6 new languages Posted: 29 Nov 2012 10:19 AM PST Way back in 2009 the folks from Google finally added closed captions to YouTube, since then they’ve been updating as many videos as they can, adding more languages, and improving the option. Today Google has announced on the official YouTube Blog that they’ve added 6 brand new languages to their automatic caption system. Last year they added a few, and now European countries have more options.
Available starting today YouTube will now offer automatic closed captions to many parts of Europe. At first it only supported English, and they eventually added 3 additional options. Today however you’ll now get new CC in German, Italian, French, Portuguese, Russian, and Dutch. Just click the closed caption button on any of the supported videos to see how it works. This brings the total number of languages supported by YouTube's captions feature to 10. Closed captions are not supported on all videos, and you see it even less on Android smartphones and tablets, but the option is available if needed. While Google is working hard to automatically add them to as many videos as possible, most I’ve tried to watch on mobile lately still don’t have them included. Google is quick to point out that currently over 200 million videos have closed caption support, and they continue to add more each and every day. Their automatic system is adding them, and users have more and more options to upload and edit them themselves on their own videos should they chose. The system works similar to Android’s current voice recognition and dictation — so sometimes it can be wrong. I’m still not seeing many for mobile, but they’re out there. Video creators are encouraged to transcribe their videos, or edit them if they see mistakes. [via SlashGear]
|
| Amazon Appstore update brings new UI and fixes battery drain bug Posted: 29 Nov 2012 09:33 AM PST Earlier this week we reported that Amazon‘s AppStore was now available in Japan, but before being pushed to other regions they also issued a quick software update fixing a few bugs and improving the user interface. This week Amazon updated their 3rd party Android Appstore to terminate a few bugs, as well as solve the Android 4.2 multi-user login problem.
Google’s new Android 4.2 Jelly Bean has tablet support for multi-user logins, something that was causing some serious trouble for the Amazon store. Luckily this latest update has solved that problem, so users that have managed to snag a shiny new Nexus 10, or updated their Nexus 7 should be able to proceed without issues. A small but problematic bug, that’s for sure. Amazon has also improved the speed and performance of their store, along with solving what’s been an outstanding battery drain issue. Many users have been reporting the Appstore drains their battery, and Amazon has apparently fixed a few behind the scenes things to solve that problem. It might be time to give the Amazon Appstore another try folks.
Then there’s a quick user interface change and improvement too, as you see above. They’ve added the options to remove apps from the “My Apps” list so you don’t have to scroll forever through some of those free app of the day apps you never ended up enjoying. You can now remove them from your list. As far as the UI goes it mainly just got polished up a bit to closer resemble the latest Android 4.0 powered Kindle Fire OS. For those that love the Amazon Appstore get the latest version today. – Thanks Bill
|
| Google Play app revenue grows 17.9% while iOS shrinks Posted: 29 Nov 2012 09:06 AM PST A new report from App Annie has come out, and with it, some interesting insights into the app market. The most interesting piece of information to come from the report is that while Apple may generate four times the revenue of Google Play, Play is growing at a much higher rate. In the last month, Apple’s revenue has actually shrunk .7%, while Google Play has risen an astonishing 17.9% in the same period.
Besides revenue coming from the east, Japanese and Korean publishers are also responsible for many of the best-selling and highest revenue generating apps. In fact, seven of the top 10 publishers on Google Play are Japanese or Korean. This is quiet a shift in terms of the market overall. Games are the highest revenue generating apps, which comes as no surprise. There are plenty of great productivity apps on Google Play, but most consumers prefer to spend their hard-earned money on entertainment. Nine of the top 10 revenue generating publishers on both iOS and Google Play are game creators.
|
| Barnes & Noble reports huge increase in Nook sales over Thanksgiving weekend Posted: 29 Nov 2012 08:27 AM PST Amazon is not the only company seeing a huge increase in sales over the craziest shopping weekend of the year. In fact, Barnes & Noble is reporting that it sold double the amount of NOOK units over the Thanksgiving weekend. B&N says that NOOK sales “doubled over the four-day Black Friday weekend, across all channels, based on information provided by our channel partners on a sell-through basis compared to the similar period last year."
B&N cites increased promotion at its retail partners for a large part of the retail sales. Specifically, Barnes & Noble mentions Walmart and Target as being major factors in its increased holiday sales. With the overall popularity of tablets in the retail channel this holiday season, these number do not come as any surprise. B&N also announced its overall revenue for its fiscal 2013 second quarter, which ended October 27, 2012. Its consolidated revenues reached $1.9 billion, a decrease of 0.4% year-on-year. Consolidated net earnings were $2 million, compared to a loss of $7 million a year previous, which is an obvious improvement. Nook revenues totalled $160 million for the quarter, but the NOOK HD and HD+ were not included, as those numbers are reflected in its fiscal third quarter.
|
| Samsung and Peel announce international expansion of second screen remote app Posted: 29 Nov 2012 07:39 AM PST Samsung and Peel partnered up to bring its remote app to many IR devices and now, they have announced that it is going global. Today’s announcement starts the first phase of global rollout of the Peel Smart Remote app. Peel is bringing localized TV program information to over 20 countries and 13 languages across Europe and Southeast Asia.
By the Spring of 2013, Peel plans to extend its service to over 50 countries. “Peel was the first to combine the TV remote control, TV program listings and online social viewing in a single Second Screen app experience,” said Scott Ellis, Vice President of Marketing for Peel. With their plans to expand even further, Peel is looking to be the number one app for controlling television from mobile devices. This move is Peel’s first outside of North America. That’s a big deal for the company. Not only that, Peel is the first app of its kind to be available in the Asian region. Overall, the new rollout includes Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom in Europe; and in Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan in Asia.
|
| Verizon praised by Consumer Reports; AT&T only given credit for LTE Posted: 29 Nov 2012 07:17 AM PST Verizon’s cell phone service has come out on top in terms of US carriers, according to Consumer Reports. AT&T, on the other hand, was only praised for its stellar 4G performance. Besides LTE, AT&T was given poor ratings across the board.
At least AT&T has its 4G data to be happy about. "[AT&T] users reported the fewest problems with that higher-speed service, which most new smart phones now use," Consumer Reports concludes. Even though Verizon may have gotten into 4G first, it looks like AT&T has at least moved ahead of them in that regard. For prepaid, Consumer Reports favors the smaller, regional carries. Consumer Reports cites better deals and monthly savings as a primary reason for going with prepaid. For prepaid, US Cellular takes the top spot, with Credo Mobile in second place; if you're not in the coverage of either, Verizon is in third place. [via SlashGear]
|
| Galaxy Note II launches on Verizon Wireless with LTE Posted: 29 Nov 2012 05:41 AM PST Verizon is expanding its lineup of smartphones, which is arguably the best among any US cell phone carrier. Starting from today, Verizon is adding the Samsung Galaxy Note II to its library. Verizon has the phablet for $299.99 with a new two-year agreement.
While the Note II may be an expensive device, it packs the specs to go along with the high price tag. It comes with Samsung’s quad-core Exynos processor. It also comes with a bright and colorful Super AMOLED HD 1280 x 720 display. It also comes with Samsung’s digital pen for note taking and drawing. While a plus-sized, 5.5-inch phone is not for everyone, it certainly has a large niche of users, and Verizon should see high demand for the device. In fact, Samsung has already announced that it has sold five million of the phones into the channel already. That impressive number is without one of the largest carriers in the US in Verizon. With Verizon on board, the numbers are only going to go up. [via SlashGear]
|
| Rdio update brings new user interface Posted: 28 Nov 2012 06:32 PM PST Rdio users on Android have something pretty exciting waiting for them over on the Google Play Store. The music streaming app has been given a new update, and though this update brings a few new features with it, one of the most important is a revamped user interface. This redesign brings a cleaner feel to the whole app, and glancing over the screenshots below, we have to say it looks pretty good.
But this overhauled UI isn’t just about looks – it’s also about functionality. The folks at Rdio have added a new slide out navigation menu that you can access from anywhere in the app. Simply slide your finger to the right to uncover the menu, which is where you can check the albums that have enjoyed Heavy Rotation by the community, have a look at the top charts and new releases, or access your collection and playlists. While the new UI looks nice, there’s also another big addition with this update: a unified player. Now you can sync your queue across your computer and mobile devices, so you can have queue with you where ever you go. You can even sync songs in progress, which means you can pause a song on your computer and pick up right where you left off on your mobile device. That’s certainly an awesome feature, and we’re guessing Rdio subscribers are going to like it a lot.
The update is available now on the Google Play Store [download link], so you can get this redesigned user interface right this minute. If you’ve never used Rdio before and you think you might like to give it a spin, be warned that it costs $10 a month to subscribe. The upside to that subscription fee is that you get to stream music without hearing an ads, so keep that in mind. Are any of you Rdio subscribers?       [via SlashGear]
|
| Nexus 4 shipping times delayed into 2013 Posted: 28 Nov 2012 04:54 PM PST Yesterday the folks from Mountain View put their LG Nexus 4 smartphone up for sale on the Google Play Store for the second time in two weeks, and it sold out pretty much just as fast as the first round. Google’s new Nexus is either extremely popular and seeing an unaccounted for demand, or they need some serious work on their sales skills. The Play Store became almost unusable as Google warned users they still had stock, and to keep trying as it was experiencing a heavy load. Now lets talk shipping.
In case you can’t see the sad and depressing image above, last night Google updated their shipping estimates for the Nexus 4 — and brace yourself — 8 to 9 weeks for the 8GB Nexus 4. Seriously? Two months or more? So much for Christmas gifts, New Years, and any December birthdays. You can toss all of those ideas out the window. By then we’ll probably have Android 4.3 Key Lime Pie on the Horizon. Jokes aside that is pretty terrible. Google and LG apparently are having some serious trouble keeping up with the demand. That or this is a ploy to get tons of attention — and it’s working. Google’s 8GB Nexus 4 is a great deal at $299, but sadly it isn’t set to ship for 8-9 weeks. The 16GB model is priced slightly higher and those estimates are sitting around 4-5 weeks. This means those probably won’t arrive until after Christmas too.
First time around they switched it to full on “Sold out” but now it appears they are leaving the device in stock, and instead just posting some painful and increasingly longer ship times. The picture above basically sums up what Google needs to do, and that is “round up the troops and get er done.” Sadly this is most likely an inventory problem more than anything. Yesterday evening these ship times were 1-2 weeks and 5-6 weeks. It seems like now the dust has settled Google’s realized just how many they need to ship. Hopefully these are just “estimates” and Google gets some stock in and begins shipping these devices in the next 2-3 weeks. If users end up waiting 8 weeks we have a feeling there will be a few angry customers soon. We’ll be sure to monitor this disaster of a device launch, and update if the ship times get better or worse. Who purchased a Nexus 4 yesterday? If you did will you be canceling if you have to wait this long? Let us know below in the comments! Device Info
Display
Dimension & Weight
Battery & Power
Software
Hardware
Cellular Network
Device Connectivity
[via Play Store]
|
| Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean leaks for the original Galaxy Note Posted: 28 Nov 2012 04:37 PM PST There’s been a lot of talk lately from Samsung regarding updates to Jelly Bean, but almost all of that talk has been about their flagship Galaxy S III smartphone. We haven’t heard a peep regarding the original Galaxy Note since August. For those original Note owners we have good news. Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean has leaked for the international model.
The original Samsung Galaxy Note GT-N7000 (one with the dedicate home bottom) has received it’s very own flavor of Jelly Bean this afternoon. The folks from SamMobile have leaked the build although it still isn’t quite up to par. Obviously this is a test version, and nothing official, so you’ll want to proceed at your own risk. According to SamMobile this is the first Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean leak for the original Note, and they also claim the Galaxy S II Jelly Bean update is extremely close to being finished too. Much closer in fact than the Note, as the OG Note still is missing all those S-Pen features we love and adore. Samsung’s added everything we know and love about Android 4.1 Jelly Bean. Some of those include expandable notifications, Google Now voice search, project butter for a smooth and stable OS, Multi-view, customizable notification panel, Samsung cloud services, Pop-Up Play and new widgets from the Galaxy S III, as well as 2 new homescreen layout modes. As we mentioned above, this is still an early leak and nothing official. You’ll be required to flash the zip in odin, but it’s said to be pretty stable. You won’t have many of those S-Pen features and the S-Pen suite of applications working, so continue at your own risk. More details and the download file are available at the source link below.    Device Info
Display
Dimension & Weight
Battery & Power
Software
Hardware
Cellular Network
Device Connectivity
[via SamMobile]
|
| Chrome for Android updated with performance improvements Posted: 28 Nov 2012 03:59 PM PST Google‘s at it again this afternoon and they’ve just updated their popular Chrome Browser for Android. It’s one of our favorites, but could still use plenty of work. While today we aren’t getting new features, the guys from Mountain View have updated the app with bug fixes, stability fixes, and hope to improve performance across the board.
Thanks for basically zero details Google. The official changelog is about 10 words, and doesn’t mention anything specifically. Hopefully those “performance improvements” help scrolling and general usage because that’s still a big concern for some. Google’s recently promised a developer version, as well as the fact that they are working to make Chrome for Android as good as their desktop experience. The update has already been released into the wild, and users can enjoy it as we speak. Here’s the official word right form Google in terms of “what’s new”. Yup, that’s all they gave us. One silly line without any real details.
So far we’re noticing a pretty significant and actually noticeable improvement with general performance. That could also be a placebo effect but each update Chrome has slowly but surely got faster and more stable — so we’re expecting the same here. Sadly I still feel that scrolling could be improved, but that’s just me. Get the absolute latest Chrome for Android right now in the Google Play Store. Install it, then come back and let us know what you think or if it feels faster.
|
| Samsung Galaxy S III Jelly Bean update heads to Canada December 3 Posted: 28 Nov 2012 03:23 PM PST Samsung’s been busy lately updating many of their popular smartphones, especially the Galaxy S III. They’ve launched the Note II with Jelly Bean already installed, so we all figured the wait wouldn’t be too long. However the update to Android 4.1 Jelly Bean (not 4.2) has only arrived for a few Galaxy S III models, particularly T-Mobile here in the US. Yesterday Samsung confirmed the folks in Canada will be enjoying it soon though.
Yesterday Samsung posted on Twitter that the over-the-air update to Android 4.1 Jelly Bean will start on Monday December 3rd, and rollout all week for Galaxy S III users up in Canada. This means multiple Canadian carriers should all start seeing the new flavor of Jelly Bean early next week. Samsung’s made multiple announcements for Jelly Bean, but most of us here is the US are still patiently awaiting the update. It looks like Verizon will probably be last to the update, but that wasn’t too unexpected given their track record. We’ve seen a few various leaks, and international Galaxy S III’s have already been updated, so looks like we’ll be waiting a little longer. Also, because many Canada carriers share very similar bands as AT&T here in the US, we have a feeling the folks from AT&T will be announcing and starting the update for their version of the GSIII soon too. Expect Jelly Bean to start rolling out Monday you guys up in Canada. As always it will hit on its own or you can go to settings and check for updates manually if you’re impatient like us. Enjoy that Jelly Bean, even though it isn’t the latest Jelly Bean from Google. Device Info
Display
Dimension & Weight
Battery & Power
Software
Hardware
Cellular Network
Device Connectivity
|
| Nexus 4 gets first nightly CyanogenMod 10.1 build Posted: 28 Nov 2012 02:51 PM PST If you’re using CyanogenMod and you’ve been lucky enough to get your hands on a Nexus 4, then you’re in for a treat. The CyanogenMod team announced on Google Plus that they’re rolling out the first Nexus 4 (mako) nightly build for CyanogenMod 10.1, which is based on Android 4.2. The team is doing this because they’ve seen Nexus users installing third party CyanogenMod 10.1 builds, so they thought they’d take advantage of the demand they’ve been seeing and begin releasing nightlies.
That’s great for Nexus 4 owners, but those who picked up a Nexus 10 are also getting some good news of their own today. While CM10.1 nightlies for the Nexus 10 (manta) aren’t quite ready to go yet, they will be soon. We’ll have to wait until the CyanogenMod team dishes more details, but their Google Plus post makes it sound like nightlies for the Nexus 10 are right around the corner. This makes the Nexus 4 and the Nexus 10 the first devices to get official nightlies to CyanogenMod 10.1. As for all of the other devices out there, it’ll be a while longer before CyanogenMod 10.1 is ready to go. The team says that all other devices will continue getting CyanogenMod 10.0 builds until they “finish merging 4.2 and flip the switch for everybody.” They unsurprisingly weren’t interested in talking ETAs, and thanked users ahead of time for not asking. Of course, we’re thinking there are quite a few CyanogenMod users who don’t have their Nexus 4 yet. The device sold out amazingly fast when it was released and only became available on the Google Play Store again yesterday. In any case, if you’ve got a Nexus 4 in-hand, you can grab the nightly build for CyanogenMod 10.1 right here.
|
| Samsung Galaxy Note II Flip Cover hands-on Posted: 28 Nov 2012 02:41 PM PST Samsung’s Galaxy Note II is finally arriving for everyone here in the US on all major carriers. It’s been available from T-Mobile for about a month, AT&T started shipping them to customers a few weeks ago, and Verizon confirmed this morning that their Note II hits shelves tomorrow. Now that the major US carriers all have this 5.5-inch smartphone, lets take a look at Samsung’s official case.
There’s many awesome cases for smartphones, and we’ll be showing you guys more for the Note II tomorrow as you get ready to run down to a Verizon store and pickup your own. Today we wanted to share a quick hands-on video of Samsung’s own Official Flip Cover. It is special for a few reasons. It keeps the color the same, matches the back, covers and protects the front, and most importantly doesn’t add any bulk. The Note II is 5.5-inches and we don’t want to add any more size than we have to, especially if it’s going to fit in our pants pocket. Just like the Galaxy S III, the Note II Flip Cover made by Samsung actually replaces the battery door, and attached to the new one is the Flip Cover and soft-touch microfiber protective flap. The quick video below will give you an idea of what to expect if you’ve not yet seen this neat little case. The Galaxy Note II Flip Cover is $39 and you should be able to get it bundled with your new Note II from carriers. It’s available in Pearl White and Titanium Grey just like the device, and adds hardly any bulk. Instead of snapping on something that makes your device goofy looking and extra thick, why not enjoy a Note II cover. As I mention in the video it also adds a little layer of protection and privacy while using that large 5.5-inch screen out in public, for those worried about that kind of thing. There’s tons of awesome hard cases and more for the Note II, but this Flip Cover from Samsung is one of my favorites for it, or the Galaxy S III. Get yours from Samsung today!            Device Info
Display
Dimension & Weight
Battery & Power
Software
Hardware
Cellular Network
Device Connectivity
|
| Ballistic unveils Every1 case for Galaxy S III, Galaxy Express Posted: 28 Nov 2012 02:06 PM PST If you’re going to buy an expensive and fragile smartphone, it makes sense to buy a case to protect it from damage. If you happen to own a Samsung Galaxy S III or a Galaxy Express, you might like to know that Ballistic will soon have a new case called “Every1″ on offer. The Every1 series aims to not only keep your phone protected, but to also look good while doing it.
Looking at these shots, we have to say that the Every1 case looks pretty snazzy, and Ballistic says it will be available in a variety of colors if you’re not feeling the white. Unlike a lot of these cases meant to stand up to abuse, the Every1 case doesn’t appear to be all that bulky. That should be a pretty big draw for some consumers – it’s never nice to have the sleek look of your phone ruined by a bulky case, despite the fact that you need to keep your phone protected. The Every1 case protects the edges of the phone from fall damage and keeps the screen safe at the same time, with port covers to keep dirt and dust from getting a little too friendly with your phone. Ballistic says that it won’t come apart when its dropped thanks to the new “Active Latches” this bad boy comes equipped with, and that it’s “customized to survive any drop or fall” since it’s comprised of four different layers that include things like shock absorbing springs and a polycarbonate shell.
It doesn’t sound like a bad case at all, and it’ll be available in early December from Ballistic’s website and retailers across the country for $50. What’s particularly cool is that Ballistic also has Every1 cases for the iPhone and Nokia Lumia 920 launching at the same time as the cases for the Galaxy S III and the Galaxy Express, so the company isn’t playing favorites with its release schedule. Are you thinking about picking up an Every1 case?     [via SlashGear]
|
| Google Play Books now available for pre-order Posted: 28 Nov 2012 01:38 PM PST Starting today all you book lovers and reading fanatics have a few more options from the folks at Google and their Play Store. Today they announced that Google Books will now be available for pre-order. The “New and coming soon” section will now show upcoming books before they hit the store, and users anxious to virtually flip through those pages can pre-order and get it right on release day.
Most pre-orders for things of this nature come along with a little discount, but so far we aren’t seeing anything to suggest such a discount from Google. Personally I’m not sure the point of this, considering ebooks are virtually endless while actual devices aren’t. If they are adding a pre-order system, they should do it for the Nexus 4. Feel free to insert a joke here on how the Play Store handled that situation the past few weeks. Play Store troubles aside, this is another step for the Google Play Store as a whole and hopefully options such as this will be arriving for more than just books. Books are probably their smallest category so they’re testing the waters here first. We could see albums getting the same fate soon, followed by magazines and hopefully one day devices. It looks like all you bookworms and Twilight fans will soon be able to pre-order each new book with ease. Again we don’t seem to see any discount for such a system, but at least this is in place and being tested by Google. Once they move this over to music, movies, and devices we’ll be happy. Keep it simple Google, we don’t want to overload the Play Store again. Check out the new, upcoming, and available for pre-order books from the link below. [via Play Store Books]
|
| You are subscribed to email updates from Android Community To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 | |
No comments:
Post a Comment