Friday, November 30, 2012

Android Phone Fans

Android Phone Fans

Redbox Instant leaked for Android along with subscription pricing and expected launch date

Posted: 29 Nov 2012 05:31 PM PST

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Competition is good. It’s almost always good. And while you wouldn’t be able to convince Apple of this, it seems the streaming movies space is about to get a little more crowded thanks to Redbox. Brought to you by Verizon (but not limited to only Verizon subscribers) Redbox Instant is the company’s latest joint venture, and it looks to challenge Netflix as the online streaming king.

Tonight we get our first peak at what the Android app will look like, thanks to a few images dug up by GigaOM, as well as the web version (at the source). Let’s address the biggest questions, already running through your mind: when and how much?

How Much

There’s a bare bones option starting at $6 a month and covers streaming of Redbox’s smaller-than-Netflix’s online catalog, although you can see there are a few movies offered that Netflix doesn’t (let’s hope it’s also better curated). The $8 a month package includes all the streaming you can… stream, along with 4 free physical Redbox rentals (no roll over) at one of their kiosks located in every convenience store, grocer, and back alley you can find. Both the $6, and $8 plans include streaming on up to 5 devices, of which apps will be available on everything from smartphones, tablets, Blu-Ray players, televisions, and consoles.

If you’re looking to rent something a little more recent, Redbox instant will also offer online VOD rentals of newer titles for — wait for it — 99 cents. (Thank, geebus!) It’s this part alone that I find the service the most enticing. As someone who shuns the outside world, I’ll no longer be forced to wait in line at another kiosk in my bunny slippers with 2 minutes left before I’m charged for another day. (Happy dance).

When

Already in private beta, the service could go live as early as December 17th. While that hasn’t been confirmed, it’s entirely possible it could launch a little later in the year if bugs or other issues are discovered. You can either mark December 17th down on your calendar, or sign up to be notified when the service goes live over at RedboxInstant.com.

What do you guys think? If Rebox (and Verizon) can successfully offer low-priced, 99 cent movie rentals, will you bite? For $6 a month, will you really drop Netflix to save yourself 6 cents a day?

AdBlock founder says the goal is to promote better online advertising for all

Posted: 29 Nov 2012 04:03 PM PST

Yesterday we reported exciting news that AdBlock Plus is available for mobile devices running Android. Tablet, smartphone or anything in between, you can bust all those website ads that you don’t want to see. The great thing is that the app is fairly browser agnostic, so you won’t need separate plugins for each browser (a godsend considering not all browsers support plugins to begin with).

There are still some exceptions to take heed to, though, and we were curious to know why such limitations were placed on an otherwise straightforward experience. Speaking with AdBlock’s Till Faida, we learned that Android 3.0+ devices had to be rooted to use automatic blocking because of limitations in Android beyond their control.

If they had a choice in the matter they’d give everyone the easiest and quickest route possible toward an ad-free device, but some users will have to do some minor proxy work on their side if they find themselves on the less fortunate side of the street. More information about how to set AdBlock Plus up on your particular configuration can be had upon downloading the app.

Blocking ads is not about hurting the bottom line…

But the more interesting bits of this conversation came when we asked Faida what the company’s goals were. On the outside looking in there doesn’t appear to be many revenue generating opportunities for AdBlock Plus. For starters, it’s completely free and open-source, and they don’t ask their users to pay anything to use it. There’s no “premium” unlock, and not even as much as a donation link on its site: it’s just free.

So what do they want out of all this? Well, believe it or not, they just want to help people. First on their list are users — they want to help the everyday, average Joe block all the ads in existence if that’s what they truly want.

It’s even deeper than that, though. The AdBlock Plus team wants to help the web as a whole. They’re on the side of content publishers just as much as they are users. It may seem strange and counter-effective to take this stance with an app that could kill most sites’ source of income, but it really does make sense when it’s broken down.

Faida says they want content providers to be able to make money off of their work. Ads help provide services and content at no out-of-pocket cost to users. Us Android users know all too well how Google’s ad-driven business allows them to provide tons of great services for no initial cost to anyone who wants to use them. Still, much of the online advertising industry is broken and ad providers and publishers tend to go overboard.

…but rather helping users and publishers alike

Simply put, they want to kill obtrusive ads. Users can’t really “vote with their wallets” in a traditional sense for free services, so blocking ads on sites which abused advertisement is the only effective voice they have outside of those feedback forms tucked away inside obscure, hidden links (which many sites probably won’t pay attention to in the first place).

It’s one of the many reasons why AdBlock started “Acceptable Ads,” a program that allows them to outline which ads users are more likely to consider “acceptable.” A certain list of criteria is still being worked out, but so far it’s believed that static, text-only ads with sensible placement (ie, not breaking up the main text of an article or making users scroll unnecessarily to get to the page’s main content) fit the bill most accurately.

With this, they’ve started a partnership program with ad publishers who want to ensure their sites have “acceptable ads.” Sites that sign up will be reviewed by the AdBlock team, and if they maintain their status AdBlock will whitelist the site in a list they maintain. Users can enable this list if they want to applaud and encourage those who approach online advertising with sense, style and class. AdBlock monitors the sites in this list regularly, and should they find one of their partners violating the “acceptable ads” movement they will be removed with no hesitation — total win, I’d say.

This feature isn’t yet available on Android, but we’re told that it will be one of the main new features they’re looking to bring in future upgrades. A general user-maintained whitelist setting wouldn’t go unappreciated, either.

Are publishers hurt by blocked ads?

Interestingly enough, though, Faida believes content providers’ pockets aren’t hurt by those who wish to block their ads, stating “the real loss is happening because many websites are sticking to the old approach of annoying their visitors with intrusive ads instead of offering real value to them which would be a much more profitable approach in the long run.”

The idea is that a user doesn’t care to click on the ads anyway, so that revenue was never going to be generated in the first place. You could argue that other revenue models, such as CPM, will be affected, but considering how many variables there are to figuring these numbers out in the first place it’s difficult to know what might really be happening. Long-term frustration could set in, as well, as intrusive ads could drive a user away from your site for good.

Those are all very good points, but we must maintain a degree of objectivity here. After speaking with AdBlock’s co-founder, though, it’s clear to us that their motives and ambitions are as genuine as anyone’s, and we don’t mind supporting a better future for online advertising one bit. Try AdBlock Plus for Android in the Google Play Store.

Your Samsung Galaxy Note 2 could already have SwiftKey Flow [VIDEO]

Posted: 29 Nov 2012 02:10 PM PST

If you haven’t already heard the exciting news, the Verizon Samsung Galaxy Note 2 has launched today. As excited as I was to get the phone and start playing with it from now until whenever, I didn’t think the keyboard would be the one thing to grab me: Samsung’s keyboard is actually outfitted with SwiftKey Flow technology out of the box.

SwiftKey Flow was announced late last month, but as of now users can’t even get it in beta form, let alone on the Google Play Store. Samsung seems to have pulled the same stunt they did with Swype way back when, though, and got SwiftKey to implement trace-typing functionality into its own keyboard.

This keyboard obviously has its own Samsung-infused flavor, but you can expect SwiftKey’s offering to be much different once it hits the Google Play Store. We wanted to get an idea of what’s to come, though, and this was about as early of a look as we could have hoped for outside of SwiftKey’s own promo video for Flow.

We’re curious, though: does your Samsung Galaxy Note 2 offer the same functionality? We’ve been hearing mixed results as some people say the option presents itself in the Language and Input menu but doesn’t actually work. Some people were as surprised as we were to see the option, while others claim to have had it since the device launched.

Whatever the case may be, we’ve had nothing but trouble trying to find a hands-on video outside of the official SwiftKey Flow promo so we decided to record our own. You can be sure that we’ll have an early look at the Play Store version of SwiftKey Flow once it launches sometime down the line, but for now this is just a teaser of what you can expect in the future.

Let us know if your Galaxy Note 2′s keyboard has this feature in the comments section below as we’re curious to see why we’re hearing so many different things from the community. Be sure that you aren’t looking at Swype as that is an entirely different keyboard altogether.

New Nexus 4, 7, and 10 owners: Don’t forget your free movies, TV shows, music, and magazines

Posted: 29 Nov 2012 12:56 PM PST

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Just a heads up for all you brand new Nexus 4, Nexus 7, and Nexus 10 users out there. While Google’s $25 Google Play credit may have expired back in September, ‘ol Googs is still nice enough to give you guys some complimentary free goodies by way of a movie and television show download/streams (depending on your part of the world), along with a random assortment of magazines and music.

If you’re in the US, head on over to your Play Movies & TV apps to find the full length movie, Transformers: Dark of the Moon available for download/streaming, along with the 2-hour series premier of Falling Skies and an episode of Planet Earth (Nexus 4 only). The Nexus 7 and 10 swap Transformers for Ice Age, and somehow lose Falling Skies in the mix.

If you didn’t get stuck with the puny 8GB Nexus 4/7 models, you can even “pin” these videos and download ‘em straight to your device. While it may be nice to watch without an active data connection, keep in mind Transformers alone will take up a whopping 2.7GB of storage space. Thank, god for streaming.

When it comes to music and magazines, you’ll find a handful of artists (you probably never heard of), and a few magazines too. Just jump into Play Music and Play Magazines to find them already waiting for you. If Google added Cheers.

Thanks, Molo!

Google releases Android 4.2.1 factory images for Nexus devices

Posted: 29 Nov 2012 12:26 PM PST

Just as the Android code guru with a three letter name promised, Android 4.2.1 factory images are now available for the Nexus 4, Nexus 7, and Nexus 10 as well as the GSM version of the Galaxy Nexus. The release comes about 48 hours after the Jelly Bean update first started making its way to owners of the Google-branded devices. The source code was made available the same day as part of the Android Open Source Project.

Also available are Android 4.2.1 binaries for the Nexus 10, Nexus 7, and both the “toro” (Verizon) and “maguro” (GSM) versions of the Galaxy Nexus. Oddly, there is no binary available for the Nexus 4 at this time. We’re guessing that version will be available shortly.

While the newly available resources might not be immediately useful, a factory image is always a good thing to keep around should you run into any trouble with your device (especially if you are the type to root and tinker). It will make restoring your handset or tablet to working order a much easier process.

iLumi looking for funding for Android-controlled LED bulbs

Posted: 29 Nov 2012 10:58 AM PST

We’ve seen the Phillips Hue, watched as the LIFX bulb achieved its funding goal, but there is one more contender to consider when it comes to intelligent LED lighting. iLumi has just announced a new intelligent LED bulb, which is seeking backers via IndiaGoGo.

Based around the company’s HyperLux LED technology, the bulbs, which pair with an Android or iOS smartphone app, will be available as both 100 watt and 60 watt replacement options, but will do much more than your average lamp.

Not only does the bulb provide access to millions of color and brightness combinations with a few swipes via an “intuitive interface”, but other features such as proximity recognition (automatically turning on when you enter a room), light-based notifications (your room light can change color or blink to notify you of things like weather and incoming calls, email, and texts), and the ability to support a network of up to 100 bulbs. Your whole home is covered.

iLumi supports Bluetooth and Bluetooth LE, a departure from other bulbs that tie into a home WiFi network. This does offer some distinct advantages over other brands, such as portability and lower energy consumption. The bulbs start at $59 but are listed with an expected lifespan of 20 years, meaning you might pay more up front than you would for a traditional bulb, but over time the iLumi intelligent lighting system will provide plenty of savings.

We’re excited about the future of smart LED lighting, but it has had a bit of a slow start due to pricing and a lack of familiarity with the technology. It’s nice to see another option coming to market, and one that offers a several distinct features. You can never have too many to choose from. Provided their funding goal of $100,000 is reached, the iLumi bulb will ship in April of 2013.

[via iLumi]

20 new levels added to Angry Birds Star Wars in icy “Hoth” upgrade; Princess Leia makes her debut

Posted: 29 Nov 2012 10:03 AM PST

Well that was fast, wasn’t it? Rovio has already issued the first Angry Birds Star Wars update since the game arrived for Android about a month ago, and it comes with some great new content for the low, low price of free. This update takes you to the planet “Hoth,” an icy block of intergalactic importance for Jedi birds and Imperial pigs to fight on.

This update adds 20 new levels to sink your teeth into, but that’s not all. The rebel birds, running away from Darth Vader’s wrath, have a trump card up their sleeves (erm… feathers?) that might be too much for the evil lord’s AT-ATs and Pigtroopers — Princess Leia.

Leia (whose hair buns remind me of delicious cinnamon buns) will bring a force of power so devastating that will have even Darth Vader returning to the drawing board to plan his next move. Her eyes emit lasers so powerful that it makes AT-ATs crumble at the knees and renders them useless.

She’ll be an exciting new bird to take control of as the rebels defend their icy hideaway on planet Hoth. Rovio always seems to find a way to do just enough to make sure Angry Birds doesn’t get stale, and this update is no exception. If you haven’t already downloaded Angry Birds Star Wars then stop reading now and get over to the Google Play Store! Watch the trailer above.

Feed your nostalgia with today’s release of Jet Set Radio for Android

Posted: 29 Nov 2012 09:08 AM PST

Sega gave us a pretty early heads up that it was coming, but the wait is over and you spray-painting bladers can get to town. I’m talking about none other than the re-release of Jet Set Radio for Android. This Dreamcast original was one of Sega’s finest titles back when the console was still relevant, and while the series proved thin for sequels many still stand by its fun music-pumped gameplay.

The overall goal is to claim areas of Tokyo-to by tagging them as any hoodlum would, all the while treating the world as your skate park as you grind on railings, steps and do more tricks with the inline skates sitting on your feet. You can tag areas with many of the game’s presets, or create your own if you want to express yourself even more freely.

You can also recruit more than 10 different members to your gang and have them tag it up with their own style. Police don’t take kindly to any of this, though, so you’ll also be looking to evade them as you make your presence known to your rivals.

Sega says 29 out of the original 30 tracks are still in the game, though they weren’t interested in telling us which track was left out. We’re sure licensing issues are to blame, but 29 out of 30 is still great and it will do well to help restore fond memories of sweeter gaming days.

The $5 asking price is not unreasonable for a decent port so we’re sure a few of you diehards won’t have a problem with getting it from the Google Play Store. Let us know how it’s treating you if you decide to strap the blades on.

Zenonia 5 for Android now available; has multiplayer and oddly requests root access

Posted: 29 Nov 2012 08:06 AM PST

Gamevil has come to town with another entry in the fabled Zenonia series as Zenonia 5 for Android is now sitting in the Google Play Store. This series has blossomed into one of the best mobile RPGs you can find, and its initial download is available for free in the Google Play Store.

Zenonia 5 introduces four new hero classes for users to choose from, including a wizard, a berserker, a mechanic and a paladin. We can make an educated guess on what those first three classes bring to the table, but the latter is an interesting one that I suppose we’ll have to play with to see what exactly it specializes in.

The storyline reads like your typical “good fighting to overcome evil” theme, but it still has us excited. A land of peace and harmony was only allowed to last for so long until the “elite rich” started abusing their power to bring oppression for the “poor.”

One hero emerges from a small village who is destined to protect their people from those who look to control the world through money and greed. I won’t get into how much this sounds like it’s trying to mirror current events, but the premise is enough to warrant the free 40MB download that you’ll endure in the Play Store.

Zenonia 5 features the same classic action-based combat it’s always had, and global peer-vs-peer gameplay will extend the life of your game even further. I should note that the game strangely requests root access upon initial launch if your device is rooted. I decided to check its permissions to see why it could possibly need such access.

The only thing that stood out was its need to read information about other apps that are running. It could be nothing, but I couldn’t find a solid reason as to why it would need such information. I’ve reached out to Gamevil to see what insight they can provide on this, so be sure to check back here as we’ll be updating this post with anything we can gather. Take a look at the game’s trailer above and check it out for yourself at the source link ahead.

[Google Play Store]

Samsung Galaxy Note 2 now available from Verizon

Posted: 29 Nov 2012 07:51 AM PST

The “next bit thing” has finally made its way to Verizon, and it only took them all of a month to release it. Verizon subscribers can now get their fill of S Pen action for $300 on a new two-year contract. An Android 4.1 device, the Galaxy Note 2 features a 5.5-inch display, quad-core Exynos CPU, and LTE connectivity.

The Note 2 launched with other US carriers in late October/early November, leaving many to wonder just what took so long for Big Red. If we had to guess, we’d say the HTC Droid DNA was the culprit. Given Verizon’s exclusive on the similarly-specced device, it wouldn’t make sense for the carrier to launch a non-exclusive competitor before milking as many sales of the Droid-branded device as possible.

But here you have it, another option for Verizon users craving the 5-inch experience. Plan on picking on up in store or online today? Awaiting a shipment in the mail? Remember to check out our full review and then head over to the Galaxy Note 2 section at Android Forums to join in on the discussion.

Consumer Reports ranks AT&T last among US carriers, Verizon first

Posted: 29 Nov 2012 06:50 AM PST

Some things never change, and for AT&T that’s not a good thing. For what seems like the hundredth year in a row, Consumer Reports has placed the carrier at the bottom of the pack when it comes to overall customer satisfaction. Verizon, a company that typically places at or near the top of the magazine’s yearly rankings, bested the competition.

Interestingly, however, AT&T’s 4G LTE offering was ranked higher than Verizon’s, despite the former’s smaller network footprint. But it wasn’t enough to pull AT&T up from the bottom, as taking all voice and data offerings into account consumers just haven’t been all that satisfied with what the carrier is providing.

An emerging trend is consumer interest in smaller carriers such as Straight Talk and Virgin Mobile, which provide pre-paid options that can save consumers a good chunk of change each month. Devices available with these networks are starting to match the appeal of those available from the major four US service providers. Paul Reynolds of Consumer Reports points out that customers can often save even more money by pairing an out-of-contract device from a major carrier to a more affordable pre-paid plan.

The shift in attitudes about smartphone plans comes at a time when major carriers continue to lag behind consumer demand. The stronghold of carriers like Verizon and AT&T on the US mobile market will loosen as consumers search for better deals on monthly service.

It’s been said a million times, but the big carriers need to adapt to what customers demand now rather than attempt to mandate the way the market will run. There’s your free advice, AT&T. Mix that up with a bit of quality customer service and maybe we won’t have to see you at the bottom of Consumer Report’s list next year.

[via AllThingsD]

Android Overload: Official Jelly Bean update for original Galaxy Note leaked, Gapps for Android 4.2 updated, and more

Posted: 28 Nov 2012 11:58 PM PST

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  • Chrome update in the Play Store addresses bugs, improves performance. [Google Play]
  • Google apps (GAPPS) for Jelly Bean updated to latest versions. Download here. [Goo.im]
  • Google’s working on giving you answers to searches… before you search. Kinda creepy. [TechnologyReview]
  • Samsung releases Galaxy Note 2 source code. Custom ROMs this way cometh. [Samsung]
  • Officially Jelly Bean 4.1.2 N7000XXLSA update for the original Galaxy Note (GT-N7000) leaked. [SamMobile]
  • Google CEO Larry Page pleads case with the FTC over antitrust investigation. [Bloomberg]
  • Google VP of product says Google+ is better than Facebook cuz of search. Even though no one is using Google+. [PandoDaily]

HTC appoints new marketing chief to help with brand recognition

Posted: 28 Nov 2012 08:35 PM PST

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Reading the headlines these past few months, you’ve no doubt heard talk of HTC landing on tough times. Losing their market share to Samsung, they’ve been forced to come up with new ways of reinventing themselves. We seen some of that with their more focused device releases which launched their “One” line of devices. Met with mixed fanfare, the One series wasn’t quite the golden ticket HTC had hoped for in 2012, but they’re not stopping there.

Today HTC has announced a new chief marketing officer, Benjamin Ho, to replace current chief John Wang. With CEO Peter Chou’s help, Ho will lead HTC into its “next phase of brand marketing and awareness,” transforming the company into a household name with their all new “Marketing 2.0,” as it’s being called internally. Peter Chou said in a statement:

"We welcome Benjamin to HTC and look forward to integrating the global marketing capabilities he brings to the company. Our growing brand, centered around our world-class innovation and design capabilities, will provide a global platform not just for HTC, but for Taiwan culture and innovation."

While we can only speculate what this will mean for HTC and their future. It’s clear their “quietly brilliant” slogan may be in need of a refresh. Especially when rival Samsung has been anything but quiet, targeting Apple with a marketing blitz of print ads and tv spots. HTC, if you’re listening. Just make an ad to a dubstep soundtrack. The kids love dubstep. Oh, and make sure you’re chosen again for the next Nexus. Thanks.

[via TaipeiTimes]
Posted by at 9:07 AM

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