The Best-Performing Android Tablets Today PCWorld The Best-Performing Android Tablets Today Overall, as you'll see from the charts below, we discovered that Nvidia Tegra 3-based Android tablets are among some of the best performers out there. (Of the tablets we assessed in this group, only Apple's ... See all stories on this topic »
Flipboard for Android updated with tutorials, navigation - The Verge By Chris Welch Flipboard for Android has been on a steady update cycle ever since it arrived on the platform a few months ago. The latest release focuses on navigation improvements, simplified access to Google... The Verge - All Posts
Omega Status Bar for Android looks pretty good | Ubergizmo By Tyler Lee If you use an Android device, chances are you look at the status/notification bar quite a bit. Unlike iOS where notifications of missed calls, updates or messages can also be viewed as badges on the app's icon, the notification bar [...] Ubergizmo
Android Flipboard App Update Adds Improved Navigation And More ... By Julian Horsey Flipboard for Android has received a new update this week which has brought with it improved navigation structure within the apps sections, which are now visible when you tap on a section's name within Flipboard. Geeky-Gadgets
Todo.txt for Android Gets Archiving, Swipe to Complete | Smarterware By Gina Trapani Todo.txt for Android Gets Archiving, Swipe to Complete. August 13, 2012. Just uploaded an extensive update to Todo.txt for Android to the Google Play Store! Todo.txt for Android now archives completed tasks, supports swipe-to-complete, has ... Smarterware
LG’s new Optimus Vu 5-inch “phablet” smartphone might not be selling as well as Samsung’s Galaxy Note, but they have recently announced over 500,000 have been sold. Along with that news they managed to share a few details for when those stateside can expect the device to arrive. It looks like we can expect to see LG’s new smartphone sometime in the 3rd quarter, so before the end of September.
We first saw this oddly shaped 4:3 aspect ratio phone in February at Mobile World Congress, and it went up for sale in South Korea back in March. However, those here in the US, particularly on Verizon Wireless could be seeing this option sooner than later.
Recent filings at the FCC lead us to believe the Optimus Vu will be coming to Verizon Wireless, and it has been spotted in the wild with Verizon brandings too. While LG hasn’t released an official date, they mentioned it would be available in the US “before the end of the 3rd quarter.”
You never know how a device launch will go on Verizon, but if all goes well users should be able to purchase this massive smartphone before the end of September. The Optimus Vu comes with a 5-inch display, Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, a stylus for pen input, and is powered by the same 1.5 GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 as the Galaxy S III. This will be another fine choice from the folks at Verizon and LG. Who’s interested?
Last week Samsung teased the world with the possibility of offering their flagship Galaxy S III smartphone in a new color option, black, but now its been confirmed. After being spotted on their Facebook page during Samsung’s Olympic coverage many were curious, and now a UK retailer has confirmed the device will be available in 4-6 weeks.
We first reported on this last week, with Carphone Warehouse screens leaking that appeared to confirm the device, but now UK reseller MobileFun actually has it available for pre-order. This is the same Galaxy S III as the Pebble Blue and white folks, just in the color black.
Being in the UK, and not a US model, this comes with Samsung’s own 1.4 GHz quad-core processor and 1GB of RAM. Not a dual-core with 2GB like the US based models from Verizon, T-Mobile and others — just to be clear. Samsung currently offers a white model, and the pebble blue had initial delays but is now widely available, and garnet red as an AT&T exclusive. MobileFun states the black model will be available in 4-6 weeks.
We are still expecting Samsung to make a formal announcement on possibly color options later this month at IFA 2012 in Berlin, Germany, but still can’t confirm that. Does the color of your smartphone matter that much to you? Or are you more concerned with specs and an up to date OS? Let us know below and we’ll update once we hear more from Samsung.
The new Google-owned Motorola Mobility is getting ready to make some changes. Now that Google’s finally earned full control after purchasing Motorola, they are ready to dig in and get started in their efforts. Google and Motorola are set to lay off roughly 4000 employees, nearly 20% of the staff as they prepare to refocus their mobile game and get back to winning. More details below.
In a similar sounding move as HTC, Motorola is stating they’ll be focusing on less devices, while offering overall better experiences and top-tier products. Specifically less low-end budget phones. The 20% cut in their job force will be a big blow, and one third of those will be US based employees.
This won’t be the first time either, as Motorola’s recently cut down their highly paid presidents and execs list by 40%, so the arm swings both ways. This is all in an effort to help their bottom line, and let good ol Google do their thing. With the PHOTON Q 4G LTE being their first phone with an unlocked bootloader, things are slowly starting to come around in Moto town.
According to the NYT Motorola will also be pruning efforts in Asia and India, while bailing completely on some of their most “unprofitable” markets — although no specifics were given. While a third of the job cuts will be stateside, they’ve also said to be increasing R & D and spending at various research locations in Chicago, Sunnyvale, CA and Beijing, China. Things have been quiet on the Motorola front the past few months waiting for this acquisition to complete, but we have a feeling Google’s about to get started in a big way.
With the past week finally winding down one of the best ways to enjoy your Sunday afternoon is to catch up on all the latest Android news. Here at Android Community we had another exciting week of news. With the OUYA gaming console dropping all sorts of news, and T-Mobile launching three new smartphones. Head on below for your weekly fix!
To start the week off was exciting news for Motorola DROID 4 fans, as they finally received Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich from Verizon. Then Motorola teased a new smartphone on Facebook that ended up being nothing but the already released Atrix HD on AT&T. The Nexus 7 was in the news again, as it has been for a few months straight. This time it was mounted inside a Dodge RAM for some in-dash entertainment — and was amazing.
That isn’t all the N7 did either. As you can see above it was overclocked to 1.7 GHz on that quad-core processor and blew away the benchmarks. Thanks to the Trinity kernel it has far exceeded the limits we thought it was capable of. Google’s Google Now search arrived in small pieces for the iPhone, and the rest of the non Jelly Bean Android users are hoping they get the same treatment too. Then as we mentioned above T-Mobile launched two new smartphones on the 8th. One being their version of the original Samsung Galaxy Note, then their budget friendly myTouch smartphones.
The OUYA game console added a list of games and even XBMC support, as well as multiple announcements you can see in the timeline below. To round off the week HTC announced the ThunderBolt would see Ice Cream Sandwich before the end of August, and same goes for their Desire S. Last but certainly not least we are giving away some brand new Nexus 7 tablets. Yes you read that right! Android Community and NVIDIA have partnered again and are giving away 3 brand new 16GB Nexus 7 tablets. Full details can be found in our Nexus 7 Giveaway post. Hit the links below for more coverage from this week, and enjoy the rest of the weekend.
It's been a while since we've seen the last discount for Verizon and Motorola's Droid Razr, but those of you who have been holding out for the LTE-enabled phone can now take advantage of an outrageous deal.
Although the 4.3-incher still sells for $199.99 from Verizon with a two-year contract, Amazon Wireless has been kind enough to slash this big guy's price to a penny. That's right, folks, you can get the Razr practically for free these days and all you have to do is commit to a new Big Red agreement.
You don't even have to be a new Verizon customer to take advantage of the special offer, with upgrades and added lines also qualifying for the promotion. On top of it all, Amazon is also throwing in free shipping for the phone, promising that your spanking new Razr will land on your doorstep in two days tops after ordering it.
There's no way you could ever find a better deal for Motorola's Razr, but you do have to ask yourselves if you're ready to commit to a two-year contract for what some may call an aging device. There are clearly better options on the market right now, and, based on the latest rumors and speculations, there's also a follow-up to the 4.3-incher almost ready to see the light of day.
Then again, if you're not willing to pay more than a dime for a strong Android phone, the Razr can clearly still pack a punch, being powered by a dual-core 1.2 GHz processor and featuring 1 GB of RAM. The Super AMOLED 960 x 540 pixel display, 8 MP rear-facing shooter, Android 4.0 ICS, 4G LTE speeds, Kevlar backing and sleek design make this a more than decent handheld for anyone not obsessed by having the absolute best piece of technology in his hands.
Amazon Wireless is listing the Droid Razr as “in stock” with estimated 24-hour shipment, meaning that the retailer probably has enough devices to go around. However, if you’re thinking of taking advantage of the special offer, you might want to hurry up, because the deal has no expiration date, which usually means it will be pulled out at some time without any kind of notice.
Don’t forget to also check out some of Amazon’s other existent deals, like the ones for Sprint’s Galaxy S3 or Verizon’s Galaxy Nexus, before making a decision regarding your next on-contract phone. Be sure to let us know what you decide and why.
One of Google’s reasons for acquiring Motorola Mobility was mainly to take advantage of its 17,000 patents to protect Android from patent infringement litigation. As a bonus, Google also gets to play as a competitor in the hardware market. But that doesn’t mean Motorola gets an unfair advantage over other Android phone manufacturers in the Android smartphone and tablet marketplace. For instance, Google still wants Motorola to play fair in terms of competing to produce “pure Android” Nexus phones. But with the dominance of Samsung — and likewise Apple — Motorola will need to refocus its mobile business in order to remain relevant.
As such, Motorola is making a big push for more focused products and processes. In this light, the company is closing down a third of its 94 offices around the world. Motorola will also be laying off about 20% of its workers worldwide. One third of the 4,000 jobs to be downsized will be in the U.S., reports the New York Times. This comes after Google slashed down Motorola’s management team, firing 40% of its vice presidents and replacing them with a few key executives.
The aim is to stop making low-end mobile phones, and instead focus on a fewer models, likely to be flagship devices meant to compete with the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S3 and even the Apple iPhone 4S.
Motorola CEO Dennis Woodside told the Times that Google stands to benefit from Motorola’s mobile expertise, and that Motorola benefits from Google’s software development. “The Google business is built on a wired model, and as the world moves to a pretty much completely wireless model over time, it's really going to be important for Google to understand everything about the mobile consumer,” he said.
Motorola is still largely a hardware company, which means it gets to experiment with different materials and manufacturing processes. The company is currently cutting back on spending on too many cellphone components, says an executive Google recruited to fix Motorola’s supply chain. Another executive, recruited by Google from DARPA, is currently working on new materials, and has been hiring metal scientists, acoustics engineers and AI experts — something that one might relate more to Apple than any other mobile company.
What’s even more interesting is the idea that Google may be developing a smartphone or tablet built from ground-up using an altogether new OS. Much like how Apple marries hardware with software, “people familiar with the companies” say that Google could “build a phone from silicon to software” and might actually create a separate OS that runs exclusively on Motorola hardware.
For now, both Motorola and Google will be working in trying to find synergy between each company’s expertise. It might not be too good to dwell on Motorola’s glory days as the preferred mobile brand of old. Rather, slimming down and focusing on what’s important will be helpful for Motorola in moving forward.
There's no doubt Samsung's Galaxy S3 is the biggest current star of the Android universe, but that doesn't mean things will stay that way for much longer. If there's something we've learned being around the latest and greatest gadgets, it's that fame is fleeting, which is why we're already curious to see when the S3 will be dethroned as the Android king.
Even more importantly, what phone will have the "muscle" and "mojo" to steal the spotlight from Samsung's "beast?" Will it be another Sammy device, like the Galaxy Note 2? The HTC One X+? The Motorola Razr Maxx HD? Or LG's Eclipse?
Neither of these super-phones is yet official, so it's almost impossible to try to predict their future form against the S3, but they all look like winners to us. The LG Eclipse in particular seems like a force to be reckoned with, especially now that it has been approved by the FCC and is just about confirmed as coming by the end of October.
We have known for a while that LG will be releasing the Eclipse on at least two of the major US carriers, Sprint and AT&T, and now we're starting to get an idea which one of those will have the honor of unveiling the monster phone first.
The Eclipse we just spotted over at the FCC is codenamed LS970 and it features CDMA/EVDO/LTE compatibility, so this bad boy is definitely heading to Sprint. That doesn't necessarily mean that AT&T's version of the phone, the E970, isn't itself hidden somewhere under a pile of other FCC certification docs, away from all the spotlight. Still, it does seem more likely that Sprint will be coming out with the phone first.
The LS970's FCC filing doesn't reveal much about the upcoming super-phone's spec sheet, other than some standard connectivity features, like GPS, Bluetooth and dual-band 2.4/5 GHz Wi-Fi. Fortunately, earlier rumors have pretty much sealed most of the Eclipse's "equipment," which will almost definitely include the following:
4.67-inch display with 1280 x 720 pixels resolution and 314 ppi pixel density
13 MP rear-facing shooter with 1080p video capturing
1.3 MP front-facing camera
Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich
NFC
User-removable 2,100 mAh battery
132 x 8.9 x 71 mm dimensions
142 grams weight
There’s no doubt that if it were to come with the above spec sheet, the Eclipse would beat the S3 in terms of raw power by a mile. That GPU/CPU duo would probably be one-of-a-kind (if the HTC One X+ won't have anything to add to that), considerably upping the ante from S3's dual-core chip and Adreno 225 GPU.
On the other hand, please keep in mind that we’re not yet dealing with confirmed information about the Eclipse, so the phone might not actually be coming with so much oomph. Or it might also be coming with Jelly Bean on board, which would make it that more impressive. Either way, we’ll keep you posted on LG’s future flagship Android smartphone.
Android is currently the dominant mobile platform, according to Q2 2012 sales and activation figures. We can also assume that Gmail is the preferred email platform among Android users. But with the recent launch of Microsoft’s Outlook.com cloud platform, can we see a formidable competitor to Gmail?
Microsoft recently launched Outlook.com as a replacement to its web-based email service Hotmail. Outlook.com is also supposed to consolidate other Microsoft cloud-based initiatives in the aim of attracting more of the enterprise market that’s the main clientele of Microsoft Office. Microsoft is making a big play for mobile, too, and has actually targeted Gmail in its first Outlook.com ads.
But users and technology enthusiasts have observed that Outlook.com may cause problems for mobile users, as it does not work well with Android devices. Over at PC World, Tim Greene reports having problems opening attachments from the stock Android browser.
Clicking on the attachments is supposed to enable viewing and editing them from a Microsoft cloud-based SkyDrive account, but that doesnt happen. Instead the device downloads the document and attempts to open it with an Office reader.
Meanwhile, the web-based editing functionality works well with iOS devices and Windows-based platforms. Microsoft has responded to Greene’s concerns, and said the issue involves “limitations that are specific to the Android mobile browsing experience and the Office Web Applications.” However, Microsoft engineers have promised to use the feedback to improve the platform on “all modern devices.”
Any Outlook.com users who have had the same experience? Is this a dealbreaker for Android users, or should we wait while Microsoft works out the kinks in its mobile interface?
Rumors say that Motorola is getting ready to launch its next-gen RAZR smartphones this October, although delays may push the launch back a little. The new phones will be called RAZR HD and RAZR MAXX HD, and unlike the launch of the original versions — which came with a three-month lag — it looks like Motorola has learned from their mistake and it’s launching both devices at the same time.
The first one will be the “thin” version with start battery, while the MAXX one will be the one with double battery capacity. Both devices should have HD screens, but while this aspect seems to be a major bullet point of their market, Motorola should really have launched phones with HD screens about a year ago. By fall it won’t exactly be a big differentiation feature, as all the other high-end devices from other brands will have HD screens.
The devices are also rumored to have a Qualcomm S4 processor, which surprises me a little because I think we’ll start seeing Qualcomm S4 Pro chips this fall. If that’s true, then Motorola seems to be falling behind in sourcing cutting edge components for its phones. We’ve seen this with the screens so far, and now it looks like they might start falling behind in processors as well. Motorola may start lagging behind, even though they had the first dual core device launched in the U.S. in 2010.
The future of Motorola is starting to worry me a little, even though Motorola Mobility is now part of Google. So far, I haven’t seen many clues that Google has started taking over their product roadmap. Or if they already have, then they haven’t been doing a very good job at making Motorola competitive.
The two phones are apparently running only ICS right now, which would completely seal the deal about these two phones ending up as disasters But I really doubt they not going to launch with Jelly Bean, especially now that Motorola’s ICS skin is one of the lightest of any manufacturer.
The question is whether this will be enough. Rumors point to a new version of Android being released in November, so Motorola better make sure it will be launching the devices at least a month or more before that happens. Otherwise, they will end up like last year when they launched the Gingerbread RAZR literally a day before Samsung’s Galaxy Nexus launched with ICS. Hopefully, Google’s management will ensure that this won’t happen again with Motorola.
When HTC released the Nexus One with Google, and then a bunch of other devices based on mostly the same hardware, HTC became the favorite company of the custom ROM developer community. That was because Motorola’s devices were not as developer-friendly and Samsung hadn’t yet launch the Galaxy S flagship device.
But due the popularity of Samsung’s Galaxy devices, and because Samsung has always released the kernel source code shortly after the shipping of the devices, custom ROM developers have become a lot more fond of Samsung than of HTC. While the people who want to port custom ROMs on their devices may not be that great in number, I the openness of a device to hacking and tweaking does create a significant influence in the buying decision of many people. HTC is certainly not in a position to ignore any sales right now.
HTC started offering unlock codes for their devices a while back, but without the source code to make it easy for developers to make ROMs for the devices, it’s all rather pointless. HTC has been keeping the kernel source code, which they need to release within weeks after starting shipping the devices, for a lot longer than they should, which is usually between 90-120 days.
This has caused a bit of an outrage online, with several people claiming to sue HTC over copyright infringement because they are bound by the GPL license to release their code and modifications a lot earlier than they are releasing it right now. The same people have started a Change.org petition to convince HTC publicly to agree to releasing their source code sooner — as soon as they release their devices.
Their goal for the signatures is 7,000, and they’ve already reached 1,615 as of writing. If you think that this is an important issue, especially if you’re a custom ROM user on HTC devices, then you should be signing the petition right now at the source link.
As you may have noticed, we didn’t air our normally scheduled On Air live broadcast last Friday night. Yours truly was soaking up the sand, salt water, and sun at the beach. I thought about bringing my notebook and doing an On Air – Beach Edition broadcast. However, I decided to ditch the notebook for a week and fully enjoy my Nexus 7 as my main computing device. And let me tell you, it was amazing (the vacation and the tablet). The Nexus 7 is the prefect vacation computer. It accomplished everything I needed it to and being extremely portable, this tablet made it hassle free.
While I was off on vacation, as usual, the Android world moved forward. Verizon now allows you to share everything and then some with more data tiers while Sprint is giving away a free tablet with new smartphone purchases. HTC’s upcoming 5″ tablet…er phone ran around the rumor mill this week with a possible October 1st launch date. The OUYA Android Game console Kickstart project finally came to an end. OUYA was completely successful in raising $8.6 million, sadly we have to wait 7 months to get our units. Don’t worry HTC Thunderbolt and Desire S owners, you’ll be getting Jelly Bean “soon” according to HTC on Facebook. CM9 hits stable, paving the way for CM10 and the HTC Dream / G1 gets a working Jelly Bean CM10 port. Google has to disable copy protection temporarily to fix a bug that was breaking a lot of apps. Last but not least, the SGS3 wins in a drag race versus the iPhone 4S.
Sony LT29i, also called “Hayabusa” has been in the news for a few months now as the upcoming Sony flagship smarthpone. The actual market name of the device has been hidden so far, though, and it looks like it’s going to be named the Sony Xperia TX. The X in the name probably means the superior version of another model, say the Sony Xperia T. At least I hope that’s what it means, because otherwise, their names are starting to become a little confusing (SX, GX, TX).
Just like HTC prior to the One series, Sony needs a strong brand name for a flagship device, like the iPhone or Galaxy S. This results in better name recall, which means people can easily remember the model name, expect a new launch year after year, and keep scouring the web for the upcoming version when they intend to buy one. That’s how both Apple and Samsung built their strong phone brand names and why they get millions and millions of people interested in buying the new version once launched.
If Sony does that, and keeps putting cutting edge specs on its phones while continuing to impress with their design, then sony might actually make a comeback in the phone market.
The Sony Xperia TX “Hayabusa” is expected to have the following specs:
Dual core 1.5 Ghz Qualcomm S4 chip
4.6″ 720p HD display
13 MP camera
1 GB of RAM
Android 4.0.4
On-screen buttons
Sony will hold an event on August 29, a few days before IFA, and on the same day as Samsung. The company will be unveiling their Sony Xperia TX, Sony Xperia LT25 and their Xperia tablet. If you like Sony devices, make sure you don’t miss any of the Sony-related news that day.
Nvidia has had it rough in the past few quarters. As Intel keeps making higher-performance integrated graphics chips that are starting to be “good enough” for most laptop users, Nvidia is being slowly squeezed out of the graphics chips market for laptops. Maybe this wouldn’t be a terrible problem if desktop PC’s were still on a growth path, but they haven’t been for a few years due to the emergence of laptops as the main “PC” for most people.
While AMD has been losing market share to Intel in the past few years, too, at least they get to use their own graphics chips with their own CPUs. Nvidia’s only opportunity is to sell their graphics chips alongside Intel CPUs. But as people care less and less about high performance GPUs in laptops, and more about battery efficiency — and Intel keeps improving the performance of its GPUs — Nvidia’s market share is starting to decline.
Fortunately for Nvidia, they were able to see this trend early on, and that’s why they started working on the Tegra chips, making not just mobile GPUs, but also ARM CPUs. ARM chips are starting to become more and more important because the mobile market keeps growing rapidly, and also because they are starting to undermine Intel’s chips with “good enough” performance. This is the same “trick” (or strategy) Intel is using against Nvidia in laptops.
While Intel was busy disrupting Nvidia in the GPU market in laptops, Nvidia also started disrupting Intel in CPUs and GPUs in the ARM mobile market. The future ultimately sounds more promising for Nvidia than for Intel. Intel is disrupting Nvidia in the x86 market, while Nvidia is riding the wave of the whole ARM architecture disrupting x86, and therefore Intel (and AMD). If things keep going the way they have, and ARM chips start to actually threaten Intel in laptops/hybrid devices, Nvidia should be the ultimate winner in this fight.
Nvidia’s bet on ARM chips has already started to pay off, as their profits have doubled to $119 million on $1.04 billion revenue from $60.4 million in profit last quarter. The jump in profit happened thanks to Tegra 3 chips, and Nvidia’s profit is expected to grow even further now that Nexus 7 has been launched using the same Tegra 3 chip. Other devices using Nvidia’s Kai program are expected to launch later this year as well, including both tablets and smartphones.
Although the Nvidia chip is quite competitive in the market right now, it’s far from being the best, especially in raw GPU performance. This is surprising coming from Nvidia, one of the best GPU makers on the planet. The main reason for this is that Nvidia did not expect things to be moving this fast in the GPU market, so they only made a small 80mm2 SoC that allocated a lot of space for 5 CPU cores. This left only so much space for the GPU and other components, when other competitors have much larger 120mm2 SoCs.
Now that they know how aggressive other SoC makers are, they must’ve changed their plans for Tegra 4, which was initially supposed to come out this year. They now want to make a much better SoC with 4 Cortex A15 CPU cores running at 1.8 Ghz, and with 5 times more GPU cores than Tegra 3, that are also supposed to be built on the “Kepler” architecture. Things seem to continue to look promising for Nvidia in 2013, but we’ll have to see if they can deliver.
As you may have noticed, we didn’t air our normally scheduled On Air live broadcast last Friday night. Yours truly was soaking up the sand, salt water, and sun at the beach. I thought about bringing my notebook and doing an On Air – Beach Edition broadcast. However, I decided to ditch the notebook for a week and fully enjoy my Nexus 7 as my main computing device. And let me tell you, it was amazing (the vacation and the tablet). The Nexus 7 is the prefect vacation computer. It accomplished everything I needed it to and being extremely portable, this tablet made it hassle free.
