Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Android Authority

Android Authority


Google says new Nexus 4 stock will arrive “in the coming weeks”

Posted: 14 Nov 2012 02:54 AM PST

Still trying to refresh the Nexus 4 homepage in the hope that it'll magically show the phone as being in stock on Google Play? You may want to hear what Google has to say about the dire inventory situation of its Nexus devices.

Google made the following post on the Nexus’ Google Plus page:

There's been so much interest for the Nexus lineup that we've sold out of some of our initial stock in a few countries! We are working hard to add more Nexus devices to Google Play in the coming weeks to keep up with the high demand. You can learn more about Nexus devices and stay updated at play.google.com/nexus. 

Yep, "the coming weeks" is the best timeline that Google can provide for the availability of the out-of-stock Nexus 4 and its cousin on Google's online store for now. Of course, that could mean anything from tomorrow to next month and beyond.

If you’re in the U.S., you can get the Nexus 4 from T-Mobile starting today.  But those outside the country have to rely on Google Play to get their Nexus fix – at least for the time being. Hopefully Google will share more details soon.

Did you manage to score a Nexus 4 or two yesterday? What do you think of the new “availability date” of the Nexus 4?

 

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T-Mobile Galaxy S3 Jelly Bean OTA update now available to download

Posted: 14 Nov 2012 02:47 AM PST

T-Mobile Galaxy S3 owners, we have good news for you today. After so many leaks, it looks like the official Android 4.1.1 Jelly Bean update you have been waiting for so long is finally available to download over-the-air (OTA), although you should be able to upgrade your phone's firmware via KIES as well.

As you can see in these images, we're looking at a 334.19MB download for the SGH-T999 Galaxy S3 version, with the update expected to take around 10 minutes to complete. As always, make sure you have a dependable Internet connection and enough battery juice to get you through the process.

In case you were wondering, we're looking at firmware version J3O03L.T999UVDLJA for T-Mobile’s Galaxy S3 version, so go ahead, check your devices to see whether you have received the update notification.

Our tipster says that his Galaxy S3 was updated at 1:00 PST time  today (November 14) and that he updated it by checking for updates on the handset.

Thanks, Kristopher Q!

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Gartner reports Q3 gains for Android and Samsung as Nokia struggles

Posted: 14 Nov 2012 02:21 AM PST

Gartner's report on Q3 2012 reveals that worldwide smartphones sales are up nearly 50 percent on the same quarter last year. The overall mobile phone market actually declined, but smartphones are still on the rise and accounted for 39.6 percent of total sales. That adds up to 169.2 million units. We all know who sold most of them right? Samsung and Apple account for 46.5 percent of the smartphone market and the Android platform claimed a 72.4 percent market share.

If we dig a little deeper we can see that Samsung now has a commanding lead of the total mobile phone market with 22.9 percent, with Nokia hanging on to second place with 19.2 percent, and Apple a distant third with 5.5 percent. Those results are skewed by feature phones and so if we focus in on the smartphone market we see a different story entirely.

Samsung is still the clear leader, but by a greater margin, claiming 32.5 percent of the global smartphone market with 55 million smartphone sales in the third quarter of 2012. Apple sold 23.6 million smartphones in the same period to take second place. Nokia dropped to seventh in the smartphone chart with just 7.2 million smartphones sold.

The success of Samsung is firmly upon Android and the Galaxy line. Apple will probably have a stronger fourth quarter with the iPhone 5 rolling out in more territories. Nokia needs some magic to happen with Windows Phone 8 and the new Lumia range.

When it comes to platforms none of you will be surprised to see Android increasing its lead with a 72.4 percent market share, that's up from 52.5 percent in the same quarter last year. Apple's iOS has gone in the other direction, from 15 percent Q3 2011 to 13.9 percent Q3 2012. RIM has dropped from 11 percent to 5.3 percent.

The holiday season will see big smartphone sales. Can Microsoft's new platform make an impact? Will Android's market share climb higher? We'll keep you posted.

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White Nexus 4 listed by Carphone Warehouse, first blurry pic also leaked

Posted: 14 Nov 2012 02:18 AM PST

With the black Nexus 4 so hard to procure across the globe, I'm sure that most of you would be happy just to be able to get their hands on the most desired handheld right now. But what if I were to tell you that a white version of the 4.7-incher is also in the works and coming soon? Would that make you want to wait it out some more?

The existence of a white Nexus 4 has been speculated for a while, but until today there's been no conclusive proof backing that out. The first piece of evidence comes from Carphone Warehouse, and, while it looks pretty solid, it raises some questions.

If you go to the UK retailer's dedicated Nexus 4 page, the first thing you'll notice is an image of a regular Nexus 4 in black. Nothing spectacular so far, but if you scroll down, you'll see a color options section that has both a black and a white circle thingy.

If you select the white however, the black Nexus 4 simply vanishes and is replaced with nothing. One can therefore think that the listing of the white option is just a technical error, but if that's the case wouldn't Carphone Warehouse have had enough time to make things right already? And if it's not a mishap, why aren't there more details?

To make matters even more confusing, just as I was writing this up I bumped into a supposed leaked photo of the white Nexus 4 on Android4fans. We have no way to know if the pic is legit, but its blurriness and the fact that it came via an "anonymous tipster" makes us think that it's not the real deal.

That’s just speculation though and the only way to know something for sure is wait and hear from Google. Do you guys think that a white Nexus 4 is coming? Will it look like in the image above (only, you know, less blurry)? And most importantly, would you pass on the black version for this model?

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Nokia Maps rebranded as Here, coming to Android and iOS

Posted: 14 Nov 2012 01:42 AM PST

nokia here logo

Disappointed by the iPhone's map functionality? Then here comes some  respite.

Nokia has announced its latest strategy pertaining to its trademark Nokia Maps service by re-branding it as "Here" and launching beyond the Windows Phone platform. Here will come to iPhone/iOS as a dedicated maps app, whereas Android will get an open source developers kit, so that developers can use Here data on native maps applications. Here will also feature a web-version supporting Firefox OS in the coming year.

Here combines the local data with the data from the cloud for maximum performance. Nokia's maps app will provide complete voice-guided walking directions as well as guided transit directions (for the iOS version). Making use of Nokia's augmented reality profile, thanks to the acquisition of LiveSight, 3D Maps will be the key feature of Here, a feature only seen in the Nokia Lumia series up till now.

Nokia is keeping its fingers crossed to launch Here on iOS before the approval of Google Maps for the platform. As for the Android OS, a date for the developers' kit has not been confirmed yet. Do you think that Apple will favor Nokia here? Let us know what do you think.

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Motorola’s free $100 for those who can’t get Jelly Bean isn’t that easy to get

Posted: 14 Nov 2012 01:36 AM PST

Several months ago, Motorola said that people who own devices manufactured in 2011 and 2012 that will not get updated to Android 4.1 Jelly Bean would receive $100 as a form of compensation for their troubles. Two months later, the details of that program have finally solidified. You have to go to MotoTradeUp.com, select your phone, and here’s where things get nasty: You have to pick a new phone you want to buy. That’s right, Motorola will give you $100, but only if you’re going to buy another Motorola phone. And that $100, you’ll get it in the form of credit which you can use to either A) Pay your phone bill, or B) Buy accessories for your new handset.

So let’s recap: Motorola is owned by Google, yet they can’t seem to figure out how to update their phones to the latest version of Android. To make people happy, they said they’ll give them $100, but there are some serious strings attached. You need to buy a new phone, and the money you get isn’t actually money, it’s more like store credit.

Seriously, this is incredibly uncool.

What would we have liked to see? Easy, for Google to offer some sort of program whereby anyone with a Motorola device could send it to a repair center, one that’s run by Google themselves, and then have them flash said phone with a custom ROM. It would piss off the operators, but who cares about what they think? Just look at the HTC Droid DNA. It’s not only loaded to the gills with Verizon crapware, but it’s also got a giant Amazon widget out of the box. Do operators care about Google? Not in the slightest. That more than anything else should be on the company’s mind.

What do you think, did Motorola screw this one up?

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Nexus 4 will be available in “select” T-Mobile stores today, can also be had off-contract for $499

Posted: 14 Nov 2012 01:29 AM PST

LG Nexus 4

It's safe to say that Google had a great day yesterday following the sold out launch of the Nexus 4 at the Play Store. The same can't be said about customers who weren't able to purchase the pure Google phone due to the overwhelming demand.

If you're determined to get your hands on the Nexus 4 this week, there's a good chance that you'll be able to find one in your local T-Mobile stores today. The carrier has confirmed that it will be selling the handset in "select" stores" a day after the phone made its online sales debut.

Unfortunately, T-Mo hasn't provided more details on which stores will carry the Nexus 4. It's best to call your nearest T-Mobile branches before you leave the house if you don't want to return home empty-handed.

T-Mobile is selling the 16GB Nexus 4 for $199 with a two-year service agreement. Interestingly, you can also get the phone off-contract for $499. The jacked up price boggles the mind, but it’s not totally unexpected. At least, the option is there for folks who don't mind digging deep into their pocket.

On a more positive note, T-Mobile said that its Nexus 4 variant won't come with any bloatware. You'll also get future updates directly from Google, since it's basically "the same device that customers can buy in the Google Play store", according to the carrier's spokesman.

Contemplating on whether to get the Nexus 4 from T-Mobile today?

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AT&T intros two new rugged phones sporting new Enhanced PTT feature

Posted: 14 Nov 2012 01:19 AM PST

November is the month for new device releases and AT&T has two new phones coming that might catch your eye. These two devices, the Samsung Rugby 3 and the Sonim XP5560 Bolt, are going to be released soon with a new feature, Enhanced Push-to-Talk.

The new feature is essentially a new improved version of their current PTT service that's promised to be much faster, probably due to the fact that it works on their 4G LTE network. AT&T made it clear that this feature is also available on Android phones in its lineup, including the recently launched Samsung Galaxy Rugby Pro, and that it can also be enabled on other devices such as the Samsung Galaxy S3 or Skyrocket by downloading the app from the Play Store.

As for the Samsung Rugby 3, this device is one of the few new Samsung devices that is not running Android. Rather, this is a non-touch rugged flip phone that offers waterproof, dust proof, and even shock resistant features. Luxury features include a nice 2.4-inch QVGA screen as well as a 3MP camera. The phone will be available for free when purchased with a new two-year contract.

The Sonim XP5560 Bolt is also a rugged flip phone. This one, according to AT&T, is more rugged than its Samsung counterpart and “just might be the world's toughest phone." The Bolt will be available for $199 “for Enhanced PTT customers.”

Nevertheless, if you are in the market for a new rugged handset this holiday season, make sure to check and see if AT&T has what you need. If a PTT service is a must-have feature and you have an AT&T Android phone, then make sure to check the Play Store in the next few weeks to see if this new app is compatible with phone.

Show full PR text

A Perfect Match: Enhanced Push-to-Talk and Rugged Phones from AT&T

AT&T Launches AT&T Enhanced Push-to-Talk; Announces the Samsung Rugby® III and Sonim® XP 5560
Dallas, Texas, November 12, 2012

Tough phones and instant communications – that's a powerful combination. AT&T* today announced that its Enhanced Push-to-Talk (PTT) service is available for businesses and organizations of all sizes. With Enhanced PTT, AT&T customers can communicate faster, to larger talk groups, and across more types of handsets than ever before.

AT&T Enhanced PTT is designed for 4G LTE from the get-go, while others are still deploying push-to-talk services on legacy CDMA and iDEN networks.

AT&T's device lineup for Enhanced PTT provides the right device for the job – for every type of worker and every type of communication. Some of the newest devices in the line-up include:

Samsung Rugby® III: Starting soon, organizations can pick up the Samsung Rugby III for free with a two-year AT&T Enhanced PTT services agreement.** The Rugby III is a rugged flip phone that features a 2.4-inch QVGA display and a 3 megapixel camera. It includes a dedicated PTT button on the phone for easy access, is built to military specifications (810G specifications) and is waterproof, dust proof and shock resistant.***

In addition, AT&T offers Enhanced PTT on the Samsung Galaxy Rugby Pro™, an Android smartphone that is built to military specifications (810G specifications) and comes with full device encryption and corporate email support. Organizations using Enhanced PTT can also choose the Samsung Galaxy S® III or Samsung Galaxy S® II Skyrocket™ and download the Enhanced PTT service onto those devices.

Sonim® XP5560 BOLT: AT&T is also working with Sonim Technologies to offer the Sonim® XP5560 BOLT,**** which just might be the world's toughest phone. This ultra-rugged device comes with a comprehensive 3-year warranty and will cost $199 for Enhanced PTT customers. The Sonim® XP5560 BOLT features a dedicated PTT button and can stand up to many challenges, including drops from more than six feet onto concrete and submersion in water for 30 minutes. Businesses that operate in the most extreme environments will be able to count on the Sonim® XP5560 BOLT with AT&T Enhanced PTT to keep employees in touch.

In addition, AT&T Enhanced PTT is currently the only cellular PTT solution that runs on both the BlackBerry® Curve™ 9360 and BlackBerry® Bold™ 9900. AT&T is offering several of these devices for free through AT&T Business Solutions with an AT&T Enhanced PTT two-year contract.†

Key features of AT&T Enhanced PTT include:

Larger contact lists and talk groups than competitive PTT solutions
Ability to combine PTT services and mobile applications, with help from AT&T's team of mobility consulting and integration experts
Access to the nation's largest 4G network
Supervisory override and talk group scanning, features that were previously available only for two-way radio users
Sub-second call setup
Priority Dispatch Inc., a leader in delivery and logistics services across the Midwest, signed up for AT&T Enhanced PTT through the early access program. According to John Pohlman, Network Manager for Priority Dispatch, "We evaluated lots of other push-to-talk solutions using enterprise-grade Wi-Fi as well as 3G/4G data connections, and the others did not perform as well as AT&T Enhanced PTT."

"Based on our rigorous testing across major U.S. markets, we found that AT&T Enhanced Push-to-Talk provides a robust user experience with call setup times of less than one second and voice quality that compares favorably with traditional cellular voice services," said Amit Malhotra, Global Director of Insights at Metrico Wireless (now part of Spirent Communications).

Organizations interested in AT&T Enhanced PTT can choose from two different rate plans:

$5 per month when added to existing AT&T voice and data plans
$30 per month for a PTT-only rate plan (no voice or non-PTT data included).
Both plans include unlimited PTT, and data used by the Enhanced PTT application will not count against the customer's monthly data totals or incur pay-per-use charges.

"For workers in industries like construction, manufacturing and public safety, mobile devices that can withstand harsh conditions are essential. We're offering AT&T Enhanced PTT on a variety of rugged devices to give our customers the performance and durability they need to get in touch quickly on the job – no matter what conditions they face," said Chris Hill, Senior Vice President, Advanced Solutions, AT&T Business Solutions.

For more information on AT&T Enhanced PTT visit http://www.att.com/EPTT.

*AT&T products and services are provided or offered by subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T brand and not by AT&T Inc.

About AT&T

AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) is a premier communications holding company and one of the most honored companies in the world. Its subsidiaries and affiliates – AT&T operating companies – are the providers of AT&T services in the United States and internationally. With a powerful array of network resources that includes the nation's largest 4G network, AT&T is a leading provider of wireless, Wi-Fi, high speed Internet, voice and cloud-based services. A leader in mobile Internet, AT&T also offers the best wireless coverage worldwide of any U.S. carrier, offering the most wireless phones that work in the most countries. It also offers advanced TV services under the AT&T U-verse® and AT&T |DIRECTV brands. The company's suite of IP-based business communications services is one of the most advanced in the world.

** The Samsung Rugby III is not a 4G-enabled device, but still works with AT&T Enhanced PTT. Samsung, Galaxy S, Rugby, Skyrocket and Rugby Pro are trademarks of Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.

*** Meets US Mil-STD 810G for Dust, Humidity, Rain, and Shock. Waterproof against incidental exposure to water when all ports are tightly closed. NOT designed or intended for in water use. Submersible up to 1 meter for up to 30 minutes. Waterproof based on IP67 rating.

**** The Sonim® XP5560 BOLT is non-stocked device and will not be sold at AT&T retail stores.

† Additional restrictions apply on promotional pricing. Visit the AT&T Enhanced PTT pricing and promotions page for details.

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Samsung Galaxy Axiom leaks, could be a Galaxy S3 Mini version for US Cellular

Posted: 14 Nov 2012 01:10 AM PST

Although we've been far from impressed with Samsung's recently released Galaxy S3 Mini, it seems that for some reason Sammy still has faith in the 4-inch mid-ranger. And not just in Europe, but also in the States, where a slightly tweaked version of the phone, dubbed Galaxy Axiom, should see the light of day soon.

The info is not yet confirmed, but comes from Twitter account @evleaks, one of the most reliable sources of leaks and rumors these past few months.

According to @evleaks, the Galaxy Axiom (aka SCH-R830) will be heading to US Cellular with a dual-core Qualcomm MSM8960 processor clocked at 1.2 GHz. That should be slightly snappier than the 1 GHz NovaThor U8420 CPU powering the GS3 Mini, but other than that there isn't much to make the Axiom stand out.

There are even a couple of things to make it look more uninspired than the S3 Mini, starting with the Android 4.0 ICS on board and the 4 GB of internal memory (compared with the Mini, which has JB out of the box and 8 or 16 GB of storage).

The Galaxy Axiom will sport a similarly mediocre 4-inch screen with an 800 x 480 pixels resolution, though this might also be a tad worse than GS3 Mini's panel, being of the LCD variation and not Super AMOLED.

1 GB of RAM, 4G LTE speeds and 5 MP/1.3 MP dual cameras wrap up the Axiom's rumored spec sheet right know, while the battery's capacity and the phone's dimensions and weight are covered in mystery. Still, we wouldn't hold our breath for a battery larger than 1,500 mAh, while the design looks identical to that of the S3 Mini, which is not very bad, we guess.

No words on when we should expect the mid-ranger to start selling at US Cellular or for how much, but based on its running of ICS and that mediocre set of features we're guessing a December launch for around $100 (or even $50) is in the cards.

Anyone interested in the Galaxy Axiom? Anyone at all?

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Samsung rumored to be bringing multi-window feature to Galaxy S3

Posted: 14 Nov 2012 12:45 AM PST

Samsung Galaxy S III

Just over a month ago, Samsung released the Galaxy Note 2 with a very unique feature that made great use of the device's huge screen and allowed users to multitask much easier. This feature is called multi-window mode and the latest rumor says that the Galaxy S3 might be getting it as well, in addition to the original Galaxy Note. Keep in mind that this is the second time we hear this specific rumor.

The report comes from the guys at TGSpot, who are claiming that Samsung is planning on bringing the feature to the S3 in one of the future updates—using the screenshot above as their proof. This would make sense seeing as the Galaxy S3 has a huge screen and would be able to properly support such a feature. The only complication that I can see, and other sites have pointed out as well, would be using the keyboard to type something. The keyboard of the S3 naturally takes up quite a large amount of the screen, so this would certainly cause a usability problem for the multi-window feature.

Nevertheless, it would be great to see Samsung bring this feature to its #1 device, and I'm certain the 30 million+  S3 owners will not mind having this feature to show off.

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Android and Me

Android and Me


Google drops Nexus S and Motorola XOOM from AOSP, Android 4.2 not on roadmap

Posted: 13 Nov 2012 02:07 PM PST

Today’s launch of the Nexus 4 and Android 4.2 comes with a bit of sad news. Android Open Source Project technical lead Jean-Baptiste Queru announced today that the Nexus S and Motorola XOOM will not be updated to Android 4.2. Both devices will finish out their days on Android 4.1.2, just like...

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Controversial Solavei reports accelerated growth, pays out $1 million to social members

Posted: 13 Nov 2012 02:00 PM PST

Pre-paid wireless provider Solavei only launched six weeks ago and today they announced they have 65,000 members enrolled. Solavei operates as a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) on T-Mobile and they provide an optional program that rewards users for sharing the service with friends. To date,...

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Google will replenish Nexus 4 stock in the “coming weeks”

Posted: 13 Nov 2012 12:57 PM PST

Anyone trying to purchase a new Nexus device today likely ran into a couple frustrations. Google under-estimated demand and their online store was flooded with errors, then the Nexus 4 was quickly sold out. If you are lucky you might be able to find one at a local T-Mobile store, but you will [...]

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Miss out on the Nexus 4? Call your local T-Mobile store

Posted: 13 Nov 2012 12:33 PM PST

Did you try to purchase the Nexus 4 this morning and come up empty? The Google Play Store was riddled with errors and the highly-anticipated phone sold out quickly, but you might still be able to pick one up tomorrow at your local T-Mobile store. New customers will likely be forced into a [...]

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Verizon begins pre-loading the Amazon App Suite, but could it replace Google Play?

Posted: 13 Nov 2012 12:17 PM PST

Verizon recently announced they were closing their ecosystem store, and it appears they wasted no time in finding a new partner. Today Amazon is reporting that their new Amazon App Suit for Android will be pre-loaded on new Verizon devices, starting with the recently announced Droid DNA. The new...

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T-Mobile offers subscribers up to $250 to refer-a-friend

Posted: 13 Nov 2012 11:48 AM PST

T-Mobile is once again ready to offer its subscribers some “easy money” with its refer-a-friend promotion. The program launched last year, and now T-Mobile is pushing it again in a new set of videos. T-Mobile says it’s users will “get $250 a year to share the benefits”...

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Nexus 4 sells out in under 30 minutes [Update: maybe not]

Posted: 13 Nov 2012 09:15 AM PST

Google’s Nexus 4 was set to go on sale today at 9:00 AM PT, but the devices went on sale a little early and now it appears they are sold out. Eager customers slammed the Google Play Store and it was flooded with errors. A lucky few got their orders through [...]

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Google Play Store unable to keep up with Nexus demand

Posted: 13 Nov 2012 08:57 AM PST

“An error occurred while processing your purchase. Please try again later.” ”Oops, we had a problem with your request. Please try again. Your cart is currently empty.” ”We’re sorry there was an error. Please try again later.” “Oops, we had trouble...

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Nexus 4, Nexus 7 3G, and Nexus 10 now available on Google Play

Posted: 13 Nov 2012 08:40 AM PST

If you want to purchase one of Google’s new Nexus devices, then stop reading this post and head over to the Google Play Store before they sell out.

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Verizon unveils the DROID DNA by HTC

Posted: 13 Nov 2012 08:31 AM PST

The long-awaited DROID DNA by HTC has arrived. At a press event in New York City, Verizon and HTC finally unveiled the HTC DROID DNA in all its glory. While the Nexus 4 and Android 4.2 may be getting a lot of attention today, the DROID DNA’s 1080p 5-inch Super LCD 3 display with an...

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