Android Community |
- Mega Manager app provides on the go access to your Mega account
- OUYA starter guide: apps and gear you’ll want on day 1
- BlackBerry Android Runtime platform will be updated to support 4.1 Jelly Bean
- Pebble Notifier app will bring Tasker alerts to your wrist
- Samsung Galaxy S IV rendering offers metal vision for 2013
- MoviePass app launches bringing unlimited movies to Android users
- Amazon Coins announced as a virtual currency for Kindle Fire users
- Samsung Galaxy Young and Galaxy Fame smartphones announced
- OUYA game console will be in retail stores this June
- NVIDIA shows off PC game Borderlands 2 streaming with Project Shield
- Verizon Galaxy S III 4.1.2 Jelly Bean software update leaked
- HTC teases “a new sound and camera experience in 2013″
- 10 Awesome Live Wallpapers for Android
- Galaxy S III on T-Mobile reportedly getting 4G LTE March 27th
- Qualcomm’s Uplinq 2013 Mobile Developers Conference scheduled for September
- Gartner: By 2016 more than half of all mobile apps will be hybrid
- Nokia CEO hints at tablets in their future, Android isn’t ruled out
| Mega Manager app provides on the go access to your Mega account Posted: 05 Feb 2013 10:50 AM PST It looks like Kim Dotcom’s Mega service now has an Android app. Albeit, an unofficial Android app. The app is called Mega Manager and it has been launched in an alpha phase, which somehow seems fitting given the actual Mega service is still carrying a beta tag. The Mega Manager app is available for free and going back to the app being in alpha, it comes with a reminder that it is still a work in progress.
Even with some issues and quirks, this is better than what you have in terms of an official client at the moment — nothing. To be fair though, Kim Dotcom has said that an Android app is under development. What we haven’t heard though, is when that app is expected to arrive. Further details from Dotcom have revealed that apps are coming for Android and iOS as well as Mac, Windows and Linux with “some just weeks away.” Basically, at best we can expect an official Mega Android app in a few weeks time. Back to the Mega Manager app. In this case the app will alllow you to sign in to your account, browse files and download files. Downloaded files will be sent to your memory card and stored in a folder called /sdcard/MegaManager. It was also noted that all downloaded files will preserve the Mega.co.nz folder structure. At this time, that is the extent of the feature set. Well, there is also the security and crypto systems which are said to be complete and “using the same algorithms as the Mega.co.nz web client.” Given the limited feature set of the Mega Manager app, the list of upcoming features is quite long. Some of the goodies promised include uploading of files/folders, automatic uploading of images, contacts, trash, new account creation, folder sync, transfer overview and history and increased stability. That last one touches on some of the comments found in the Google Play Store listing — some are good and some not so good. [via Android Authority] |
| OUYA starter guide: apps and gear you’ll want on day 1 Posted: 05 Feb 2013 10:24 AM PST In case you haven’t been following along lately, the OUYA Android-powered game console will be arriving in stores soon. The OUYA console raised more than $8.5 million on Kickstarter and has been extremely popular and in demand from eager gamers. Today we learned that retail stores like Best Buy, Target, and more will have them in stores for $99 starting in June. So come June what will you want and need to be ready to game? Read on to find out.
Ever since firing up the kickstarter and getting millions of dollars from backers, OUYA has been making big announcements to keep everyone excited. From obviously being powered by an NVIDIA Tegra quad-core processor and supporting all those TegraZone games, to announcing new games and partnerships. Things like Final Fantasy III for OUYA. Backers should start getting their consoles in March, followed by site pre-order customers in April, then it will arrive in stores in June. So come day one and your OUYA console arrives, what will you need to be ready to rock? Well that all depends on the type of user you’ll be. The average consumer won’t need anything when they get their shiny new game console in the mail or from a retail Best Buy shop, as this comes with everything you need. For the $99 price you’ll get the console, a single controller, and the box includes HDMI, Ethernet, one USB 2.0, Micro USB and Bluetooth LE 4.0. This means you’ll be streaming movies to your HDTV, or enjoying a TegraZone game in minutes.
Many games will be optimized and work great with the OUYA, and many of those will be NVIDIA TegraZone apps. For everything from their camp you’ll want to check out our Tegra Hub, then make sure you download the NVIDIA TegraZone app for your OUYA if it doesn’t come pre-installed. Quality games like ShadowGun: Deadzone will be available on day one, and you’ll want a second controller to really enjoy some multiplayer FPS gaming. A second controller is $40 from OUYA, or will be $49 from retail stores. We suggest you get one ordered now before they’re sold out. Now for developers things will be different. They’ll need to be ready to code, have tons of redbull ready and waiting, and get the OUYA SDK (known as the ODK) downloaded and ready to go if you haven’t already. Developers can get started at ouya.tv/devs/ and start building awesome games. Now as far as games available come launch day? That’s still up in the air. The OUYA Game JAM developer event saw 166 game prototypes in 10 days. Those won’t all make it to market, but you can expect tons of quality releases to be announced in the next few months.
For those that just want to game you’ll want to check out these 10 games announced for the March release. You’ll want to download iHeartRadio for OUYA to stream music, and don’t forget the XBMC option for video playback and everything else that comes with that media console. Speaking of games, movies, and music, the OUYA has 8GB of internal storage but we’d recommend a nice 64GB thumb drive for added storage thanks to that USB 2.0 port, or even an external hard drive. When June finally rolls around I’d be headed to my nearest Best Buy or Target to pick up this awesome $99 gaming console because deep down it runs Android, and the options are limitless for this device. Stay tuned for more announcements and game news for the OUYA. Who’s already pre-ordered one? Device Info
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| BlackBerry Android Runtime platform will be updated to support 4.1 Jelly Bean Posted: 05 Feb 2013 10:07 AM PST We had already known that BlackBerry 10 was going to have support for Android apps, however the runtime support had previously been limited to an older version of Android. In fact, it has been limited to Android 2.3.3 Gingerbread. The good news is that BlackBerry has recently confirmed an update is in the works.
So far we have yet to learn exactly when this update will take place, however BlackBerry has noted that they are currently working to bring up a newer version of Android Runtime for BlackBerry 10. By newer, they are looking at Android 4.1 Jelly Bean with a goal to be able to “support all current features and APIs available on the Android Runtime platform today.” Furthermore, looking towards the future, it was said that they will also continue to evaluate new features and APIs. This by itself should be good news for users as well as developers looking to port their apps. Speaking of porting apps, previous reports have said that BlackBerry 10 will be launching with approximately 28,000 repackaged Android apps. We remain a bit skeptical on how well these apps will perform given what we have heard about the repackaging. For example, the Android apps are said to be a direct port with a switch that remaps the menu and back buttons to BB10 gestures. Alternatively, while we are skeptical, this does appear to be a good start. After all, much of the talk of success and failure of mobile operating systems these days seems hinged on available apps. The key here will likely also come down to how quickly BlackBerry can make this happen. Right now we are looking at a “TBD” date and still seeing iffy language such as talk of how BlackBerry is “still working throughout the details and full scope.” [via CrackBerry] |
| Pebble Notifier app will bring Tasker alerts to your wrist Posted: 05 Feb 2013 09:21 AM PST A recently launched app will bring Tasker alerts to your Pebble smartwatch. The app is called Pebble Notifier and rather simply, is described as being the “bridge between the Pebble application and Tasker.” Basically, those using the Pebble Notifier app will be able to get a wide variety of additional alerts and messages sent to their wrist.
Of course, while there is great potential here, this does come with the requirement of having a bit of knowledge when it comes to using Tasker. For those unfamiliar with Tasker, this app can do things such as automate a process based on a trigger — launch apps and turn services on or off just to name a few. Tasker is a really powerful app that we often describe as only being limited by your imagination. The Pebble Notifier app is free and will require the use of the Tasker app (currently priced at $6.49) and the official Pebble app. The Notifier app is currently sitting at version 1.1 and matches the official Pebble app in terms of device support. That is to say, Android 2.3 and higher for use. Some of the use cases for the Pebble Notifier app include having all of your Tasker notifications sent to your wrist. Diving in a bit further and we actually see some neat use cases. The Pebble is designed to allow the user to keep their smartphone in their pocket and potentially have it in their hands less. But keep in mind, not everything you may need will come to your Pebble. For example, you can use the Pebble Notifier app to send a message when your phone reaches a pre-determined battery level. Those interested can grab the Pebble Notifier from the Google Play Store using this link. |
| Samsung Galaxy S IV rendering offers metal vision for 2013 Posted: 05 Feb 2013 08:51 AM PST The latest Galaxy S IV render has surfaced and what can we say, it looks rather interesting. This time around we are seeing some specs as well as getting a look at the handset from a few angles. The specs have been seen before and appear to include the full run down such as the 5-inch 1080p display, Exynos 5450 processor and Android 4.2 Jelly Bean.
Interestingly enough, this render appears to show the Galaxy S IV as being metal and with front-facing speakers. The usual sensors seem to all be in place, not to mention the charging port and front-facing camera. The front-facing speakers look decent and just for comparison sake, the Galaxy S III has the speaker on the rear. Other points of the render include the handset as having a dedicated camera button (which would be nice to see) as well as a lock button and volume rocker. Coincidentally, while this render doesn’t match up with the previously leaked press render, it does follow the patten of having the volume rocker moved to the opposite side of the handset. If we had to venture a guess, the previous render seems a bit more believable. On the flip side though, this render is probably more of what we would like to see announced. Otherwise, you can see the full spec list in the above image and from what we are reading — aside from a difference in the battery size, the remaining goodies seem to mirror the earlier rumors. The Galaxy S IV was previously said to have a 2600 mAh battery while this list has the battery as being a Galaxy Note II matching 3100 mAh. Again, if we had to pick, the 3100 mAh battery would be much nicer. So how about it, anyone think this is what Samsung plans to announce, or will this end up being just another render made by those who are dreaming? [via Twitter @tamerallyy] |
| MoviePass app launches bringing unlimited movies to Android users Posted: 05 Feb 2013 08:10 AM PST MoviePass has officially launched an app for Android. Though, while the release of the app is certainly good news for movie fans, there is a catch that you will want to be aware of — MoviePass is still only available for those who have received an invitation. Those with knowledge of the service looking to get started can request an invitation directly from the MoviePass website.
For those not as familiar with the MoviePass name, this is a subscription service that will offer unlimited theater movies as well as some other perks. The service will set you back $30 per month (if you make a year-long commitment) and in addition to being able to watch an unlimited amount of in-theater movies, you can also look forward to the potential of “advance screenings, special events and exclusive offers.” MoviePass doesn’t go into all that much detail as to how readily available those extra perks will be, however even with the ability to watch an unlimited amount of movies for $30 — that sounds like a deal that could mean some savings for movie buffs. Getting back to the app though, the app is currently sitting at version 1.0 and will run on devices with Android 2.2 or later. Some of the features of the MoviePass app include being able to find theaters, get information on the movies, manager your perks and even connect with other MoviePass members. Bottom line here, those who find themselves at the movies on a regular basis may want to grab the app (Google Play link), or at the very least get the process started by requesting an invitation to the service itself. [via Android Police] |
| Amazon Coins announced as a virtual currency for Kindle Fire users Posted: 05 Feb 2013 07:23 AM PST Amazon has officially announced the upcoming availability of another virtual currency, Amazon Coins. These are set to arrive in May and will be available for those using a Kindle Fire. The coins will allow Kindle Fire users to purchase virtual items such as apps and games. The Amazon Coins will also be available to use towards in-app purchases.
Coming with the May arrival, Amazon has said they will be giving away “tens of millions of dollars' worth of free” coins that customers will be able to use toward Amazon Appstore app purchases. And on the flip side, Amazon has said that developers will need to have any and all new apps submitted prior to April 25 if they want to be ready for the launch of the Amazon Coins. Once the Coins come available in May, customers will have the option to continue using their current purchase method (credit card), or move over to the new virtual currency. While this may sound like another silly virtual currency, we can see some benefit in the case of the Kindle Fire user being a child — this sounds like an easy way to provide them with an allowance of sorts. Making things potentially easier for parents aside, Amazon is looking at the Coins as being another way for people to spend money. In fact, another way to capitalize on what they consider to be higher than average conversion rates. Amazon noted that “developers continue to report higher conversion rates on Amazon compared to other platforms.” Finally, developers with apps in the Appstore need not worry as they will get the same 70 percent revenue share whether the customers makes the purchase with the Amazon Coins or credit card. Basically, Amazon Coins will be nothing more than another way for people to spend money on apps. [via Amazon] |
| Samsung Galaxy Young and Galaxy Fame smartphones announced Posted: 05 Feb 2013 06:57 AM PST Samsung has officially announced another pair of Galaxy branded smartphones. These new additions look like they will be serving the low-end market and so far, the availability is limited. These handsets include the Galaxy Young and the Galaxy Fame. While these are both newly announced devices, the specs may sound a bit familiar as we have recently seen benchmarks for both.
Benchmarks aside, lets get into the official details from Samsung. Up first we have details for the Galaxy Young. This handset will feature a 3.27-inch HVGA display, 1GHz processor, 768MB of RAM, 4GB of internal storage, a 1300 mAh battery, Bluetooth 3.0, GPS, a microSD card slot and a 3 megapixel rear-facing camera. The Galaxy Fame will bring many of the same points such as a 1GHz processor, 4GB of internal storage, microSD card slot and 1300 mAh battery. Other specs of the Galaxy Fame include 512MB of RAM, Bluetooth 4.0, a VGA quality front-facing camera, a 5 megapixel rear-facing camera with LED flash and a 3.5-inch HVGA display. Both handsets will have Android 4.1 Jelly Bean along with HSPA connectivity. The Galaxy Young and Galaxy Fame will also each be released in two versions — a regular and a dual SIM model. The dual SIM models will allow for the ability to have two phone numbers, say one for work and one for home. Other perks of the dual SIM model will include an Always On Feature which forwards calls from one SIM to the other as well as the Hybrid Dual SIM setup which will allow for 3G data use on one SIM while taking a call on the other SIM.
Additionally, both the Galaxy Young and the Galaxy Fame will arrive as Google certified devices which means access to Google Play and the usual Google apps. The handsets will also have the complete range of Samsung apps including the Kies, S Cloud, the Samsung Hub and TouchWiz. So far we have yet to see anything released in terms of pricing or an availability date. [via SlashGear] |
| OUYA game console will be in retail stores this June Posted: 05 Feb 2013 06:29 AM PST The OUYA game console is going to soon be available in retail stores. The consoles are expected to land with several retailers including some brick-and-mortar and some on the web. The list of stores looks to include Gamestop, Best Buy and Target as well as Amazon. The OUYA should be available with these retailers beginning in June, and pre-orders are already available with several of them.
The price of the OUYA console will be $99.99, which is what we are seeing with the currently available pre-orders direct from OUYA. The extra controllers on the other hand look to be a bit pricier. Current OUYA controller pre-orders are available for $30, however retail availability is expected to be $50. To follow up on a previous report, those who are looking to pre-order direct from OUYA at this point have missed the April delivery timeframe and so far we have yet to see another update in terms of shipping. In addition to placing a pre-order with OUYA, you can also do so with Amazon, Best Buy and Target. We have yet to see release dates from all the retailers, however Target has the OUYA console listed with a release date of June 4. Aside from already having talked quite a bit about the OUYA due to the Kickstarter and pre-order availability — the console is expected to officially be unveiled in March. Taking that a step further and we have the Kickstarter backers set to receive their consoles in March with OUYA pre-orders coming in April and an official launch in June when the retail availability begins. The retail availability information came by way of the Wall Street Journal who recently interviewed CEO Julie Uhrman. During that interview Uhrman noted that they currently have more than 68,000 consoles on order and are expecting to have games from every genre and perhaps more important — games from publishers that you know. |
| NVIDIA shows off PC game Borderlands 2 streaming with Project Shield Posted: 04 Feb 2013 07:41 PM PST This evening the folks from NVIDIA have released a video for what will be known as PC Mondays. Each Monday they’ll be showing an impressive PC Game or something similar running on their new Project Shield Android-powered gaming device. For the gamers around these parts today they have Borderlands 2, one graphically intensive game looking just beautiful on their Tegra 4 powered gaming device. Check it out below.
Borderlands 2 is one of the better looking PC games available today, and luckily for NVIDIA they’ve got it on Project Shield. Obviously a Tegra 4 can’t handle those graphics but thanks to Shield being able to stream from a nearby NVIDIA PC, which happens to have the latest top-tier NVIDIA graphics card, this particular gamer is enjoying this shooter on the go with the most amazing graphics you’d ever expect. NVIDIA posted a blog post with a few additional details, and wants to let everyone know just how the term “AFK” will never be the same thanks to Project Shield. For those that aren’t gamers, AFK stands for away from keyboard. Now with Project Shield if nature calls just pull out your Shield and stream the game, it’s that easy. Here’s the video: This is a top-tier PC gaming experience being enjoyed and streamed in the palm of your hands folks. All thanks to the NVIDIA Tegra 4, Project Shield, and Android 4.2 Jelly Bean. You’ll notice in the video just how fast the actual gaming experience is even while streaming, with the PC in the background showing nearly the exact same image. When this hits mainstream if streaming is that fast, NVIDIA will have a winner. Stay tuned for more details and don’t forget to check out our Tegra Hub for more gaming goodness. Hopefully this launches in Q2 as NVIDIA’s predicted. I can’t wait to get my hands on one — again. [via NVIDIA Blog] |
| Verizon Galaxy S III 4.1.2 Jelly Bean software update leaked Posted: 04 Feb 2013 04:28 PM PST Samsung’s extremely popular Galaxy S III flagship smartphone has been updated at a quick pace from Sammy, and all but those in the US have been updated to the latest 4.1.2 Jelly Bean. Sadly for those in the US we’re still waiting for that update to arrive for some of the carriers, most notably Verizon’s model. Today however it leaked, but still isn’t showing all the features we’ve come to expect.
Yup, Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean for the Verizon Galaxy S III has managed to surface online. Thanks to a few users over at XDA Developers you can give the latest build from Samsung a try today, although I’d probably hold off. As usual this is just a leak and nothing official from Verizon or Samsung, so proceed with caution. Another issue with this little software leak which is build VRBMA2 is we’re hearing from multiple sources it is missing all those features you were hoping for. Of course we man the multi-window or Jelly Bean “premium pack” as Samsung’s calling it. That all is missing and not in this early build, so you should probably skip this one. The international Galaxy S III, as well as many in Canada, have all been updated to the premium pack full of goodies and 4.1.2 Jelly Bean. Many were hoping this would contain some of those features, but sadly it does not. If you’d like to flash it anyways feel free to grab the download from the XDA source linked to above. It appears to run quite well but there may be bugs so we’ll say it again, proceed with caution. Hopefully the official update is coming soon, otherwise this will have to do. Device Info
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| HTC teases “a new sound and camera experience in 2013″ Posted: 04 Feb 2013 03:22 PM PST We’ve been hearing a lot of details and leaks lately regarding the upcoming plans of phone manufacturer HTC. Most notably is their upcoming HTC M7 flagship smartphone set to be unveiled in mid February. Who doesn’t love a massive infographic to help paint the picture and tease their upcoming device? Today HTC has posted quite the long infographic showing the history of photography – as well as what that means for HTC.
Yup, today HTC has just posted one called “A Brief History of Photography” complete with many ‘firsts’ in the photography world all leading up to smartphones. Things like their DROID Incredible being the first 8 megapixel smartphone on Verizon, or the HTC EVO 3D gracing the world with dual 5 megapixel cameras. And now they’re claiming 2013 they’ll have another first. As the image above suggests, HTC has promised a “new sound and camera experience in 2013.” Basically claiming their new smartphone will bring an unparalleled and unmatched experience to the mobile landscape. They’ve already tried and failed with Beats Audio, but last years HTC One series had an amazing camera experience thanks to HTC ImageSense. Their chip and software dedicated specifically to the camera really made the One X shine, and we have a feeling Imagesense 2.0 will do the same for the HTC M7. This will be called the “ultrapixel” according to leaks. Earlier today we reported the new HTC M7 will feature a layer of 3 stacked 4.3 megapixel cameras with what they’re calling an ultrapixel camera. Rumors have been floating around that this new innovation will be one of the best selling points for the new HTC smartphone series, and will wow the customer. The device will be announced and revealed to the world on February 19th so stay tuned as we’ll have all the details live on the spot. Now I’m curious what new innovations they have added for sound. [via HTC] – Thanks Anders! |
| 10 Awesome Live Wallpapers for Android Posted: 04 Feb 2013 02:27 PM PST One of the many features that makes Android amazing is Live Wallpapers. Being able to make your smartphone or tablet come to life with an active and live moving wallpaper. There is literally hundreds and hundreds of choices on the Google Play Store. From holiday themed ones for Christmas, our favorite sports teams, Android 4.0 ICS boot animation live wallpapers and much more. Below you will find 10 awesome live wallpapers we thought you’d all enjoy.
There’s no better way to quickly and effectively make your Android smartphone or tablet feel unique and personalized to you. With thousands of live wallpapers to choose from, it’s really hard to just mention 10. These aren’t the 10 best, or the most popular, but just 10 we love and have used in the past. To start off we want to shout out a few awesome live wallpaper developers. First off check out DualBoot Games Apps as they have some of the best and festive options on the market. Then one of my personal favorite developers is Maxelus.net for offering such beautiful, classy, and simple live wallpapers. Then MakoMako also has some pretty impressive LWP options so check em out. First we wanted to start off with the Vortex Galaxy Live Wallpaper. It’s still one of my favorite LWP’s and I use it on at least a few different tablets at any given moment. The same developer is listed above and has tons of other awesome options from Crazy Colors, to Shadow Galaxy taking a close second.
The colors in the Vortex Galaxy are simply stunning, smooth, and beautiful. It’s calm and elegant and will keep your tablet or smartphone looking great for months. I change mine weekly, but this is certainly one of our favorites. Then, since it was just Super Bowl weekend and everyone loves sports another fun option is the NFL 2013 Live Wallpaper. It’s currently showing off the Super Bowl contenders, but you can pick from all the teams once you buy the paid version. With awesome graphics, and smooth visuals with flags swaying in the wind this is a great way to show your team spirit. With vibrant team colors, interactive 3D team helmets, and live fans and lighting in the stadium this developer really went all out. You’ll have to get the paid version to sport all teams, but it’s worth it. Then this developer could easily take up all 10 spots, but KittehFace Software has some of the most elegant and unique wallpapers around. Their Thunderstorm Live Wallpaper is extremely detailed and realistic, the clouds move in and thunder strikes. Oh and watch for rain! We have to give a shout out for Kittehface’s Koi Fish LWP, and the same goes for the simple yet peaceful Silhouette Live Wallpaper. They are all very peaceful and polished, and don’t forget to check out their American Flag option. We could have just called this 10 awesome Live Wallpaper developers because we have another great list and offering from 7art studio. This one is called Luminescent Jungle and you can probably guess how it looks. With optional clocks and more 7art Studio has some pretty neat wallpapers too. The Jungle is probably one of my favorites but your mother or sister might like their Flower Clock Live Wallpaper. Check them all out as this developer is all about clocks. Sun Rise Live Wallpaper is another one of our favorites around these parts. Simply for the fact that the developer nails the idea on the head. Waking up and looking at your phone with a pretty sun rise with trees floating in the wild and birds soaring the skies. It’s a great way to wake up. This is another dead simple yet very pretty and nice wallpaper option. There’s not a lot to it, but it doesn’t need anything else. If you’re lucky you might even get a rainbow to start off the day. Not everything is peaceful and calm however. If you want something a bit more crazy or dark we have a Dark Knight Rises themed wallpaper called Rise from a Fallen City. Instead of a picture just watch the quick video below to see how neat this one is. It sort of throws me off, but I still love it. Rise from a Fallen City comes from MakoMako, which is one of the developers we mentioned above. He has tons of different options, although his paid apps don’t have as many features as we’d like. The full version is coming soon hopefully with falling rocks, clouds, crumbling buildings and much more for the Batman fan in all of us. Another awesome option from the same developer is one called Animus Interface LWP. This like most, comes in a free version, then a paid $0.99 app with multiple options and settings. It’s inspired by Assassin’s Creed and has an awesome neon or almost Matrix-like look and feel. Some users reported this caused a little lag, but with impressive graphics and stunning visuals you should probably have a newer phone, just like some games require. For those with a Galaxy S III or other newer phones give this one a try. It’s neat! Time for another simple live wallpaper. This is called Glitter Live Wallpaper free and it’s exactly what you’d expect. Different colors, shapes, and sizes of glitter that will twinkle and glisten on your smartphone. The free version has three background colors and a few different Glitter options, but the paid app has plenty of tweaks to completely customize this live wallpaper. You can change glitter size, shape, speed, color, and you can add more glitter by tapping the screen. Daybreak Live Wallpaper by Jason Allen is another favorite of ours. This soothing live wallpaper shows a quaint little house farm in the silhouette of the sunlight and clouds going from twilight to dawn. The sky quality could be improved, but that might be to save battery and make everything smooth. This is another developer that has more than one live wallpaper, and most of them are quality releases worth giving a try. Hit the link above for all of his work, or below for this one specifically. Enjoy! Then last but certainly not least one of the oldest live wallpapers I still use all the time is Pixel Rain Live Wallpaper. It certainly isn’t HD and this 8-bit style pixels raining down your smartphone or tablet still is one of my favorites. The picture really doesn’t give pixel rain justice. The pixel-style rain drops will drop from the top of your display and come crashing to the bottom with a splash and bust into tiny pixels as they fade away. What makes this awesome aside from the cool pixel raindrops is the level of customization all for free. With more than 10 different colors you can change the color, size, frequency, and even tweak the shatter or splash. Pixel Rain has always been a favorite of mine, and you can get this from the link below. Now that was just a few of thousands and thousands of live wallpapers that grace the pages of the Google Play Store. We could ramble on for hours and show you tons of impressive wallpapers, but lets just start with these 10. We’d love to hear what your favorite LWP is. Feel free to drop us a comment or link below with your favorite ones. |
| Galaxy S III on T-Mobile reportedly getting 4G LTE March 27th Posted: 04 Feb 2013 02:08 PM PST We all know the folks at T-Mobile have been working diligently to get their own 4G LTE network up and running to compete with AT&T and Verizon. While their current 42 HSPA+ network is quick, it still isn’t quite 4G LTE. We know T-Mobile is planning to push their upgrade hard in the early parts of 2013, and a new leak shows the Galaxy S III might be first to the plate come March 27th.
According to a leaked roadmap provided by TmoNews Samsung has some big plans for T-Mobile. Earlier today we reported a Galaxy S III Mini type smartphone was headed to T-Mobile shelves this year, and now we’re hearing even more details about many of their plans. Who’s excited to get 4G LTE from the magenta carrier? The leak shows Samsung’s Galaxy S III Mini will be called the Samsung Galaxy Exhibit and should arrive around March 27th to pre-paid customers. Then while we were looking a little closer at the roadmap it shows the popular Samsung Galaxy S III with an LTE version. We’re not sure if T-Mobile will release a new 4G LTE model, or if they can update the current device and enable 4G LTE from inside the chipset. Reports have suggested the Note II has 4G LTE dormant, and it’s possibly both Samsung Galaxy devices will get an update that enables T-Mobile’s faster speeds. The leaked roadmap gives a date for the Galaxy S III LTE set for March 27th, or April 3rd depending on how things go. We sure hope T-Mobile offers an incentive or discount for current GSIII owners to get a new one if an update doesn’t enable LTE. I’d be upset to have just bought their flagship to see it replaced with a faster version a few months later. Stay tuned for more T-Mobile LTE news. [via TmoNews] |
| Qualcomm’s Uplinq 2013 Mobile Developers Conference scheduled for September Posted: 04 Feb 2013 01:45 PM PST Qualcomm has announced the dates for the Uplinq 2013 Mobile Developers Conference. Simply put, this years event will run from September 3 to 5. The conference will be held in San Diego and according to Qualcomm, will offer attendees an overview and deep-dive into technical education and business development opportunities.
Some of what will be covered during Uplinq 2013 include topics direct from Qualcomm as well as from third parties. For those new to the Uplinq conference, while this will include portions from Qualcomm, they seem to be making an effort to bring a wide variety of topics and opinions. In fact, Qualcomm has said that “every year a significant portion of Uplinq’s content is delivered by third parties.” Also, coming based on feedback from previous years attendees, Uplinq 2013 will feature additional technical sessions as well as “enhanced” business development programs. Getting a bit more specific, Uplinq 2013 will include sessions on everything from “how to exploit the powerful capabilities of today’s leading mobile devices and to enable them to cultivate the business connections essential to making money in mobile.” Basically, this is said to be a conference aimed at “all members of the value chain” to include executives and staff. As of now registration for Uplinq 2013 has yet to open. Qualcomm has however said that registration will open in early 2013 and that there will be some special offers available for those who choose to register early. Our sister site SlashGear will also be in San Diego to cover the event. In the meantime, you can check out some of the coverage they offered from previous years events. [via SlashGear] |
| Gartner: By 2016 more than half of all mobile apps will be hybrid Posted: 04 Feb 2013 01:01 PM PST New analysis from Gartner is pointing towards a future where a good portion of the new mobile apps will be hybrid. In fact, according to the report, “more than 50 percent of mobile apps deployed by 2016 will be hybrid.” Some of this deals with the enterprise side of the house and bring-your-own-device programs where it is becoming common for the IT department to have to support multiple mobile operating platforms.
The report notes that the hybrid architecture will combine the use of HTML5 and a native container for each device. This will allow users to run these apps on a variety of mobile operating systems including Android as well as iOS and BlackBerry. Key here though, the native container will mean access to the native device features. One of those native device features could be GPS, but that is just one example of what could be many. Alternatively, maybe the app will need to access the on-device camera or use of the notification system. Gartner points to how the need for context awareness in mobile applications has increased with the capabilities of mobile devices. Further pointing towards how this has caused developers to consider both hybrid and native architectures for development in cases where those core device features need to be accessed. Van Baker, research vice president at Gartner has said that their “advice would be to assume the enterprise will have to manage a large and diverse set of mobile applications that will span all major architectures.” Van Baker went on to say that “enterprises should consider how applications can be enriched or improved by the addition of native device capabilities and evaluate development frameworks that offer the ability to develop native, hybrid and Web applications using the same code base.” The end result here, Gartner is suggesting that when possible, cross-platform development solutions should be taken into consideration. In addition to the talk of hybrid apps, the Gartner report also made two other predictions — one involving Apple and one dealing with the $50 smartphone. The prediction surrounding Apple notes that by 2014, they will be as accepted in enterprise as Microsoft is today. And while that may be a prediction towards Apple, that should also give Microsoft something to think about. Of course, it seems we are already seeing this to some extent with the adoption of iOS devices in the workplace. Touching on that last prediction, Gartner noted that the first $50 smartphone will appear in emerging countries this year. Basically, this boils down to new entrants such as white-box handsets and Chinese brands helping to drive down the cost. Keeping this in mind and stepping outside the emerging market and Gartner suggests that current brand-name vendors may want to do some re-evaluating of low-end offerings and maybe even leave that market and focus on higher-end devices. [via Gartner] |
| Nokia CEO hints at tablets in their future, Android isn’t ruled out Posted: 04 Feb 2013 11:48 AM PST There has been a lot of talk and hope regarding Nokia coming over to the dark side we all know and love as Android. Or is it the good side? Sadly they went the Windows Phone route and so far have absolutely no plans on jumping ship and building an Android smartphones. While we’ve seen little leaks suggesting the possibility, a recent interview with Nokia CEO Stephen Elop has up hoping again.
The thought of Nokia building Windows Phone smartphones and an Android tablet sure are far-fetched, but during a recent interview with some Australian reporters he didn’t rule out the idea. While chatting with a few folks Nokia’s CEO declared that the company is certainly looking at and considering a tablet. While his original words were all about Microsoft’s Windows OS and the Surface tablet, when asked about which OS the tablet would run Android wasn’t ruled out.
Clearly stating the Microsoft side is the first focus, but they’ve not made any decisions or ruled out other possibilities. That’s when you take a second look at Android. Being an ever growing and competitive market a top quality Nokia Android tablet would surely shake things up. Most likely we won’t be seeing any tablets from Nokia any time soon. And even if we do, it’s highly doubtful that they’ll be running Android. If things don’t improve in the Windows world we could see Nokia dipping into the green waters eventually. For now, don’t get your hopes up. Thoughts? [via Unwired View] |
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