Friday, July 5, 2013

Android Central

Android Central

Just because you can reach me 24/7, doesn't mean you should!! - Talk Mobile

Posted: 04 Jul 2013 08:57 AM PDT

It's a phrase we've all likely heard some time, possibly even direct at ourselves: "You have to know when to stop." The advice applied to ice cream, beer, risqué jokes, and physical exertion can also apply to mobile technology. With these connected devices rarely out of arm's reach, it's sometimes difficult to know when to stop.

There are situations where any reasonable person would admit that using a smartphone would be inappropriate, but there's a huge gray area of personal judgement when it comes to the rest of life. How do we make the call between answering the digital siren call of our smartphones and giving our undivided attention what's happening in the real world right in front of us?

That digital siren call has somebody on the other end, though, a real person flesh and blood just like you. Do they have the right to your undivided attention as well? Do they even have the right to be beckoning for your attention in the first place?

Mobile technology and the internet have advanced so rapidly that we're literally making up the answers as we go along. What are the right answers?

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Making sense of the latest Android 'Master Key' security scare

Posted: 04 Jul 2013 08:54 AM PDT

Security

No spin, no bullshit, just clear simple talk about what's going on this time

Some real talk about this exploit that the Bluebox security team discovered is needed. The first thing to know is that you’re probably affected. It’s an exploit that works on every device that’s not been patched since Android 1.6. If you’ve rooted and ROM'd your phone, you can freely ignore all of this. None of this counts for you, because there is a whole different set of security concerns that comes with root and custom ROMs for you to worry about.

If you don’t have the infamous “Unknown Sources” permission box checked off in your settings, this all means nothing to you. Carry on, and feel free to be a little smug and self-righteous — you deserve it for eschewing sideloading all this time in case something like this could happen. If you don't know what this means, ask someone. 

For the rest of us, read past the break.

More: IDG News Service.

Special thanks to the whole Android Central Ambassador team for helping me make sense of this!

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Deal of the Day: Incipio Feather Hard Case for LG Nexus 4

Posted: 04 Jul 2013 07:39 AM PDT

Deal of the Day The July 4 ShopAndroid.com Deal of the Day is the Incipio Feather Hard Case for LG Nexus 4. Measuring less than 1mm thin, the Feather Case is ideal for the Nexus 4 user seeking inconspicuous, first-class protection. It's is made of an ultra light, ultra strong polymer for light as a feather, form-fitting durable protection without the added bulk. Comes in black, pink, blue and gray.

The Incipio Feather Hard Case is available for just $17.00, 32% off today only. Grab yours while supplies last!

Deal also available in the Canada store

Never miss a deal. Sign up for Daily Deal alerts

    

'Double speed' EE 4G launched in 12 UK cities

Posted: 04 Jul 2013 05:42 AM PDT

EE speed test

Download speeds of 40Mbps or more enabled by new 2x20MHz LTE network

As promised, network operator EE has launched "double speed" 4G LTE in some twelve British cities today. The new, faster speeds are enabled by allocating more of EE's spectrum to its LTE network — it's now using 2x20MHz of 1800MHz spectrum instead of 2x10MHz. This brings theoretical transfer rates of up to 150Mbps, with real world speeds averaging around 30-40Mbps. In practice we've seen throughput regularly hit 40-50Mbps in London and Manchester, with download speeds hitting highs of 78-79Mbps in some areas.

The new "double speed" 4G is available today in Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Derby, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Nottingham and Sheffield, with Derby and Nottingham being two last-minute additions to the list.

If you're on EE in any of these cities, be sure to run a speed test or two and let us know if you're seeing faster transfer rates.

    

White Nexus 4 now sold out on Google Play

Posted: 04 Jul 2013 04:52 AM PDT

White Nexus 4

White N4 'no longer available for sale,' says Google Play Store

Once an elusive beast captured only in blurry-cam photos from far corners of the world, it seems the white Nexus 4 has disappeared back into the shadows, at least for the moment. The device is now sold out on the U.S. Google Play Store, where both the 8 and 16-gigabyte versions are marked as "no longer available for sale." So if you're after a Nexus in this exclusive color, you'll have to look a little further afield — various sellers are still listing the device on eBay, for instance.

The white Nexus 4 hasn't been offered for sale through Google Play outside of the United States, though an LG press release did state that it'd be heading to "Asia, Europe and the Middle East" in addition to North America. Despite this, the white version has been hard to track down in many countries — and LG UK wasn't able to confirm to us whether the device would ever hit British shores.

The Nexus 4 is of course still available to buy in the original black color.

More: White Nexus 4 hands-on

Thanks to everyone who sent this in!

    

Ridiculously hard running simulation game 'QWOP' lands on Google Play for $0.99

Posted: 03 Jul 2013 06:17 PM PDT

QWOP

Well-known developer Noodlecake Studios is bringing the hilariously fun running game QWOP to the Google Play Store. Following up on its long-time success as a web game and more recently an iOS title, QWOP will hit Android with a full set of features including different game modes, leader boards and group competitions. If you're not familiar with the game, QWOP got its start as a running simulation game on the web that used the Q, W, O and P keys (get it?) on the keyboard to control a runner. It sounds easy, but in practice is hilariously hard to master. The game transitions the controls slightly to fit onto the mobile space, using the device's accelerometer to control the player's leaning, and two touch pads on-screen to control the legs.

The new Android version is also fully integrated with Google Play Game Services, meaning that you can link your Google+ account to the game to track achievements, leader boards and get group games going. You will get to test your skills at 100m, Hurdles, Long Jump, Steeplechase and the 50km Walk -- but don't expect to get too far without some serious practice. You can give the game a try on the web at the link below, or wait for the game to go live tomorrow for $0.99.

More: QWOP on the web

    

The Droid RAZR HD and RAZR HD MAXX are ready for another soak test

Posted: 03 Jul 2013 05:43 PM PDT

Soak testVerizon's Droid RAZR HD and Droid RAZR HD MAXX have something cooking up in Motorola's ovens, and emails are going out to potential testers right about now. Users who participate in the Motorola Feedback program and have one of the mentioned handsets are receiving instructions how to register to be included in the upcoming software test, and we imagine quite a few will be saying yes.

For those not familiar with the term, a soak test is one of the final steps where something (in this case software) is tested by a wide range of users under many different conditions. Think of it as sort of a stress test so developers know how things will stand up with continuous use. If you're thinking that sometimes it's not very fun to participate in something like this, you're absolutely right.

Anyhoo, the test emails are going out but we've no idea exactly what is being soaked, erm, tested. It could be Android 4.2.2, or it could be another bug fixing maintenance update to correct issues from the last bug fixing maintenance update -- this sort of thing can be a never ending circle. We'll know more when the participants start to receive the software, because some secrets are too good not to tell.

Thanks to our anonymous tipsters!

    

This week's sidebar poll: What is your top social networking feature?

Posted: 03 Jul 2013 05:14 PM PDT

Get social

We've been talking social networking all week here at Mobile Nations, and with close to a Billion Android devices out there, we know the social networks are filled with plenty of Android users. And we have plenty of choice about which social networks we want to use.

While using the same network as our friends is probably the biggest deciding factor, there are other reasons why we pick the service we want to use as our virtual soapbox. Some people have very valid privacy concerns. Others are more interested in the best way to share the pictures and video they take. And some get hooked on the messaging or video chat services these platforms have to offer.

All the popular services are slowly beginning to resemble each other. Messengers, photo and video uploading and sharing, and contact management seem to be the popular issues people think about when they decide which service is the best for them. When we want to know what you guys and gals think, we ask. 

On the sidebar to the right, and after the break, you'll find this week's poll. Take a second and let us know what you think the most important feature of a good social network is. My answer? I share everything with the public. I don't need fancy privacy settings (though i appreciate that they are there) or contact management. My big feature is photo storage and sharing. Be sure to tell us what you want.

Before we go, let's revisit last week's poll.

Are you ordering a Google Play Edition phone?

Google Play edition

Pretty convincing and expected result there. We knew going in that these weren't going to be mainstream devices, and your choice echoes that.

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