Android Authority |
- Google said to introduce Opera Mini and Amazon Silk like features in Chrome
- LG: We’ve shipped over 10 million phones with 4G LTE support (mostly in Korea)
- Best Paid Android Apps of the Week: February 24 – March 2
- Disney’s Toy Story smashes its way to Google Play [video]
- Alien VS Predator: Evolution is now available via Google Play
| Google said to introduce Opera Mini and Amazon Silk like features in Chrome Posted: 02 Mar 2013 11:58 PM PST
My entire career as a journalist covering the mobile technology industry can be traced back to one application: Opera Mini. When it came out in 2005, I installed it on my phone just to see what it was all about, and I was totally blown away at how well it worked. The basic principle is this: You want to visit a web site, so you type the URL into Opera Mini’s address bar. Mini sends that URL to a server in some far away country, which then renders the page, strips out all the garbage, compresses the hell out of it, and then spits it back down to your phone. Mini made surfing the internet on GPRS easy, and it made me want to buy a smartphone, not for the 3G, but for the larger screen! I started blogging about my new phone (Nokia E61) as a hobby, and here I am now. This is 2013, and people living in Western countries don’t really need Opera Mini thanks to high speed wireless networks and subsidized phones that have no problem rendering heavy websites. But there’s still a sizable amount of population living in countries where EDGE is considered blistering fast. Which finally brings us to today’s news: A developer by the name of François Beaufort noticed that the latest nightly build of Chromium includes support for a compression service. Here’s Google’s description of the feature, straight from the source code:
That’s an incredibly easy statement to interpret, Google is basically going to copy Opera Mini. Why is this feature showing up in Chromium first is something I don’t quite understand, but at the same time I acknowledge that I know absolutely nothing about how Google works internally. When will this feature get formally announced? I’m hoping Google I/O, but that’s just a guess. The post Google said to introduce Opera Mini and Amazon Silk like features in Chrome appeared first on Android Authority. |
| LG: We’ve shipped over 10 million phones with 4G LTE support (mostly in Korea) Posted: 02 Mar 2013 11:09 PM PST
Most companies don’t publish press releases on Sunday because … let’s face it, us journalists need our rest too. But for some strange reason, LG felt compelled to drop this bombshell on us: The company has shipped over 10 million 4G LTE smartphones. Let’s put this number into some context. LG announced that they shipped 5 million 4G LTE smartphones in August 2012. That’s seven months ago. That means LG is shipping less than 715,000 4G LTE phones every 30 days. Not so impressive sounds now, is it? You also have to remember that these are global sales figures. Which markets actually have commercially running 4G LTE networks? America is the big one, and there are a handful in Europe, but LG’s bread and butter is their home turf, South Korea. LG doesn’t say how many of these 10 million 4G LTE phones were sold in countries other than Korea, but we have a feeling that it isn’t a big number. But let’s talk about a broader issue, 4G LTE fragmentation. The UK only now finished their 4G LTE spectrum auction, with operators buying airwaves in the 800 MHz and 2600 MHz bands. Several European operators have decided to go with the 1800 MHz band. America’s two largest operators use the 700 MHz band, but they use two different blocks which make them incompatible. In other words, while LG’s “achievement” isn’t really anything to write home about, in context of the world we’re living in it’s not actually so bad. Qualcomm has promised to solve the 4G LTE fragmentation issue later this year, but anyone can publish a press release saying that. We want to see actual products that can roam between continents. What about you guys, do you own a 4G LTE phone? Do you not even care? Are the 3G networks in your country fast enough that you’ll be fine sticking it out with HSPA+ for the next few years? The post LG: We’ve shipped over 10 million phones with 4G LTE support (mostly in Korea) appeared first on Android Authority. |
| Best Paid Android Apps of the Week: February 24 – March 2 Posted: 02 Mar 2013 09:38 AM PST
Unity LauncherIn case you’ve been living with your head in a ditch, you’ve no doubt heard that Ubuntu is working on a mobile OS. It’s very, very early and most things don’t work yet, but if they get it to be even mostly as good as their videos look, it will be impressive. So why wait to try out the features? Unity Launcher is currently available in the Google Play Store for $1.99. The premise of Unity Launcher is simple, to emulate the side bar launcher. It’s quite easy to use as well. Users install the app and slide to the right from the edge of the screen. The launcher will pop up and you can select whatever app you want to launch. You can also customize it and put whatever apps you want in the launcher. The best part? You can open it while in any application. Full screen, camera, phone, Google Play Store, whatever you want. It opens everywhere and makes it easy to switch apps. If you’re a frequent app switcher, then this paid app is highly recommended.
Cars & GunsThis fun little racer takes place in a world of cardboard. That’s not a joke, all the roads, landscapes, cars, textures, and everything else carries look of cardboard. As stated in the intro of the app, this is intentional and gives a somewhat unique, if a little bland, graphic experience. You can find it in the Google Play Store for $1.00. Cars & Guns features very simple controls. There is a forward, backward, left, and right button. So controlling the cars around the various apps is pretty easy to do. In game, you’ll go on scavenger hunts for items, race against AI players, and do time trials on levels. After each, you’ll earn money which you can use to buy various things. If you’re into racing games, this is a paid app worth checking out.
Second Grade LearningWe likely won’t put a lot of educational apps intended for younger kids very often, but if we can find good ones, we definitely will. This is a great little game app that is geared toward teaching kids various things. Frankly, based on how people type on the internet these days, there are a few adults I know who could benefit from parts of this app as well. You can find this paid app in the Google Play Store for $.99. In the game, kids and dumb adults can learn and practice a myriad of subjects. Words and grammar, math and money, and a few others will help your second grader read at a third grade level. There isn’t a story and once you start a game, they don’t end unless you manually end them yourself. However, if you got a kid and you need to keep him or her busy for a few minutes, this will help keep them occupied. It’ll also help them practice the basics. That’s a win-win!
Slingshot RacerSlingshot Racer takes the racing concept and adds a unique detail to it. Instead of using buttons or tilting your device to steer, you’ll tap the screen and slingshot around corners. It’s easy to learn, but hard to do well. You can find this paid app in the Google Play Store for $.99.
Best Paid Apps of the Week – Pick of the WeekIt was a tough one, because it’s always hard to gauge value on paid apps. Especially when comparing games to regular paid apps. However, our pick of the week is Unity Launcher. It’s two bucks in the Google Play Store and it seems really simplistic. However, it’s one of those applications that you won’t realize you’ll use it until you get used to using it. Being able to open any app anywhere can shave a few seconds off of any user action. Over the course of weeks, you’ll be saving minutes of your life going back to the home screen, opening the app drawer, finding the app, and opening it. Just open the side bar, find the app, and open it. Looking to give these paid apps a try? Check out the widgets above and the video link below. Also, if there is a recently released paid app or game you’d like to see on this list, leave us a comment and let us know! The post Best Paid Android Apps of the Week: February 24 – March 2 appeared first on Android Authority. |
| Disney’s Toy Story smashes its way to Google Play [video] Posted: 02 Mar 2013 05:20 AM PST
Have you ever wondered what Angry Birds would look like if it had been starred by the gang from Toy Story instead? Well, wonder no more, as that seems to be the basic idea behind Disney's latest game, Toy Story: Smash It! – albeit with an added 3D twist. Toy Story: Smash It! is a physics-based puzzle game that features Buzz Lightyear, Woody, and some of your favorite characters from the acclaimed animated movies. Check out the features and trailer for the game below.
Note that Buzz is the only playable character in the game, but no doubt you'll be seeing plenty of familiar faces throughout the game. If you're interested, you can download Toy Story: Smash It! from Google Play for $1.
The post Disney's Toy Story smashes its way to Google Play [video] appeared first on Android Authority. |
| Alien VS Predator: Evolution is now available via Google Play Posted: 02 Mar 2013 03:34 AM PST
Trouble between aliens and predators has been brewing since August of last year, and it quickly escalated to epic levels last month. Instead of leaving it to fate, you get to decide which extra-terrestrial species will come out on top in this bloody battles. The action-adventure game Alien VS Predator: Evolution for the Android platform has finally made its way to Google Play. As Super Predators, the Aliens are your lethal, yet unwilling partner to fight off the other clan, the Jungle Hunter Predators. On the other hand, the Aliens are more than willing to shred others to bits and pieces to free themselves from slavery and get their freedom. You can also choose to take on the role of a Jungle Hunter Predator. Whilst the battles take place, the poor human race seems to be caught in the middle. You can't play them as characters, though. We have to say that the graphics look phenomenal and the gameplay is pretty varied; both are qualities you'd expect to see from Angry Mob Games. If you're up for some gory fun, you can grab AVP: Evolution from the Play Store for $4.99. The post Alien VS Predator: Evolution is now available via Google Play appeared first on Android Authority. |
Welcome to our first week of our best paid apps of the week list. Our goal here at Android Authority is to find the best paid apps every week, make a list, and help everybody find the best new stuff to try out. We’ll do a brief review to let you guys know how the apps work and our initial impressions on them. Then, if you want to try them, the links will be at the bottom. Also, if you’ don’t want to read it, you can watch in our weekly video, also posted at the bottom. With that said, let’s get started!
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