Thursday, March 7, 2013

Android Authority

Android Authority


Samsung reminds us that the Galaxy S4 is coming. Like anyone needed it

Posted: 07 Mar 2013 02:40 AM PST

times square samsung galaxy s4 launch billboard (4)

The Galaxy S4 is coming. Did you know? Just in case you didn't, Samsung is happy to let you know through a new blog post and some Times Square billboards.

A week ahead of the launch of the Galaxy S4, time is slowing to a crawl for Samsung fans and tech bloggers alike. Luckily, Samsung is throwing us some bones in the form of a few (more or less) inspired teasers.

Today, Sammy is reminding us that people coming on March 14 in New York's iconic Times Square will get to experience the new Galaxy S4 before anyone else.

To drum up the event, the Korean giant has installed a few billboards around the Square. Looking at the pics that Samsung put on its blog, I can't help feeling that I am looking at frames from a sci-fi flick, with the huge displays and bustling city life going on in their flickering light. But that's just an old man talking.

times square samsung galaxy s4 launch billboard (2) times square samsung galaxy s4 launch billboard (1)

People in the Times Square on the evening of March 14 will get to watch the livestream of the launch event and "experience the Galaxy S4" whatever that means.

Are you excited about the Galaxy S4? Do you think Samsung can repeat last year's performance? Tell us in the comments.

The post Samsung reminds us that the Galaxy S4 is coming. Like anyone needed it appeared first on Android Authority.

Qualcomm shows off benefits of Snapdragon processor in the Sony Xperia Tablet Z

Posted: 07 Mar 2013 02:32 AM PST

Sony Xperia Tablet Z aa 600px (8)The Sony Xperia Tablet Z was officially revealed at the recent Mobile World Congress in Barcelona where it was well received. The 10.1-inch tablet is just 6.9mm thick, and weighs just 495g. It is also water proof and has a full HD display. Nice. But there is more, the device is powered by a 1.5 GHz quad-core Snapdragon S4 Pro processor and Qualcomm is keen to highlight the new asynchronous multi-processing technology inside the Snapdragon that improves the battery life of the Xperia Tablet Z.

Before your eyes glaze over and you start mumbling “asynchronous multi-what technology”, don’t be put off by the techno-babble. It is really simple. In almost all dual-core and quad-core processors the CPU speed can be changed to conserve battery life. When the CPU isn’t doing much it runs at less GHz than when it is busy. Great. But the problem is that this speed control applies to the whole CPU. So if core #1 is running at 1.5GHz, so must be core #2 and so on. With the asynchronous multi-processing cleverness in the Snapdragon S4 Pro, each core can be clocked at a different speed. This means that if core #1 is doing something hard and is running at full speed but then a background task starts to do something simple, like update a widget, the second core fires up but not necessarily at the full 1.5GHz that core #1 is running at. This can be applied to all the cores.

According to Qualcomm, this eliminates the need for the big.LITTLE architecture that ARM is pushing and that will feature in the new Exynos 5 Octa. In one corner we have Samsung and ARM’s big.LITTLE architecture (which combines a set of Cortex A7 cores with a set of Cortex A15 cores and switches between them depending on the load). In the other corner Qualcomm have come out fighting with asynchronous multi-processing. Which is better? Which delivers the best battery life / performance ratio? As of yet this is unknown until some real tests and benchmarks can be run on these devices.

In the video below Travis Lanier of Qualcomm explains the benefits of the asynchronous multi-processing technology inside Snapdragon Processors, powering the Sony Xperia Tablet Z.

Are you a fan of the Qualcomm Snapdragon or the Samsung Exynos range. Let me know in a comment below.

The post Qualcomm shows off benefits of Snapdragon processor in the Sony Xperia Tablet Z appeared first on Android Authority.

Nexus 7 official dock went up on Google Play for $29.99, quickly sold out

Posted: 07 Mar 2013 02:20 AM PST

Nexus-7-google-play

We've been expecting the Nexus 7 docking station to hit Google Play since last year, but it never did materialize. There's also a glimmer of hope that the audio dock would be arriving in January, but again, Nexus 7 owners were forced to wait longer.

Arriving spectacularly late, the official docking station for Google's 7-inch Nexus tablet, launched back in June of last year, is (or was — more on this later) finally available on the Play Store, where it can be had for $29.99.

Notice anything strange about the price? Your eyes have not deceived you, as Google has really dropped the price of the docking station. You see, the dock was initially going to be offered for $40. The fact that it's pretty limited in features, as we've discussed here, perhaps aided to its $10 price cut.

In case you haven't bought any third-party dock, hit the link below to purchase the Nexus 7 dock directly. Unfortunately, the listing now says that it's "temporarily out stock". You may want to check back in a few hours, days, or weeks. Do you think Google will ever learn to properly stock highly sought items on its store?

The post Nexus 7 official dock went up on Google Play for $29.99, quickly sold out appeared first on Android Authority.

It’s alive: Asus Transformer AiO gets official spec sheet, pricing and release date

Posted: 07 Mar 2013 02:09 AM PST

Transformer Aio

Unveiled for the first time a full nine months ago, the Asus Transformer AiO part Windows 8 all-in-one PC/part Android tablet pretty much divided the tech world in two. There were those who saw it as brilliant innovation and those who called it a monstrosity. A beastly Frankensteinian creature, if you will.

A heated debate might have started, only no one really believed it would turn into reality. No matter what side were you on, you still could have smelled the vaporware stench. But then the hybrid got a second unveiling this January and now a third, along with the much awaited revealing of the spec sheet and pricing.

Where do we start? How about with the confirmation that the 18.4-inch display boasts a Full HD 1,920 x 1,080 pixels resolution? The thing also has 10-point touch, so it definitely sounds nice.

asus-transformer-aio-2

On the tablet part, you get a quad-core Nvidia Tegra 3 processor with an unknown clocking speed, 2 GB of RAM, 32 GB of on-board storage, microSD support, a 1 MP front-facing cam and a 32 Whr battery capable of around 5 hours of continuous use.

Not exactly ideal for a top-tier 2013 tab, but at least there's Android 4.1 Jelly Bean to butter the thing up. As far as design goes, the slate looks like your ordinary Asus Eee Pad, only, you know, a lot bigger. It weighs 5.28 pounds by itself, so don't even think about this as a travelling pal.

Meanwhile, once you dock the tablet into the PC station, you'll get a far snappier computing machine with Windows 8, an Intel Core i5-3350P processor, 8 GB of RAM, a 1 TB HDD and a GeForce GT 730M GPU. There's also a SuperMulti DVD Drive there, as well as a wide selection of ports and connectivity options – USB 3.0, HDMI, Wi-Fi, Ethernet and an SD card reader.

asus_transformer_aio-2

Of course, you can still use the hybrid with Android even when it's connected to the dock and all you have to do is flip a switch conveniently placed on the right side of the PC station. The entire “creature” weighs in at around 9 pounds and will go on sale on April 12 for… wait for it… $1,299.

Wow, that's actually not bad. It's a pretty penny, no doubt about it, but there are plenty of traditional all-in-one PCs around that go for just as much. And this one brings the best of both worlds. Or does it? What do you guys think? Innovation or monstrosity?

The post It’s alive: Asus Transformer AiO gets official spec sheet, pricing and release date appeared first on Android Authority.

LG compares the Optimus G Pro’s display to the Galaxy Note 2’s. Guess who comes on top

Posted: 07 Mar 2013 02:06 AM PST

LG Optimus G Pro vs Samsung Galaxy Note 2 [aa] (4) - 600px

LG is comparing the display of the Optimus G Pro with the Galaxy Note 2 in a new video. While the simulations are a bit over the top, the points are still valid.

We were very impressed with the new LG Optimus G Pro when we saw it at MWC last week. Darcy even said he is considering dumping his beloved Galaxy Note 2 for LG's latest beauty; and that says something.

One of the main attractions of the G Pro is its stunning 5.5-inch full HD display. The IPS panel delivers an amazing level of crispness (400 ppi) and the color calibration is accurate. But how does the display of the Optimus G Pro stack up against the reigning king of phablets, the Galaxy Note 2?

LG thinks that its product is superior to the Note 2 and it's not afraid to show it. Check out the video below. LG claims that the G Pro delivers better viewing angles, a crisper image, and nicer colors than an unnamed competitor that is obviously the AMOLED Note 2.

The video is exaggerated, in my opinion. I mean, even at just 720p, the display of the Note 2 is still an excellent one. Still the points are mostly valid.

As I expected, LG has commenced a frontal assault against the Note 2. The Lucky Goldstar company wants a piece of the phablet action, now that consumers have shown they're crazy for bigger phones. To stay ahead, Samsung is said to be making a 5.9-inch phone, that could well be the Note 3. But that’s months away. For now, LG (along with Huawei and ZTE) have a chance to undermine Samsung in this area.

For more on Optimus G Pro vs Galaxy Note 2, check out our MWC comparison video:

Would you trade the Note 2 for the Optimus G Pro?

The post LG compares the Optimus G Pro’s display to the Galaxy Note 2's. Guess who comes on top appeared first on Android Authority.

ClockworkMod Superuser now integrated into CyanogenMod

Posted: 07 Mar 2013 01:46 AM PST

Clockworkmod Superuser Screenshot CyanogenModTowards the end of February Koushik Dutta, best known as the author of ClockworkMod Recovery, released a new superuser access app called ClockworkMod Superuser. The initial release could only be installed via recovery mode but it didn’t take long before it was made into an .apk and uploaded to the Google Play Store. The popularity of the new utility, which allows users to grant and manage which apps have root access on a rooted device, has been phenomenal (considering it only applies to rooted devices) and now ClockworkMod Superuser has been fully integrated into CyanogenMod.

The move to integrate ClockworkMod Superuser into CyanogenMod has generally been welcomed. The problem with the old super user apps (and there were several) is that they were all closed source. The new app is open source meaning that it can be subjected to independent security analysis. Before ClockworkMod Superuser, the reality was that every rooted device relied on the same bits of software to grant or deny administrator access and nobody was able to prove or inspect what these apps were doing! Although the chances of these apps being rogue was virtually zero, by moving to open source this has made it actually zero.

Other key features of ClockworkMod Superuser include multiple user account support on Android 4.2 devices, PIN protection and integration into the Android notification system. The app also supports tablets with an optimized user interface. If you aren’t using a nightly build of CyanogenMod you can get ClockworkMod Superuser from Google Play.

The post ClockworkMod Superuser now integrated into CyanogenMod appeared first on Android Authority.

“World’s first Ubuntu tablet” looks fishy, allegedly ships in October 2013

Posted: 07 Mar 2013 01:25 AM PST

Intermatrix U7

They say you have to watch out for false prophets, which might very well be the case with the world's first alleged Ubuntu tablet. There definitely is more than meets the eye about the Intermatrix U7, a 7-incher supposed to start shipping in October 2013 in Australia.

But let's start from the beginning. Although we can't really remember when we first heard about Canonical's plans for Ubuntu-powered phones and tablets. Anyways, the new mobile OS hit the ground running a few weeks ago with a dev preview available to test on Nexus phones.

Ubuntu for tablets was announced soon after and is due out for developers on the Nexus 7 and 10 "soon". As for actual releases of specific devices running Ubuntu, we were only given vague ETAs, like late 2013 for phones and early 2014 for tabs.

So where does the Intermatrix U7 fit in this picture? Well, that's the thing, it really doesn't. First of all, because it comes from a virtually unknown Australian manufacturer. True, our speculations of a Canonical – HTC partnership might have not proved legitimate for now, but that doesn't mean we won't be seeing big time OEMs get in the game sooner or later.

Second, Intermatrix says the U7 is to ship starting October 2013, but Canonical was adamant Ubuntu for tablets is still very much a work in progress. The first "official" slates are only expected in 2014, so how could someone like Intermatrix pull off such an early release?

Intermatrix U7-2

Third and most importantly, U7's spec sheet is bound to raise some eyebrows. The tab is to come packing a quad-core 1.5 GHz Cortex A9 CPU, 1 GB of RAM and 16 GB of on-board storage, among others. That's not bad if we pit it against other 7-inchers around, but it's not enough to smoothly run Ubuntu.

For one thing, the RAM needs to be doubled in order to meet the official minimum requirements. We don't know about that A9 chip either, seeing as Canonical only mentioned the A15 and Intel's x86 platform back in February. We're not necessarily saying Ubuntu won't boot on this thing, but we're pretty sure it's going to be clunky as hell.

If, and that's a big if, the Intermatrix U7 is not just a big hoax. Which, all things considered, we think it is. There's too much that doesn't connect about it, and, to top it all off, the tab looks a lot like the Android-based Ainol Novo 7 Venus.

But why is Intermatrix doing this if they know they can't deliver on their promises? Free publicity would be a good guess, but here's a crazier one – what if the Australians really bought a slew of unbranded Ainol Novos, which they'll load with an unfinished Ubuntu port come next fall?

However it plays out, we really advise you to not order this thing. It’s not even very cheap, at AU$269. Besides, why would you want to turn your back on the green little robot that we like to call Android?

The post “World’s first Ubuntu tablet” looks fishy, allegedly ships in October 2013 appeared first on Android Authority.

HTC One will make its debut in Singapore on March 9

Posted: 07 Mar 2013 12:58 AM PST

htc-one-leftaa

Roaming through the streets of Singapore, you'll find that the folks there are quite attached to their gadgets, with Samsung and Apple pretty much ruling the landscape.

Breaking the wall of domination is a rather impossible task, but we think HTC's latest flagship device, the HTC One, has a good chance of at least making some cracks in the wall.

Those in Singapore who have been waiting for the One will not want to miss the launch of the smartphone at the IT Show 2013, which will be held in Marina Bay Sands from March 7 – 10. You can go there today, but know that the handset will only be up for grabs beginning from Saturday.

Bear in mind that this isn't the official launch of the HTC One. It looks like several mobile operators, such as SingTel and M1, will jump the gun by offering the handset early with a contract. HTC told CNET Asia that the One will only be "officially launched in Singapore in mid-March 2013".

So, are you planning to head to the tech bazaar this Saturday to grab the HTC One ?

The post HTC One will make its debut in Singapore on March 9 appeared first on Android Authority.

Beats gets $60 million fresh backing to make music streaming service Daisy bloom

Posted: 07 Mar 2013 12:02 AM PST

Beats-Audio

Last January, Beats Electronics – the company behind those trendy and pricey audio gears – introduced yet another music streaming service known tentatively as Daisy, which is also backed by the front man of Nine Inch Nails, Trent Reznor.

Seeing that Beats already acquired MOG, a music-subscription service that hasn't been able to break the domination of Spotify and other bigger players, the move might seem a little bit peculiar at first. But everything is starting to make more sense.

It's not such a bad idea to start afresh, especially now that the yet-to-be-launched service has secured a $60 million investment from some big names in the industry, including the billionaire who owns Warner Music Group.

Right now, we're only hearing bits and pieces of information regarding Daisy, such as how it'd bring some "cultural context" to the table, but despite the lack of details, the venture doesn't seem to have any trouble gaining some visibility. In fact, Apple CEO Tim Cook has recently talked with Jimmy Iovine of Beats on a possible partnership in the music streaming service front, something that Apple is looking to roll out to accompany iTunes, although no deal has been reached yet.

In case you’ve forgotten, HTC — which signed a cross- licensing deal with Apple in November of last year — still has some stakes in Beats. The plot thickens, eh?

Back to Daisy, Iovine said that Beats is going to spin out the new venture at the end of the year, making it an independent entity. The fate of MOG is still unknown, but it’s likely that it will be integrated into Daisy. Do you think we'll be looking at the next big thing in digital music service?

The post Beats gets $60 million fresh backing to make music streaming service Daisy bloom appeared first on Android Authority.

How to set an MP3 file as custom ringtone or notification sound on Android

Posted: 06 Mar 2013 11:55 PM PST

banner-custom-mp3-ringtone-notification-0238

There are times when I just want to use a specific MP3 music track either as ringtone or as notification alert. On Android generally, this isn’t a hard thing to accomplish. But, on several of Samsung’s recent high-end releases, it’s nearly a walk in the park.

Samsung’s much-celebrated smartphones do have a long list of default ringtones and notification alerts to choose from. You can choose any one of them until you grow weary of it — and when you do, and when you’ve run through all tones on the list, what else do you have left to do? You add your own MP3 to the list, of course.

In this guide, I’ll show you how to set an MP3 file as custom ringtone or notification sound on certain high-end Samsung phones. (You may also check our video tutorial at the end of this post.)

Requirements

The instructions in this guide have been known to work on the Galaxy Note, Galaxy Note 2, and Galaxy S3 running stock TouchWiz with Android 4.1 Jelly Bean or higher; these may also work on other Samsung phones that I have not tested.

Root access on the phone is not needed either. This guide will still work even if your phone is rooted, provided that your phone runs at least Android 4.1 with stock TouchWiz.  The procedures may be a bit different if your phone is running a custom ROM or a different version of Android.

The MP3 files that you want to use must already be on your phone. There are many ways to copy MP3 files to your phone, but I won’t be covering those here.

Setting custom MP3 ringtone

Via Settings menu

To set an MP3 file for use as custom ringtone system-wide, do the following:

  1. Copy the MP3 files to your phone. The stock Samsung Music Player app ought to be able to see the files. Check whether the music tracks appear in the Music Player app.
  2. Go to Settings > Sound > Device ringtone. You will see a list of the phone’s default ringtones.
  3. Tap the Add button to launch the media manager app. If your phone has several file/media manager apps, select Music Player from the popup box.
  4. You will see a list of music files stored on your phone. Select one and tap Done.
  5. Your selected MP3 track will now be your custom ringtone. Repeat the same process to add more custom ringtones to the default ringtones list.

Via Music Player

You can also set a system-wide custom MP3 ringtone through the Music Player app:

  1. Play the desired MP3 music file in the Music Player app.
  2. While the file is playing, tap the capacitive Menu button to open the Options menu.
  3. Select Set as and choose whether you want to set the ringtone as a phone ringtone, caller ringtone, or alarm tone.

Custom MP3 ringtone for specific contact

Setting a personalized ringtone for each contact is also possible in the stock Contacts app:

  1. Launch the Contacts app and open a contact’s info page.
  2. Scroll down until you see the “Ringtones” section. Tap on it and a dialogue box will appear with three options:
    • Default — use default ringtone
    • Ringtones — select a default ringtone for the contact
    • Go to My Files — open the My Files app to select a ringtone file
  3. Select Go to My Files and find your desired MP3 file.
  4. Select the MP3 file and tap Done.

Setting MP3 as custom notification tone

Unlike with ringtones, you cannot directly set an MP3 file as notification alert through the Settings menu or via the Music Player app. You have to manually set the music file to use it as a notification alert. Here’s how to do it:

  1. Copy the needed MP3 files to your phone.
  2. Launch a file manager app (e.g., My Files app, ES File Explorer, and the like) on your phone.
  3. Locate the desired MP3 file and copy it to the Notifications directory inside the phone’s internal storage (usually /storage/sdcard0). If you don’t see the Notifications directory, manually create it before copying the MP3 file into it.
  4. Go back to the main homescreen and open the Settings menu.
  5. Go to Sound > Device notifications and select the newly added MP3 file on the list.

Using ringtone manager apps

Another way to set custom notifications or ringtones is through a ringtone manager or ringtone editor app. One of my favorites is the Ringtone Maker app. This app allows you to trim a music file and set it as a ringtone or notification alert.

  1. On your phone, install the ad-supported Ringtone Maker app for free from the Google Play Store.
  2. Launch the app.
  3. All your music files will be displayed on the list. Locate your desired music file.
  4. Tap the green button beside the name of the file that you want to edit.  The Options menu will popup.
  5. Select Edit to edit the music file.
  6. On the next screen, slide the sliders to define a region for trimming.
  7. You can also set fade in/out effects or adjust volume levels. The app also allows you to mix a cropped file into another MP3 track.
  8. Once you’re satisfied with the changes, tap the Save button.
  9. Choose whether to save the file as ringtone, notification, alarm, or music. Also give a filename for your edited file.
  10. Tap Save.
  11. Your newly created music can now be used as a ringtone or notification on your phone.

Video Tutorial

Check our video tutorial on YouTube:

Congratulations! You have now learned how to set your own MP3 music as custom notification and ringtone on your Samsung Android phone. There may be other ways to achieve the same goal on other Android phones. Did you use any of the methods described in this guide? Successful? What method did you use?

(with contributions from Elmer Montejo)

The post How to set an MP3 file as custom ringtone or notification sound on Android appeared first on Android Authority.

Android Phone Fans

Android Phone Fans


Sonos PLAYBAR now available for $700

Posted: 06 Mar 2013 10:11 AM PST

The Sonos PLAYBAR promises to be a very nice companion for your home theater and a nice complement to an existing Sonos setup, and the thing is now available for sale for anyone who cares to buy one. It’s a $700 unit that can be wall-mounted, and it’s a nine-driver array that can deliver enough high definition sound to fill a moderately-sized room and make it sound like a multi-thousand dollar setup at a movie theater.

It can be used for music, of course, but with just a single optical cable fed to a television it can transform an entire home theater setup without much of a fuss at all. Whether or not such a system is worth $700 is up to you to decide, of course, but if you’ve been looking for a clean setup like this and don’t mind the cost, you can find them for sale at Amazon, Best Buy, or Sonos.com.

Tip: Faster browsing with Chrome Beta’s data compression

Posted: 06 Mar 2013 09:18 AM PST

Here is a neat tip for use with the latest version of Chrome Beta for Android. Google introduced a new data compression feature, which is said to cut data rates by as much as 50 percent while speeding up browser load times, in the newest build, but you will have to enable it to take advantage.

To do so, navigate to chrome://flags and tap “Enable Data Compression Proxy.” That’s it. Yes, the feature is still considered experimental so results are guaranteed, but the feature could come in handy for those doing a lot on the mobile web. Google points out that the overall browsing experience doesn’t lag as it does when Opera’s similar Turbo Mode is enabled.

To check how much data you are saving, open a tab to chrome://net-internals to view bandwidth usage.

[Google via Lifehacker]

More Galaxy S4 screens reveal 1.8GHz quad-core CPU, 1080p display

Posted: 06 Mar 2013 08:12 AM PST

While screenshots surfacing earlier this morning likely originated from a Galaxy S3 software build, a new set looks more likely to have been captured from the Galaxy S4. While the first bunch revealed new TouchWiz features most certainly destined for the GS4, the new group serves to confirm many of the rumored specs associated with the upcoming flagship.

For starters, a quad-core processor clocked just shy of 1.8GHz is present is listed. We can’t discern definitely if it is the Exynos Octa 5, but it seems likely. The phone’s 5-inch 1080p display is also confirmed, as is its pixel density of 480 ppi. Also confirmed was a 13MP camera. This isn’t the first time we have heard this list of specs, so we have a pretty good idea of what to expect next week.

Yes, next week. March 14th. It’s the date we have all been waiting for. Will Samsung’s latest be enough to keep them on top of the smartphone competition? We’ll have to wait to find out.

[via DroidLife]

Report: Samsung to launch 5.9-inch handset later this year

Posted: 06 Mar 2013 07:14 AM PST

Samsung is only looking to go bigger in 2013, according to a new report out of The Korea Times. In 2012 the Galaxy Note 2 pushed the “phablet” envelope at 5.5 inches, but we could see a 5.9-inch smartphone from the Korean company by year’s end. It isn’t clear whether this would be the Galaxy Note 3, but the device’s size and a release timed for the second half of the year make it a likely candidate.

The 5.9-inch display will utilize Samsung’s AMOLED tech, but it won’t be a YOUM flexible display as some initial Galaxy Note 3 rumors have suggested. Samsung simply lacks the technology to produced those screens en masse. The 5.9-inch screen size continues to beg the question of how big is too big, but device manufacturers seem content to push larger and larger “smartphones.”

Take ASUS’ 7-inch Fonepad, for instance, or any number of gigantic smartphones on display at Mobile World Congress. Even Samsung’s Galaxy Note 8.0 features full voice call functionality.

As the Galaxy S4 nears its official announcement, expect Note 3 rumors to begin swirling at a greater clip We’re still a way off from that device, but it will truly be Samsung’s next big thing.

Google Play celebrates first birthday with plenty of deals

Posted: 06 Mar 2013 06:36 AM PST

Happy birthday, Google Play! The content marketplace for Android turns one today, and of course Google is celebrating with all sorts of deals. Aside from discounted and free music, apps such as Yumby Smash and Clouds & Sheep have been updated with exclusive content just for this monuments occasion. Some apps are even offering special in-app deals, such as Fancy providing a free $15 gift card.

Google Play was a sweeping rebrand of the Android Market that took place last year, but it feels like it has been around forever. Questionable at first, Google’s new content strategy has helped to establish the Play Store as one of the leading sources of apps, games, music, movies, and more. So let’s all celebrate with some great deals!

[via Google Play]

Leaked screenshots confirm Smart Scroll and Smart Pause for Galaxy S4′s TouchWiz build

Posted: 06 Mar 2013 05:58 AM PST

What we see here are a few screenshots gathered from the latest build of TouchWiz, confirming rumors of Smart Scroll functionality in the Samsung Galaxy S4. In actuality, the screens we see here are from the Galaxy S3′s Android 4.2.1 firmware, but it goes without saying that this is indeed the version of the software we will see on the GS4.

You can see that Smart Scroll and Smart Pause have a range of setting that can be adjusted, tailoring the eye-tracking specifically to the way you want to use it. This includes which applications function with the feature, speed, and acceleration. Smart Pause will automatically pause video content when you look away from your phone.

It’s good to know that after introducing the new feature (as well as Smart Pause) on the Galaxy S4 that it will make its way to older Galaxy versions. We might expect it on the Note 2 as well.

[via SamMobile]

 

Android Overload: Google Play Store celebrates 1st birthday with app sale, Sprint announces Bring Your Own Device program, and more [VIDEO]

Posted: 05 Mar 2013 08:39 PM PST

This image has no alt text

The Android Overload is where we feature the biggest news stories from throughout the day (see above video), as well as stash all of the stories/articles/news bits that didn't make it onto our front page. But just because they weren't featured doesn't mean they aren't worth taking a look at. In fact, there's almost always a little something here for everyone. So, take a look around and let us know if you find anything of interest.

  • Google Play Store officially turns 1 year old today. Celebrates with an all week long app sale that’s… kind of a snoozer. [GooglePlay]
  • Improving Google TV: Pinning videos and music for offline viewing. [GTVSource]
  • Japanese courts rule that Samsung is abusing the FRAND patent process. [Electronista]
  • Pandora will compete directly with radio stations on advertising services after gaining access to $14 billion radio ad sales market. [Bloomberg]
  • HTC’s “Ultrapixel” camera tech and “BlinkFeed” could make it’s way to mid-range devices later this year as well. [HTCSource]
  • Android apps leak less personal information about its users than iOS apps. [AppleInsider]
  • Google begins testing same-day delivery. Steps into Amazon territory. [Reuters]
  • Google joins NFC Forum’s board of directors. [TNW]
  • Sprint encourages customers to unlock old handsets and use them on their prepaid/MVNO networks. [BGR]
  • Samsung Galaxy S4 may feel more premium than the Galaxy S3 — more than likely still plastic. [CNET]
  • Sprint announces “Bring Your Own Sprint Device” program for unlocking old Sprint phones for use on MVNOs like Virgin Mobile and Boost Mobile. Details still unclear on exactly which devices will be “eligible” but this is epic. [Sprint]

Android and Me

Android and Me


Dropping development for older versions of Android is the next big thing

Posted: 06 Mar 2013 03:35 PM PST

Popular photography app 500px is at the forefront of a growing developer movement. Despite nearly sixty percent of users running a version of Android under 4.0, 500px will be dropping support for older versions of Android. What’s the thinking behind the growing trend of, “Out with the...

Visit our site to read the full article.

Best unlocked Android phone for any budget: March 2013

Posted: 06 Mar 2013 10:48 AM PST

Last year I made the jump to using unlocked Android phones on pre-paid wireless plans, and I couldn’t be happier with the results. I saved a ton of money on my monthly bill, I can choose any Android phone I want, and I no longer have to rely on carriers to deliver my software updates. [...]

Visit our site to read the full article.

Celebrate Google Play’s 1st birthday with discounted apps, games and much more

Posted: 06 Mar 2013 06:16 AM PST

Today, Google Play officially turns one! Yes, the Android Market has been around since the T-Mobile G1 made its debut four and a half years ago, but you do have to admit that Google’s digital content store has made some impressive improvements since it was re-branded as Google Play. The help...

Visit our site to read the full article.