Thursday, August 22, 2013

Android World Update # Android Community

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Oppo N1 smartphone teased with backside touch controls
Aug 22nd 2013, 17:57, by Cory Gunther

The LG G2 isn’t the only device coming out later this year that will feature an unorthodox design for the button layout. Backside touch controls is a new approach with fingerprint scanners, sensors, volume control, and other possibilities. The popular manufacturer Oppo has been throwing around hints about their upcoming N1 camera phone, and we’ve just received a few more this week.

oppo-girl

I’m going to go out on a limb and say these ads or teaser images are just as unorthodox as having buttons on the back, but I like it. The LG G2 will be the first device to market with such a feature, as you saw in our hands-on, and now Oppo will be joining them later next month with their own flagship smartphone. The N-series.

On Monday we received word that Oppo will be revealing their new flagship device next month, and hopefully launch it at the end of September as well. At first we thought it would be all about the camera, since they’re calling it a “camera phone” but now they’re hinting it will have a “rear touch panel” as well as a brand new user experience.

Oppo-TP

The Oppo N1 is rumored to pack a 5-inch 1080p HD display, and will likely run the latest Snapdragon 800 2.3 GHz quad-core processor with 2GB of RAM. We’ve seen pictures of the bottom with a similar speaker grill layout to the iPhone and the G2, aiming out the bottom. There’s a few renders showing a huge lens on the rear, but we have a feeling it’ll be a lot smaller.

Reports suggest a 12 or 16 megapixel camera using their new “Owl” technology for superior low light performance, and it will also sport a Xenon flash, among other things with the new user interface. I don’t know about you guys but between the sexy lady and the comical roll of toilet paper above, we’re excited to see what this phone is all about.

VIA: GigaOM SOURCE: Facebook

Viva Movil reveals a discounted Verizon HTC One
Aug 22nd 2013, 17:47, by Robert Nelson

The Verizon HTC One officially launched and while the handset is priced at $199.99 direct from the carrier, it looks like that isn’t the best price around. We often see discounted handsets with third-party retailers such as Amazon, however it looks like this discounted HTC One is coming by way of Viva Movil. For those in need of a refresher, Viva Movil comes by way of JLo.

IMG_8354wtmk1-540x35712

Of course, they use the Verizon Wireless network for service. Anyway, in this case they have the HTC One selling for $99.99. This price is available for new Verizon customers and current customers looking to add a new device to their account. Either way, that $99.99 price point does mean a two-year agreement. But you would also get that with Verizon. Basically, choosing to get the HTC One through Viva Movil would mean half-price.

htc-one-viva-movile-540

Aside from the HTC One, it also looks like you can get other handsets at lower prices as well. Viva Movil currently has the Galaxy S 4 for $99.99, the Galaxy S III for free and the Galaxy Note II for $199.99 — all savings as compared to shopping direct with Big Red.

The checkout process seems simple enough and ties in with your existing Verizon account. In fact, the first thing you need to do is enter your mobile number, zip code and last four digits of your social security number to verify your account. That aside, while the discounts are nice, Viva Movil doesn’t appear to have the complete Verizon lineup available.

The HTC One is a solid handset, and one we reviewed a while back. In addition, Verizon also has the Moto X coming as well as the recently launched DROID MAXX, ULTRA and MINI smartphones. Or in other words, while the HTC One seems like a good option for a Verizon customer looking to upgrade, there are plenty of alternatives at the moment.

SOURCE: Viva Movil

Key Lime Pie could boost Android to Linux Kernel 3.10
Aug 22nd 2013, 17:31, by Cory Gunther

We don’t know what number or name the next version of Android will be, but if all signs are pointing in the right direction we’ll likely see Android 5.0 Key Lime Pie here soon from Google. There’s no question they’re hard at work on the next major release, possibly set for later this year, and today we’re seeing some interesting tidbits on the Kernel side.

Tux-Android-For-LinuxChix-LA-blog1-266x300

We’re not going to get into the entire is Android Linux discussion, as it certainly is a “fork”, and I don’t want the Android enthusiasts to start throwing stuff at me. However, we all know Android runs on top of a standard Linux Kernel, and it looks like Google could be prepared to make a significant jump to the latest version with Android Key Lime Pie.

Android runs on an unaltered Linux Kernel, but of course there are various tweaks and patches. I’m no expert in this space, as many Android enthusiasts are, but it looks like Google’s been experimenting with the latest long-term Linux Kernel release. That being 3.10 of course. Android Gingerbread ran on the aging 2.6, we saw Ice Cream Sandwich bump the kernel to 3.0, and Jelly Bean brought Linux kernel 3.4 to Android.

android-kernel-version

We’ve seen some experimental Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean releases from those Linaro folks running 3.10, and while we can’t confirm anything at this point it makes perfect sense for Google’s next major Android release to jump on the latest long-term Kernel release.

Again, I’m no expert but jumping to version 3.10 should bring more stability, better battery life and performance, security at the kernel level, and improved ARM big.LITTLE support. And those are just a few of many. There’s some interesting experimenting going on by Google, and you can find more from the link above or the via below.

VIA: PocketDroid

BBM for Android user manual posted ahead of app release
Aug 22nd 2013, 16:50, by Robert Nelson

BBM for Android is still expected to arrive sometime this summer. Per the calendar that could mean any time before September 21. While the wait continues we have seen plenty of fake BBM apps land in the Google Play Store and even some leaked screenshots which came by way of the beta testers. As of today however, it looks like BlackBerry is still prepping for the release.

bbm-for-android-user-guide

The latest official BBM for Android information has arrived in the form of a user guide. And nicely, this is an official guide that has been posted on the BlackBerry website. The manual is for BBM for Android Version 1.0 and measures in at 17 pages in length. The manual begins with the “getting started” details and goes up to the “do more with BBM” details.

Basically, those who are anxiously waiting for the BBM app to arrive in the Google Play Store can now get a head start on the release. While we tend to poke fun at user manuals when they leak (or get posted) online and we tend to ignore them in the real-world — this time around the manual is confirming some of the features.

Sitting on page 4 of the manual we find the features listed as being BBM profile, Invite, Chat, emoticons and BBM Groups. The profile setup will allow the user to choose a display picture, name and status as well as their unique BBM PIN. The Invite and Chat sections are just what one would expect and Groups will allow for chatting with up to 30 people at a time.

As for those emoticons, they will arrive as the “classic BBM emoticons” so don’t expect any new Android goodies. Sticking with the emoticon talk and we also have the reminder about being able to enter a two-digit country code to show a flag. The example used shows *CA* displaying the Canadian flag. With that, those curious or anxious can follow the BlackBerry link below to scan the user manual.

VIA: CrackBerry

SOURCE: BlackBerry

Chromecast back in stock at Best Buy online, Netflix included
Aug 22nd 2013, 16:49, by Cory Gunther

The hard to find Google Chromecast media streaming dongle has been something many are looking to get their hands on, and now one more option is available again. We’ve seen the Chromecast go in and out of stock from Best Buy, Google’s Play Store, and Amazon, and now it looks like Google finally has quite a bit more for everyone.

Screen Shot 2013-08-22 at 9.46.22 AM

Update: Aaaaand they’re gone. That was quick!

Earlier this week the Google Play Store finally changed their 3-4 week shipping estimates to just under two weeks. At the time of writing this the Chromecast $35 dongle can be found from Google’s store and will ship by September 3rd, which isn’t too bad, but Best Buy has them beat.

After going out of stock within a day of being offered, then occasionally reappearing for a few moments it looks like today the big box retailer finally has plenty of stock. Not only does BestBuy.com have the Chromecast in stock with 1-day shipping (get it tomorrow or Saturday) but they still seem to be offering the 3 months of free Netflix as well.

Google canceled the 3 month Netflix deal after the device started selling like hot cakes, but for whatever reason Best Buy is still offering that promo, at least according to their online store. So, if you’re local shop doesn’t have any and you’d rather not wait 2-3 weeks or longer from Google Play or Amazon, get one from Best Buy right this moment. Better hurry though, they won’t last long.

VIA: Best Buy

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Android World Update # Talk Mobile Cloud Week Recap: The best things you said

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Talk Mobile Cloud Week Recap: The best things you said
Aug 22nd 2013, 18:19, by Talk Mobile

Talk Mobile Clouds week dove head first into the world of clouds, bridging the internet, mobile, and desktop computing in one fell swoop. It was less about the individual features of each cloud service and more about how these clouds fit into our lives, how they can improve our digital lives, and where they're going in the future.

As always, your feedback is tremendously important to us and continues to help shape and refine Talk Mobile. We're more than half-way through Talk Mobile 2013, but we still want to hear what you think. So there are comments below for you to do just that. Tell us what's great, tell us what sucks - we want to hear it all!

Talk Mobile has always been about elevating the discussion - not just what we write about, but what you in the community are talking about. The Mobile Nations community has definitely stepped up to that challenge, taking on our questions, our statements, and each other in broad and spirited debates about the state of mobile. And really, that shouldn't be a surprise, given how awesome you all are.

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Android World Update # Moto X review

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Moto X review
Aug 22nd 2013, 17:31, by Phil Nickinson

Moto X

Motorola is back with one of the best designed and built phones we've seen in a while — and it's customizable. (Eventually with wood!) But it's got one seriously disappointing feature, too.

Once a year or so you get one of those smartphones that’s supposed to change everything. Maybe it’s so full of features it’s hard to know where to start. Maybe it beats the price of every other phone available, but it’s just not a mainstream device. Maybe it does one or two things extremely well but lacks in other areas.

Moto XFor many, Moto X is supposed to be that phone in 2013. The rebirth of Motorola, under Google’s umbrage. Android for everyone. Pick your platitude, attach the “Moto X” name to it and watch the excitement build.

Thing is, it’s just a phone, folks. Moto X is a damn good phone, too. It’s comfortable. Familiar. Beautifully designed. And deceivingly simple. It alleviates some concerns we’ve had with other devices — battery life, namely — while falling short in other areas. But at the end of the day, does it really represent some sort of paradigm shift in the Android smartphone space?

We’ve spent three solid weeks with Moto X as the only phone in our pocket. Will it ride out the rest of the year there until the Next Big Thing?

Let’s dive into it — this is the Android Central Moto X review.

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Android World Update # HTC One now available on Verizon Wireless, $199.99 on a new two-year contract

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HTC One now available on Verizon Wireless, $199.99 on a new two-year contract
Aug 22nd 2013, 16:52, by Brad Ward

htc one coming to verizon

All that waiting seems to have finally paid off, as the HTC One is now available on Verizon! You can pick it up today for $199.99 on a new two-year contract or, if you’d like to avoid all of those contract hurdles, you can get it for $599.99 outright.

The HTC One is only available in 32GB and silver through Verizon. So your choices are very limited. If you want different colors, you’ll have to go with another carrier, such as Sprint who holds the exclusive on the red HTC One.

Verizon’s HTC One is actually running Android 4.2.2 while AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile versions are still on 4.1. Of course, that shouldn’t be a problem for long, as an HTC exec said all U.S. and Canadian models should be updated to 4.3 by the end of September. Then again, that might take a bit longer with Verizon in the loop now.

It’ll be interesting to see just how well the HTC One will sell on Verizon after the carrier launched it so late in the device’s life cycle. It’ll probably sell well, but with a few top tier devices about to launch (e.g. LG G2, Moto X, and etc) it’ll be interesting, that’s for sure.

Still not sure about purchasing the HTC One? Be sure to check out our full review (video below).

What do you think about the HTC One on Verizon? Are you excited or did they launch the device way too late in the One’s life cycle? Let me know in the comments!

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