Posted: 24 Feb 2012 04:13 PM PST  Rule number one of big press events: Always check under your seat for free stuff taped to the bottom. HTC just launched an official blog and one of their first posts was titled Greetings from Barcelona. In the post they teased they were unpacking something amazing and shared a picture of a bunch of bubble-wrapped objects. When we see bubble-wrap, we think of something valuable. A free smartphone or tablet for the attendees perhaps? HTC says the show will begin on Sunday at 8:30 PM CET, which is 11 AM PST / 2 PM EST in the United States. Nick already previewed what is likely to get announced, but check back this weekend for the complete details. So, what do you think is in the box?  HTC unboxes "something amazing" for MWC press event.        |
Posted: 24 Feb 2012 03:48 PM PST  Earlier this month Samsung confirmed they would not be holding a big press conference at Mobile World Congress, but they did promise to “introduce and demonstrate exciting new mobile products.” After browsing the global Samsung Tomorrow site, it appears they will offer a live video stream of whatever gets announced. Previous leaks from Samsung’s developer site have already exposed the Galaxy Note 10.1, but we are not sure what else will be shown off. We already know the Galaxy S III will not be announced quite yet, but there could still be some small surprises. If you got nothing to do this weekend, you can stay up late on Sunday night and tune into Samsung’s video. The special takes place at 9:00 AM CET, which is 3 AM EST or 12 AM PST. What devices would you like to see Samsung announce?       |
Posted: 24 Feb 2012 12:38 PM PST  For months, we’ve been writing about HTC and the new devices the company will be unveiling at Mobile World Congress. After countless rumors, leaks and endless speculation, the time has finally come for HTC to unveil its new lineup in Barcelona on Sunday night. If you’re an avid HTC fan, I’m sure you’ve been keeping up with all the news we’ve pushed out since the first rumors started popping up on the web in December of last year. But we know most of you have missed a story or two, so we’ve decided to put together a recap for you which highlights all the facts we know about HTC’s new lineup. Based on all the news that’s been going around, we’re pretty confident that HTC will be unveiling four new Android 4.0 powered devices (three phones and one tablet) at Mobile World Congress this year. While that number may seem a bit high considering that HTC plans on focusing on fewer devices in 2012, the number is lower than the six devices HTC announced last year. Rumors suggest that all four devices will bear the same HTC One name which will be followed by a super-scripted letter design to define each device.
HTC One VThe HTC One V will be a value device form HTC, featuring a 3.7-inch Super AMOLED display, Gorilla Glass, 1GHz dual-core processor, 512MB of RAM, 5 megapixel rear-camera with an f/2.0 lens, Beats Audio, Android 4.0 and HTC Sense 4.0. The phone originated as the HTC Primo last month, but little else is known about the device.HTC One SThe HTC One S is expected to the thinnest of HTC’s new devices, measuring in at 8mm thick. The One S will be a considerable step up from the HTC One V with a dual-core Qualcomm S4 MSM8960 processor, 4.3-inch qHD Super AMOLED display, 1GB of RAM, 8 megapixel rear-camera with an f/2.0 lens, 1080p video recording, 1650 mAh battery, Beats Audio, Android 4.0.3 and HTC Sense 4.0.Previously known as the HTC Ville, the HTC One S has been spotted in pictures and several videos already. As with most HTC devices, the HTC One S is expected to be picked up my a few dozen service providers in Europe and there is already evidence that T-Mobile USA has plans to release the phone in the coming months. HTC One XIf you’re looking for un-throttled power, the HTC One X is the phone you’ve been waiting for. HTC will be breaking from tradition with the One X, making it the very first device in its lineup for feature an NVIDIA processor. The HTC One X will be powered by a 1.5GHz 4-plus-1 quad-core Tegra 3 processor and will sport a 4.7-inch 720p Super LCD display, 1 GB of RAM, 8 MP rear illuminated camera with a 28-millimeter f/2.2 lens, 32GB of internal storage, Bluetooth 4.0, Beats Audio, Android 4.0 and HTC Sense 4.0.Over the past few months, the HTC One X has had a bit of an identity crisis. Other names for the phone have included HTC Edge, HTC Endeavor and HTC Supreme. The One X will not be as thin as the One S or One V, but the handset is said to be roughly 10mm thick. The original image of the HTC One X showed that the phone featured the standard four capacitive buttons below the screen. Later rumors indicated that HTC would ditch the buttons for on-screen buttons (similar to the Samsung Galaxy Nexus), but the most recent image of the phone does show buttons below the screen. Unlike the HTC One S, there is no evidence (yet) that the One X will be picked up by a US carrier, but we expect that to change after the handset is announced. More than 20 service providers form across the globe have already lined up to offer the HTC One X, so we expect to see a variation of the phone made available by one or two of the major US service providers within the coming months. HTC One XLThose holding out for a full-sized HTC Android 4.0 tablet will probably be more than pleased with the HTC One XL. Specifications for the Android tablet include a 10.1-inch (1280 x 768) display, a quad-core Tegra 3 processor, 1 GB of RAM, microSD expansion slot, 5GHz Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0, 1.3 megapixel front-facing camera with 720p video capture and a 2 megapixel rear-facing camera with 1080p video capture.The assumption is that the HTC One XL (the HTC Quattro) will also feature HTC Sense 4.0 with HTC Scribe digital pen integration, but there have been no rumors to corroborate this information. While we do expect 3G and even 4G variants of the HTC One XL to be picked up by service providers in Europe, Asia and the Americas, consumers should be able to pick up the WiFi HTC One XL in consumer electronics stores this spring. The new HTC One family of devices should be a huge turning point for HTC. We know that HTC will be making different variations of these devices for different US carriers, but the hope is that the company can spend more time focusing on creating a handful of hero devices for the year rather than pushing out new a device every three weeks that’s only slightly better than the previous version. Everyone has their own preference when it comes to size, design and specifications, but we can probably all agree that the HTC One family will be stealing most of the attention at Mobile World Congress this year. Which new HTC device do you plan on purchasing this spring?      |
Posted: 24 Feb 2012 10:02 AM PST  When I got my first Android phone a little over three years ago, one of my favorite things was to browse the Android Market and watch which apps were being pushed to the Android Market. Developers soon began to exploit the Just In section of the Android Market with fake updates to get their app to the top of the list, so Google eventually removed that feature. Now when I want to see what's new in the Android Market, I turn to AppAware. I've covered the app before and it's been around for a couple years, but they just relaunched a couple months ago with a completely overhauled version that turned the service into a social network for app discovery. I've found that one of the best ways to discover useful apps is to look at what people are actually updating, and not focus on which apps have the most installs. This shows me which apps have active support from their developers and sometimes reminds me of an old app that I might have removed long ago. The following is a Top 10 list of apps which were updated in the last seven days and received the most updates during that time period on AppAware. I hope you enjoy this weekly feature and discover some apps that you might find useful. Twitter – Version 3.1.0 What’s new in this version:
Evernote – Version 3.5.3 What’s new in this version:
Google Docs – Version 1.0.54 What’s new in this version:
Paper Camera – Version 2.0g What’s new in this version:
Wiki Encyclopedia – Version 2.19 What’s new in this version:
Viber – Version 2.1.4.588 What’s new in this version:
GO SMS Pro – Version 4.34 What’s new in this version:
Movies by Flixster – Version varies with device What’s new in this version:
Dropbox – Version varies with device What’s new in this version:
Astrid – Version varies with device What’s new in this version:
Honorable mentionsDid you see any Android apps that received notable updates in the last week? Share your suggestions in the comments below and we will add them to our honorable mentions list.     |
Posted: 24 Feb 2012 08:27 AM PST  Google Chairman and former CEO Eric Schmidt hinted at a Nexus tablet last year and then Digitimes confirmed the report in January with their supply chain sources. This week Richard Shim, an analyst with DisplaySearch, provided additional details on the rumored device. Shim claims the 7-inch tablet will feature a 1280×800 resolution and enter production in April. This lines up with earlier rumors that Google would bring the device to market in June. Shim also thinks the initial production run will be 1.5 million to 2 million units. It’s still not clear how Google will position the device. Shim said, ”I don’t know how they plan on marketing it. If it’s going to be a premium device, or if it’s going to be a Kindle Fire type competitor.” Given the rumored 7-inch display and $199 price point, we expect Google is going directly at the Kindle Fire market. Amazon shipped an estimated 5 million units last quarter, which makes it the best selling Android tablet to date. Google recently pushed back their annual Google IO developers conference from May to late June, so that’s the best chance we will likely hear more about this device. If Google decides to announce Android 5.0 Jelly Bean, it’s possible that this Nexus tablet could become the flagship device for the latest OS. ASUS is planning to launch their $249 quad-core MeMo 370T around the same time, so we hope that Google will be able to match those specs. It feels like most of our hardcore audience prefers the larger 10-inch tablets, so I’m curious how many would be wiling to purchase a 7-incher from Google. What features would Google need to include in order for you to fork over $199?      |
Posted: 24 Feb 2012 06:32 AM PST  News travels fast, apparently. Hot off the heels of Acer announcing the entry-level Liquid Glow comes a leaked hands-on video with Acer’s flagship device, the Acer CloudMobile, making it’s glam appearance at Milan’s Fashion Week. The folks at Cellulare Magazine produced the hands-on video of the CloudMobile, showing off the device’s crisp, bright screen and super responsive UI. The CloudMobile is rumored to be one beast of a device, laying claim to the following impressive, yet incomplete spec sheet:
The Acer CloudMobile is still a prototype device at this point, and won’t launch to the general public until Q3 2012. We’ll be on-hand next week in Barcelona, and will hopefully be able to hunt down and get our hands on a prototype. While you likely weren’t exactly blown away by the Acer Liquid Glow, how are you feeling about the CloudMobile? Sound off in the comments.      |
Posted: 24 Feb 2012 05:58 AM PST  With all the phones being given the unveiling treatment ahead of Mobile World Congress, it’s amazing that people actually bother to go to the show! Today’s early sneak peek comes from Acer, a computer company which has recently dabbled in Android tablets, who is now unveiling their second entry into the crowded Android smartphone market. While the Acer Liquid Glow doesn’t tote the most powerful hardware on the planet, Acer is hoping it will take off with the entry-level crowd. The Liquid Glow will feature a 3.7″ WVGA display, Android 4.0, 1GHz (single-core) Qualcomm 7227A processor, 5 megapixel rear camera with flash, 1GB of storage and 512 MB RAM (rumored from PocketLint), and NFC capability. Though not a powerhouse by any stretch of the word, Acer’s Liquid Glow is certainly a slick looking phone, with its rounded edges, chrome accents, and color combos (though, we’ll probably avoid the pink variant). If the device makes its way stateside, it’ll probably land on budget carriers with a super-low or perhaps free price tag. We’ll be stopping by the Acer booth next week to check out some of the Tegra 3 goodness they’re expected to unveil as well as the unannounced Acer CloudMobile phone, which may be the Acer phone to impress the hardcore Android users. While we’re there, I’ll make sure Taylor spends at least a few minutes with the Liquid Glow. Anyone out there excited about the Liquid Glow? Could be a cool Android phone for the teenager set.     |
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Update - 58
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