Android Phone Fans

HTC M7 could be released as simply the HTC One [RUMOR] Posted: 08 Feb 2013 12:55 PM PST What’s in a name? Well, Shakespeare would have you believe it doesn’t matter much at all, that “a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” True, but when it comes to big carriers looking to invest their money into a new product, a name is a brand and a brand is a powerful thing. Looks like HTC could be taking their already well known One brand and running with it. A new tip from leak-extraordinaires, @evleaks, is suggesting that the upcoming flagship could see a release as simply the HTC One — no X, no S — just One. If you think about it, Apple doesn’t confuse consumers by releasing new smartphones every year with a new name, especially not after the original was such a success. Consumers need something they can immediately identify with, so in the smartphone, automobile, or even computer business, a name means an awful lot. With HTC, their One line has proven itself enough of a success in the US and other parts of the globe for the Taiwanese manufacturer to stick with it. Maybe people will start asking “Oh, is that the new One?” in 2013. Can’t wait to see what HTC finally unveils (and confirms) at their Feb 19th even in New York. We’ll keep you posted. [via Twitter]

Galaxy Note 8.0 will ship with 3G, LTE, and WiFi options Posted: 08 Feb 2013 10:10 AM PST As has become the norm for tablets, the Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0 will be available in several connectivity configurations upon launch. According to information gathered from filings found on the Bluetooth SIG website, there will be a GT-N5100 model, a GT-N5110, and a GT-N5105. They account for WiFi + 3G, WiFi-only, and WiFi + 3G + LTE setups. The listings only peg the models for a European release, but Samsung will not doubt at least offer two options in other regions. If any carriers decide to stock the device, they will obviously carry the version best suited for their network. Pricing would likely increase from WiFi model (rumored to start around €450) up through the LTE-enabled version of the slate. We are expecting Samsung to unveil the Galaxy Note 8.0 during or around the time of Mobile World Congress. In the tradition of previous Note models, the 8-inch tablet will feature support for Samsung’s S Pen capacitive stylus. [via UnwiredView]

Does Google need its own retail store? Posted: 08 Feb 2013 08:00 AM PST I’m often asked why Google doesn’t have its own retail stores ala Apple, and now Microsoft. After all, the Mountain View corporation commands the world’s biggest mobile operating system, and has a lot of product spaces to delve into should it find the need to fill store shelves with unique stuff. Whether or not Google needs its own retail store is a good question, and we’ll take a look at both sides of the coin to see if we can’t help answer it. Why a retail store would be difficult for Google There are many reasons why Google should open its retail stores, and the company certainly has the capital and clout to do so. So why haven’t they? That’s a tough question to answer without being able to pick the brains of several executives within the company, but there are a few glaring points that we can dive into without the help of El Goog. Later, we’ll discuss how a retail store would help the company and why we’d be excited to see one come to fruition. Let’s go! If you can’t do it online… It’s easy to look no further than the company’s failed online store experiments. The first time Google tried running its own online store front — when the Nexus One first launched — it failed miserably. A combination of shortcomings in areas like customer service, user experience and a lack of advertising doomed the experience, and Google decided to shut it down. Fast forward to today, and while things have improved a bit the experience is still far from perfect. Google leveraged the Play Store’s attractive good looks and marketplace feel to peddle its latest wares. I won’t knock Google on supply constraints alone (that’s something hardware partners are also accountable for), but the early lack of communication and confusion on Google’s part regarding the shipment delays for the latest Nexus devices didn’t do much to instill confidence that its customer service improved in quality. Beyond that, Google didn’t necessarily employ “best-in-class” logistics as shipment patterns remained erratic and unpredictable for quite some time. Google could pull it off with experienced partners by its side, but the taste left in our mouths by the latest blunders have us appreciating the likes of Amazon, Best Buy and Walmart even more. Google has to avoid favoritism game One of the biggest challenges Google continues to face in this journey is the ability to balance, and the balancing act that involves OEM focus vs Android focus is a tough one to master (but we’ll get into that a little later). Beyond that, the Mountain View company doesn’t want to do anything to make any of its OEM partners feel like one company is getting more favorable treatment over another, and it also wants to shy away from promoting Android as the only bit that matters in this big, convoluted equation. Because Android can be licensed and customized by pretty much anyone, it is imperative for Google to let the “darwinism” of the mobile tech world play out organically, but at the same time Google has to make sure that particular stance doesn’t scare others away. Take Samsung, for instance — it seems like it is the only company still making any significant amount of money with Android products in this day and age, and the train doesn’t seem to be slowing down soon. It would be against Google’s best interest to let the likes of HTC, LG, Sony and more suffer, but at the same time it would go against Google’s MO to do anything to stop it from happening. Translate that into the retail space, and you can see how things could get out of hand. Shoving Samsung products into the window displays would attract more customers, sure, but then you’re leaving less of a spotlight for the others. On the flip side, should Samsung be punished for creating an exciting and compelling product? Absolutely not. Even the most subtle nuances in the presentation of a Google/Android store could send one of these OEMs off the deep end, and without a better understanding of the dynamics between OEM and software vendor it becomes a tricky issue to tackle. This is something Google will have to avoid as best as it can for as long as it can.  Iconic branding a double-edged sword Knowing that Google is sitting on a goldmine of a brand, but one that it can’t push to the strongest of its abilities, is a tough cookie to swallow. “Google” itself is a household name already, and the lovable face of its mobile operating system — BugDroid — is absolutely perfect. It’s something for humans to identify with, and it sure beats the image of a dull bitten apple. Google could get really creative with the Android brand, but this goes back to the same problem that forces Google’s hand when it comes to OEM favoritism. Google wants Android to appeal to manufacturers with its openness and ability to be customized, so that they can differentiate from one another and create their own unique products. It would be unwise for Google to go the Microsoft route and force the stock Android skin on its partners, because it’d lose the very perk that has generated so much OEM interest in the first place. Google keeps the stock dream alive with the Nexus brand, and that’s enough for us — if a user really wants stock Android, they’ll know where and how to find it. That will never help in the quest to kill the fragmentation issue, of course, but if it’s what inspires and drives these companies to keep innovating and creating new products we can’t say we aren’t all for it. It all goes full circle from there: let OEMs choose where to sell, how to sell, and what to sell, and you’re going to keep everyone happy and willing to push your product forward. It’s worked for Google this long — to the tune of owning more than half the worldwide market share in just over 4 years — so why change things up? How a retail store would help That said, the geeky and fun consumer in me would still love to see a chain of Google stores. If Google can find a way to create a retail experience that doesn’t alienate its hardware partners or hurt the future of the platform, we’re all for it. Here are some ways in which a retail store could help Google push several of its platforms forward. Emerging products could get much-needed shine There’s a huge elephant in the room that no one seems to want to talk about — beyond Android phones and tablets, where is Google succeeding? Google has tried a lot of different things over the years, but not all of it has turned out to be a hit. In fact, a vast majority of it hasn’t panned out. Google TV is off to a rocky start as user adoption is slow and developer interest is waning. It’s remarkable that Google still has several OEMs willing to help push the idea into the living rooms of users everywhere. We were all but certain that Google TV was in trouble after Logitech decided to throw in the towel, but the folks at Sony, ASUS and Vizio are keeping things afloat for the time being. Likewise, the whole ChromeBook experiment doesn’t seem to be skyrocketing into the atmosphere. Like Google TV, we didn’t expect results overnight, but you have to wonder just how long Google can keep it up. Samsung and ASUS have been the only OEMs willing to give it a fair shot as of late, though a couple of more are rumored to have products coming in the near future. Like Android, Google is trying to leave the promotion, marketing and growth of these two platforms up to manufacturers, but things just don’t seem to be going quite as well. And just how will Google get folks to buy a pair of Google Glasses at this rate? As cool as they are, it will take a whole lot more than “cool” to sell people on a pair of distracting glasses that will cost hundreds of dollars (even if people spend that much on eye-wear products which do much less). A Google retail store would give these products the shine they need. People would find it in their faces and ready to be played with instead of shoved into a tiny corner of a large retail store without so much as a demo to see how the stuff works. It would break Google’s conservative advertising ideology, but it’s something that needs to happen, and seemingly can’t happen soon enough. Google could crush the Apple Store Let’s face it — one of the biggest reasons any of us would love to see a Google store erected in the streets of New York, LA and other cities of the world is because of the potential blow Google could deal to Apple. Apple stores receive a tremendous amount of traffic. I don’t know if you’ve ever set foot in one, but the busiest stores can become elbow-to-elbow grope fests, and it’s not uncommon to see a MacBook or iPhone repair being carried out on the floor instead of on a neat service counter. Imagine the type of store Google could build to attract some of those people and get more people in-tune with Android and all things Google. We already know how creative and fun Google can be first hand: anyone who’s been to the last couple of Mobile World Congress shows can attest to the wackiness it brings to the table. A Google store would be infinitely more fun and inviting, and the range of products would be diverse enough to hold the attention of anyone for hours. Translate the feel-good energy from that experience into a potential sale and you could see sales soar higher than they ever have before. We don’t want Apple killed off completely, of course — competition is always good — but we sure would love to see it take a bit more of a beating than it’s already gotten these past few years. It would help improve brand awareness It all comes down to this, really. This contradicts a point I made in the previous section, but it’s impossible not to play both sides of the fence here (especially when you consider recent rumblings around the tech world). Even though Android is everywhere and smartphone owners buy more Android phones than any other, it could still do with some stronger brand awareness. As tech geeks, we tend to get a little peeved when someone calls their phone a “DROID” even when the device might be offered on the likes of US Cellular and MetroPCS. A recent study also suggested that consumers identify with Samsung’s Galaxy brand more than they do Android itself. You no longer have “Android phones,” but “DROIDs” and “Galaxies,” and it would be nice if that weren’t the case. Google might not mind that situation considering its desire to keep an open marketplace where the best man is free to do what they will to win. Still, if it’s going to really beat Apple in the mobile front — including tablets, where there’s still a lot of work to be done — it has to do something to establish a strong brand identity with a flag that people will be proud to wave no matter which phone or tablet they have. Just dream a little! These are just the opinions of one man, though. There is a ton of room and need for Google stores (with Android and Chrome OS as heavy focuses, obviously), but at the same time there’s a lot that’s forcing Google’s hand and the sheer idea of getting anything of the sort is just wishful thinking. Let us know your thoughts, though — should Google open a retail experience or should they continue to do what’s been working for them? And don’t stop there: let us know what type of features you’d love to see in a Google store! We know the tech giant loves to have fun (as evidenced by its amazing offices and consistent rating as the world’s best company to work for) so go nuts with your idea and fantasize along with the rest of us in the comments section below.

Original Droid Incredible receiving minor update to address random reboots Posted: 08 Feb 2013 07:43 AM PST The original HTC Droid Incredible — yes, the device that launched nearly three years ago — is receiving the most minor of minor updates today. It’s random, but not totally unexpected. Verizon posted the support documentation for the update last week, detailing the 4.2MB patch that is now arriving for users still carrying the handset. What does the update address? “Reduced device reboots.” Nothing less, nothing more. Like we said, pretty minor stuff. It does, however, provide us with an opportunity to reflect on the device. The hype leading up to its launch, filled with leaks and rumors galore, was a real sign of things to come. It was the tip of the iceberg in terms of the sort of fervor Android fans now show for their favorite OS and the phones that run it. With most two-year contracts for the Droid Incredible long expired, few are still slinging the phone on a daily basis. But if you have one sitting around collecting dust, it might be worth firing that bad boy up, grabbing the update, and taking a trip down memory lane. [via AndroidForums]

Fans estimate Google has sold its one millionth Nexus 4 Posted: 08 Feb 2013 07:03 AM PST Though Google remains mum on exact sales figures for the Nexus 4, a group fans at XDA believe they have cracked the handset’s IMEI number and discovered a way to estimate the number of phones in the wild. According to a post yesterday, the Android 4.2 flagship has reached its one millionth unit sold. The number can be traced to a black Nexus 4 supposedly manufactured on February 5th and sold in Turkey. Technically it was pinned down as the 999,998th phone off the line, but the assumption is that LG has produced phones beyond that number. According to their figures, production of the phone has increased significantly in the new year, with LG pumping out over 550,000 units in January alone. Google seems to be catching up on its backlog of Nexus 4 orders, and the once hard to come by device has been in stock via the Google Play Store fairly consistently as of late. If you want the details on how the number of devices manufactured and sold is being calculated, or if you want to add your data to the crowdsourced cause, head over to the XDA link below. [XDA via TechCrunch]

Jelly Bean ready for LG Optimus 4X HD, L7, L9 Posted: 08 Feb 2013 06:16 AM PST LG has announced via their Facebook page that Jelly Bean updates for the Optimus 4X HD, Opiitmus L7, and Optimus L9 are nearing the final stages of development before rolling out to users. The news comes by way of LG’s Hong Kong branch and covers versions of the phones carrying the model numbers P880 (4X HD), P705 (L7), and P765 (L9). The timing of the announcement is fitting. As LG prepares to launch its next generation of smartphones at Mobile World Congress, the arrival of Android 4.1 makes an appropriate sendoff for older models. Even if that sendoff took quite a while to arrive. [via UnwiredView]

Google Nexus-powered Strand-1 satellite ready for lift off Posted: 08 Feb 2013 05:21 AM PST While many scramble to find the latest Nexus device in stock for purchase, the first Google phone is part of a much bigger agenda. The Nexus One is ready for lift off after being bolted to the side of the 30cm “cubesat” Strand-1, which has been in development for almost two years. Not only will the Nexus One’s 5MP camera be used to capture images of space, but a collection of apps will stow away beyond the earth’s atmosphere to test such things as the magnetic environment surrounding the Strand-1. The Alien tagline “In space no one can hear you scream” will also be challenged using an app that plays videos of people screaming. The satellite is en route to India where it will piggyback on the launch of the Isro Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle on February 25th. Once in space, the Strand-1 will use experimental water-alcohol propulsion and plasma thrusters to maneuver. While the first set of experiments aren’t even underway, the folks at the Surrey Space Centre and Surrey Satellite Technology are already looking toward the Strand-2, which will use Xbox Kinect to locate and dock multiple satellites in orbit. [via BBC | Thanks, roadpizza!]

Android Overload: HTC engineers send angry letter to CEO Peter Chou, Third of all phones shipped in Q4 2012 ran Android, and more [VIDEO] Posted: 07 Feb 2013 08:59 PM PST 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. Pageonce update brings a shinier, Holo UI-type interface. Free bill pay too. [Google Play] Review: Open Launcher for Google TV. [GTVSource] Your smartphone may get a little bigger/thicker once LTE Advanced comes to town. [BGR] The Neptune Pine, a smartwatch running Android, will now have access to the Google Play Store. [NeptunePine] The Android army marches on. 1/3rd of all phones shipped in Q4 of 2012 were running Android (69% of all smartphones were running Android). [Canalys] Samsung wants to reward you for using AllShare Play. Register your device and win new Sammy gadgets. [AllSharePlay] 1,000 HTC engineers write CEO Peter Chou an angry letter after cutting R&D costs (wages?) by 60%. [UnwiredView]

Android and Me

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HTC M7 rumor roundup: new name, retail price and a re-confirmed launch date Posted: 08 Feb 2013 05:28 PM PST Since there seems to be a half dozen new HTC M7 rumors every day or two, we’ve decided to condense the last few into a single post. The expectation is that HTC will unveil the M7 on February 19th at press events in New York and London (we’ll be attending the New York event), but [...] Visit our site to read the full article.

T-Mobile cuts Nexus 4 price to $50, sales estimates inch past 1 million units Posted: 08 Feb 2013 11:33 AM PST It goes without saying that Google has had a pretty rough time getting the Nexus 4 into the hands of consumers. Low sales estimates from Google translated into supply shortages, but even when Google has phones to sell, the Google Play store simply couldn’t keep up. Users jammed up the... Visit our site to read the full article.

Android Authority

Sony Xperia Z and Xperia ZL might head to India Posted: 09 Feb 2013 03:36 AM PST Sony is eager to show off and bring its two flagship phones, the Xperia Z and Xperia ZL, to as many markets as possible worldwide. The former is already available in Japan, and it's expected to hit China, New Zealand, France, UK, Germany, and more soon – while the latter will possibly be offered in fewer places. One country that will apparently be graced by the presence of both smartphones is India, or so the official website of the company indicates. As seen above, the Xperia Z and Xperia ZL are now up on Sony Mobile India's website. The launching details haven’t been shared yet, but this provides some hints that the pair will be made available in the country. Of course, until Sony makes the official announcement, things could still change. The odds are pretty good though, considering that the Xperia Z and ZL have also been listed by several phone retailers in India. Until we hear more, you can always check out our guide on what exactly sets the two apart. Done reading? Which one are you looking to get your hands on more — the Xperia Z or the Xperia ZL? Related Posts Sony Xperia P will get an ICS makeover on August 19-25, only in India for now? Sony's Xperia ZL to head to Canada soon Sony to dispatch Xperia robots across London as part of its Xperia Unleashed campaign

The Chromebook Pixel is real, here’s the proof Posted: 09 Feb 2013 02:25 AM PST Many around the blogosphere said that the Chromebook Pixel is nothing but a hoax. Well, they were wrong, and today we can show you the proof, courtesy of Francois Beaufort. In case you don't know, Francois Beaufort is a Chrome OS developer who revealed many interesting tidbits about the project in the past, including the upcoming notification center, and the existence of the Chromebook Pixel, known internally at Google as the Link. Today, Beaufort produced a fragment of Chrome OS documentation that seemingly confirms the Chromebook Pixel. The document discusses the behavior of the "lightbar", which is a four-color indicator that will inform the user about the remaining battery life. Quoting from the documentation: At Startup or wake from sleep, Google colors cycle in. While running, > 25% power level in the battery: All blue, in a breathing effect (cycle up and down 30%). While running, <= 25% power level in battery: Same as above, but with red Shutting down, or going into sleep: Cycle out the Google colors (Note: the effect is only visible for S0->S3, because shutting down kills power to the lightbar before we can react). While sleeping: Similar to now, but only using Blue and red for battery indication as above. Now, if you've watched the alleged leaked video, you can see that the lightbar is featured at around the 1:15 mark. So the video ties in with the code present on Google's own website. Moreover, the documentation that Francois Beaufort provided also confirms the existence of the backlit keyboard, which is also shown in the video. There’s a slight chance someone went through Chromium source code and picked up information which they used to create the video. We can't say that the Chromebook Pixel will look exactly like the render in the video, but it's becoming clear that the "concept" was, at a minimum, inspired from reality. Regardless of what you think about the crazy backstory of the video, which involves hackers and a mystery Russian company, the evidence (including the domain name registered in October by Google's domain firm) keeps piling up in favor of the Chromebook Pixel. Related Posts Leaked video: Google-designed Chromebook Pixel with touchscreen and 2560 x 1700 resolution Chromebook Pixel gets its own “.com”! The curious case of Victor Koch

O2 UK starts rolling out Jelly Bean to Xperia T users Posted: 09 Feb 2013 02:14 AM PST Last week, Sony unexpectedly started serving Jelly Bean to Xperia T owners, though the official announcement only came yesterday. While it's to be expected that not everyone will get the update right away, we have some good news for folks in the UK. As posted on its website, O2 UK has confirmed that it's now pushing out the Jelly Bean software to its customers. The update is available to download via OTA, which means all you have to do is wait for the notification to appear on your phone. You can manually check for the updates as well. We're sure you know what to expect from the new firmware. Alongside Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, which brings goodies like Google Now and Android Beam, you'll also get a revamped UI with up to 7 homescreens, improved camera, enhanced app organization, and plenty more. Happy with the update? Still waiting for the Jelly Bean delight? Let us know in the comments below. Related Posts Acer starts rolling out Jelly Bean to some Iconia Tab A700 users, more to follow HTC One X Jelly Bean update starts rolling out to Rogers Wireless customers Jelly Bean update rolling out to Samsung Galaxy S2 GT-I9100G

So it begins: Sony Xperia Z available now in Japan Posted: 09 Feb 2013 01:37 AM PST Ever since the Xperia Z was revealed at CES, I've been fantasizing about buying the gorgeous device. With its minimalist, monolith-like design, polished software, and top of the line specs, there are so many things to like about the Sony Xperia Z. Did I mention it's waterproof? The Xperia Z is becoming available today in the first market, and as you'd expect, the lucky first customers are Japanese. The phone is the star of NTT Docomo's Spring Collection, and was first made available for preorder on January 23. If you happen to be in Japan, you can now buy the Sony Xperia Z in black, purple, or white. The device is actually a version that is customized for the Japanese market, codenamed SO-02E, and boasting a One Seg tuner, FeliCa NFC, infrared, and a bevy of localized software features. The other specifications are identical to the international version, with highlights such as a quad-core Snapdragon S4 SoC, a 441PPI full HD display, and a 13.1MP camera with Exmor RS sensor. If you're interesting in getting the device now, check out NTT Docomo's product page. As for the other markets from around the world, we have an availability roundup here. Do you like the new Sony Xperia Z? At Android Authority, we think that Sony is on the verge of making a comeback. Do you agree? Related Posts Sony's 6.9mm thin Xperia Tablet Z might be introduced in Japan next week NTT DoCoMo starts selling the Sony Xperia AX in Japan Sony's Xperia AX to be released in Japan as early as November, promo videos are out

HTC, you need to pick a name and stick with it. It’s easy Posted: 09 Feb 2013 01:06 AM PST A rumor emerged last night about yet another change in HTC's branding strategy. According to Twitter user @evleaks, HTC's upcoming flagship phone will be simply called the HTC One. Previously, what was supposedly a leaked promotional material of a French retailer suggested that HTC would sell the successor to the One X under the M7 name. Moreover, company CEO Peter Chou was recorded chanting “M7!” at a recent company event. However, @evleaks has a proven record of supplying insider information related to HTC, so there's a good chance the report is accurate. HTC M7 coming to market as simply the HTC One. — @evleaks (@evleaks) February 8, 2013 Regardless of which rumor you choose to believe, I think it's obvious that HTC has a problem with creating and maintaining a well-defined brand image. Neither of the two options is a good choice for a name, in my opinion. M7 may sound good, but what happens next year? Will HTC invent a brand new name in 2014? HTC One could be turned into an evergreen brand, but it conflicts with last year's naming convention. As my colleague Derek Ross commented on Google Plus, which phone would a new customer pick as top of the line, based solely on their names? HTC One X, or HTC One X+, or HTC One? I think most non-fan, non-techy buyers would consider last year's One X+ the top of the line. And what happens to the other phones that HTC plans to launch this year? How will the successors to the One S or One V be called? In my opinion, HTC should pick a distinctive brand name for its top of the line devices and stick with it, like Samsung did with the Galaxy S. People know that S phones are top of the line, even if Samsung markets about a million other Galaxy models. HTC could even stick with last year's convention and release the One X2. It has a nice ring to it, and people will instinctively recognize it as the newer and better smartphone. In the past few months, the Taiwanese have repeatedly emphasized their "newfound" focus on marketing. Hopefully, it will be more than just talk this time, because the clear branding strategy that HTC promised for last year eventually devolved into a mess. We should find out pretty soon – HTC has scheduled the launch of its new hero phone on February 19, with twin events in London and New York. We'll be there to bring you all the good stuff. Related Posts The popular Game Stick kickstarter comes to an end with $647,658 pledged Rumor: HTC to launch two phones codenamed M4 and G2 during Q2 2013 New Updates on Samsung Galaxy S3 Development, Stick to Galaxy S2 Plus Instead?

A closer look at the Chrome OS notification center Posted: 08 Feb 2013 11:54 PM PST A few days back, we wrote about the new Chrome OS notification center that was reportedly going to make the user experience a richer and easier one. First shared by developer Francois Beaufort, the notification center resembled Google Now cards, and worked on both Google Chrome OS installations, as well as PC-based installations of the Chrome Browser. Computerworld offered an in-depth look at the new notification center, based on a demonstration application built for internal testing purposes. Here are some insights. The notification center seems to be meant to unify notifications from the different Google messaging services, including Gmail, Google Talk, Google Voice and Google+. However, the only application currently only supports Gmail. A notification is shown in full about 10 seconds, and then fades away from view into the notification icon. Clicking the icon reveals pending notifications in a card-like stack. Notifications are shown as a thumbnail, a headline and a few snippets of text. Some notifications are built for chat-like services, and even offer a few options for calling or sending messages. Some notifications are for shared content, such as photos and images. Notifications can be dismissed by clicking on an “X” icon. Sorry, no swipe-to-dismiss gesture here, as many Android ICS and Jelly Bean users might be familiar with. Notifications can all be dismissed with a “clear all” button. The notification center offers granular customization, in which a user can choose among basic and simple notifications, as well as itemized list notifications for some applications and services. What’s getting users and fans excited about this notification center is how it’s meant to unify the different messaging services available on Chrome OS. Of course, as an extension, there is the question on whether Google Now will make an appearance on Chrome OS or the Chrome browser, and whether Chrome will support unified messaging from services on one’s Android device, which can include missed calls and messages. Related Posts Notification Center coming to Chrome, Google Now is getting closer Screenshot hints at Chrome OS notification center and unified messaging app Mystery app is not the new unified messenger; it's an internal testing app

Bugdroid to get an official LEGO release? Posted: 08 Feb 2013 08:53 PM PST At one point in your life, you might have come across LEGO — those wonderful brick sets that give us curious folks countless hours of enjoyment and creative play. LEGO seems to be popular among the engineering-minded, what with a supercomputer built on LEGO bricks and Raspberry Pi and other such projects. Well, if you’re an Android fan, you might be glad to know that our favorite Bugdroid character might just get its own official LEGO set. Android fan Marc Young, who goes by the alias GLHTurbo, has submitted a project on the LEGO Cuusoo site, and the project has already garnered 10,000 supporters, which means the project will undergo review by LEGO for possible release as an official set. According to Marc, he decided to create a LEGO build for himself, as there were no official releases so far. The build consists of 205 mostly Lime Green bricks, some of which are not commonly available. Marc says 205 bricks would translate to about $30, but as some of the parts were expensive, his kit cost much more to build. See also: Hands-on: Android Mini Series 03 collectibles Bugdroid has some movable parts, notably its antennae, head and arms. You can check out the demo video below. Would you be interested in building your own LEGO Bugdroid? Hat tip to my colleague Derek Ross, who seems to be a big LEGO fan apart from being an Android authority. Related Posts LEGO Hero Factory Brain Attack arrives early on Google Play Chrome Bugdroid statue hits Google campus, will Android apps run in Chrome? Pre-release Jelly Bean build for Verizon Galaxy S3 leaks, official OTA to come soon

NVIDIA demos Real Boxing on Project SHIELD for a new weekly series called Android Thursdays Posted: 08 Feb 2013 12:52 PM PST NVIDIA has posted up a new video featuring Project SHIELD. It’s the first in a weekly series they call Android Thursdays. For its first installment they take a look at a demo of a game called Real Boxing at the Nth Street Cafe. Real Boxing is a realistic boxing game with an extensive career mode. There are twenty different characters to choose from with their own unique strengths, outfit and etc. It’s a very realistic boxing game for being on the Android OS. Based off of the demo, Real Boxing looks amazing on Project SHIELD. Thanks to the Tegra 4 quad core CPU, animations are seamless, textures are enhanced and graphics are realistic. One thing the Android OS has had a problem with is keeping decent frames per second. It simply can’t keep a solid 30 – 60 frames per second due to the way the OS redraws graphics. From the video, it seems that the fps issue is non-existent, which is great to see as it was originally a big worry with games that are more demanding. It’ll be interesting to see how well it functions as we begin to see more graphically demanding games. Real Boxing is interesting and all, but if they want to bring in a lot of gamer’s with Project SHIELD, they’re going to need to show off some better games than just boxing. What game would you like to see on Project SHIELD? Related Posts NVIDIA Project Shield gaming demoed, Dead Trigger 2 Tegra 4 game also unveiled [video] Nvidia drops first bomb of CES 2013 with new handheld gaming system called Project Shield [Updated] Arma Tactics to launch on NVIDIA’s Project Shield gaming console

The curious case of Victor Koch Posted: 08 Feb 2013 11:49 AM PST When the "Chromebook Pixel" video was leaked, a quick apology went out on Google+. In this apology, CEO of slinky.me, Victor Koch, tagged Sergey Brin and Francois Beaufort. Sergey we all know as the co-founder of Google. Francois is a Chromium developer who recently worked for Trapeze media. Victor Koch lists Google as his employer from 2011-2012, and notes he co-founded Slinky back in 2010. While none of this causes alarm, his recent actions do. The leaked "Chromebook Pixel" video is alleged by Victor to be a result of Chinese cyber crime, hackers of course. Oh, the poor Chinese… they seem to get all the blame. It's curious how someone who worked at Google for about a year has ingrained himself so thoroughly that he's now making videos for new releases. The slinky.me site has some gorgeous photos, but it's in Russian and fairly difficult to navigate, making us wonder just what is going on. Victor claims residence in Mountain View, CA, though in the "About" section of the site, Slinky.me claims offices in Tokyo, London, Berlin, New Dehli, Moscow, and Pekin… but not the USA. Then, the curious instance of Francois Beaufort comes to mind. He shared the video as a possible "Concept" for the "Google Link". I find it odd that one of the guys Victor tagged in his apology seemed to be as curious about the device as we are. Almost as if he had no idea of the video’s existence, or who Victor is. “We were like Robin Hoods” In an interview given with a Russian blog site back in 2011, Victor addresses a number of issues. The most curious of these issues is his hacking activity, and his alleged attempt to hack into the Pentagon. He denies attempting to break into the Pentagon, or any banking site, but claims he and his co-horts were “like Robin Hoods” and would “sometimes do useful things for society”. A former hacker, hacked by hackers, now making videos for a new Google product? How curious. We now have a leaked video, specs, a registered domain, and a Keyzer Soze. What do you think… is this fake, or the future Chromebook? It’s all so… curious. Update: Victor has reached out to me, and challenged the blog I sourced in the closing paragraph as “fake”. He tells me he never gave the interview, and the photo used in it (and at the top of this article) was taken when he was 16 years old. The blog was found during a simple Google search, and was translated with Google translate. Related Posts Leaked video: Google-designed Chromebook Pixel with touchscreen and 2560 x 1700 resolution Chromebook Pixel gets its own “.com”! Looks like the Chromebook puppy may have some bite

Why we should all celebrate the sale of the millionth Nexus 4 Posted: 08 Feb 2013 11:34 AM PST Should LG and Google pop the champagne? According to an unofficial tally, the two companies could soon celebrate the sale of the millionth Nexus 4. But is this a performance to be proud of? Or should they better keep it to themselves? Before we dive in, the tally comes from an XDA Developers user who found out that, by plugging a Nexus 4's IMEI number into an LG web app, they could access information about the device, including a serial number that is supposedly the device count. Yesterday, a device sold in Turkey was reported to have the serial number "999998", which means that LG manufactured at least 1 million devices. However, there could be devices out there that haven't been checked, with higher serials numbers. In other words, the actual number of Nexus 4s made might be higher. [Update] Some readers have pointed out that due to gaps in the numbering system, LG may have manufactured only 850,000-900,000 Nexus 4 units. Still, I think my points regarding the general trend are still valid. At this point, some of you might say… Please, Samsung sells that much in a minute So we know that LG fabricated at least 1 million Nexus 4 units. Given the popular demand for the device (the Nexus 4 8GB just sold out again in the US, by the way), let's assume that translates to roughly 1 million Nexus 4s sold. Is this an achievement for Google and LG? If you compare it with superstar devices like the Galaxy S3 or the iPhone, the market performance of the Nexus 4 is puny. Samsung and Apple routinely sell the first million of their hero devices within hours of the launch. But that doesn't mean we should dismiss the Nexus 4 as a failure. There are three reasons why: Limited supply The first reason to feel good about the Nexus 4's sales numbers is the fact that many people couldn't even buy one. There's no telling how many devices might Google and LG have sold, if they didn't botch the launch, but I'm sure it would be a lot more than one million. Limited availability The Nexus 4 wasn't just constrained by limited supplies, but also by the relatively low number of markets where the device sold. Sure, Google sells the Nexus 4 in the US, Germany, and other big markets, but people in China, or India, or Brazil had to wait for retailers to make it available in their countries, usually at inflated prices. Moreover, in many countries the device hasn't even become available yet. Limited clout Let's face it. The Nexus is a shining star in the world of Android, but many people just barely got accustomed to Samsung's "Galaxy" brand. Not to mention those who think that all smartphones are "iphones". If the Nexus brand had a quarter of Samsung's or Apple's clout, it would've rocked the market to its core. The future is bright Court documents revealed that the Galaxy Nexus, the predecessor of the Nexus 4, sold about 500,000 units between November 2011 and August 2012. That's about nine months. The Nexus 4 sold twice as much in about three months, while constrained by misjudged supply and limited availability. The Nexus 4 sold about six times better than the Galaxy Nexus. This is the real reason to celebrate, for Google, and frankly, for all Android fans. If the trend holds, next year we may be talking about the Nexus as a true competitor to the Galaxy S and the iPhone. Bring out the champagne, guys. Related Posts Nexus 4 now back on sale in the US Play Store, get it while it's there [Sold out in a few minutes] Asus reveals Nexus 7 sales numbers, up to 1 million sold per month Nexus 4, Nexus 10 now available in the US Play Store, get’em while they last [Update: Nexus 4 sold out]

Android Community

Judge rules three Motorola Mobility patents are invalid Posted: 09 Feb 2013 05:58 AM PST It looks like another patent case has returned to the news. This case involves Motorola Mobility, or in this case Google and Microsoft. This latest decision has a judge ruling that a few of the Motorola Mobility patents are invalid. The ruling was brought down by U.S. District Judge James Robart in Seattle this past Thursday. This case has Motorola looking for up to $4 billion per year for wireless and video patents. On the flip side, Microsoft had returned saying that Motorola deserves much less — in the ballpark of $1 million per year. Basically, a case where both sides are very far apart in term of a number. As for the latest decision in this case, the judge ruled that three of the Motorola Mobility patents are invalid. The key here, only portions of these patents are invalid, which basically just means that they cannot be ruled out entirely. Specifically, as was pointed out by Reuters, Judge Robart ruled that parts of those patents are “indefinite,” which means “Motorola’s patent language did not distinctly articulate the invention.” The remaining parts of those patents are still active in the lawsuit and a decision is expected to arrive sometime during the next several weeks. All said and done, this could be an important decision for Google who purchased Motorola for $12.5 billion giving them 17,000 patents. Should the ruling favor Microsoft, this means Google will have less bargaining power when it comes to negotiating future deals with other companies. Story Timeline Microsoft Files Patent Lawsuit Against Motorola Google passes Microsoft to become second most valuable technology company Motorola thwarts Microsoft in latest Android ban attempt No injunction for Motorola in Microsoft case, Judge says Google CFO talks about Motorola: Be ready for product restructuring [via phoneScoop]

Android mobile advertising on the rise with credit given to the Galaxy S III Posted: 09 Feb 2013 05:36 AM PST A recently published report from Opera Mediaworks is showing record growth in mobile advertising as well as Android being on the rise. The report is showing information from Q4 2012 and taking the data from an advertising platform that is currently serving up more than 50 billion ad impressions per month across a network of 12,000 mobile sites and apps. To begin with, this report shows Q4 2012 as being a “record quarter.” In fact, they are touting this quarter as having “more than a two-times increase in impressions and revenue to publishers compared to any other quarter in 2012.” Of course, it was said that this can be associated with the impact of the holiday shopping season. Touching on the Android side, it is said to be on the rise and as having been influenced by the adoption of the Samsung Galaxy S III. Yes, another report telling us that Samsung (and in this case, the Galaxy S III) are key in terms of Android. Still, while Android and the Galaxy S III are doing well, it was said that iOS is still on top in terms of monetization. Not letting iOS have all the glory though, Android smartphones did edge out the iPhone by 2 percent in terms of the market share of global impression volume. Other goodies from the report show that music, video and media are the top categories in terms of impressions with 21.4 percent. On the flip side of the most impressions, the report notes that entertainment proved more valuable and earned “slightly” more revenue overall. Furthermore, the report details “significant growth” from the Russian Federation which is said to be the result of Android device adoption. Aside from the growth in the Russian Federation, it was also shown that North American requests dropped due to the growth of international traffic. Story Timeline Opera Mobile & Mini Browsers get updated for Android, Reviewed on Xoom Opera Mini Spreads to Verizon Feature Phones, Androids Scorn Android's native browser beats Opera Mini, still lags behind iOS Opera Mini updates to version 7 with hardware acceleration Opera Mobile beta gets mobile extension support Opera Mini updates with Smart Page for social and news updates Opera Mobile 12.1 for Android brings safer surfing Opera Ice promises to put mobile Chrome browser on notice [via SlashGear]

BLU Products now shipping the Studio 5.3 II and Tank 4.5 smartphones Posted: 09 Feb 2013 05:06 AM PST BLU Products has officially begun shipping a pair of Android smartphones in the US market. The devices include the BLU Studio 5.3 II and the BLU Tank 4.5. These handsets are both available unlocked and with sub-$200 price points. Well, more accurately — they are both priced at a contract-free $199. Those considering a purchase will be able to do so direct with BLU Products as well as with other online retailers. Kicking things off with the BLU Studio 5.3 II. As the name would imply, this device is sporting a 5.3-inch display. In this case the display is IPS with a qHD resolution of 540 x 960 and a pixel density of 208ppi. Other specs for the Studio 5.3 II include 4GB of internal storage, a microSD card slot, 2200 mAh battery, 2.0 megapixel front-facing camera and 8 megapixel rear-facing camera with auto-focus, LED flash and 720p HD video recording. Moving over to the BLU Tank 4.5 and the features once again come in with the name. Those looking towards the Tank 4.5 can expect to find a 4.5-inch qHD (540 x 960) IPS display with a pixel density of 245ppi and a rugged exterior. The Tank 4.5 has the IP67 certification which means that it is dust- and sand-proof as well as water-resistant in up to one meter of water for up to 30 minutes. Being rugged aside, the Tank 4.5 also has 4GB of internal storage, a microSD card slot, 1760 mAh battery, front-facing camera and 5 megapixel rear-facing camera with LED flash. Features shared across both devices include Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, dual SIM support, a dual-core 1GHz Cortex A9 processor with PowerVR SGX Series 5 graphics and connectivity for GSM Quad Band 850/900/1800/1900 and HSDPA 850/1900. While certainly not having over-the-top specs, these do seem attractive at the $199 price point.

OUYA game approvals will be quick and mirror the mobile model Posted: 09 Feb 2013 04:46 AM PST We recently learned about how the OUYA game console was planning to take the mobile approach in terms of future console releases, and well, it appears as if game approvals will also be taking a similar path. The details are again coming from OUYA CEO Jane Uhrman who recently commented about the process. She didn’t go into specifics, however she did offer a quick summary as well let everyone know that the process will be kicking off later this month. Basically, game developers will be able to submit their apps for approval by the OUYA team fairly soon. Uhrman has yet to give a specific date and at this time has left it as coming somewhere in the middle to the end of February. Simply put, if you are working on a game for OUYA, you may want to start getting things ready for the approval process. Speaking of, Urhman also spoke about how that will work. She once again noted the mobile market, stating that the game approval process will be “similar to mobile” and that developers will submit games and they will be reviewing for “intellectual property infringement, and malware, and excessive pornography.” Perhaps the key portion here, the process is described as being a “quick review” which means you shouldn’t have all that long to wait between submission and entry into the storefront. All things considered, it appears as if the OUYA console has been doing well, not only back in the Kickstarter days, but also since. They managed to raise way over the initial funding goals — initially looking for $950,000 and managing to secure more than $8.5 million. Looking forward, they also made some recent announcements about retail availability. At this time the console is available for pre-order with several retailers including Amazon, Target and Best Buy. Retail availability is expected for June. Finally, if you are waiting on a pre-order to arrive or still considering placing a pre-order and are looking for a bit more detail and information — make sure to check out our OUYA Starter Guide which breaks down which apps and gear you will want to have from day one. Story Timeline OUYA developer SDK released alongside special edition Dev Consoles OUYA Dev Consoles begin arriving and eager developers begin sharing details OUYA game controller gets a pre-production redesign OUYA game jam results in 166 prototypes in 10 days OUYA console April deliveries close to selling out OUYA game console will be in retail stores this June OUYA starter guide: apps and gear you'll want on day 1 OUYA promising a new game console each year [via Engadget]

NVIDIA shows off Real Boxing game demo on Project SHIELD Posted: 08 Feb 2013 03:54 PM PST The folks from NVIDIA are getting busy with their Tegra 4 quad-core powered gaming console, simply named Project SHIELD. You should all know plenty about this impressive little gaming system already, so today their just teasing us with a video showing some of the awesome games we can expect to enjoy. Get ready to fight like Mike Tyson (biting ears) in Real Boxing for Android on Project SHIELD. A new game Real Boxing by Vivid Games looks to bring real life in-the-ring experiences to our favorite mobile devices. Today NVIDIA is sharing a first hand look and preview of the game and their new device in a blog post. It looks like NVIDIA will be having what they’re calling “Android Thursdays” where they’ll be showing off the Android side of Project SHIELD every week. This means each Thursday you can expect an awesome new video or blog post from NVIDIA sharing details on upcoming games, Tegra 4 news, and their Project SHIELD game console. Today’s Friday and we’re a bit late, but we’ll be sure and show off anything new leading up to the device launch. Check out this stunning looking game: I don’t know about you guys, but that game sure looks awesome. Being able to have controls and a console like experience will really bring Android gaming to an entirely new level. Not to mention streaming that to the big screen TV in your living room so the entire group can watch you KO your best friend. For all the Project SHIELD news you can handle stay tuned right here, and hit the links below for more details. Don’t forget to check out our Tegra Hub full of Tegra-powered goodness. Story Timeline NVIDIA Project SHIELD revealed for Android gaming dominance NVIDIA Project SHIELD hands-on with gaming NVIDIA Project SHIELD extended hands-on with Android and PC gaming NVIDIA shows off PC game Borderlands 2 streaming with Project Shield [via NVIDIA Blog]

Google’s Eric Schmidt plans to sell over 40% of his stake in company Posted: 08 Feb 2013 03:41 PM PST Google’s former head and current Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt looks to be parting ways with Google, at least a little bit. New details this afternoon have confirmed that the once big wig will be selling around 42% of his stake in Google Inc. The plan was announced today by Google and apparently will take place over the next year. Eric Schmidt has played a huge role on the growth and success of Google, and while we aren’t quite sure what the reasoning is behind this — it will probably turn out just fine for all parties involved. According to Google the reasoning and plan behind this move is simple. And that is to give Schmidt “individual asset diversification and liquidity.” Schmidt will be selling around 3.2 million Class A common Google Inc stock according to Reuters, which equals out to just over 42% of his total stake in the company and search giant. The once CEO of Google currently owns over 7.6m Class A and B stock, and Google has agreed to let him drop his shares over the course of the next 12 months. Schmidt will be selling these assets and shares over the next year and Google states it will be spread out in order to reduce the market impact. The stock being sold represents around 8% voting power in Google, and I sure wish I could buy it all. Google shares were at a closing high of $785.37 today with the news, and it will be interesting to see how that gets impacted. We aren’t sure how this will affect Google moving forward, but it’s interesting nonetheless. Story Timeline Eric Schmidt: Motorola acquisition "Won't screw up the ecosystem" Eric Schmidt outs 1.3 Million Android activations daily, 500 million devices worldwide Google's Eric Schmidt: "It would have been better" if Apple kept Google Maps Eric Schmidt jumps on the Gangnam Style bandwagon Google's Eric Schmidt predicts 1 billion Android activations within a year Google's Eric Schmidt: We're clearly winning the war against Apple Eric Schmidt interviews Stephen Colbert and talks Google Play

‘The Internship’ debut movie trailer to be shown on a Google+ hangout Posted: 08 Feb 2013 03:21 PM PST A brand new comedy movie featuring the two awesome dudes from Wedding Crashers, Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn is coming soon. And to make thing even better the movie will be about two interns working for Google. It’s called The Internship and we mentioned it on our sister site back in September. These two celebrities were shooting tons of scenes of the movie right at Google’s HQ in California. It’s a pretty interesting idea, and we’ll have to wait for additional details. Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson are playing two interns at Google who lost their previous jobs and are trying to get back into the game, and it should be loads of fun and have plenty of comedy moments. Today we’ve learned that they’ll be hosting a live Google+ hangout and you won’t want to miss it. Hosted by Conan O’Brien the live Google+ hangout will feature both Owen and Vince talking and taking questions live right on Google+ and it will also serve as the debut for their official movie trailer. We still don’t know all the details and haven’t seen any previews yet, so I’m excited to see what this movie is all about. Here’s the teaser: Google was nice enough to open up their HQ to the entire film crew for a good portion of the film, and we’re told to expect plenty of guest appearances and possibly even some treats along the way. Maybe Sergey Brin will be spotted in the movie, who knows. The official Google+ Live hangout will give us our first look at the trailer, then both actors will be talking about “life at Google” so hopefully it’s worth the watch. As the trailer states, it takes Place on February 13th (my B-day) at 11 PST 2 EST. Don’t miss it! [via Droid-life]

Verizon takes the top spot for JD Power’s customer care award Posted: 08 Feb 2013 02:11 PM PST Just like last year and the year before the folks from Verizon Wireless are the number 1 ranked wireless carrier in terms of customer care and service. According to the popular JD Power and Associates, who’ve awarded Verizon the top spot for the fourth year in a row, Verizon isn’t showing any signs of slowing down and continues to offer great customer service. The full report and awards are based off of feedback from thousands of customers and questions in a series of online surveys. Telephone, walk-in, and online customer care is all tallied up for a total score with a possibility of 1000. Verizon once again tops the chart with a score of 766. AT&T took a close second but still didn’t outscore Big Red. Interestingly enough the folks from T-Mobile have taken a turn in the wrong direction, and actually scored last among the 4 major US carriers. A full 50 points below Verizon while AT&T was just 7 points behind the leader. That’s pretty much dead last and certainly not a good sign. Verizon has quite the social network customer care plan especially over on Twitter, so that probably net them a few additional points. The survey also calls out non-contract pre-paid customers and MetroPCS was leading the pack, with Cricket Wireless down near the bottom. T-Mobile use to have the best CS around. So what’s changed? We don’t want to call anyone out but feel free to drop a horror story or two below. Good experiences are also nice to read too so lets hear em. Story Timeline JD Power: Verizon has best call quality nationwide ... Android loses out to iPhone bigtime in JD Power Satisfaction Ratings Verizon tops the US in customer service, says JD Power and Associates Different survey says AT&T tops the US in customer service T-Mobile angers customers with ads in Android notification bar [via CNET]

Nexus devices seem to be having Wi-Fi issues on Android 4.2 Posted: 08 Feb 2013 01:48 PM PST Issue 40065, a seemingly simple sounding number, however for the more than 450 people that have starred the issue — it apparently means poor Wi-Fi connectivity on their Nexus device. Or more specifically, on a Nexus device running Android 4.2 Jelly Bean. This of course could include the Nexus 4 smartphone as well as the Nexus 7 and 10 tablets. The interesting part here, this thread was originally created back on November 20, 2012. The thread then remained open until February 1, at which time it was marked as closed without any resolution being given. Users continue to comment, however still nothing in terms of a solution or even a response from Google. Some users are reporting the connections dropping in the middle of browsing and others are reporting issues when streaming audio with the display off. The long and short of the story though — many are complaining about dropped connections. There are some solutions being tossed around. For example, some are suggesting the use of apps like WiFi Manager or WiFi Fixer. But these sound like a workaround as opposed to an actual fix. Other suggestions include turning NFC off, but again, you shouldn’t have to turn something off to make something else work when they are both features of the device. Basically, there are lots of people complaining and lots of workarounds being talked about, but nothing in terms of an actual solution. Or for that matter, an acknowledgement from Google. You can see an example of this in action in the above video. Keep an eye on the Wi-Fi icon, it basically just goes in and out. If nothing else we hope to see a resolution for this before more Android users take drastic action. And by that we mean swapping out a Nexus device for an iPad. Yes, there were a few that mentioned that as their solution. While I am a bit hesitant to say this, my Android 4.2.1 running Nexus 7 seems to be pretty solid in terms of a Wi-Fi connection. Anyone here having trouble with Wi-Fi connectivity on Android 4.2? Thanks for the tip Jason! [via Google]

HTC DROID Incredible getting a quick software update Posted: 08 Feb 2013 01:28 PM PST The original HTC DROID Incredible is still alive and apparently active at Verizon Wireless. Because they’ve decided after a few years of inactivity to fix a few pesky bugs. Today reports have surfaced that the OG DROID is getting a quick update solving the reboot problem that plagued the device. When I first heard the news that this nearly 3 year old phone was still getting some sort of support and an update from Verizon my first thought was.. what about the Nexus? In all seriousness though, for the folks that still have and use the DROID Incredible a major bug that was causing serious random reboots has been solved and fixed with this update. I’m a bit surprised to see this update coming out this week, but I’m sure any owners of the handset will gladly accept the tiny tiny 4MB update file. Yup, it’s only 4MB and shouldn’t take more than a few seconds to download. Then a quick reboot and you’ll be good as new. Well as new as Android 2.3 Gingerbread at least. The DROID Incredible is getting pretty old these days, and the ONLY thing they fixed is a random reboot bug. No added security, features, or anything else is included in this update. We’ll take what we can get though so if you’re still rocking this old smartphone get ready for an update. Head into settings and check now, then let us know if you still experience reboots post update. Device Specifications and Information Device Info Device Name : Droid Incredible Manufactuer : HTC Carrier : Verizon Announced Date : April 15, 2010 Release Date : April 29, 2010 Also Known As : Display Screen Size : 3.70 Inch Resolution : 480x800 Screen Type : AMOLED Dimension & Weight Height : 4.63 Inch Width : 2.30 Inch Depth : 0.47 Inch Weight : 130 Grams Battery & Power Battery Type: Lithium Ion Battery Capacity : 1300 mAh Talk Time : NA Stand By Time : 146 hours Software Android OS: 2.2.x Audio Playback: AAC AAC+ AMR MID MP3 WAV WMA Video Playback: 3GP MPEG-4 (MP4) WMV Messaging: SMS MMS Hardware CPU : Snapdragon CPU Clock Speed : 1000 Mhz Core : 1 Ram : 512 MB Internal Storage : 8.192 GB Front Facing Camera : Camera Resolution : 8 MP External Storage: MicroSD MicroSDHC Camera Features: Auto focus Flash 720p Video Recording Sensors: Accelerometer Ambient light Proximity QWERTY : Cellular Network Network Technology: CDMA CDMA Band: 800 1900 Device Connectivity Wi-Fi: 802.11b 802.11g 802.11n Bluetooth: Bluetooth 2.0 Location Features: Compass GPS Cellular location Wi-Fi location FM Radio : NFC : [via Droid-Life]

Vector brings Parkour side-scrolling action to Android [Hands-on] Posted: 08 Feb 2013 01:02 PM PST There’s certainly no shortage of what we call 2D side-scroller platform games on Android. They’re simple, easy to play, and usually a good bit of fun. Meet a new game called Vector that was just released and spotted by Android Police. The same free running side-scroller action we know and love has been mixed into an arcade style Parkour game. It’s fun yet challenging so read on for more details and our hands-on video. If you’re a fan of side-scroller games, love Parkour, or are just looking for a fun and exciting new game for your favorite Android smartphone and tablet this is worth checking out. The game starts off with a “Big Brother” tied down society vibe where you quickly rebel. This is where the running comes into play and the game even has a Mirrors Edge feel to it. If you’ve ever played that on PC you’re probably excited to try this on Android — and you should be. Using the standard swipe for jump, slide, and tricks you’ll be jumping over obstacles, avoiding the bad guys and earning bonus points in no time. They’ve added an additional few options to this otherwise traditional game to keep it fun. You’ll be rolling, doing backflips, and other tricks all Parkour style for the runner in you. Check it out: “Run, vault, slide and climb using extraordinary techniques based on the urban ninja sport of Parkour.” As you can see in our hands-on video this is more than just your average side-scroller. All the flips and tricks adds a unique and fun element, and the black body silhouette with the awesome graphics in the background sure are nice. Don’t get too distracted though because if you miss a jump Big Brother is right on your tail ready with his taser to haul you off to jail. Vector is free to play, but there’s ads and junk after every single level. They’ve integrated power-ups and a coin system for tricks, stunts, as well as an incentive to get faster and better. Coins let you buy tricks to beat the levels quicker for more stars, and they certainly help. A few times I quickly got frustrated with the controls, but like any platformer game it’s all about timing. You’ll have to pass 30 levels to get to round two for a new backdrop and an entire new experience, and they offer a paid version for $0.99 in the Play Store. This is a pretty fun new game so check it out. Vector Play Store Link

Using NFC and not even thinking about mobile payments Posted: 08 Feb 2013 12:42 PM PST The title of this post may be a bit of a stretch. Truth be told, I do like the idea of mobile payments, specifically Google Wallet. But in my case, Verizon isn’t playing nicely so that sort of rules that option out. Truthfully though, NFC is about much more than mobile payments. In fact, I would argue that even if I had Google Wallet on my Galaxy S III, that would probably be the least used NFC related feature. You see, mobile payments may attract quite a bit of the NFC related attention, however there are plenty of other use cases. For this post, I will concentrate on two — sharing of files and automation. More specifically, sharing using S Beam and automation using TecTiles. There are other options available, especially in the form of NFC tags, however given I use a Samsung device — that is where my experience comes from. Not to mention, given the recent reports telling us how popular Samsung is at the moment, we suspect more than a few others have Galaxy devices in hand. Beginning first with the sharing. You may remember some Samsung commercials touting this feature. They seemed silly and sort of cheesy at the time, but after putting that to use — it has proved wonderful. This one is rather simple, assuming both devices have the NFC and S Beam setting turned on — open the file you want to share, hold the two phones together and then “touch to beam.” Personally, this comes in handy for sharing everything from music or video files to images and even links. Sure, you can always email files, however once you are familiar with this method of sharing, sending an email to a person sitting in the same room will feel silly. The other item is the automation, something that I am more than a bit obsessed with. I want features on or off depending on where I happen to be at the moment. What better way to get those settings adjusted than to do it with fewer taps. I should point out that I also use a few other apps for this, one called Silence and one called Atooma. Those aside, the Samsung TecTiles work wonders. I have a tile on the light switch in my office. This one is pretty simple, it will make sure my phone is on vibrate so I am not disturbed with a ringing phone while working. I also use a tile in my car. This one does three things, it turns my Bluetooth on, turns my Wi-Fi off and launches Slacker. All items that I want and/or need in the car. Of course, sharing and automation are just two examples of what can be done. The moral of the story is that if you happen to think of NFC as only being associated with mobile payments, you may want to give it another thought. We are also a bit curious, is anyone using NFC on a regular basis? If so, what are your use cases?

HTC M7 to launch as the “HTC One” Posted: 08 Feb 2013 12:28 PM PST It seems we cannot go a day without having some HTC M7 related rumor or leak. Today is no exception as there is now some chatter surrounding the name. According to what we are seeing, the device we have come to think of as the M7 may not launch as the M7. Instead, it may be something much simpler. Something that now looking back seems to make a bit of sense. We cannot say with certainly that this is accurate, however given the screaming Peter Chou video and the reputable source of this bit of information — it seems likely. Bottom line here, @evleaks is reporting that HTC will be launching the M7 as the HTC One. Touching on the screaming Peter Chou portion and we remember that he was not only screaming HTC M7, but also HTC One. At the time it seemed a little strange that he was mixing the two devices, however it now looks like he was simply screaming two names for the same device. Keeping with the One series branding that HTC already has also seems to make sense for the company. Either way though, whether HTC announces this handset as the “One” or the “M7″ one thing seems clear — it has attracted more than a fair share of attention. We are expecting HTC to make this all official during the February 19 event. Otherwise, the rumored features look to include a 1080p display, quad-core processor and camera lens with ultrapixels as opposed to megapixels. The HTC M7 is also expected to have 2GB of RAM, 32GB of internal storage, a 2300 mAh battery, 2 megapixel front-facing camera, Jelly Bean and Sense 5. Story Timeline HTC M7 image leak shows off the handset and Sense 5.0 HTC M7 rumors suggest a February 19 announcement HTC M7 part leak gives another look at the exterior casing HTC M7 rumored to launch March 8th on multiple US carriers HTC M7 possibly headed to all major US carriers but Verizon HTC M7 further confirmed by a screaming Peter Chou HTC M7 spotted in Vodafone and Carphone Warehouse inventory listings HTC M7 could arrive as soon as March 8