Android and Me |
- Android Rumor Breakdown: Google Music
- 16GB Motorola Xoom coming to Verizon with 4G upgrade still on the horizon
- The truth behind Android’s “Remote Wipe” ability.
| Android Rumor Breakdown: Google Music Posted: 09 Apr 2011 02:20 PM PDT Very few people are willing to argue that Android has a truly great music app, even one not made by Google. There are some that try really hard, and get a few things right here and there, but it’s been something that has left the Android experience somewhat lacking. I can’t tell you how many people I have met who have an Android phone AND an iPod or Zune, simply because Android does not offer a similar experience yet. The closest we have seen to a truly new music experience for Android was the new UI for the Android 3.0 music app. Additionally, we’ve recently seen the emergence of the Amazon cloud player, offering 5GB of free storage for your music, and inexpensive yearly plans for much more space to hold your tunes. Ever since I/O last year, Android fans have been teased and tortured at the hints and rumors that a Google powered cloud music system for Android was on it’s way. As it stands now, very few online services can compete with Amazon’s Cloud Player in terms of functionality, and none of them also offer a competitively priced music store built right into the app. Recent events at Google HQ lead us to believe that the Google cloud based music player and store is right around the corner, though the details are just as vague as they were a year ago. So, we’ve scoured the web and combined everything legit we could find in the hopes of shedding some light on this Google Music redux. The Screenshots Recently the guys over at Techfrom10 were victims of a happy accident in which they were granted access to the Google Dev team’s “special” Android Market, used for internal testing. While those guys wen spelunking through the entire market, the shots they got of the Music app show us a new UI that could be described as a phone optimized version of the music app seen on any Honeycomb tablet. Additionally, we see in the settings panel for the app some options for caching, downloading, and streaming music from an online source, options that are not currently found in the Honeycomb app.   
Google Preparing for Web Delivery Maybe it was Amazon, maybe it was Google’s plan all along, or maybe someone at Google HQ got a hold of the company credit card and went bananas, but Google’s been buying up domains left and right. Domains like GoogleAlto.com, GoogleThunder.com, GoogleSoprano.com, and GoogleNebula.com to name a few. All of the names revolve around music or have a cloud related name, mostly music. None of these domains go anywhere yet, but it can’t be long until we see something pop up in one of these domains.
I/O is Right Around the Corner Google’s great big developer conference is less than a month away now, making it the perfect place to drop their new music service. There’s been speculation all over about what Google will be bringing to I/O, even rumors that Android will not be a big focus this year. At Google’s League of Extraordinary Hackers event during SXSW this year, it was made plenty clear that the big focuses would be uniting Honeycomb and Google TV, as well as a heavier focus on Google’s web technologies. Google Music would suffice as a significant Android announcement, without focusing an entire keynote on it. I’m sure that in the coming weeks more information will continue to slip into the ravenous hands of those eager to see Google step up and release a music service that rivals the current competition, but for now these seem like the biggest indicators of what the Music service has in store for us, and when we can really expect to dive into this new entertainment experience. Are you ready for Google Music?
|
| 16GB Motorola Xoom coming to Verizon with 4G upgrade still on the horizon Posted: 09 Apr 2011 10:42 AM PDT The guys at Droid-Life received the leaked screen shot below detailing a 16 GB version of everyone’s favorite (currently available) Honeycomb tablet. All features appear to be identical to the original save for the — wait for it — subtraction of 16GB of storage. To be clear when I say identical I mean right down to that empty cavity where the 4G module should be. The reason I make note of that is that the 16GB Xoom must be quite close to launching as we are just 46 days away from the rumored date for the existing Xooms to go under the knife for their 4G facelift. Verizon may be motivated to get additional Xoom buyers locked in before Sprint can get in on the act.
We can reasonably assume that this will follow the existing market pricing and slot in at $699 off contract and $499 with a two-year agreement. While it is definitely a luxury I have to admit that in my week with the Xoom I found having a persistent connection was more compelling than I thought it would be on a larger tablet so anything to bring the price down into a more manageable range is welcome. No word on whether a wifi-only 16GB will be joining the growing family of Xoom SKUs, but I’m sure the little guy would be welcomed with open arms. With Acer’s thriftier and similarly-specced Iconia Tab hitting Best Buy’s shelves by the end of the month it would certainly behoove Motorola to have a more direct price competitor on the shelves beside it.
|
| The truth behind Android’s “Remote Wipe” ability. Posted: 08 Apr 2011 09:13 PM PDT My morning started as most of my mornings do, Tablet in hand I trudge around my house making sure my little ones are getting breakfast and readying for school. I flick through all of the news and commentary I may have missed in the last 8 hours, catch a few webcomics, and if I am feeling adventurous I will even check out Twitter. This was one such morning where a flick through twitter revealed more than a few people upset that someone had discovered a “kill switch” in the Thunderbolt source code. Through the Droid Rage, it was pointed out that this bit of code is not exclusive to the Thunderbolt. You can find the snippet of code that I will be referring to HERE. This code, more commonly referred to as the Master Clean command, it not some evil weapon that carriers, manufacturers, or even Google would wield over you for committing some heinous crime. In fact, this code exists on every Android device, including ones compiled via AOSP. It’s there for local network administrators. This is a corporate feature to enable a sys admin to wipe a phone that’s been misplaced, stolen, or even picked up by a wannabe reporter in a strange bar. It’s a simple security feature to protect a company from losing valuable or secure data. So in a couple of months, when the next insanely hyped Android phone comes out, and a week or so later you hear that a super secret “kill switch” was installed to brick your phone if you misbehaved, please remember this article, as I am sure it will be just another retelling of this same old tale. Huge thanks to @teamANDIRC for the tip!
|
| You are subscribed to email updates from Android and Me To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 | |
No comments:
Post a Comment