Android Community |
- Verizon giving away an HTC Thunderbolt and party with Mark Cuban
- FastFive Game Trailer launched by Gameloft
- With Recording, CNN stands by Google Facial Recognition App Story
- YouVersion Bible App surpasses 5 million downloads on Android
- ABI Research says Android will seize 45% of smartphone market by 2016
- Wahoo Fitness offers new ANT+ API for Android
- Sony Ericsson Xperia Play to get Streaming Music Unlimited access
- Google App Inventor March 31st 2011 Update
- Sidekick 4G Available at Radio Shack Same Day as LG G2x and the LG G-Slate
- Motorola Xoom overclocked to 1.5 Ghz with benchmark results [Guide]
- Motorola Xoom Root the Easy way with 1-Click-Root and overclock [Guide]
- LG G-Slate Demos NVIDIA Tegra 2 Optimized Riptide GP
- Google joins the NFC Forum as Principal Member
- American Airlines giving away 30 NOOKcolors to Android app users
- Xperia PLAY Reviewed by Chris Davies
- Google calls out CNN, claims Facial Recognition story is bogus
- Samsung Galaxy Player hits the FCC
| Verizon giving away an HTC Thunderbolt and party with Mark Cuban Posted: 01 Apr 2011 11:28 AM PDT Android fans in Dallas have a shot at winning an HTC Thunderbolt and a private party with Mark Cuban and ten friends. All users need to do is follow @MCuban on Twitter, and then collect the 5 Verizon Wireless with the five VZW puzzle pieces that Cuban will post on his Twitter Feed from April 1-5. The more puzzle pieces you collect, the better your chance to win. Then, turn in the puzzle pieces at the HTC Thunderbolt launch party on Wednesday, April 6 at the Victory Park Plaza store and you’ve got a shot at winning the Thunderbolt and partying with the NBAs badboy owner of the Dallas Mavericks.
Mark Cuban is the NBAs badboy who has a regular line item in his annual budget for NBA fines. The guy is seriously passionate about the game. He made his fortune selling Broadcast.com to Yahoo for $5.9 billion in stock. He then purchase Landmark Theaters and the Dallas Mavericks.
He’s also the founder of the HDNet satellite network. An interesting thing about Cuban is that he holds the Guiness World Record for the largest e-commerce purchase in history, when he bought a Gulfstream V jet off eBay for $40 million. Interesting guy to party with, to be sure.
The HTC Thunderbolt is Verizon’s flagship 4G handset and it comes with a 1 Ghz single core processor, 4/3″ screen and 768MB of RAM with 8GB of internal storage. Users will probably want to get the extended life battery to get through the day, even if they do win the top prize. Still, it has great video graphics and runs really fast on the Verizon 4G/LTE network.   [via Twtvite] )
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| FastFive Game Trailer launched by Gameloft Posted: 01 Apr 2011 10:52 AM PDT Gameloft has released a trailer for Fast Five: The Movie: The Official Game. And man, for a mobile 3D app, the graphics quality is awesome. The trailer shows a wide variety of racers and courses and some really thrilling explosions. It makes me think that the game is probably going to be more entertaining than the movie itself.
The game is based on the upcoming movie starring Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, and Dwayne Johnson (fka “The Rock) and the Fast and Furious series which shows little sign of running out of gas. The movie tells the story of Dominic and his crew as they find themselves on the wrong side of the law … again … as they try to switch lanes between a ruthless drug lord and a relentless federal agent. Just looking at the trailer, you can see how mature mobile gaming has gotten on the Android platform. The graphics are looking sharper and more colorful, and it looks like the refresh rates are getting fast and furious. And you can bet that the future of gaming on mobile platforms will only get better as the processors get more mature in the multicore direction. The game will be available for Android and other platforms starting April 28, 2001.
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| With Recording, CNN stands by Google Facial Recognition App Story Posted: 01 Apr 2011 09:57 AM PDT The latest chapter in the war of words between Google and CNN is being played out today on the web. As we reported here yesterday, CNN did a story that Google was working on a Mobile Facial Recognition App that would link personal data through real-time video footage from the camera on an Android Device to images stored on a user’s Google Profiles pages. CNN went on to state that Google was holding back releasing the app because of privacy concerns. The story created a firestorm as Google has fired back completely denying such an app exists and that details of the story are a “are purely speculative and are inventions of the reporter." Only trouble is, CNN has a recording of an interview with the Google engineer in charge and they’re not backing down.
Here’s what CNN sent to SlashGear as they dug in their journalistic heels …
So CNN is doubling down and stating they not only have an interview with the guy building the app, but that Google PR was there during the interview and raised no objections to it. So the story is devolving into a war of words, a “he said she said” unless CNN releases the recording. Slashgear is reporting that they’ve requested a copy of the recording to verify CNNs position, but even after that, the question is … so what? Google encourages it’s employees to spend 20% of their work time working on personal projects. And Google Labs is filled with applications which may or may not see the light of day. Sure, both Google Goggles and Picasa have facial recognition features and can pull up data from the web which is helpful to users. That much is certain. And could it be used in a stalker-esque app that users could take advantage of? Okay. But even if it did, it seems that if we take the story on it’s face value, the personal data would be linked to information the user ALREADY has. So what’s the big whoop? )
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| YouVersion Bible App surpasses 5 million downloads on Android Posted: 01 Apr 2011 08:56 AM PDT YouVersion has announced that their Bible App for Android has surpassed 5 million downloads on the Android platform. According to their blog, more people are now using their Bible App on Android devices than were on every other platform combined this same time last year. And according to internal statistics, users have collectively spent more than 100 million hours reading Scripture through the YouVersion app. Wow. That’s quite a bit of religious activity.
The YouVersion Bible App for Android was launched in 2009 and has steadily added more functions including offline bible reading, over 50 different reading plans, and audio reading support (currently in Beta). The App also offers scripture in different translations in over 20 languages. Other features include bookmarking, note taking, and even sports a social networking/fellowship option. Users can connect with others via Facebook, Twitter, email, and even Google Voice. The YouVersion app is available on multiple platforms including Android, iPhone, iPad, BlackBerry, and even Windows Phone 7 and Palm webOS. In fact, there’s also a Symbian version. So clearly, they’re spreading the Word across all platforms. The Bible App is free and is available at yourversion.com/download or at the Android Market. It’s compatible with Android 1.5 and later.    [via YouVersion Blog] )
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| ABI Research says Android will seize 45% of smartphone market by 2016 Posted: 01 Apr 2011 05:22 AM PDT ABI Research has offered up its latest report and the report claims that Android is headed to nearly half of the smartphone market by 2016. ABI says that by 2016 Android will hold 45% of the smartphone market, which is a massive increase of 71% growth over levels the OS held in 2009. ABI also notes that 69 million Android smartphones shipped last year.
By 2016, ABI also notes that iOS will have 19% of the market by 2016. While iOS and Android will grow from now until 2016, ABI predicts that RIM will lose market share. RIM is expected to shrink from 16% of the market in 2010 to 14% by 2016. ABI also predicts that BADA will do well on the smartphone market. "With 4 million units shipped in 2010 (amounting to a 1.5% market share), Bada has taken off very well, very fast," analyst Michael Morgan adds. "Bada may reach 10% market share by 2016. Windows Phone 7, on the other hand, which shipped in two million handsets in Q4 2010, will have to find incredible success through its Nokia channel to take more than 7% of the market by 2016." )
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| Wahoo Fitness offers new ANT+ API for Android Posted: 01 Apr 2011 05:10 AM PDT Wahoo Fitness has been making some interesting accessories for the iPhone for a while now that allows the iPhone to interface with ANT+ fitness sensors to track a person’s vital stats during a workout. The company has announced that it has unveiled a new API that allows Android devices to work with ANT+ accessories.
The new API is called the Wahoo ANT+ API and using it devs can tap into all of the native functions of the Android platform to help folks get fit. The apps using the API interface with sensors for different activity types and the data the sensors gather is sent to the smartphone wirelessly using a sensor embedded inside some Android smartphones. The sensors can be used for things like tracking heart rate to keep it within a certain zone to tracking the distance run by the user. The sensors can also interface with bikes to keep track of the rider cadence and speed plus lots more. Fitness fans that use Android will appreciate the new API. )
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| Sony Ericsson Xperia Play to get Streaming Music Unlimited access Posted: 01 Apr 2011 03:45 AM PDT If you use or have your eyes set on a new Xperia Play smartphone Sony is set to sweeten the pot if the game playing chops of the smartphone weren’t enough alone to lure you in. Sony has been running its Music Unlimited service on the PS3 for a while now that offers access to streaming music from the web.
That music service comes in basic and premium flavors at £3.99 and £9.99 monthly respectively. As of today, Sony has noted that the service will come to the Xperia Play smartphone. Sony also left the door open for the service to come to other Android devices and at this point, there isn’t a hint of whether it will be limited to Sony Ericsson Android phones only or if it will be offered via an app for any brand device. I suspect it will be for any device. Sony notes that the idea behind the service is to allow the user to use their PlayStation ID and the wallet tied to that account to pay for the service. If you aren’t familiar, the basic service offers streaming of genre specific channels while the premium service offers more channels and the ability to play any of the 6 million tracks the service offers on demand. [via eurogamer] )
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| Google App Inventor March 31st 2011 Update Posted: 31 Mar 2011 06:11 PM PDT It’s update day over at Google’s App Inventor office, and the list of improvements is a LONG one. For those not in the know, App Inventor is an application created by Google to assist developers in creating apps for their Android mobile OS. This application allows users to create apps in as simple as a drag-and-drop type manner, creating an environment where it’s not only easy to create apps, it’s totally fun as well! Behold a big fat update!
This application is relatively new, having only been released publicly in December of 2010, its most recent build still being labeled Beta. To take a look at this app for yourself, head over to http://appinventor.googlelabs.com/about/ and grab a download totally free. For those of you who already know what’s going on in the world, read on: The following is a big fat giant list of improvements they’ve made to the most current build of this application for creating apps, most of them “fixes” but a few of them “adds” – like infinite scrolling in the vertical dimension so you can shrink to fit! What’s more exciting than that? The following is a note from App Inventor representative Mark Friedman: )
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| Sidekick 4G Available at Radio Shack Same Day as LG G2x and the LG G-Slate Posted: 31 Mar 2011 05:23 PM PDT This must be an April Fool’s joke coming in a day early. What carrier in their right mind, what carrier worth their salt, what carrier in the entire world would release three gigantically flagship-title-worthy devices on the same day? T-Mobile I suppose, that’s who. Radio Shack has tweeted today that the brand new T-Mobile Sidekick 4G will be coming out on April 20th, 2011.
Of course what that means is that this phone, the LG G2x, and the LG G-Slate, would all be coming out on T-Mobile on the exact same day. That’s completely wacky and will make for a rather hectic day at the ol’ T-Mobile store, to be sure. They cover all the bases, this triad of devices, one for the tablet lovers, one for the messagers, and one for the folks who love processor power. To find out more about the NVIDIA Tegra 2 dual-core processor-toting handset, head over to our lovely luau-style T-Mobile LG G2x hands-on post. For a better view of the capabilities of the G-Slate, take a peek at the demo of the game Riptide GP – again, Tegra 2 optimized! Then the cute, sharp, productive, fashionable member of the bunch, have a peek at our hands-on with the T-Mobile Sidekick 4G. Gotta catch em all! [via TmoNews] )
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| Motorola Xoom overclocked to 1.5 Ghz with benchmark results [Guide] Posted: 31 Mar 2011 04:46 PM PDT Zoom, Zoom, Xooooom. The Motorola Xoom is quick don’t get me wrong, but it just got a lot faster with the overclocking results I have to show you guys today. I went ahead and rooted with the very simple Xoom 1-Click-Root method, in that program you can also flash the latest Tiamat overclock kernel. I did that, took about 45 seconds. Now I’m cruising around at 1.504 Ghz and boy let me tell you, this thing is fast. Check out below to see what I mean.
Today I’ll be posting some screen-shots of before, and after results from my overclocking journey I took this morning. I ran a few Quadrant, and Linpack tests on stock, as well as the different levels of overclocks to see what type of results I’d get. Lets just say this thing gets a cooking. I go from a Quadrant score of 2000 on stock, to over 3200 at 1.5 Ghz. I’d say that is what, a 60% improvement? The Nvidia Tegra 2 is proving to be a very powerful chip. Makers like Qualcomm must be worried about how their own dual core chips that are yet to be released will fair against this beast. So, I’ll just skip all the rest of the noise and get right down to business. Here are some screenshots for you all to enjoy. First, after I rooted my device using the guide posted above I went ahead and flashed the Tiamat overclock kernel that is also provided in the guide above Once that is finished, install setCPU and you are good to go. Then crank up the slider to wherever you feel comfortable. I did 1.2 Ghz, then 1.4 Ghz, and finally 1.5 Ghz To start you all off right, Here is a Quadrant run of the Motorola Xoom completely stock Next is Quadrant with the Tegra 2 overclocked to 1.2 Ghz. That small increase sure helps out the quadrant score. A 28% Performance Increase I was surprised with the solid improvement I was seeing with just a small increase of speed. Here is another but with the Xoom at 1.4 Ghz Zoom Xoom! Lastly we have the top dog, this was the highest score I got after 3 runs at 1.5 Ghz. A 59% Increase. This shows just how great the Tegra 2 can perform. I can’t wait til a higher overclocking kernel comes out. I’ll be playing Vendetta Online at 1.8 Ghz in no time. Zoom Zoom Xoom! Next up I have a few results from Linpack, it is highly optimized for Qualcomm chips in general but still shows the performance increase of overclocking the Xoom. Here is a screenshot of linpack completely stock Then here is Linpack at 1.5 Ghz showing a pretty big increase in performance jumping about 52% higher. I wasn’t able to pass 60 on linpack sadly. I’m sure with more tweaking it would be possible. Overall I’d have to say these are some great improvements in performance for the Motorola Xoom and the Tegra 2 chip. Once more developers start making custom kernels and tweaking things even more I can see things improving quite a bit. As more and more Tegra 2 devices get released, and there is plenty coming. Things will surely start to get interesting. For those wondering how I am able to take screenshots on my Motorola Xoom. I’m using something called Screeshot ER. You can learn more about that app here, or get it in the Android Market. If you would like to see any other benchmark or software tests done feel free to comment below and I’ll be happy to give them a run. For information about either the root method, or the kernel check the links below. Thanks for reading! Xoom 1-Click-Root
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| Motorola Xoom Root the Easy way with 1-Click-Root and overclock [Guide] Posted: 31 Mar 2011 03:25 PM PDT The Motorola Xoom, I love it. I seriously have not powered on my Google CR-48 Netbook since I got my Xoom. It’s just that fun. What better way to get more from your Android device then rooting it. Once you root the possibilities open up for much more things, and uses. Today I will be posting a guide for easy root. Yes this is 1-Click-Root for the Motorola Xoom. Now some might say this takes more than 1 click, and it does, but this sure beats having to very carefully and slowly enter multiple adb commands into your computer and hope you don’t mess up.
Update: Both Wifi and 3G Xoom root work perfect now with this guide, There is also a backup option. UPDATE: Now includes one click Unlock/Root, UnRoot/Relock, Backup/Restore Xoom One Click by Jason Tyler
This is an all in one package for Unlock, Root and UnRoot and ReLock of the Xoom MZ600. To use this tool: 1. You MUST have your tablet in Debug mode. 2. You DO NOT have to download the SDK or any images. 3. YOU MUST ACCEPT ALL THE USUAL RISK. Like ALL rooting there is a risk of bricking your device. It's a small risk but a risk you need to be aware of. You WILL void your warranty using this tool. This tool is easy. I have rooted unrooted and rerooted my Xoom umpteen times today testing it. NOTE: The WIFI version tools will only work for unlocking and rooting. I do not have the images to go back to stock on the Wifi. (coming soon) Download the Moto Drivers before starting to avoid any issues: Motorola Xoom USB Drivers Page There are two versions of this tool: 1. Root AND Unroot and back to stock. This one is large because of the stock system.img clocking in at 200+mb 2. The NO UNROOT version. This is lots smaller. It is only about 19mb. You can NOT UNROOT with this tool. (Well, you can unroot but not relock. ) Instructions: 1. Unzip the tool and all of the folders and files into a directory. Preferably a folder on a root drive. (i.e. c:rootmyxoom ) 2. Run the Xoom One Click EXE tool and follow the instructions. Read the prompts carefully. WARNING: WIFI Root is untested as I do not have a Wifi. Let me know how it works. Same process as 3G I just cant test it. Download Links: RootMyXoom with OUT Unroot Option Basically that is all, this is very easy and extremely straighforward. Download the file, plug in your Xoom and follow the instructions in the program. That is it. To make things even easier the 1-click-root program in this guide now lets you overclock also. After you root and apply the update you can flash the Timat kernel. It takes about 45 seconds and after you reboot you can install setCPU then overclock to 1.5 Ghz within seconds and it runs smooth as butter. Hang around for a few minutes and I’ll be posting some overclocking results here at AndroidCommunity next. [via XDA Forums] )
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| LG G-Slate Demos NVIDIA Tegra 2 Optimized Riptide GP Posted: 31 Mar 2011 02:26 PM PDT We got another hands-on experience with the fabulous LG G-Slate that will, as you know, be coming out relatively soon to a market soon to be underwater with tablets that will surely fall short. What we’ve got here is a game by the name of Riptide GP, a game that’s previously been out on Xbox, here mobile for the first time courtesy of our pals over at Vector Unit, Flashman Capital, and of course, NVIDIA. Have a peek with us as we get a smooth demo on the near-complete LG Android tablet.
What you’re going to get here is a massively entertaining racing game with wild environments, unique racing style, and lots and lots of water graphics. Race through the wild tracks of water arenas across a virtual universe. And watch out for sharks. And jump over bridges. Go nuts! That said, we’re extra pumped up about the actual tablet itself. It’s set to be the second NVIDIA Tegra 2 powered tablet on the market (the first being our handy partner Motorola XOOM,) and it feels great to hold. Also below you’ll be able to see a stash of close-up photos incase you’ve not had your fill of this device this far in advance of its actual release:                       )
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| Google joins the NFC Forum as Principal Member Posted: 31 Mar 2011 01:41 PM PDT Today Google has joined the NFC Forum as one of the principal members. This member list includes some top companies in the mobile world such as Motorola, AT&T, LG and others. Intel recently just raised their level to the same Principal Level that Google and the others are at. This comes right after Google partners with Mastercard and Citigroup for NFC payments.
The NFC Forum Mission: The Near Field Communication Forum was formed to advance the use of Near Field Communication technology by developing specifications, ensuring interoperability among devices and services, and educating the market about NFC technology. Formed in 2004, the Forum now has 140 members. Manufacturers, applications developers, financial services institutions, and more all work together to promote the use of NFC technology in consumer electronics, mobile devices, and PCs. We are still not sure yet what it means for Google themselves to actually be a principal member, but we think it will be a big one. At least we know they are going full force with this and developers can feel like the work they do will get rewarded as more devices get NFC. While we are knee deep in the NFC talk. Check out this awesome application developed by some smart guys over at the XDA Forums, it’s a NFC Task Launcher that does much more than just open a URL and map the location, or call a number. This NFC Task Launcher does much more than that. For instance, touching the phone to the tag on the dashboard tells the handset to enable Bluetooth, disable Wi-Fi, set the media volume to maximum and launch the Car Home app. That is the exciting stuff the launcher can do. Get NFC Task Launcher in the Android Market. [via Nearfieldcommunicationsworld] )
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| American Airlines giving away 30 NOOKcolors to Android app users Posted: 31 Mar 2011 12:37 PM PDT In case you didn’t know, earlier this year American Airlines released an application for Android that makes your airport life much, much easier. You can check your flight status, flight schedules, and even book your flight. Download the American Airlines App today for your chance to win 1 Million AAdvantage Miles, they are also giving away a NOOKcolor a day for the entire month of April.
All you need to be eligible for the giveaway is to be in the US, and download the AA Application linked to above and fill out the pop up for the drawing. The 1 Million miles sure sounds nice. I’d take my NOOKcolor running CM7 for some e-reading and to watch videos as I fly around the world with those recently won miles. If I win of course. So check out the overly optimistic video below, then install the American Airlines app so you can register for the giveaway. Here is a list of the app features: * View your reservation info )
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| Xperia PLAY Reviewed by Chris Davies Posted: 31 Mar 2011 12:13 PM PDT Our main dude in England has his hands on the Xperia PLAY, also known as the “Playstation Phone,” and he’s reviewing it fully for our sister site SlashGear. This device goes by model name R800x, runs a full Android 2.3 Gingerbread experience, and has a 4″ capacitive multi-touch, 854 x 480 pixel FWVGA display on top of a fully functional Playstation control set. Inside you’ll find a Qualcomm Snapdragon II 8655 1GHz CPU with Graphical Processor Adreno 205, the entire device is 4.68 x 2.44 x .63 inches large, and weight sits right at 6.17 ounces (175 grams.) Not too heavy, not too light – but does it stand up to the Playstation brand?
What Chris has found with this device is that, surprise, it’s made for gamers. His first impression adds up to that fact and the idea that if you’re not into playing video games, it doesn’t really make a whole heck of a lot of sense for you to be purchasing this device. The display on this device has excellent viewing angles, but a dim brightness – “mediocre indoors and often unusable outdoors.” There’s a backlight adjustment that can be made, but no auto-brightness option, though auto-adjustment IS occurring it seems. There’s a front-facing VGA cam above the display and a rear-facing 5-megapixel camera on the back that produces nice photos, but WVGA resolution 30fps video which is not very nice. The four Android buttons are what Chris calls “spongy,” the volume rocker is slightly difficult to operate, and the slide mechanism appears to be opening with any amount of pressure. The shoulder buttons are “bizarrely wobbly and flappy” but, as it turns out, the buttons you’ll be using primarily for gaming, aka the playstation controller buttons plus select, start, and a bonus “menu” button, are all very nice. The analog pads are appearing to be just as difficult to get used to as their on-screen counterparts, but the dimple is making it a bit easier to stay centered. And what else is there? We’ll let you know once the USA version arrives at our doorstep. Until then, head over to SlashGear for Chris’ [full report.]             )
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| Google calls out CNN, claims Facial Recognition story is bogus Posted: 31 Mar 2011 11:52 AM PDT Earlier today we posted a small story regarding a new Mobile application being made by Google that will do a little facial recognition and then send the user info such as contact information, name, email address and more. This was simply a story we saw and thought was interesting on CNN. Apparently this story was a complete fabrication and very inaccurate. Google calls out CNN, says story about facial recognition app is not only inaccurate, but completely bogus.
Google reached out to us here at Android Community and our sister site Slashgear shortly after the article went live. Mentioning what we just said above about it being highly inaccurate. Here’s what they had to say:
This is a little disappointing to see CNN report such a story with not much to go by. We here at AC strive to report anything interesting to our readers, while keeping things fresh and accurate. Hopefully we will hear back from Google, as well as CNN on this entire thing. )
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| Samsung Galaxy Player hits the FCC Posted: 31 Mar 2011 11:30 AM PDT The Samsung Galaxy Player for those that don’t know is a device aimed at the iPod Touch crowd. For those like us that just love Android this is not only a great alternative, but an overall solid little fun filled device. It’s basically a Galaxy S Phone without the phone. It has the same cameras and that amazing 4.0″ AMOLED Display, with 5.0″ versions in the works also. Today the Galaxy Player has passed through the FCC.
If you would like to read up more about the ipod touch rival check out this story about the Galaxy Player 4 & 5 coming soon. Or this story about it selling over 20,000 in 10 days. From the looks of things Samsung is planning on it being a big hit. Just think, everything the ipod can do and more, running on Android minus iTunes. Can’t get any better than that right. As this device gets closer to an actual release date here in the States we expect to see plenty more stories and news coming soon. We will have some commercials and video’s soon my sources tells me. So sit tight and go get a Motorola Xoom while you wait. [via Wirelessgoodness] )
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