Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Android Community

Android Community

Galaxy S Gingerbread inside April Says ThreeUK

Posted: 05 Apr 2011 11:07 AM PDT

Apparently carrier ThreeUK has the inner track on when Gingerbread will be coming out for Galaxy S devices. What they do not say they know is which carriers will be getting this update for their users to implement first, what they do say they know is that it’s within the next couple of weeks. What this is being reported as by other sites is “OMFG GINGERBREAD COMING TO ALL GALAXY S PHONES IN APRIL, CONFIRMED,” this is simply not true.

First of all, ThreeUK is, as their brand name asserts, a United Kingdom based group. Second, this report was made by their Twitter account, a place where we KNOW PR folks have been unreliable in the past. That said, we don’t doubt that Gingerbread is very much so on the horizon for Galaxy S devices. Will it be you? We can only hope.

That said, let me sneak in here and tell you about another tasty treat you can get your hands on, supposing it’s still right around April 5th, 2011 when you read this: We’re having a contest via our new Facebook page that’ll allow YOU to sport one of our new logo-embroidered polo shirts! So comfortable, and the contest, so easy: right here.

[via Android Spin]

)


Android is a developers mess according to survey

Posted: 05 Apr 2011 10:07 AM PDT

According to a recent survey of 250 working Android app developers, the Google OS may be more of a bag of hurt than Google wants developers to believe. The survey, conducted by Baird’s William Powers, found that 71% of respondents write apps for Android, while 62% wrote for iOS. The survey also found that device fragmentation on the Android platform is the must frustrating element of writing Apps for Android and represents a HUGE problem. But is that the only issue facing Android developers? Not by a long shot …

Store fragmentation was also an issue, with developers across the board generally preferring to write for one, unified App store like iOS enjoys. The restrictions of getting an app approved may be a roadblock for some, but being able to just deal with one set of rules is preferable. And another serious issue facing Android developers is app visibility as iOS continues to lead, with fewer “junk apps” than that of the Android market. And users who have developed for both sides of the coin consider iOS to be easier to develop for.

Finally, Android developers seem to be very concerned with getting paid for the apps that are sold, as iOS and Blackberry both lead, with Android lagging in third place. That can be a drag on app development for Android if developers don’t get paid in a timely fashion for apps sales. And it could be one of the reason why there’s store fragmentation as developers seek other options with which to sell their products. But in the end, fragmentation is the real problem, and one which Google should address sooner, rather than later.

[via CNN]

)


Dell 10-inch Windows 7 Tablet Now Aimed at Fall 2011

Posted: 05 Apr 2011 08:59 AM PDT

All the way back in February of this year, 2011, that being basically 2 months ago already – man how the time flies, we were told by Dell that they’d be releasing a lovely 10-inch tablet that’d feature Windows 7. The release date was not given at the time, but now a “company source” has spoken with Forbes on the matter and has noted that a Fall 2011 release is basically a sure shot.

This source also appears to have noted that September is the earliest this 10-inch whallop of a device will be released. This is sure to pump up the hoards of Windows fans looking for that bridge between laptop and mobile, Dell having hinted at a device like this since back in October of 2010. Of course, they’ve already got some choices from HP and Asus, but it’s Dell! Some people swear by such a brand name in their Windows electronics.

Or perhaps they ought to wait for Windows 8, which as you know is said to be suited for tablets as well as desktop machines – this may be an early 2012 affair, with Dell again hoping to release another new tablet at about that time. Of course, all this might be moot if BlueStacks has their way – Android support on Windows 7 tablets? Sounds pretty wild to me.

[via Forbes]

)


XOOM WiFi gets pre-release price cut

Posted: 05 Apr 2011 08:36 AM PDT

The Motorola XOOM WiFi has seen a price cut, with UK retailer Dixons slashing the slate to £379.99 ($617). That’s despite sales of the Android 3.0 Honeycomb tablet not even having started yet.

Your money gets you 32GB of storage, a 10.1-inch touchscreen, NVIDIA Tegra 2 processor and twin cameras. According to Dixons the XOOM WiFi will begin shipping sometime this week.

The 3G version of the XOOM, currently a Carphone Warehouse exclusive, remains at £599.99. More on the XOOM in our full review.

)


Dungeon Hunter 2 HD hits Android

Posted: 05 Apr 2011 05:50 AM PDT

If you are a fan of the hack and slash Android game Dungeon Hunter you will like this announcement. Gameloft has now launched the second installment in the franchise for Android fans. The new game is Dungeon Hunter 2 HD and you can grab it now.

The game puts you into dungeons that you adventure through killing monsters and foes while looking for loot and earning points to improve your level and character. The game is set in the same world as the original, but 25 years in the future.

The player plays as the immortal king’s son in an attempt to stop a plot to overthrow the realm. The game can be downloaded now for £3 or about $5 here in the US. The image here is from the iPhone version of the game, but graphics should be similar.

[via PocketGamer]

)


MLB’s Bob Bowman talks Android support for MLB app

Posted: 05 Apr 2011 04:36 AM PDT

If you are a Major League Baseball fan you may be holding out hope that MLB will expand its popular app that lets you get details on games to more Android handsets. As it stands, the app only supports 11 different Android smartphones. That number is up for six supported smartphones at the launch of the app. AllThingsD has spoken with Bob Bowman, the man behind the advanced media offerings for MLB.

Bowman was asked about previous complaints of having to support multiple flavors of Android with its app and was asked if he ever considered not supporting Android at all. Bowman replied with the short answer of no. However, he notes that MLB has no plans to support all flavors of Android because of “diminishing returns.”

Bowman also makes a note that some might find interesting or perhaps bothersome. According to Bowman Android users are less likely to buy than iPhone and iPad users making the typical Android user worth less to the company than Apple users. Bowman says that while Android devices are great phones, “But if you really want first rate digital content on a device, your first look will probably be an iPhone. And on the tablet, an iPad.” He notes that the app will likely support the RIM Playbook.

[via AllThingsD]

)


AT&T ups early upgrade fees for Android smartphones and more

Posted: 05 Apr 2011 03:15 AM PDT

If you are an AT&T customer that is ready for a new handset and aren't eligible for a new 2-year upgrade and a full discount on a new device things are getting more expensive for you. AT&T is upping the early upgrade fee for many popular smartphones on its network including Android devices like the Atrix 4G.

BGR reports that AT&T has confirmed to it that the upgrade fees are being increased by $50 for a customer that upgrades to a new smartphone but isn't eligible for the fully discounted offering. The upgrade fee increase will apply to all Android devices, the iPhone, and Windows Phones.

At the same time, the prices for the devices on a 1-year contract are increased by $150. AT&T notes that only people that don't want a contract or who aren't eligible for a new device are affected by the deal.

[via BGR]

)


Google Maps 5.3 adds Latitude Location History, custom Places reviews

Posted: 05 Apr 2011 02:36 AM PDT

Google has updated Google Maps for Android to v5.3, introducing the new Google Location History dashboard. Working with Latitude’s Location History, the new info pane shows your recent locations as well as how long you’ve spent at work, at home or simply out and about.

As always, you can delete your location history either partially or completely, and it’s only visible by users themselves or the people they share their location with. There’s a new “check in at home” feature, too.

Finally, Google Places with Hotpot now allows you to add your own rating category, so you can leave custom feedback. The Google Maps update is available via the Android Market for devices running 1.6 or higher.

)


Google TV User Experience Lead job wants TV app Tsar

Posted: 05 Apr 2011 01:24 AM PDT

Google is looking to recruit a new User Experience Lead for Google TV, who would take responsibility for guiding third-party software onto the Android-based STBs. Based at Mountain View, the new employee would be “asked to pioneer new possibilities for web-based and Android application experiences on the platform and establish the patterns and standards used to develop great interactive experiences on Google TV.”

The absence of apps has been a thorn in Google TV’s side since the first products were released, limiting functionality to the preloaded software and whatever could be accessed online. Back in March, a Logitech exec suggested that the Android Market would be arriving “soon” though Google itself has given no public timescale beyond sometime in 2011.

Google is believed to be looking to integrate the Google TV codebase with the Gingerbread codebase for phones and the Honeycomb codebase for tablets, into a single AOSP that would allow them to be significantly more nimble with overall updates. That is expected to be the basis of Ice Cream, the next Android release.

[via SlashGear]

)


AC Logo Application Demo and Shirt Giveaway!

Posted: 04 Apr 2011 09:59 PM PDT

As you may already know, we’ve got not only a new logo coming down the chute, but a whole new look coming your way soon! And of course, along with that comes not only web-based products, but objects that you can touch and hold and even wear, too! What we were doing today was getting some shirts as fast as we could, multiple made up at a time just so we could get them to YOU, posthaste! Take a peek at our production video below and get all the details you need to get one of three shirts we’re giving out FREE!

So, you’re all pumped up that we’re getting your back with a high-quality embroidered polo so that you look beyond fashionable as you walk down the Android runway, yes? Hold your horses! First you’ve got to take a peek at a radically awesome production video – have a peek!

Now for the details on how you can get one of these lovelies for your very own. The rules are very simple: all you’ve got to do is head over to our brand new Facebook page that we’ve suited up special for our brand new 2011 revamp and

1. “like” it.
2. post a greeting on the wall: something like “hi there! I love being part of the Android Community!” will do nicely!

And that’s it! We’ll be choosing winners at 6PM PST on Thursday night!

What are you waiting for, head out! Also take a look at the rest of the gallery shot by our professional photographer Vince and his lovely assistants Lynnsie and Allison. Take a short glimpse of a couple photos (*all of which have been taken with an HTC ThunderBolt, by the way,) here, then head over there!

0001 0030 0013

Disclaimer: We reserve the right to disqualify anyone for any reason we choose, including but not limited to entrants being related directly to a staff member on Android Community, SlashGear, SlashApps, or SlashPhone. You must both “like” facebook.com/androidcommunity.com AND post a greeting on the wall to be entered into the contest. We will be choosing the winners at random out of a hat behind the scenes. Winners will be notified between Thursday night and Saturday morning. Don’t be tardy to your own party!

)


Pandora Served with Subpoena

Posted: 04 Apr 2011 03:01 PM PDT

Before you start having a heart attack over your favorite internet music source being crushed by the enemy by the name of the US judicial system, note that Pandora was actually served in early 2011, not just yesterday. Today Pandora announced the situation in a report submitted an amend their S-1 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to inform potential investors as to what’s happened with a subpoena served to them earlier this year. This amendment was made so that these investors can feel secure in joining in on Pandora’s first public offering – buy up!

What Pandora submitted was a report that included the following, sent so that their potential new owners might know the truth: "… In early 2011, we were served with a subpoena to produce documents in connection with a federal grand jury, which we believe was convened to investigate the information sharing processes of certain popular applications that run on the Apple and Android mobile platforms. While we were informed that we are not a specific target of the investigation, and we believe that similar subpoenas were issued on an industry-wide basis to the publishers of numerous other smartphone applications, we will likely incur legal costs related to compliance with the subpoena, management's attention could be diverted and there is no guarantee that we will avoid costly litigation."

Does that sound like something that’d make you want to invest in Pandora stock? I’ve gotta say that it seems like, considering the situation, Pandora might be better to reconsider their bid to go public until all this is sorted out. Then again, they have assured everyone that the music will definitely go on, no matter what:

"Restrictions on our ability to collect, access and harness listener data, or to use or disclose listener data or any profiles that we develop using such data, would in turn limit our ability to stream personalized music content to our listeners and offer targeted advertising opportunities to our advertising customers, each of which are critical to the success of our business."

[via mocoNews]

)


HTC Desire to get Gingerbread sooner rather than later

Posted: 04 Apr 2011 02:20 PM PDT

Back in February, we reported that HTC was bringing Gingerbread to their HTC Desire line in the second quarter. Well it looks like they’re ahead of schedule, at least in Europe, because a representative from ThreeUK has tweeted that they’ve begun testing Gingerbread today for the HTC Desire and should have it would at the end of the month or early next. That could make a sunny Spring for Brits who were looking to wait until at least summer for their gingy goodness. The update also looks to be coming to Desire owners in Sweden around the same time.

But what may cause some concern is the amount of internal storage space the Desire has to accommodate it. Users who have a lot of apps or games may find they have to make a choice. The solution suggested by some is to root your Desire in order to, install apps directly onto the SD card. Users can also get rid of the junk like the UI and go with a pure Google experience and save some space to boot.

And there’s also the relative age of the Desire. Could it be that while users desire Gingerbread, they may be pushing the hardware past the limits of an enjoyable experience? That was the main beef iPhone 3g users had when iOS 4 came out, rendering the 3g albeit unusable. Sometimes too much of a good thing pushes the envelope too much.

[via Swedroid]

)


Developers Locked Out of Android Market for 4th Day in a Row

Posted: 04 Apr 2011 01:52 PM PDT

It appears that Developers are having a rather tough time accessing the official Android Market for the fourth day in a row today, resulting in a torrent of complaints to Google and, of course, demands that they take care of business. One of the problems more than a few developers have been finding as of this past weekend has been the utterly evil 404 popping up after one clicks SUBMIT to add their app to the market. Needless to say, this isn’t the best place for that NOT FOUND note to be showing up.

Users in the official Android Market question and answer area have ben complaining since April Fools Day 2011 of this 404 error along with a list of 5 more breaks in the system. They are as follows:

The inability to load any applications into console.

Messages that say a developers applications do not belong to them when they definitely, definitely do.

Statistics being incorrect by a very obvious set of numbers.

Data not updating.

Google Checkout skipping a day in payments.

In the wake of the Amazon app market opening up and Google’s open-source being questioned, this is not the most convenient time for Android’s market to be having troubles. With 156 comments on the subject at the time of this post, we’re hoping Google takes care of this set of problems sooner rather than a disastrous later.

Have you experienced similar problems?

[via Android Market]

)


Sprint launching NFC to compete in 2011

Posted: 04 Apr 2011 12:17 PM PDT

The Now Network plans to launch a commercial Near Field Communications (NFC) service in the US this year. The new venture stands to compete directly with the Isis NFC joint project between AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile. Sprint’s NFC also wants to be a more open solution, with the ability to allow for any smartphone user to make an NFC purchase. Sprint will also start out taking revenue from coupon advertising, rather than taking a percentage of each transactions.

We intend to make this an open solution where consumers can use their phone in a variety of physical locations,” said McGinnis. “Because we’re allowing other brands and other institutions to participate, they can also tell their consumers that this is available on Sprint.

Rather than take a percentage of each transaction, as Isis plans, Sprint could share in revenue from sales off coupons sent to its customers’ handsets or targeted advertising, McGinnis said. Users’ purchases would be billed through their regular credit-card statements.”

That would require a lot of coupons to make the service profitable, wouldn’t it? Or is Sprint trying to go for market share instead? That would certainly make them competitive as aggressive fee structures always get the attention of potential customers. In addition, customers will be billed to a credit card, rather than their cellphone bill, keeping the “shock factor” of making purchases with your cell phone minimal.

And being faster into the market than your competitors doesn’t hurt either. The Isis system isn’t even scheduled to be available until 2012. But according to Crone Consulting, merchant acceptance of the new NFC system is rather low, with only 150,000 merchants being NFC compatible, in comparison to 6 million that accept credit card payments. But all that will change as more handsets become NFC capable.

[via Near Field Communications World]

)


Sony Xperia Neo comes out of the shadows on April 19th

Posted: 04 Apr 2011 11:19 AM PDT

With all the buzz going to it’s more “playful” brother, the Xperia Neo has kinda gotten lost in the shadows. But now it seems it’s bursting back out in it’s own light come April 19th. That’s the day that Sony Ericcson will launch the Neo in Europe with a price of £299 + VAT.

Though the Xperia Play is getting all the hype, the Neo has it’s own great features including Sony’s Exmore R screen with Reality display and Mobile Bravia engine. And although the screen is smaller, it’s displays images and video quite nicely. And with an 8MP rear facing camera, the Neo represents a solid alternative to carrying a point and shoot with you. But the downside is, it feels a bit cheap with it’s plastic casing. And it’s got more girth than we’d like in a mobile handset as well.

And for that £299 price tag, you’d want something a bit more robust, but at least more sleek in design, like it’s Xperia brethren. Still, it’s running Gingerbread out of the box. So it can’t be all bad. Check out Slash Gear’s hands on of the Neo here.

[via Clove]

)


Posted by at

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)