Sunday, April 17, 2011

Android Community

Android Community

T-Mobile G2x 8 megapixel Photo and 1080p Video Examples

Posted: 16 Apr 2011 08:43 PM PDT

You may have noticed that there’s a bit of spreading out going on here with this T-Mobile G2x unit we’ve got here on Android Community. What’s going on here is that we’re taking a new approach since this is such a flagship device and we’re putting a little bit more time into each test and example. Sometime in the next couple of days there’ll be one comprehensive review post, but for now, bits everywhere! What this post consists of is a few photo examples and one 1080p video. Spoiler: they look pretty nice.

Whenever there’s a video example, I like to take it from the device and upload it directly to YouTube so you can get as good an idea as possible of how it’ll look if you do the same thing. Another way we could do it is to upload the video and allow you to download it and look at it in its original form, but since the majority of these videos taken with the device will be uploaded to one of several places (all of them comparable to YouTube,) I opt for this major conduit. This video is filmed in full 1080p and is taken on an overcast day at a pizza parlor in Saint Paul, Minnesota:

Next, have a peek at a couple of photos. Again, these aren’t photographed in a way that’s unlike what an average user would photograph an image, and there’s no doctoring done other than to add the watermark in the lower right hand corner. These photographs are taken in the same pizza parlor with a mix of interior and exterior light. And the soda pop was delicious.

BONUS: Android Community’s Dog in Residence, Susi, trying to sleep in terrible lighting conditions in a residential home! Also on highest settings with 8 megapixel camera on the G2x:

View all of these photos in a larger size here in the gallery:

Þ sodapop tootsie )


G2x Speed Tests [Around the City] [Sidekick 4G too!]

Posted: 16 Apr 2011 08:22 PM PDT

Last time I did some speed tests on a phone there was a bit of an argument over the fact that the targeted city was across the country. So you know what I did? Exactly what I should have been doing the whole time with Speed Test, a service that notes in their Q and A section that their GPS system isn’t perfect, I drove around the city getting different tests. Not only did I do this on the G2x, but I did an extended test for the Sidekick 4G, the phone that I last got Speed Tests on. What you’re going to find is that there’s not much difference in T-Mobile’s “4G” service anywhere you go around Minneapolis and Saint Paul Minnesota.

The speeds you’re seeing here is Mbps in several different locations at different times around the cities here in Minnesota. The fastest this G2x unit ever got, and this was on what the phone was calling 4G speeds, was 4.44 Mpbs. On average though, it’s looking like a lot closer to 1 Mpbs. Way at the bottom there’s a Wifi result and there’s a couple of zeros in there – don’t mind those.

Next take a look at a few more results on the Sidekick – see those insanely quick speeds? Don’t mind those, that’s me at my stupidest, testing the phone on Wifi. This is the kind of brain fart yours truly is capable of having. What you SHOULD look at is the rest of the scores where 1.5 Mpbs is the average. This again is on T-Mobile’s 4G network here in the Twin Cities of Minnesota. Speed!

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Honeycomb Tablets might be getting delayed by OEMS

Posted: 16 Apr 2011 07:48 PM PDT

Yes you read that right, a report by DigiTimes has came out mentioning that some OEMs may actually be delaying the release of their Android 3.0 Honeycomb Tablets. I’m not sure I believe that, why hold back such amazing devices. Sure Android 3.0 has a few small issues (it is brand new of course) as in the first tablet OS built by Google. It will take time to mature, just like a fine wine. Hopefully not that long of course.

They mentioned the Motorola Xoom and its poor sales, and low amount of apps for android tablets, the tablet ecosystem being weak. Although I would have to argue with that because the Xoom was the first Tablet OS device. Of course there isn’t going to be a huge ecosystem. That will come in due time. Good things come to those who wait. Look how amazing android is now.

Apparently they even go on to mention the Asus Transformer has only shipped in specific regions for the above mentioned reasons also. This story was brought to us by our friends over at Phandroid, and they didn’t cite the DigiTimes story either. I do understand where some of this may be coming from, but from the look of how Android in general turned out. I can’t see very many OEMs being truly hesitant, Android is full steam ahead, and Google will put forth the same amazing effort on the Android Tablet. I’d be getting in ASAP if it were me.

[via Phandroid]

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Google adds to market, lets you opt-out of targeted ads

Posted: 16 Apr 2011 07:36 PM PDT

This is a surprising change of pace. Lately the entire ads thing has been getting bigger and bigger, with more apps supported by ads, or having ads in them. Looks like Google is either testing this feature and someone noticed, or are actually adding an opt-out feature to the settings page. That sounds nice doesn’t it.

Obviously built in advertisements and things of that nature will still happen. That is why most of your favorite apps or games, like Angry Birds are free. Because of the in-app ads. This is nice to see if you are one of those that is tight on privacy, or always watching these types of things. I know if many of you are like me, you only click Ad-Mob ads on accident and hurry and hit the back button.

You can see the option in the photo above, it wont actually remove ads, but it is more control and I like that. You can stop internet based ads that are targeted towards YOU, the user of that device, with this option. We will definitely update this story when and if we hear more.

[via Android Central]

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Samsung Droid Charge source code released

Posted: 16 Apr 2011 07:23 PM PDT

The Samsung Droid Charge, many might not even know what this device is, or even heard of it. The Droid Charge was originally at CES being mentioned by Verizon as a 4G LTE Device and they did not announce a name for it. Later we heard it was the Samsung Stealth V. Latest news has it as the Droid Charge, it now has that Verizon red DROID Eye.

See our main photo compared to those in that Stealth V link, they are very similar. It’s the same device. I had a chance to play with it at CES and it was a nice phone. 8MP Camera, great vibrant 4.3″ screen, but they wouldn’t tell me much. It is basically a Galaxy S with a better, and bigger screen, but not the higher specs of the Galaxy S 2. We mentioned it more here.

The Droid Charge source code has actually been released, and the device is not even out yet. We don’t even know when it is coming, but we are always happy to see code coming this fast. It is now freely available over at the Samsung Open Source Release Center, yes they have something called that. OSRC. If you are a developer, or enjoy tinkering with Android like I do, or just want to take a look feel free to check out the Droid Charge source code. Here is the link again below.

[via Open Source Release Center]

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Samsung Galaxy Tab spotted on Fox TV Show

Posted: 16 Apr 2011 06:00 PM PDT

This past Friday night, on the sci-fi series “Fringe,” a Samsung Galaxy Tab made an appearance. It was towards the end of the episode entitled “Lysergic Acid Diethylamide.” The character of Walter Bishop has just lost his best friend for good and is brooding in his office. Then the character Astrid shows up with an offering to cheer him up.

“The Sprint product placement on Fringe is a bit heavy-handed. But I guess noticing that means it works?” Via Tweet

Astrid is Walter’s assistant and caretaker when his son Peter isn’t around. She brings him a meal and then holds up the Galaxy Tab, looks like the 8.9″ I think, as it would be silly to show last year’s model. Anyway, she holds it up to display a video screen and says “I downloaded Zoom for you. I can watch it with you if you like.”

But not even the Galaxy Tab can shake Walter out of his funk. Perhaps if she had tried the Motorola XOOM, all that Honeycomb dripping sweetly on the screen would’ve helped. Anyway, it’s just a example of how sponsors are going the extra mile to show their wares on popular television. And Fringe is almost always got a new gadget they’re showing off, including the iPhone 4 doing Facetime, the HTC Evo 4g running Qik, and several other tablets acting as medical monitors.

Have you seen any? Drop a note in the comments section below. Meanwhile, check out that episode of Fringe in the link above.

[via Brandspotters]

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Sony Ericsson XPEIRA acro Presentation Pics Leaked

Posted: 16 Apr 2011 03:03 PM PDT

The following is a collection of presentation slides that appears to have been leaked from Sony Ericsson Japan. The slides show a device by the name of XPERIA acro which will roll out with interior and exterior aesthetics quite similar to those seen on recent XPERIA phones, with one or two major exceptions. In order to fly into the Japanese smartphone market, one that’s still nothing compared to the flip-phone market mind you, a device must have instant-payment capabilities. That why this sassy little lady has NFC.

This device has both NFC capabilities (this is essentially a chip that works with your bank account and makes instant payments upon swiping, for those of you that don’t know,) as well as a Seg TV tuner AND Infared. What in the world, you might be asking, are these things? We’ll be exploring both in the very near future here on Android Community.

Meanwhile, have a look at this twenty-page presentation packet that’s all in Japanese – any translators in the house? Our man in Japan is sleeping! But the pics are magnificent. There’s three different color combinations, black, white, and aqua,) and what appears to be one fantastically lovely display. Have a peek!

gpad20 gpad19 gpad18 gpad17 gpad16 gpad15 gpad14 gpad13 gpad12 gpad11 gpad10 gpad9 gpad8 gpad7 gpad6 gpad5 gpad4 gpad3 gpad2 gpad1

[via Xperia Blog]

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Skype Replies to Android Vulnerabilities

Posted: 16 Apr 2011 02:39 PM PDT

Yesterday, we reported that bloggers had found a vulnerability in the Skype App which allows hackers to harvest data from a user’s Android handset with no need to root a phone or gain special permission. The problem was discovered during the testing of a leaked version of Skype for Android’s new Video App. But it didn’t take long to notice that the flaw was carried over from the already released Skype for Android App that’s currently in the Market. Skype has responded to the news in their security blog, admitting that the flaw exists and they’re working hard to fix it. But what can a user do to protect themselves in the meantime?

We take your privacy very seriously and are working quickly to protect you from this vulnerability, including securing the file permissions on the Skype for Android application,” said Andrian Asher on the Skype Security blog.

Skype has been downloaded by over 10 million Android users, so the impact of this news was pretty severe. Skype recommends a rather weak solution … don’t download the app. In other words … “Doctor, it hurts when I do this … Doctor: well don’t do that.” But really, what else can Skype do until they fix the problem and release a new app?

It also underscores a flaw in the entire system … how can you tell what apps are vulnerable what apps aren’t? One thing that users can do to protect themselves is to look at what permissions an app requires. That information will just before you hit “install.” If you don’t think the app needs all that data, then you should not install it.

[via PCWorld]

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