Android and Me

Here’s 7 things Google should announce at Google I/O
Droid Charge plagued by same battery issues that haunted the Thunderbolt?
Pinball HD launches for Tegra2 devices
Update: HTC Flyer Digital Pen gets priced by Best Buy and the HTC Accessory Store
Judge orders Oracle to toss out most of the patent claims against Google
CyanogenMod updates to version 7.0.3, fixes bugs and security hole
AT&T sees the light, will soon let us install non-Market app

Here’s 7 things Google should announce at Google I/O

Posted: 06 May 2011 02:44 PM PDT

With Google I/O 2011 right around the corner, it’s time to take a quick look at the things Google should announce at the developer conference. Our favorite OS is about to face some really fierce opposition from companies like Apple, Microsoft and Nokia.

All these three companies are doing everything in their power to erase Android from the face of the Earth — make no mistake, they despise Android at the molecular level. Especially Microsoft and Nokia, whose future depends on beating Android. If Windows Phone 7 fails to gain traction, Microsoft won’t be able to compete in the mobile arena ever again and Nokia will eventually have to adopt Android. With competitors going on the offense (mostly suing Android supporters), what should Google do to fend them off?

Ice Cream Sandwich

Android’s next dessert-based version will most likely make a debut at Google I/O next week. We know this version is codenamed Ice Cream Sandwich, but aside from that, there’s not much we know at this point — we don’t even know which version number it’ll be.

Based on a rumor we heard last month, in this version, Google plans to merge the code base of Gingerbread, Honeycomb and Google TV. If true, we could see some Honeycomb and Google TV features make their way to Android phones and vice versa. Due to the lack of detail we have about Ice Cream Sandwich, there’s a lot room for Google to surprise us — so make sure you have a defibrillator at arm distance next Tuesday, just in case.

Google Music and more

Ah Google Music, will you ever be released? Google Music was supposed to be released last year, then it was pushed to March of this year. March came and left and we didn’t see the mythical service released. The last we heard was that Google was still signing deals with record companies. We know Google Music will definitely be announced some time in this decade, but why stop there. Google should throw movies, TV shows, ringtones, and podcasts in there as well, and call it Android World — somebody at Google can probably come up with a better name.

This “Android World” service would sync all your pictures, videos, music, apps and books via the cloud, making my phone’s USB cable forever useless. Additionally, moving all your stuff to a new device would be as simple as logging in with your Google account. If Google wants to truly compete with iTunes, the company needs to go the whole way and think about all the kinds of media we consume every day.

New and more secure Android Market

Google keeps improving the Android Market’s experience, but somehow I’m never satisfied. If Google wants to make the Market easier to use they don’t have to look far, they should just check Chomp. Since I found the Chomp app, I rarely use the Market app anymore. Why? It’s easier to find what you’re looking for, the app is fast and snappy, and it’s beautifully designed. The Market app falls short on all three categories. The Android Market has come a long way since its Android 1.5 humble beginnings, but now it’s time to work some of that Matias Duarte magic and overhaul the whole app.

We all know how the Android team feels about fragmentation, in that they keep saying there’s none. But don’t be surprised if they start to make changes that allows them to control Android’s “diversity”. One of those changes could be in the Market.

We’re at a point where Android is so popular, we’re seeing it everywhere, running on devices as different as the T-Mobile Comet and the Motorola Atrix 4G. As a result, very soon we could see Google start to customize the Android Market for different categories of Android phones. Low-end phones would only be able to download apps that are not very hardware-demanding. While high-end phones will be able to download graphic-intensive apps like Dungeon Defenders.

The Android Market you get, already depends on which phone you get. We’re seeing this type of app filtering with the recent ban of tethering apps from those phones available from T-Mobile, AT&T and Verizon. This is only taking it one step further.

Next up in the Android Market checklist is: security. I find it quite funny that we need antivirus software for our phones these days. While it’s interesting that phones are basically computers nowadays, we shouldn’t need extra protection like we need on PCs. The most effective way to spread a malicious piece of software on Android is through the Market. That’s where Google needs to build a giant wall, put some more wall on top of that wall and then put laser guns on top of that wall.

The whole “open vs. closed” argument goes outside the window the second you get infected with a rogue app. That person that just got its identity stolen using an Android phone doesn’t care one bit about Android’s openness, and probably wishes it had bought an iPhone. I’m not saying Google should manually approve every app that gets in the Market, but at least put them through some kind of process that checks for suspicious code and then manually check those apps that get flagged.

Themes

I’ve been talking about Android themes for a while now, but either Google doesn’t care about it or they’re taking their sweet time to release it. Basically, I wish Google allowed users to theme their phones just like carriers and manufacturers are able to. Don’t like Samsung’s TouchWiz UI? Download the “classic” Android theme from the Market and that’s it. Now your Galaxy S phone looks just like a Nexus S — simple as that.

This won’t be an easy task for the Android team though, since they’ll have to build some new and special APIs that allows developers to change how everything in Android looks — from the Notification bar to the check-boxes.

Official web-based Android IDE

Have you tried building an Android app lately? It’s not that easy. For the average Java developer or Eclipse guru it might be a rather painless experience, but for the rest of the world is a nightmare. It’s in Google best interest to make Android development as easy as possible.

That next great idea for mobile might not come from a developer but a doctor, and Google should do everything they can to make sure that the next big mobile app comes to Android first, and not iOS. How easy should Android development get? If you have to explain what an SDK is, it’s still too hard.

To make Android development as easy as using Photoshop, Google needs to start from scratch. First, they should build their own Android IDE as a web app. With nothing to install, nothing to update and no SDK to download. Just a web-based IDE for Android development, plain and simple.

Secondly, make app design a first-class citizen and not an afterthought. People should be thinking about how their app will look and behave, and not the intricacies of the Java language. Third, integrate with other tools like Flash and Photoshop. Make it possible for people to design their apps with other tools and just wire it up using the Android IDE.

Lastly, make app publishing and updating even easier than it is now. Publishing an app to the Android Market should be as easy as clicking a big “Publish” button right from the Android IDE. Want to see the Android Market explode with useful and beautiful apps, Google? Do this.

Gaming service

iOS has Game Center and Windows Phone 7 has Xbox Live. What does Android have? Nada. Google needs to get serious about gaming on Android as soon as possible. You know Microsoft is going to beat the Xbox drum for WP7 until the end of the world — and Android needs a good counterpart. The service needs to be social, easy and fun to use, and should make Android games even more addictive. Throw in achievement unlocking for good measure and you have a winner.

Naturally, the gaming service should also have an app built for Google TV. It doesn’t need to have any blockbuster video games at launch like the Xbox has, but if Google builds a good gaming platform that beautifully ties together your Android phone, tablet and TV, developers will eventually come. Who knows, maybe in a few years we’ll be playing Call of Duty on our Google TVs.

New Google Voice app

This is more of a personal request, and not something Google really needs to announce at Google I/O. I want to see Google finally release a Google Voice app with native VoIP support. Right now, the Google Voice app still uses your carrier’s voice network to connect calls — that shouldn’t happen.

We know Google has the capabilities for doing this because VoIP calling has been available for many months on Gmail. I can make calls with Google Voice on my computer but not on my Android phone. What gives, Google? It’s quite possible that the company doesn’t want to angry its newfound friends, the wireless carriers. Seeing as the future of Android still depends hugely on the amount of support that the carriers give the OS.

Free VoIP calling from Google would certainly make some people at AT&T, and Verizon a little uncomfortable. Still, VoIP calling on our phones is an oncoming train and no carrier will be able to stop it. Google should be the company that convinces carriers that they don’t own “calling” any more, by releasing Google Voice with VoIP.

Google I/O is only four days away and I expect Google to announce at least one of these products during the event. What do you guys/gals think? Anything else Google should announce at Google I/O? Let us know in the comments.

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Droid Charge plagued by same battery issues that haunted the Thunderbolt?

Posted: 06 May 2011 02:06 PM PDT

While reviewing the HTC Thunderbolt a month or so ago, I expressed my fears that the battery life issue that plagued the Thunderbolt was not device-specific, but signified a deeper problem with Verizon's shiny new 4G LTE network.

Though impossible to prove a trend from the performance of a single device, I've had my hands on the recently delayed Samsung Droid Charge for about a week now and have experienced a similar level of battery drain on Samsung's first entrant into the Droid series.

On average, between the two devices I have averaged about 6-7 hours of what I'd call moderate-heavy usage. To be 100% transparent, here's what I consider to be moderate-heavy usage:

Tweetdeck – Refreshed every 5-10 minutes (remember, I'm an addict)
Gmail – fairly frequently responding to either personal or Android and Me emails
Email – fairly frequently checking and responding to work email
Various games – infrequently I'll play a game for a few minutes while taking a break from work
Google Talk – fairly frequently
Occasional use of Documents to Go to view/edit files while in/heading to a meeting

Though my usage may not represent the typical Android user, I think it's close enough to drive the point home. If a mobile smartphone can't make it through the typical day without needing to be connected to a charger at some point, the manufacturer needs to go back to the drawing board and come up with a device that can handle it.

Now, I'm still holding out hope that the battery life enhancements we've seen in the personal computer market will find their way to the mobile smartphone market. Perhaps we're even closer than we think. It will be interesting to see how battery life holds up when the first of the dual-core LTE devices drops on Verizon in coming months.

For now, we'll just have to wait. But I'm curious to hear from you. As I stated above, my usage does not fully represent the average Android user. Do you have a Thunderbolt and think my battery life complaints are unfounded; that you're getting much better battery life than I've led you to believe? Conversely, are you getting even worse battery life than my 6-7 hour average? Sound off in the comments below and let us know!

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Pinball HD launches for Tegra2 devices

Posted: 06 May 2011 12:22 PM PDT

When Nvidia announced that they would be partnering with device manufacturers to bring awesome phones and tablets to market sporting its new Tegra2 processors, it was only a matter of time before we started to see increasingly complex, graphically-intense games come to the Android platform.

Today, Nvidia has partnered with Gameprob to bring Gameprob's popular Pinball HD game to Tegra2 Android devices today. Pinball HD has been on rival iOS for a while, and has earned high market ratings, even winning an Apple Design Award in 2010.

Pinball HD is just what you'd expect it to be, a pinball game with three different interactive gameboards as well as the following features:

3 pinball tables with unique graphics, instructions, missions, locations and characters

Landscape mode shows a full table view. The games can be played in either landscape orientation with the button to the left or right of the screen.

Portrait mode gives you a flying-table view with the camera panning and zooming over the action.

A wonderful 3D engine.

Realistic physics.

Local and global high scores.

Unique soundtrack with atmospheric music, sound effects and voices.

Camera tilt brings dimensionality to the games offering a simulated 3D effect where the image changes depending upon how you tilt the device. Camera tilt only works in landscape mode.

Stereoscopic imaging option (requires anaglyph 3D glasses). You can choose between red-cyan, green-magenta or yellow-blue lenses.

Increased geometry complexity, afforded by Tegra, for a more realistic experience

Higher resolution textures for more striking visuals that stand out compared to non-Tegra powered devices

NvidiaTegraZone

Look for our full review of Pinball HD to come sometime this weekend, but if you can't wait (or don't care) to see what we think, you can now get Pinball HD on the Android Market (or through TegraZone) for $2.99.

Pinball HD for Tegra NVIDIA MARKET QR

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Update: HTC Flyer Digital Pen gets priced by Best Buy and the HTC Accessory Store

Posted: 06 May 2011 09:23 AM PDT

The HTC Flyer Digital Pen has finally been given a price. Best Buy has the Digital Pen listed for $79.99 while the official HTC Accessory Store has is posted for €49.99 ($72.46) in Europe. We've known since CTIA that HTC would be selling the Digital Pen separately from the Wi-Fi HTC Flyer here in the U.S. market, but there seems to be a little confusion regarding the pen's inclusion with the 3G Flyer which is scheduled for launch in Europe next month. We're waiting to hear back from HTC PR on this issue and should have final clarification within a few hours.

Anyone who plans on purchasing the Wi-Fi HTC Flyer will most likely opt to purchase the $80 accessory since the HTC Scribe functionality is what makes the Flyer stand out from other Android tablets. But with the Wi-Fi HTC Flyer's $500 price tag and the additional $80 for the pen, we could see consumers opt for cheaper options which come with Honeycomb and a larger screen.

Any HTC Flyer fans disappointed with the price of the Digital Pen?

Update: HTC’s PR folks finally got back to us, confirming that the HTC Flyer Digital Pen will be sold separately in the U.S. market. European versions of the HTC Flyer will include the pen with the price of the tablet. Potential U.S. customers may want to reconsider when and where you buy the HTC Flyer. You may be able to puck up a Wi-Fi HTC Flyer from Europe, skip the sales tax, and get a free pen. We’ll have to see how this all plays out once the tablet actually hits the market.

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Judge orders Oracle to toss out most of the patent claims against Google

Posted: 06 May 2011 08:45 AM PDT

Things just got a bit easier for Google on its fight against Oracle. In case you forgot, Oracle sued Google last August claiming that Android infringes on Oracle’s Java patents and copyrights. Yesterday, Judge William Alsup ordered Oracle to trim its patent claims from 132 to a manageable three. Likewise, Google also had to cut down on the number of “prior art references” it’s using to defend itself — from a few hundred to eight.

You know you have something successful in your hands when everybody and their mother wants a piece of your success. That’s exactly what’s happening here. Android is very popular now, and Oracle — just like Microsoft — wants a piece of that action. But instead of making a better product and innovating, companies like Oracle just do what they do best, release their army of lawyers and sue until they get what they want.

In this case, Oracle is suing Google which has a lawyer army of its own. Meaning the company will have a very hard time getting its grubby hands all over Android. However, it’s sad that today you need a legion of lawyers and a warehouse full of patents to be able to innovate in the tech industry. If a company the size of Google has a hard time innovating because of patent lawsuits, what’s left to say about those startups that might one day threaten big companies like Oracle. They don’t stand a chance.

While the law case is far from over, Google just got a point on its favor. But don’t expect this back and forth to be over any time soon. This case will drag on at least for a couple of years, and by then, who knows if Android will even have any Java code at all. So, take a chair, sit back, and enjoy how these two giants punch each other in the face in public.

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CyanogenMod updates to version 7.0.3, fixes bugs and security hole

Posted: 06 May 2011 08:18 AM PDT

If you have been keeping yourself updated with Android news, you have probably heard all the hype about security, location, and privacy for the past couple weeks. Though such issues are a given (since most of the benefits of working "in the cloud" are made possible due to these features), they can become dangerous and sometimes get out of hand.

CyanogenMod has just released version 7.0.3, which consists of a bug fix for the update notification system and fixing a security hole. The release is still based on Android 2.3.3, so don’t get your hopes up on that video chatting feature (Check Alberto’s article for an alternative way to accomplish this).

In an attempt to keep hackers away from CyanogeMod users, the team has kept information about this security hole private, so we do not know exactly how we could be affected. Regardless, the issue has been fixed, and you can now head over to CyanogenMod’s mirror network to download this update, or it can also be found on Rom Manager.

You should not install this update if you are already running a recent nightly build, only if you are coming from 7.0, 7.0.2, or 7.0.2.1. Chris Soyars

Before you install this update, make sure you are on the right version of CyanogenMod, or you may run into some issues. Aside from minor bug fixes, the main factor here is your security, which is always valuable. If you are running CyanogenMod, go and update to version 7.0.3 before the hackers find the weak spot. Now that we can all breathe and feel safer, don’t forget to share your comments with us. How are you guys liking the new CyanogenMod? Do you feel better now that this security hole is patched?

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AT&T sees the light, will soon let us install non-Market app

Posted: 06 May 2011 07:40 AM PDT

Remember yesterday when we told you how to easily install third-party apps, even if your carrier doesn’t let you? Apparently, somebody at AT&T reads Android and Me. Because soon after that, AT&T revealed they’ll start to open up a bit and allow us to install apps from non-Market sources. That’s great news for anybody using an Android phone on AT&T — or T-Mobile for that matter.

AT&T explained the reason why they didn’t initially allow their Android phones to install apps from unknown sources. One of the reasons was fear of “bad apps” harming phones and the network. That’s code for “apps that let people tether for free”. AT&T’s Senior Vice President of mobile devices, Jeff Bradley, explained their initial decision, saying:

I think we’ll go more open. First and foremost we were genuinely concerned from a network bandwidth standpoint and a customer experience standpoint for not having any mechanism to take down a bad app. And the only way we could do it at the time was relying on Google to leverage what [security] they had in [the] Android Marketplace. We took a lot of negative publicity for doing it, but it was 100 percent driven by a desire to be able to have the ability to support our network and be able to help our customers. It really was.Jeff Bradley

It’s OK AT&T, we forgive you. The first AT&T phone to launch with the ability to install non-Market apps is the Samsung Infuse 4G. Hopefully, the carrier will roll out an update in the future for currently available Android devices.

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