Android Community |
- Google Rolling Out Fix for Android Security over Wifi
- Pantech 1.5 Ghz dual-core phone in Korea only – but why?
- T-Mobile 2011 roadmap leaked, Includes Sensation, HTC G-Infinity and more
- LG G2x Overclocked to 1.5 Ghz, scores almost 4600 in Quadrant
- FriendCaster Tab Facebook App for Honeycomb Review
- Asus Transformer officially “in stock” at Target
- SlashGear Tech Writer Help Wanted!
- Samsung Exhibit 4G Official image leaks, coming June 8th
- Dell Streak Pro detailed: 10-inch Honeycomb tablet for June
- KDDI Infobar gets cool Android UI and DoCoMo shows off Palette UI
- Motorola Droid X2 heads to Verizon online tomorrow, stores May 26
- Vizio Android-powered smartphone crosses FCC on path to AT&T
- XPERIA Play heist was fake confesses Vodafone New Zealand
- Samsung Captivate gets CyanogenMod 7 officially
- Android Community’s Gigantic XOOM Tablet Giveaway is Over! Thank You everyone!
- Android 2.2 Coming to a TV Near China!
- Honeycomb 3.1 Update Coming to ASUS and Acer Tablets Next Month
- Motorola Xoom Continues to Eat Benchmarks For Breakfast
- Android Honeycomb 3.1 Review and XOOM Benchmarks
- Samsung Hercules to Save T-Mobile Customers?
| Google Rolling Out Fix for Android Security over Wifi Posted: 18 May 2011 11:28 AM PDT Over the last few days there has been some talk regarding another security issue in Google’s Android OS. Apparently there is a problem where 3rd party’s could potentially access and snoop around in a users Calander, and Contacts. From what we are hearing this is a security loophole that is causing some snooping while a user is operating on a Wifi network. Google quickly mentioned this has been fixed in Android 2.3.4 and above but all earlier versions need the fix, that is like 99% of Android phones.
The security flaw stems from the way Android sends authentication tokens over a wireless network, and they have quickly fixed the issue and your Calander and Contacts should all be safe. According to allthingsdigital Google has said the following:
That last bit is the important part. “This fix requires no action from users and will roll out globally over the next few days.” Basically what this means is this is a server-side fix that Google will be conducting over the next few days, and updates to Android phones will not be required. So you can all rest knowing this will be a simple and easy fix that is already on its way into effect. Now Google needs to address a similar issue regarding their Picasa Photo Service, but that is another story on its own. [via AllThingsDigital] )
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| Pantech 1.5 Ghz dual-core phone in Korea only – but why? Posted: 18 May 2011 11:12 AM PDT If you are like me and have been watching for all of the latest dual-core phones coming out lately, you’ll probably wonder the same thing as me regarding this next phone. It sure sounds like a beast. Pantech plans to release the worlds first dual-core 1.5 Ghz smartphone called the Vega Racer. The only thing is for now it seems to be at their home in Korea only. They are well known in those parts but not so much in the West. I’m wondering why they have the speed burst, but we don’t.
Pantech’s looking to ship later this month on SK-Telecom, it’s got some serious power under the screen with Qualcomm’s MSM8660 Snapdragon chip, 1GB RAM, and Adreno 220 GPU. For those that might not follow all the details that far, the MSM8660 Snapdragon is the same chip in HTC’s upcoming EVO 3D, and Sensation 4G, but both of those have been scaled down to a slower 1.2 Ghz So my question remains, why can’t we get that same speed here in the U.S.? Does Pantech know something we dont, or are they just pushing the limit a bit more than HTC would like. I have a feeling it is because of the handset market need and timing here. HTC can release a slew of devices at 1.2 Ghz, then again release a few more beasts like the HTC G-Infinity later and have it sporting a 1.5 Ghz CPU upgrade for everyone to drool over again. They better hurry though because that Tegra 3 is just around the corner. [via Engadget] )
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| T-Mobile 2011 roadmap leaked, Includes Sensation, HTC G-Infinity and more Posted: 18 May 2011 10:49 AM PDT With AT&T hot on the heels of T-Mobile trying to acquire their entire network, some would think T-Mobile would be sitting back a little bit but it seems to be just the opposite. They are showing no signs of slowing down any time soon with all the phones they are planning and releasing in the coming weeks. We have a leaked roadmap that shows just about everything, but I’ll stick to the android parts.
According to the sources they have some exciting things planned for June, and wont be slowing down after that either. We see a bunch of names that may or may not be android phones, but ones like the HTC G-Infinity surely is Android. Possibly a big brother to the G2, and G2x, or maybe even a HTC Android 3.1 Tablet. -June 8th, The Sensation 4G, and the recently talked about Samsung Exhibit 4G will be released. Sounds like an interesting few months for T-Mobile and team magenta. Hopefully they wont be switching to AT&T any time soon. There was also a lot of talk about other handsets from LG, Samsung and HTC but none of those had a specific date for us to report on. The most exciting to me is the HTC G-Infinity I mentioned above. It might be a Sense-less device with stock Ice Cream Sandwich to match the purity of the G2 and G2x. Hopefully they unlock its bootloader first, but that is just wishful thinking. Talks about a LG Optimus 2, HTC Bresson, and a Samsung Dumont were all briefly covered as well. They mention Nokia and Crackberry but we will stick to Android. That is a pretty large list of devices, hopefully soon we will get a picture or a screenshot of this leak to show you all, but for now we will just have to report it as we hear it. Leaking a list this large and in depth makes us wonder if a T-Mobile employee went on a binge with all this data and quit before he moves over to AT&T, but leaks are pretty common so I doubt that really happened. Stay tuned for more! [via This is my next] )
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| LG G2x Overclocked to 1.5 Ghz, scores almost 4600 in Quadrant Posted: 18 May 2011 10:10 AM PDT I know we talk about overclocking and benchmarks quite often, but it is a little exciting you have to admit. Seeing what the amazing developers and kernel builders can squeeze out of these devices, all that extra power they can unlock and keep the device stable. Today I have some benchmarks I have done myself this morning on my T-Mobile G2x running at 1.5 Ghz on a EXT4 kernel by Morfic, and I was getting some pretty huge benchmark results.
With a little tweaking and overclocking I was able to get 4570 in quadrant, almost breaking 4600. I pretty impressive considering the scores it was getting on stock. Even the Galaxy S II benchmarks we posted last month were only around 3100, but that is at stock CPU speeds. To achieve the speedy results I’ve posted above head over to XDA and dive into some of the amazing kernels that are now showing up for these Tegra 2 devices. If anyone follows the developer morphic and his Trinity kernels for devices like the Nexus S, you’ll be glad to hear that is what I’m running on my G2x. Morphic has a single thread on XDA that is for all of his Trinity kernels for the G2x, so instead of linking to one, I’ll just direct you to that thread. I am running the CM7 build for the G2x, and Morphic’s CM7 EXT4 1.5 Ghz kernel myself and boy it is fast. Make sure you use caution and select the right kernel for the rom you are running, as he has many types and versions posted. If you flash the wrong one you will run into issues. As always, do a nandroid backup before any large changes or flashing things in recovery. Enjoy the speed boost and please come back and leave a comment if you beat my score. [via XDA Forums] )
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| FriendCaster Tab Facebook App for Honeycomb Review Posted: 18 May 2011 09:59 AM PDT Welcome to FriendCaster Tab, the very first Facebook client specifically optimized for Android 3.0/3.1 Honeycomb. This application is a super simple one, so the following has a look at both this new version and the “Pro” version which was made with smaller handsets in mind. Which one should you choose? Probably both – you’ll see what I mean when I move through the two in the video below. Does it make sense to simplify an app when you’ve got more space? We shall see.
What we’re dealing with here in FriendCaster Tab is a free application that shows you an expandable list of your friends updates on Facebook. A list appears on the right side of your screen while any expanded bit of content opens on the left. If the content includes a link, you’re moved out of the app to a separate app (whatever you’ve got set up for browsing the internet or YouTube, etc,) while the original window remains open if you’d like to return to it. Your only other functions are the ability to reload for newer updates, update your status, and change the background behind the whole setup. My question is why in the world this would be released when the slightly less-well-adjusted but much more diverse FriendCaster Pro already exists? Is the tag “first Facebook App for Honeycomb” so very important that this app would be released with only a couple of functions available for the user? On the other hand, what we do have here thus far is quite nice looking. I would hope that this app would expand to include everything its little brother already has in this much nicer user interface for larger tablets. Should you purchase FriendCaster Tab? Sure, it’s free! Should you give them feedback saying you’d like more functions to be present? Yes, indeed! )
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| Asus Transformer officially “in stock” at Target Posted: 18 May 2011 09:45 AM PDT It looks like the Asus EeePad Transfermer is finally in stock at Target stores, and online according to what we see. There was a few stories of possible delays and shortages, and that Target was even canceling pre-orders at one point. I can now safely say I see the site myself, and the 16GB Wifi Android 3.0 beast of a Tablet is “in stock”. Go get yours now before they are all gone.
If you have been waiting for a great priced Android tablet, this is one of the lower priced tablets. It is a Wifi only, 16GB tab and runs Android 3.0 and will be updated to 3.1 shortly. The Asus Transformer has tons of accessories and even a keyboard dock to make it just like a laptop, check out our hands-on here. Overall it is a great tablet, the hardware is very well made and has got many praises for build quality, it holds its own with the Motorola Xoom, but might be a little thicker than the shiny new Galaxy Tab 10.1 we have been hearing so much about, but for $399 you can’t go wrong. It is a great tablet at a great price. Will you be buying one, or waiting for the Galaxy Tab? [via Target] )
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| SlashGear Tech Writer Help Wanted! Posted: 18 May 2011 09:42 AM PDT Our sister site is in the market for a new writer! Sound interesting? Continue on! SlashGear seeks a self-motivated, independent writer with the ability to locate and publish content at a rapid pace on a full-time daily schedule. This person must have previous experience working in online publishing and should have an extensive knowledge of our modern technology and gadget environment. The successful candidate should be able to work independently, but must also be willing to take direction in content as well as subject matter choices. This person must be comfortable speaking about gadgets and technology of all kinds, especially in the fields of personal computing and mobile, with gaming being a bonus attribute. Continue below for the rest of the requirements for the position you’re about to apply for.
Anyone applying for a writing position with SlashGear must have a flexible schedule and understand that they will need to work certain set hours as well as floating hours on weekends. The applicant should be flexible enough to accommodate out-of-hours events and coverage, generally with notification coming one week in advance. The applicant must be able to produce content on a steady basis, bring a strong voice to the table, and work with teammates to produce a body of work in which no bit of content is left unchallenged, no writing left unchecked. If you’re a writer who understands the tech world and all the news that goes along with it, you may be right for SlashGear. We’re looking to hire a long-term professional team member who can get up to speed as quickly as possible; if you cannot meet all of the requirements above, and don’t share a passion for consumer electronics, then this isn’t the job for you. Would you like to join SlashGear and produce gadget news to your hearts content? Being based in the San Francisco or NYC areas is a plus but not essential. If you think you've got what it takes, email us at jobs@slashgear.com with your bio and CV for more information. )
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| Samsung Exhibit 4G Official image leaks, coming June 8th Posted: 18 May 2011 09:08 AM PDT Earlier last week we had the pleasure to tell you about this device when it first got leaked. That came in the form of a few flyers and spec sheets, and now today we have an official photo or “press shot” of this powerful little mid-range device coming to T-Mobile soon.
There was a little confusion on the first leak regarding pricing of this mid-range hardware phone as it was listed at $325 but we now believe that is dealer cost, and the phone will most likely be offered at a much lower price for those signing a new 2 year contract. I’m thinking $99 or maybe $149, especially since most the top tier phones usually drop for $199 when you sign a new contract. I may have mentioned mid-range, but the Exhibit 4G is no slouch either. Packing in a 1 Ghz processor, front and rear facing cameras, as well as full 4G HSPA+ speeds for all your needs. The specs are just lower than beasts like the G2x or the upcoming Sensation 4G. For those looking for a G1 or MT3G upgrade, or their first Android on T-Mobile this phone would make a great choice. [via Samsung Hub] )
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| Dell Streak Pro detailed: 10-inch Honeycomb tablet for June Posted: 18 May 2011 07:10 AM PDT New details on Dell’s rumored 10-inch tablet have emerged, suggesting that contrary to original reports, the Dell Streak Pro will, indeed, run Honeycomb. According to Tweakers‘ sources, the Streak Pro packs a 1GHz Tegra 2 dual-core chip and 1GB of RAM into its 261 x 176.4 x 12.9 mm, 720g frame, along with dual microphones and twin cameras.
That’s 5-megapixels on the back and 2-megapixels up-front, matched with either 16GB, 32GB or 64GB of flash storage (and an SDHC memory card reader). The 10-inch display runs at 1280 x 800, and there’s WiFi b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR and the possibility of AT&T 4G LTE support. Dell will apparently offer different black, pink, blue or red skins for the slate, which has a brushed aluminum back panel. Accessories will include a media dock, in-care charging adapter, a “productivity” dock and a folding cover with integrated keyboard. Dell’s Stage 2.0 software will be preloaded. The Dell Streak Pro is expected to go on sale in June.
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| KDDI Infobar gets cool Android UI and DoCoMo shows off Palette UI Posted: 18 May 2011 06:35 AM PDT One of the things that many Android phone makers use to set their smartphones apart of the pack is a custom UI. A nice custom UI can make the phone easier to use and more attractive, but the UI can slow down updates too since it may need tweaking after an Android update is offered. Two Japanese carriers have offered a look at their future UIs for Android devices and KDDI has offered up some specs on one of the Android devices that might pack the slick looking UI.
The KDDI smartphone is called the Infobar and it runs Android 2.3. It also has many other features with IR communications and a 1seg TV tuner that will work outside of Japan. The camera on the smartphone is an 8.05MP unit and the display is 3.7-inches. It has a data folder capacity of 1.1GB and content is saved to microSD cards up to 32GB. The phone measures 63x118x11.8mm and weighs 113g. The interface for that Infobar phone is what you see in the photos above, and it’s sexy. The DoCoMo Palette interface is nice looking, but nowhere near as polished looking as the KDDI offering. The Palette interface from DoCoMo has many tabs that can be opened to access different things and then a pinch gesture closes the tabs. You can see the UI in action in the video below. It’s cool to see this carrier reskinning Android for good looks and usability, I just hope it doesn’t delay updates excessively as a byproduct.   [KDDI via twitter] )
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| Motorola Droid X2 heads to Verizon online tomorrow, stores May 26 Posted: 18 May 2011 06:07 AM PDT Yesterday I mentioned that the user guide for the Droid X2 has landed on the Motorola website and we were looking forward to the smartphone hitting stores. Verizon has now announced that the Droid X2 will be available online starting tomorrow and will be in stores on May 26. The X2 is the first dual-core 1GHz smartphone that will come to the Verizon Wireless network. The smartphone will have all the features we expect of a high-end Android offering.
It will have a 4.3-inch screen with scratch resistant and anti-reflective glass and qHD resolution. The smartphone supports Flash content and the rear camera is an 8MP unit that can record video in HD resolution. The X2 comes with apps for uploading and tagging photos to sites like Flickr and Facebook from a single place. The Droid X2 runs Android 2.2 at launch and will be updated to Android 2.3. Other features include the ability to shoot consent out to your TV in the living room. The X2 is ready for enterprise use with support for security and IT policies. It will also be used as a mobile hotspot and share the 3G connection with up to five devices. Verizon will offer the Droid X2 for $199.99 with a new 2-year agreement and the purchase of a voice and data plan.   )
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| Vizio Android-powered smartphone crosses FCC on path to AT&T Posted: 18 May 2011 03:26 AM PDT Back in January during CES the company that most of us know for cheap HDTV sets called Vizio was showing off some new wares that it was working on for the market. These new gadgets included and Android-powered smartphone and a tablet as well. Considering how Vizio tore up the HDTV market in short order, anything that this firm comes up with gets my attention as a product to watch. I wrote a bit about the tablet and the smartphone back in January during CES.
That Android smartphone hasn’t been heard from since January, until today. The smartphone has now crossed the FCC and appears to be headed to AT&T. The phone will apparently simply be called the Vizio Phone. The specs of the little phone aren’t that bad either. It will sport a 4-inch screen with a resolution of 854 x 480. The processor is a single core 1GHz offering, and it will have 4GB of internal storage. The phone will also have HDMI output and operates on GSM 850 and 1900 MHz networks. There are still some unknowns about the phone at this point, namely what version of Android it packs. Froyo would be a safe bet, but you never know. We also don’t know the launch date or price. I would expect the Vizio Phone to land soon and the price should be very good considering Vizio is a low price company. [via Gottabemobile] )
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| XPERIA Play heist was fake confesses Vodafone New Zealand Posted: 18 May 2011 01:07 AM PDT Vodafone New Zealand has admitted that it faked the entire “stolen XPERIA Play shipment” story, now confirmed to be a promotional campaign designed to mark the launch of the Sony Ericsson gaming smartphone. Doubts arose after Vodafone released “security camera footage” of the theft, which failed to convince viewers.
Company spokesperson Matthew East confirmed to The Australian that the announcement had, in fact, been a marketing stunt rather than a legitimate crime. It’s unclear when, exactly, the phone will launch. Would-be XPERIA Play owners in New Zealand can find out more about the carrier’s competition here. The rest of us can sleep easily in our beds tonight, knowing that there aren’t rogue Sony Ericsson handsets roaming the streets, flaunting their illicit IMEIs and generally being rowdy. [via Engadget] )
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| Samsung Captivate gets CyanogenMod 7 officially Posted: 17 May 2011 11:02 PM PDT For those that might not know the Samsung Captivate, a Galaxy S phone has recently been getting a little buzz about finally getting CyanogenMod 7. There has been a little chatter about it over the last few weeks, and that is simply because people can build CM7 ROM’s for phones using the open source kitchen that the CyanogenMod and TD team has in place, so they were unofficial builds that were created by developers. Tonight is the first official nightly build and it is available now.
The AT&T Samsung Captivate was recently just updated to Android 2.2 FroYo, and it has been around for a while. So to be able to finally run the latest and greatest Android 2.3.4 should be a nice change of pace for those looking to get the greatest rom ever. Yes that would be CyanogenMod. Without explaining to much, because you should only be flashing this if you know what you are doing, I’ll go ahead and link to the first official CM7 Nightly build for the Captivate. Click Here. What this means is the great developers of CM and @ChrisSoyars now feel it is feature complete and stable enough for some beta testing. So for those feeling on the edge, or just love CM7 like the rest of us feel free to get it now. As always do a backup of your current rom, and if you switching to another you should always do a full wipe first. The recommended steps for CM7 on the Captivate are the same for most devices, it must be rooted, and have clockworkmod. Or to make things easy just download Rom Manager from the market, update your captivate to the latest clockworkmod version and then use Rom Manager to search and find CyanogenMod7, install it and enjoy. Samsung Captivate nightly build: Download [via Twitter] )
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| Android Community’s Gigantic XOOM Tablet Giveaway is Over! Thank You everyone! Posted: 17 May 2011 07:06 PM PDT Oh my goodness we are finished. Before anything else is said, let me thank NVIDIA, providers of the tablets for this contest for both AC and SG. Then – we’ve finally found five non-robot of-age human citizens of the USA to give five XOOM tablets to. You would not believe how hard it was to fill those requirements. Hopefully some international contests in the future, but for now, USA! We’ve got all five winners chosen, contacted, connected, and their XOOM units are sent. Two were given at our sister site SlashGear, three were given here at Android Community, all were given to folks who we hope will take the kind time to be kind and review their units once they’re settled with them. This is only the beginning of the beginning!
For the couple people who’ve not yet received their tablets, yours will be coming extremely soon. You’ll have tracking numbers within 24 hours of now at the latest – I can guarantee it. For everyone that’s already got their tablet in hand – how are you doing? Everything rocking as hard as you knew it would? NVIDIA treating you so well? Oh NVIDIA and your Tegra 2, how kind you are. The winners of this contest are all those listed right here below: If one of these is you, you’ve already been in contact with me and your device is well on the way. If you’ve received your device and it was on fire or covered in slime or anything like that, contact me or leave a comment below in the comments section! Gooey! Everyone else – stay tuned! Many more awesome big contests on the way! )
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| Android 2.2 Coming to a TV Near China! Posted: 17 May 2011 06:33 PM PDT No, this isn’t Google TV. This is the work of Chinese video-tech company Geniatech. Their Android TV box runs 2.2 (FroYo) and… well it does a lot of what Google TV does, or will do at least once Google starts rolling out Honeycomb 3.1 to Google TV later this summer. In the mean time though Geniatech seems to promising a lot out of this device, even if its just promising what Google TV is promising. But hey, that’s the beauty of open source.
SInce Android is open source people can run it on just about anything they can pay an engineer to squeeze it on to, and if one person thinks they can do it better or faster than someone else that’s free game too. And this is what brings us to Android TV. The creator’s site describes their creation as follows.
Geniatech claims the box can run any Android Application that doesn’t require a microphone, but no mention of a GPS unit or telephony radios is made so this may be a bit of a broad claim. What they do explicitly point out is that Android TV is a functioning digital TV receiver, which is a key difference between this product and simply mirroring your phone on a TV screen. Geniatech also mentions its possible to use the box as a home gaming console, picture frame, and “internet box.” This is a lot to promises for a platform that Google itself has had to take its time with. Throw in the fact that there are a couple spelling errors on the site (given it is run by a foreign company), and several discrepancies on the site in regards to the specs, and my faith in the machine is a little shaken. Nonetheless, its cool to see Android continuing its spread to other platforms, even if its already been to this particular one. We’ll have to wait and see if anything comes out of this though, since the manufacturer makes no mention of availability on its website. Let us know what you think. [via Geniatech]    )
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| Honeycomb 3.1 Update Coming to ASUS and Acer Tablets Next Month Posted: 17 May 2011 04:54 PM PDT When Google announced the update to Honeycomb at Google IO last week, the only device given a timeframe to receive the update was the Motorola Xoom. Now Acer’s Iconia Tab A500 and ASUS’s Eee Pad Transformer have been added to that list. Both manufacturers have promised the 3.1 upgrade will be coming to their Honeycomb tablets sometime in June.
The honeycomb upgrade, only announced last week, is meant to help smooth out what many have described as several rough edges left in the first tablet adaptation of Android. The upgrade is set to bring several small performance improvements as well as a few new features, namely resizable widgets and scrollable task switching. Another major feature promoted at Google IO was USB hosting, which should be especially useful for those intending on using their Transformer as a laptop replacement as it will allow the connection of just about anything you would want to plug into your laptop. The news of this speedy update is probably what is most exciting here though. Acer and ASUS are both relatively new to the Android game, and haven’t had much of a chance to display their commitment to upgrades. This is a great first move for both manufacturers and a reassuring sign for anyone worried about what will happen to their shiny Acer or ASUS tablets at the end of this year when Ice Cream Sandwich come to unify us all! [via SlashGear] )
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| Motorola Xoom Continues to Eat Benchmarks For Breakfast Posted: 17 May 2011 03:29 PM PDT Not to be outdone by the Samsung Galaxy S II, thanks to the smarty-pants developers over at XDA the Xoom is now burning through benchmarks at 1.6 GHz. As games for Honeycomb continue to get more awesome, and with Google’s new Movies service, you’ll have plenty of content to throw all that speed at. This is all courtesy of the open source Tiamat kernel, which has recently been updated to version 1.4.2.
While the internet can lecture you all day about how benchmarks don’t necessarily equal real-world performance, you gotta admit that Quadrant square is beautiful. You see that puny little bar next to the Xoom one? That was the score to beat only a year ago, and we’re already talking about quad-core processors! We’re gonna need a new graph soon, or an exponential scale… but this engineering student digresses. Another bonus snuck into this update for Tiamat, enabling USB Ethernet, which would allow you to use your phone as a USB-tethered internet in a box. While overshadowed by the mind-melting benchmarks people are getting this is a cool feature. The only issue being the need for a seperate microUSB to microUSB cable since the Xoom only comes with a a micro to standard cable. If you are brave enough, or excited enough not to care, head on over and follow the instructions to get your Xoom zooming, and be sure to let us know how it is! [via XDA] )
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| Android Honeycomb 3.1 Review and XOOM Benchmarks Posted: 17 May 2011 03:07 PM PDT We’ve got our first official hands-on here with the newest mobile operating system to come out of Google’s labs, Android 3.1 Honeycomb. This is a relatively sparse update with only a few little bits for you to be bouncing around with, the most visible of which are involved in widgets, tasks, and USB connections. We’ve also got a special selection of benchmarks added up here for you to compare to our original tests when the Motorola XOOM (aka the first device to get this update) first came to our doorstep.
New FeaturesThis newest tiny update to Google’s tablet-based mobile operating system is one that comes in several parts. Obviously as with any update there are speed improvements and bug fixes that are happening behind closed doors – but what can we see? Let’s have a look in the video below followed by a bit of expansion below: USB EnhancementsWhat you’re seeing here is a run-through of the items presented by Google as the high points of this system upgrade. One of the items we’re not able to take a peek at quite yet for lack of the necessary connections is the USB upgrade – in the very near future, using a gaming controller to play all of your first-person shooter and side-scrolling jumper games will not be out of the question. In fact, in addition to being able to use things like Xbox controllers, keyboards, mice, and the like without so much as a driver, you’ll be able to work with devices you might not have ever dreamed of attaching to your tablet. Watch out, iPad. Widget EnhancementsYou’re now given the ability to re-size widgets at will. Not a whole lot of widgets support this as of yet as their developers must still work this functionality into their code, but the few we do see here are pretty neat. We can wait for a full-screen Music app that looks like Music Beta. Check out our full review of [Music Beta] to see what I mean. Totally excellent.
Multitasking ImprovementsAs you’ll only come to notice if you’re the sort of person who opens up 18 apps at once, you’re now able to scroll up and down through your tasks instead of being limited to a few. Between the video where I say “infinite” and now I’ve come to learn that the max amount of apps you can have open and scroll through is 18. After that it’s a total planar collapse. That said, enhancements make it so you’re able to open all of these apps without a problem, without being asked to close another app you can continue opening apps at will, switching to and fro with ease!
BenchmarksHave a glance at the following benchmarks as performed by yours truly on the XOOM only moments after loading the upgrade to Android 3.1 Honeycomb. If you do care to take a look, we’ve got the same stuff up in the original review for you to compare with. Is the change all that big? Not especially – unless you consider going downward an improvement where a higher number is actually better.
This update claims to be a performance enhancer but in reality, it appears to fix up a few things that mean a whole lot more to those everyday users like you and I. See Motorola XOOM Review [The Big One on Android Community] for more information.
Wrap-UpAll in all this update is certainly pretty in a couple of places, and we can’t wait to start working with controllers and other peripherals like never before, but it’s no new tasty treat. It’s not an upgrade that’s going to vastly improve your processor speed, you’re not going to blast off into outer space with it. What you will do is get to scroll through your tasks, resize your widgets, and see the shiny new 3.1 in your system information. Fun for all!            )
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| Samsung Hercules to Save T-Mobile Customers? Posted: 17 May 2011 02:43 PM PDT An early accessory listing leaked the names of Samsung Galaxy S II variants for AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint, leaving T-Mobile out of the loop. Today though it looks like there may be another “hero” phone coming T-Mobile, in the form of a phone named (for now anyway) the Samsung Hercules, a phone with the power of the Galaxy S II, and the size of AT&T’s new Infuse 4G.
With a 4.5″ WVGA (480×800) screen, the Hercules will be the biggest phone to come to T-Mobile. What do you expect with a (code)name like Hercules though? However, unlike it’s equally giant cousin, the Infuse, the Hercules is rumored to be pushing the boundaries in just about every spec, and even breaking a few. Starting with radios, the Hercules is rumored to have not only support for both T-Mobile’s as well as AT&T’s HSPA+ bands (which prepares it for whatever the outcome of AT&T’s attempt to purchase T-Mobile), it supports up to 42 MBs down, twice as fast as any other HSPA+ phone in the U.S. is capable of at the moment. Moving on, the rumored processor is the same 1.2 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon that powers the HTC Sensation, a strange move when Samsung has their own dual-core processor in certain versions of the Galaxy S II. The rest of the specs are: – Android 2.3 No word yet on when this may be reaching users, but it hasn’t even reached T-Mobile for testing yet. Looks like T-Mobile users will have to wait for dual-core Samsung goodies with the rest of us here in the U.S.
[via: thisismynext] )
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