Android Community |
- Samsung Galaxy S II vs HTC Sensation [VIDEO]
- SwiftKey 2 [BETA] Hands-On and Review
- LG Optimus 3D Hands-On and Unboxing
- HTC Sensation Hands-On and Unboxing from SlashGear
- ABC offers new Good Morning America app
- Geek creates Android app to propose to girlfriend
- Easy hack adds Gingerbread interface to Honeycomb if you have root access
- Pizza Hut App taking orders on the go, Available in Android Market
- SuperTooth HD Hands-On and Unboxing
- Android Community App of the Week: Bang Bang Racing THD
- Panoramic Camera from HTC Sense 3.0 APK Available
- Sony Ericsson Porting its Android UI Skin to Two New Feature Phones
- Sony Ericsson Xperia Play, and Arc getting Android 2.3.3 next week, Facebook included
- Leaked Official Droid Incredible Build Available to Flash
- Amazon beats Verizon, drops Droid Charge to $199
- Asus Transformer in disguise at Walmart, K-Mart & Target
- ASUS updating Transformer to fix keyboard dock issues
- Google Acquires Modu Patent Portfolio, Adds to Backpack of Tricks
- Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 gets another Hands-On [video]
| Samsung Galaxy S II vs HTC Sensation [VIDEO] Posted: 20 May 2011 10:32 AM PDT Behold the ultimate right now battle of the century. In this corner the newest and greatest dual-core device from Samsung, the next generation of the best selling series of Android smartphones in history, Samsung Galaxy S II! And in this corner, newly formed 4.3-inch round-sided king of the HTC world, blasting forth with another dual-core processor for a battle that’ll be remeniced about for centuries to come, the HTC Sensation! This war is a long time coming – or a long time coming if you consider technology time which is basically 100x faster than normal time. Let the fight begin!
Samsung offers the thinner of the two devices while HTC’s feel is what Chris Davies considers “better in the hand.” It’s curved on the front and curved on the back for a fully comfortable feel – high-quality metal and soft-touch plastic make for a device that appears to be much more expensive feeling than its Samsung opponent. The HTC here is thicker with 11.3mm versus 8.49mm and just under a millimeter longer, but it’s narrower than the S II by a bit. Rounded corners on the Sensation also add to the feeling that this is a smaller phone.
Display technology is a deal both HTC and Samsung say they’ve got the upper hand on, and what you’ve got here is a battle between quality and resolution. HTC has a qHD 960 x 540 resolution LCD panel on the Sensation, while the Galaxy S II has a lower-resolution, WVGA 800 x 480 screen – it’s Samsung’s own Super AMOLED Plus panel though, so you’ve got to take that into account. You’ll notice the extra pixels on the HTC when you’re up in the browser and looking at text lists – this means more on the screen and more readable text without a zoom on the higher-res Sensation. Brighter whites appear to be emanating from the HTC device but the contrast and colors don’t POP like they do on the Samsung Super AMOLED Plus featured on the Galaxy S II. Blacks are more inky on the S II, colors are more saturated, and as you can see by the shot of the benchmarks below, richness can be seen quite clearly on the left. Something to consider here on the other hand is that the Sensation looks fantastic on its own, streaming video looking more than acceptable in most situations. Outdoor viewing goes to Samsung though by a mile.
As for performance, Samsung’s Galaxy S II is still the clear winner. Benchmarking in Quadrant Advanced showed the Samsung score 3504 overall, with 7119 in the CPU category. In contrast, the HTC managed 2245 overall, with 5918 in the CPU category. It’s important to note here that of course benchmarks aren’t everything and that, if you view the video above, Quadrant cannot identify the CPUs because they’re so new.
What do you think? Battery life going to let you decide which one you want? In that case you’d better wait on our full review of the Sensation as HTC hasn’t been the most impressive in such a category as of late. Will you let processor speed win you over? Better get on board with Samsung. How about feel? Samsung seems to have a bit of an edge in industrial design here if we’re talking about corners that wont poke your eye out. Behold the battle! It rages on into the future!                  [via SlashGear] )
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| SwiftKey 2 [BETA] Hands-On and Review Posted: 20 May 2011 09:37 AM PDT Have yourself a look at the newest version of the most radically awesome keyboard app in existence, SwiftKey. This version features a few new elements including a brand new installer process, settings menu, and a most-excellent shortcut launcher on the keyboard itself. Our review lies beneath, as does a key to getting your own BETA copy today, and today only! Sell the excellence of a keyboard that learns as you teach it, teaching without any extra effort for more awesome awareness!
What you’re looking at here is actually 2.0.2.8, the newest version of SwiftKey to be released for testing by the creators of the app. This newest version features what I’ve mentioned above as well as a few new typing styles including Precise (identical to Classic) and Rapid (similar to Rapidfire), and you can also reproduce “Manual” with the option “Space will always insert a space” in advanced settings. There’s of course text handling improvements, in this case fixed doubledouble bug and general stability improvements, and lastly, the greatest, an improved Dark theme.
Take a look at our hands-on here in video form then head down to the gallery below for a clear look at what’s going on here.              UPDATE: if you’d like to get access to this beta, you’re in luck! Or you’re in luck if it’s still Friday when you’re reading this, because the folks at SwiftKey have opened their VIP doors for one day only. All you’ve got to do is go to SwiftKey VIP and enter #swiftkeyFRIDAY to download this BETA build. Joy! Look below for known bugs and such from some official text from the folks developing SwiftKey: )
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| LG Optimus 3D Hands-On and Unboxing Posted: 20 May 2011 08:19 AM PDT Woo look at this red hot goodness. It’s the LG Optimus 3D, an early developer version “intended for engineers” — take note of that for later. First let me comment on the box for a moment. It’s slick. One thing you can say about LG and the rest of the bigtime companies like HTC these days is that they’ve got their packaging game together. I see this box on a shelf and I instantly want to know what’s inside. Turns out what’s inside is the world’s first “Tri-Dual Technology”, that being dual-core, dual-channel, and dual-memory. See how it feels to the hands here and now.
This device comes with a big fat Dual-core 1GHz ARM Cortex-A9 processor, a set of 5-megapixel cameras on the back capable of 1080p@24fps (2D), 720p@30fps (3D) for video, a slightly less impressive VGA camera on the front, PowerVR SGX540 GPU, TI OMAP4430 chipset, Android 2.2 Froyo (upgradable to Gingerbread sometime in the future, who knows when,) GSM 850/900/1800/1900, WCDMA 900/1900/2100, and a WVGA LCD display at 480 x 800 pixels and 4.3-inches. DTS 2.0 channel audio, glasses-free 3D, and a lovely lipped glass front provide icing on the cake.
The device feels extremely similar to the T-Mobile G2x (or the Optimus 2X, depending on where you live in the world,) in the hands. It’s got that same downward lip at the edge of the glass, the same metal strip (to a degree) and plastic back (though black here instead of a mocha,) defeating the G2x in both size and number of cameras. This device has no lack of new and odd features, having 3D content, the ability to capture 3D content, and an array of new user interface features on top of Google’s standard Froyo.
We’ll be taking this device on a ride through every test we’d have set up for the final version so that you get a taste before you’ve got the ability to purchase. Behold the sled on which the 3D content revolution may be sliding in on – we’ll see about that. Meanwhile dual-core glasses-free 3D here we come. [VIDEO PROCESSING] While we’re reviewing, please feel free to let us know what you’d like to know about this device. Any questions you’d like answered? Any sort of special tests you’d like us to take this device through? Ask away!             )
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| HTC Sensation Hands-On and Unboxing from SlashGear Posted: 20 May 2011 07:17 AM PDT Our good pal Chris Davies has his hands on the brand new powerhouse in the HTC Sensation, that phone that for the longest time was codenamed “Pyramid” and is now HTC’s newest and most powerful effort. This device has a 4.3-inch display, runs a qHD 960 x 540 pixel resolution display, has a Qualcomm 1.2 GHz dual-core MSM8260 processor, and has a 3.0 version of HTC Sense, a lovely new version with an smart lock-screen and HTC Watch for downloads and video rentals. Behold HTC’s strongman in action!
Inside the box you’ll find the usual: USB AC adapter, USB to microUSB cable and a wired stereo headset with in-line controls. There’s no MHL-to-HDML adapter even though the plug you’ll find at the bottom of this device is definitely capable of making use of such an accessory – on the other hand, DLNA streaming support over WiFi b/g/n needs no such wire so you’ll be able to access that out of the box. Additional accessories for the future include a charging dock straight from HTC – even without this you’re allowed to boot directly into dock mode on the HTC Sensation, showing weather and Facebook updates on the fly, turning on mobile hotspot functionality at will. You’ll notice the update to the chassis immediately upon viewing, with a giant swoop along the back and raised and toughened glass up front with a lip of plastic that accents the slightly rounder sides than every other 4.3-inch HTC phone before. This ain’t no ThunderBolt, if you know what I mean.
You’ll see instantly that this lip rim serves to add a tactile feeling whilst your thumb slips back and forth across the screen as well as serves as a means to keep your display screen off whatever surface you’ve placed your phone face-down onto. This same lip comes off with the entire back of the device when you want to access your battery and SIM and microSD slot for changing action.
Upon first glance it appears that Android and Sense are moving fabulously quickly on this new dual-core chip, any choppiness or jerkiness experienced when Davies first had his hands on this device are gone now in this store-ready version. Benchmarks in Quadrant Advanced racked up a lovely 2245 overall with 5918 in CPU. Certainly good for a start. Davies notes the following ominous warning: “let's just say this: the Samsung Galaxy S II has got some serious competition.” We shall see! Check out Chris’s version of this unboxing right on over at SlashGear.         )
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| ABC offers new Good Morning America app Posted: 20 May 2011 06:17 AM PDT I can remember growing up each morning before school my parents would be watching Good Morning America. The news show is still on today and if you are a fan, you will want to check out the new app that goes along with the show that ABC is debuting. The app was unveiled this week and allows the app user on an Android device or the iPhone to participate with the show.
Using the app the user can vote live on the buzziest stories of the day and then see the real-time results of how their choices compare with others. The app can be downloaded free and it has GMA video clips that users can watch. “Now, viewers can be a part of the story and watch 'Good Morning America' wherever and whenever they want," said James Goldston, Senior Executive Producer. ABC says that the new app is part of its ongoing commitment to providing users with interactive ways to be a part of the broadcast. I bet that lots of people will end up downloading the app and using it while drinking their morning coffee or eating breakfast. )
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| Geek creates Android app to propose to girlfriend Posted: 20 May 2011 06:05 AM PDT A dude from Jersey named Jon C. Hodgson wanted to propose to his girl of several years, Meghan, in a memorable way. He ruled out the things like a Jumbotron and skywriting as done already and wanted something cool. He settled on making his own app and then having it drop the big question in for him. Jon had a problem though; he didn't know how to make an app for an Android device.
He turned to App Inventor and his girls love of her HTC Incredible and Harry Potter to seal the deal. He created a quiz app that had terms and conditions and official photos from the coming Harry Potter move. He told his girl that it was a quiz to win free tickets to the premiere of the film while they were out to dinner. She started answering the questions and the last one was “The Question.” It read, “Meghan, will You Marry Me?” with yes or no boxes down below. This sort of reminds me of a version of those notes you pass along in grade school to the girls you like. If you are wondering, Meghan said yes and the wedding date is set. [via Fast Company] )
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| Easy hack adds Gingerbread interface to Honeycomb if you have root access Posted: 20 May 2011 03:15 AM PDT There are a bunch of Android fans out there that buy Android devices for their hackabiltiy and open nature. It seems that every time we turn around there is a new hack or mod out there to do something new and different on your Android tablet or smartphone. Many of these hacks and mods need root access to operate. If you have that root access on your Honeycomb tablet and long for a slicker looking user interface this hack might be perfect for you.
If you have root access, the hack is very easy to perform and just as easy to reverse using one simple change. The hack is this. Honeycomb tablets apparently have the Gingerbread OS’ slicker interface underneath hiding there waiting to be unveiled by a higher density LCD that would be found on a smartphone for instance. The trick to unearthing that different interface is by changing the LCD density in a single system file. When the LCD density is changed from the default number to 170ppi or higher will allow the new interface to be shown after a reboot. Pocketables recommends the Honeycomb user get the LCDDensity for Root app to do the deed. If you find the Gingerbread interface isn’t for you, reverting to the default UI is as easy as changing the LCD Density back to normal you can see the hack in action in the video below, let us know if you use this hack. [via Engadget] )
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| Pizza Hut App taking orders on the go, Available in Android Market Posted: 19 May 2011 05:06 PM PDT It is a shame I didn’t know this app was released yesterday because it sure would have came in handy. I was running errands and trying to hurry and get pizza in time for the Miami vs Bulls NBA Playoff game, I had to hurry and call it in and go through all that hassle. This was just yesterday, and now Pizza Hut has released an easy, and convenient app for Android to allow just that, ordering pizza on the go right from your android phone for delivery or pickup. I go a little hands-on today, just a few hours late.
I went ahead and took a few photos of the app for you all to see just how quick and easy it is to order Pizza Hut with Android. It is something I’ve always wanted and seen friends with those “other” smartphones do in the past. It is quick, easy, smooth and very well made. It has a great user interface and with the flick of a finger you can scroll to S, M, or L sizes, as well as scroll through the thumbnails of topping. I’ll go for some meat-lovers myself. Start screen you can sign into your account so all your past orders and address are ready to go for easy ordering, or just get right to “Start an Order” Delivery or Carryout, and choosing your location by zip code sure is easy. One of my favorite features online is conveniently added to the app, and that is “Previous Orders” as I usually order the same thing on game days or sporting events for the group. It is one click away. Without getting to involved here because after all this is only a pizza app, here is how you select the topping you would like with the flick of your finger the top scrolls through all your choices. It is pretty, animated, and has actual images of the toppings. Overall it is a nice touch, I like it. So for those that absolutely love pizza go ahead and get this app in the Android Market right now and start ordering some pizza on the fly. We get pizza a few times a month so I’ll be sure to use this app plenty. When the NBA Championship time comes I’ll be ordering my usual party pack that is saved in my account. Get the Pizza Hut App by clicking here.      )
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| SuperTooth HD Hands-On and Unboxing Posted: 19 May 2011 03:35 PM PDT Whilst unboxing this lovely device, the word “Super” made my hands chop through the cardboard UPS box so fast I didn’t get the chance to film it, but trust me, it was epic. Luckily I did have my camera at attention when the plastic box was unveiled, trustily we’ve got an unboxing of the bits you’ll be getting your hands on. What this device consists of is a handheld speaker with a few simple controls, magnets at its back so that it can connect to your clamp for your car, miniUSB cord, car charger, and a quick-start guide. SuperTooth HD in the house – Bluetooth communication with our phones for simple voice commands and audio output ho!
This device is one we first got a chance to peek at back during CTIA 2011 in Orlando Florida. The fine folks displaying the device found it in their hearts to work with us to take a longer look at it now, here, in the comfort of your humble narrator’s own car and desk. What I’m going to do here is test this amazing little device out for a few days and get back to out on how slick (or terrible!) it really is. Meanwhile you’ll have the dramatic and amazing unboxing and hands-on video to keep you satisfied. This is a Bluetooth device, connecting to whatever other Bluetooth device you’d like to work with it with. In our case, of course, we’ll be using some Android devices. In your case, you’ll also probably want to use some Android devices but you’ve got the whole world as your oyster as well. Want to use one of those fashionable fruit phones? That’ll work. Want to use one of those Fenster Phones? Those work too I bet. Want to connect your laptop to this device? Whoa, now we’re getting sort of advanced beyond all measure. Stop in your tracks!
Have a look below and above and get yourself prepared for an object of some oddity and excellent industrial design brandsmanship. Also feel free to check out the “About” from the company below the gallery. Very informative, very informative indeed!               
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| Android Community App of the Week: Bang Bang Racing THD Posted: 19 May 2011 02:32 PM PDT Behold NVIDIA’s newest collaboration, this time with the developer team at Playbox for a rock and roll racing game by the name of Bang Bang Racing! This is certainly the most unique racing-type game to come to Android yet, with an overhead birds-eye view of your progress on the track and controls consisting of the tip of your index finger. While using the game on a smaller device such as the G2x didn’t work out too much to our liking, the tablet experience can’t be beat. Unique controls and fabulous graphics ahoy!
This game was just released for purchase via the Tegra Zone for NVIDIA Tegra 2 dual-core processor Android devices a couple of days ago, and we’ve been racing ever since. This is a game for those who love to drive, turn on a pin, and roll out in comically compact cars in fancy color combinations. If you ever played a Micro Machines video game and/or had a few of the little buggers when you were a kid (or if you’ve got them stashed in your closet for your kid to play with like yours truly,) you’ll love the size and environment in this game. As for the controls – there’s only one. You’ve got to use your index finger (or thumb, or whatever piece of yourself you want to touch to the display) to lead your car around the track. The closer to the car you get, the slower you go, the further ahead your finger is, the faster your car will go. It’s sort of like a rubber band, if you will. Once you’ve got the hang of moving in and out and turning sharper than you think you ought to, you’ll be in good shape for winning races left and right.
That’s not to say that winning in this game is easy. As you’ll quickly see after a glance at the standings on Feint (which Bang Bang is connected to,) you’ll see that high scores are no joke. Pick your car based on control tightness and speed and ZOOM ahead. Beware though, each crash takes away a percentage of your speed and accuracy from what we understand, you’ll have to be on your guard when it comes to walls and such. Near the start of your track are the pits, a place where you’ll quickly be able to repair your vehicle to brand new, continuing down on the first place attack to the finish.
ODDITIES: Winning unlocks a feature in which you can race clockwise instead of counter-clockwise. If you’re using Honeycomb, pressing the lower-right corner initiates the pause button (and also your updates and alerts, I think not on purpose.) Finally – you can’t completely crash. Even when you’re down to your lowest car-health, you’ll keep on going, so don’t fret!
Check the game out now via NVIDIA Tegra Zone or go straight to the Android Market for a direct download for $7.95. Can’t wait for Touch Rally later this summer!                     )
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| Panoramic Camera from HTC Sense 3.0 APK Available Posted: 19 May 2011 02:01 PM PDT Android developers are awesome. This time we’re happy to report that over at XDA francois.d.dillinger has managed to pull the camera app from Sense 3.0 and its available for you to flash on certain Sense based ROMs for phones including the EVO and MyTouch 4G. Note that since the camera is a system app its a bit more involved than just installing the apk and requires root, but for panoramic photos, it sounds worth it.
As mentioned the big draw here is the ability to take panoramic pictures. If you’ve ever used a panoramic enabled camera before the idea is the same here. Start the picture, than you have a delay to sweep the camera over an area to capture a wider range than would be possible with a single frame. Obviously this is going to work best for a still image, but there is plenty of fun to be had in taking really trippy pictures too. So far, the application is only running on Sense ROMs, with milage varying from ROM to ROM. francois.d.dillinger was kind enough to wrap the whole thing up in a zip for you to flash from a custom recovery if manually pushing the file, backing up your old camera app and changing file permissions sounds a wee bit intimidating. Either way you choose to install it though, be sure to post on the comments what kind of crazy stuff you’re doing with the camera, and be sure to show your thanks to the dev over on xda! (Downloads and instructions at the thread over on XDA) [via XDA]     )
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| Sony Ericsson Porting its Android UI Skin to Two New Feature Phones Posted: 19 May 2011 01:34 PM PDT Sony Ericsson is going to be releasing two new feature phones in the new feature which utilize their custom UI from the Xperia Mini. The phones, the rumored to be called “txt pro” and “Mix Walkman,” both feature touch screens, and the txt pro, a slide out QWERTY keyboard. The two feature phones are set to be released sometime in the coming months as part of a competition on SE’s Facebook page which will feature the winners reviewing the phones.
While neither phone is going to be running Android, it is difficult to tell given the similarity of their UIs to Sony Ericsson’s other midrange offerings. This is hardly the first time we’ve seen manufacturers porting their Android UI skins to non Android platforms. At CES this year we saw HTC announce it’s Brew based Freestyle that dances on the line between feature and smartphone, but still offered users the HTC “Sense experience.”  The "Four Corners" UI skin, as seen on the Xperia Mini Pro While I’m much more of a stock Android guy, this could become an increasing trend as OEMs seek ways to make users want a Sony Ericsson phone, or an HTC phone rather than simply an Android phone. Android may be the majority now for smartphone’s in the U.S., but Apple still has more than twice the market share of the any one Android hardware manufacturer. While this is very similar to the situation in the PC market, we’re seeing smartphone manufacturers resist being seen as just a means to the ends of Android, much more heavily than you see in the personal computer space. Interesting stuff, but nothing wrong with a little free market competition (as long as you leave my bootloader unlockable that is… ) [via Xperia blog] )
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| Sony Ericsson Xperia Play, and Arc getting Android 2.3.3 next week, Facebook included Posted: 19 May 2011 01:19 PM PDT From the looks of things the Sony Ericsson Xperia Play and Xperia Arc are both set to be receiving the latest and greatest in Android and that is 2.3.3. They mention not only will many bug fixes be included, but what they are calling “Facebook inside Xperia” will be included as well. We are not sure what markets that have the Xperia Play will be getting the update, or if all will be getting it. The Xperia Play was originally considered Google’s Gingerbread HERO phone, but the Nexus S is what got first dibs on Gingerbread instead.
Sony worked closely with Google on Android 2.3 for the Play so that explains why they will be getting the jump to Android 2.3.3 so fast. According to Recombu the update to 2.3.3 should start showing up as early as next week for both the Play, and the Arc. We are not sure if the Xperia Play launching on Verizon today will get it next week or not. The Facebook inside Xperia is something new that a lot of people are looking forward to. The updates with Facebook will add a handful of features, some I would use but many I probably would not. Things like updating your Facebook page with whatever music you have playing on your device. Photo’s can be uploaded and downloaded right to your Xperia device. Your Calander and Contacts will be deeply integrated more than before, and your Facebook calander will sync with your Google Calander so you’ll never miss a friends birthday because you didn’t get on Facebook for a day or 3. Calum MacDougall, Head of Web Service Partnerships at Sony Ericsson mentions that Facebook inside Xperia was not about making a "Facebook phone" but "enriching the experience" of using the phone alongside Facebook's features. I myself am not huge on Facebook, but for those daily or hourly users this should be a great addition to the Xperia line. [via Recombu] )
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| Leaked Official Droid Incredible Build Available to Flash Posted: 19 May 2011 01:00 PM PDT The latest build of the official Gingerbread build for the Droid Incredible, with Sense on board, leaked this morning. Now thanks to hardworking developers, a zip is rooted and ready for flashing for the root inclined among you. The build is Sense 1.0, but offers a nice bump for your Android version to 2.3.3.
The zip file, available here, was put together by XDA user, TMartin03. Note that it lloks like you’ll have to download the newest radio file to flash with it separately from here. Like the Gingerbread builds for the Droid X which have been leaking over the past month or so, this is a leak of Verizon’s official 2.3 update which will be pushed over the air to Droid Incredible users sometime in the (hopefully near) future. As it is an official build, this version has HTC’s Sense skin on top of it, but unfortunately it is the same old Sense 1.0 that you’d find on the stock 2.2 ROM, rather than 2.0 found on phones such as the Thunderbolt. The inclusion of Sense 1.0 is a bit of a disappointment as Gingerbread’s main offering was UI improvements, which are mostly replaced by the Sense UI to begin with. This means the upgrade here isn’t as big a deal as it would be as say going from Cyanogenmod 6 to Cyanogenmod 7. One of the big improvements functionally for Gingerbread was copy/paste and text selection, and while improvements like the Gingerbread keyboard have been forsaken for the Sense version, several early adopters have confirmed that the new text selection format is there, and works just as well as expected. It may not be the world’s most exciting update, but be sure there are plenty of behind-the-scenes upgrades that Google’s engineers put into this upgrade. If nothing else its always great to see a carrier and manufacturer looking out for older phones. So if you’re the ROMing type, especially the kind that love Sense ROMs, give it a go and let us know how it runs! [via XDA] )
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| Amazon beats Verizon, drops Droid Charge to $199 Posted: 19 May 2011 12:28 PM PDT If you haven’t already ordered the amazing and blazing fast Droid Charge you might want to keep reading. Amazon has done what they’ve done many times in the past and are offering a lower price than Verizon Wireless for the brand spanking new Samsung Droid Charge. When pricing first leaked the Droid Charge was listed as $299 with a new 2 year contract when the pricing has usually been $199 for smartphones. Verizon stuck with that price for some reason, but Amazon is here to save the day.
Amazon is now offering the Samsung Droid Charge lower than Verizon, they are asking the “expected” $199 with a new 2 year contract like we all thought it would be. So for those that have not ordered through Verizon, you might as well head on over to Amazon and save $100 real fast. Use those saving and get a few cases, and a screen protector for that beautiful 4.3″ display. Amazon has been known to do this in the past, so it comes as no surprise. At one point Amazon had the Droid Incredible 2 as low as $79, the Motorola Atrix for only $50, and now they are even offering a Trade-In program for old DVD’s and electronics. So send in your old original Droid, or even that iPhone with Amazon Trade-In and get the Droid Charge today for only $199. [via Amazon Wireless] )
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| Asus Transformer in disguise at Walmart, K-Mart & Target Posted: 19 May 2011 11:51 AM PDT What do we have here, the Asus Trans-for-mer doing what those actual Transformers do best and staying in disguise. Reports have been coming in that these amazing 10.1″ 3.0 Honeycomb Android Tablets are showing up in stock all over the place, mainly online. From Walmart, K-Mart, and Target, plus I’m probably missing a few. At this time of writing they have been coming in and out of stock extremely fast. K-mart has them listed “In-Stock” as I type this so you better hurry if you want one.
We first told you yesterday about Target finally having them in stock for order and shipping, but they quickly sold out. If I was on the lookout for a Asus EeePad Transformer I’d be checking all three of those sites somewhat often over the next few hours, or days. If you have been looking lately you know they are going fast as supply seems pretty limited. Can’t forget Walmart is a little cheaper for the low low price of $398 if you want to save a dollar or two.
Check out our very own Transformer Hands-On for more information on this lovely tablet. Asus recently denied that they were having shortage issues, but it looks like they might be having a hard time keeping places stocked. For those that are lucky and have already snatched up the Honeycomb tablet stay tuned as Android 3.1 updates should be rolling out soon. Links to buy below. Transformer K-Mart Order Page GO GO GO! )
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| ASUS updating Transformer to fix keyboard dock issues Posted: 19 May 2011 11:32 AM PDT Until today we have not heard anything regarding keyboard dock problems and issues on the ASUS EeePad Transformer Tablet. It seems that certain models are in fact experiences some problems and docking has been difficult for some users. Our hands-on had no issues. According to the ASUS UK Facebook page they are rolling out the fix now.
The official statement from the Facebook page just mentions that this issue has been fixed and a small update should take care of everything, we are not sure if this is for the UK only or if it possibly is affecting other models as well. We haven’t heard any more on updates for other regions either. Here’s the statement from Asus:
Like mentioned, this was only in the UK and so far there has been no reports of U.S. users or other regions as of this moment. If anyone in other area’s do get the update feel free to TIP US as that would be great. Many Facebook users are reporting all issues have been fixed and even ASUS responded with more detail regarding the issue.
Now all we need is the Transformer to get that Android 3.1 update to start rolling out and everyone will be plenty happy, those that are fortunate to have found it in stock and have one already. [via ASUS UK Facebook] )
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| Google Acquires Modu Patent Portfolio, Adds to Backpack of Tricks Posted: 19 May 2011 11:26 AM PDT Welcome back to the war zone. There’s lots and lots of bigtime lawsuits going on in our mobile industry here and you’ve got to keep your eyeballs on all of them. Right? Not unless you care about the future! The future of super cute and radically awesome mobile phone designs, and I’m talking about physically here. Google has just added Modu to its greater patent portfolio collection, acquiring therefor every design for a cellphone they’ve created over its lifespan. But what is Modu, you ask? a tiny Israeli startup responsible for the Guinness book of World Records record of the world’s lightest phone.
That’s not all they do, of course, they’re also responsible for a concept whose family is known as “jackets.” These jackets can be placed on Modu handsets, each one of them having a different interface and set of functions. Will these weird things be added to the Android family? Maybe, probably not, who knows? The point is that Modu, even with their sweet set of ideas, was very recently about to run out of cash when Google stepped in and whipped out its wallet. SURE said Modu, we’ll take your money, go ahead and make this stuff over there in America! Google of course will use these patents perhaps to build new lovely objects but more importantly to defend itself against current and future lawsuits against Android. If you’ll take a look through our collection of lawsuit posts, you’ll find that the largely evil* *my opinion, set of patent crows living it up on mobile device ideas written on paper are circling around our friends at Google for their Android booty. With Modu (and innumerable additional patent collections,) Google grows its defense against them. What do you think? Is it a good thing that Google wont be able to be sued by patent hawks, or should they be torn to bits by inventors who claim they thought of ideas first and are therefor entitled to millions of bucks from the big G? Of course this is much too large of a generalization – do you have any general opinion? [via Android and Me] )
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| Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 gets another Hands-On [video] Posted: 19 May 2011 11:10 AM PDT Today we have another hands-on for the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 that we can’t wait to see more of. We posted a short video back earlier this month of the 8.9 you can see that here. This next video below is not in English, so it is just for your viewing pleasure but any android fan should understand it, and probably wish they could show these “hands-on” guys how the multi-tasking system works on 3.0 Honeycomb, as they seem confused.
We here at AndroidCommunity also got some hands-on of our own back in March and you can see that by clicking here. It is pretty detailed already but we thought you’d all like to see more anyways, because it sure is a pretty tablet. I did want to mention in the video below it seems the Galaxy Tab had a few issues and they could explain why the Samsung May 24th event was delayed. Like I mentioned above there seemed to be a few issues. As you watch the hands-on notice around 4:20 minutes in the video playback seems really choppy although the guy was pulling up menus and such, but my Xoom doesn’t get choppy when I do the same. Samsung also has a motion activated zooming feature that either still has some kinks to work out, or the guys in the video just weren’t doing it right. Later near the end the system freezes and has a force close but does quickly jump back to life. Obviously on pre-production models little issues may appear, but these could be why the 24th event was delayed. That or all the complains of Samsung holding so many events in a 1 month span and not everyone could attend. Either way we can’t wait to get some more hands-on of all the new Tabs and most likely a review unit once the 24th event gets rescheduled, because as always we will be there. So check back when the time comes for even more coverage. [via YouTube] )
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