Android and Me |
- Five features in iOS 5 that I wish Android had by now
- Google releases a new version of the ADT with the goal of making Android apps look better
- Five features in iOS 5 that show how Apple is now playing catch-up to Google
- Motorola Droid Bionic gets caught on camera hanging out with a Webtop (Updated with more pictures)
- Dev asks: Is it worth listing your apps on the Amazon Appstore?
- Commercial proves that AT&T is set on taking T-Mobile
- Is this real life? Apple copies Android’s notification system and lock screen
- At last! HTC EVO 3D and EVO View 4G get official price and release date, pre-orders galore
- comScore: Android keeps growing, iOS passes Blackberry, and WP7′s on life support
| Five features in iOS 5 that I wish Android had by now Posted: 06 Jun 2011 06:39 PM PDT  Apple might not be leading the way in mobile anymore, but iOS still has a lot of features that other platforms lack. Having gone through all the features that iOS 5 copied right off Android, it’s time to take a look at some of the new features from iOS 5 that I wish Android had already. Starting with … Game CenterGaming is one of those areas where Android still lags behind iOS. While the platform has a lot of high-quality and popular games like Angry Birds, Plants vs. Zombies, and Fruit Ninja, there’s something missing. Android needs its own Game Center, a service that allows gamers to easily find friends, unlock achievements, and discover those awesome games that they don’t know about yet. Launch the Camera app right from the lock screenApple introduced a new feature today that lets users launch the Camera app right from the lock screen. I can’t put into words how useful this is for those moments when you need to quickly snap a photo. On Android, this same action takes way too many steps. Please Google, fix this. Multitasking gesturesGoogle might be getting rid of hardware buttons on Honeycomb, but the company shouldn’t stop there. Today, Apple confirmed that the next-gen iPad will get rid of the Home button that current devices have. Apple will replace the button with multitasking gestures like pinch to go to the Home screen, and swiping for switching between applications. Multitasking gestures might not work on small devices like a phone, but on tablets, is a god-send. Airplay mirroringThe only feature that truly impressed me today from the iOS 5 announcement is Airplay mirroring. iOS users will be able to wirelessly stream whatever is showing on their devices’ screen to their Apple TVs. Just having this feature work without cables is enough to make me want this, but the icing on the cake is the fact that this will across the whole OS — meaning is not a per-app thing. If being able to watch Netflix on the go excites you, imagine being able to do the same on any TV as long as you have your phone on you. Of course, we’ve yet to see if Apple has put some APIs in place that lets developers block their apps from working. If so, this feature loses half of its awesomeness. It goes without saying that Google should implement this on Ice Cream Sandwich. Pretty please? Newsstand appApple also introduced today an app called Newsstand that will allow you to take your favorite magazines and newspapers everywhere you go. The app also lets you subscribe to magazines and newspapers, and will automatically update them as they are released. Even though it might not be that easy for Google to bring this to Android — seeing how some newspapers blame Google for their demise –, Google needs to do it anyway. There you have it, five features from iOS 5 that Android needs to have yesterday. If you know of any other feature that our iFriends l0ve to brag about, let us know in the comments. Like always, keep it civil.[1] References
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| Google releases a new version of the ADT with the goal of making Android apps look better Posted: 06 Jun 2011 05:09 PM PDT  Google showed off a new version of the Android Development Tools at I/O, but the company wasn’t ready to release it just yet. Well, they are now. Google just announced on its Android blog that the new ADT is now all set to be enjoyed by developers. If you think that some Android’s third-party app look a little unpolished, you’ll be happy to know that this new version of the ADT focuses mostly on the Visual Layout Editor, with more than 20 features aimed specifically at making it easier for developers to design their apps. With new features like “Extract Style” and “Extract Include”, making your Android app look good is now easier than ever. There are many more features in this update, and you can see a list of all of them right here. Hopefully, this new version of the ADT will give Android apps a much-needed improvement in the UI department. Having said that, is up to the developers to take advantage of these new tools — which we hope they will. After downloading the new ADT, you can go ahead and watch the hour-long Google I/O session (embedded below) in which Android engineers show everything that’s new in this ADT.
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| Five features in iOS 5 that show how Apple is now playing catch-up to Google Posted: 06 Jun 2011 03:41 PM PDT  Is the company that revolutionized the mobile world now falling behind a more nimble and restless opponent? So it seems. Apple has a reputation of shaking up every market that they go into. They did it in the PC industry, they did it with MP3 players, they did it in the phone market, and lastly they’re doing in the tablet world as well. Knowing that, I was expecting the company to wow me once again at its WWDC conference this morning. I kept waiting for that one feature that’d make me run to the nearest Apple store and sell my soul to Steve Jobs. But that never happened. Instead, what I saw was a company that is now trying to keep up with the 800-pound gorilla in the mobile world: Android. Feature after feature I kept thinking to myself: “I already have this on my Android phone”. In fact, some of these “magical” features have been available since Android 1.0. Let’s take a look at some of them. Notification CenterAs we told you earlier today, Apple agrees with us in that the Android notification system is awesome. That’s why the company went ahead and copied it pixel by pixel. We don’t blame them, iOS’s previous notification system was a disaster. It interrupted whatever it was you were doing, it forced you to choose what to do right away, and there was no way to keep track of all of them in one single place. Now when your iPhone-touting friend shows you this new cool notification bar, you can just say: “You’re welcome”. Lock screenLaunching apps right from the lock screen? Yep, Android did it. Samsung’s TouchWiz 4.0 and HTC’s Sense 3.0 both support this feature. It’s kind of ironic that Apple is suing both of these companies for copying iOS, but the company doesn’t have a problem with doing the same thing. Twitter integrationTwitter integration is coming to iOS in a big way. Pretty soon, iOS users will be able to tweet from their browsers, photo gallery, YouTube and Google Maps. Twitter information — like user name and photo — will also be added to any of your contacts that has a Twitter account. Sound familiar? It should, because Android has been doing this for ages, but only better. Due to Android’s openness, any third-party app is able to reach this same level of integration within the OS. From popular services like Twitter, to a hot new startup, everybody is able to do this on Android. Tabbed-browsingSafari’s version for the iPad is getting, wait for it, Tabs! You might say that this is just an obvious feature to bring from the desktop version of Safari, but the iPad has been available for a long time and interestingly, Google introduced this same feature a few months ago for Honeycomb. Coincidence? You tell me. PC-FreedomIt’s not even fun anymore at this point. With iOS 5, users will be able to “Activate and set up your device wirelessly, right out of the box. Download free iOS software updates directly on your device.” As you probably know, Android has been doing this since the T-Mobile G1. Last time I connected my Android phone to a computer was to…. wait, I’ve never done such a thing. Welcome to a wires-free world, iOS users. We’ve been waiting for you for years. You know you’ve fallen behind when most of the features you announce are in response to whatever the competition is doing. While Apple is busy adding all of these features, Google is already thinking about the next big thing. By the time iOS 5 arrives this Fall (in the Fall? really Apple?), Google will be getting ready to release Ice Cream Sandwich. If what we saw at Google I/O is any indication, Android’s next version will make iOS 5 look like a Fisher-Price OS. Now that you’ve read about the features that Apple copied from Android, here are five features that Android needs to borrow from iOS. What do you guys think? Do you think Apple will ever be able to catch up to Google? Let us know in the comments.[1] References
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| Motorola Droid Bionic gets caught on camera hanging out with a Webtop (Updated with more pictures) Posted: 06 Jun 2011 01:38 PM PDT  If all the fuzz surrounding T-Mobile’s Sensation 4G is making you Verizon fans a little sad, worry not, Motorola’s Droid Bionic has found its way back in front of the camera to let you know that good things come to those who wait. This morning, the guys at MobileGearz came across some photos of the Droid Bionic that confirm a 8 MP back-facing camera with flash and Auto-Focus, 4G support, 1080p HD video-recording, and a new version of MotoBlur. More importantly, one of the photos show the Droid Bionic connected to a Webtop device from Motorola. Just like we’ve told you before, AT&T’s Atrix 4G won’t be the only device to get this capability and Motorola has bigger plans for its “mobile computing” accessories. Motorola’s Webtop might look like a gimmick to some right now, but it’s just the tip of the iceberg in terms of what our phones will be able to do in the near future. Seeing how smartphones are getting faster and more powerful every month, is hard not to see how these small devices will eventually become as capable as our desktop PCs. Are you Verizon customers ready to live in the future with the Droid Bionic? Let us know in the comments. UPDATE: Even more photos of the Droid Bionic have now leaked to the Interwebz. This thing is such a camera hog. According to Droid-Life, the device has a 4.5″ qHD screen, Android 2.3.4, and whole lot of 3D goodness. Check out the new photos below. Gallery
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| Dev asks: Is it worth listing your apps on the Amazon Appstore? Posted: 06 Jun 2011 11:32 AM PDT 
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