Android Phone Fans |
- Motorola Triumph for Virgin Mobile First Impressions [VIDEO]
- Sprint Officially Announces the Motorola Photon 4G, Their First International Android Device [Video]
- Motorola Triumph Comes To Virgin Mobile This Summer [VIDEO]
- Android Market (Web) Now Shows Device Compatibility in Sidebar
- BBC News Worldwide Now Available for Other Countries
- WildTangent, T-Mobile to Bring $.25 Game Rentals to Android
- DROID Charge Set to Get EE4 Update, Improves 4G LTE Connectivity
- The Android Invasion Is Stronger Than Ever, Resistance is Futile [Images]
- Stephen Elop: Apple Created Android (Here We Go)
- Eee Pad Slider Appears on Amazon Germany; Launch Nearing?
- LinkedIn, Foursquare and Netflix on Android Store Your Passwords in Unencryped Text Files
- Sprint Said to Raise 4G Upload Cap to 1.5 Mbps June 10th
| Motorola Triumph for Virgin Mobile First Impressions [VIDEO] Posted: 09 Jun 2011 11:31 AM PDT
The Motorola TRIUMPH for Virgin Mobile was a pleasant surprise at today’s joint Motorola/Sprint event. The phone gives off some serious Droid X vibes with its blocky look, 4.1-inch screen, and 1GHz Snapdragon processor. But perhaps the most interesting choice here was using stock Android 2.2 (Froyo) rather than a MotoBlur-ified user interface. As a diehard fan of stock Android, the phone had me pretty giddy. We might just have a game changer here for pre-paid smartphones, given the pricing (which remains unannounced) comes in at a reasonable level. The Triumph gets all the trappings of a high-end handset: dual cameras (5MP rear and VGA front-facing), 720p video recording, and HDMI mirroring in hi-definition. All of which worked very well and looked good doing it. The Triumph will also be the first device to launch with Virgin Mobile Live, the carriers social music and media service for streaming audio and interacting with friends.
We are eager to see more of this phone in the near future, and if it happens to get an upgrade to stock Gingerbread in the near term we’ll be in heaven. Of course, the phone doesn’t feature the same qHD resolution and dual-core chip as today’s star, the Photon 4G, but we won’t complain too much about that. If you are a fan of buying your phones outright and avoiding carrier contracts, you’ll want to keep your ear to the ground on this one.
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| Sprint Officially Announces the Motorola Photon 4G, Their First International Android Device [Video] Posted: 09 Jun 2011 09:41 AM PDT
Just as we suspected, Sprint’s announced their first dual-core device from Motorola. It’s the Photon 4G and it will be Sprint’s first world phone with GSM radios. Early specs? You got it. How does Android 2.3, a 1GHz dual-core Tegra 2 processor, 1GB of RAM, 4G radios, 16GB of internal storage, a 1700mAh battery, HDMI-out with mirroring and an 8 megapixel HD camera + front facing camera sound? Just as our previous source confirmed, this one’s a larger device coming in at 4.3 inches with qHD resolution. And it has a kickstand – that makes it worth a purchase alone, no? Don’t forget WebTop, Motorola’s web-based operating platform for use with the laptop dock that’ll be offered alongside this thing.
What was once being called their version of the Atrix 4G has quickly transformed into a unique offering from Motorola. The larger screen is reminiscent of the DROID X2, while the kickstand is giving us that EVO 4G feeling. All of this is said to be coming sometime this summer. Oh, and the Photon 4G’s section on Sprint.com is now live. We’re Live at the Sprint event watching this all unveil, folks, so stay tuned for incoming photos and hands-on video. Head past the video for full press details.
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| Motorola Triumph Comes To Virgin Mobile This Summer [VIDEO] Posted: 09 Jun 2011 09:40 AM PDT
The Triumph’s 4.1-inch touchscreen has WVGA resolution and although it’s screen is huge, it’s frame is not: the Triumph is only .4-inches thick!. It has two cameras (5MP back / VGA front) and can capture 720p HD Video with the ability to share it on larger screens using the phone’s HDMI-out port.
The Motorola Triumph is powered by a 1GHz processor and we’re still awaiting word on which version of Android it runs. (UPDATE: it runs 2.2 Froyo). We were able to snag the following specs from an official Sprint fact sheet: KEY FEATURES: SPECIFICATIONS: You can also check out the official Motorola Press Release which includes information about another phone announced today: the Motorola Photon 4G.
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| Android Market (Web) Now Shows Device Compatibility in Sidebar Posted: 09 Jun 2011 09:31 AM PDT
Tired of getting to the install screen on the Android market only to see that you can’t install a particular app on a particular device? Me too. Such a tease when that happens. Now you’ll know if you can use the app before you even click anything, though, as Google’s added a neat compatibility list in your left sidebar. Simply click the plus button inside that green box and off you go. Minor change, but we appreciate it. Head over to the market to see it for yourself.
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| BBC News Worldwide Now Available for Other Countries Posted: 09 Jun 2011 09:23 AM PDT
The BBC news app released for the United Kingdom last week was nice, but unfortunately wasn’t available for a good majority of people around the world. That’s changed today, though, with the release of BBC News Worldwide. The full feature set is below, but if you are eager to get your hands on this after most of the globe was snubbed last week, head to the Android market to download it.
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| WildTangent, T-Mobile to Bring $.25 Game Rentals to Android Posted: 09 Jun 2011 08:31 AM PDT
Ever wanted to try a game that didn’t have a trial version but didn’t want to risk not making the 15 minute refund window in case you don’t like it? If you hate that Google reduced the refund window on apps and games from 24 hours to 15 minutes, T-Mobile and WildTangent are looking to change that. For $.25, you can try a game out for 24 hours, more than enough time to decide whether or not you like it. If you don’t, no harm no foul – that’s just one less quarter to go toward your pack of game. If you want to keep it, however, that $.25 will go toward the full price of the game when you are opted to purchase it. In order to do this, WildTangent and T-Mobile will need to provide their own download service, but they stress that they aren’t trying to be an alternative app store. Their objective is to improve game discoverability for developers who are tired of being lumped into the mess that is the Android market, and to give users a chance to try before they buy in cases where a developer doesn’t offer trial or ad-supported versions. Additionally, they’ll look to employ “WildCoins”, a currency that’ll allow users to both rent those games and to purchase in-game items. WildCoins will be bought using carrier billing and will act just as real currency. If you’d rather not pay, you could watch a number of advertisements before being granted the ability to play – all you’ll pay is time. It’s an interesting sounding service and one I bet WildTangent is hoping to launch with all major carriers, but it remains to be seen just how well it’ll take off. T-Mobile will eventually roll it out to all of their Android phones. [AllThingsD]
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| DROID Charge Set to Get EE4 Update, Improves 4G LTE Connectivity Posted: 09 Jun 2011 08:07 AM PDT
All you DROID Charge owners out there should be looking forward to an update soon as Verizon has just given the green light for its distribution. Build EE4 is not the biggest update at 9.9MB, but it brings with it some important enhancements. The most notable of which is improved 3G and 4G data connectivity. Another biggie on this list is restoration of mobile hotspot capabilities. Shortly after buying the device, tons of users have experienced broken functionality. We’re glad all that is about be cleared up. Take a look at the full list below. [Verizon via Droid-Life]
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| The Android Invasion Is Stronger Than Ever, Resistance is Futile [Images] Posted: 09 Jun 2011 07:11 AM PDT
I knew this day would come, dammit! And you know what? I’ll gladly submit to my green Android overlords. HTC, in a stunt to promote the launches of the Flyer, Sensation and some of their S devices, has filled the Antwerp Central Station in Belgium with their own-branded Android figurines. It’s frightening, really. But I’ll comply, if only to see what the inside of their ship really looks like. More at the source link. [via Gadget-Review]
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| Stephen Elop: Apple Created Android (Here We Go) Posted: 09 Jun 2011 06:51 AM PDT The amount of gold coming from Nokia’s brand new CEO lately is just staggering. Stephen Elop, at the Open Mobile Summit, stood up in front of hundreds, maybe thousands, of people and went on record to say what Steve Jobs probably really believes: Apple created Android. That’s out of full context, though. Consider the full quote here:
Naturally, I’m ready to burn Mr. Elop and state why this is wrong, showing a hint of fanboyism in the process. Unfortunately, Elop is right: Android was definitely influenced by the iPhone in the long run, even if Android was known to be in the works long before Apple announced the first phone that changes everything. Those who closely followed the project before Google acquired Android remember how it used to look. It was a Blackberry-inspired operating system that wasn’t even designed to utilize touchscreens. The early emulator for Android had the physical dpad and selection button (which is essentially Blackberry’s trackball), exposed portrait keyboard and all. If you don’t recall, here’s a picture of what it used to look like a long time ago:
It evolved since then and adopted more of its own style, but it was still a bit of a Blackberry “copycat”. Then 2007 came and Steve Jobs found his new cash cow. The iPhone was a huge success and, to be honest, was both a technical marvel and visually pleasing in both hardware and software. Google found Android and Andy Rubin and adopted them, and while the name would stay the same, the software and vision would change dramatically. The team envisioned Android on touch screens now, crafting the operating system to be sensitive to the touch. They eventually reached Android 1.0 and contacted HTC to make the first device based on it. Then the G1 was born and it was a bit of a Blackberry/iPhone hybrid – a device with a capacitive touchscreen, a trackball, and a physical slide-out keyboard in one. Then came Android 1.5 (cupcake) and that added one very important feature – software keyboards. It seemed foreign to us at the time, but it would make it possible for HTC to make the Magic, aka the MyTouch 3G, the first Android phone without a physical keyboard. That was the beginning, though. Fast forward to today, and yes, there are similarities between a lot of smartphone operating systems now. It’s called innovation and competition. Apple didn’t create Android, Google was just smart enough to move toward a technology model that seemed to be working for a different company. And it absolutely worked out well for Google in ways they probably didn’t imagine so soon. But times change. As new versions of Android came out, it gained a lot of features that intrigued a lot of people. Widgets, live folders and more were innovative for their time. Let’s not forget that Android influenced a lot themselves. Look no further than, you guessed it, this week’s GDC news. iOS 5 features such as a new notification system, multitasking, OTA updates, iCloud, Twitter integration and more were all a part of Android and other operating systems to some degree long before Apple implemented them. Need I remind people that the iPhone didn’t get MMS support until late 2009? This was a “feature” of dumb phones and it took Apple and AT&T two years to deliver. The point I’m trying to make is that it’s foolish to call anyone in this industry a “copycat”, and it’s foolish to keep playing the chicken or egg game. It’s getting old, whether it be from Nokia’s new hotshot Windows-loving CEO or Steve Jobs himself. Yes, Android was influenced by the iPhone, but the cycle of innovation is full circle and Android, in some cases, is now the operating system doing the influencing. It’ll be that way as long as Google keeps working on it. Deal with it, Steve (the both of you). [Engadget]
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| Eee Pad Slider Appears on Amazon Germany; Launch Nearing? Posted: 09 Jun 2011 05:17 AM PDT
Now that ASUS has reintroduced the world to the Eee Pad Slider after their Eee Pad Transformer has taken off, it seems we’re ready for a release. We’re not sure when that release will be exactly, but Amazon Germany is already listing the device for folks in that region to be notified of its availability. ASUS originally promised it’d be here by now, but as you know, it isn’t. We’re going to keep our fingers crossed for a June launch, but it may be some time before we see this thing on store shelves outside of Europe and Taiwan. [BGR]
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| LinkedIn, Foursquare and Netflix on Android Store Your Passwords in Unencryped Text Files Posted: 09 Jun 2011 05:03 AM PDT
Title says it all, folks. viaForensics, a software security firm, has found a complete lack of password encryption in three popular Android (and iOS) applications. Those applications include Foursquare, LinkedIn and Netflix. They also found a vulnerability in Square that can access the history of a user’s accepted transactions and the receipts they’ve issued. These applications store files with this sensitive data on your phone, bypassing any sort of halfway-decent secure authentication process. I can confirm that at least Foursquare used to store your login information in an unencrypted, easy to access plain text file, so I don’t imagine things are much different for LinkedIn and Netflix. (Note: Foursquare has since updated their Android application to resolve this.) At the forefront, freely-available login information for some of these services don’t seem harmful, but a vast majority of users are susceptible to information theft for more serious accounts if their data here is compromised. For instance, one might use the same user name and password for Netflix as they do for their email account. While I hate to assume that more than 50% of Netflix users do this, it’s probably true. The same definitely goes for LinkedIn. LinkedIn and Square are obviously different as far as sensitive information within the service itself goes, with the former being a sensitive communication tool between colleagues and a “job search” tool, while the latter, well, I’m sure you know the severity of an insecure system for processing credit card transactions. Fortunately, these companies are already aware of the vulnerabilities and are working to fix them. As I mentioned above, Foursquare issued an update two days ago to address the matter, but I was able to see the vulnerability because I had yet to update the application. After updating, there were no signs of my password available. Be sure to update your app as soon as possible. Application security is important, developers. Especially if you enjoy a large pool of users who give you sensitive data in order to use your goods. I’d expect a lot more from these particular software vendors, but we’re just glad to see that they’re not twiddling their thumbs while all of this information is just freely floating about. [Wall Street Journal]
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| Sprint Said to Raise 4G Upload Cap to 1.5 Mbps June 10th Posted: 09 Jun 2011 04:22 AM PDT
Sprint 4G users, your data is about to get a bit faster if this internal flyer is anything to believe. Starting June 10th (that’s tomorrow), Sprint will raise the 1 Mbps uplink speed to 1.5 Mbps. To take advantage of the heightened speeds, users won’t need to download any software upgrades – just wait for it to happen and BAM! Too cheesy? Yea, I thought so, too. Note that this only applies to mobile phones. Sprint Overdrive devices (USB sticks or WiFi hotspots) are not on the guest list. [Spantecular]
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At their big event in NYC, Motorola just announced the 
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