Friday, March 25, 2011

Android Phone Fans

Android Phone Fans

Things We Missed, You Shouldn’t [March 25th]

Posted: 25 Mar 2011 03:44 PM PDT

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Yay! It’s Friday! Yay! Seeing as it is the weekend, I will keep this short. Check out some extra Android news you might have missed below!

Sprint Resumes Samsung Epic 4G Froyo Updates

Posted: 25 Mar 2011 02:37 PM PDT

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After briefly pulling the EC05 update for the Samsung EPIC 4G reports are coming in that both this and the EB13 version of Samsung’s Android 2.2 Froyo update for the Galaxy S device have resumed. Many users are reporting new instances of EB13 being pushed to their devices from this morning onward, though there is still some confusion as to what version of the software you may eventually get. Join the AndroidForums discussion on the topic at the source link below if you have any light to shed on the matter.

[via AndroidForums]

Motorola Atrix 4G, HTC Inspire 4G to Receive HSUPA Support with April Updates, Says AT&T Facebook Page

Posted: 25 Mar 2011 02:19 PM PDT

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It has been a thorn in the side of all those early adopters on AT&T’s HSPA+ network: despite advertisements to the contrary, the two devices featuring the “4G” tag have their HSUPA support gimped. According to a new posting on AT&T’s Facebook page, the Motorola Atrix 4G and HTC Inspire 4G won’t have to wait much longer to see drastically improved upload speeds. It was said there that updates would hit the devices in April with HSUPA in two. It is also said the Samsung Infuse 4G will ship with HSUPA turned on out of the box. As things go in the world of Android updates, we’ll believe it when we see it.

[via DroidMatters]

For Rest of Today Only, Shazam Encore Free through Amazon Appstore

Posted: 25 Mar 2011 02:11 PM PDT

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Continuing the trend of offering one “freemium” app per day (that is, premium app priced down to free), the Amazon Appstore has something most people would call a steal for today. Shazam Encore, normally prices at $5, is available for download with little more than signing up for an Amazon Appstore acccount.

The song identification app is a favorite among many, so act quickly before Amazon restores the standard $4.99 price tag. We suppose offering apps like this for free is one way to draw new users to your fledgling apps marketplace.

[Thanks, Nick!]

Giant Android Invades in this Samsung Galaxy Player Promo [Video]

Posted: 25 Mar 2011 01:06 PM PDT

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Here called the Samsung Galaxy Player 70, the 5-inch version of the Samsung Galaxy S Wi-Fi is put to good use capturing an invading giant Android. OK, so it isn’t so much as invading as it is a lazily listing parade balloon, but that doesn’t sound nearly as exciting. Check out Skype calling in action, making all believe this device is just as good as an actual Galaxy S.

[via Droid-Den]

Smartphone Market to Double Thanks to Android, Says Research Firm Ovum

Posted: 25 Mar 2011 12:50 PM PDT

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By now it is becoming old hat to hear analysts spew smartphone figures with Android as the central theme, but here is one more for good measure. Research firm Ovum has taken a look at the current smartphone market and predicts that global shipments will double to 653 million by 2016. Where will much of the growth come from? A speculated 38 percent holding of the market by Android, which is proposed as the number one platform come that time.

The report goes on to place Apple in second with a much smaller  17.5 percent slice of the pie, though Ovum is banking on Nokia and Microsoft’s partnership both helping and hurting, leaving the combined entity at 17.2 percent. That still puts them in third and above RIM’s BlackBerry, but its a steep drop from Nokia’s current top dog position.

It’s all speculation for now. Heck, isn’t the world supposed to end in 2012 anyway? Here is the full press release:

Android to drive doubling of smartphone market by 2016

  • Global shipments to hit 653 million by 2016
  • Android will take 38% market share compared to Apple’s 17.5%
  • Nokia-Microsoft deal re-draws the smartphone landscape

The global smartphone market will double in size by 2016 to hit shipments of 653 million, predicts Ovum in a new forecast*. Android will drive the growth and will emerge as the dominant platform, dramatically outperforming Apple with a massive 20.5 per cent lead on market share, finds the independent telecoms analyst.

Ovum predicts that smartphones will grow at a compound annual growth rate of 14.5 per cent between 2010 and 2016 and will account for approximately 40 per cent of the mobile phone market. Asia-Pacific will be the largest region, shipping just over 200 million units by 2016. Western Europe and North America will remain strong markets with 175 million and 165 million shipments respectively.

Ovum principal analyst Adam Leach said: "The smartphone market will see significant growth over the next five years, once again outperforming the wider mobile phone market. We will see dramatic shifts in dominance for smartphone software platforms, with Android storming into the lead with 38 per cent market share, compared to Apple iOS’ 17.5 per cent, by 2016.

"The success of the Android platform is being driven by the sheer number of hardware vendors supporting it at both the high and low ends of the market."

According to Ovum’s forecast, just behind Apple iOS will be Windows Phone, with 17.2 per cent market share by 2016, followed by BlackBerry OS, with 16.5 per cent.

Leach continued: "We expect at least one other platform to achieve mainstream success within the forecast period. This could be an existing player in the market such as Bada, WebOS, or MeeGo, or it could be a new entrant to the market place."

According to Leach, the partnership between Nokia and Microsoft has redrawn the smartphone market and will result in a significant reduction in shipments of Symbian-based handsets as Nokia transitions to Windows Phone as its primary smartphone platform. However, Nokia still expects to ship 150 million Symbian-based handsets so there will be shipments beyond 2012 and in some regions into 2016.

Leach continued: "For Microsoft the deal provides a committed handset partner that has the potential to make Windows Phone a mainstream smartphone platform. The risk to Microsoft is that other handset makers may choose not to compete with Nokia and may turn their backs on Windows Phone."

Sony Ericsson Xperia Play Bugs Lead to Delayed Launch for UK’s O2, Could Others Follow?

Posted: 25 Mar 2011 12:20 PM PDT

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If the Sony Ericsson Xperia Play isn’t one of the most highly anticipated Android phones of all times, we don’t know what is. What began its life amid rumors of a PlayStation Phone, the handset is finally set to launch on various carriers starting at the end of this month and going into April…or is it? One UK carrier, O2, has issued a statement saying they will delay the launch of the phone after their own testing proved the gamer-oriented handset wasn’t quite ready for prime time.

"We’ve been testing the phone non-stop for weeks and have found some bugs in the software that, if they’re not fixed, means customers won’t have a great experience. We’ve been working with Sony Ericsson to get these bugs ironed out, but haven’t been able to get them fixed in time for us to be able to launch the phone on April 1st as we originally planned."

The company is keeping no secrets about the delay, so might the bugs they have claimed to uncovered create a bad enough PR fiasco that the handset could be delayed on even more carriers? What’s more, O2 was set to score an exclusive white variant of the Play, so those holding out for that particular unit will be denied until an undetermined date.

[via EuroDroid]

Sprint Follows Verizon’s Lead, Ditches Mail-In Rebates for Instant Discounts

Posted: 25 Mar 2011 12:10 PM PDT

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Verizon may have started a trend when they opted to go rebate-less on their high-end handsets. Sprint has confirmed that starting March 27th, the carrier will offer discounts on handsets instantly instead of via a mail-in rebate system. For now it seems the company is simply offering the new model on a trial basis, and won’t promise a commitment to instant rebates for the long term. Here is hoping they like how it goes, as spending less money up front is always much appreciated.

[via MobileCrunch]

One Thing You Never Thought the Samsung Wave Could Do: Run Android

Posted: 25 Mar 2011 11:54 AM PDT

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The Samsung Wave is no Galaxy S. It’s more like a sheep in wolf’s clothing. A smartphone that isn’t so smart. At least as not as smart as it could be with Android. We take it that is exactly why some industrious developers have been busy trying to get an Android port onto the device, and indeed progress has been made.

Exploting some security holes present in the Bada OS, a Galaxy S build of Android 2.2.1 has been loaded onto the wave, though much development is still needed. RAM access and CPU drivers are the main points of concern. If it ever becomes fully functional we may have yet another quality Android smartphone on our hands, though the engineers behind it never intended that much.

[via Engadget]

As We Approach XOOM WiFi’s Launch Date, One Lucky Customer Got His Early From Staples

Posted: 25 Mar 2011 09:55 AM PDT

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The Motorola XOOM WiFi is slated to launch at major retailers this Sunday, but one lucky reader of Droid-Life’s got his in the mail already. He pre-ordered his from Staples but did it over the phone instead of at the retailer’s website. This sometimes happens when you preorder devices with telecoms over the phone, too. We’re really just reporting this story to let you folks know how jealous we are. Oh, and we want to know if any of you end up getting yours a bit early, too. Let us know here if you do.

LG Optimus 2X Gets Clockwork Recovery, Custom Kernel + More

Posted: 25 Mar 2011 09:43 AM PDT

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On the fence about the LG Optimus 2X because you’re wondering how hackable it is? Throw those worries out of the window because Paul from MoDaCo got his hands on one and has been making substantial progress over the past couple of days. (This is also good news for those of you thinking of picking up a T-Mobile G2x once it’s out.) He’s got clockwork, a custom kernel, and a stock ROM to get you developing-types started with. Find all this and more over at their LG Optimus 2X section. (He’s also posted his wares over at XDA if you fancy getting them from there instead.) [Thanks, Russell!]

FCC Documents Show Forthcoming HSUPA Capability on Inspire 4G

Posted: 25 Mar 2011 09:24 AM PDT

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Rejoice! Ma Bell customers were furious to learn that the carrier has disabled HSUPA on their new 4G Android phones out of the box. We saw it with the Motorola Atrix 4G and weren’t too thrilled to learn that the HTC Inspire 4G had received the same treatment.

AT&T  has already heard your groans and has stated that they’ll be enabling HSUPA on these devices at some point, we just didn’t know when. We still don’t know when. But at least we know one phone will be getting it – The Inspire 4G.

A new approval request was sent to the FCC to allow them to do this and, well, they approved it. Expect to see this coming in some form of an OTA update later in the season. [via Wireless Goodness]

Samsung Announces the New Line of Galaxy Tabs [Video]

Posted: 25 Mar 2011 08:51 AM PDT

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Want to see how Samsung unveiled the Galaxy Tab 10.1 and 8.9 but weren’t able to attend CTIA? No worries! They’ve uploaded video of the full announcement on YouTube for all to see. You can see the three “real life Tab users” who talk about how the Galaxy Tab fits into their lifestyle and which sizes are right for them. Get a taste of what we experienced live by hitting the play button on that video above. (It’s a 30 minute affair so grab yourself some popcorn and soda.)

Internal Google Music Testing Has Begun

Posted: 25 Mar 2011 08:47 AM PDT

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Following yesterday’s news that Google will soon be debuting in-app purchases and letting developers test the feature ahead of time for their applications, rumors out of CNET say Google is now focusing on pushing their new Music service out of the door and onto handsets and tablets.

Google tipped us all off to Google Music at last year’s I/O, but they’ve been very quiet on the matter since. The rumor is likely true considering the folks at XDA were able to use the service (but not to its full capacity) at one point using a version of the music player they pulled from Honeycomb.

Google’s Music service is essentially their iTunes and will allow users to buy and download music. Android users should soon be able to buy music and have it automatically synced to their devices and will have the option to stream all of their music instead of having it sit on their SD cards.

Google’s looking to do things right with this launch as they’re reportedly still negotiating deals with top record labels and publishers. They faced heavy resistance from network operators on their Google TV service and still have yet to get the big guys back on board.

The difference between Google TV’s problems and Google Music is that Google can’t simply aggregate content from various legal web sources. We’re not sure how long the talks will take and how long testing will carry on, but if they speed things up we could be seeing a true unveiling at the anniversary of the very show they announced it.

Samsung Vibrant/Galaxy S 4G Passes FCC With AT&T Bands; Manages to Win Best of Show at CTIA

Posted: 25 Mar 2011 07:53 AM PDT

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It’s been discovered that Samsung has submitted another version of the Samsung Vibrant to the FCC with AT&T 3G bands suggesting AT&T could be preparing to migrate customers over to their network soon. This is unlikely right now considering the deal between AT&T and T-Mobile has yet to be approved and according to recent murmurs, it may be a long time before that actually happens.

Engadget speculates that it could be due to a Canadian carrier adopting a similar phone with the same looks and similar model number. We’d put more of our eggs into this basket than the one woven above.

In related news, T-Mobile’s Samsung Galaxy S 4G somehow won best of show (for the mobile phone category) at CTIA Wireless this past week. As you know, devices that weren’t announced ahead of the show could not be nominated leaving out worthy contenders such as the T-Mobile Sidekick, the T-Mobile G2x, and Sprint’s HTC EVO 3D

Still, there were phones such as the LG Revolution the HTC Thunderbolt and the Motorola Atrix 4G that could have all walked away with that prize easily. Don’t get me wrong, the Samsung Vibrant is a great Galaxy S phone and I’m glad they’ve added 4G radios inside, but I’m not sure how it won best of show when it’s a rehash of a series that’s been out for nearly a year.

CTIA put an emphasis on the word “innovation” at this year’s show and I don’t see very much innovative about throwing a 4G radio inside of a phone that’s been out for quite some time. That’s not to take anything away from Samsung, but I think other products deserved the nod more. [via Samsung Hub]
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