Android Community

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• Samsung Exhibit 4G Leaks June 8 Date
• NOOKcolor App Downloads Hit 1 Million after 1 Week
• Samsung Android Developer Forums Official
• NVIDIA KAL-EL Quad-Core Processor on Track for 2011
• A Game With Balls on Android SOON!
• Super Why! kid’s app hits Android as Amazon Appstore exclusive
• VillianROM 1.0 lands as Samsung Galaxy S II gets first ROM
• HTC Sensation 4G to sell at Target for $199.99
• US Galaxy S II variants named: AT&T Attain, Verizon Function and Sprint Within
• Vodafone Smart brings you Android on the cheap

Samsung Exhibit 4G Leaks June 8 Date Posted: 16 May 2011 10:59 AM PDT Take a fancy little look at the slightly lower than high-range device soon to be released on T-Mobile. It’s an Android based Samsung handset with codename “Hawk” and a propensity to speed along at 1GHz and 21 Mbps HSPA+. It’s got a body that looks very similar to the recently released Samsung Gem,” has a VGA camera on the front and a 3 megapixel camera on the back with flash, and it costs a whole lotto money: $325 dollars USD. Why a device with such a now-normal-sized processor (it’s a Hummingbird, by the way, if you’d like to know,) and small camera and etc would costs three hundred dollar bills and more we’re not sure – there must be something special going on here that we’re not privy to. What do you think? Wouldn’t it make more sense to get a slightly more reasonably priced Samsung device if Samsung were the brand you were going after? How about a Sidekick 4G that ends up being only a $100 after rebate? That said, a couple other phones will be coming out that day on T-Mobile including the Samsung Gravity Touch 2, and of course the ultra-godly HTC Sensation 4G which everyone and their mothers will be fully freaking out at when the time comes. Feel free to check out our [Hands-On] with that device as soon as you get the chance! [via Tmo News] )

NOOKcolor App Downloads Hit 1 Million after 1 Week Posted: 16 May 2011 09:46 AM PDT It seems like forever ago that I had my claws around the lovely NOOKcolor for the first time. November of 2010 is was, and a week with the device I did spend. Back then the 3rd party apps situation wasn’t the greatest. In fact, there were approximately 8 of them and they weren’t that great. Since then of course there’s been some major pushes forward with the developer program for the platform and their first big milestone at 1 million app downloads – after just one week! Amongst favorite apps downloaded in the NOOK Apps store are, unsurprisingly, Angry Birds, Drawing Pad, and Pulse. Fliq Calendar is the only item up there that your humble narrator did not see coming. A million app downloads may not seem like much when compared to the major players like the Android Market and Amazon App Store, but given the fact that the NOOK Apps store has a much more limited selection of apps, this number does resonate. While the original plan for the NOOKcolor in its app selection did seem to be reader-centric only, the selection this new NOOK-centric store has appears to be broader. Amongst apps available in this currently-operating store are their top five selling apps: Angry Birds, Drawing Pad, Solitaire, Aces Jewel Hunt and Astraware Mahjong, as well as items coming soon like UrbanDaddy, FriendCaster for Facebook, Bloki for kids, and PBA Bowling 2. For more information on how you can develop specifically for the NOOKcolor, head back to our post entitled NOOKcolor Developer Program Ramps Up Vital Connections. Also check out the press release for this announcement below: Barnes & Noble Quickly Hits 1 Million NOOK Apps™ Downloads by NOOK Color™ Customers Milestone Reached Just One Week After NOOK App Shopping Made Available to All NOOK Color Customers Angry Birds, Drawing Pad, Fliq Calendar and Pulse Among Most Popular Apps New York, New York – May 16, 2011 – Barnes & Noble, Inc. (NYSE: BKS), the world's largest bookseller, announced a major new milestone for its recently updated award-winning NOOK Color Reader's Tablet™. Just one week after the company made its free software update featuring popular NOOK Apps available over the air for all NOOK Color customers, customers have made more than one million apps downloads. NOOK Color customers are enjoying access to a variety of popular NOOK Apps and downloading a selection of both paid and free apps that get even more out of their Reader's Tablet, and have given the top 10 paid and free NOOK Apps the highest 4 or 5 star rating. All NOOK Apps are optimized for NOOK Color's stunning 7-inch color touchscreen. The top five paid NOOK Apps are Angry Birds, Drawing Pad, Solitaire, Aces Jewel Hunt and Astraware Mahjong. Among the top five free NOOK Apps are Fliq Calendar, Fliq Notes, Pulse, NOOK Word of the Day™ and Fliq Tasks, which help keep customers organized and informed on the highly portable NOOK Color. With the recent v1.2 software update, Barnes & Noble brought the most-requested tablet features to its bestselling NOOK Color, which, in addition to NOOK Apps, includes full-featured built-in email, enhanced Web experience and more exciting content for adults and children. The device, which had already been acclaimed as the best reading device on the market, is now the best tablet value on the market at just $249. "Our recent software update to NOOK Color delivered the most requested tablet features by our customers, including the ability to shop for and download high-quality apps. Reaching over a million app downloads in just a week since the launch of NOOK App shopping for all NOOK Color customers exceeded expectations, and is an exciting milestone for our developers, publishing partners, and most importantly for our rapidly growing NOOK Color user base," said William Lynch, Chief Executive Officer of Barnes & Noble. "Our stores and booksellers have been a key part of educating our large NOOK customer base on the terrific applications available for them. We're building on the early success of our NOOK Apps offering by scaling our collection of popular apps with the thousands of developers who've approached us, while ensuring we continue to deliver the high-quality experience NOOK Color is known for. Barnes & Noble continues to bring NOOK Color customers new applications from leading third-party developers and content providers for the whole family to enjoy. In the past weeks, Barnes & Noble has added new NOOK Apps including QuickOffice Pro, FriendCaster for Facebook, UrbanDaddy, more games from Concrete Software including Aces Traffic Pack, Aces Cribbage and PBA Bowling 2, FlightView Elite, RepliGo Reader, and 3001 Wisdom quotes. Recently added NOOK Apps for children include Bloki, My First Alphabet Sights & Sounds and CardDroid Math flash cards. Through the Shop area on the device, NOOK Color customers can easily explore NOOK Apps, available in categories including Play, Organize, Learn, Explore, Lifestyle, News and Kids. Approximately half of the collection available for $2.99 or less and the vast majority priced at $5.99 or less. More information about the recent NOOK Color update is available at www.nookcolor.com/update. Barnes & Noble invites current and prospective NOOK customers to experience new NOOK Apps at the NOOK Boutique™ or display in one of Barnes & Noble's more than 700 bookstores across the country or by visiting www.nookcolor.com. )

Samsung Android Developer Forums Official Posted: 16 May 2011 09:14 AM PDT Today Samsung announced a brand new set of forums for developers on Android specifically for their Samsung devices. This new place to talk and exchange ideas will work through their already existing developer site: http://developer.samsung.com/ and is set to act as a conduit for the news and updates area of the Samsung Developers site. This area will draw on all walks of Android development life: bada, Java, Widgets, Themes, etc, and will be a single gateway for SDK’s tutorial videos, hardware updates, software updates, and more. This forum will, from what we understand, be host to Samsung officials as well, allowing developers to get in contact with the higher-ups easier than ever before. This forum will help developers by offering development tools to get complex projects off the ground including SDK plug-ins for assistance in Augmented Reality or personalized Location Based Services. Wild! Sounds like quite the arena. Additionally there’ll be more items to help including a dynamic Theme Tool, a Sensor Simulator, and a Remote Test Lab that’ll allow developers to test their applications remotely on real devices if they’ve not got them handy themselves. A helpful set of tools to be sure. You can head over to Samsung’s developer page right now to check if the forums are up yet, reloading and reloading until they are, or you can stick around Android Community and we’ll be sure to let you know. ALSO you can check out our very own best forums in the entire world ever in history right over here: [AC Forums] Check out the full press release below: Samsung Electronics Launches Developer Forum Designed to Support Android Application Developers SAN FRANCISCO, May 16, 2011 – Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., the global leader in Android(tm) mobile devices, today announced the Samsung Android Developer Forum, designed to provide technical support for its Android application developers. The Samsung Android Developer Forum will provide additional features and functionality specifically for the Android Developer via the existing Samsung Developers website (http://developer.samsung.com The Samsung Android Developer Forum will offer useful development tools to help complex projects get up and running as quickly as possible, including SDK plug-ins to assist with Augmented Reality (AR) or personalized LBS (Location Based Services). The Android Developer Forum will also offer the dynamic Theme Tool, Sensor Simulator and Remote Test Lab (RTL), which will allow developers to test their applications remotely on a real device if they do not have one available. For more information, please visit http://innovator.samsungmobile.com/platform.main.do?platformId=1. About Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is a global leader in semiconductor, telecommunication, digital media and digital convergence technologies with 2010 consolidated sales of US$135.8 billion. Employing approximately 190,500 people in 206 offices across 68 countries, the company consists of eight independently operated business units: Visual Display, Mobile Communications, Telecommunication Systems, Digital Appliances, IT Solutions, Digital Imaging, Semiconductor and LCD. Recognized as one of the fastest growing global brands, Samsung Electronics is a leading producer of digital TVs, semiconductor chips, mobile phones and TFT-LCDs. For more information, please visit www.samsung.com Android and Android Market are trademarks of Google, Inc. )

NVIDIA KAL-EL Quad-Core Processor on Track for 2011 Posted: 16 May 2011 08:57 AM PDT And yes, Nexus 3 is going to exist. Are they going to intersect? That’s what the Android forums are abuzz with, but as the NVIDIA Q1 2011 gives not even a clue about such a thing, I’m going to go ahead and call fluff. I’ve got a very informed exclusive quote from an industry official below on the matter, and that should clear everything up for everyone. Meanwhile this news that KAL-EL will be coming out this year isn’t exactly new either since all the way back at the initial announcement during Mobile World Congress 2011 a within-the-year timeframe was the plan. Yesterday was the day that NVIDIA’s earnings call for quarter 1 of 2011 took place, and the quotes in questions are the following, the first spoken by none other than Jen-Hsun Huang: “We’re working very closely with Google on Ice Cream Sandwich, and it’s a very important new generation of operating system based on starting from the Honeycomb base and I’m expecting it to be really terrific. And so we’re working very closely with the Google team, and Tegra will be surely be wonderful for Ice Cream when it comes.” What does that tell us? That that NVIDIA’s future and present chips will work with Ice Cream Sandwich. This should not be seen as new news as Ice Cream Sandwich, Google says, has no new hardware requirements, and will be able to be applied to older devices without a problem once it’s released. Earlier in the call there was an announcement that “project KAL-EL based tablets [will be] hitting consumer shelves later this year.” Next, a question and answer: Alex Gauna – JMP Securities LLC I don’t want to get too far ahead as my follow-up chance, and I was wondering, in addition to 3.1 at Google I/O, Ice Cream Sandwich was center stage. And I was wondering how that does or does not intersect with your quad core Kal-El? And the complexities of what Google is trying to do and what that means for your quad core technology? Jen-Hsun Huang We’re really excited about the work that they’re doing on Ice Cream. And I can’t comment too much more other than that, but we’re working very closely with their teams on the Ice Cream Sandwich. And as all of these products — they will come to the market when they’re great, and I’m certainly expecting them to be great on this year. So Android 3.1, Ice Cream Sandwich, and KAL-EL will be released this year. None of this should come as a surprise as each of these projects have been announced previously, each of them with a 2011 projection built in. Now for the most important quote, this one from a personal friend of mine, Susi Burns, my dog: “Yes, another Nexus device will be coming out some time in the future. There will also be more Android devices, more computers will be produced this year, and I will also need to be taken outside for a bathroom break some time in the next 24 hours” I’d like at this point to thank SeekingAlpha for their helpful transcript of the NVIDIA sales call. Also if you’d like to know the potential power of this newest chipset from NVIDIA, head to our Benchmark Post. )

A Game With Balls on Android SOON! Posted: 16 May 2011 08:56 AM PDT Puppy Punch Productions, a new studio created by Trendy Entertainment, is coming out with their first game, now entering closed beta testing. The studio is focusing on closed beta testing for iOS right now, but testing for Android is coming soon. From the description of the game, it sounds pretty interesting, and considering that it is coming from the makers of Dungeon Defenders, it should be quality. Puppy Punch Productions will be focusing on mobile gaming development for multiple platforms, which includes Android, of course. So what is this new game? The name of the game is “A Game with Balls” or AGWB for short. The closed beta application window closed yesterday (May 15th) for iOS, and they were offering a $100 US iTunes gift card for the best tester. We hope that we will be seeing a closed beta opening up for Android soon as well. So what is the game all about? Of course we know it involves balls, but from the official game site, here is the description: Action through Inaction – Less is more. Often a well-placed, small ball is better than a pair of big ones Beautiful Hand-Drawn Art – Play with balls your way: unique themes allow you to customize your experience. Tons of content – 3 different modes and 50+ levels insure you’ll be playing with balls for a long time. Simple yet Skillful – Anyone can touch to play, but you’ll need to use your Brains AND Balls to survive. Game description: Balls fall from the sky and try to take over your life. In a chaotic frenzy you attempt to destroy them, but fail. You resign to your fate. But at the last moment your mind becomes clear and you begin to… understand. Zen. Why destroy them? Why not brush them aside, effortlessly? You transcend, a mystical shield rises from inside. Now a simple press to screen can solve anything… And a screenshot: It sounds pretty happening, and like it could be addictive. Looks like you will be controlling a gun in the center, and using the two gears on the bottom corners. From what we can tell, you have to get rid of all the balls, and as you shoot them they split into smaller balls. We’ll keep you updated as we find out more. More screenshots in the gallery below, and we also found a video of the game on the game’s Facebook page: [via a game with balls Facebook page] )

Super Why! kid’s app hits Android as Amazon Appstore exclusive Posted: 16 May 2011 07:33 AM PDT If you have kids, I bet your Android device has more than a few apps on it just for your kids to play. I know when my kids were younger they watched a lot of PBS Kids cartoons. One of the ones that my daughter liked was Super Why. Parents that are looking for a new app that kids will have fun playing that is also educational will want to give the new PBS Kids Super Why app a look. The app is an Amazon Appstore for Android exclusive. The app sells for $2.99 and can be downloaded right now. The app is designed to help kids learn to read with strong early literacy skills as the focus. The app offers the player the ability to play as each of the four main characters including Alpha Pig, Princess Presto, Wonder Red, and, Super Why. The little games in the app allows kids to practice the alphabet, rhyming, spelling, writing, and reading. This app is the tenth best seller in the games section of the Appstore right now. The game rewards kids with digital stickers for each game they complete and the kids can put those stickers on several different digital pages to make their own virtual sticker book. The app helps the kids learn from mistakes as well so they are playing and learning at the same time. The game will work on Android 2.2 and up smartphones and is 17.7MB. )

VillianROM 1.0 lands as Samsung Galaxy S II gets first ROM Posted: 16 May 2011 06:02 AM PDT If you are one of the folks that already has the Samsung Galaxy S II you may want some custom ROM love on the device. User pulser_g2 over on the XDA forums has offered up version 1.0 of the VillianROM custom ROM loader for the S II smartphone. The VillainROM 1.0 for the Galaxy S2 smartphone definitely use at your own risk. The author of the software notes that he lacks the smartphone to test his software on. The maker does note that he sent the VillainROM 1.0 software to another forum member and it was able to unlock the phone and worked as expected. As with any custom software, you individual mileage may vary and what works for one S II might not work for them all. Be sure you can fix your device before you try to use the software. To use VillainROM 1.0 requires the use of ODIN and the ROM is flashed as a PDA image. The author notes you don’t check anything else for the install other than PDA, and there are apparently other options so be sure you pick the correct one. The ROM is based on XWKE2 and has tweaks installed to allow for future mods to the ROM . The author also notes that people applying this update should not try to use Villain Tweaks or problems will ensue. Let us know if you are able to use VillainROM 1.0 successfully. [via XDA-developers] )

HTC Sensation 4G to sell at Target for $199.99 Posted: 16 May 2011 03:26 AM PDT If you are in the market for a smartphone, there are a number of stores where you can go to find your new device. In the US that means not only the wireless carrier that your chosen device is offered on, but other large discount stores like Best Buy, Wal-Mart, and Target. Often these other stores will get you a better deal with Best Buy in particular known for offering any mail-in rebates on a particular device as an instant rebate right when you buy. We have talked a lot lately about the HTC Sensation 4G. Sadly, we found out last week that the bootloader would be locked down meaning custom ROMs will be difficult if not impossible to use on the smartphone. Marketing materials on the Sensation 4G for Target have surfaced. As you can see in the photo, the sales material shows the price to be $199.99, presumably with a new contract and maybe with a MIR. The fine print can’t be read in this photo. You will also notice the big sticker on the front of the material that says June 12. It’s not clear if this is some sort of launch date for the smartphone at Target or if the number means something else. TMoNews points out that June 12 is a Sunday and typically, Wednesday or Saturday is the launch for new devices. The 12th being a Sunday may allow the launch of the potent Sensation 4G to launch along with the Target Sunday circular in newspapers around the country. [via TMoNews via Android Central] )

US Galaxy S II variants named: AT&T Attain, Verizon Function and Sprint Within Posted: 16 May 2011 02:43 AM PDT Samsung’s Galaxy S II is one of the mot coveted Android smartphones of the moment, but while Europe and Asia is able to play with the Super AMOLED Plus handset, North America is still waiting for its taste of overclocked Exynios. Now it seems US naming and carrier support has been leaked courtesy of a premature accessory listing. According to the Wireless Xcessories Group, their silicone gel back cover will fit the Samsung Galaxy S 2 Attain on AT&T, the Galaxy S 2 Function on Verizon, and the Galaxy S 2 Within on Sprint. T-Mobile USA is notable for its absence; that could be because the carrier isn’t getting a version or, perhaps more likely, because aesthetically it is different and the gel wouldn’t fit. Given the success of the original Galaxy S in North America, it’s no great surprise that Samsung is working with so many carriers on its successor. Of course, we still don’t know quite when it will arrive. [via Pocketnow] )

Vodafone Smart brings you Android on the cheap Posted: 16 May 2011 02:35 AM PDT Vodafone‘s 845 was a tiny Android phone with a suitably tiny price, targeting the entry-level market that Android has flourished so well in. Now, the carrier has its successor, the Vodafone Smart, an Android 2.2 Froyo handset with a 2.8-inch QVGA capacitive touchscreen and quadband HSDPA (3.6). The dinky phone measures in at 56 x 106 x 12mm and tips the scales at a modest 100g. It can be customized with various different covers, channeling some retro Nokia action, and owners will be able to either choose from Vodafone’s planned spring/summer and autumn/winter ranges, or design their own online. There’s WiFi and Bluetooth as you’d expect, and the Smart will drop in Germany, Italy and the UK first for around €90 ($79). Press Release: Vodafone announces the Vodafone Smart – a smartphone for everyone Android powered and with innovative design features, the Vodafone Smart is the first in its category – in store for summer, available on pay as you go data plans Monday 16th May, 2011. Vodafone today announces the launch of the Vodafone Smart, the latest handset in its own-brand range and the first in its category: a fully-featured smartphone with popular appeal for the next wave of data users. The Vodafone Smart delivers a compelling smartphone experience, empowering customers to enter the world of the mobile internet, bringing together apps, navigation, social-networking and multimedia, all at a great price, in a great package. Patrick Chomet, Vodafone Group Terminals Director said, "More and more Vodafone customers are enjoying the benefits of smartphones which currently account for over 40% of the phones we sell in Europe. Continuing to push the boundaries through our own-brand range, the Vodafone Smart is a new smartphone concept. It takes the higher end mobile internet experience and packages it for the mass market, its range of covers and accessories making it a fun fashion statement. Available on pay as you go plans, and on the fast, reliable Vodafone networks, the Vodafone Smart is a great step-up into the world of mobile data." The Vodafone Smart will be rolled out in a range of colours – from cool monochromes, through bold brights, to bespoke graphic designs. What's more, customers will be able to personalise their phone, creating their own one-off covers on the web. With spring/summer and autumn/winter cover ranges planned, customers can build up a cover collection to suit their style and spirit. The Android 2.2 software will give customers access to the full Android experience, including the Android Market™, Gmail™, Google Maps™ and Google Talk™ instant messaging. In addition, the phone has a zoom camera and a capacitive touchscreen as well as 3G, WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity. The Vodafone design team have created the user experience with first-time smartphone users in mind and, as such, the homescreen comes pre-loaded with direct links to key content and features including Facebook™, Twitter™, email, Vodafone's 'Prepay Manager' for quick top-ups, Vodafone Music and finally the 'Updates' widget, which gives customers easy access to a shortlist of leading Android Market apps and other services selected by local Vodafone editors. The Vodafone Smart will be available across the Vodafone footprint by early summer. Germany, Italy and the UK will be among the first to sell the phone which will retail for around €90. )

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