Android Community |
- LG and Prada team up for London Event — LG Prada K2 coming soon?
- Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 launching soon, up for pre-order
- Classic Laserdisc game Dragon’s Lair braves the Android Market
- Archos shows off official Ice Cream Sandwich on 101 G9 tablet
- Android Market hits 10 billion app downloads, celebrates with 10¢ app sale
- Motorola DROID RAZR gets a white version for December
- Verizon’s Motorola DROID XYBOARD gets official in 10.1 and 8.2 flavors
- HTC on the ropes: revenue falls 30% in November
- BlueStacks Android app player gets 550,000+ downloads
- Asus’ goal for 2012 is to beat Samsung in tablets
- Verizon Galaxy Nexus confirmed for December 9th launch through leaked email
- Meizu MX launches January 1, 2012
- Touch for Android Application Review
- Google Wallet won’t work on the Galaxy Nexus – carriers preparing their own alternative
- LG Nitro HD Review
- Motorola DROID 4 visits the FCC
- First custom ROM for the Galaxy Nexus features EXT4 support
- Sony Ericsson Arc HD (Nozomi) press image leaks
- Angry Birds send Seasons greetings via the Samsung Galaxy Note
- Motorola DROID XYBOARD tablets have GSM support — disabled by Verizon
| LG and Prada team up for London Event — LG Prada K2 coming soon? Posted: 06 Dec 2011 10:56 AM PST What is better than some fashion in London? A new smartphone maybe? LG and Prada have teamed up again to release another stylish smartphone onto the world with what most likely will be the LG Prada K2 that we’ve seen leak more than a few times already. If you remember the original LG Prada then you’re in for a treat with this latest revision we think will be announced later this month.
We’ve been hearing rumors of a third Prada phone from the South Korean company since way back in 2009 and it appears they are finally ready to deliver. The LG Prada K2′s latest leaks show a pretty impressive phone in terms of both specs and looks. It’s thin and sexy and has some nice curves too. If you ask me it looks very similar to the recently released Nokia Lumia 800 but that is WP7 so we’ll stop right there.
The LG Prada K2 recently cleared the FCC only adding to the pile that makes us think that will be exactly what LG and Prada unveil come next Wednesday, December 14th. Leaks suggest a 4.3 or 4.5″ 1280 x 720p HD display — like the recently reviewed LG Nitro HD. As well as a 1.5 GHz dual-core processor and more. We will most likely see more in the next few days not to mention the world will all know after the event next week. Who’s ready for some Devil Wears Prada? )
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| Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 launching soon, up for pre-order Posted: 06 Dec 2011 10:00 AM PST Who remembers the awesome looking Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7? The first tablet to feature Samsung’s Super AMOLED HD display technology that was first spotted at IFA but quickly went missing. For a quick refresh you can start by looking over our Tab 7.7 hands-on because it’s one impressive tablet. Apparently the Tab 7.7 should be launching soon and is up for pre-order unlocked with 3G and ready to go.
The Galaxy Tab 7.7 is the first slate to feature the impressive Samsung Super AMOLED display on a large screen size like 7.7″ and we’ve been patiently waiting for more details on this tab. Running with a 1280 x 800 resolution and rocking a powerful 1.4 GHz dual-core processor I’d love to get my hands on one of these. It’s under 8mm thin, has built-in 3G and should have some stunning colors on that vivid AMOLED panel. Back in September the 7.7 hit the FCC but that was the last we’ve heard of it. Current legal battles with that fruit company could be to blame but at this point we aren’t fully sure where the delay is being caused. It could also be a shortage of those AMOLED panels too. According to our friends at oled-display.net Samsung is ready to go and the tab is all set for launch. It is even being offered up for pre-order by a few popular online retailers such as Negri Electronics (who recently gave Twitter followers a free Galaxy Nexus). While we still don’t have anything official from Samsung regarding the Galaxy Tab 7.7 or when/if it will come to the states it’s nice to hear an update. According to Negri Electronics it is fully 3G GSM unlocked and will run you a pretty $670 USD outright. We should see lower prices on-contract if we ever get the pleasure of enjoying this slate in the US. Bonus video: Galaxy Tab 7.7 hands-on Device Info
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| Classic Laserdisc game Dragon’s Lair braves the Android Market Posted: 06 Dec 2011 09:56 AM PST Ah, what memories I have of the original Dragon’s Lair. Crawling through crumbling dungeons, marveling at hands-drawn animations, laughing at the off-kilter comedy. At least I might have those memories, if I hadn’t been born four years after the game came out. But now a woeful gap in my classic gaming education can be filled, as Dragon’s Lair is available in the Android Market for $4.99.
For the uninitiated, Dragon’s Lair was a classic arcade game that wowed players with hand-drawn animation and cutscenes from master animator Don Bluth, of Sleeping Beauty, The Sword in the Stone, An American Tail and many, many more. The Laserdisc format allowed for huge graphics with voice acting, though the gameplay is more like an interactive book than a traditional video game. The achievements of Dragon’s Lair were so impressive for the time that it’s one of only three video games on permanent display in the Smithsonian Museum. Even if the technical merits of Dragon’s Lair are lost on most 21st-century gamers, the story and humor of the game is timeless. It really is like playing a 70s Disney movie, with perhaps a bit of PG-13 style and humor. (Princess Daphne was originally based on classic Playboy models – yowza!) It’s an experience that every true gamer should try at least once, and now you don’t have to track down a 27-year-old Laserdisc player to do so. Try it out on an Android tablet if you can – you won’t be disappointed. )
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| Archos shows off official Ice Cream Sandwich on 101 G9 tablet Posted: 06 Dec 2011 09:20 AM PST Well lookie here: Archos isn’t letting anyone beat it to the Ice Cream Sandwich party. The French hardware company showed off an early build of Android 4.0 running on its economical 101 G9 tablet. The latest build from earlier today is demonstrated on what looks like a retail unit. Archos is planning on releasing the update sometime in Q1 2012.
From the demonstration, it looks like Ice Cream Sandwich is running extremely well on the 10-inch tablet, with nary a stutter or hiccup in its performance. By now we’re pretty familiar with the ICS tablet interface (basically a cleaner, faster version of Honeycomb) but this is a nice confirmation of other sources, like Nvidia’s demonstration of the Transformer Prime. It still needs a little work to get to a lag free experience, but you can see that Archos is well on its way.For the most part, ICS seems to be clean and free of bloatware. For Ice Cream and French accents, check out the video below: If you’re tempted by new software on current hardware, the 10-inch G9 tablet is currently going for about $350 at most retail locations. Extensive codec support and low price makes Archos a favorite among Android enthusiasts, so you’re likely to see a lot of community-authored ICS builds both before and after the official release. If you don’t already have one, check out this hands-on before making your final decision. [via ARMdevices.net] )
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| Android Market hits 10 billion app downloads, celebrates with 10¢ app sale Posted: 06 Dec 2011 08:52 AM PST There’s a lot of Android phones and tablets out there – pushing 200 million at last official count. That’s a lot of people downloading apps form the Android Market. Today that number may have surpassed 10 billion total app downloads, and to celebrate, Google’s offering a handful of premium apps for just 10¢ (£0.10 in the UK.)
The premium apps on offer are as follows: Soundhound, Asphalt 6: Adrenaline HD, Minecraft Pocket Edition, SwiftKey X, Ecomondo, Great Little War Game, SketchBook Mobile, Fieldrunners HD, Color & Draw for Kids, and Paper Camera. This is no small promotion; many of these apps have hundreds of thousands of paid downloads already, and the discounts start at 90% and go up. There’s no indication of when the sale will end, so if you want any of the apps listed here, download them now.
We haven’t heard anything official on the 10 billion app promotion. The total may not have even been passed yet – it could be that Google’s drumming up excitement to reach the milestone, with a little help from some high-profile Android developers. In any case it’s a sweet deal on some very in-demand apps, so go for it if you haven’t already. )
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| Motorola DROID RAZR gets a white version for December Posted: 06 Dec 2011 08:34 AM PST Nothing says “Happy Holidays” like the world’s most neutral color. In addition to a rather subdued DROID XYBOARD announcement, Verizon let slip that an all-white version of the Motorola DROID RAZR would be available this month. Aside from a frosty casing, there’s no difference from the model that launched last month – you’ll still need to fork over $299.99 and sign up for a new two-year contract, or be eligible for a renewal. A specific date was not mentioned.
If it’s bargains you’re after, and you happen to be in the market for both a new LTE smartphone and tablet, you may want to take advantage of Verizon’s upcoming promotion. Purchase a new DROID RAZR (presumably including the white model) and you can take $100 off any DROID XYBOARD, from the $429 8.2-inch 16GB version all the way up to the $729 64GB 10.1-inch version. You’ll also be eligable for $50 off “select Motorola accessories” – a perfect opportunity to stock up on cases, docks or what have you. The DROID RAZR joins a host of white smartphones this Christmas, including the Samsung Galaxy S II, Galaxy S II Skyrocket, HTC Incredible II, HTC EVO 3D – suffice it to say, there’s a lot of white going around. Naturally, that other Verizon phone, you know, the one we’ve been waiting on for over a month, the one that seems to be available for everyone except Americans – hasn’t been announced. But we get a phone that’s in plentiful supply in white. Thanks a lot, Verizon. Device Info
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| Verizon’s Motorola DROID XYBOARD gets official in 10.1 and 8.2 flavors Posted: 06 Dec 2011 07:54 AM PST Yup, that’s the real name, folks, and there ain’t no going back now.Verizon announced the long-leaked Motorola DROID XYBOARD tablets in a press release today, with the expected 10.1 and 8.2 inch models ready to go sometime in December. The larger model starts at $529.99 for the 16GB version, then goes up to $629.99 and $729.99 for the 32GB and 64GB editions. The smaller XYBOARD 8.2 (no “Media Edition” branding here) will go for $429.99 and $529.99, in 16GB and 32GB versions. All prices are with a two-year contract.
As far as specs go, both tablets are solid, though not as eye-popping as the original XOOM when it was released earlier this year. The screens are “high-definition” (almost certainly 1280 x 800) IPS LCD panels, running on top of 1.2Ghz dual-core processors and 1GB of RAM each. Exact dimensions aren’t available, but Verizon assures us that the tablets are “lighter than a paperback book and thinner than a AAA battery.” A 5-megapixel camera adorns the back with a front-facing shooter thrown in for good measure. Both with have access to Verizon’s LTE network. Both tablets will launch with Android 3.2 Honeycomb, though you can expect an Ice Cream Sandwich update sometime in the future. The standard Motorola and Verizon apps are included, and customers can add LTE WiFi hotspot functionality for an additional fee. THe exact release date is not available just yet, but a promotion will allow you to take $100 off a DROID XYBOARD when you purchase a DROID RAZR, plus $50 of free accessories.    Device Info
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| HTC on the ropes: revenue falls 30% in November Posted: 06 Dec 2011 07:31 AM PST If you’re a fan of HTC‘s phones, you might want to stop reading now. The Taiwanese company’s total revenue dropped by over four hundred million dollar equivalent in November, from NT$44,114 billion down to NT$ 30.942 billion in a single month. The news comes after HTC had already slashed predictions for the quarter and indicated flat growth – now even those figures seem a little optimistic, despite new launches like the Rezound, Vivid and Sensation XL. HTC did not supply a reason for the downturn.
In addition to to slumping sales, HTC’s facing looming legal troubles. A patent troll won a case against HTC in Germany based on 3G technology patents, and the manufacturer faces a possible import ban on all their devices in that country. HTC’s hopes for patent secuirty were dashed when S3 Graphics, a prospective acquisition, lost its patent case against Apple. S3 still has three more cases to try against the litigation-happy iDevice manufacturer. HTC’s woes aren’t helped by a recent acquisition spree, in which the company invested in Beats Audio, kid-friendly developer Zoodles and video game streaming provider OnLive. All that said, HTC is looking forward to a better performance in Q1 of 2012. Executives have hinted at new flagship devices that will allow them to compete toe-to-toe with the likes of Samsung and Apple. These will almost certainly include the leaked HTC Edge and Ville smartphones, and likely at least one new tablet, all running Ice Cream Sandwich. We’ll see if the company can rise out of the late-year doldrums, and leverage its #1 spot in the US smartphone market. [via SlashGear] )
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| BlueStacks Android app player gets 550,000+ downloads Posted: 06 Dec 2011 06:55 AM PST Just in case you were wondering, yes, ore excited about the prospect of running Android apps on their full-sized computer. BlueStacks, the startup software package that lets you easily run and sync Android apps to any Windows computer, has racked up more than half a million downloads since its October debut. 550,000 downloads is an impressive achievement for a program that was only released in alpha form seven weeks ago, and at the time lacked support for anything other than Windows 7.
Investors have started to sit up and take notice. Embattled chip maker AMD and virtualization/remote access company Citrix invested 6.4 million dollars into the small California startup to spur its development, and presumably highlight it for future products. With Microsoft on the verge of a big tablet push in late 2012/early 2013, having quick and easy access to hundreds of thousands of touch-enabled Android apps would be a boon for Windows 8. The software itself is still in the early stages, with the basic version of the BlueStacks App Player in alpha and the Pro version, featuring unlimited paid app syncing, still unavailable. The software itself is Windows-only, and likely to remain that way for some time, considering the high hardware requirements. BlueStacks may have some exciting things to announce at CES in January – we’ll be on hand to see if this is the case. [via TechCrunch] )
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| Asus’ goal for 2012 is to beat Samsung in tablets Posted: 06 Dec 2011 04:01 AM PST Asus has offered up a glimpse of what it wants to do in 2012 at its global sales meeting held this week. Part of the goings on at the meeting was to set the shipment goals for the four major product lines next year. The company has announced that it expects to ship more than 22 million notebooks and netbooks next year reports DigiTimes. The specific number Asus is shooting for internally is 23.8 million units.
When it comes to tablet PCs Asus is a bit more specific. It wants to ship at least three million tablets shipped with an internal goal reportedly set at 6 million tablets. That would put Asus ahead of rival Samsung in the tablet market. Asus may well do that with the Transformer Prime looking like one of the best Android tablets to land so far. The big number of notebook shipments that Asus expects next year would put it ahead of Dell and put it in the running for the third largest notebook vendor globally. The bulk of the shipments will be notebooks at 19.3 to 19.8 million units, netbook shipments are expected to continue to decline. [via SlashGear] )
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| Verizon Galaxy Nexus confirmed for December 9th launch through leaked email Posted: 05 Dec 2011 09:58 PM PST Seeing as this email was sent out just today (if you're clocks aren't running on EST), it seems this information is as accurate as we're going to get until Verizon officially announces the Galaxy Nexus. Quoted from the email to the store management teams, "This product cannot be displayed or sold til Friday December 9th".
And if that doesn't set the date in stone for you, then take a look at the attached PDF below. Stated plainly is an official launch date of 12/9/11 – just three days. Also note, on the same day corporate plans on having the website go "live". There had been rumors that the Galaxy Nexus would actually launch closer to December 15th, but considering the date of this email – that may now be entirely out of the question. With how much time and money Verizon put towards advertising the DROID RAZR, you would think such an innovative device would receive a bit more official coverage this close to a launch date.
Now do we take this email seriously or just pass it off as a fake? I'm a stickler when it comes to photo editing, and it seems as though both the email and PDF put together poorly. However, this close to launch a rushed email may seem viable. We can bet our chips on this leaked email, but in the end there's only so much disappointment we can handle. [via RootzWiki] )
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| Meizu MX launches January 1, 2012 Posted: 05 Dec 2011 09:03 PM PST Meizu just broke the ice and finally announced its 2012 flagship smartphone, the MX. Headed to mainland China January 1st, expect an initial cost of ¥2,999 ($470). It will pack some serious power from the included 1.4GHz Samsung Exynos 4210 dual-core processor and 1GB RAM. It will also sport a 4" ASV display with a 960×640 pixel ratio. Initially, the device will only be available with 16GB of internal storage, but expect a 32GB version later on.
As you can see from the picture, the MX will certainly include a heavily masked version of Android 2.3.5; I've never been a fan of anything but vanilla Android, but this skin seems to appeal to my taste. Jack Wong (CEO) has also stated the device will eventually be updated to Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich).
The MX also has an impressive 8MP rear-facing camera supporting smile detection and an option for shooting panaramic photgraphs. It records in 1080p as well, but no HDMI output will be included. If you feel the need to go learn Chinese – go check out the official word on Meizu's website. Or just Google Translate it like the rest of us. Press Release:
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| Touch for Android Application Review Posted: 05 Dec 2011 08:25 PM PST There have been many messaging applications hitting the Android Market lately, but Touch by Enflick Inc. aims to remove the boundaries of one dedicated OS and offer their software to everyone. It had evolved from its former application PingChat! and taken its previous users with them. If you haven't converted already, simply install Touch and log in with your previous PingChat! credentials. Like the Facebook Messenger standalone application, Touch is practically instant, is data driven, and even tells you when a friend is typing to you. Other than having an extremely smooth interface, Touch really makes multiple conversations a joy to navigate through.
Instead of simply stacking your threads with different contacts, Touch creates a "wall-like" user interface. It consists of "Experiences" and general instant messaging content. The Experiences are essentially photos that can be instantly taken from your device's camera or uploaded straight from your internal storage. If you're an avid Facebook Messenger or GroupMe fan, then you'll see much of the same functionality, but in a different layout. Just like Google+ Hangouts, you'll find the ability to group chat within Touch as well.
The real deal when using instant messaging applications is to make sure finding friends is easy, and fortunately Touch does this very well. There are four options for finding friends. The first is rather simple – just search for friends by their Username or E-Mail address. If it doesn't exist, then the application prompts you to send out an invitation. Could it get any easier? Yes. By logging into Facebook within the application, users can tell who does and doesn't have Touch installed. Finally, Touch can index your device's address book for contacts that currently have it installed; though many applications (like Tango) have this as a primary feature, Touch universally searches among Android OS, Apple iOS, and BlackBerry OS.
The features provided through Touch are quite polished, yet a few others would make the application stand out even more. With such strong competition with Facebook Messenger, Google Talk, and GroupMe – it's important to give people a reason to convert. The first feature that may need a little broadening is Experiences. Touch users should not only be able to upload photographs, but also video content and their general location. It may be a stretch, but integrating Twitter and RSS feeds would fall in excellently within the layout. Though it doesn't directly use their messaging service, it would draw a wider audience unto their application. Finally, it would be beneficial to have a desktop messaging client accessible through one's browser. Overall, I definitely recommend giving Touch a try – it works extremely well and has plenty of features to make social messaging fun. From a usability standpoint, it didn't lag at all and was extremely responsive. However, on our Galaxy Nexus running Android 4.1 (Ice Cream Sandwich) the app force closes. This shouldn’t be too much to worry about, as I foresee an update right around the corner.      )
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| Google Wallet won’t work on the Galaxy Nexus – carriers preparing their own alternative Posted: 05 Dec 2011 07:22 PM PST Bad news: Google Wallet isn’t going to work on anything besides the Nexus S 4G for the foreseeable future. Yes, that includes Verizon’s Galaxy Nexus, and very probably AT&T and T-Mobile versions, if they ever appear. Computer World broke the story, though I’d be wary of anything labelled “confirmed” from that particular source. Unfortunately, the news is not entirely unexpected.
Why? Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile have already begun an initiative to create an NFC payment network for the United States, and have gotten Samsung, HTC, Motorola and LG in on the system. ISIS is currently set to launch sometime next year. The simplest answer to a lack of Google Wallet integration with the U.S. version of the Galaxy Nexus is that Verizon doesn’t want to compete with Google for NFC payments, a field that many consider to be on the cusp of mass consumer adoption. This hasn’t been confirmed, but it seems like the most likely culprit. This is annoying in many ways. One, consumers shouldn’t be forced to use a carrier-supplied system on an “open” smartphone, especially since the Nexus line is supposed to be free of carrier interaction. We’ve already seen a disturbing first move by Verizon with included bloatware apps. Two, why should Verizon block, or even be allowed to block, apps that compete with its services? After all, you can still access YouTube and Movies in the Android Market, even though Verizon offers V-Cast videos. Of course, the wonderful thing about the Nexus line is a rabid community dedicated to modding it and improving it. Solutions to Verizon’s meddling have already appeared in the form of custom kernels and carrier ID tweaks. It takes a lot to keep Android users from doing what they want, especially when devices aren’t saddled with locked bootloaders. If you want to use Google Wallet on the Galaxy Nexus, or any AT&T, Verizon or T-Mobile Android phone, get comfortable with root tools and custom ROMs. Device Info
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| Posted: 05 Dec 2011 06:36 PM PST As AT&T’s third 4G LTE smartphone, the LG Nitro HD has a lot riding on it. As the carrier’s very first phone with a 720p screen (and the nation’s second), it’s got a lot more. In other markets, this phone is being sold by variations on the theme of the LG Optimus LTE. Is LG’s newest flagship phone worth your time, and more importantly, your money? Read on to find out.
Hardware I’ll be honest: the Nitro HD isn’t much to look at. In an LTE field dominated by the Striking DROID RAZR, the targeted HTC Rezound, the unique HTC Vivid and even the attractive yet vanilla Samsung Skyrocket, the Nitro HD comes off as the most bland of the bunch. With an all-black textured rear cover and a front bare save AT&T branding and just three capacitive buttons, the phone looks like a darker, slimmer version of the Motorola ATRIX 2. Remove the battery cover and you’ll see a MicroSD card slot that’s accessible without taking out the battery (always a plus) and generously filled by a 16GB card, the better to make you forget about the phone’s measly 4GB of on-board storage. The phone feels light, without being remarkably so, and solid, but not so solid that you’d be anything less than cautious. If you’re interested in the Nitro HD over its contemporaries, it’s almost certainly for that 1280 x 720p IPS LCD screen. It’s absolutely sharp – you won’t be counting pixels without a microscope – and the colors are quite accurate, but it’s missing something essential for a modern smartphone. The default and auto brightness settings are way too low, even for typical indoor use, and jacking up the brightness manually eats away at your battery quickly. A 1.5Ghz dual-core processor and 1GB of RAM is fast, but not blazing – I regularly got between 2500 and 2700 on a Quadrant test.
There are a few odd design choices, too. A top-mounted MicroUSB port hidden behind a plastic tab is awkward. The relatively small power and volume buttons are tough to find in the dark. But all that being said, it’s a fairly standard device – large, but not overly so for a 4.5-inch screen. If you’re set on a 720P smartphone and need AT&T service, no part of the hardware is a dealbreaker. Across the entire phone, the only hardware I really miss is the capacitive Search button. Software LG’s customized iPhone-aping interface runs on Gingerbread 2.3.5. It’s a familiar site if you’re used to Samsung’s TouchWiz, and even runs a little faster than most of the Galaxy series of phones.There’s a fair bit of AT&T bloatware included, but as with other recent high-end phones, most of it can be manually removed, for which I’m quite thankful. However, there are two frustrating exceptions: Zynga Poker and Yellow Pages. The former is non-removable probably out of some sort of partnership, but the latter must stay put because it’s actually integrated into the dialer.
And speaking of the dialer: it’s pretty awful. Android’s perfectly serviceable phone app is superceded by LG’s flavored version, which is slower, less intuitive and makes you work harder to quickly access your contacts. A half-dozen or so non-removable AT&T service numbers don’t help matters. The unnecessary customization extends to the browser, where another iPhone-inspired element rears its unwanted head in a permanent lower navigation bar. There’s no way to remove it or the upper bar, meaning that a lot of the space on that nice 720p screen is reserved for non-web elements. For surfing, install Dolphin Browser HD or a suitable alternative right away. All that being said, the interface itself is fast and smooth. If you’re an experienced Android user you can get around all of these little foibles with third-party apps, but that doesn’t mean the changes aren’t bothersome. The locked Zynga and Yellow Pages app are particularly annoying when all the other bloatware can be removed so easily.
Calling and Battery On a positive note, the LG Nitro HD is hands-down the most reliable and clear AT&T phone I’ve tried yet. Even in my home, which is in borderline EDGE/3G territory, calls were nearly as good as a landline. It’s an impressive achievement for LG, and not an inconsiderable point for prospective owners, even in heavy urban areas. If you want a superphone with reliable signal and good voice quality, this is it. I wasn’t able to make the trek to an LTE-enabled area for this review, but there’s no reason to think that our previous tests won’t hold true for this device. Battery was another story. The Nitro HD quickly cut down to half juice after 3-4 hours of moderate use. This may have been because I set the brightness higher than normal, but re-enabling the (altogether dark) automatic mode didn’t seem to have much effect. The phone puttered out after a little less than eight hours of browsing and apps. I’d say that getting through a full day with anything except very light use will require an extra battery or at least one solid recharge session. Media Photos are another area where the Nitro HD shines. I’ve gotten so used to 8-megapixel smartphone cameras that underwhelm that I was shocked when the phone delivered some impressive stills. In my ideal photo tent the snapshots were keepers, and even when I had to rely on flash photos turnes out unusually bright and free of blur. Video is another beast entirely, though – even at 1080p, the recordings are good for YouTube at best.
Wrap Up The LG Nitro HD is a study in compromises. On one hand you have bland styling, some awkward customizations to Android, a rather dim screen and poor battery life. On the other you’ve got superb call quality, still photos and higher resolution than any phone available on AT&T. If you absolutely must have AT&T LTE, I’d still go with the Galaxy S II Skyrocket at the same $249 price tag – even with a relatively low-res screen it’s the most solid phone around. But if you put a premium on call clarity and getting the most pixels for your buck, the Nitro HD is pretty much your only choice… just keep a charger handy. By the way, AT&T ‘s offering the LG Nitro HD for $100 off in some markets, bringing the MSRP down to $149.99. Click this link to see if it’s available in your area.
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| Motorola DROID 4 visits the FCC Posted: 05 Dec 2011 04:11 PM PST In what seems like the usual fashion lately for Motorola and Verizon we are about to witness another DROID powered smartphone hit shelves. Although the DROID 3 hasn’t been out but a few short months Verizon and Moto have a fully prepped and ready to go DROID 4 already in the pipes. If it feels like Motorola and Verizon have been churning out devices like mad lately — it’s because they have been.
Today the DROID 4 has hit the FCC giving us more reason to think it’ll be here within a few weeks. It was recently spotted on camera and was initially leaked back in October. This 5-row QWERTY hardware smartphone rocking a dual-core and 4G LTE is quite the device — I’m just surprised Verizon is launching so soon.
Just like we’ve seen in the past Motorola’s FCC filings are very slim on details and don’t give us much to go on. According to Pocket Now the DROID 4 has won its FCC approval and should be headed to market soon. Most likely we’ll see a full FCC teardown eventually but today we have no such luck. Late last month rumors suggested the DROID 4 would launch on December 8th as many Verizon phones usually launch on Thursdays but that is looking quite slim right about now. We could be seeing this QWERTY slider launch along side the Galaxy Nexus to give Verizon some DROID airtime but that is still up in the air. Once we get some official information we’ll be sure to update with additional details. [via Pocket Now] )
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| First custom ROM for the Galaxy Nexus features EXT4 support Posted: 05 Dec 2011 03:17 PM PST The type of people that gravitate towards the Nexus line aren’t shy of a little ROM flashing, and they’re invariably looking for that extra edge when it comes to performance. To that end, one of if not the first custom ROM for the Galaxy Nexus features a bevvy of tweaks and improvements to the stock ROM, the most notable of which is an EXT4-formatted partition, making for faster memory and storage access throughout Ice Cream Sandwich.
Other improvements in “Android Revolution HD” include a pre-rooted environment with the SuperUser app (naturally), removal of “bloatware”, de-odexed for theme support, and various other speed and data hacks. Externally it looks just like stock Ice Cream Sandwich, including the new launcher and all the little points of polish that you’re dying to get your hands on. Versions for the international HSPA+ model and Verizon’s LTE model are available. Of course, you’ll need a rooted Galaxy Nexus and access to ClockworkMod recovery to take advantage of any of this. In what’s sure to be the first of many, many Galaxy Nexus ROMs, an emphasis on speed is key. Roms from popular sources like Modaco and CyanogenMod are yet to be completed, but when they are, what do you want to see? Each ROM dev has their own special flair to ad, and others will likely mimic the addition of EXT4 and surely remove the US hardware’s built-in Verizon apps. Leave suggestions in the comments section. UPDATE: Whoops, looks like I jumped the gun – Paul “Modaco” O’Brien’s Galaxy Nexus kernel supported EXT4 before this ROM. It’s the basis of the modified Revolution HD ROM. There’s also an updated version of the ROM over on RootzWiki, version 1.3.1. Device Info
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| Sony Ericsson Arc HD (Nozomi) press image leaks Posted: 05 Dec 2011 03:04 PM PST The Sony
Part of my concern here in this leaked image above if you look extremely close at the bezel below the screen it appears to have 3 dedicated Android buttons — possibly hardware and maybe capacitive. This doesn’t mean it wont run Ice Cream Sandwich out of the box but if we have a 1280 x 720p HD display and ICS why give us dedicated buttons that will only make the device larger than it needs to be. Obviously we can’t expect all hardware manufacturers that have tons of devices in the works all rocking buttons to halt the devices, but it still makes me wonder. With SONY buying out the half Ericsson owned we should be seeing this launch most likely as the SONY Xperia Arc HD or something of that sort. The leak last week showing it running Android 4.0 ICS was cut off but it could also be called the Cloud — original I know. We still have a bit of mystery around this device even though it was caught on camera a few weeks back. Either way I’m excited to see what Sony has in store for Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, and moving forward now they own the entire SONY mobile division and are going all in with Android. I hope they don’t disappoint and this looks like a great starting point. [via Pocket Now] )
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| Angry Birds send Seasons greetings via the Samsung Galaxy Note Posted: 05 Dec 2011 02:47 PM PST Without a doubt, Rovio’s Angry Birds is the darling of the mobile gaming world. It’s sold millions of downloads, made at least as much in advertising revenue, and is now a household name amongst people who couldn’t pick Mario and Sonic out of a lineup. The most prudent thing that Rovio has done is release Angry Birds Seasons, periodic themes updates with brand-new levels and elements to keep the simple physics game fresh. Now they’ve teamed up with Samsung for a little cross-promotion of everyone’s crossover device, the Samsung Galaxy Note.
In the short video the green pigs are up to their old tricks, using a little Photoshopping skills via the Galaxy Note’s S-Pen to make the Angry Birds, uh, frustrated. Since there’s no such word as “overkill” when translated into squaks, the Birds respond in kind, sending the pigs a little holiday cheer with the same general enthusiasm. Fun times are had by all, with the exception of the pigs, who can rest easy in the knowledge that at least they haven’t been pummeled into dust beneath the usual pile of broken rubble. Check out the video below. The Christmas themed commercial was developed for Samsung and published on their YouTube page. Viewers in the UK may be seeing it soon, but anyone can visit note.angrybirds.com to see the high scores for a special web level of Angry Birds “Seasons Greedings”, featuring the Galaxy Note itself. You can play the level yourself online and submit your high scores on the website. The fifty highest scores are eligible for prizes, including a free Galaxy Note and Angry Birds plush toys. What are you waiting for? Get crashing! Device Info
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| Motorola DROID XYBOARD tablets have GSM support — disabled by Verizon Posted: 05 Dec 2011 01:23 PM PST Those new Motorola Xoom 2 tablets headed for Verizon Wireless that have been officially been named the DROID Xyboard apparently have a dirty little secret. These new slates recently cleared the FCC with 4G LTE on board but new details have now confirmed they also have full GSM capabilities too.
Reports from Wireless Goodness have confirmed that the new Motorola Xyboard tablets have not only 4G LTE radios inside, but they also are rocking GSM/WCDMA support. Both the 10.1 and 8.2″ slates have full GSM support that has been disabled by firmware and Verizon Wireless. Having the DROID branding these will be exclusively for Verizon but now we have reason to believe they might eventually land on other carriers such as T-Mobile or AT&T.
This also brings up the possibility of it being turned on with a firmware update or release, not to mention those awesome hackers and developers at XDA could possibly get these things running too. The image above clearly states they have been disabled by firmware, and are SIM locked and will not support any US carriers. This could also just be the same hardware for international and European models, and we could possibly see users import the new slates from outside the US for use on T-Mobile or AT&T. Either way this is an interesting find and we expect to hear more on these tablets any day now as Verizon has clearly stated they will be released in December. Device Info
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[via Wireless Goodness] )
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