January 2011 Archives

Jan

Motorola XOOM To Launch On February 17th, Confirmed By Internal Best Buy Document

Posted by Abhiroop Basu in Motorola, News, XOOM

An eager reader forwarded an internal Best Buy memo to Engadget which indicates, in no uncertain terms, that the Motorola XOOM tablet is set to launch at Best Buy on February 17th.

A leak from Verizon has confirmed that the unsubsidized price of the XOOM will be $799. However, Best Buy may be retailing the device for an altogether different price.

The XOOM is an important device for both Motorola and Google because it will be the first tablet to run Android 3.0 Honeycomb, an iteration of the Android OS that supports the tablet form factor. Google rubber-stamped their ...

Jan

HTC EVO 4G: Fix Music Streaming And (Maybe) Boost Your 3G Speeds With A Simple Hack

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in EVO 4G (Supersonic), HTC, Mods, News, Sprint

This morning, I noticed an interesting thread in the EVO subsection of the XDA forums that claimed to be able to fix music streaming (which was broken in some apps after the latest OTA), while boosting 3G speeds by .2 to .6 Mbps. As the process is very simple and easily reversible, I gave it a go - but decided that I was going to use SpeedTest to benchmark the changes. Unfortunately, what I found wasn't what I expected.

Before doing anything, I ran the test three times. Before the fix my average download speed was 938.67 Kbps. After I ...

Jan

Froyo Update Now Rolling Out To The LG Ally

Posted by Abhiroop Basu in Ally (Aloha), Froyo 2.2, News, Verizon Wireless

A few days ago it was revealed that Verizon would be finally updating the LG Ally to Android 2.2 Froyo. Now, less than a week later, users are reporting that the OTA update for Froyo has been pushed by Verizon.

While it is laudable that Verizon is updating the mid-range LG Ally (unlike certain other manufacturers), Froyo is already an out-dated version of Android thanks to Gingerbread. Nevertheless, this latest update ought to bring some nice improvements to the device, while increasing the number of users running Froyo by just a little bit.

Thanks to Miguel A. for the tip...

Jan

Remember The New Toshiba Tablet Site? This Is What Happens If You Visit It On An iOS Device

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in News, Thrive / Regza / Antares / AT100, Toshiba

Last Updated: April 16th, 2011

You didn't think Toshiba would let Motorola take jabs at Apple without throwing one of its own, did you?

^{Motorola called the iPad a giant iPhone back in December}

Remember the Toshiba Tablet teaser site we found yesterday? Here is what happens when you visit it from an iOS device:

Such a Shame.
Add this to the list of the interesting places on the internet you can't see on your device. Of course, if you had a Toshiba Tablet you would enjoy the entire internet. Yep, Flash sites too.

Nicely done, Toshiba, besides the fact that, you know, nobody has ...

Jan

Stylish And Flexible "Typography Wall" Clock/Date/Battery Live Wallpaper Enters Android Market

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in Applications, News

Truly stylish clock/date widgets of high quality are hard to come by, so whenever we see one released, we jump on it right away. Today's highlight is Typography Wall that was just released into the Android Market.

Typography Wall is actually a live wallpaper that comes with a variety of configurable elements, by default set up exactly the way you see below. You can use it without any modifications or jump right into changing things, from using your own background to changing transparency, rotation, blinking, positioning, and other aspects of each element. Such powerful customizations are made possible thanks to ...

Jan

Toshiba's Tablet Gets A Super Cool Teaser Site, Still Doesn't Know What To Call Itself

Posted by David Ruddock in News, Thrive / Regza / Antares / AT100, Toshiba

Last Updated: April 16th, 2011

Toshiba's Android tablet (it remains unnamed) just got an awesome teaser site, complete with specs, 360-degree view, gallery, and confirmation that the device will be running Honeycomb at launch.

We got some personal time with the Toshiba tablet back at CES, and were thoroughly impressed with its tactile rubber finish and large, glossy display. We'll give you a quick refresh on the specs:

10.1" display
Tegra 2 dual-core processor
Android 3.0 Honeycomb
2MP front facing camera
Stereo Speakers
Landscape mode dock
HDMI out
USB 2.0 port
MicroUSB port
Headphone and microphone jacks
User-replaceable battery
Combined volume, screen orientation,

...

Jan

[Rumor] HTC Incredible 2 Launching In March; Motorola Droid Bionic, Droid X2 Coming In May

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Droid Bionic, Droid X2, HTC, Incredible 2 (Vivow), Motorola, News, Verizon Wireless

Were the four phones (and the one amazing tablet) Verizon announced at CES not enough for you? Then you'll be happy to hear that Droid Life has unearthed two more devices headed Verizon's way: the Motorola Droid X2 and the HTC Incredible 2.

Unfortunately, the Droid X2 will not feature a LTE radio, although it will pack a 1GHz NVIDIA Tegra 2 processor. Interested? Droid Life says Verizon is planning to release the device in May.

As for the Incredible 2, it is said to be an improved version of HTC's original Incredible, complete with a larger screen and ...

Jan

Nexus One 2.2.2 And Nexus S 2.3.2 OTAs Rolling Out - Hath The SMS Bug Finally Been Conquered?

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Froyo 2.2, Gingerbread 2.3, HTC, News, Nexus One (Passion), Nexus S (Crespo/Soju), Samsung

As disappointing as it may be to see the Nexus One - Google's first officially anointed developer phone - still getting Froyo-based updates, that's exactly what just happened. According to several Android Central forums members, a 558kb update to Android 2.2.2 (or build number FRG83G) is currently rolling out over the air to the N1, bringing "important bug fixes" with it.

In related news, the Samsung-built Nexus S - Google's second developer phone - also received an update today, though this one is Gingerbread-based. Its version number is 2.3.2, and, coincidentally, it is also said to bring "important bug fixes."...

Jan

Updated: Froyo Update For The Samsung Vibrant Rolling Out Now, Exclusively Via Kies

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Froyo 2.2, News, Samsung, T-Mobile, Vibrant

It appears that T-Mobile is staying true to its word when it comes the Android 2.2 update for the Samsung Vibrant - the much-anticipated software upgrade is now slowly but surely rolling out.

There's a catch, though: it's only available through Samsung's Kies Mini software (which runs exclusively on Windows - sorry, OS X users). We aren't yet sure if/when an OTA update will accompany this Kies Mini version, but here's what we do know: the update's build number is UVKA6, and it contains T-Mobile TV and WiFi calling in addition to all the usual Froyo goodies.

Update: T-Mobile

...

Jan

Updated: Oracle vs. Google: It's Not Looking Good For Android

Posted by David Ruddock in Editorials, News

Update: In response to the ZDNet article, it seems like Mueller may well have been incorrect about the "additional instances" of possible infringement he claims to have found. Exhibit J (linked as "6 pages of code") from Oracle's amended complaint is not addressed in the ZDNet article. We make no claims as to the validity of Oracle or Mueller's assertion; we are merely commenting on the situation.

Many people are confused about what it is Mueller is saying about copyrighted code, and it's an understandably complex topic, one I don't claim to fully comprehend. Those who offer evidence ...

Jan

Deal Alert: HTC EVO Shift 4G Drops Down To $89.99 On Amazon For New Accounts

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in Deals, EVO Shift 4G (Speedy), HTC, News, Sprint

HTC EVO Shift 4G is not even a month old, but this $150 (on-contract MSRP) mini-EVO slider was already discounted by Amazon Wireless to $119.99 at launch and today dropped another $30 to $89.99. Since Amazon doesn't charge tax in most states and offers free 2-day shipping, I think it's a pretty safe bet to say that you will not find a better deal anywhere else on the web. Unfortunately, only new accounts willing to sign a 2-year contract qualify for the promotion - those upgrading will need to shell out the full $150.

To recap, EVO Shift 4G ...

Jan

Notion Ink Adams Start Shipping - Tracking Numbers Received, NI Posts Unboxing Photos

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Adam, News, Notion Ink

Great news for those who have pre-ordered Notion Ink's first tablet, the Adam: they're starting to ship. Notion Ink has apparently just received their first large shipment, and posted their own unboxing and hands-on photos, while some pre-order customers now have tracking numbers in their hot little hands. Very exciting, no?

First up are the shipping details, courtesy of Adam fanblog AdamLogs. Looks like the person behind the blog has found that there's now a link to "Check Pre-Order Status" on the Notion Ink website. Once you do, you can find your details and a tracking link:

And once you ...

Jan

T-Mobile To Launch A Massive Pre-MWC Sale On February 11th - 12th

Posted by Josh Cooter in Deals, News, T-Mobile

T-Mobile is planning a huge sale on February 11th and 12th to kick off the new year, TmoNews learned today. According to a memo sent to T-Mo retail stores, "it is expected to be similar to the first half of the Father's day promotion," which reportedly reeled in over 100,000 new customer contracts last year.

Little else can be confirmed about the sale until more information is provided on February 8th, but we can be sure that it will be a knockout because each store is being told to "max out as many employees as possible for the first half ...

Jan

Launcher Pro Updated With Homescreen Transition Effects [Video]

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in Applications, Mods, News, Videos

Launcher Pro, my favorite launcher replacement, got updated today with a much requested feature - homescreen transition animations, available to all LP users, not just Plus. In addition to the usual and very smooth slide effect, we now have 4 more: Scale, Rotate, Flip, and Cube. All are smooth, except for the Cube transition, so I would advise against using it until Fede makes it a bit more snappy. Out of 5 transitions (including the regular slide), my favorite is definitely Flip. What's yours?

^{Excuse the poor frame rate in the screencast - unfortunately,}...

Jan

Samsung Galaxy S 4G, Android-Powered Sidekick 4G "Coming Soon" To T-Mobile

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Galaxy S 4G, News, Samsung, Sidekick 4G, T-Mobile

So it's true: Samsung and T-Mobile have indeed built an HSPA+ version of the Galaxy S, although it didn't cause the Android 2.2 update for their current offering, the Vibrant, to be held back (contrary to what some had assumed).

Unfortunately, we don't know much about the phone yet - in fact, all we've been told so far is that:

It'll be called the "Galaxy S 4G" (not the "Vibrant 4G," mind you).
It will feature full HSPA+ connectivity, meaning that it will be able to reach theoretical download speeds of up to 21 Mbps.

...