September 2011 Archives

Sep

Lenovo Announces Gingerbread-Powered IdeaPad A1, Starting At Just $199

Posted by Cameron Summerson in IdeaPad A1, News

If you're looking for an affordable Android tablet that won't break the bank, look no further than Lenovo's new IdeaPad A1, which was announced today at the IFA Conference. It may not be top of the line, but for the price point, this little guy is definitely going to be a hard one to beat. Have a look at the specs:

7 -inch 1024x600 display
1GHz Cortex A8 processor
8GB, 16GB, or 32GB storage
SD Card reader and microSD card reader
3MP rear shooter
VGA front camera
Android 2.3

The eight-gigger will set you back $199, while the 16GB and 32GB variants will be $249 and $299 respectively.

Sep

O'Reilly's Android Open Conference Is Happening October 9-11 - And We're Giving Away Two Tickets ($1295 Each)

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Contests / Giveaways, Dev, News

Last Updated: September 10th, 2011

Android Open

Over the past few years, Android has grown from a small project in Palo Alto, CA into the most popular smartphone platform on the planet. As such, developers all over the world have taken interest in the platform, providing us with some pretty amazing apps along the way.

O'Reilly Media thought it was about time for a conference to encourage, nurture, and help developers that encompasses the entire Android ecosystem -- everything from app building to revenue models, and what goes under the hood. With that thought, Android Open was born, and this year, Android Police is one of Android Open's media partners.

Sep

Gingerbread Update Rolling Out To The Motorola Droid 2 Now

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Droid 2, News

It has been quite a while since we heard anything about the Gingerbread update for the original Motorola Droid 2 (not Global), but it looks like VZW and Moto finally finished it up and it has received the stamp of approval, as it's rolling out in OTA fashion as I type this.

Changelog:

New Download Manager
App and Power Management Details
Multi-touch key-chording
Improved word selection copy functionality
New UI and color scheme
New dock icons
App groups
Improved security
Improved battery life while using Wi-Fi
Fixed issue that caused frequent data connection drops
Mobile Hotspot status is displayed accurately
Improved email application
Correct contact name is displayed when receiving SMS messages
Emoticons are displayed in messages
Forward SMS message conversations accurately
Notification LED will flash when new message is received
Access My Verizon without any force close errors
Compass calibration within Google Maps syncs accurately with your location
Geo-tagging features available for camera applications
Clock widget updates time correctly
Callback numbers now populate in Dialer app
GPS apps and programs no longer cause unnecessary device resets
Google Books is now preloaded
V CAST Apps is now preloaded
V CAST Media Manager is now preloaded
Blockbuster® movie rentals license remains active after download
Keypad backlight turns on in darker settings
Improvements in screen display no longer causes display screen to turn black
Fixed issue that caused factory resets when the device’s mobile number is changed
Fixed issue that caused device reset and a black display screen after over the air upgrades.

Sep

Toshiba Excite Is Official: 7.7mm, 1.2Ghz OMAP, And Up To 64GB Of Storage

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Excite X10 / AT200, News

We've been hearing about Toshiba's new ultra-thin tablet for about a week now, and the Japanese manufacturer made it official at today's IFA event. Known as the AT200 Excite, this ultra thin tablet is quite impressive in spec and size, considering it's thinner and lighter than the Galaxy Tab 10.1, yet still manages to include microSD, microUSB, and microHDMI.

Full specs:

10.1-inch 1280x800 LCD display
1.2GHz dual-core OMAP 4430
1GB DDR2 RAM
Built-in storage up to 64GB
microSD, microUSB, and microHDMI (!)
5MP and 2MP cameras
7.7mm, 558g
Up to 8 hour battery life
Android 3.2

The Excite is set to land in Europe in Q4 2011, with no word of US availability of price at this time.

Sep

WakeVoice Is A Brilliant Alarm Clock - And 20 Lucky Readers Can Win A Free Copy

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Applications, Contests / Giveaways

Last Updated: September 6th, 2011

WakeVoice

There are dozens of alternative alarms out there, but ever since I discovered WakeVoice way back in November, it's been my favorite. The biggest reason: I can lay in bed for a few minutes after I wake up and not feel bad about it since WakeVoice reads me the weather and news (it can also read your horoscope and, depending on your phone, your calendar). The app uses the stock Android speech synthesis voice, but third-party voices are linked from within the app and can be purchased. Better still, WakeVoice features voice recognition. Rather than having to find your phone to hit "Snooze" or "Stop," you can just say it using voice commands.

Sep

Samsung Announces Galaxy Tab 7.7 With Android 3.2 And A Super AMOLED Plus Display

Posted by John Thompson in Galaxy Tab 7.7, News

Thanks to Samsung's Unpacked app, we already knew that the South Korean company would be announcing the Galaxy Tab 7.7 today, but now we have official confirmation along with a full list of specs to match.

It goes without saying that the latest addition to Samsung's tablet family will have a 7.7-inch display, but this display will pack a resolution of 1280 x 800, the same as the recently announced Samsung Note smartphone.

The new Tab's similarities with the Note carry over in to the specs as well; both devices have a dual-core 1.4GHz processor and a 2-megapixel front facing camera, although the rear camera on the Tab 7.7 is just 3-megapixels.

Sep

Samsung Unveils The 5.3-inch Galaxy Note With A 1280 x 800 Super AMOLED Display And An "S Pen"

Posted by John Thompson in Galaxy Note, News, Samsung

No, that isn't a typo in the title - Samsung has indeed just unveiled a 5.3-inch phone, the 'Galaxy Note', at IFA 2011 to join the rest of its growing Galaxy family. The insanely big device doesn't just stop there, though, as Samsung has paired it with one of its Super AMOLED displays at a resolution of 1280 x 800. That happens to be the same resolution as my 13-inch laptop, so you get an idea of just how sharp this thing is, with a pixel density of 285ppi.

Running the show from behind the scenes, there is a dual-core 1.4GHz processor and 1GB of RAM.