Cameron Summerson - 57/259 - Android Police - Android News, Apps, Games, Phones, Tablets

Cameron Summerson

Cameron is a self-made geek, Android enthusiast, horror movie fanatic, and musician. When he's not pounding keys here at AP, you can find him spending time with his wife and kids, plucking away on the 6-string, or watching The Texas Chainsaw Massacre on repeat.

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Nov

[Deal Alert] LG Optimus G For AT&T And Sprint $99 ($100 Off) For New Accounts And Upgrades

Posted by Cameron Summerson in AT&T, Deals, News, Optimus G, Sprint

If you're looking to save a hundred bucks or so on the powerhouse Optimus G from LG on either AT&T or Sprint, Amazon Wireless is the place to be. The company just dropped the price of the device for both carriers down to $99, which is a fairly substantial savings for such a high-end device, especially compared to the $199 that both Sprint and AT&T are asking.

For those who may not be aware, the Optimus G has the same hardware guts as the Nexus 4:

Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro APQ8064 quad-core at 1.5GHz
GPU: Adreno 320
Network Compatibility: AT&T: GSM quad-band with LTE, Sprint: CDMA with LTE
Operating System: Android 4.0.4 with Optimus UI 3.0
Display: 4.7" TrueHD IPS+ 768x1280 (320DPI, 15:9)
Memory: 2GB RAM / 16/32GB storage (depends on model)
Cameras: 1.3MP front, 8/13MP rear (depends on model)
Battery: 2100mAh, non-removable
NFC: Yes
Ports / Expandable Storage: microUSB / microSD (AT&T model only)
Thickness: 8.45mm
Weight: 145g

As noted above, the big difference between the two is in the area of storage: the AT&T model comes equipped with 16GB on-board, as well as a 16GB microSD card; whereas the Sprint version has 32GB with no microSD card slot.

Nov

SPIGEN Coated Backpack Review: It's Like A Black Hole For Your Back

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Other Reviews

When it comes to gadget bags, I'm like a woman with purses: I have a selection to choose from. Not because I just love buying new bags all the time, but because I'm always on the hunt for something better, though ninety-five percent of the time, I have no idea what that "something" is. So I'm always open to new options.

Thus, when SPIGEN reached out to me to take a look at the newest member of their backpack lineup - the Coated Backpack ($99, SPIGEN, Amazon) - I was all in. Plus, I thought it would be good to see how they improved on the Kalasden series that I reviewed back in May.

Nov

Nexus 4 Toolkit Is Out - Simple Unlock, Root, Backup, Restore, And More

Posted by Cameron Summerson in News, Nexus 4

Maybe you already have your Nexus 4. Maybe you have to wait three more weeks to get it. Or maybe you didn't get one before they sold out. Regardless of your particular situation, if a Nexus 4 is in your future (or present), there's a pretty good chance you're going to want to root and ROM it. And, honestly, not everyone is comfortable doing this kind of thing manually. Good news: the Nexus 4 toolkit is here!

This toolkit comes from developer mskip, the same dev responsible for the incredibly useful Nexus 7 toolkit. Like its predecessor, the N4 toolkit is chock-full of useful features, making it easy for basically anyone to modify their device:

Nov

[Deal Alert] 64GB SanDisk Ultra MicroSD Card For $43 From Best Buy (Today Only)

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Deals, News

With the recent Nexus announcements, there has been an influx of users expressing how much they need a microSD card slot. If you're one of those people, and have that much stuff, then Best Buy's Deal of the Day is for you.

For the next four hours (at the time of writing this, of course), can you get a SanDisk Ultra 64GB microSD card for just $43. That's sixty-four geebees of storage for less than a buck a gig. Not too shabby.

Maybe now you can keep a third of your music collection or one sixteenth of all your movies with you at all times.

Nov

[Update: Winners] Seidio Active Case For The Nexus 7 Quick Review + Giveaway

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Contests / Giveaways, Other Reviews

Last Updated: November 24th, 2012

When I first got my Nexus 7, I ran it naked. Not because I had no other choice, but because I wasn't interested in any of the cases that were available at the time. Then, at the Big Android BBQ, I happened to see the new Active cases from Seidio ($35-45, SeidioOnline). I really liked the Active case for the Galaxy Nexus back when I reviewed it, and Seidio's offering for the Nexus 7 looks equally as protective and comes with a nifty cover/stand. Needless to say, I was intrigued.

After having used the case for the last few weeks, I have to say that I like it.

Nov

Titanium Backup Updated With Android 4.2 Support, Improved Update.zip Features, And More

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Applications, News

Several days ago, Titanium Backup received a pretty major update that brought the ability to create flashable update.zip files of your backups. Since the devs behind TB apparently never sleep, they just pushed another update to the app that brings several enhancements to the update.zip functionality, as well as support for Android 4.2:

What's in this version:

• Added the ability to batch restore system apps (not just data). See the new "Exclude system APKs" option.
• Added support for Android 4.2 (no multi-user support at the moment).
• [PRO] Added new "Exclude system APKs" option to the "app+data update.zip" creation job (enabled by default for safety).

Nov

Official ClockworkMod Recovery Now Available For The Nexus 4 And 10, Updated ROM Manager and Superuser, Too

Posted by Cameron Summerson in News, Nexus 10, Nexus 4

Wow, big day for root things on the Nexus 4 and 10, eh? First off, official ClockworkMod Recovery is now available for the pair, either directly from the CWM site or through ROM Manager, which was also updated today to support Android 4.2. While the latter can handle flashing the updated recovery, Koush himself advised users to flash via fastboot to avoid any potential issues with the process.

Koush also took it upon himself to update the Superuser application for 4.2, just until the original developer can get around to updating the official application in the Play Store. Alternatively, you can also flash SuperSU, which was developed by Chainfire.

Nov

HD Widgets Updated To v3.7, Brings Support For Android 4.2's Lockscreen

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Applications, News

HD Widgets, one of the nicest looking widget sets for Android, just got updated with support for the new lockscreen widgets in Android 4.2. This will add a bit more usefulness to the rather bleak set of stock widgets offered by Google for the time being, bringing information like weather, various toggles, battery status, and, of course, a slew of different clocks.

HD widgets is highly customizable, allowing users to choose from various backgrounds, fonts, colors, theme packs, and a lot more - so you should be able to find something that matches the look you're going for.

Nov

AT&T Talks Up Its LTE Rollout, Announces Ten New Markets

Posted by Cameron Summerson in AT&T, News

While Google may not be entirely ready to commit to LTE as the network that its current line of Nexuses will run on, three of the big four carriers seem to boast what they're up to in that department pretty consistently. Today, it's AT&T.

The company has just announced that not only does its LTE network cover "more than 150 million people across the U.S.," but also that it's ahead of schedule and plans on adding around 100 million more people to that number by the end of 2013. And another 100 million by the end of 2014.

To help reach that goal, they announced ten more LTE markets today:

If you're in any of the above areas, congratulations - you can now "do more faster."

Nov

[Update: Official Recovery] Here's How To Root The Nexus 4

Posted by Cameron Summerson in News, Nexus 4

We already know that Nexus devices are easy to unlock and root, but the process is still a bit different each time. Thus, XDA member HQRaja posted a handy guide on exactly how to root the Nexus 4.

There are two different ways of rooting the device - using either ADB with an insecure boot image, or directly through ClockworkMod Recovery. While both methods are posted in the source thread at XDA, the CWM method is undoubtedly easier and will probably feel more familiar to most. Ergo, we're going to focus on doing it that way.

First off, this requires working fastboot and adb.