David Ruddock - 130/143 - Android Police - Android News, Apps, Games, Phones, Tablets

David Ruddock

David's phone is an HTC One X+. He is an avid writer, and enjoys imparting a legal perspective on Android news where it is relevant. He also doesn't usually write such boring sentences.

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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, and power buttons
Full-size SD card slot

The Toshiba tablet is definitely packing some serious heat in the features department, and it's only the second Android tablet I've seen that I might genuinely be interested in buying.

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 that "debunks" Mueller's additional files clearly know a lot more about code than I do.

Jan

Dell Streak 7 Probably Landing On T-Mobile February 2nd

Posted by David Ruddock in News, Streak 7, T-Mobile

Last Updated: August 13th, 2011

While we weren't exactly impressed by the Streak 7 at CES, Dell's upcoming tablet successor to the similarly-named phone may be arriving on T-Mobile rather soon - say, February 2nd. A photo of an internal T-Mobile document (courtesy of TmoNews) taken by the world's worst photographer all but makes official a February 2nd release date for the 4G tablet.

If you'd rather not squint, I'll just quote the text in question:

Mobile Broadband - Dell Streak 7 (NEW) Kiosk ... (NEW for 2/2)

... Mobile Broadband - Dell Streak 7 Counter Sign ... (NEW for 2/2)

While these are just advertising materials, typically something as substantial as a full kiosk requires you have a working demonstration device to go with it, which usually don't show up until the product is actually on sale.

Jan

Samsung's Budget-Minded Galaxy Mini Revealed, Has Froyo - Cue Angry Mob

Posted by David Ruddock in Galaxy Mini (Tass), Galaxy Q, News

We won't lie - it's a slow news day in the world of Android. And with all the bad press Samsung's been getting today over an alleged filing of a class-action suit regarding the Froyo update on US Galaxy S phones, we're going to stay on the lighter side of things (for now).

Meet the Samsung Galaxy Mini. Isn't it adorable? Unfortunately, its diminutive size comes with an equally diminutive feature list:

240x320 screen (presumably less than or about 3" in size)
Android 2.2.1
Bluetooth 3.0
Device measures 4.3" x 2.4" approximately
microSD slot
TouchWiz UI

I can't imagine there's a Hummingbird buzzing inside this little guy, so it'll be interesting to see if the TouchWiz UI overlay makes the phone unbearably slow.

Jan

Editorial: The Nexus One: One Year Later

Posted by David Ruddock in Android OS, Editorials, Google, Nexus One (Passion)

It doesn't seem like it, but just a year and a few days ago, Google made available the first handset to bear the Nexus name - and what a long way we've come since. When the Nexus One was released, there were cries of "iPhone killer" and of Google entering the handset arena in direct competition with Apple. While the latter assertion remains debatable - the first does not. The Nexus One was a near-total commercial failure next to the iPhone 3GS, and even the original Motorola DROID ate the Nexus One for breakfast in terms of sales.

But the Nexus One changed so much about Android, and the design philosophies of the phones that followed it.

Jan

Motorola Atrix 4G Coming To AT&T March 1st?

Posted by David Ruddock in AT&T, Atrix 4G (Olympus), News

Android Central has managed to get their hands on an internal AT&T database entry for the upcoming Motorola Atrix 4G - and it looks to be coming sooner rather than later. The image, shown below, indicates a possible launch date of March 1, which is quite a lot sooner than I think many people were expecting.

This is good news for AT&T customers (like myself), as the nation's number two carrier has until recent announcements at CES been the least Android-friendly provider in the US in terms of handset selection. The Atrix 4G is undoubtedly one of the most ambitious smartphones to date, combining dual core Tegra performance with its truly awesome laptop docking station.

Jan

Asus's Android Tablets May Ship With Honeycomb After All, Says Asus

Posted by David Ruddock in ASUS, Honeycomb 3.0/3.1/3.2, News

Last Updated: January 14th, 2011

In what is the most carefully-worded way of saying "we don't know" I've seen in a while, Asus's UK marketing manager John Swatton has told Pocket-lint that the company's new Android tablets will be shipping with Honeycomb "if Honeycomb is available." The reason for the uncertainty? Swanson seems to be suggesting that Motorola's XOOM has been given special treatment by Google, while Honeycomb remains unavailable to most, if not all, other tablet manufacturers. Swatton says, "When our tablets launch, they will launch with the latest version of Android whatever that is."

Asus's Android tablets, the Eee Pad Transformer and the Eee Pad Slider, will be launching in April and May, respectively.

Jan

Editorial: iPhone 4 Is Coming To Verizon Wireless - Should Android Be Worried?

Posted by David Ruddock in AT&T, Editorials, News, Verizon Wireless

The big question on everyone's mind (well, at least ours) today is: How will the iPhone coming to Verizon next month change the smartphone landscape? At this point, it's anyone's guess, but Android's unabashed domination on the US's largest wireless carrier will certainly be challenged in the coming months. However, there are significant forces at work that won't exactly help the iPhone with its Verizon debut - namely, Verizon and Android. That's not to say the Verizon iPhone won't be a success, it's just a question of exactly how much of a success it will be. Here's our take.

Upgrade or Downgrade?

Jan

Notion Ink Adam Pre-Order Shipments Delayed By FCC Certification

Posted by David Ruddock in Adam, News, Notion Ink

Red tape seems to be getting in the way of Notion Ink's plans to ship initial pre-order customers' Adam tablets today. An email sent to us by one of those pre-order customers this morning indicates that it is the FCC's certification process which has put the brakes on the Adam's release:

Greetings from the Notion Ink Support Team!

This e-mail is to inform you that your shipment is ready, but we are awaiting final FCC and CE numbers which are to be printed on the device before we can ship them to you. The Holiday season in December pushed the administrative work and it will be cleared within this week.

Jan

Nielsen Releases Smartphone Market Share Figures, Android Domination Imminent?

Posted by David Ruddock in Android OS, News

America's most trusted name in bar graphs, Nielsen, released an updated look at smartphone market share distribution today. The results aren't terribly surprising: Android is growing, and quickly at that. Blackberry's free-fall into the abyss has slowed to a steady death march. But what about Apple's fare?

Since the release of the iPhone 4 in June, Apple's total share of the smartphone market has increased by a paltry 0.7%, while Android has gained 10.8% more of the smartphone pie to reach 25.8% of the total - a mere 2.8% behind Apple, as you can see below.

Meanwhile, Android is outright dominating smartphone purchases made in the last six months, representing over 40% of all smartphones purchased since June.