David Ruddock - 19/147 - 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.

Follow @rdr0b11

Mar

US Cellular Galaxy S III And Note II Being Updated To Software Build MB1

Posted by David Ruddock in Device Updates, Galaxy Note II, Galaxy S III, Jelly Bean 4.1, US Cellular

US Cellular's variants of the Galaxy S III and Note II are slated to receive OTA updates to the MB1 build, which includes a bump to Android version 4.1.2 for the GS IIII (the previous Note II update here, previous GS III update here).

The Galaxy S III's release notes indicate only two changes: the aforementioned increase in OS version, and a fix for audio when playing streaming media (this may fix a long-reported issue with Netflix playback on the device).

Galaxy S III

Build JR003L.R530UVXMB1 - Android 4.1.2
Release Notes

Items updated, added, removed from the device:

Android version Jelly Bean upgrade to v4.1.2

Fixed audio issue with streaming media

The changes built into the Note II's update (build R950VXAMB1) are unknown, as it was already running Android 4.1.2.

Mar

[New Game] Pixel Kingdom Emerges From Kickstarter A Refreshingly Simple, Fun, And Lovable Take On Strategy

Posted by David Ruddock in Games, News

Pixel Kingdom was a Kickstarter game project with a rather unambitious goal of $5000 in funding - a goal it met, with $800 to spare. The game was funded on February 11th, and now, a month later, has launched on Android.

Pixel Kingdom is deceptively simple, in the best way. I often lament the state of mobile games, but PK is a refreshing effort at not taking oneself too seriously, and instead just focusing on fun. The game has three control actions you can use while playing (select a unit to spawn, pick a lane to spawn it, and boost your mana regeneration rate), and your little soldiers attack and advance all on their own.

Mar

Uber's New Android App Update Is Absolutely Beautiful, Refuses To Be A Slave To 'Design Guidelines'

Posted by David Ruddock in Applications, Apps/Games, News

I readily admit that I'm not exactly on board with the notion that every Android app should conform to 'holo' aesthetics, or Android's 'design guidelines.' I think that such a view is inherently limiting to the creativity of developers, and ignores the fact that while there are many objectively bad ways to do software UI/UX, there are nearly as many good ways, too. And lest we forget: even Google doesn't always get these things right.

So, Uber (a taxi service that is revolutionizing the business, if you've not heard of it) updated its app to version 2.0 today, and the result?

Mar

DIRECTV Releases Awesome Android Tablet App And, Unsurprisingly, It Doesn't Work With The Nexus 7

Posted by David Ruddock in Applications, Apps/Games, News

Hey, are you a DIRECTV customer? Do you own an Android tablet? Then I might have some good news for you: DIRECTV just released an app for tablets, and it does all sorts of awesome stuff. You can watch live TV (only some channels!) on your home network, and some (read: fewer) channels from anywhere with an internet connection. You can browse listings, set and control your DVR, and even change the channel on your set top box - this really is an app absolutely busting at the seams with great features.

However, DIRECTV has thought it wise to make this app unavailable to 7" tablets (at least for now).

Mar

Sprint Officially Announces Optimus G Jelly Bean (Android 4.1.2) Update

Posted by David Ruddock in Device Updates, Jelly Bean 4.1, Optimus G, Sprint

While it began to trickle out to a few users at the end of February, the Android 4.1 upgrade for Sprint's Optimus G remained unannounced up until today. Here's the official changelog:

Enhancements/Fixes

- Android 4.1.2 Jellybean
- Google Now™
- Expandable, actionable notifications
- Android Beam™ to send photos and more
- QuickTranslator application downloadable from the Application Manager
- Smoother user interface. Vsync timing across all drawing and animation done by the Android framework, including application rendering, touch events, screen composition and display refresh; and triple buffering in the graphics pipeline.
- User-installable keyboard maps
- Ability to turn off notifications on an app specific basis
- Shortcuts and widgets can automatically be re-arranged or re-sized to allow new items to fit on home screens
- Bluetooth data transfer for Android Beam
- Improved voice search
- Improved camera app
- Android mobile version of Google Chrome replaces stock Android browser
- Ability for other launchers to add widgets from the app drawer without requiring root access

Interestingly, this build is labeled as LS970ZVA, whereas the build that was rolling out to some users in February was LS970ZVB.

Mar

[Download And Manual Update Instructions] Install The Android 4.1 Jelly Bean Update For The AT&T HTC One X

Posted by David Ruddock in Development, Device Updates, Jelly Bean 4.1, Tips & Tutorials

Update: It seems these instructions aren't working for most people. Until another method is found, you'll have to wait for the OTA update to be pushed to your device.

Still waiting for that Android 4.1 OTA on your AT&T HTC One X? Well, wait no more: you can manually flash the update to your stock AT&T HTC One X running the latest firmware using the following instructions (your data will not be wiped).

~~What you'll need:~~

~~The update file:~~

~~OTA_EVITA_UL_JB_45_S_Cingular_US_3.18.502.6_0.24p.32.09.06_10.130.32.34...~~

Warning: Proceed at your own risk - we aren't responsible for any lost data or damage that occurs to your phone while using the information in this post.

Mar

Motorola Officially Announces Android 4.1 Jelly Bean Update For DROID RAZR And RAZR MAXX

Posted by David Ruddock in Device Updates, Jelly Bean 4.1, News, RAZR / RAZR MAXX

It's been a long time coming, but Motorola today officially announced that the Android 4.1 (aka Jelly Bean) update for the DROID RAZR and RAZR MAXX will be rolling out in phases soon. The update brings all the Android 4.1 trimmings you may have already come to know and love, like Google Now, enhanced rich notifications, and more.

This update is also supposedly heavily de-bloated in terms of Moto's old don't-call-it-BLUR software suite, with many apps having been replaced with their Google-made counterparts. Here's Motorola's detailed changelog:

New User Interface

Look and Feel: Updated colors, font, icons, and animations.

New Features

Google Now: Added feature that generates real-time notifications throughout the day with relevant, contextual information such as weather, traffic, calendar.

Mar

[New Game] SNK Releases Metal Slug X For Android

Posted by David Ruddock in Games, News

Get ready for more run and gun action - SNK has just released another of its acclaimed Android ports of the Metal Slug series on the Play Store. Metal Slug X joins Metal Slugs 1, 2, and 3 on Android, and there's no reason to think it won't live up to the awesomeness of its sister titles.

Metal Slug X is actually a bit of an oddity in this, the era of patches and DLC, because it technically wasn't a new game when it came out. Metal Slug X is a reworked version of Metal Slug 2 that fixed many problems with the second release in the series, offered significantly more content, and added numerous gameplay enhancements.

Mar

[Update 2: It's Back] AT&T Announces One X Jelly Bean (Android 4.1) Update Is Rolling Out Today

Posted by David Ruddock in AT&T, Device Updates, Jelly Bean 4.1, One X (Endeavor)

Update 2: The blog post is back, and the update should be rolling out today!

Update: It sounds like the blog post announcing the update was published erroneously, and has since been pulled down. While that's definitely a bit of a disappointment, it does mean that the update should be headed out very soon. Just not today. Bummer.

AT&T just announced that its version of the HTC One X will be receiving an update to Android 4.1 starting today. Here's the brief changelog that AT&T has published, which basically just explains Google Now and the new rich notifications of Android 4.1, along with a tweak to the front-facing camera.

Mar

Chrome Beta For Android Now Supports Password Sync And Autofill [Updated]

Posted by David Ruddock in Applications, Apps/Games, News

Update 3/6/13: Chrome Beta was just updated once again with fixes to short flings that used to decelerate too quickly, password sync, and last but not least - broken Nexus 7 compatibility:

Chrome Beta for Android has been updated to 26.0.1410.28. This release contains a few new fixes including:

180205 - Short flings decelerate too quickly

180396 - Allow Nexus 7 to update to Chrome 26

180403 - Fix password sync for users upgrading from Chrome 25 (This fix will roll out over the next few days)

If you're using the beta channel of Chrome for Android, you're in for a treat today: Chrome for Android now supports password sync and autofill, two awesome features that should make your mobile browsing life a lot easier.