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Dolphin Browser has always been one of the better browser alternatives on Android, and with version 8.0, it's about to get a bit better. In addition to a nice even version number, the update adds a menu bar along the bottom of the browser, an improved Add-on sidebar that's not confusing to look at, and a shiny new Dolphin button for easy access to the Dolphin Sonar and Gesture features.
Spacetime Studios, creator of hit game Pocket Legends, has released a new MMO for those of you who want to role play on the go: Dark Legends. In this vampire-themed game, you play as a demon of the night on the run as the world of humans has suddenly figured out that vampires are real. Apparently, in this world, smashing trucks, killing wildlife, and large-scale battles with wolves will inevitably end up on YouTube. Yes, what I'm saying is this game is more believable than Twilight*.
Kindly refrain from drooling into your keyboards for a moment while we fill you in on today's deal: HTC's latest high-end phone, the One X, packing 32GB of storage, Android 4.0, a 1.5Ghz quad-core processor and an unlocked GSM radio is currently available from Daily Steals for 9. For those of you who buy your phones unlocked, grab your wallets.
[Updated: Here Are The Winners!] Giveaway: Another One For The Fanboys - Win One Of Ten Free "My Android Eats Apples" Shirts, Or Get $5 Off ($7.99)
Giveaway: Another One For The Fanboys
Did you think we were done? Of course not! There are so many fanboys and fangirls out there to dress! Today's giveaway will inform all of the iOS-loving people around you that they may want to protect their gadgets, lest yours devour it for nutrition and tastiness. The shirt says it more eloquently than I do, though. Just like last time, if you don't want to wait to see if you'll win our giveaway, you can use coupon code "ANDROIDPOLICE" (no quotes) over at LOLshirts to get a $5 discount.
[Updated x2: Staten Island, St. Louis Now Live] AT&T Set To Activate LTE In 12 New Markets
AT&T Set To Activate LTE In 12 New Markets
AT&T's long, drawn out game of catch-up with Verizon is moving one step closer to completion. According to AT&T, Cleveland, New Orleans, Staten Island, and 9 other cities will be added to the list that will taste the sweet LTE waters "soon." The 12 markets are scheduled to receive LTE in "April, May and into the early summer."
Thanks again to the venerable JBQ of Google, the unmodified factory image of Android 4.0.4 for the Nexus S 4G (sojus, Android 4.0.4 IMM76D) is now available here. As JBQ states on Google+, this image is for those among you who have flashed to custom versions of AOSP and want to get back to factory state. No, by the way, there's still no word on an OTA update yet.
While we're all drooling over the One X (codenamed Evo 4G LTE on Sprint), HTC's new middle child is working its way into the US markets. TmoNews has acquired some leaked slides that declare rather confidently that the HTC One S will land on T-Mo on April 25th, keeping its surname. The date, TmoNews notes, is a Wednesday which T-Mobile is typically known for favoring as a launch day.
Break out your Dr. Evil jokes, if you've got any left. Facebook just announced that it will be acquiring Instagram, the popular photo-sharing app and recent addition to the Play Store family, for a cool billion dollars. You read that right. With a "b". Billion. To answer all the critics who were wondering what's so cool about Instagram: a billion dollars.
Ever since we started calling camera phones "phones," we've been trying as hard as we can to replace as much of our prohibitively expensive camera equipment as we can. Our phones' sensors have been beefed up to "actually pretty good" quality, we've seen several different attachable lenses. Now, thanks to Kickstarter, we've also found the last camera mounting accessory we'll ever need: the Slingshot, which functions as handheld stabilizer, mini tripod, and professional tripod mount.
Android, as a platform, has an advantage in that apps designed for phones scale to tablets dynamically, so many are functional without a proper tablet interface. The disadvantage? Some developers take their sweet time making said tablet interfaces. Twitter, for example, is still a giant, stretched-out version of the phone app. Enter Plume, an app that sticks much more closely to the ICS design style guide.
Spring is coming. That means it's time to refresh your summer wardrobe. Get started with this shirt sporting a diagram of the scientific theory of Android evolution. We're giving away ten of these shirts to you, our lovely readers. If you've got a hot date this weekend, though, and you need to impress someone with your advanced techno-genetics in a hurry, you can use the coupon code "ANDROIDPOLICE" (no quotes) to get the shirt for $7.99.
Your down time is Zynga's bread and butter. Between Words with, Hanging with, and Scramble with Friends, Zynga has a pretty big monopoly on your social gaming. Today, the casual gaming giant is building out new territory in your world with a paid version of Scramble with Friends. This version removes those pesky ads and also doubles your token-earning fun. These tokens, by the way, are not the worst thing in the world.
In case you were wondering if a rebrand was the only thing Google was doing to set itself up as a content provider, rest easy. Google's still working at signing those content deals. Today's deal is with Paramount. You may remember Paramount as the company that likes to throw stars at you while you're flying over a mountain. This new content deal brings 500 movies to the Play Store, and surprise! They don't all suck!
They may not be available for sale yet, but Google would like you to know that the future is coming. Dubbed "Project Glass", Google has released some photos of what the now-confirmed Google Glasses might look like when released, alongside a video demonstrating how the UI might work. It's all just show and no tell right now, but it's enough to whet our appetite.
We've heard whispers that the powers that be have been working on a bulk subscription service for magazines. Now, they're finally delivering it. Next Issue offers users a very Netflix-like subscription service that includes unlimited access to current and some older issues of a selection of magazines for $10 a month. Or, for $15 a month you can get a slightly bigger selection of magazines. Yes, it's tiered.
As the old saying goes, "When it rains, it leaks ICS builds for a whole lot of Samsung devices on AT&T's network in a short time frame." At least that's how I learned the saying as a boy. While it didn't make sense then, now that Android 4.0.3 has been leaked for the Galaxy Note, rounding out the Samsung/AT&T trifecta of flagship devices, it all makes sense.
I hope you weren't attached to all that money that you've got sitting around. OnLive is currently running a sale on a selection of its games library. The game streaming company is offering up to 75% of the cost of lifetime licenses for a variety of games including Arkham City, Borderlands, Deus Ex: Human Revolution, and AaaaaAAaaaAAAaaAAAAaAAAAA!!! No, seriously.
Way back in the day, if you wanted to know if a piece of software was safe, reliable, or usable before you opened the package, you were out of luck. Once you rip that shrink wrap, you're stuck with it. The app markets of today are, by comparison, a breath of fresh air. A litany of user reviews let you know up front if a piece of software is crap or not before you download. Unfortunately, sometimes developers, like Noosoft Games, abuse this system by, as an example, using the Mechanical Turk system from Amazon to pay for 5-star reviews.
Google must be trying to warm my heart lately. After a video circulated of a legally blind man behind the wheel of Google's self-driving car made its rounds recently, Google now announces its Translator Toolkit. The new toolkit offers developers a suite of services for localizing their apps. This is the future we all dreamed of.
Begun, the camera shutter wars have. Ever since Samsung and Google debuted the Galaxy Nexus' zero shutter lag feature, handset makers have been cranking up their camera apps. Sony's Xperia S is a 12MP monster camera with a fast shutter, but the real speed demon here is the HTC One X. In the video below, the only area the One X loses is in not having a dedicated camera button. As a side note, manufacturers, why don't your phones with amazing cameras have dedicated camera buttons?