Jaroslav Stekl - 24/47 - Android Police - Android News, Apps, Games, Phones, Tablets

Jaroslav Stekl is a tech enthusiast whose favorite gadgets almost always happen to be the latest Android devices. When he's not writing for Android Police, he's probably hiking, camping, or canoeing. He is also an aspiring coffee aficionado and an avid moviegoer.

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Jan

Hands-On Preview Of Android 3.0 'Honeycomb': The Android Tablet Era Begins Now

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Honeycomb 3.0/3.1/3.2, News, Other Reviews, Reviews

Last Updated: July 24th, 2011

Honeycomb is one of the biggest updates in Android history, so naturally, I jumped at the chance to try it out via the newly released Android 3.0 "preview SDK." What I found certainly wasn't disappointing - though it's important to remember that this is just a preview, meaning that not everything is in working order (for example, the emulator is so slow it made me want to tear my hair out at times, not to mention the frequent force close messages). Join us below for our first impressions of the new UI elements and other features found in Android 3.0 "Honeycomb."

The emulator's bootscreen is the same as it was for Android 1.6, 2.1, 2.2, etc.

Jan

Sony PlayStation Suite And PlayStation Store Official, Bring PSOne Games To Android Devices

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Games, News, Sony, Sony Ericsson

Sony's new PlayStation Suite isn't the PlayStation Phone (or the Xperia Play) we were expecting, but it's arguably something even better for those of us who love gaming but hate the idea of giving up our current Android device(s).

Sony claims that PlayStation Suite will offer "legendary original PlayStation content" and says it will be a "cross platform, cross device" PSOne emulator. In reality, it's limited to Android 2.3 and beyond - a version of Android only one currently available handset runs (and it's not Sony's own Xperia X10). Still, PS Suite does look intriguing, especially when you consider Sony's "PlayStation Certified" program for hardware manufacturers, which will, supposedly, ensure a high-quality gaming experience.

Jan

Motorola CEO Sanjay Jha: Atrix 4G, 3G XOOM Coming At The End Of February; Droid Bionic, LTE XOOM In Q2

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Atrix 4G (Olympus), Bionic, Motorola, News, XOOM

You could say Motorola's earnings call ended on a high note - the company's CEO, Sanjay Jha, told analysts that the Atrix 4G will be launching at the end of February, as will the 3G version of the XOOM. That doesn't quite line up with the rumors we've been hearing about a February 17th release, and Jha later added that the XOOM might even be bumped to a release in March if things don't go according to plan. Bummer.

As for the Droid Bionic and the LTE-capable version of the XOOM, Sanjay said those devices should arrive at the end of Q2.

Jan

Kongregate Makes A Few Tweaks To Its App, Submits It To The Android Market Once More

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Applications, News

Having your app unceremoniously pulled from the Market just a few short hours after it launches can certainly be discouraging, but the developers behind Kongregate Arcade didn't let that stop them from trying again.

Indeed, Kongregate Arcade has returned to the Android Market, albeit with a few tweaks intended to please Google. Most importantly, the app no longer downloads game data to users' SD cards; instead, the information is stored in the standard browser cache (Kongregate Arcade is actually a WebKit-based browser with some heavy modifications). Additionally, the address bar is visible when the app is loading a game (though it switches back to full-screen mode shortly afterward); in the original version, the URL was completely hidden from the user.

Jan

Android Gets Tired Of Sending Texts To Random People, Just Deletes Them Instead

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Android OS, News

Last Updated: January 28th, 2011

Though Google may have fixed two infamous SMS issues via the recent Android 2.2.2 and 2.3.2 updates, it appears at least one bug is still unconquered. Namely, some users are reporting that when they tap on the "New Message" alert in the notification bar, all their SMS conversations get deleted.

Our tipster experienced this on his HTC Desire Z, but he tells us that two of his friends - one using a Nexus One and the other on a Galaxy S - have come across the same bug. Additionally, several Google Code users have encountered this issue on their Motorola Droids, Droid Incredibles, EVOs, and other Android devices.

Jan

[Rumor] HTC Incredible 2 Launching In March; Motorola Droid Bionic, Droid X2 Coming In May

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Bionic, Droid X2, HTC, Incredible 2 (Vivow), Motorola, News, Verizon Wireless

Were the four phones (and the one amazing tablet) Verizon announced at CES not enough for you? Then you'll be happy to hear that Droid Life has unearthed two more devices headed Verizon's way: the Motorola Droid X2 and the HTC Incredible 2.

Unfortunately, the Droid X2 will not feature a LTE radio, although it will pack a 1GHz NVIDIA Tegra 2 processor. Interested? Droid Life says Verizon is planning to release the device in May.

As for the Incredible 2, it is said to be an improved version of HTC's original Incredible, complete with a larger screen and a global radio.

Jan

Nexus One 2.2.2 And Nexus S 2.3.2 OTAs Rolling Out - Hath The SMS Bug Finally Been Conquered?

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Froyo 2.2, Gingerbread 2.3, HTC, News, Nexus One (Passion), Nexus S (Crespo/Soju), Samsung

As disappointing as it may be to see the Nexus One - Google's first officially anointed developer phone - still getting Froyo-based updates, that's exactly what just happened. According to several Android Central forums members, a 558kb update to Android 2.2.2 (or build number FRG83G) is currently rolling out over the air to the N1, bringing "important bug fixes" with it.

In related news, the Samsung-built Nexus S - Google's second developer phone - also received an update today, though this one is Gingerbread-based. Its version number is 2.3.2, and, coincidentally, it is also said to bring "important bug fixes."

So here's the question: Given the fact that the two updates are rolling out at almost exactly the same time with the exact same description, could they both contain a fix to the infamous SMS bug?

Jan

Updated: Froyo Update For The Samsung Vibrant Rolling Out Now, Exclusively Via Kies

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Froyo 2.2, News, Samsung, T-Mobile, Vibrant

It appears that T-Mobile is staying true to its word when it comes the Android 2.2 update for the Samsung Vibrant - the much-anticipated software upgrade is now slowly but surely rolling out.

There's a catch, though: it's only available through Samsung's Kies Mini software (which runs exclusively on Windows - sorry, OS X users). We aren't yet sure if/when an OTA update will accompany this Kies Mini version, but here's what we do know: the update's build number is UVKA6, and it contains T-Mobile TV and WiFi calling in addition to all the usual Froyo goodies.

Update: T-Mobile confirmed that the update rollout has begun and posted upgrade instructions together with a handy FAQ right here.

Jan

Samsung Galaxy S 4G, Android-Powered Sidekick 4G "Coming Soon" To T-Mobile

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Galaxy S 4G, News, Samsung, Sidekick 4G, T-Mobile

So it's true: Samsung and T-Mobile have indeed built an HSPA+ version of the Galaxy S, although it didn't cause the Android 2.2 update for their current offering, the Vibrant, to be held back (contrary to what some had assumed).

Unfortunately, we don't know much about the phone yet - in fact, all we've been told so far is that:

It'll be called the "Galaxy S 4G" (not the "Vibrant 4G," mind you).
It will feature full HSPA+ connectivity, meaning that it will be able to reach theoretical download speeds of up to 21 Mbps. Up until now, T-Mobile's HSPA+ devices (the G2 and the myTouch 4G) have been limited to 14.4 Mbps.

Jan

[Hands-On] Zoom Widget Designer, An App By The Developer Of Tasker, Goes Into The Public Testing Phase

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in App Reviews, Applications, News, Reviews

Last Updated: July 24th, 2011

Introduction

Love using widgets? How about creating them? Zoom Widget Designer allows you to do just that, and it has something else going for it: it was made by the developer behind the excellent Tasker application - Crafty Apps. Better yet, Zoom will be fully integrated with Tasker in the future, so you will be able to make your custom Zoom widgets do just about anything your phone is capable of.

The app just went into public alpha testing, and if there ever was an Android app worthy of recognition, this is it. Let's take it for a spin, shall we?