Jaroslav Stekl - 7/47 - 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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Dec

[Updated x3] HTCDev.com Now Unlocking HTC Rezound, Vivid, Jetstream, Rhyme, And All HTC Devices Released After Sept 2011

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Development, HTC, Jetstream, News, Rezound, Rhyme, Vivid

Last Updated: December 29th, 2011

HTCDev.com has been unlocking the bootloaders of select HTC smartphones for some time now, but up until today, the Rezound was not among their ranks.

Update #1: HTC Vivid is unlockable as well - thanks again for the tip, jcase.

Update #2: HTC just updated the bootloader unlock site and announced that "All HTC Android devices launched after September 2011 are unlockable. The website will be updated accordingly to reflect this in the coming weeks. We continue to work on models launched prior to September 2011, please check back often for the status of older devices."

Here's the changelog if you will:

We've confirmed the Jetstream is also unlockable.

Dec

ZAGGsparq 2.0 6000mAh Portable Battery Review: Powerful On Paper, Underwhelming In Practice

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Other Reviews, Reviews

The stakes for the ZAGGsparq 2.0 aren't low -- after all, the 6000mAh charger won not one, but two innovation awards at CES 2010, and its claim to charge a smartphone up to four times is downright stunning. But underneath the shiny black exterior and all the fancy marketing prose, is it really all that? Well, not quite...

At A Glance

The ZAGGsparq 2.0 features:

6000mAh of juice
Dual charging ports -- one labeled "general," and the other "optimized"
Compatibility with both phones and tablets

The Good

6000mAh – It’s not the most powerful or juice-filled portable battery we’ve come across, but with 6000mAh under its hood, the ZAGGsparq 2.0 still isn’t anything to scoff at… at least not on paper.

Dec

[Exclusive] How To Easily Root The Amazon Kindle, Regardless Of Its Software Version

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Amazon, Development, Exclusives, Kindle Fire, News

Last Updated: June 5th, 2012

Update: Justin has repackaged the Kindle Fire root app apk, removing encryption and open sourcing the file.

Update: BurritoRoot may not work on version 6.0 firmware. If you're having trouble, update your firmware and try again.

On the historic date of December 20th, 2011, Amazon pushed out software version 6.2.1 to its Kindle Fire. The update was fairly minor -- its main additions had to do with improved scrolling and WiFi passwords -- but it brought about one devastating change: it broke all previous methods of root.

Seeing the issue, our own Justin Case got right to work; and after a night's worth of coding, with a group of fellow devs helping him through the testing process (namely, Vashypooh, Trevor Eckhart, and IOMoster), he developed a new method to root the Kindle Fire -- a method that works not only on software 6.2.1, but on all currently known versions of the Fire's OS (future updates make break this).

Dec

[Update: Now Available In The Market] NVIDIA Posts Gameplay Video For Tegra 3 Edition Of Shadowgun, We Gape In Admiration

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Games, News, Videos

Last Updated: January 29th, 2012

Update: The Tegra-3 optimized version just landed in the Android Market. If you're one of the lucky ones who has a Transformer Prime (or has one on the way), then get ready for some amazing graphics.

Shadowgun THD

The very first quad-core Tegra 3 tablet will be launching soon, and with it comes the promise of a whole new class of Android games. We've already previewed a few such masterpieces; now, with the release of MADFINGER GAMES' Shadowgun, we can add another to the roster.

And what a stunning addition it is! As you can see, its graphics are nothing short of stunning, and the frame rate appears to be smooth as can be.

Dec

The First Fruits Of The Nuance-Swype Buyout Come To Light: Swype Updated With Dragon Dictation And Improved Language Modeling

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Applications, Apps/Games, News

Nuance, the company behind Dragon Dictation, bought out Swype almost three months ago, but the results of the deal haven't really been exposed since. No longer -- Swype has just been updated with a "Dragon Flame" key that, when pressed, initiates a voice-to-text system provided by none other than Dragon Dictation. In its current form, it features support for French, Italian, German, and English, with Swype representatives claiming more languages are on the way in 2012.

Additionally, Swype's language modeling algorithm has been improved. What's that mean? In the company's words, this will "increase the accuracy of the suggestions we offer (such as knowing that you mean 'mosh pit' instead of 'mosh pot')." The system analyzes your writing and shapes its predictions around the context of your sentences.

Dec

Episode 1 Of Duke Nukem 3D Free For The Next Two Days

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Apps/Games, Deals, Games, News

Duke Nukem 3D, the good ol'-fashioned 1991-style Android FPS, is quite the game: sure, the plot is focused on invasion by sex-crazed aliens, but as the developers themselves said in the app's Market description, "that's what makes it fun!"

And for the next two days, the game is completely free, down from $0.99! Of course, if you want to try out episodes 2 and 3, you'll still have to cough up an additional $0.99 a pop - but still, it's not a bad deal considering the game's rather impressive quality.

Better still, this version of Duke Nukem 3D is free not only of charge, but also of ads - and you won't have to jump through any hoops to obtain it, either; simply scan the barcode below or click the Market link to get started.

Dec

Dropbox Preview Build 1.3.0.6 Now Available On The Dropbox Forums

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Apps/Games, News

Everyone knows and loves Dropbox, and with build 1.3.0.6, its Android version is about to get even better. For now it's but a preview -- a "forum build," by official Dropbox terminology -- though we'd expect that to change soon, as in my experience it seems quite stable.

The main addition here is "optimization" for Android 4.0, presumably consisting mainly of performance tweaks. Additionally, the update features:

support for foreign languages
quick offline access to files ("favorites")
the ability to bulk upload photos and videos
the option to rename files and folders
single-tap access to all file and folder actions
an improved gallery
uploading from and exporting to local storage
the obligatory bug fixes

Interested?

Dec

TeamWin Releases TWRP 2.0, A Highly Customizable Touchscreen Recovery

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Development, News

TeamWin, the developers who originally developed CyanogenMod's WiMax compatibility, have been working on TWRP (Team Win Recovery Project) for a while now, and have just released the second iteration of the custom recovery.

TWRP 2.0's most notable new feature is without a doubt its touchscreen-centric GUI -- while this isn't a first, it certainly is extremely convenient: gone are the days of "scrolling" through lists with super-stiff volume buttons and selecting items with a click of the power button; with TWRP 2.0 you can simply tap and be there!

Other than that, most of the other new TWRP 2.0 developments concern bugs and glitches in the original version of the recovery, so we shan't spend any more time on them; instead, let's take a look at some of TWRP's core features, as listed on TeamWin's website (these were present in the original iteration as well):

Ability to save custom recovery settings
Touchscreen driven with real buttons and drag-to-scroll
XML-based GUI that allows full customization of the layout – true theming!

Nov

Off-Contract Virgin Mobile USA Wildfire S On Sale For $99.99 (Half Off) Till November 26th

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Deals, HTC, Virgin Mobile, Wildfire S / Wildfire 2 (Marvel)

OK, so it might not be the Galaxy Nexus, but HTC's Wildfire S for Virgin Mobile is a fairly decent smartphone (the carrier's second best option), and it is available off-contract for a fraction of the price of a more high-end handset. Under regular circumstances, the device comes in at just $199.99 without any sort of contract, but from now until Saturday (November 26th), it's half off - $99.99.

Again, that's less than a Benjamin for a fully off-contract Wildfire S, complete with:

Android 2.3 (Gingerbread)
WiFi/3G radios
Bluetooth
A 3.2-inch touch screen
A microSD card slot
A 5.0MP camera
A battery good for 4 hours of talk time/12.5 days of standby

Admittedly, those specs don't quite make for a flagship handset, but then again, it costs under a seventh of the off-contract price of, say, the Galaxy Nexus.

Nov

Unlocked GSM Galaxy Nexus Now On Sale At Expansys.com... For $750

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Galaxy Nexus, Google, Ice Cream Sandwich 4.0, Samsung

Not in the mood to wait around for Verizon to finally decide to put a firm release date on the Galaxy Nexus' head? Tied to one of the other carriers? If your answer to either of those questions was affirmative (and if you have three-quarters of a grand lying around), you'll be delighted to know that Expansys just put up a page from which customers can purchase the I9250 GSM variant of the Samsung Galaxy Nexus.

At $750, it won't come cheap, but as this is an "intermational" handset (Expansys' "be first" motto apparently means it doesn't dedicate much time to proofreading), you'll be able to use it on both AT&T and T-Mobile.