Nate Kimmey - 2/21 - Android Police - Android News, Apps, Games, Phones, Tablets

Apr

[Rumor] Is the Samsung SGH-T879 T-Mobile's Galaxy Note?

Posted by Nate Kimmey in Galaxy Note (GT-N7000), News, Rumors, T-Mobile

It's pretty clear that many consumers are interested in the gargantuan Galaxy Note. Unfortunately, it hasn't seen the same kind of mainstream success as the Galaxy S2 because only AT&T has had access to the device. But according to FCC filings and a user agent string obtained by TmoNews, T-Mobile is preparing a device that multiple pieces of evidence point to being the Galaxy Note.

First off, we have the screen resolution: 800 x 1280. It's possible that this could be a refreshed version of the Galaxy Tab, which features the same resolution, but it is most likely still the Note because it is listed in portrait orientation and is listed in other documents as a phone rather than a tablet.

Apr

CyanogenMod Restarts Nightly Builds For Most Supported Devices As New Servers Are Put To Use

Posted by Nate Kimmey in News

Just a few days ago, the CyanogenMod team informed us that their new servers - capable of building CM9 in nine minutes (although the majority of devices are limited to CM7) and purchased through generous donations - were just about ready to start cranking out nightly builds for supported devices. According the CM download site, the first wave of these nightly builds seems to have hit.

Definition: A "nightly" is a bleeding edge release that is built on a daily basis, usually at night after a full day's worth of new code has been committed.

It could oftentimes be unstable and not properly tested, lacking any changelogs, but eventually evolving into alphas, betas, release candidates, and finally stable releases.

Apr

[New App] SeekDroid Developer Releases Woot Check, A Fast, Beautiful, ICS-Inspired Woot App

Posted by Nate Kimmey in Applications, News

Whether you are trying to score a great deal or just read the product descriptions, you've probably used Woot before. In fact, there's a good chance you've already used the service on your Android device, as there are several Woot apps available in the Play Store. But Woot Check, a brand new app from GT Media, the developers of SeekDroid, takes things to an impressive new level.

Side note: Technically, Woot Check was GT Media's first app, but it wasn't anything special at the time and what you see here today is a completely rewritten product that benefitted from all the experience of developing SeekDroid.

Mar

Sony Releases Beta ICS ROM For Unlockable Xperia Play Models

Posted by Nate Kimmey in Ice Cream Sandwich 4.0, News, Xperia Play (Zeus, PlayStation Phone)

In a time when many users are wondering if an Android 4.0 update will ever come to their devices, it was a pleasant surprise that Sony was open enough to release a beta version of ICS for some of their devices - the Xperia Arc S, Neo V, and Ray. But they didn't stop there, as they have, "upon request," released a beta ICS ROM for the Xperia Play (or as you may know it, the PlayStation Phone).

As with the previous releases, this is certainly far from a final release. A number of features are missing, most notably Google Apps and Wi-Fi, though Sony says that most "basic functionality" is working.

Mar

[Rumor] Google's Cloud Storage Competitor, Drive, Could Launch In First Week Of April

Posted by Nate Kimmey in News, Rumors

It has been several years since the first rumors of Google's cloud storage service "Drive" started popping up, but for quite a while we didn't see any of them come to fruition. Just last month, however, we saw a leaked screenshot showing off the Drive logo and its interface, leading us to believe that an official launch wouldn't be too far off.

According to GigaOM's sources, Google plans to launch Drive in the first week of April, offering users 1 GB of storage space for free, with a charge for any more storage; rather paltry compared to Dropbox's free 2 GB of storage.

Mar

Samsung Galaxy S II Android 4.0 Update Coming March 15... At Least In Israel

Posted by Nate Kimmey in Galaxy S II, Ice Cream Sandwich 4.0, News

As the Galaxy S II is one of the best-selling Android devices to date, it's no surprise that many users are eagerly awaiting an update to Android 4.0. Samsung has already confirmed that it is in the works, and we've even seen a leaked build of what it could look like, but we've yet to hear an exact date that users can actually expect the update to roll out on.

Fortunately, Samsung Israel has taken to Facebook to announce that versions of the device in Israel - both unlocked and carrier-branded - will receive the update on March 15. While this is undoubtedly great news, the majority of Galaxy S II users will have to keep waiting, at least until Samsung announces a roll out for other areas of the world.

Feb

[MWC 2012] HTC Finally Reveals The "One" Series: One X, One S, And One V

Posted by Nate Kimmey in HTC, News, One S (Ville), One V (Primo), One X (Endeavor)

We've been hearing hints and rumors about HTC's plans for MWC for some time, but now we have finally gotten to see how they have re-invented. Enter the One series, a collection of three devices - the One X, One S, and One V.

All three are utilizing the redesigned Sense 4 over Ice Cream Sandwich. In addition to a host of new visual changes, Sense 4 includes new picture taking software called "ImageSense" that, in conjunction with new camera hardware, promises better pictures than any other phone.

HTC One X

The most high-end is the One X, with a 4.7" HD display, an 8 megapixel camera (with ImageSense - HTC's camera app, post-processing tech, and rapid-fire capture system), an NFC chip, and 1080p video recording.

Feb

[MWC 2012] Sony Unveils The Xperia P And Xperia U, Younger Brothers Of The Xperia S

Posted by Nate Kimmey in News, Sony, Videos, Xperia P (Nypon), Xperia U (Kumquat)

Sony's portfolio of non-Ericsson branded phones has just received two more additions, though they aren't much more than variations than the already-announced Xperia S.

The Xperia P features: a 4-inch "WhiteMagic" display, optimized for viewability in direct sunlight (for comparison, the Xperia S has a 4.3" display). It also features a 1 GHz dual core processor, 8 megapixel camera, NFC, and HDMI connectivity. The Xperia P will also launch alongside the SmartDock, which allows content on the phone's screen to be streamed to a TV.

The Xperia U is similar, but offers a nice alternative for those who aren't interested in the recent slew of giant phones.

Feb

The CyanogenMod Team Needs New Servers - Here's How You Can Help [Update: The Goal Has Been Met]

Posted by Nate Kimmey in Development, Ice Cream Sandwich 4.0, News

With over a million unique users, there's a good chance that some of you are running CyanogenMod right now. And if you've been running experimental nightly builds, you may have noticed that they've been getting updated more and more sporadically. According to a post at the CyanogenMod blog today, the problem will only get worse as CM9 and CM7.2 get closer to an official release.

The post explains that in order to get nightly builds released more frequently, the CyanogenMod team needs to purchase new servers, which aren't cheap. That's why they are asking the community for support. You can donate through PayPal at the bottom of the page here, and follow the CyanogenMod blog for further updates.

Feb

Google Employees Testing New 'Entertainment Device' - The First Steps Of Android@Home?

Posted by Nate Kimmey in News, Rumors

If you go all the way back to Google I/O 2011, you may remember the announcement of the Android@Home project, a system that would allow you to use an Android device to control lights, appliances, and other devices in your home. Since that announcement we haven't seen anything materialize, but a recent FCC filing by Google may give us a reason to renew hope for the project.

The filing calls for testing of an "entertainment device" between January 17 and July 17 of this year, to be distributed to 252 Google employees. But it's what the device apparently does that is so interesting - it will allow users to "connect their device to home WiFi networks and use Bluetooth to connect to other home electronics equipment." Sounds an awful lot like Android@Home, but it's hard to be sure.