Ryan Whitwam - 17/30 - Android Police - Android News, Apps, Games, Phones, Tablets

Ryan is a freelance tech writer, skeptic, lover of all things electronic, and Android fan. In his spare time he reads golden-age sci-fi and sleeps, but rarely at the same time. His wife tolerates him as few would.

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Nov

Hyperwave Review: There's A Lot To Like About Lasers

Posted by Ryan Whitwam in Apps/Games, Games, Reviews

There are only so many permutations of the scrolling arcade shooter, but that didn't stop developer CatfishBlues from taking a swing at it with Hyperwave. This is a top-down game that could pass for the spiritual successor to Space Invaders. You have to pilot your lone craft against all the glowing horrors of space to defend humanity. At least that's what the backstory is supposed to be. It's really just an excuse to shoot stuff, but that's okay.

Controls

Your ship in Hyperwave is restricted to moving left and right at the bottom of the screen. Auto-fire is always on, so you don't have to stress about that.

Nov

T-Mobile Updates Official Visual Voicemail App With Annoying Banner Ads

Posted by Ryan Whitwam in Applications, Apps/Games, News, T-Mobile

The nation's smallest national carrier has to score points with customers somewhere, and providing free visual voicemail has been one of those places. Some of the big players charge Android users a monthly fee for this feature. Well, T-Mobile has to defray the monstrously large costs of making your voicemail easier to access somehow, right? In the newest version of T-Mobile's official visual voicemail app, it has chosen to include banner ads. The users are not amused.

Instead of showing you a full list of your messages, the UI cuts off the bottom and instead displays a banner ad. The content is the usual kind of spam you see in other apps: dating sites, free apps that want your data, and products you'll never use.

Nov

[New Game] Hyperwave Is A Space Shooter Forged Entirely From Lasers

Posted by Ryan Whitwam in Apps/Games, Games, News

Hyperwave is a fast paced space shooter that might look a little familiar to you. This same glowing neon style was used in Hyperlight, a previous game from developer CatfishBlues. The two look similar, but the gameplay is quite different. Your goal in Hyperwave is to defend humanity from the luminous hoard of alien attackers as they bombard the defensive shields. It's reminiscent of Space Invaders with a few key differences.

This title relies on dual sliders to move the ship and aim the weapons at the same time. You can move over to one side to grab a shield refill while still keeping up your attack on a cluster of enemies back on the other side.

Nov

[New Game] Gameloft Teams Up With Hasbro To Launch Littlest Pet Shop With An Overdose Of Cute

Posted by Ryan Whitwam in Apps/Games, Games, News

Gameloft has figured out what's been missing from most of its recent games. No, it's not a business model that relies on something other than in-app purchases. Gameloft just hasn't been bringing enough cute to your phone. Well, they're setting that straight with Littlest Pet Shop, a game so overflowing with cute that you won't be able to resist giggling and clapping your hands like an 8 year-old girl.

As we all know, the cuteness of animated characters is directly proportional to the size of their eyes. Gameloft has figured this out with Hasbro's help, which is why all 150 collectable pets in Littlest Pet Shop are undeniably adorable.

Nov

[New App] 365Scores Brings You All The Sports News And Scores You Can Handle, And Looks Good Doing It

Posted by Ryan Whitwam in Applications, Apps/Games, News

Many of the sports news apps on Android are either lacking in features or are horrendously ugly. That's why 365Scores is currently storming the charts in Google Play. This app delivers all the news and scores for your favorite teams, and the UI is totally usable.

The app allows you to set your favorite teams so that it can deliver you relevant news. It gets live updated scores and even some video highlights from certain games. Push notifications can also tell you when your team gets a touchdown or your favorite soccer club scores a goal. 365Scores supports nine different sports: Soccer, Tennis, Basketball, Baseball, Football, Ice Hockey, Handball, Rugby and Volleyball.

Nov

Ong-Bak Game May Be Headed For Android To Kick Serious Butt

Posted by Ryan Whitwam in Apps/Games, Games, News

As any aficionado of fine martial arts movies knows, Ong-Bak is a pretty sick film. It has won praise for its snappy visuals and beautiful cinematography, which makes the news that it's becoming a game all the more exciting. According to developer Studio HIVE, Ong-Bak Tri is coming to PC and smartphones very soon. That more than likely means Android.

Ong-Bak Tri is going to be built on the Unity3D engine, which means it will have great lighting and animations. Because Unity is cross-platform, it should be easy to get the game on Android and iOS without reworking the whole thing.

Nov

Waking Mars Review: Bring Mars Back To Life One Awesome Alien Creature At A Time

Posted by Ryan Whitwam in Apps/Games, Games, Reviews

When you pick up your Android device to play a game, you're probably shooting stuff, jumping over stuff, driving stuff, or maybe flicking stuff. Lather, rinse, repeat. Sometimes these gaming tropes can be genuinely entertaining and clever, but it's all rather expected these days. Waking Mars takes a completely different approach. It's equal parts puzzle solving and adventure, with just a little platforming mixed in. It's a little expensive, but does it deliver?

Gameplay

The word of the day here is unique. Waking Mars seems at first like a generic adventure game, but it quickly becomes so much more. You control the least fortunate scientist in the solar system, who finds himself trapped in a series of underground Martian caves after a geologic event swallows up his basecamp.

Nov

[New App] Todoist Arrives On Android, Monthly Subscription Fee Included

Posted by Ryan Whitwam in Applications, Apps/Games, News

Android is far from the first platform Todoist has landed on, but fans of the service have been anxiously waiting. Todoist is a clean, snappy to-do list manager that has a ton of cloud features to keep your busy life under control. The app is free to use in basic mode, but the advanced features are gonna cost you.

The main interface in Todoist is just a super-minimalist task list organized in chronologic order. It is still recognizable as Todoist to anyone that has used it on other platforms, but it has enough Holo UI elements that it fits in nicely on Android.

Nov

Teardown Of Nexus 4 Finds World Band 4G LTE Chip That You Probably Can't Use

Posted by Ryan Whitwam in LG, News, Nexus 4

It was a little surprising to see Google announce a new Nexus device this year without LTE support. While LTE deployment is still lagging behind in many regions, the good old USA is fast becoming blanketed with speedy 4G. Now that the Nexus 4 is in the wild, iFixit has taken it apart, and you'll never guess what they found. Yes, a 7-band 4G LTE radio chip. The plot thickens...

The chip in question, the Qualcomm WTR1605L (highlighted in green above), supports all currently operating LTE networks around the world. This chip is probably a holdover from the LG Optimus G design, which the Nexus 4 is based on.

Nov

AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note II Drops To $249.99 ($50 Off) On Amazon Wireless

Posted by Ryan Whitwam in AT&T, Deals, Galaxy Note II, News

Do you have a hankering for a big phone? Before you answer, know that I'm talking about a massive mobile phone with a stylus here. Well, there's a big phone deal going on if you're willing to hitch your wagon to AT&T for two years. Yes, the Samsung Galaxy Note II is on sale for just $249.99.

The Note II is selling for $300 or more on other carriers, and AT&T itself is still asking $300 from the unwashed masses. But you know better, right? Just head over to Amazon, and you can get the black or white version of the device and save fifty bucks.