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Jun

[Updated] EVO Shift 4G Gingerbread OTA Update Dropping June 17th

Posted by David Ruddock in EVO Shift 4G (Speedy), Gingerbread 2.3, HTC, News, Sprint, Tips & Tutorials

Update: The EVO Shift 4G will be getting this OTA on the 17th if you initiate the update check manually, and by June 20th, it should start rolling out to all devices automatically! So be on the lookout for it on Friday.

You thought we couldn't pack any more EVO exclusives in today? Well, you thought wrong! We've learned from our intrepid tipster, Captain Anonymous, another interesting tidbit this afternoon: EVO Shift 4G Gingerbread update (version 2.76.651.4) - June 20th. The EVO's younger sibling won't have any reason for version envy come Monday. Oh, Shift users will also be getting Swype as their new stock software keyboard option - so that's a plus, if you like Swype.

Jun

[CyanogenMod 7 Theme Roundup] Sexy Up Your Cyanogen With These Five Top-Notch Themes

Posted by Cameron Summerson in News, Other Reviews, Reviews

Last Updated: July 24th, 2011

As Android users, we have a certain amount of freedom with our devices - especially if you're running a rooted device with a custom ROM like CyanogenMod. One of those freedoms is the ability change the look of Android with themes. In the past, changing themes required booting into recovery, flashing a zip file, and rebooting. On occasion, the theme wouldn't work correctly, so if you didn't perform a backup before you flashed, you were basically out of luck. That all changed with the T-Mobile theming engine, though - and it wasn't long before it made its way into CyanogenMod. Thanks to this theming engine, themes can now be universal among devices and changed on-the-fly, so regardless of what device you're running, any of the themes built for Theme Chooser should work without a hitch.

Jun

[Review] The LG Revolution: Don't Let The Name Fool You; It's Just Alright

Posted by Brad Ganley in LG, News, Phone Reviews, Reviews, Revolution

Last Updated: July 24th, 2011

It's been a long time since my opinions on a device have been so torn. On the one hand, the Revolution is a pretty impressive piece of hardware, but on the other, there are some seriously annoying things about it (specifically some software elements - the lock screen makes me want to assault something adorable). All the handset's different aspects ultimately lead to one conclusion: MEH.

I can honestly say that this is the closest to not having an opinion I've ever come in regards to a device. Seriously, I'm EXTREMELY neutral here. More neutral than you, that's for sure. Let's see why:

Specs and Such

4G LTE
1GHz Snapdragon Processor
Android 2.2 (Froyo)
5MP Rear Camera
1.3MP Front Facing Camera
720p HD Video Recording
Mobile Hotspot Capability
Bluetooth 3.0
16GB SD card pre-installed and 16GB of internal memory

Doesn't sound too bad, does it?

Jun

Netflix Now Officially Compatible With Gingerbread-Running DROID X

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Applications, Droid X (Shadow), Motorola, News

Gingerbread-using DROID X owners, your handsets are excluded from the elite ranks of Netflix-compatible devices no more; a recent update to the official Netflix application added support for your 2.3-running phones. Unfortunately, the DROID X is the only Gingerbread handset (with the exception of the Nexus phones) currently compatible with the movie rental service - my EVO 4G, which received its official 2.3 update a few weeks ago, still can't access the app. Additionally, those DROID X users still running Froyo are left out of the fun. Bummer.

Nevertheless, if you're rocking an updated DROID X and feel like adding a touch of Netflix to your Gingerbread-infused phone, you can grab the app via the widget below.

Jun

[Update: It's Starting Now] Motorola Putting Finishing Touches On Gingerbread Update For Droid 2 Global, "Soak Tests" Could Begin As Early As This Week

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Droid 2 Global, News

Update: According the official VZW Support Twitter account, it looks like the update should be available sometime today. You can check for the update manually by hitting Settings > About Phone > System Updates, and don't forget to shoot us a tip when it hits your device. Let the frantic update-checking begin!

Motorola just released the Gingerbread update for the Droid X two weeks ago, and now it looks like the same update may be ready for the Droid 2 Global (sorry original D2 owners, you'll have to sit this one out). According to Droid-Life, the initial "soak test" could start as early as the end of the week for some lucky users.

Jun

Google Checkout Will Be Unavailable Today From 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM PT, So You Won't Be Able To Purchase Any Apps

Posted by Cameron Summerson in News

We just received an email from Android Market Support letting us know that Google Checkout will be down for scheduled maintenance from 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM PDT today. During this outage, you will still be able to see paid apps in the Market, but you won't be able to buy anything. So... if you were planning on dropping hundreds of dollars in the Market during the aforementioned hours today, you should probably get started a bit early... or wait until later. Your call.

Here's a copy of the email that we got, just in case you're interested in seeing it verbatim.

Jun

[Review] Doodle God Lets You Flex Your Omnipotence, Could Probably Have Used More Time In The Garden

Posted by Matt Demers in Apps/Games, Game Reviews, Games, Reviews

Last Updated: August 2nd, 2011

The Game

When distilled down to its base values, Doodle God is a large logic puzzle based on matching. You're given four elements (earth, air, water, fire) at the start of the game and can combine them to make things. Combining fire and air gets you steam, fire with water alcohol (firewater, har har), and many others.

From there, you can use the products of your matching to make other things, which is where the game gets most of its depth. There are over 200 different elements to find, and more being added all the time. This is the major selling point of the game, touting the ability to make fantastical creatures, like the front end of an airplane and the back end of a horse.

Jun

[Rumor] Motorola Droid/Milestone 3 Will Not Be Released In The UK, But The Motorola Pro Will?

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Droid 3, Droid Pro, Milestone 3, News, Pro

Rumors come and go everyday in the tech world, and some just don't make any sense. This one falls directly into that category, as the word on the street is that Motorola will not be releasing the Droid/Milestone 3 in the UK. There is no reason or justification as to why Moto may have made this decision, but (of course) there is speculation. UK tech blog Clove thinks that it could be because of the lackluster sales of the Milestone 2, or perhaps there just isn't much of a market for slide-out QWERTY devices, citing the demise of the HTC Desire Z in the UK as reasoning.

Jun

HTC Flyer Dock Shows Up At Best Buy, And It's Quite Sexy

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Flyer, News

It looks like HTC is on top of its game when it comes to accessories for upcoming devices: the dock for the HTC EVO 3D showed up in coming-soon-status at BestBuy.com last night, and now an ever-so-sexy dock for the Flyer has made an appearance there, as well.

It offers everything that you would expect from a dock: it keeps your device charged, makes turning your $500 piece of hardware into a $20 alarm clock a snap, and supports the MHL adapter via its rear port, so you can easily stream videos (or anything else you may want to stream) to your HDTV - all while looking good doing it.

Jun

The New Samsung Galaxy Tab Seven Is Coming This Fall, Will Run Gingerbread - Wait, What? Seriously?

Posted by David Ruddock in Galaxy Tab Seven, Gingerbread 2.3, News, Rumors, Samsung

CrunchGear is reporting that the Italian site HDblog has received exclusive details on Samsung's least-publicized new tablet product: the Galaxy Tab Seven (aka, the Galaxy Tab 2). The Seven will be the successor to the wildly unpopular Galaxy Tab, which debuted last fall to almost universally poor reviews (though our own Aaron Gingrich thoroughly enjoyed it). The Galaxy Tab was the first major-manufacturer Android tablet, and it seems based on the new tablet's specifications, Samsung learned a lot from the Tab's less-than-successful run.

Unfortunately, it looks as though they failed to learn from the Tab's biggest failing - the OS.