Android Police - Android News, Apps, Games, Phones, Tablets

Jun

T-Mobile Formally Announces Budget Android Phones: Samsung Exhibit 4G For $79.99 and Samsung Gravity SMART For $69.99

Posted by Abhiroop Basu in Exhibit 4G, News, Samsung, T-Mobile

As promised, T-Mobile has just announced its newest Android handsets: the Samsung Exhibit 4G and the Samsung Gravity SMART.

The two new Samsung devices will bolster T-Mobile's Android coffers by providing an affordable option for penny-pinching smartphone lovers.

The Samsung Exhibit 4G is the higher-end of the two devices, running Android 2.3 and featuring a speedy 1GHz processor, a 3 MP rear camera with flash and a camcorder, as well as a front-facing camera with video chat pre-installed and, of course, HSPA+ ("4G") connectivity. The device will also come preloaded with a bunch of games, including Bejeweled 2, Scrabble, and Doodle Jump.

Jun

Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 With 4G LTE Available For Pre-Order On June 8th From Verizon

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Galaxy Tab 10.1, News, Verizon Wireless

We've already told you that the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 would be available for pre-order (or in your hands, if you happen to live in NYC) on June 8th , but we've just gotten word that pre-orders will begin on the same day for a 4G LTE version on Verizon (no word on an official release date, though - it just says "this summer"). The pricing is not so exciting, however: $529 for the 16GB version, and $629 for the 32GB version - with a two-year agreement, of course. You can find out more info, as well as sign up to be reminded when Big Red starts taking orders over at VZW's Galaxy Tab landing page.

Jun

[Unconfirmed] HTC EVO View 4G To Hit Sprint Stores On June 24th?

Posted by Cameron Summerson in EVO View 4G, News, Rumors, Sprint

Well, looky at what Engadget got a hold of - a leaked internal document from Sprint's Reward Me site that just so happens to show a possible release date for the HTC EVO View 4G (the WiMax version of the HTC Flyer). Have a look:

As you can see, the View 4G should hit shelves in on June 24th (and no, that's not the price listed beside it Winking smile ), which happens to be same date that the EVO 3D is rumored to be landing on the Now Network as well. There is no word as of yet about pricing or whether or not the digital pen will be included.

Jun

Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Pre-Orders And NYC Release - June 8th, Nationwide - June 17th; Android 3.1 At Launch, OTA To TouchWiz And DLNA (!) In The Future

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in Galaxy Tab 10.1, Honeycomb 3.0/3.1/3.2, News, Samsung

After a period of silence and uncertainty, Samsung released the floodgates of information about its Galaxy Tab 10.1 flagship tablet a few minutes ago. The ultraslim tablet will launch on June 8th at a single location - NYC's Union Square Best Buy of all places. If you don't happen to live in New York City, on the same day the Tab 10.1 will be available for pre-order in-store and online, ready to finally slip into your hands on June 17th nationwide.

Official launch partners include Best Buy online and in-store along with Fry’s Electronics, Amazon.com, Micro Center, Tiger Direct, and Newegg.

Jun

[Update: Manual Update June 3rd!] [Update 2: Confirmed!] HTC EVO 4G To Get Official Gingerbread OTA Update On June 6th

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in EVO 4G (Supersonic), Gingerbread 2.3, HTC, News, Sprint

EVO 4G owners, it looks like you won't have to wait long for your Android 2.3 fix, at least according to what looks like a shot of an internal Sprint memo that we were just tipped off to by Mr @5c13nc3 on Twitter (tweet since deleted).

Update: According to the full text of this memo, sent by another anonymous tipster to AndroidCentral, the part that we are missing next to "manually update" actually reads "June 3rd." To force the check, just hit up Settings > System Updates > HTC Software Update, but wait till Friday to do so!

Update 2: Sprint just released the official word that the update will indeed start rolling out on Monday, June 6th, with a manual update available on June 3rd.

Jun

25 Best New Android Games And Live Wallpapers From The Last 2 Weeks (5/19/11 - 6/1/11)

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in Applications, Best Apps/Games/LWPs Of The Week, Games, News

Welcome to the weekly roundup of the best new Android games and live wallpapers that went live in the Market or were spotted by us in the previous 2 weeks or so.

Please wait for this page to load in full in order to see the AppBrain widgets, which include ratings and pricing info.

Looking for the previous roundup editions? Find them here:

Games

Plants vs Zombies

Android Police coverage: PopCap’s Plants Vs Zombies Finally Reaches Android – Free Download Today On The Amazon Appstore

Plants vs Zombies needs no introduction - PopCap's infamous (from the PC world) and highly anticipated game is now on Android.

Jun

[Review] Riptide GP Proves What Tegra 2, And Android, Are Capable of Doing

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

Last Updated: July 24th, 2011

Riptide GP emerged from the Tegra zone late in May, touting amazing graphics that the Android system is now capable of pulling off. However, is it all flash and no substance?

Riptide GP comes to us from Vector Unit, the developer of Hydro Thunder Hurricane for the Xbox Live Arcade. While that game features a number of souped-up racing boats with weapon attachments, Riptide GP returns to the water for a comparatively tuned-down affair. Instead of boats with Gatling cannons, you race jet skis against AI opponents; you can pull off tricks in order to fill a boost meter, which can then be used to further a lead or recover from a costly spill.

Jun

Android Web Market Gets Google +1

Posted by David Ruddock in Android OS, Apps/Games, News

Google +1 has been quietly rolled out over the last few months to Google users - allowing them to "+1" (aka, "Like") pages found in Google search results. Today, +1 has been expanded into a number of other Google services, including the Android Web Market:

Pretty neat, right? ROM Manager likes are already piling up. It's very likely we'll see +1 expanded onto the Android Market app in the future, as Google tries to make +1 a part of everyday life for Google users.

Additionally, YouTube, Blogger, and Product Search all have implemented +1. Google has announced a number of partner sites that will have embedded "+1" buttons for content and products (eg, Best Buy, Reuters), similar to the way other social sharing features are incorporated (like Tweet buttons).

Jun

[Updated] Dolphin Browser HD 5 Ditches Beta Status, Heads To Market - Now Without Ads!

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Applications, News

Update: It appears that I misread the Dolphin Blog the first go around - version 5 doesn't block in-browser ads, the in-app ads have been removed. I apologize for the misinformation.

The final version of Dolphin Browser HD 5 landed in the Android Market this morning, and it brings a whole slew of bug fixes and improvements along with it. Among the many improvements is one that most users will be quite happy about - ~~Dolphin HD now blocks all Google Ads within web pages without the need for an add-on, making your browsing much simpler, as well as using less bandwidth~~ Dolphin HD is now ad-free!

Jun

Nielsen: Android Users Are Data Whores, Need More Gee-Bees

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Android OS, News

Nielson's latest statistics show little change over last month's, with Android, iOS, and BlackBerry holding first, second, and third place, respectively. Admittedly, the numbers for Android and iOS dropped a percent each to 36% and 26% while BlackBerry moved up a percent to 23%, but still - relatively unchanged.

However, this month's report included an interesting look at data usage. Perhaps due to the much larger community of power users, Android owners suck down 582 MB of data per month, 90 MB (18%) more than iOS (492 MB). This comes despite the fact that less users on a whole seem to actively engage in heavy data-consumption activities:

74 percent of Android smartphone owners and 79 percent of iPhone owners report having downloaded apps in the past 30 days

43 percent of Android owners and 46 percent of iPhone owners say they streamed online music or mobile radio in the past 30 days

35 percent of Android smartphone consumers and 37 percent of iPhone owners report having watched video or mobile TV in the past 30 days