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May

Droid X2 Set For Release May 26, Pre-Orders To Begin Soon?

Posted by Nate Kimmey in Droid X2, News, Verizon Wireless

It looks like Motorola's follow-up to the Droid X will be hitting its planned release date - sometime later in May - after all. According to Droid-Life's sources, the Droid X2 (or Droid X², if you feel like stylin') will be released on May 26, with all the following luscious hardware in tow:

4.3" qHD (960 x 540) display
Dual core 1 GHz Tegra 2 processor
8 megapixel rear camera
720p video capture
HDMI out
8 GB internal memory
8 GB microSD card included
1540 mAH battery

Looking at the image of the phone, the blue notification bar suggests that the device will come with Gingerbread pre-installed, as that is exactly what the Gingerbread build for the original Droid X looks like.

May

Good News, Everyone: Trick The Netflix App Into Thinking Your Rooted Device Is Supported

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Applications, Development, News

When he covered the official release of the Netflix app earlier today, Cameron said, "If your device didn’t make the cut, though, I wouldn’t sweat it too hard – you know how resourceful the Android community can be." Well, the app hasn't even been out for a day yet, and already there's a way to get it running on non-supported devices. The only caveat is that you must be rooted. Unfortunately, this doesn't seem to work on the Thunderbolt.

So how's it done? Well, the instructions are actually fairly straightforward, and come courtesy of tipster/redditor natemckn:

Root is required.

May

Flash 10.3 For Android Released - Fixes Issues with Security, Video Playback, Stability, And More

Posted by Matt Demers in Apps/Games, News

A new update for Adobe Flash is now available in the Android Marketplace, bringing the version up to 10.3.

The update brings a number of features and fixes to Flash on Android, including fixing some issues with the Samsung Galaxy S, where certain video resolutions wouldn't show up. It also fixes crashing issues with the HTC EVO, along with optimization for OMAP 4 Cortex-A9 processors. The rest of the fixes can be found in the official changelog quoted below.

Source: Adobe

Flash Player 10.3

QR code for https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.adobe.flashplayer

Features and Enhancements

Flash Player 10.3 is the newest runtime release of the Open Screen Project that enables uncompromised Web browsing of expressive applications, content and video across devices.

May

[I/O 2011] Q&A With Core Android Developers - Some Of Your Questions Answered

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in Android OS, News

On the night before Google I/O 2011, I posted an open call for any questions you might have had for Google core developers. And you delivered - within a few hours, we had over 50 questions of varying complexities, and I realized I was in trouble. Office hours are meant for developers asking dev questions, whereas most of the ones you've asked were about policies and availability. Still, I proceeded to ask away at office hours and at the end of each session, fearing being shunned forever. Unsurprisingly, some devs would force me to move on after realizing the volume of questions, but some persistently tried answering, referring me to the right people along the way if they didn't know something.

May

[Review] Cyberlords Brings Cyberpunk RPG Action to Android

Posted by Matt Demers in Games, Reviews

Last Updated: August 2nd, 2011

One thing I remember about flipping through Nintendo Power magazine in my childhood is the Shadowrun SNES game. Based off a popular pen-and-paper RPG, Shadowrun is set in a dystopian future where humans can splice themselves with technology to gain new powers. The player wades through a maze of lies, deceit and all-around scummy people to meet their goals, whatever that may be.

The reason I bring Shadowrun up in a review about Cyberlords is that the atmosphere feels stunningly similar. In Cyberlords, you're an amnesiac who wakes up in a clinic after an operation gone wrong. While escaping, you link up with two other members of an underground resistance in a typical "fight the power" storyline.

May

[Updated] Netflix App Finally Officially Lands In Android Market, But Only For Certain Devices

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Applications, News

I know that a lot of people have been waiting on this day to come, but I have to admit - it's slightly melancholy. Even though the Netflix app is finally here, there are only a handful of devices that it officially runs on. If your device didn't make the cut, though, I wouldn't sweat it too hard - you know how resourceful the Android community can be.

Oh, the short list of devices? Here you go:

HTC DROID Incredible with Android 2.2
HTC Nexus One with Android 2.2/2.3
HTC EVO 4G with Android 2.2
HTC G2 with Android 2.2
Samsung Nexus S with Android 2.3

With that said, we are already getting reports that the app is running perfectly on devices that deviate from the exact required specs, like the EVO 4G running CM7, for example.

May

[Hands-On Video] Dell Venue: Initial Impressions

Posted by David Ruddock in Dell, Phone Reviews, Reviews, Venue, Videos

Last Updated: July 24th, 2011

Today we're going hands-on with Dell's latest Android smartphone: the Venue. I apologize for my voice being even more nasally than usual - I've been a bit under the weather.

To put it briefly, the Venue is actually a pretty good phone - it's just a little... old, at this point. Still, it has made me a believer that Dell, a computer manufacturer, can make a good piece of smartphone hardware (and actually some pretty decent custom software as well, ala Stage UI.) It's also about as close to stock Android as you can get without buying a Nexus S, so that's a plus.

May

[Download] Dolphin Browser HD 5 Private Beta Leaked, Includes UI And Performance Enhancements

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Applications, News

If you've ventured away from the stock browser on your Android phone at least once, there's a good chance that you've used (or at least heard of) Dolphin Browser HD. Recently, the Dolphin team started working on the fifth incarnation of its HD browser, which is now part of a private beta. Oh, did I say private? I'm sorry, I meant here-it-is-for-everyone-to-download beta, courtesy of XDA Forum member scaredsoul.

This update brings a few changes to the table, like an improved, more minimal interface and bookmark access from the sidebar. The performance has also been improved, so everything should run a lot smoother.

May

[Review] Wunderlist Makes Tasking Look Gooood

Posted by Matt Demers in App Reviews, Applications, Reviews

Last Updated: August 2nd, 2011

I have a couple requirements for any application that wants to help me with organization: it has to have a functional desktop client to sync to. This is nothing against Android's system, but I find that if I have to do any extended typing on it, my enthusiasm for the app fails (coincidentally, along with my time management skills). This is what's kept me from using Astrid with the enthusiasm everyone seems to be talking about; all my time isn't spent on my phone, so why should I leave my tasks there?

However, Wunderlist not only provides a functional multi-platform client, it makes it look good.

May

[Download] Official Gingerbread Update For Original Galaxy Tab (P1000)

Posted by Cameron Summerson in AT&T, Galaxy Tab, Gingerbread 2.3, News, T-Mobile

The official OTA for the GSM version of the original Galaxy Tab just started rolling out, and Chainfire over at the XDA forums has already pulled the update, rooted it, and made it available for your downloading pleasure. There are two different versions of the download - one with a new bootloader and one without. While I didn't read the entire thread, it appears that most users had better luck with the version that includes the bootloader.

If you're concerned about flashing a ROM that includes a new bootloader, fret not - it's signed, but not secured. That means you'll still be able to flash custom kernels, ROMs, etc.