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Dec

Android Market Updates Continue With New Application And Game Categories

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in Android OS, Applications, Apps/Games, Games, News

Continuing with the numerous Android Market updates, Google just refreshed the categories that users can use to filter and browse Market apps and games. The changes are now live on both the backend Developer Console and the live Market.

Here is a table showing the previous and new categories (new categories are in green, modified in yellow):

Previous app categories	New app categories	Previous game categories	New game categories
	Books & Reference	Arcade & Action	Arcade & Action
	Business	Brain & Puzzle	Brain & Puzzle
Comics	Comics	Cards & Casino	Cards & Casino
Communication	Communication	Casual	Casual
	Education		Sports Games
Entertainment	Entertainment
Finance	Finance
Health	*Health & Fitness*
Lifestyle	Lifestyle
Multimedia	*Media & Video*
	Medical
	Music & Audio
News & Weather	*News & Magazines*
	Personalization
	Photography
Productivity	Productivity
Reference
Shopping	Shopping
Social	Social
Sports	Sports
Themes	Themes
Tools	Tools
	Transportation
Travel	*Travel & Local*
Demo
Software Libraries	*Libraries & Demo*
	Weather

A shot of the Developer Console:

Thanks, yuku

Dec

AT&T Will Buy Wireless Spectrum For $1.93 Billion To Expand Its 4G Offerings

Posted by Abhiroop Basu in AT&T, News

AT&T will be purchasing wireless spectrum from Qualcomm, the computer chip manufacturer, for $1.93 billion to provide higher speeds for its 4G network. The spectrum is in the lower 700 MHz frequency band and covers 300 million people in the United States.

The AT&T mobile network has been criticized heavily for some time because of connectivity issues which have caused poor service for its iPhone users. The iPhone uses more data than any feature phone and most smartphones (but not Android phones), so having exclusivity over the phone has put a severe strain on AT&T's network. Customers in heavily populated areas, such as New York City, are known to experience dropped calls and generally slow Internet browsing speeds.

Dec

Gameloft Giving Away Hero Of Sparta For Android For Free Today, December 22nd, 2010 (Reg. $4.99)

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in Deals, Games, News, Videos

Gameloft, the game publisher with arguably the most advanced Android games, which you, unfortunately, won't find in the Market (I guess they really hate giving Google the 30% fee), announced its latest daily Christmas promotion. On the 22nd day of December, Gameloft is giving away Hero Of Sparta, an RPG with awesome 3D graphics, for absolutely free.

The game's dedicated page lists it at $4.99, but this special url offers the freebie in exchange for your phone number, which Gameloft promises to use exclusively for sending the download link.

While all countries are supported, not all phone models are. Fortunately, Gameloft provides this list of compatible hardware:

HTC Google Nexus One
HTC Desire/Bravo
HTC Incredible
HTC EVO 4G
HTC Desire Z
HTC desire HD
HTC My touch 4G
Motorola Droid
Motorola Droid X
Motorola Droid 2
Motorola Milestone
Motorola Motoroi
Motorola Milestone 2
Motorola Jordan
Samsung Galaxy S
Samsung Vibrant
Samsung Epic 4G
Samsung Fascinate
Sony Ericsson Xperia X10

I found it funny that when I read their blog post an hour ago, the game was rated 6/10, and now, only 15-20 votes or so later, it's rated 9/10.

Dec

Fresh ROM v3.5 For EVO 4G Is Out With The Newest OTA, Radio, WiMAX, PRI And Improved Battery Life

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in Development, EVO 4G (Supersonic), News, Sprint

It's no secret that my EVO 4G runs a custom ROM called Fresh - it is one of the best EVO ROMs, free of bloatware and full of tweaks that make it fast and efficient, while keeping stability rock solid. The developer, flipz, is very good - he's responsive to Sprint OTA updates and bug reports and usually sorts out any issues in a matter of days.

This article deals with a couple of advanced topics. If you’re unfamiliar with some of the terms, hit up our primers here:

Due to the recent EVO OTA (3.70.651.1), flipz just released the newest version of the ROM, currently 3.5.0.1, also containing the latest HTC kernel, which is said to do wonders to the battery life.

Dec

More EVO Shift 4G Pics Emerge, Still Looks Like Mutant Offspring Of G2 And EVO 4G

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in EVO Shift 4G (Speedy), HTC, Knight, Sprint

Last Updated: January 4th, 2011

Sprint's current WiMax-capable phones are no slouches, but there's no denying the lineup could use a third phone, if only for the sake of keeping things fresh. The HTC EVO Shift 4G could be just what the doctor prescribed - it looks like the love-child of the T-Mobile G2 and the original EVO 4G. In fact, according to PhoneArena's tipster, the G2 and the Shift 4G share the same processor - an 800MHz Qualcomm MSM7X30 unit - though the latter has inherited the EVO's plastic casing (lame) and HTC Sense UI (also lame). Additionally, the G2's optical trackpad has been moved from under the display to the keyboard.

Dec

NexusKang Live Wallpaper App Updated, Now Includes Nexus S Live Wallpaper And Gingerbread Compatibility

Posted by Stephen Tenerowicz in Applications, Apps/Games, Development, News

Earlier today, Kmobs updated the NexusKang live wallpaper app with the Nexus S live wallpaper background, compatibility with Android 2.3, and some bug fixes for good measure. For those unfamiliar with the app, it's pretty damn cool, letting you build customized versions of the standard Nexus live wallpaper found on the Nexus One. Users can choose their own backgrounds and even their own custom colors to fly around the screen. For a custom live wallpaper app, this one is top notch!

If you have any interest in building a custom Nexus live wallpaper, or just want to load the Nexus S live wallpaper on your handset, check the app out by scanning the QR code below or hitting up AppBrain.

Dec

Will The FCC's Net Neutrality Order Cost Smartphone Users?

Posted by David Ruddock in Carriers, Editorials, News

In a word: yes. Wireless carriers in the US (Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, etc.) have long been deeply opposed to net neutrality over their so-called "mobile broadband" networks, but today they've been given a power they have long desired to see the FCC put into writing.

If you haven't been following the net neutrality saga, you might want to find out what exactly "net neutrality" is, or what it means.

What is "net neutrality"?

It's a loaded term, to be frank. Net neutrality activists will tell you it means the complete freedom of information from corporate interference by requiring that ISPs (Internet service providers) do not give any preferential (or deferential) treatment to any information transmitted over their networks, unless it is clearly illegal or dangerous.

Dec

AppBrain Adds A Filter To Hide Sexually Explicit Apps In The Android Market

Posted by Abhiroop Basu in Android OS, Applications, News

Google's recent updates to the Android Market have further refined the process of installing and purchasing apps, but they still haven't developed a suitable desktop alternative to browsing the thousands of Android apps available. AppBrain is a third-party website that fills this gap by allowing users to browse apps on their computers and then choose which ones to install on their phones.

AppBrain is a great tool, but it is limited by the policies of the Android Market, which allow almost any app to be installed. Unlike Apple's App Store, Google does not employ any kind of filtering system, so there are a number of apps which could be harmful for end users (i.e.

Dec

[Update: Possibly Fake] Best Buy Reduces Price Of Verizon's Galaxy Tab To $500 Without Contract

Posted by Abhiroop Basu in Deals, Galaxy Tab, News, Samsung, Verizon Wireless

Though it previously retailed for $599, the Verizon version of the Samsung Galaxy Tab can now be purchased from Best Buy without a contract for just $499. The price drop may be an indication that the WiFi-only Galaxy Tab could retail for much less.

Update: It looks like this is fake! Our own source at Best Buy, as well as calls to various brick-and-mortar locations, suggest to us that this is just a case of Photoshop trickery. Sorry for any confusion! -- Aaron

Update 2: According to commenter K, this deal has indeed been going on for a bit - to get the discounted price, you have to sign up for at least the $20 plan, which can be canceled after the first month.

Dec

Motorola Tablet Teaser Site Goes Live With Countdown: Jan 5th At 4:15PM PST

Posted by David Ruddock in Honeycomb 3.0/3.1/3.2, Motorola, News

As yesterday's teaser video implied, it seems that we can expect Motorola's much-anticipated Android tablet at CES. Motorola has launched a small teaser site to generate media buzz about the launch, with a countdown that expires at 4:15 p.m. on January 5th, 2011. You can also sign up to receive e-mail notifications of any news on the announcement.

Motorola's tablet will be sporting a Tegra 2 system-on-a-chip, and will presumably be the first consumer device to run Honeycomb, a version of Android tailored for tablet use. Coupled with Verizon's network, it could set the bar for Android tablets from here on out.