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Nov

How To: Replace The Lockscreen Clock Font

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Development, Tips & Tutorials

This has not been tested on devices with custom manufacturer UI's, such as HTC Sense. I can't actually check (as I don't have Sense anymore), but I would guess that it won't work as the lockscreen is completely different when using a manufacturer UI.

This morning on Reddit, I spotted an awesome post titled "I got rid of that stupid lockscreen clock font...," showing nothing more than a screenshot. When asked for details, the Reddit community responded in typical supportive fashion, explaining which file needs to be replaced. It turns out it's quite a simple thing to do for rooted users, requiring only that you copy a font from your PC to your SD card, then replace one file.

Nov

MIUI Browser ("Charming Browser") Released In English, Keeps The Party Going

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Applications, News

Looks like the team at MIUI hasn't been resting on its laurels after releasing its insanely popular MIUI ROM - they've recently released Charming Browser for Android. Just like the ROM, the browser was initially released in Chinese. Luckily, XDA-Developers member jpsiemer immediately jumped on it and translated it to English.

Early reports indicate that aside from a few minor niggles - namely, a slightly longer initial load time - the browser performs as well as it looks. In fact, the thread is full of overwhelmingly positive feedback.

Ready to pull the trigger? Hit up the download link and let us know how it works out for you!

Nov

T-Mobile myTouch 4G Edges Out Win Over iPhone 4 In Wirefly's Browser Speed Test

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Android OS, myTouch 4G (Glacier), News, T-Mobile

Our good friends at Wirefly released a video a few days ago showing a browser speed test between the new T-Mobile myTouch 4G and Apple's iPhone 4. The results added another win for the Android crowd, as the myTouch 4G bested the iPhone 4 in both tests.

The win gets even sweeter, though: the second page loads faster on the MT4G, even with the embedded YouTube video (albeit, it doesn't actually load the video). Andrew (of Wirefly) reminds us that "... there's one big difference here - this [the MT4G] has YouTube on the page, and YouTube is, of course, Flash - whereas the iPhone 4 does not have Flash, so it can't render that part of the webpage."

[Source: Wirefly]

Nov

Resistance Is Futile: Android Assimilates Your Gmail Inbox

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in News, Off-Topic

Small bit of news, but useful for those of us firmly entrenched in the Android fan club: Google has released an official Android skin for Gmail. Changes are light - mainly consisting of light gray circuits on a white background, and an infusion of green for highlights.

_{All your Gmails are belong to us.}

To select the theme, open up your Gmail on your PC and head to Settings (top right), then Themes. Then, select the Android theme - should be on the bottom row, third from the right.

I'm using the theme now, and it's surprisingly easy on the eyes - there's a lot less bright green than you'd imagine based on the above screenshot.

Nov

3 Years Ago, The World Saw Android For The First Time, And This Is What It Looked Like. Happy 3rd Birthday, Andy!

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in Android OS, Editorials, News

Exactly 3 years ago, on November 5th, 2007, Google, along with its partners, publicly announced 2 very important things: the Open Handset Alliance (OHA) and Android. Up until that pivotal moment, the media speculated on the existence of a mysterious gPhone and not many were prepared for something that turned out to be much-much bigger.

Brief Android History

I know that there is some confusion around Android related dates, so let me explain, in my favorite bullet point style:

In July of 2005, Google acquired Android, which was a very small mobile oriented startup.
In the 2 year period following the acquisition, rumors regarding Google's possible entrance into the mobile phone market were aplenty, but the confirmation didn't arrive until November 5th, 2007.

Nov

T-Mobile myTouch 4G Review Roundup: T-Mobile's Best

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in HTC, myTouch 4G (Glacier), News, Phone Reviews, Reviews, T-Mobile

Last Updated: August 1st, 2012

It seems like only a few days ago the nation's fourth largest carrier launched its highly anticipated and well received first HSPA+ device - the G2. Those of us who aren't keyboard fans, however, didn't have to wait long, as yesterday T-Mobile introduced a second Android device to join HSPA+ ranks: the myTouch 4G. According to some of these early reviews, it's not only better than the G2, it may even be the best phone T-Mobile has to offer. Let's count 'em down.

PC Magazine

In the first paragraph of his review, Sascha Segan of PC Magazine stated that although some of the myTouch 4G's features are still a bit rough around the edges, the fact that those features exist earn the phone an Editor's Choice award.

Nov

What Is The Best Android Music Player? [Poll]

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in Applications, Editorials, Off-Topic

Last Updated: December 13th, 2010

As the Android platform celebrated its 2nd birthday last month, I thought now would be a good time to take a step back and look at all the music players available on the Market right now. Only a year ago, there were just a couple of worthy contenders, but now we have a choice of more than a dozen very good and popular apps and a few hundred not so popular ones. It's easy to get lost, isn't it?

What I'm looking for is not just a vote for the best app but also your reasoning for why it deserves to be #1.

Nov

Google Instant Rolling Out For Froyo Devices, Enter Keys Start Feeling Unloved

Posted by Brian O'Toole in News

Launched to much hyperbole back in September, Google Instant is now making the transition from your desktop browser to your mobile device. Those of you graced with the goodness of Froyo can now experience the same mind-melding AJAX tomfoolery on your handset as you do on a computer. As in the desktop version, Instant is an optional function and you can easily switch it on and off right from the search page. You may have also noticed that it requires significantly faster internet connection speeds to work properly, so in the case of a mobile device you're probably best sticking to using it only on WiFi or in strong 3G/4G areas.

Nov

Get Excited: Notion Ink Updates Adam Release Timelines - Could Ship In Time For Christmas

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in Adam, News, Notion Ink, Videos

Last Updated: November 5th, 2010

If there is one Android tablet I am truly excited about (more than the Galaxy Tab, the ViewPad, etc), it's definitely the 10.1" Tegra 2 based dual-core Notion Ink Adam. The tablet has been in the making for as long as I can remember Android tablets even being mentioned, hitting more snags and delays than Duke Nukem and Crunchpad combined. However, Notion Ink's incredible (simply stunning really - just flip through their blog) attention to detail that can only be rivaled by Apple, in my opinion, will make the wait seem like a negligible price to pay when we are finally able to buy the darn thing.