4g - 16/35 - Android Police - Android News, Apps, Games, Phones, Tablets

Jun

Rumor: The Next Nexus Phone May Be Built By Samsung, Has Super AMOLED HD Display

Posted by David Ruddock in Android OS, Ice Cream Sandwich 4.0, News, Rumors, Samsung

We're as skeptical of oddly-specific rumors as the next blog, but given the source, we feel it'd be negligent of us not to pass on this information to you. A couple weeks back, we reported on a BGR-exclusive story that leaked information about the next Google Nexus Android phone.

Now, "Prime" is rumored to be the device codename being tossed around at the Googleplex for the upcoming handset, but BGR's exclusive source has reason to believe that name will make it to end consumers. There's also the fact that this name has been bandied about before and bears a certain pop culture reference - so we're not exactly sure how legit it is, or if it's just an affectionate/humorous pet name until the device gets a real label.

Jun

[Deal Alert 2] EVO Shift 4G Now Free At Wirefly On New 2-Year Agreement

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

Last week, I listed the EVO Shift 4G in my roundup of the best Android phones under $50, but that was when it was priced at $40 on AmazonWireless. Wirefly has now gone and beaten that price silly, offering the QWERTY-keyboard slider phone for the low, low price of "free" if you open a new Sprint account, or add a new line to your existing plan.

The EVO Shift 4G does have a tiny 3.6" display, but it's also packing a next-gen single core Snapdragon processor and a big 1530mAh battery - along with a fresh update to Android 2.3.3 Gingerbread.

Jun

[Deal Alert] DROID Charge Now Just $129.99 At Wirefly On New 2-Year Agreement

Posted by David Ruddock in Charge (i510), Deals, News, Tips & Tutorials

I'm not a big fan of the DROID Charge, but hey, to each his own. And apparently consumers haven't been such huge fans of the phone's notoriously high original MSRP ($300 on upgrade or new agreement), making it the most expensive subsidized Android phone to date.

Well, Wirefly has started playing hardball, and after having dropped the Charge down to $180 a month or so back, they've gone price-slashing yet again: you can now pick up the Samsung DROID Charge for $129.99 on a new Verizon account with a 2-year agreement, or when you add a line to your existing plan (sorry, it's still $200 if you want to upgrade).

Jun

CyanogenMod 7.1 Release Candidate 1 Available Now For Most Supported Devices

Posted by David Ruddock in Android OS, Development, Gingerbread 2.3, Tips & Tutorials

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

Rooting Explained + Top 5 Benefits Of Rooting
Top Android Apps Every Rooted User Should Know About: Part 1 (Apps 1-8),Part 2 (Apps 9-16), Part 3 (Apps 17-25)
Custom ROMs Explained And Why You Want Them
How To Flash A Custom ROM To Your Android Phone With ROM Manager + Full Backup & Restore
So You Want To Know About Bootloaders, Encryption, Signing, And Locking?

The latest version of Android's most popular custom ROM, CyanogenMod, is now available for most of the officially supported Android phones on the CyanogenMod device list.

Jun

HTC EVO 4G vs. EVO Shift vs. EVO 3D: Battle Of The Specs

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in EVO 3D (Shooter), EVO 4G (Supersonic), EVO Shift 4G (Speedy), HTC, News, Sprint

It's June 24th, and you know what that means: the heir to the throne of the EVO 4G, one of Sprint's most successful Android devices ever, has officially gone on sale. But considering that reviews have been mixed and that purchasing the EVO 3D will lock you into a two-year contract, the buying decision is understandably difficult.

To help you find out whether Sprint's latest flagship phone is right for you, we've put together a handy-dandy table comparing the specs of all three members of the EVO family:

Spec type	EVO 4G	EVO Shift 4G	EVO 3D
CPU	1GHz Qualcomm QSD8650 single-core Snapdragon	800MHz Qualcomm MSM7630 2nd-gen single-core Snapdragon	1.2GHz Qualcomm MSM8660 dual-core Snapdragon
Display	4.3" WVGA (800x480) TFT	3.6" WVGA (800x480) TFT	4.3" qHD (960x540) SLCD with stereoscopic 3D capabilities
OS	Android 2.3	Android 2.3	Android 2.3
Front camera	1.3MP	N/A	1.3MP
Rear camera	8MP	5MP	Two 5MP shooters
RAM	512MB	512MB	1GB
Internal storage	1GB	2GB	4GB (note that the OS takes up a lot of that)
Included SD card	8GB	2GB	8GB
microHDMI	Yes	No	Kind of (via MHL adapter)
DLNA support	No	Yes	Yes
Keyboard	Virtual	Physical	Virtual
Buttons	Capacitive	Capacitive	Capacitive
Size	4.8 x 2.6 x 0.5 inches	4.61 x 2.32 x 0.59 inches	5 x 2.6 x 0.47 inches
Weight	6 ounces	5.85 ounces	6 ounces
Battery capacity	1500mAh	1500mAh	1730mAh
Price on contract	$99.99	$99.99	$199.99

Of course, a phone cannot live on horsepower alone, so rest assured that we're already testing the EVO 3D to see if its formidable specs amount to a good user experience (and yes, our review will be up soon - stay tuned!).

Jun

Sprint's Q3 Roadmap Leaked - Samsung Epic 2 And "Full Touch 4G" Device In The Pipeline

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Epic 4G Touch, Samsung, Sprint

The EVO 3D just came out today, but it looks like HTC's new flagship won't be the last high-end Android phone to grace Sprint store shelves this year. Quite the contrary - according to This is my next, whose editors have a nearly spotless track record where leaks are concerned, "Big Yellow" is gearing up to launch two new Android handsets, this time from Samsung: the Epic 2 and an as-of-yet nameless "full touch 4G" device.

The Epic 2, as its name implies, will be the successor to last year's Epic 4G. Sadly, This is my next reports that the phone will be a marginal improvement at best - its processor is still a single-core Hummingbird chip (though the clock speed is now 1.2GHz, as opposed to the original's 1GHz), and its screen is still 4 inches.

Jun

[Updated: Existing Customers Can Keep Unlimited Data] Editorial: Why Verizon's Tiered Data Plans Will Punish Everyone - Not Just Heavy Data Users

Posted by David Ruddock in 4G, Carriers, Editorials, Verizon Wireless

Update: According to two separate Verizon memos intercepted by Droid-life, existing Verizon customers can keep their existing data plan pricing when renewing or upgrading. Unfortunately, as with all offers of this type, just how long it will last remains to be seen. But, given that the BIONIC is coming some time soon-ish, it seems very likely that existing Verizon customers will be able to get the device without being forced into tiered data.

This should sate a lot of potentially angry current Verizon customers, but will definitely punish those coming over from AT&T for the iPhone 5 later this year.

Jun

[Update: It's Rolling Out Now] Exclusive: EVO 4G OTA Update Coming June 20th - Fixes Netflix, Voicemail Notifications

Posted by David Ruddock in EVO 4G (Supersonic), Exclusives, HTC, News, Sprint, Tips & Tutorials

Last Updated: June 5th, 2012

Update: As promised, this update is rolling out now. Here is the official changelog, per Sprint's forums.

Corrects voicemail notification issue (from 4.22.651.2)

Corrects issue with hearing aid compatibility menu disappearing (from 4.22.651.2)

Netflix compatibility (from 4.22.651.2)

You heard it here first, folks - the EVO 4G is receiving an update in just 5 short days to address two of the major problems that users have experienced after the jump to Gingerbread. Specifically, non-working Netflix (boooo), and odd Visual Voicemail notification behavior. The turnaround time in getting this update out is pretty impressive, considering the Gingerbread OTA landed just a little over 2 weeks ago.

Jun

Nielsen: Android Data Usage Only Averages 0.6GB A Month - Do Tiered Data Plans Make Sense?

Posted by David Ruddock in Android OS, Editorials, News

Nielsenwire released new smartphone figures this morning, with a focus on data consumption. Topping the list of the data consumers amongst the smartphone OS's was, of course, Android.

The average Android user utilizes 582MB (or roughly .6GB) of data per month - far less than what is allocated by any of the major carrier's plans. We often hear about consumers becoming feisty over data plan tier-ification or throttling, but how many people do these caps and throttles actually affect? According to Nielsen, less than 3% of smartphone users average data consumption exceeding 2GB per month. Now, this is combining all platforms - though Android obviously makes up the majority.

Jun

HTC EVO 3D Review Roundup: One Man's Trash Is Another Man's Treasure

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in EVO 3D (Shooter), HTC, Phone Reviews, Reviews, Sprint

Last Updated: July 24th, 2011

HTC and Sprint's EVO 3D, the first three-dimensional handset in the US, won't be available in stores for eight more days - but the early reviews have already started flooding in. And I'll tell you this: they're pretty mixed. Some reviewers, such as LaptopMag's Mark Spoonauer, wholeheartedly enjoyed the device, even going so far as to give it an Editors' Choice award. Others, however, weren't nearly as fond of the phone - Gizmodo, upfront as always, called it "only suitable for shooting yourself in the face." Ouch.

Then again, you can't summarize the successor to one of the most successful Android phones ever in just two sentences; for the full scoop, let's take a quick look at five of the best EVO 3D reviews on the net.