HTC - 38/70 - Android Police - Android News, Apps, Games, Phones, Tablets

Jun

HTC EVO 3D Coming June 24, Says RadioShack Flyer

Posted by David Ruddock in EVO 3D (Shooter), HTC, Sprint

Update: One of our commenters has pointed out that a current Sprint carrier-switch incentive plan (offering $125 per line to switch from another carrier) ends on June 23rd. Oddly convenient timing, don't you agree? That makes this date seem even more likely. Thanks Todd!

Well, there's been a lot of rumor-mongering about the EVO 3D's release date, and we've stayed pretty silent on the matter. Today, thanks to the good folks over at Phandroid, we've got a date we feel pretty confident in posting (in the sense that it was probably real at the time the flyer in question was printed):

Aside from the almost annoyingly ever-present Green Hornet ad-placement, at the center of the ad you can clearly see the words "Pre-order the new HTC EVO 3D Today.

May

HTC Sensation 4G On T-Mobile: Coming June 15 For All, As Early As June 12 At Select Walmart Stores

Posted by Nate Kimmey in News, Sensation / Sensation 4G (Pyramid), T-Mobile

Update: It has been confirmed by T-Mobile that the Sensation 4G will cost $199.99 on a two-year contract after a $50 mail-in rebate. Still no word on off-contract pricing, however.

It doesn't come as much of a surprise, but T-Mobile has finally announced the release date of the long-awaited Sensation 4G - by June 15 at T-Mobile retail stores, and as early as June 12 at select Wal-Mart locations. Unfortunately, T-Mobile didn't provide anything in the way of pricing, but we'll certainly be hearing about that in the coming days. For a quick reminder of specs on this beast of a phone:

1.2 GHz dual core Snapdragon processor
4.3" qHD (960 x 540) display
Android 2.3 with Sense 3.0
768 MB RAM
8 megapixel camera with LED flash
1080p video capture
HSPA+ "4G"
1520 mAH battery

Remember, the full press release puts the release date as "by June 15," so there's a good chance that you'll be seeing the Sensation 4G in stores before that date.

May

[Updated: Yes There Will Be] Verizon: There Won't Be Any Unlocked Devices On Our Network

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Development, HTC, News, Verizon Wireless

Update: Verizon has reneged on their previous tweet - unlocked HTC devices will be able to be activated on Verizon's network. Huzzah.

HTC may have switched to the good side, but that doesn't mean the Legion of Doom is finished. Far from it, in fact, as Verizon has taken ~~the wrong~~ a stance on the issue of locked bootloaders.

Admittedly, this may be a huge misunderstanding; perhaps the Verizon rep hasn't heard the big news about HTC yet, or the carrier simply hasn't had time to properly respond.

But if it is accurate... well, HTC and Verizon have a highly successful partnership with each other - so where does this leave things?

May

HTC CEO Confirms EVO 3D Will Have An Unlocked Bootloader One Way Or Another

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Development, EVO 3D (Shooter), HTC, News

Last night HTC announced that future devices would come with unlocked bootloaders via its Facebook page. Naturally, one of the first questions to arise from the community was "what about the EVO 3D?" To get an answer to that question, many users went straight to the source: HTC CEO Peter Chou. Here are a couple of the responses that we've seen:

So there you have it, directly from the horses' mouth - the EVO 3D will have an unlocked bootloader, although we're not entirely sure if it will ship that way or come via an OTA update later.

UPDATE: We've contacted Peter Chou about the status of the Sensation bootloader and will update if we hear something back.

May

Victory Is Ours! HTC: "We've Listened, Will No Longer Be Locking The Bootloaders On Our Devices"

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in Development, HTC, News

Ladies and gentlemen, minutes ago HTC announced that they have been listening to us all along and will reverse their stance on locking bootloaders! The statement comes directly from the CEO Peter Chou and reads:

There has been overwhelmingly customer feedback that people want access to open bootloaders on HTC phones. I want you to know that we've listened.

Today, I'm confirming we will no longer be locking the bootloaders on our devices. Thanks for your passion, support and patience," Peter Chou, CEO of HTC

Devices with locked bootloaders can still be rooted and usually partially unlocked. They could even enjoy custom ROMs (see the Droid X ROM community), but because the system kernel cannot be replaced, these ROMs cannot be considered complete - they can change things on the surface but not under the hood.

May

HTC "Reviewing" Its Bootloader Policy - We'll Believe It When We See It

Posted by Nate Kimmey in HTC, News

Last Updated: June 1st, 2011

Update: If you've somehow ended up on this page, please note: HTC has since changed its bootloader policy - all future phones will be unlocked.

Once a great example of how open Android phone manufacturers could be, HTC has taken a lot of heat from its fan base over recent decisions to lock its devices' bootloaders (such as with the Sensation and EVO 3D), endangering the possibility that these devices will be able to support custom ROMs. Fortunately, there is a chance that could be changing, as HTC announced on its Facebook page that the company is reviewing its bootloader policy:

Thanks so much for providing feedback, we hear your concerns.

May

Confirmed: EVO 3D's Bootloader, Recovery, and Kernel Images All Locked Down

Posted by David Ruddock in Android OS, Development, EVO 3D (Shooter), HTC, News, Sprint

Last Updated: June 1st, 2011

Update: If you've somehow inexplicably ended up at this article, please note, HTC has since announced the 3D will be unlocked (at some point) and their future policy is to have unlocked bootloaders on all devices.

It seems HTC has finally caved to what are likely the security demands of wireless carriers with its newest phones, and is locking down its handsets Moto-style. Latest case in point: the EVO 3D - which sports the same sort of security we found on the Sensation earlier this month. In other words, good luck cracking into this thing.

Before we get any further, there seems to be some confusion on what exactly is "locked down." Let's clear that up: the bootloader image itself is not encrypted.

May

Download: EVO View 4G Full Release Firmware Leaked, Get It Now

Posted by David Ruddock in Development, EVO View 4G, HTC, News, Sprint

911sniper has done it again - this time with a full RUU (full release firmware) from the upcoming EVO View 4G, Sprint's 4G-ified version of the now-available HTC Flyer (the latter is on sale now at Best Buy).

The hefty file weighs in at a staggering 522MB - and given the massive load that's going to be placed on 911sniper's mirror, we're going to try and get a copy of it up on our own high-speed mirror in the next hour (as soon as we finish downloading it), so that the community can get cracking on this thing.

Full RUU files allow developers to get their hands on what are often older flashable ROMs, which may contain unfixed exploits allowing rooting or bootloader unlocking.

May

EVO 3D Pricing Confirmed To Be $200 At Radioshack, $100 If You Trade In Your EVO 4G

Posted by David Ruddock in EVO 3D (Shooter), HTC, News, Sprint

Sprint subscribers have been waiting with baited breath for news on the price of the upcoming HTC EVO 3D - and now it seems like that information is all but Sprint-official, thanks to Radioshack.

You can pick up an EVO 3D from the Shack for $200 (on a 2-year contract, of course) - trouble is, no one knows when you actually go about doing that, as there's no confirmed launch date for the EVO 3D at this point. However, you can pre-order an EVO 3D from Radioshack right now, and feel at least a little more assured as to the price you'll be paying.

May

Patch Enables Netflix App On Rooted HTC Thunderbolts Running Gingerbread ROMs

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Development, Gingerbread 2.3, News, Thunderbolt (Mecha)

When we posted on the work-around for enabling the Netflix app on unsupported devices, more than a few of you weren't thrilled to hear that the fix didn't work on the Thunderbolt. We knew a fix would come eventually, and now we're happy to report that the developer community has delivered; they've found a way to get the Netflix app working on the Thunderbolt. Unfortunately, there is a bit of bad news, too: it only works on devices that are rooted and running a Gingerbread ROM.

If you fit that criteria, the instructions are pretty damn simple. As always, its highly recommended that you fun a Nandroid backup beforehand in case anything goes awry.