root - 10/28 - Android Police - Android News, Apps, Games, Phones, Tablets

Dec

Avast Launches Mobile Security App With Root Functions, Firewall, Free Theft Aware Integration, And More - A Strong Contender For The Best Overall Security App On Android

Posted by Liam Spradlin in Android OS, Applications, News

Avast has just launched its Mobile Security app for Android, integrating the pure power of Theft Aware (see our review) with some amazing new features. If you remember, Avast swallowed up ITAgents, the small company behind Theft Aware, back in September and promised to integrate it with its upcoming software. Even in its beta state, Avast's Mobile Security looks to be a very strong contender among the dozens of other security apps floating around in the Android Market. I dare say it has the potential to overshadow just about all of the apps in our Mobile Security App Shootout.

Dec

[Updated x2] Blackberry Playbook Now 'Root-able', Allows For Full Android Market Access

Posted by Cameron Summerson in News, RIM

Last Updated: December 7th, 2011

Update #1: Well, that was much faster than anyone expected - RIM has already released the patch for this exploit. The good news is that the patch isn't yet available in the 2.0 Beta, but you can bet that it will be rolled into the update before it hits the masses in its final form. If you happened to accept the update on the current version and still want to give this exploit a try, then you can always downgrade the OS.

Update #2: Aaand the patch has now been circumvented yet again, less than 24 hours after it was issued by RIM.

Nov

Kindle Fire Gets An Update That Breaks Root – Don't Worry, You Can Root Again

Posted by Liam Spradlin in Development, Kindle Fire, News, Tablets

Amazon has begun pushing a software update to Kindle Fire owners, updating the tablet's software to version 6.2. The online shopping giant kept quiet about just what the update included however. Given this (lack of) information, the real story here is that the update breaks root. Additionally, the Fire is configured to update automatically over WiFi, and there isn't an immediately apparent way to stop it.

There is a bright side, however. After your Fire updates, regaining root access is not only possible, but easy, using SuperOneClick. For instructions, head over to the discussion on XDA Forums. It's worth mentioning that the update may wipe the Android Market app and custom keyboards, along with your root privileges.

Nov

[Download] Latest Android Wi-Fi Tether 3.1 Update Finally Brings Inactivity Shutdown, Stops Turning Off Bluetooth On Start

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in Applications, News

In the last couple of days, I've been closely interacting with Harald Mueller, the developer behind Android Wi-Fi Tether for root users, a free and open source tethering app for Android. Android Wi-Fi Tether is pretty much a de-facto app when when it comes to tethering on Android devices that have native Wi-Fi tethering disabled (thanks, carriers), and is what I consider one of the most important apps in our supposedly open ecosystem.

In my correspondence with Harald, I have brought up 2 specific issues that have been on my mind for a while now, and to my surprise, Harald solved them both in a matter of days.

Nov

Chainfire Does It Again – Mobile ODIN Lets You Flash Firmware Right From Your Device, EverRoot Keeps You Rooted Through It All

Posted by Liam Spradlin in Android OS, Applications, Development, News

ODIN is a handy, yet powerful tool for Android-powered Samsung devices that allows users to flash firmware updates and kernels using a relatively simple interface.

Looking to channel the power of the ODIN tool into something a bit more, well, mobile, developer Chainfire has released Mobile ODIN, a tool that allows rooted users to flash firmware straight from the app's interface.

What's more, Mobile ODIN Pro comes with a tool called EverRoot, which will ensure that no matter what you're flashing, you'll maintain root privileges, even if you're attempting to update your device with a leaked version of official firmware.

Nov

Nook Tablet Rooted, Looks To Continue Where Its Predecessor Left Off

Posted by Brian O'Toole in Barnes & Noble, News, Nook Tablet

A new device being rooted may raise few eyebrows nowadays, but for those of you looking for a nice cheap little tablet, the Nook Tablet has taken the first step to becoming yet another hobbyist's favorite. Given the enormous popularity of the Nook Color before it, this bodes well for the future of the Nook Tablet. However, with the release of the $200 Amazon Kindle Fire, no longer is the $250 Nook Tablet alone in American cheap-tablet market, so this development may well help to convince would-be buyers. Over at XDA-Developers, poster Indirect has tested the proven zergRush method on their own Nook Tablet, as well as created a batch file for Windows users to help automate the process.

Nov

Good News – The Android Market Can Now Be Installed On Amazon's Kindle Fire

Posted by Liam Spradlin in Applications, Development, Kindle Fire, News

Since before the launch of Amazon's Kindle Fire, the Android community has been atwitter, planning to break through the shopping giant's custom Android variant to achieve a true Android experience. Coming one step closer to that, BriefMobile has provided detailed instructions on how to get the Android Market running on Amazon's affordable 7" slate.

Of course, the Kindle Fire is not compatible with all the apps in the Market, so you may notice a few missing. Hopefully developers will be adding support for the Fire in the future, but for now, there are still plenty of reasons you want the Market on Amazon's Android tablet.

Nov

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How To: Root, Enable 3rd Party Apps, And Establish ADB Access On The Kindle Fire

Posted by Charles Beel in Amazon, Applications, Development, Gingerbread 2.3, Kindle Fire, News, Tablets

The Kindle Fire, Amazon’s content-subsidized tablet, has been arriving to the delight of people all across the U.S. The heavily-skinned Gingerbread Android device has left many questions in the minds of the Android and Gadget community. For instance, will we be able to install apps outside of the Amazon Appstore? How about using adb? And, of course, the most important question of all - can the Fire be rooted?

If you remember, Amazon said it wouldn't do anything special to prevent rooting or interfere with those who want to customize their devices in other ways (although the status of the bootloader is unknown at this time).

Nov

Retail Droid RAZR Gets Working Root Method – Here's How It's Done

Posted by Liam Spradlin in News, RAZR / RAZR MAXX, Verizon Wireless

Undeterred by the fact that the 1-click root method available for other Motorola devices doesn't work for the retail version of Verizon's Droid RAZR, the Android community has once again liberated the latest addition to the Droid family. Droid Forums is crediting Pieman13 for the find, providing an easy 5-step guide to rooting your RAZR. Before we go any further, I should encourage those unfamiliar with rooting to check out our primer on the subject here. If your phone gets bricked, there aren't any unbricking methods just yet, so proceed with caution. Of course Android Police claims no responsibility for what might happen to your device.

Nov

[Updated: Com2uS Responds] Com2uS Sparks A River Of One-Star Reviews Due To Change Of Heart Regarding Root Functionality In Homerun Battle 3D

Posted by Liam Spradlin in Games, News

A sudden change of heart on the part of Com2uS has left many customers of its popular game Homerun Battle 3D infuriated, triggering a downpour of one-star ratings and requests for refunds.

The impetus behind this turmoil is the fact that Com2uS' latest update for Homerun Battle 3D has made it impossible for users running rooted devices to play the game. This decision came after between 100k and 500k purchases had already been made. Users are (rightfully) downgrading their review scores in light of the development, and many are asking for refunds as compensation for the developers' decision.

Com2uS updated the game's Market listing when the latest version became available, adding a note which reads "this version does not support gameplay in rooting condition.