update - 113/129 - Android Police - Android News, Apps, Games, Phones, Tablets

Feb

Support Page For Samsung Captivate Froyo Upgrade Secretly Goes Up - Update Imminent?

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in AT&T, Captivate, Froyo 2.2, News, Samsung

Update: Just like that, the page has been pulled! Hopefully we'll still see the update soon - it'd be embarrassing to have this drama drag on any longer.

Looks like Kies Mini is the path Samsung has decided to take with the Galaxy S Froyo updates (at least in the US) - first, the Vibrant got its 2.2 fix via the Windows-only software, and now it appears that the Captivate will soon join the club. That's right: according to a recently published page on Samsung's own support site, Android 2.2 for the Captivate will roll out via Kies Mini rather than a standard OTA method.

Feb

Yelp Update Brings OpenTable Integration - Make Reservations Straight From The App

Posted by Nate Kimmey in Applications, News

Score another win for Yelp in its battle against Google Maps: in the most recent update, Yelp's Android app gained the ability to make restaurant reservations thanks to integration with OpenTable.

For those already familiar with the reservation-making app, you'll notice that it's pretty much the same experience - the "Find a Table" screens on both are virtually identical, both of them allowing you to choose the date, time, and party size for your reservation. If you're already a Yelp user, there's really no reason to use the actual OpenTable app anymore.

I have to commend Yelp on so seamlessly integrating this new feature into its app, and doing so through a partnership with the already-popular OpenTable.

Feb

T-Mobile To Offer Swag To Shafted Cliq XT Users

Posted by Josue Alamo in CLIQ XT (Zeppelin), Deals, News, T-Mobile

With many Cliq XT users threatening to walk after Motorola’s Eclair update fiasco, T-Mobile is feeling quite sympathetic. In an effort to prevent more customers from cancelling and subscribing elsewhere, T-Mobile is now offering Cliq XT users some form of compensation through their Customer Loyalty department. Due to the proposed confidentiality of the memo the exact incentive is unknown. Cliq XT users are encouraged to call and find out what’s the best they can get to remain loyal to the purple T.

Source: TmoNews

Feb

Angry Birds Seasons Valentine's Day Update Is Live

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in Games, News

As promised, Rovio Mobile rolled out an update to the Angry Birds Seasons branch of its extremely popular game, this time with lots of pink, hearts, and love all around. The Valentine's Day edition features 18 new levels as well as some new carefully hidden golden eggs, and will surely knock down today's productivity levels with ripples felt all over the world.

This is getting a little too pink for my liking... oh, who am I kidding? /starts playing anyway.

Download

Grab Angry Birds Seasons from the Android Market by clicking or scanning the link below:

Web Market link | Appbrain link

Source: Angry Birds Seasons

Feb

Notion Ink Adam Tablet Gets A Software Update (No, It's Not Honeycomb)

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

Notion Ink's Adam has been through quite a bit on the long road to last month's launch, including concerns over its legitimacy and policies, ordering snafus, booting problems, and various bugs, but it hasn't stopped the company from steadily working on Adam's second major software patch.

While the first update ended up soft-bricking some devices (preventing them from booting, fixable by full system restore), the second one seems to be safe to apply and contains quite a few fixes and enhancements.

Infamous Greg from Notion Ink Fan does a great job highlighting some of the bugs and demonstrating the fixes in the following videos.

Feb

CLIQ XT Owners To Be Forever Stuck In Android 1.5 Hell But Motorola Bets They'll Loooove The CLIQ 2

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in CLIQ / DEXT (Morrison), CLIQ 2, CLIQ XT (Zeppelin), Motorola, News, T-Mobile

Even though Motorola's original CLIQ received a 2.1 upgrade a long time ago, CLIQ XT owners have been patiently (and impatiently) waiting for the good news ever since. Unfortunately, it will never come, as Motorola's official decision, posted on their Android Software Upgrade News, is to forever doom it to 1.5. It is hard to imagine which differences between the original CLIQ and the XT prompted Motorola to refuse the upgrade, because the phones are really very much the same, and the biggest difference between them is the physical keyboard on the CLIQ.

As if that wasn't enough, about a week ago, Motorola/T-Mobile sent a lovely targeted email to all CLIQ XT owners (in addition to Backflip and potentially some others), inviting them to upgrade to the CLIQ 2.

Feb

Sony Ericsson X8 And X10 Receiving Software Updates Now, Multitouch Finally Included (For The X10)

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Sony Ericsson, Xperia X10 (es209ra), Xperia X8 (Shakira)

The impossible has happened: thanks to a new software update, the Xperia X10's Internet and Maps applications are finally multitouch-capable. And as if that weren't exciting enough for X10 owners, the update also introduces support for bi-directional languages (i.e. Arabic, Farsi, Thai, and Hebrew) - a nice addition, though definitely not as high up on most users' wish lists as a version of Android more recent than 2.1 (or 1.6, if you're using AT&T's edition of the device).

And here's where things get interesting for X8 users - you guys are also getting this update, albeit with multitouch stripped out. Hey - if it's any consolation, the new software will make your devices compatible with ANT+, which enables support for "things like heart rate monitors."

Rikard Skogberg from the official Sony Ericsson blog says the update is now available via PC Companion, while an OTA is currently rolling out to "most markets." It isn't yet clear whether AT&T X10 users are getting this update, but I certainly hope so - otherwise, Big Blue headquarters might soon be a little...

Feb

Google Maps Update To 5.1 Brings Check-In System Through Latitude

Posted by Nate Kimmey in Applications, News

The official Google Maps app has been updated again, this time with a major addition to Latitude - check-ins. Just as Hotpot seemed to be a Yelp-killer, Google must now have Foursquare in its sights, because Latitude's check-ins have a few major advantages over Foursquare and its competitors.

Latitude will notify you when it recognizes your location, giving you the option to check-in wherever you are. However, you can also set up automatic check-ins for only the places you want, an incredibly convenient feature that still covers any privacy concerns. Whether you check-in manually or automatically, you will be checked-out once you leave (another feature Foursquare users have been asking for).

Feb

New Official Froyo ROM (DL30) For Samsung Fascinate Leaked Completely Unchanged - Bloatware And All

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Fascinate, Froyo 2.2, News, Samsung, Verizon Wireless

We have some somewhat good news for Fascinate owners: a new, official, very final-looking Froyo build DL30 for the Samsung Fascinate has been leaked, and it's been released completely unmolested (short of pre-rooting it). Even the bloatware has been left intact.

Obviously, the silver lining here is that we can see that Samsung and Verizon are making progress, and this could be a sign that the update is closer to being ready to roll out. (Then again, that could just be naïve optimism.) On the flip side, the only people who will find this immediately useful are the ones who are rooted, and those people are probably already running a custom Froyo ROM already (and likely one without the bloat).

Jan

Updated: Notion Ink Halts Adam Update, Gives Recovery Fix For Bricked Devices

Posted by David Ruddock in Adam, News, Notion Ink

Update: Shortly after the update botch was noticed by Notion Ink, they halted distribution of the update in question because it was not downloading completely. If you have a bricked Adam, here is the fix as e-mailed to Notion Ink Fan:

No one here at Android Police has a device to test this fix on - so be careful, and read the warning.

How to flash your Adam and get it working again

WARNING
This fix is recommended only if your Adam has stopped booting up after installing the over-the air system update on 24 January. Please don't use the method indicated to flash your Adam with any ROM not from Notion Ink, as it would probably damage your Adam irreparably.