update - 13/129 - Android Police - Android News, Apps, Games, Phones, Tablets

Feb

Secunia PSI Is A Tech Preview Of A 'Security' App That Scans A Few Other Apps And Gives You Useless Information

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in Applications, News

There are a lot of security apps for Android that go a little ways into overkill territory. Whether you're talking about superfluous task managers or "virus scanners" that may provide some minimal protection while generating more fear than is warranted, Android has a persistent problem with companies applying a Windows-era mentality on a completely different OS. Secunia PSI, however, takes the cake for being one of the least effective apps on the Play Store.

Here's how it works: Secunia scans your apps for possible vulnerabilities. Not actual infections, mind you. It just checks to see if the currently installed versions of your application match any known security holes.

Feb

Sprint's Galaxy S III Getting A Small OTA Update To Build L710VPMB1

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Galaxy S III, News, Sprint

Earlier this month, The Now Network pushed an update to its version of the Samsung Galaxy S III with a few small fixes in it. That update was build L710VPMA6. Today, the company is sending another update to the Galaxy S III that is essentially the same update, plus one addition: 3rd party software licensing. This one's build L710VPMB1, will hit your device regardless of whether or nor you installed the previous update.

So, for those wondering, here's the full changelog:

Enhancements/Fixes

Voicemail application update

SMS 3-digit support

Calendar sync issues

3rd party software licensing

Per Sprint, "this is a new release of L710VPBMA6, but also includes additional 3rd party software licenses." We're not sure why the company decided to rehash a previous update with one additional feature (as opposed to sending that feature out on its own), but alas, that's what it did.

Feb

Sprint's Optimus G Jelly Bean OTA Update (4.1.2, Build LS970ZVB) Starting To Trickle Out

Posted by Cameron Summerson in News, Optimus G, Sprint

Well, here's a bit of a nice surprise: one lucky XDA user just got an update to 4.1.2 on his Sprint Optimus G. And then another. And another. And some more. All with nary a word from The Now Network, which is usually pretty on top of announcing updates for devices. Ergo, at this point, we're not entirely sure if this is the start of a full-on rollout or just a "soak test" of sorts. We're thinking the former, but until official word is muttered from the lips of Sprint, it's a crapshoot.

^{Anyone ever actually seen a screenshot like this before?}

Feb

Motorola Set To Begin Soak Test For Verizon RAZR And RAZR MAXX Jelly Bean Update

Posted by Liam Spradlin in Jelly Bean 4.1, News, RAZR / RAZR MAXX, Verizon Wireless

Motorola, through its Feedback Network, has indicated that it is readying a "new Jelly Bean software release" for the Droid RAZR and RAZR MAXX on Verizon, asking participants – as usual – to test the waters before the release is made final. We know that the RAZR/MAXX duo are set to get a 4.1 update in "Q1 2013" from Motorola's own update schedule, so the following email (sent to members of Moto's feedback network) is a good sign that things are on track.

Hi,
Thanks for joining the Motorola Feedback Network. We are inviting owners of the Droid RAZR or Droid RAZR Maxx on Verizon to participate in an early preview of a new Jelly Bean software release, and provide feedback. If you are not currently using a Droid RAZR or Droid RAZR Maxx on Verizon, please excuse and ignore this email.

Feb

YouTube App Update v4.3.9 Brings Notification Bar TV Controls, G+ Profile Integration, And Fullscreen Button Fix

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Applications, News

The app frontend for everyone's favorite video streaming service just got itself a nice little update to v4.3.9, which brings a couple of new features. Namely, when you send a video to your paired TV, the app will allow you to control the playback with a nice little entry into the notification bar. So you can watch YouTube on your TV while doing other things on your phone – like checking Google+, for example.

Speaking of, this update also brings G+ profile integration, so everything should be pretty seamless between the two services. Past that, it bundles a fix for the "fullscreen button bug," which I have personally never experienced.

Feb

Download: Latest Google Play Store 3.10.14

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in Apps/Games, News

Google is pushing out an update to the Play Store for Android with version 3.10.14. The difference in size compared to the previous version 3.10.10 from a bit over 2 months ago is about 14KB, and after ripping through the APK, I found no significant changes. There are some tweaks to the billing code, but from what I can tell, this is a bug fix release.

If you spot any changes compared to 3.10.10, please drop a note in the comments.

There is a more recent version of the Play Store available for download here: Download: Latest Google Play Store 4.1.6 - Sweet New Designs And OCD Fixes

And a few earlier ones:

File Size History

com.android.vending-3.5.19.apk 3.81MB (4,000,309 bytes)
com.android.vending-3.7.11.apk 5.07MB (5,319,551 bytes)
com.android.vending-3.7.13.apk 5.07MB (5,322,241 bytes)
com.android.vending-3.7.15.apk 5.07MB (5,322,517 bytes)
com.android.vending-3.8.15.apk 5.35MB (5,618,814 bytes)
com.android.vending-3.8.17.apk 5.35MB (5,618,730 bytes)
com.android.vending-3.9.16.apk 5.22 MB (5,482,490 bytes)
com.android.vending-3.9.17.apk 5.34 MB (5,610,397 bytes)
com.android.vending-3.10.9.apk 5.87 MB (6,158,861 bytes)
com.android.vending-3.10.10.apk 5.87 MB (6,160,306 bytes)
com.android.vending-3.10.14.apk 5.88 MB (6,174,123 bytes)

Download

The APK, uploaded by XDA member ecs1984, is signed by Google and upgrades your existing Play Store.

Feb

CloudOn Updated With Support For A Handful Of Android Phones, Puts MS Office In Your Pocket

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Applications, News

CloudOn, the service which previously brought the full Microsoft Office experience to Android tablets, is now available on some phones. Yes, that means you have Office on your phone, in your pocket, and everywhere you are. That could be quite useful.

For the moment, however, the company is only supporting a handful of handsets:

Samsung Galaxy S III
Samsung Galaxy Nexus 4G
Samsung Galaxy Nexus
Samsung Galaxy Note
Samsung Galaxy Note II
Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket

Notice something about that list? Yeah, they're all Samsung phones. That's really not much of a surprise, as Samsung is undoubtedly the largest and most popular manufacturer of Android phones, but you'd think CloudOn may have at least considered a couple of other brands, as well.

Feb

Sprint's EVO Design 4G Receiving A Small OTA Update, Brings Some Basic Bug Fixes

Posted by Cameron Summerson in EVO Design 4G, News, Sprint

If you own Sprint's seemingly long-forgotten HTC EVO Design 4G, the company has some fixes coming your way via a new OTA update that started rolling out today. While the Design 4G hasn't seen any update action in well over six months, it's nice to see The Now Network's continuing support for the somewhat aging handset.

The update brings a total of three minor enhancements/fixes, including hotspot improvements when on GSM networks, faster messaging application load times, and the inclusion of the Sprint Connection Optimizer. This updated build should be rolling out today, although notifications won't start pushing until February 26th.

Feb

Keep Your Pants On: Snapchat For Android Finally Updated With Video Support

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in Apps/Games, News

If you've never heard of Snapchat, god! You guys are so behind the times! This app is like MMS and Mission Impossible all in one! Except it's not Mission Impossible because that's an old person show and who cares about Tom Cruise anymore? No time for watching movies when we're busy sending self-destructing pictures to each other. Set a timer on a message and, once it runs out, the recipient can no longer see your photo. That's how Snapchat has always worked and now the Android version can send videos as well!

If you have to ask why someone might need an app that destroys photos and videos after they've been seen, then perhaps you're not the target market.

Feb

Beautiful Widgets Hits v5.1, Brings New Widgets For Tablets, Improved Layouts For 4x1, Beta Channel, And More

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Applications, News

Today is national app update day. Not officially, but it sure feels like it. We've already seen updates to high-profile apps like Google Drive and Any.DO, but Beautiful Widgets may have set the bar for excellent updates on February 20th, 2013. The day's not over yet, but this one's a doozie.

So, what sorts of newness does it bring? Lots. Lots of sorts of newness. Like the option to select Weather Underground (wunderground) as your default weather service. You can also get rid of geolocation and set your location manually, if you so choose.