vzw - 12/20 - Android Police - Android News, Apps, Games, Phones, Tablets

Jun

[Rumor] Verizon Implementing Tiered Data Plans On July 7th, And They're Not Pretty

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in News, Verizon Wireless

Most users accustomed to unlimited data cringe upon hearing the words "tiered data plans" - but they aren't always bad. As our own David Ruddock pointed out, they don't affect most users - and they might even be cheaper for non-data hogs (aka 97% of customers).

However, in the case of the new tiered data plans Verizon Wireless is rumored to be implementing early next month, there's not much of an argument - they don't add any value whatsoever for VZW subscribers, and their sole raison d'être seems to be raping subscribers' wallets further still. Have a look for yourself:

2GB – $30/month
5GB – $50/month
10GB – $80/month
Overages - $10/1GB

No, this isn't a nightmare.

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

Gingerbread Update For DROID 2 Global Not Rolling Out Just Yet, Says Motorola

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Droid 2 Global, Gingerbread 2.3, Motorola, News, Verizon Wireless

Though Verizon would have you believe that Gingerbread is already rolling out to DROID 2 Globals around the world, Motorola is apparently riding a different train of thought entirely - according to a manager on their support forums, the update isn't quite ready yet.

Misinformation indeed. Let the inevitable kerfuffle begin!

Source: Motorola Support Forums via Android Central

Jun

[Rumor] The Next Nexus Phone: The Nexus 4G - LTE, 720p Display, Dual Core, No Function Buttons?

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

Take this with a massive grain of salt, but BGR has just let loose an article detailing what they claim will be either the next Nexus phone or, if not a Nexus, simply the new Android reference handset. Far more exciting than that is what BGR's source has told them what kind of features the phone will be packing:

A 720p "monster-sized" display - exact size unknown (also, goodbye qHD - nice knowing you)
Dual-core processor @1.2 or 1.5GHz (either a TI OMAP 4460 or a ULP Qualcomm 28nm Krait Snapdragon)
Android Ice Cream Sandwich (possibly dubbed Android 4.0)
Software function buttons (ala Honeycomb - no more capacitive touch)
4G LTE (yes, yes, yes!)
1GB RAM
5MP rear camera w/1080p video, 1MP front camera
Release around Thanksgiving

Unfortunately, several big questions remain unanswered.

Jun

LG Revolution Gets ClockworkMod Recovery, But It's Not Ready - Yet

Posted by David Ruddock in Development, LG, News, Revolution

If you've been following the saga of attempts to get a custom recovery running on the LG Revolution, you might be aware things hadn't been going so well up until last night. Particularly because most attempts to load custom recoveries onto the Revo previously ended in bricked phones and nerdrage. Well, no more (sorry for the craptastic picture):

You'll have to take my word about that being an LG Revolution. It is. I pinky swear.

There's just one small, little problem left: getting out of recovery. The LG Revolution, while pretty much wide-open unlocked and ripe for customization (there's no signature checks or encryption at all), the way LG has coded its recovery has made it particularly difficult to load a custom recovery image without bricking or erasing the phone every time it's booted.

Jun

[Video] CyanogenMod 7 Ported To Motorola DROID X

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Development, Droid X (Shadow), Motorola, News, Verizon Wireless

Ladies and gentlemen, it appears that cvpcs has achieved the impossible: he's thrown together (but not yet publicized) a build of CyanogenMod 7 that works on the Motorola DROID X!

Naturally, since no one but cvpcs has the firmware yet, there are still a few kinks that need to be ironed out before the ROM goes public - for example, GPS, 3G, Bluetooth, and the camera/camcorder have not been proven to work just yet, ~~and audio (including phone calls, speakers, the microphone, etc.) definitely isn't functional at the moment~~. However, as our own Justin Case put it, "If it boots, it can be fixed."

Update: cvpcs just tweeted that, with some help from Stephen Bird, he was able to fix the audio issue.

Jun

Verizon Is Sending Maintenance Update ED04 To The Samsung Fascinate

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Fascinate, News, Verizon Wireless

Owners of the Samsung Fascinate on Verizon should be getting prompted to install an OTA update pretty soon - but it's just a maintenance update with a couple of bug fixes. When I say a couple, I mean it in the most literal of ways - it fixes two things. The two things in question? It improves the delivery of over-the-air updates and incoming call connectivity. That's it. I do find it ironic that they're sending out an OTA update to improve OTA updates, though.

You should be able to pull this update now, if you haven't gotten it already.

[VZW]

Thanks, @payrow!

Jun

Droid Charge Update On The Way, But It's Not Gingerbread

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Charge (i510), News, Verizon Wireless

It looks like VZW has an update ready for the Droid Charge that should be hitting handsets pretty soon - but it's not Gingerbread. It's mostly a bug fixer, so don't expect anything too astounding to come from it, although the info on Big Red's site does make mention of improved switching between 3G and 4G LTE, which was one of the biggest gripes we had with our review unit.

Other fixes include improved battery life, improved GPS performance, an updated email folder structure, better email and calendar sync with Exchange, and a lot more.

There's no word on when this update will be hitting devices, but you can have a look here for more info.

Jun

[Unconfirmed] [Updated] Samsung Galaxy S II Coming To Verizon In July

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Galaxy S II, News

Update: According to Engadget, it was just a miscommunication - the VZW spokeswoman was actually referring to the Galaxy Tab 10.1. We knew it was too good to be true.

If there's one device that a lot of us have been waiting on to hit US soil, it's the Samsung Galaxy S II. Reportedly called the Function, Attain, and Within on Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint respectively, this phone has been hotly anticipated ever since its debut at MWC back in February.

ComputerWorld has gotten unofficial word from a "Verizon spokeswoman" that this phone will be hitting Big Red sometime in July.

Jun

Editorial: That Verizon Tethering FCC Complaint? It's Not Going To Do Anything, Here's Why

Posted by David Ruddock in Android OS, Carriers, Editorials, News, Verizon Wireless

If you've been watching the blogosphere over the last few days, you might have seen an article or two about a "complaint" filed with the FCC over Verizon's block on tethering applications in the Android Market.

The complainant's argument goes something like this: Verizon purchased the 700MHz spectrum ("block C" of the spectrum) back in 2007, and that spectrum is now used by Verizon for its 4G LTE service. That purchase, ala Google and other net neutrality lobbyists, came with one seemingly large caveat: Verizon (or AT&T, or anyone who bought in that spectrum) could not "deny, limit, or restrict" the phones using that spectrum in particular ways: phones must be carrier unlocked, able to access all parts of the web, and run any software.