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Jun

Nokia Acquires Scalado, Maker Of The Magical Object-Erasing Remove Software

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Applications, News

Back in February and shortly before MWC, developer Scalado unveiled an app called Remove. Put simply, the app allowed you to remove unwanted objects from images - for example, if your significant other is posing in front of the Louvre, you can remove other tourists from the picture. It works by taking multiple photos of the scene, then determining which ones moved through, and removing them at a touch.

As you can see in the video above, Remove was demoed on an Android device, suggesting with relative certainty that an Android app was near. Unfortunately, Nokia has acquired the company (you know, with all that spare cash they have), meaning it's unlikely Remove for Android will ever see the light of day.

May

CLIQ 2 Finally Receives An Update To Android 2.3 (Gingerbread), Makes Us Nostalgic For Waiting On Gingerbread

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in CLIQ 2, News

Gingerbread may have been out for nearly a year and a half now, but did you know there are some phones out there that have been living on nothing but Froyo this whole time? It's sad and it's true. Today, though, one abandoned phone is finding a new home on Gingebread: the CLIQ 2. Finally rolling out the 2.3 update, after launching back in January 2011 with Android 2.2 on board. How quickly these short 16 months roll by.

The update, like several unfortunate software upgrades before it, requires a Windows desktop, a micro USB cable and Motorola's own update app.

Apr

[Leak] Either Samsung Or AT&T Can't Keep A Secret: Ice Cream Sandwich For The Galaxy Note Leaks This Time

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in Galaxy Note (GT-N7000), Leaks, News

As the old saying goes, "When it rains, it leaks ICS builds for a whole lot of Samsung devices on AT&T's network in a short time frame." At least that's how I learned the saying as a boy. While it didn't make sense then, now that Android 4.0.3 has been leaked for the Galaxy Note, rounding out the Samsung/AT&T trifecta of flagship devices, it all makes sense.

As with the previous leaks, also courtesy of RootzWiki, this build flashed its build.prop badge at the door to let us know it's the real deal:

ro.build.fingerprint=samsung/SGH-I717/SGH-I717:4.0.3/IML74K/144:user/release-keys

Indeed, it looks like Note users can now join the Samsung family at the dessert table.

Feb

[Review] Air Display Turns Your Android Tablet Into A Second Monitor For Your PC Or Mac Via WiFi For $9.99, But You Might Want To Hold Off For Now

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in Applications, News

Tablets are still trying to find their place in the world. Are they productivity tools, media consumption devices, or are they all-purpose, do-anything magic slabs with a bevy of sensors and radios allowing you to unlock the powers of the universe? Air Display leans more towards the latter, turning your tablet into a secondary touchscreen display for Windows or Mac.

Concept

The app works via WiFi, which means that not only can you save a scarce video-out port on your machine, but you can also use the display from anywhere within WiFi range. Unfortunately you can't use your tablet's own on-screen keyboard to interact with your apps but Air Display can send touch input to the Windows OS.

Jan

[Weekend Poll] If Android Ceased To Exist, What OS Would Your Next Device Be?

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Android OS, Polls

This is the latest in our Weekend Poll series. For last week's, see Ice Cream Sandwich Takes Android To A Whole New Level Of Usability And Polish - But Is It Good Enough For Your Parents To Use?

A few days ago, redditor fernandizzel posted a hypothetical poll: "If MS & Apple had their way and Android ceased to exist one year from today, what OS would you use?" The choices were fairly obvious: Blackberry, Windows Phone, iOS, or Other. A second question was also posed: "If Google supported one platform in particular by providing better apps such as gMail and Maps, would you prefer that OS?"

As promised, he posted the results the next day.

Jan

[CES 2012] Lenovo's X1 Hybrid Laptop Crams Customized Gingerbread Next To Windows, Calls It "Instant Media Mode"

Posted by Liam Spradlin in Android OS, Gingerbread 2.3, Lenovo, News

Lenovo has just unveiled its new X1 Hybrid laptop, which runs Windows with a twist – namely, it can boot into "Instant Media Mode," which allows the laptop to run off of a Snapdragon processor, utilizing custom software based on the Android 2.3 kernel. Ostensibly, this mode is meant for users who want to get through a long flight, or simply zone out with a variety of media, with double the battery life they'd have running Windows.

Interestingly, Lenovo won't explicitly state that the hybrid is running Android, likely because, as Gizmodo astutely points out, it isn't running actual Android.

Oct

BlueStacks Announces App Player For Windows And Cloud Connect

Posted by Brad Ganley in Applications, Apps/Games, Games, News

Today, BlueStacks - a company specializing in Android app integration in Windows - will be making two large, and (hopefully) impressive announcements.

One of these announcements is the Alpha version of their App Player for Windows. If the name didn't already clue you in, BlueStacks App Player allows you to run Android applications on your Windows machine and enter a whole new level of Appoholism. This means that all of your favorite Android apps are now also your favorite PC apps and, by extension, your favorite Android games can now be your favorite PC games. Imagine the convenience of playing Angry Birds on a huge screen that isn't in your bathroom (Android Police cannot be held responsible if you get confused in this scenario and require new pants).

Oct

Popular Physics Game World Of Goo Coming To Android, Dubbed 'GooDroid'

Posted by Abhiroop Basu in Games, News

World of Goo, by indie developer 2D Boy, is a highly addictive physics-based puzzle/construction game that has won several design and gaming awards since its release. The basic objective of the game is to get a requisite number of goo balls to a pipe, which represents the exit. The goo balls can be used to make bridges, towers, and other structures to overcome gravity and terrain. Currently, the game is available on a number of platforms, including Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, iOS, and Wii; and earlier today 2D Boy announced that the game would finally be coming to Android tablets and smartphones "soon."

Physics-based games, such as Angry Birds, Shoot U!

Aug

Over Two-Thirds Of Smartphones In The US Run Android Or iOS

Posted by Abhiroop Basu in News

A recent report from ComScore indicates that as of July 2011 82 million Americans own smartphones, with Android running on 41.8% of those devices, iOS on 27%, BlackBerry OS on 21.7%, Windows Phone on 5.7%, and Symbian on 1.9%.

The survey clearly indicates that significant gains have been made by Google and Apple at the expense of RIM, Microsoft, and Nokia.

Additionally, the survey also looked at the market share of hardware manufacturers and interestingly Samsung was well ahead of the rest with 25.5% market share. I nearly choked when I first saw this figure as just a month ago Samsung's market share in the US was at a measly 8%.