14
Sep
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Google Introduces "Apps Focus" On The Play Store - Bringing Together Topical Collections Of Great Apps

Posted by in Android OS, Apps/Games, News

Notice something new on the Play Store today? Google just added another featured area that should provide just a little more discoverability for apps with slightly narrower audiences, in the form of the "Apps Focus" section.

The first Apps Focus topic? Fashion and Style - bringing together a collection of some of the best apps for the chic-minded. While I can't say this one's up my alley in particular (seriously, what do I know about fashion?), I'm definitely interested in seeing where Google takes the Apps Focus feature in the future.

Screenshot_2012-09-14-15-30-36 Screenshot_2012-09-14-15-51-28 Screenshot_2012-09-14-15-31-07

I've long lamented the state of app discoverability on Android, especially when it comes to stuff literally hundreds of thousands of people haven't downloaded already.

14
Sep
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Nissan And Infiniti Are Going To Start Processing Car Lease Returns With An App

Posted by in Android OS, Applications, News, Off-Topic

Have you ever found yourself annoyed that returning a leased vehicle to the dealer takes too long and requires too much paper? Well, if you're a car dealership, you actually might find this to be a real hassle. And it's a problem Nissan has decided to tackle in the US. Starting this month, Nissan and Infiniti dealers will use an app (for iOS or Android) to return a customer's leased vehicle to the dealership.

It works pretty simply - the camera takes a picture of the VIN barcode (vehicle identification number), and then sends that to Nissan's backend database to retrieve the lease information.

13
Sep
2011-07-04 14h22_52

[Update: Rolling Out] Verizon's Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Update LP11 Arriving With ICS Soon

Posted by in Galaxy Tab 10.1, Ice Cream Sandwich 4.0, News, Verizon Wireless
Last Updated: September 17th, 2012

The support docs for Verizon's variant of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 have just been updated with details of a new OTA LP11 that will bring Ice Cream Sandwich. The update for the Wi-Fi version started rolling out in the US several weeks ago, and T-Mo started pushing the update through Kies to its variant earlier this month.

It's nice to see Verizon make right in a somewhat timely manner, as this update brings some really nice features to the device, and the addition of ICS makes it feel like an entirely new tablet.

13
Sep
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Acer Reportedly Cancels Announcement Of Aliyun-Powered Smartphone Following Google Warning, Says Alibaba

Posted by in Acer, Android OS, Google, News, Rumors

Earlier this evening, Nasdaq reported that Taiwanese manufacturer Acer decided to cancel a press conference scheduled for Thursday, which would have seen the announcement of Acer's CloudMobile A800.

The smartphone, which would have been unveiled in Shanghai, was set to run on Aliyun, a mobile OS developed by a Chinese Internet firm called Alibaba Group, the largest internet firm in China by transactions. Acer indicated that the press conference was canceled after Google, according to Nasdaq, "expressed concerns about the smartphone."

An anonymous official at Acer commented that "Acer will continue to communicate with Google and the company still wants to launch the new smartphone based on Alibaba software."

11
Sep
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Samsung Reportedly Confirms That The International Galaxy S III Will Get Jelly Bean "As Soon As" October

Posted by in Galaxy S III, Jelly Bean 4.1, News

Speaking to CNET UK, Samsung has confirmed the Galaxy S III sold abroad will be getting Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean) "as soon as" October. Which sounds wonderfully non-committal. Though if that October estimate holds true, it'd probably be a record for Samsung. Perhaps they've finally realized people care about OS updates.

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We've already seen leaks of Jelly Bean firmware for the international S III, as well as the T-Mobile edition in the US, so this sounds about right to us.  When the LTE version of the S III launches in the UK on the Everything Everywhere network, it will actually come with Android 4.1 pre-installed.

11
Sep
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[Oh, Snap] Google Sponsoring Free Boingo Wi-Fi Across The US Again In 4000 Locations, But Only For Laptops And Android Devices

Posted by in Android OS, News

I'm not the kind of person that finds some subtle jab at Apple around every corner, but today Google and Boingo announced a free Wi-Fi partnership that makes drawing such a conclusion hard to avoid.

Google has sponsored Boingo Wi-Fi a number of times in the past, offering the company's wireless internet in hotels, shopping malls, subways, and airports around the world. Today's deal extends to 4,000 hotspots across the US, including 15 major airports, numerous Manhattan subways, and thousands of other locations. It is also specifically branded as being sponsored by Google Play, not simply Google.

The catch is that, this time, only some devices can use the free service.

08
Sep
GALAXY-Note-10.1

Official Jelly Bean Test OTAs Leak For The Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 And Galaxy Note 10.1

Posted by in Development, Galaxy Note 10.1 (GT-N8000 / N8010 / N8013), Galaxy Tab 2 7.0, Jelly Bean 4.1, Leaks, News

The crew over at SamMobile have gotten their hands on some nice treats for Tab 2 7.0 and Note 10.1 owners: builds of Android 4.1.1 for both devices. Of course, these aren't finalized builds, but rather a first look at what Jelly Bean will be like on the aforementioned tablets.

Both versions are OTAs flashable via Odin on top of specific stock builds.

Tab 2 7.0

  • Build P3100DDBLI1
  • Android 4.1.1 JRO03C
  • 295.2MB

Before flashing this, you must be on stock build P3100DDBLH3.

Note 10.1

  • Build N8000DDALI1
  • Android 4.1.1 JRO03C
  • 297.7MB

Before flashing this, you must be on stock build N8000DDALH1.

For those curious about the latter build before flashing, here's a first look at what to expect:

Both downloads, along with full flashing instructions, are available at SamMobile and can be found at the respective links below.

07
Sep
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Leak: ZTE Warp Sequent Headed To Boost Mobile With Vanilla Android 4.0, May Be Grand X IN Variant

Posted by in Boost Mobile, Grand X IN, Ice Cream Sandwich 4.0, Leaks, News, Rumors

In a tweet earlier this evening, the recently resurrected evleaks Twitter account revealed what may be a variant of ZTE's Intel-powered Grand X IN phone which we saw at IFA 2012 headed for Boost Mobile.

It's definitely worth noting, though, that this ZTE Grand X IN (if that is what we're looking at) is a tad different from the original. Most notably, it appears to be running vanilla Android 4.0 rather than ZTE's own custom overlay.

07
Sep
tinynom

[Update: Winners] Giveaway: 'Nom' Shirt Comes Back For Seconds - Score One Of Five Free, Or Buy One For $5.55 (Plus Shipping)

Posted by in Android OS, Contests / Giveaways
Last Updated: November 15th, 2012

Back in April, we gave away ten of the crowd favorite "Nom" t-shirt. Now, it's back for another round! We're giving away five more of these, courtesy of Tanga. If you're impatient, or want to guarantee you'll get one, you can purchase it for $5.55 (plus $1.99 shipping) directly from Tanga right now. Otherwise, time to enter for your chance to win!

The contest is now over. Here are the winners, chosen at random:
  • fixxmyhead
  • Zach B
  • Dustin Schneider
  • Marc Zdon
  • Daforce

Congratulations - you will be contacted for your information in the near future!

Everyone else - keep participating and stay tuned to Android Police so that you don't miss our upcoming giveaway announcements.

06
Sep
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Hands-On And Initial Thoughts On The 7-Inch Kindle Fire HD Versus The Nexus 7

Posted by in Amazon, Android OS, Kindle Fire HD, News, Tablets, Videos

I had a chance to spend some time with Amazon's new Kindle Fires today at the company's event in Los Angeles, so I'm going to share a few thoughts about Amazon's newest Android-based slates. Disclaimer: Yes, I only spent about an hour with this tablet today, but I'm going to give you a sense of where I think the Kindle Fire HD is headed, who it's targeted to, and whether or not you should be interested in buying it.

Kindle Fire HD 16GB (7-Inch) vs. Nexus 7 8GB

Wow. For $200, the Kindle Fire HD has set a bar. Granted, Amazon's had a year to refine its original cheap-slate and really hone down the whole concept.

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