Android OS - 50/165 - Android Police - Android News, Apps, Games, Phones, Tablets

Jun

Qualcomm Working On A Chip That Would Support Multiple LTE Bands, Carrier Networks

Posted by Liam Spradlin in 4G, Android OS, Carriers, News

According to a recent FCC filing, Qualcomm is hard at work on a new radio chipset that would support seven spectrum bands, including three below 1GHz. The introduction of this chipset could offer an effective solution to LTE spectrum fragmentation, which is a thorn in the side of manufacturers looking to cleanly execute broad product releases.

LTE fragmentation has also stirred debate among carriers, though. Smaller carriers operate within the Lower A block of the 700MHz band, in Band Class 12 while larger carriers like AT&T operate on the Lower B and C blocks in Band Class 17. For this reason, smaller carriers are urging the FCC to mandate interoperability.

Jun

Google Announces Google Maps Offline Out Of Labs With Improved Interface, Coming Soon

Posted by David Ruddock in Android OS, Applications, News

Google has just announced at today's Maps events that Google Maps offline download feature, previously a "labs" option inside the Google Maps for Android app, is going official. According to the Google, the feature is "coming soon." Unfortunately, there was no word on support for offline navigation.

Here's are some (less than great) shots of the interface in action on a tablet:

From what we can tell, the interface has been improved and it is now much easier to make an offline area selection than it was in the Labs version of the feature. We'll update this post as we learn more.

Jun

Apple Renews ITC Complaint Against HTC For Data Tapping, Now Says Android Itself Infringes With Long-Press URL Dialogues

Posted by David Ruddock in Android OS, HTC, Legal, News

Apple has filed a new complaint with the ITC against HTC over the same data-tapping patent that caused a substantial disruption of HTC's supply line into the United States, and resulted in delayed or stifled launches for a number of phones.

After removing the multi-option dialogue that appeared upon pressing a phone number in an email or webpage from its devices, HTC proclaimed it was clear of Apple's patent on data-tapping techniques. Apple seems to think they're wrong - and is now claiming that a core Android functionality (long-press URL action prompting a multi-selection dialogue) is infringing on the patent.

Jun

[Hands-On Videos] Acer Quietly Debuts Iconia Tab A210 And A110 At Computex 2012

Posted by Liam Spradlin in Android OS, Iconia A110, Iconia A210, News, Tablets, Videos

Acer surprised viewers today with a pair of tablets that were not ushered in even by a humble press release. Engadget reports that the tablets received no formal announcement at Computex either, but that they were only discovered thanks to a wandering eye.

At any rate, the tablets in question are the Iconia Tab A210 and A110 – presumably upgraded versions of the A200 and A100. Each of the tablets has a new design, a Tegra 3 processor, and Ice Cream Sandwich goodness on board. Engadget took some hands-on time with each of the devices, grabbing the photos and videos you see below.

Jun

Sid Meier's Civilization And Pirates! Heading To Android Thanks To 2K Games/GREE Partnership

Posted by Liam Spradlin in Android OS, Games, News

Android users who are fans of Sid Meier's classic games Pirates! and Civilization now have something to look forward to – it appears hat GREE and 2K Games have teamed up to bring the beloved sim/strategy games to the mobile world.

The companies' statement indicated that the games would be available as "social titles on select global markets," evidently starting with Japan.

“Creating social mobile games based on the Sid Meier’s Pirates! and Sid Meier’s Civilization franchises are our way to connect with Japanese fans in a fun and innovative way,” said Fabien Siouffi, Vice President Online and Social at Take-Two Asia.

Jun

Download The Full Android 4.0.4 (IMM76K) Build For The Verizon Galaxy Nexus Right Now

Posted by David Ruddock in Development, Galaxy Nexus, Ice Cream Sandwich 4.0, News, Samsung, Verizon Wireless

Google has just published the fully flashable image for the 4.0.4 update to the Verizon Galaxy Nexus (mysid). This allows users who either have been unable to receive the OTA due to using a custom ROM, or simply haven't updated, to flash their devices with a complete OS image, as opposed to using an incremental update file.

This will erase all of your data, so if you do flash it, be sure to back up your stuff. Again, this image is only for the Verizon Galaxy Nexus. To find basic instructions on how to go about flashing, check out the top of the download page.

Jun

Open Garden Beta Comes To The Play Store – Create Mesh Networks, Share Internet Connectivity On The Fly

Posted by Liam Spradlin in Android OS, Applications, News

Open Garden is hands down one of the most impressive apps I've seen this year. The app, first introduced at TechCrunch Disrupt NYC 2012 as the startup that would go on to win the conference title of Most Innovative Startup, allows users to create an "open garden" of internet connectivity for multiple devices to share. The startup's official website explains it this way:

The operators sell us fancy handsets, but behave as if broken networks are a fact of life. … Imagine, instead, if all of the smartphones in any location could use their formidable processing power to share access to the Internet.

Jun

HTC One V Review: Can A Cheap Phone Really Be Cheerful?

Posted by John Thompson in Ice Cream Sandwich 4.0, One V (Primo), Phone Reviews, Reviews, Three UK

There are many cheap Android phones on the market today. Most of these devices will have a single core processor clocked at around 1GHz, and there won't be an awful lot of RAM to speak of either. This remains true of the HTC One V, but the latest budget phone to come out of the Taiwanese company has one key difference: it's running the latest version of Android.

That's right, you can finally own a budget device that doesn't ship with a version of Android that was released 2 years ago! Before you start celebrating too soon, though, you may want to take a look at some of the pros and cons that come with this phone and decide whether you want to take it on a 2-year contractual spin.

Jun

Verizon 4G Xoom Android 4.0 Update Now Rolling Out, Manual Download Available

Posted by Nate Kimmey in Ice Cream Sandwich 4.0, News, Verizon Wireless, XOOM

It's been a long time coming, particularly for the pioneer Android tablet, but the Ice Cream Sandwich update for Verizon's 4G Xoom is rolling out today as expected. The update brings the Xoom to the very latest version of Android available - 4.0.4.

An over-the-air rollout has started today, but if you are too impatient to wait for that, you have the option of installing the update manually (this method requires the use of a USB host cable):

Download the update here.
Place the file on a USB stick.
Turn off the device.
Enter Recovery by pressing Volume Down at the "M" logo, then pressing Volume Up.

Jun

Duo Security Sends A Trojan Horse Inside Google's Bouncer, Explores And Fingerprints Its Guts

Posted by Liam Spradlin in Android OS, Applications, News

The Google Play Store's "Bouncer," which Google launched back in February to protect Android users from malicious apps, is a service that scans potential Play Store apps by running them in a virtual phone environment, where the app's activities are monitored for any signs of mal-intent.

Taking advantage of that test period, security researchers Charlie Miller and Jon Oberheide have evidently found ways past Bouncer (which they will be presenting at the Summercon conference in New York this week). Their method, in short, allows an app to "know" that it is being run in a virtual environment, meaning malicious apps could conceivably resist carrying out malicious activities until they are running on a real system.