Devices By Manufacturer - 33/534 - Android Police - Android News, Apps, Games, Phones, Tablets

Mar

DROID DNA Ends The Disappearing Act At VerizonWireless.com While LG Lucid Goes Missing [Updated]

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in DROID DNA, News, Verizon Wireless

Last Updated: April 1st, 2013

Earlier today, the DROID DNA disappeared from VZW's site. This, combined with all the Verizon-bound HTC One rumors, prompted some in the Android community to wonder whether such a One variant is almost upon us - after all, why would Big Red take down one of its most powerful smartphones so suddenly? The vanishing act didn't last long, however, as the DNA just returned, seemingly alive and well:

It's unclear at this point whether the phone was briefly missing by mistake or Verizon put it back because people noticed, but we've reached out to the media relations team to find out and will update this space if they respond (which is unlikely to happen before Monday).

Mar

Small OTA Updates Rolling Out To The Kyocera Rise On Sprint, Wi-Fi Archos Cobalt 80

Posted by Cameron Summerson in ARCHOS, News, Rise, Sprint

While these two devices are essentially unrelated in general, today they have one thing in common: they're both getting small OTA updates.

Sprint's Kyocera Rise is getting bumped up to build 1.011sp, which brings a few enhancements and general bug fixes:

Kyocera Rise Software Update - 1.011sp

Enhancements/Fixes

Qchat enhancements

Camera Gallery App crashes when attempted to edit picture

User can not pull down status bar during a call

Overlap when signing into Gmail™

Bluetooth connectivity issues

On the other side of the fence is the Archos Cobalt 80, which appears to be getting its first update. This one's just a very small bugfixer, which resolves a couple of issues:

Version 20130202 - March 29th, 2013

Fix an issue with Google talk no sound on loudspeaker on video chat.

Mar

AT&T Pushing Small Update (I777UCLL6) To Galaxy S II With Bug Fixes And Security Enhancements

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in AT&T, Galaxy S II, News

According to a forum post on AT&T's support site and some scattered user reports, the carrier's Galaxy S II variant is receiving a small update today. Rolling out over the air as you read these words, the software fixes an issue where devices would become unresponsive or power down while idle.

The update also includes the requisite "security enhancements." If you haven't updated your phone to 4.0 yet, well for starters, why not? Secondly, you'll need to do so first before you can apply the update. This is rolling out over the air, so hit your Settings app to find it or just wait for the notification to show up.

Mar

U.S. Cellular's Galaxy S4 Pre-Orders Begin On April 16th, Price Not Yet Announced

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Galaxy S4, News, US Cellular

Last Updated: April 22nd, 2013

Carriers across the country are gearing up for the next big thing to hit shelves, with T-Mobile offering the handset from May 1 and AT&T accepting pre-orders beginning on April 16th. As it turns out, U.S. Cellular will also begin taking pre-order on the 16th, though the regional carrier hasn't yet announced how much the device will cost. When I reached out for more info, I was told that "pricing will be available on 4/16."

So, mark you calendars U.S. Cellular customers – you're only a little over two weeks away from throwing your money down and committing to the Galaxy S 4 as your new smartphone.

Mar

Google Launches Open Patent Pledge, Promising Free Use Of Patents For People Who Don't Sue

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in Google, Legal, News

Google has announced a new initiative today that might, if we're lucky, slowly lead to some meaningful changes in how patent litigation is approached. Or, alternatively, make it easier to highlight the jerks who are ruining it for everyone. The Open Patent Non-Assertion (OPN) Pledge gives would-be inventors a pool of patents that Google promises to never sue anyone over, "unless first attacked." That last part is where eyebrows go up, though.

First, some context: there are 10 patents in the mix, which already isn't a lot. The company says more will be added over time. For these ten patents, Google is ensuring that any company, group, or developer working on open source software may use the technology without worry of being sued by the search giant.

Mar

Google Posts Jelly Bean Factory Images For The Verizon (4.2.2) And Sprint (4.2.1) Galaxy Nexus

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Galaxy Nexus, News, Sprint, Verizon Wireless

If you've been waiting for an official means of recovering your Verizon or Sprint Galaxy Nexus should an emergency arise, Google's just fulfilled that need. The factory images for both devices – 4.2.2 (JDQ39) for the Verizon variant and 4.2.1 (GA02) for Sprint's – just hit the "Factory Images for Nexus Devices" download page.

These images allow you to return your device back to its stock state, which includes the stock bootloader and recovery if you choose to flash it. If you root, ROM, and/or tinker, it's a good idea to have these handy – you never know when you might need them.

Mar

[Updated] Sprint's Epic 4G Touch Gets An Update To Jelly Bean, Requires Kies Due To File Size

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in Epic 4G Touch, News, Sprint

We sure weren't expecting this, but today Sprint announced on its support site that the Epic 4G Touch (the Now Network's branded version of the Galaxy S II) is getting an update to Jelly Bean. Undoubtedly version 4.1, but this would still be a welcome upgrade as it brings with it the ability to access Google Now, among a host of other features.

The update will require Samsung's Kies software to install. Apparently the file size is too big to rollout over the air. Though, if we had to guess, the fact that the device is nearly two years old by this point and is relatively low-priority for Sprint played a factor in the decision to let consumers foot the bill for the bandwidth.

Mar

Did Google And LG Silently (And Subtly) Update The Nexus 4's Design?

Posted by Cameron Summerson in News, Nexus 4

According to the guys over at German site MobiFlip, Google and LG may have pulled a fast one on us by very subtly updating the Nexus 4's design. The changes appear to be quite minor (yet useful), with the addition of small "nipples" on the bottom of the phone's backside being the most notable. Why would Google add such a small difference, you ask? Because as it stands, the N4's back is completely flat, which essentially mutes (or drastically muffles) the speaker when the phone is laid down. It's incredibly frustrating, and as a result I've missed several texts and phone calls since getting the N4.

Mar

Is Sprint Already Killing The Optimus G? Signs Point To 'Maybe'

Posted by David Ruddock in News, Optimus G, Sprint

An active thread at XDA has multiple posters (here, here, and here) claiming that Sprint is cutting off shipments of the Optimus G, and that the device has reached 'end of life' status, meaning it will be discontinued soon. One poster included a photo of an inventory spreadsheet indicating as much:

Two other posters claimed to have received similar information, one of whom suggested quite correctly that the Optimus G's recent participation in the "buy one get one free" promo means Sprint is probably trying to clear out remaining stock. The Sprint Optimus G continues to show as in-stock at most major online phone retailers (Sprint, Amazon, LetsTalk, Wirefly), though it's often local resellers that are first affected by an EOL situation, because their shipments are much smaller and more frequent.

Mar

Amazon Pushes Software Updates For The Kindle Fire (2nd Gen), Kindle Fire HD 7", And Kindle Fire HD 8.9"

Posted by John Thompson in Amazon, Kindle Fire, Kindle Fire HD

Amazon has been busy working on software updates for its line of Kindle Fire devices, and the latest versions of the software for each device are now available to download.

For each device, the update provides enhancements for viewing textbooks, with the 2nd generation Fire and the Fire HD 7" getting "X-Ray for Textbooks". This feature allows users to access the most important terms and concepts, with glossary definitions and links to relevant pages within books.

The update also provides enhancements for print replica textbooks across each device. Thumbnails of each page are now available at the bottom of the screen, and you can make notes and highlights in your books, as well as jump from one chapter to another.