13
May
google_play_thumb

All Developers Can Now Reply Directly To App Reviews In The Google Play Store

Posted by in Google, News

If you've spent as much time on the Google Play Store as I have, you begin to recognize a pattern: developers asking (and sometimes begging) users to email them directly with complaints or bugs, because they can't reply to that snarky review left in lieu of a bug report. After years and years of frustration for devs who just want to make their apps better, Google has finally rolled out a direct reply feature. Developers, you can now reply to user reviews using your developer console.

reply-reviews

This has been a long time coming. A number of developers had been included in the testing program for the better part of a year, and rumors of a wide rollout have been circulating for a while.

13
May
wm_IMG_5855

Some Qualcomm-Powered Galaxy S4 Handsets Are Producing Terrible Audio Clipping With Headphones

Posted by in Galaxy S4, News

A 14-page XDA thread, thorough analysis by an audio engineer, and a 100+ comment Reddit thread have revealed that some of Samsung's Galaxy S4 handsets are experiencing serious sonic problems with certain headphones.

Headphone audio on smartphones is something we rarely think too much about, because, well, most people don't really care. As long a smartphone produces sound that is listenable and loud enough, your average Joe isn't particular concerned about the quality. But according to a growing number of individuals, some Galaxy S4 handsets powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 600 chipset are basically unusable with certain headphones.

The problem typically manifests itself as a particularly unpleasant "clipping," which most people would describe as crackling, buzzing, or popping.

13
May
418TAh9NMuL._AA300_

Amazon Coins Virtual Currency Available Now, $5 Credit For Kindle Fire Owners Makes It Slightly Less Awful

Posted by in Amazon, Kindle Fire, Kindle Fire HD, News

Earlier this year, Amazon announced that it was preparing a proprietary virtual currency specifically for its Appstore. Then the incorrigible Eric Ravenscraft spent a few thousand words explaining exactly why Amazon Coins, and any system that substitutes real money for meaningless points, is just a pretense for sucking money out of people's wallets. If you can't wait to pay Amazon's tax on those without common sense, you can now hand over your real dollars for fake ones to spend on apps and in-app purchases.

coin big

If you're a United States Amazon customer and you own any model of Kindle Fire, congratulations, you've just been credited with 500 Amazon Coins, or $5 in non-fake money.

13
May
image

Notion Ink Adam 2 Revealed: Meager Specs And One Interesting Quirk

Posted by in Adam, News, Notion Ink

Unveiled in December of 2010, Notion Ink's original Adam was intended to be an innovative, disruptive Android tablet that could compete with the iPad. Its primary selling point - besides a relatively high-end (at the time) dual-core Tegra 250 processor and 1GB of RAM - was a UI overlay known as Eden, which promised to make underlying the Android 2.2 more tablet-friendly. Launched to much fanfare in January 2011, the Adam never quite caught on the way Notion Ink had hoped; shipping delays, software issues, and poor build quality led the company to sell fewer units than anticipated. Two years and several versions of Android later, Notion Ink's ready to give it another go with the Adam 2.

13
May
wm_GALAXY S III Product Image (10)_W

T-Mobile's Galaxy S III Currently Getting Android 4.1.2 (Build MD5), Brings Multi-Window, Easy Mode, And More

Posted by in Device Updates, Galaxy S III, News, T-Mobile

T-Mobile is currently in the process of pushing a fairly major update to its version of the Galaxy S III, which brings Android 4.1.2 and a slew of new don't-call-it-Touchwiz features.

New Features:

  • Multi-Window
  • Auto-pairing via NFC
  • enhanced Camera options
  • Sound Balance
  • Paper Artist
  • Samsung Gallery
  • Blocking Mode
  • Easy Mode

13
May
samsung-logo

Samsung Prepares For Gigabit Mobile Speeds With "5G" Millimeter Wave Band Transceiver, ETA 2020

Posted by in News, Samsung

Most mobile users these days are happy to get LTE service (and a few of us just wish we could get 3G reliably) but there is already a surprising push towards the next big thing in wireless speeds. Samsung thinks it has the solution, or at least what might become one: expanding existing LTE networks into the super-high 28GHz range, the lower part of what's known as the millimeter wave bands. The company is calling this system 5G, and expects to have it ready for cellular networks in 2020.

삼성전자5G기술세계최초개발

Any grade school science student can tell you that higher-frequency radio waves have the capacity for more data, and Samsung's system has been tested with speeds just north of 1Gb per second, about ten times as fast as the best current LTE offerings.

12
May
Xperia_ZR_Black_Group

Sony Announces The Xperia ZR: A Tougher, More Waterproof Version Of The Xperia Z (Without The 1080p Screen)

Posted by in News, Sony

The Xperia Z is a pretty spiffy flagship phone, and tough as well, thanks to its IP55/IP57 Ingress Protection rating. But now there's a more specialized model coming, the Xperia ZR, designed specifically for waterproof functioning in even wetter environments. The new phone is manufactured to the higher IP55/IP58 standard, meaning that it can be safely submersed in 1.5 meters of water for up to 30 minutes.

The Xperia ZR roughly follows the Z's design, getting rid of some of the slim lines and premium materials for the sake of its more waterproof chassis. It looks a lot like the slightly down-market ZL, in fact, with a 10.4mm-thick plastic body.

11
May
Samsung-Galaxy-S4-mini-07

Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini Shows Off Its Curves On Camera

Posted by in Galaxy S4, News, Samsung

Considering Samsung's tendency to release mountains of phones, the Galaxy S4 Mini seemed like a lock from the moment we saw the Galaxy S4. And what have we here? The Galaxy S4 Mini appears to have broken cover in China, and it looks more or less as you'd expect – like a smaller GS4.

Samsung-Galaxy-S4-mini-09 Samsung-Galaxy-S4-mini-08 Samsung-Galaxy-S4-mini-07

Like last year's pint-sized GS3 variant, the Galaxy S4 Mini has the same general industrial design as the S4 proper. It's smooth and rounded, with that divisive carbon fiber pattern on the back panel. It's roughly 8mm thick, which is the same as the GS4.

11
May
image

Nexus 4 Slipping Off Its Charging Orb? There's A 3D Printed Solution For That

Posted by in Accessories, Google, News, Nexus 4

As a recent convert to the Nexus 4 (after waiting months for my Sprint ETF to drop), I'm in love with the wireless charging orb. That's not to say it doesn't have issues (besides its price), though. While I've had nary an problem with the orb, I have heard a few times that it has one serious issue – failing to keep the Nexus in place as it charges.

A few days ago, I came across a potential solution to this problem – the Nexus 4 Charging Orb Cradle by Etsy user Pixil3D.

Untitled-2

The 3D-printed cradle isn't necessarily the most elegant solution imaginable, and adding a $24 fix to a product that already costs $60 isn't exactly palatable to this writer, but the cradle has one thing going for it – it's 3D-printed, and anyone that has a 3D printer can make their own.

Page 9 of 534«First...7891011...203040...Last»