Reviews - 57/69 - Android Police - Android News, Apps, Games, Phones, Tablets

Feb

Thumb Keyboard Is An Epic Win For Tablet Typing [Hands-On]

Posted by Will Shanklin in App Reviews, Applications, Galaxy Tab, NOOKcolor (Encore), Reviews, Tips & Tutorials, XOOM

Last Updated: July 24th, 2011

If you caught our review of Thumb Keyboard last month, you'll know the gist of this clever keyboard app that aims to make two-thumbed typing a breeze. It's a novel (and potentially very useful) tool for a phone, but with recent updates that have accentuated the tablet layouts, this has now become my keyboard of choice on large tablet screens, and is a potential game-changer in the new slate arena.

On phones, trace keyboards like Swype and SlideIt are extremely hard to beat in the speed department (world texting records seem to be broken on a regular basis with Swype), but on the wider tablet screen, tracing suddenly becomes much less convenient.

Feb

HTC Desire Z: Long-Term Ownership Hardware Review

Posted by Brian O'Toole in Desire Z (Vision), Devices By Manufacturer, G2 (Vision), HTC, Phone Reviews, Reviews

Last Updated: July 24th, 2011

Take a look at the top tier of Android phones right now and you might notice something. They all kind of look the same. Black front fascia, large touchscreen, minimal waistline. Boring, right? Well that's just the way things are going. Alternatives to the slate way of living are becoming increasingly rare, which puts the HTC Desire Z with its hardware keyboard in an intriguing light. With its metallic accents and suave grey pallet, the Desire Z cuts a different path. So how do I mean rare? If you want a top-level QWERTY Android phone in the USA you have a fairly limited selection to choose from: Sprint has the Samsung Epic 4G, Verizon the Motorola Droid 2 and T-Mobile the HTC G2.

Feb

Lookout Launches Lookout Labs And Its First Android App - The Ingenious "Plan B" [Hands-On Review]

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in App Reviews, Applications, News, Reviews

Last Updated: July 24th, 2011

Lookout Labs

Lookout Inc's Lookout Mobile Security app is one of the most popular and trusted security apps on the Market, and while the company is going to continue active development of its flagship product, today it is launching Lookout Labs - a separate Android Market developer account dedicated to "pushing the bounds of mobile apps."

Plan B

Introduction

The first fruit of Lookout Labs' labor is a brilliantly simple yet very useful app called Plan B. Plan B was only made possible recently, after the release of the official Android web Market. The app is designed to be the last resort for finding a lost (or maybe even stolen - more on that later) phone and getting its latest position emailed to the account associated with the Android Market.

Feb

[Hands-On] Neato: Asurion Steps Up Its Game, Sprint TEP Subscribers Reap The Benefits

Posted by Brad Ganley in App Reviews, Applications, Apps/Games, Carriers, News, Reviews, Sprint

Last Updated: September 11th, 2012

Good news for all you prepared individuals out there who are subscribed to Sprints TEP (Total Equipment Protection) plan: You now have access to a new app that adds a whole new level of useful to protecting your device through Asurion, the third party company that handles the insurance rigmarole for Sprint (and pretty much every other U.S. carrier, but they don't get an app).

The Sprint Total Equipment Protection App essentially mirrors the functionality of services like Lookout Mobile Security (but without the antivirus part): It can be used for locating your phone via GPS, helping to find it by sounding an alarm (even when on silent mode), backing up your contacts, remotely locking your device with a pin code, and remotely wiping the contacts.

Feb

[Review] HTC Inspire 4G: A Pretty Face Only Gets You So Far

Posted by David Ruddock in AT&T, Inspire 4G (Ace, Stallion), Phone Reviews, Reviews, Videos

Last Updated: February 8th, 2012

About this time last week, I first started playing with our Inspire 4G review unit. And at first blush, I admittedly found myself enamored with this phone. Unfortunately, it was a love that started to splinter as the days went on, and the more I used it, the more I noticed just how unfinished some parts of this phone can feel. Overall, the Inspire is a good phone with the potential to be great, and I'll talk about what's holding it back (software, connectivity) further on in the review.

Don't let that statement deter you from considering purchasing it, though, because at $99 (or $60 on Amazon), the Inspire 4G is a steal of a deal if you're looking for a reasonably priced 4G smartphone.

Feb

Engadget Reviews The Motorola Atrix 4G, Finds A Great Phone, Highly Overpriced Gimmicky Docks, Awful Data Speeds, Bootloader Lock, And Lots Of Crapware

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in Atrix 4G (Olympus), Motorola, News, Phone Reviews, Reviews

Last Updated: July 24th, 2011

One of the few tech blogs who managed to get their hands on Motorola's upcoming AT&T flagship - the Atrix 4G - is, of course, Engadget. The reviewer, unsurprisingly, is the infamous cool geek and editor-in-chief Joshua Topolsky, who, from my experience reading Engadget's reviews, does a good overall job but fails to go into those details that matter to most Android users. The Atrix 4G review is exactly what I had expected, and I'm going to summarize it and save you 20 minutes reading it.

The Good

The phone is blazing fast, which is unsurprising, considering its 2 cores and 1GB of RAM.

Feb

[Video Review] The Jawbone ERA Puts All Your Other Bluetooth Headsets To Shame

Posted by Brad Ganley in Devices By Manufacturer, Jawbone, News, Other Reviews, Reviews, Videos

Last Updated: July 24th, 2011

I recently broke down and picked up a Bluetooth headset. I needed something to talk on while driving a stick-shift or working with both my hands. I wanted to get something awesome because, honestly, it's go big or go home when it comes to Bluetooth headsets, and you get what you pay for. I paid for a Jawbone ERA, and I got the best Bluetooth experience I've ever had (and I've had every iteration of the Jawbone at one time or another). I shot a quick video to show you all the features, but I couldn't show you everything using my camera, so there will be screenshots and explanations after that.

Feb

LG Optimus 2X Review Roundup: Fantastic Hardware, Questionable Execution

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in LG, Optimus 2X (Star, p990), Phone Reviews, Reviews

Last Updated: July 24th, 2011

Ah yes, dual-core smartphones are no longer just a sweet, geeky dream; the LG Optimus 2X, the world's first Tegra 2-powered handset, is finally here. And with an amazingly thin design, an 8MP camera capable of 1080p video recording, and HDMI mirroring, the device has a lot going for it.

But does it live up to these high expectations? The early reviewers seem to be split - some of them found that the device went above and beyond their expectations, while others were slightly disappointed by its performance. Read on for four different opinions of the device.

Engadget

I was a bit surprised to see that Engadget gave the Optimus 2X a rating of 6/10 - after all, they freely admit to being "unabashed spec junkies." However, their complaints certainly make sense - the software is, apparently, quite buggy, and the Tegra 2 CPU hasn't been used to its full potential (at least not yet).

Feb

[Hands-On] Android Market Web Store: Get Your App On Anytime, Anywhere

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Android OS, App Reviews, Apps/Games, Google, Other Reviews, Reviews

Last Updated: July 24th, 2011

Android users have been clamoring for an official online Android Market solution for ages, and today, El Goog finally delivered with the Android Market Web Store. Once the issues with the "Sign in" button (clicking it returned an 'Invalid Request' error) were fixed, we didn't think twice about delving in and giving it an in-depth look. Read on for our first impressions!

Front Page

The front page of market.android.com (aka the Android Market Web Store) is simple, clean, and sexy - just the way we like it. Across the very top, there are links to other Google services (i.e. Gmail, Calendar, Docs, etc.), as well as links to "My Market Account" (more on that below), "My Account," and "Sign out." Below that is the good old Android Market logo and a Search box.

Feb

Dell Streak 7 Review Roundup: 'Meh' Would Be An Understatement

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Dell, Phone Reviews, Reviews, Streak 7

Last Updated: July 24th, 2011

Let's face it: Dell's new Streak 7 isn't exactly the hottest member of the CES Android tablet litter. In fact, the seven-inch tablet's mediocre screen and disappointing performance became painfully visible, even in the short period of time we spent with it at CES.

Well now the early reviews are in - and frankly, they don't give Dell's latest entry into the world of Android much hope, despite its low price tag ($199 on contract) and dual-core Tegra 2 processor. Read on for some of the best Streak 7 reviews yet - as well as some of the best reasons why this isn't the Android tablet you've been waiting for.