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On last week's podcast, the question "HTC One or Galaxy S4?" came up, and was posed to each host. We all made our call, and now it's your turn. While I know many of you have no interest in either of these phones, today's question is not what your ideal phone is, but given a choice between them - which would you get? And no, 'neither' is not an option.
The most popular standalone chat platform on Android, WhatsApp, has been updated with a whole new look - and it's holo-y. About a month ago, WhatsApp previewed its redesigned aesthetic in a beta release, and now those changes have made their way into the release client. While the changelog is pretty sparse on details ('update user interface to the latest android look and feel'), compared to the old version of the app, the visual differences should be fairly obvious.
This may be the best price we've yet seen on a refurbished Nexus 7, and if you're in the market for one of these devices on the cheap, read on. Buydig has its refurbished model at a list price of $172.99, a halfway-decent deal to start with, but they're willing to slash another $20 off that price if you check out with V.me by Visa after entering the promo code 'VMESAVESU20'.
A little over two weeks ago, the Wall Street Journal published a juicy story about a technology love triangle gone sour, between Samsung, Google, and Motorola. That story, as most things published at the Journal about Android or Apple do, immediately caught fire. Is Samsung plotting to break away from a Google-approved Android? Is Google actually scared of Samsung's ginormous market share? It's the sort of backstabby drama that everyone in the tech news industry would love to see unfold. Count me among them - that would be something, wouldn't it? Samsung forking Android and eschewing Google's services and content once and for all. It would mark an entirely new chapter in a book called The Smartphone Wars which someone will inevitably write ten years from now. Aaron Sorkin could do the screenplay for the film adaptation.
Al Jazeera has just released its official English news app designed especially for tablets on the Play Store, and it comes equipped with an absolute boatload of features (are you listening, CNN?). The new app includes access to video clips, free 24 hour live audio and video broadcast streaming, breaking news alerts, a dedicated gallery mode, search function, preloading of articles for offline reading, weather information, and the ability to save stories for later viewing.
HP: Galaxy S4 Will Be Able To Print On-Demand To Nearly 200 HP Printers, S III And Note II To Gain Support Later
Galaxy S4 Will Be Able To Print On-Demand To Nearly 200 HP Printers
HP just put out a press release announcing a partnership with Samsung on the Galaxy S4, which will include HP's wireless printing functionality found in devices like the upcoming HP Slate 7. HP promises "no setup, tools, drivers, or network configurations to adjust," and that its solution will be one of the only to offer access to sophisticated printer settings. Like duplexing, color, orientation, and paper type. Oh yeah.
Samsung: Galaxy S III, Probably Note II And Others Will Be Updated With Many S4 Features
Samsung: Galaxy S III, Probably Note II And Others Will Be Updated With Many S4 Features
According to PCMag (I apologize for the awful floating ads in advance), Samsung will be issuing a software update to the Galaxy S III that will incorporate many of the new Galaxy S4's features.
Samsung just unveiled the next.. next big thing: the Galaxy S4. And while some might argue it's more Galaxy S III 'Plus' than brand-new, standard-setting flagship, there's no denying Samsung is going to sell a ton of these things. Our question, though, is will Samsung be selling one to you?
After announcing yesterday that Google Reader as a platform would be going the way of the dodo on July 1st, it appears Google has already started pulling the necessary plugs: the official Reader app has been removed from the Play Store. While you will still be able to see the Reader app on the Play Store if you've got it installed on one of your devices, open up an incognito window in Chrome, and you'll be directed to the generic 404 page when you attempt to load the URL.
If you're in Israel, you may have noticed in the last week or so that the Google Maps app on your Android device will now offer navigation as an option when you make a directions query. We're hearing from numerous sources that turn-by-turn navigation in Google Maps has gone live in the chosen land.
[New Game] Heroes Of Destiny Looks To Be A Well-Made Action RPG By Glu Mobile... So Hide Your Wallet
Glu Mobile isn't exactly my favorite developer - their in-app purchase / free to play business model ensures that - but there's no denying they've got a lot of talent going into their games. Heroes of Destiny is their latest title on Android - an action RPG of the generic-fantasy-world variety. The visuals aren't spectacular, but they'll by no means disappoint your average mobile gamer, and since this is a Glu game, you can expect near-endless content to trudge through in an attempt to extract precious currency from your bank account.
A physics-based puzzler centered on a... golfing mechanic? I know, I know. Sounds boring. But Super Stickman Golf has proven to be one of Noodlecake Studios' most successful titles to date, with over a million installs from the Play Store.
If you're an RPG fan and haven't given Square Enix's Chaos Rings titles a spin on Android yet, they're almost definitely now worth the price of admission: just about $4 each. With the release of Chaos Rings 2 for Android yesterday, Square Enix is celebrating by slashing the price of the two earlier titles.
At first glance, 10000000 doesn't look like anything to get excited about. If anything, its title should immediately give you a headache - how many zeroes is that again? (It's 7, by the way.) Spoken 'ten million,' this puzzle-based RPG was released to a very warm critical reception on iOS last year (and later Windows / OS X), and has been a hit ever since.
LG Just Announced A Clone Of Samsung's Smart Pause Eye-Tracking Feature Before Samsung Could Even Unveil It
LG Just Announced A Clone Of Samsung's Smart Pause Eye-Tracking Feature
Oh, LG. Sometimes I really do wonder if you come up with the good ideas first, or if it really is like everyone else sort of thinks it is. Korea's #2 smartphone producer just sent out a press release announcing LG Smart Video, a new feature in the Optimus G Pro. So, if you've heard about the Smart Pause feature that was recently discovered in some screenshots from a Galaxy S III Android 4.2 ROM, it's that. Literally, exactly that.
According to Android developer Jared Rummler and a number of other sources, Google has begun purging known ad-blocking software from the Play Store today.
According to Verizon CTO Nicola Palmer, the company's gargantuan hoard of AWS spectrum will be put to use beginning this summer as part of the carriers' ever-growing LTE network.
