Archive for April, 2012

Posted by androidjunkie at 26 April 2012

Category: Android

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Word on the street this afternoon is that Samsung will be unveiling yet another Android-based tablet at their May 3 Unpacked event.  According to “sources familiar with the matter”, Samsung is readying a dual-core Galaxy Tab with a 10.1-inch display.  And no, this is not the Galaxy Tab 2 10.1  – that’s said to be getting tweaked to include quad-core CPU before it arrives.

As to what this device will be and what’s it’s called remains to be seen, however this will probably lead to confusion among consumers.  When it’s all said and done, we’re hoping for a low-cost alternative to lesser known brands.

Also rumored to be on the agenda for May 3rd is a Samsung cloud service for file storage.  Much like Apple has with their iCloud service, Samsung would allow for users to back up files with a minimum of 5GB of storage.  It’s unclear as to whether additional, larger options will be available at a premium however we’d certainly hope so.  While nothing has been outlined in an official capacity, it’s suggested that Samsung’s service would not limit the types of files backed up, opening the door to more than just photos and videos.

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What would you like to see from Samsung on their tablet front?  What about cloud-based storage options?  Leave a comment below with your thoughts.

Samsung to unveil new 10.1-inch tablet,cloud services on May 3? originally appeared on AndroidGuys.

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Posted by androidjunkie at 21 April 2012

Category: Android

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Huawei literally rocked the show at Mobile World Congress by announcing several good Android devices, but that doesn’t mean they forgot to bring cheap and affordable devices to the masses. Huawei, together with Vodafone, has launched the Huawei Ascend G300 in UK for just only £100.

The device is available for Pay As You Go customers on Vodafone, and it comes with a large 4-inch display, 5MP camera and a 1GHz single-core  processor. This all comes in one perfect price, just £100. The smartphone has a slim and sleek design, and the beautiful brushed metal cover makes it look even better.

So, if you’re a Vodafone customer, and looking for an affordable Android phone with decent specs, then the Huawei Ascend G300 might just be the one for you. Is anyone planning to pick one up? Drop a comment below!

Source Vodafone UK

Vodafone introduces £100 Huawei Ascend G300 in UK originally appeared on AndroidGuys.

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Posted by androidjunkie at 16 April 2012

Category: Android

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The top four wireless carriers in the United States have come together over a singular, growing issue: smartphone theft.  Verizon, AT&T, Sprint Nextel, and T-Mobile USA are teaming up with the FCC to create a national database of stolen smartphones which should be in place over the next six months.  Together these four providers account for 90 percent of the U.S. mobile base and each will be able to help disable devices once officially reported as stolen.

The plan is to merge the carriers databases into one national database within 18 months and make it even harder to activate a device on another carrier.  The partnership will be endorsed by the CTIA and will focus on educating consumers on the proper steps to secure and protect their smartphone.  There will be four voluntary industry commitments in place which address the issue of stolen smartphones.

1. Implement databases to prevent reactivation of stolen smartphones.
2A. Notify consumers of features to secure/lock smartphones with passwords.
2B. Educate consumers about features to secure/lock smartphones with passwords.
3. Educate consumers about applications to remotely lock/locate/erase data from smartphones.
4. Educate consumers about smartphone theft, protections and preventative measures.

Big four carriers partner to fight smartphone theft originally appeared on AndroidGuys.

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Posted by androidjunkie at 16 April 2012

Category: Android

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Lookout Mobile Security and T-Mobile have further strengthened their partnership today, announcing custom SCREAM tones for locating missing smartphones or tablets.  Not only are all of the carrier’s Android devices preloaded with Lookout Mobile Security but users can now customize the alarm noise.  Should you need help finding a missing Android phone or tablet you can choose from six unique tones.  The animated sounds included a wolf howl, train whistle, euro siren, beam me up, the T-Mobile jingle, and the old school Lookout siren.

Download Lookout from Google Play

Lookout Teams with T-Mobile To Bring Customers Unique and Secure Mobile Experience

Lookout launches custom SCREAMTM Tones, a feature available exclusively to T-Mobile® customers using Android

San Francisco, CA — April 10, 2012 — Lookout Inc., the leader in mobile security, today announced a new feature to enhance Lookout’s award-winning antivirus and mobile security service to T-Mobile’s Android customers. Mobile devices are an essential part of people’s lives making it more important than ever for customers to take steps to safeguard their data and privacy, and theLookout app serves as a lifeline for mobile devices, protecting against malware, spyware, data loss and device loss. Since launching a partnership in 2011, Lookout Mobile Security has been available as a preload on most of T-Mobile’s Android smartphones and tablets, including the new Samsung Galaxy S® Blaze™ 4G.

With Lookout, T-Mobile customers can pinpoint a missing smartphone or tablet on a Google map and use SCREAM™ Tones, a new feature that sounds a loud noise, to help identify a lost device nearby.  T-Mobile customers can choose from six tones of animated sounds, including wolf howl, train whistle, euro siren, beam me up, the T-Mobile jingle, and Lookout’s original siren, to help locate a lost phone or tablet.

“Smartphones and tablets are our most personal devices and as consumers store more information on them, there’s an elevated interest to protect them,” said Torrie Dorrell, vice president of application, content and games, T-Mobile USA. “Lookout is a great fit for T-Mobile because the app is powerful yet easy to use, and it gives our customers protection across a range of mobile security threats.”

“T-Mobile is a leader in mobile communications and we’re thrilled to work together on enhancing mobile security,” said John Hering, CEO and co-founder, Lookout. “Having the Lookout app preloaded on T-Mobile devices means customers can quickly and easily access content that helps them feel safe and confident to do more with their phones.”

Available in Google Play, the Lookout app is a free download that enables people to find a missing device when it is lost or stolen, manage phone security, and easily backup precious data. From a single online destination at mylookout.com, people can manage multiple mobile devices and locate a phone or tablet on a Google map. Lookout makes automatic updates over-the-air, making data and device protection simple for users. The Lookout Premium app includes the essential security in the free Lookout app, in addition to enhanced security with Remote Lock & Wipe, Safe Browsing, and Privacy Advisor.

Lookout has more than 15 million users in 170 countries across 400 mobile networks and is continuing to add a million new users every month. The top-rated security app available, Lookout was recently awarded PC Magazine’s Editors’ Choice award and has a five-star rating from CNET. To learn more or download Lookout, please visit www.mylookout.com.

About Lookout

Lookout is a mobile security company dedicated to making the mobile experience safe for everyone. Lookout delivers award-winning protection from the growing threats facing mobile users today, including malware, phishing, privacy violations, data loss, and loss of the phone itself. Cross-platform, Lookout is designed from the ground up to provide advanced mobile protection while remaining lightweight and efficient on the phone. With 15 million users across 400 mobile networks in 170 countries, Lookout is the world leader in smartphone security. Headquartered in San Francisco,Lookout is funded by Accel Partners, Andreessen Horowitz, Index Ventures, Khosla Ventures and Trilogy Equity Partners. For more information and to download Lookout, please visitwww.mylookout.com.

Lookout announces custom SCREAM tones for T-Mobile users originally appeared on AndroidGuys.

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Posted by androidjunkie at 16 April 2012

Category: Android

Tags: , , ,

When the BlackBerry Playbook was first announced, there were a few big things to be excited for. Its WebOS-like multi-tasking was beautiful and brilliant, its web browsing abilities were extremely well-designed, and the caveat? The ability to run a supposed 80% of Android apps by sideloading them. It seemed destined to do moderately well, even if it didn’t do great. Of course, we all know how history actually played out; the sales were bad enough that RIM ended up pulling an HP and dropping the prices of the tablets. Still, those that did end up with a Playbook had almost a pseudo-Android tablet with that app sideloading ability. If you’re one of those users, you may be disappointed soon.

Alec Saunders, VP of developer releations at RIM, in response to a user question, stated,

 “We’re removing side loading for consumers. Pretty sure we’ve got a solution for [developers to install].”

This action is in response to concern over piracy of Android apps and is being made in support of Android developers, an altruistic move if I’ve ever heard one. The question here is will this hurt sales of RIM’s tablet, especially given that there’s a rumored sequel around the corner? When you’re doing your best to sell a product that isn’t faring particularly well, every feature of that device is a potential selling point. Taking one away? Well…

Support of the developers is definitely a good reason to pull such a move, but was it the right one? Will this make a negative impact on sales of the Playbook and its potential successor? Let us know what you think in the comments!

Source Androinica

Blackberry Playbook to nix the side-loading of apps originally appeared on AndroidGuys.

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Posted by androidjunkie at 16 April 2012

Category: Android

Tapatalk is easily the most popular mobile forum browsing application for Android. It’s quite handy, with a great interface that makes any supported forum easy to navigate. Free to most forum owners, it’s very easy for an Admin to set up his site so that it’s users can feel at home while “on-the-go.” Today we’ve been given an update to the latest version 2.0, which is quite an improvement. Their forum illustrates their “timeline” and I’ll walk you through it a little bit.

Day 1 Revamped UI - the new layout is an improvement over previous version with the ICS style tab, revised color combo to make reading forums on Android more enjoyable

More Social: Improved support of Thanks and Likes, along with the new layout:

Day 2: Like and Thanks

Ability to Like and Thanks – supporting more forum system:

Day 3: Private Conversation

Private Conversation is now supported in additional to traditional Private Messages. Private Conversation is a thread-like conversation – both IPBoard and xenForo are supported – we also aim to migrate existing traditional PM-based forum system to this new interface.

Day 4: Account Sync

Starting in 2.0, your username and associated forums will be synced among your other devices, supporting both iOS and Android – also your username and forums will be restored after you uninstall and reinstall the app. Everything are transparent, you do not need to register any “Tapatalk ID” to get this to work. Also password are not stored in our server.

Day 5: Improved Image Upload – streamlined interface to provide faster upload with less taps

 

The official Changelog looks like this below.

What’s new in this version:

  1. Introducing Tapatalk 2
  2. Account Sync
  3. Tapatalk 2 sync all your forum accounts among all mobile devices with Tapatalk installed. Works on iPad, iPhone, Android phone, tablets and BlackBerry.
  4. Forum Recommendation
  5. The best forums are not necessary the biggest. Discover new and emerging forums with our Recommendation Engine in Tapatalk 2.
  6. Better Interface
  7. A new look & feel w/ revamped interface allows you to focus on your conversation & latest discussions. Works great on Android ICS.

You will find the new Tapatalk v2.0 on the Google Play Store with minimum requirements of Android v2.0, which should be everyone!

 

Source: Tapatalk Forums

Tapatalk v2.0 shows off many improvements and new features, available now originally appeared on AndroidGuys.

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Posted by androidjunkie at 16 April 2012

Category: Android

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Toshiba today announced two new Android tablets in the Excite series, a portable 7.7-inch model and coffee-table sized 13-inch behemoth.  Both feature the familiar thin design with aluminum alloy body and will arrive in June with two storage capacities.  Each offers similar hardware, including scratch-resistant Corning Gorilla Glass displays, a quad-core Tegra 3 processors, and run Ice Cream Sandwich.

TOSHIBA EXCITE 7.7

The Excite 7.7 falls right in line with your more traditional travel tablet and features a thin, lightweight design of 0.3 inches and 13.4 ounces.  Hardware details include 1GB memory, a micro USB port, and a Micro SD slot, and your other Android requisites.  Look for the Excite 7.7 to go on sale June 10, 2012 in $499 (16 GB) or $579 (32 GB) flavors.

TOSHIBA EXCITE 13

On the other end of portability we have the Excite 13, with a 1600 x 900 resolution (16:9 aspect ratio) display.  At 2.2 pounds and 0.4 inches thin, it’s technically still portable however Toshiba suggests this one for in the home.  As they see it, the Excite 13 is perfect for shared movie watching, multiplayer gaming, and reading. Hardware here also includes SRS Labs four-speaker sound system, Micro HDMI, Micro USB, SD card slot, and up to 13 hours of battery.

The Excite 13 will also go on sale June 10, 2012 with $649 (16GB) or $749 (32 GB) options.

In addition to announcing these new tablets, Toshiba has also given us pricing for their recently announced Excite 10. Like the others, there are two models to choose from in $449.99 (16GB) or $529.99 (32GB) devices.  Look for the Excite 10 to arrive in but a few weeks time as it streets on May 6th.

 

Toshiba debuts pair of new Android tablets originally appeared on AndroidGuys.

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Posted by androidjunkie at 11 April 2012

Category: Android

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This is a neat extension to the Best Buy trade-in program which will be extended with a little special treatment for people wanting to purchase a new Motorola Android device. Beginning April 8,  Best Buy customers will be able to save $50 on select Motorola smartphones across major carriers. All you have to do is trade-in any mobile phone at Best Buy and Best Buy Mobile specialty stores.

The idea is to trade-in your old phone while purchasing a new Motorola phone. They will give you the value of your phone, which will get you up to $50 off a new Motorola smartphone and a Best Buy gift card which equals the value of your old phone. Say you get $50 off the new phone and $100 gift card to Best Buy, that sounds great to me.

This offer to save $50 is available on three of the top award-winning Motorola smartphones, two year activation required:

In addition to this exclusive Motorola smartphone savings offer, customers can save $50 on any Sprint phone with 2-year activation and receive up to a $50 Best Buy Gift Card when they trade in their Sprint HTC EVO 4G.
Source: BBY

Best Buy Trade-In program now with exclusive $50 savings on Motorola handsets originally appeared on AndroidGuys.

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Posted by androidjunkie at 6 April 2012

Category: Android

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Sprint is completely done with releasing WiMAX 4G devices and is ready to move on to 4G LTE, according to new details hitting the wires today.  Speaking at Competitive Carriers Global Expo today, Sprint’s Bob Azzi confirmed that they would be solely focusing on LTE for future smartphones and tablets.

We learned earlier in the year that Sprint would be releasing more than one dozen 4G LTE products in 2012, including handsets, tablets, and data cards.  It was anticipated that at least some of the carrier’s products would include support for WiMAX however that’s all but officially put to rest.

As to where exactly Sprint will be deploying their LTE network over the next few months and years has not been fleshed out in a public light.  The carrier has announced a handful of select markets slated to pick up LTE but we don’t know where things will be in the long term.  A newly-leaked image hitting the internet today tells where Sprint hopes to be by the end of 2014 when everything is in place.  Looking at the picture we see plenty of coverage along the eastern half of the country, mixed with Sprint 4G LTE and roaming agreements across the western half.

Sprint has an event scheduled one week from today so we’re hoping the carrier gives some new details as it pertains to the 4G LTE plans.  Considering the EVO One is rumored to be a 4G LTE handset it stands to reason that Dan Hesse will chat up the new Now Network.

 

Sprint hangs up on WiMAX devices and shifts entirely to LTE originally appeared on AndroidGuys.

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Posted by androidjunkie at 6 April 2012

Category: Android

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Hulu today announced that they have optimized their HuluPlus Android application for a limited number of tablets. Joining the HTC Flyer and Vizio 8″ tablet are a handful of offerings from Motorola, Toshiba, LG, Asus, and Acer.  The updated and optimized app includes a new-look user interface that Hulu refers to as “trays”.  After just a few moments with the app we found it to be intuitive and easy to learn.

Strangely enough we found that our Motorola Xoom was not listed as supported however the ZTE Optik worked just fine.  Of course we were advised that it was not supported the moment we opened it up.  Nevertheless it was showing up in Google Play Store and worked for us in the end.

  • Acer Iconia
  • Asus Eee Pad Transformer
  • Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime
  • LG G-Slate
  • Motorola Xoom
  • Motorola XYBoard 10.1
  • Toshiba Thrive
  • HTC Flyer (previous)
  • Vizio 8″ tablet (previous)

 

Download Hulu Plus for your Android tablet from the Google Play Store.  The app itself is free however there’s a monthly recurring $7.99 charge for membership.

 

Hulu Plus optimized for smattering of Android tablets originally appeared on AndroidGuys.

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