Tag: Android

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Android One reference design to bring low cost phones to developing markets

android one micromaxIt’s an area where Android often lags. How to bring functional low cost phones to developing markets?

Google has been looking at software optimization with KitKat, who to provide a less punishing experience for low power handsets, but that still requires manufacturers to tailor the experience on the phones they produce. That can be a tough decision for a company to make, how much man power to assign to a device which likely wont generate as much profit as a flagship phone.

Android One is a program which aims to streamline the development, manufacturing, and support process. Android One devices will run stock Android like Nexus phones, though carriers and OEM’s will be able to pre-load apps to customize the experience. Google will also be responsible for providing updates to One phones as further incentive for manufacturers, saving them a little on support costs.

Micromax was on hand to show off an example One device and they’re expected to release a dual SIM handset with a 4.5″ screen and SD card slot for under $100.

Android One will start up in India first, with devices expected to drop later this Fall.

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Google Docs To Receive Native Office Support and Mobile ‘Slides’ Presentations

google docsGoogle acquired QuickOffice around two years ago, and we’re now seeing the fruits of that acquisition.

Often when a Google user receives a Microsoft Office file, it needs to be converted to work in Google Docs. As we all know, any kind of conversion will often break SOMETHING in a doc or spreadsheet, be it formulas or formatting. Now Google will be rolling out native Office support built on the QuickOffice system with support for documents, spreadsheets, and presentations. Files will still need to be converted however for full online collaboration.

We’ll also see a Docs update to provide full presentation creation and playback support for mobile and tablet users.

A new Drive for Work program with enhanced encryption and admin controls, audit and activity API’s, and unlimited Drive storage for $10 per month per user. It’s a tactical move to keep the pressure on Microsoft as a number of companies are investigating the move to cloud services.

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Google Previews Android L and Material Design

material design google android lGoogle looks to be streamlining the Android experience, and more polish to the already functional UI will always be appreciated.

For Android L (no candy or dessert title G?) the focus is on flat simple design which improves on the cards layout of apps like Google Now. Dubbed ‘Material Design’, elements will slide in and expand fluidly, and depending on hardware it should render at up to 60fps for buttery smooth transitions.

We should also see improved notification support from the lockscreen, improved battery life with a new battery saver mode, a new Do Not Disturb mode, and support for Bluetooth 4.1.

Developer Previews will be rolling out later today, so get cracking developers! Expect to see L for everyone else later this Fall.

See the new UI elements in action below!

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Amazon Fire Phone Coming Exclusively to AT&T – 32GB for $199 on Contract

feature-fireos._V349436017_The long rumored Amazon phone is official!

The Fire Phone builds off of Amazon’s Kindle ecosystem, delivering a similar “FireOS” user interface running on top of a custom build of Android. This means 3rd party Android apps will be compatible, but Google services wont be included as this will use the Amazon App store instead of Google Play.

The hardware is a mix of mid-range and high-end. I’m glad to see the slightly smaller 4.7″ screen, though it’ll come in at 720p instead of the terrific 1080p found on the HTC M7. The venerable Qualcomm 800 quad-core is on board backed up by 2GB of RAM, plenty powerful for gaming on this screen resolution. Storage comes in 32GB and 64GB flavors, with no MicroSD card expansion it seems like a good platform to push Amazon Cloud Storage, as you can upload photos taken from a Fire Phone for free. Continue reading “Amazon Fire Phone Coming Exclusively to AT&T – 32GB for $199 on Contract”

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Post-Play Netflix Streaming Comes to Android – Chromecast to Follow

netflix post play android updateOh happy day for folks who like to binge watch their shows on Netflix.

Announced on the Netflix blog, Android devices will receive an update allowing phones and tablets to Post-Play, which is a fancy way of saying that when you finish one episode, the next episode of your show will automatically start playing.

Best of all, we also have word that this functionality will be coming to Chromecast “in a couple months”. Now that most Android phones now have the ability to act like a universal remote, I might never need to leave my couch ever again.

Read the full PR below.

Continue reading “Post-Play Netflix Streaming Comes to Android – Chromecast to Follow”

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Native Wikipedia BETA App for Android Hits Play Store

wikipedia app android beta somegadgetguyWikipedia is going native for Android users!

Previous versions of the app have essentially been web browsers wrapped in a candy coated app-like shell. With a proper app, Wikimedia boasts a new UI, more responsive design, and better tools for editing articles.

The design of the app is super clean and simple, befitting the look and feel of the desktop version of the service. Plus, as you can see in the picture for this article, searching Wikipedia for the term “Wikipedia” will not actually break the internet.

Wikipedia BETA (on Google Play)

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Android Youtube App Updated – Allows User to Control Streaming Quality

youtube android app streaming quality screenshot somegadgetguyQuick update for Youtube from Google!

It always bothers me when I can’t control streaming video quality (Netflix I’m looking in your general direction). On desktop browsers we can set the quality for Youtube. The user can make a choice between the speed and stability of a stream and a higher resolution.

Well now we can do the same on our mobile devices, which should have been a no-brainer feature when you think about how many of us are on some kind of metered plan, and fast 3G and 4G networks can be kind of spotty at times.

When playing a video in the app, tap the three-dot menu button, and you see an option of a gear icon. Tap on that, and you’ll get a menu where you can select what quality you would like to stream the video at. Interestingly enough, Android apparently only supports streaming up to 720p. Good to know.

This updated Youtube app (build 5.7.36) should all ready be rolling out now, so hit the Google Play Store to see if you’ve gotten it!

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AT&T HTC One M7 Updated with Sense 6 – New Blinkfeed and Camera App

HTC One M7 Update Blinkfeed Sense update ATTPlaying with this year’s flagship devices, it’s been great going back to see how good our phones were last year. In an era of premier phones all sporting 5+ inch screens, the HTC M7 stands as one of the last high end phones with a SLIGHTLY smaller screen. It’s a joy to use one handed, so that makes updates like these even more enjoyable.

HTC has really stepped up on the support front, and are following Google’s example in separating apps and services from full OS updates. The M7 is now getting updated to the newest version of Sense (the skin HTC developed to customize their phone experience). Now services like Blinkfeed and HTC’s TV remote app can be updated through Google Play. This brings much faster support to the ecosystem, as individual services can get updates and bug fixes without having to push OTA updates through carriers.

HTC One M7 updated camera app screenshot somegadgetguy

The M7 gets a great new Blinkfeed, it adopts the nicer camera app from the M8, and a few other goodies alongside the normal slate of patches and bug fixes. It breaths a little more life into on of the best Android’s from last year, and should prove to keep the phone running current software longer into the future.

You can check to see if you have the update by jumping into your settings, and AT&T’s changelog is below.

Continue reading “AT&T HTC One M7 Updated with Sense 6 – New Blinkfeed and Camera App”

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