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Google releases Android 4.0 ‘Ice Cream Sandwich’ source code
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Smartphones, Corporate News, Google, Software,
Yesterday Google finally released the source code for Android 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich.
But on the Google Forums, Jean-Baptiste M. "JBQ" Queru, a software engineer on the Android Open-Source Project, warned that "this is a large push," so developers should expect that "it will take some time to complete".
"If you sync before it's done, you'll get an incomplete copy that you won't be able to use, so please wait for us to give the all-clear before you sync," Queru wrote.
The source code is Android 4.0.1, which is the version that will be released on the Samsung Galaxy Nexus.
The release also includes the source code for Honeycomb, but "since Honeycomb was a little incomplete, we want everyone to focus on Ice Cream Sandwich," Queru wrote. "So, we haven't created any tags that correspond to the Honeycomb releases (even though the changes are present in the history.)"
Click to continue reading Google releases Android 4.0 ‘Ice Cream Sandwich’ source code
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Motorola Droid RAZR unboxing gallery
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Cell Phones, Features, Galleries, Handhelds,
Motorola has ressurrected the RAZR from the dead, slapped the Droid branding on it, and has come up with a 7.1mm thin powerhouse. Appropriately called the Droid RAZR, the smartphone has a Gorilla Glass covered 4.3-inch qHD Super AMOLED display and a body made of Kevlar, making it lightweight, water-resistant, and durable. On the inside you've got a dual-core 1.2GHz TI OMAP4430 chip, 8 megapixel camera that records 1080p video, 1 GB RAM, and 16 GB flash storage onboard (and another 16 GB on the included microSD card.) It runs on Verizon's 4G LTE network. so you know, it's fast. We'll be getting a review up soon, but in the meantime, be sure to peep our Droid RAZR unboxing gallery first!
Gallery:
Asus Transformer Prime: Tegra 3 tablet, $499
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Accessories, Google, Handhelds,
The Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime is ready for its close-up and under the hood it sports Nvidia's next-generation Tegra 3 mobile processor. That makes the Transformer Prime the first tablet to feature the quad-core System-on-a-Chip (SoC), which Nvida says provides three times the graphics performance of its current Tegra 2 chip while soaking up 61 percent less power.
The 10.1-inch Transformer Prime is nice and thin at 0.33 inches and weighs in at 1.29 pounds, Asus said Tuesday on a conference call with reporters. Thanks to the Tegra 3's improved power consumption, the tablet's battery life is rated for up to 18 hours, although that's when you combine it with the optional mobile dock and keyboard which Asus is also offering, naturally, as part of the Transformer Prime package.
Without the accessory, you're still getting up to 12 hours of battery life, which Asus was happy to point out is enough for "a trans-ocean flight, all-night game session, viewing several movies on a long road trip, or even video recording, editing, and then playing back your child's school play."
The Tegra 3 chip, the first quad-core ARM Cortex A9 CPU, significantly boosts 3D gaming and Internet browsing on tablets like the Transformer Prime, thanks to a 12-core GeForce GPU that's also part of the next-gen SoC, according to Nvidia.
Click to continue reading Asus Transformer Prime: Tegra 3 tablet, $499
Kindle Fire vs. Nook Tablet vs. Nook Color: The Details
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Google, Handhelds,
The low-cost Android tablet space is heating up. And just in time for the holidays.
Barnes & Noble today unveiled the Nook Tablet, a beefed-up follow-up to the popular Nook Color ebook reader/tablet. The Nook Color also remains in the company's arsenal, but with a lower price. The Nook Color is available now, while the Nook Tablet is available for pre-order and ships by November 18.
Amazon, meanwhile, last month took the wraps of its first color touch-screen ereader/tablet, the Kindle Fire, which is currently on pre-order and ships by November 15.
Click to continue reading Kindle Fire vs. Nook Tablet vs. Nook Color: The Details
Nook Tablet: The new $249 multimedia tablet e-reader from Barnes and Noble
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Handhelds,
This morning Barnes and Noble unleashed their answer to the Kindle Fire, and it's the Nook Tablet. The Nook Tablet focuses on multimedia consumption, and keeps true to its e-reader roots with a great book and magazine reading experience. It's got a 7-inch display with Wi-Fi built-in and 16 GB of storage as well. It's thinner and lighter than the Nook Color, with a much faster 1 GHz dual-core processor as well.
The Nook Tablet also has 1 GB of RAM, and weighs in at under a pound. B&N says you should expect 11.5 hours of battery life from the device, which runs a customized version of Android 2.3. That customization, by the way, means that this isn't the type of Android tablet that you can just take and do your will with. It's geared towards things like reading books/magazines/periodicals, email, Internet browsing, video streaming, etc. In fact, a partnership with Netflix means you'll have deep integration of the platform on this tablet, with suggestions showing up on your home screen. Expect games, music services like Pandora, and other entertainment options (like Hulu) as well.
The Nook Tablet ships on November 18th, and can be pre-ordered now.
HTC Rezound, first Beats Audio smartphone, headed to Verizon
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Smartphones, Google, Handhelds, Music,
Verizon Wireless and HTC on Thursday unveiled the first Beats Audio-paired smartphone, the HTC Rezound. It will hit Verizon stores and Best Buy on November 14 for $299.99.
The HTC Rezound is a 4G LTE device featuring a 4.3-inch 720p HD display, a 1.5-GHz dual-core processor, 32GB of storage, 1GB of RAM, and the latest version of HTC Sense. It also sports an 8-megapixel camera that comes with an F2.2 lens and records video in 1080p.
It will ship with Android 2.3 Gingerbread, though HTC promised to update it to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich "early next year."
Click to continue reading HTC Rezound, first Beats Audio smartphone, headed to Verizon
Sprint releases update for HTC Android smartphones
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Smartphones, Corporate News, Handhelds, Software,
Sprint on Tuesday started rolling out an update for Android-based HTC devices that fixes a privacy-related bug.
Users with the EVO 4G, EVO 3D, EVO Shift 4G, EVO Design 4G, EVO View 4G, and HTC Wildfire S will receive an over-the-air update starting today; users can manually install the update right away.
"Sprint worked closely with HTC after reports emerged of a potential issue that could allow malicious third-party apps to compromise data on Android devices made by HTC," the carrier said in a statement. "We urge all users to install the update promptly."
Click to continue reading Sprint releases update for HTC Android smartphones
Amazon hurrying Kindle Fire production in response to massive demand
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Corporate News, Handhelds,
Amazon said Tuesday that Kindle Fire pre-orders exceeded expectations and the company is now ramping up production on the tablets.
"September 28th was the biggest order day ever for Kindle, even bigger than previous holiday peak days," Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon.com, said in a statement. "In the three weeks since launch, orders for electronic ink Kindles are double the previous launch. And based on what we're seeing with Kindle Fire pre-orders, we're increasing capacity and building millions more than we'd already planned."
The $199 Kindle Fire will debut on November 15. Last month, Amazon also debuted a $79 version of its original, e-ink Kindle, and will start selling a touch-based version on November 21. You can pre-order the Kindle Fire and Kindle Touch now.
Click to continue reading Amazon hurrying Kindle Fire production in response to massive demand
Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus launches next month
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Google, Handhelds,
Samsung's big hardware upgrade to its first-ever tablet, the 7-inch Galaxy Tab, had a name as of the device's announcement late last month. And Samsung has now finally gotten around to announcing a release date and price for the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus. According to the company, the upgraded version of the Galaxy Tab will start selling in the U.S. on November 13 for $399.99 – all of $100 less expensive than the starting price for tablets from Samsung's chief rival as of late, Apple (it's also much smaller than the iPad as well.)
So what are some of the big improvements arriving on this 7-inch tablet refresh? For starters, the 7.0 Plus is taking a leap from Android 2.2 to Android 3.2 – that's a move from the Froyo iteration of Google's operating system to Honeycomb. Samsung's still slapping its Touchwiz interface on top of Honeycomb, which includes new resizable widgets and a sticky "mini app" tray that can be pulled up from any screen on the device and used to load a variety of preset apps on the device.
Click to continue reading Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus launches next month
Steve Jobs promised to spend his last dying breath destroying Android
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Google,
A quick excerpt from the Steve Jobs biography, which is set to be released this Monday, showing just how upset Steve was with Google and its Android platform:
“I will spend my last dying breath if I need to, and I will spend every penny of Apple’s $40 billion in the bank, to right this wrong,” Jobs said. “I’m going to destroy Android, because it’s a stolen product. I’m willing to go thermonuclear war on this.”
Yeah, if you love technology, you'll wanna read this book. You can pre-order it from Amazon now.
