Hasta La Gadget!

If you didn’t get enough mobile news during the week, not to worry, because we’ve opened the firehose for the truly hardcore. This week, we stumbled upon a sneak peek of Sony’s promised Jelly Bean update and XDA University opened its doors to educate others about the curious world of Android customization. Not to stop there, Nokia unleashed a new entry-level handset for those in mainland China. So buy the ticket and take the ride as we explore the “best of the rest” for this week of December 24th, 2012.

Continue reading Mobile Miscellany: week of December 24th, 2012

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Software, Mobile

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HTC One S owners are seeing the light at the end of the Jelly Bean tunnel, as Android 4.1.1 is now being pushed out to the global models. The company originally promised it way back in July, with rumblings about an October arrival as well, but up until now there’s been no joy. HTC One X global owners started to see that Jelly Bean release last month, and we can confirm that it’s now come to our very own HTC One S handset too, as the image above proves. XDA Developers also caught wind of a direct HTC link, which will finally bring the extra fluidity of Google’s butter to the mid-range handset. There’s no word yet about US carrier-flavored versions, but it wouldn’t hurt to check your own handset, or XDA’s CID list at the MC link below.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, HTC

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Via: PocketNow

Google’s App Verification Service is a quiet addition to Android 4.2, but potentially game-changing: it promises malware checks for any installable Android app, whether it comes from a Bouncer-verified Google Play or a website lurking in the shadows. NC State University Associate Professior Xuxian Jiang doesn’t want to simply accept the claim at face value, though. He just pitted the service against 10 anti-malware apps to gauge its effectiveness at stopping a wide range of rogue code. The short summary? Don’t quit your day job, Google. Among 1,260 samples, the App Verification Service caught 193 instances, or 15.32 percent — well below the 50 percent of its closest challenger, and nowhere near the perfect scores of two apps. According to the professor, Google’s shortcoming mostly comes from a relatively skin-deep routine that checks the SHA-1 value and install package name, not underlying code that’s tougher to change. Android malware isn’t a serious enough issue for us to be worried at present, but nor would we lean on the App Verification Service as our only safety net.

Filed under: Mobile, Google

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Source: NC State University

Now that Verizon’s most recent Droid RAZR family has had its taste of Jelly Bean, it’s time for Motorola to shift focus to the rest of the devices that have made the cut for the upgrade — and it’s doing just that with an updated timetable for the rollout. Among those phones and tablets that aren’t already on Android 4.1, only the Atrix HD and Asia-Pacific RAZR HD models should get the refresh before 2012 bows out. A larger contingent that includes the Electrify M, the LTE-equipped Xoom and some international models like the European RAZR i will have to wait until the first quarter of 2013 for their turn. Other devices like the Droid Bionic, original RAZR and Photon Q are still on deck, but don’t yet have a schedule. That’s not a comforting sign when we could see a version of Android beyond 4.2 in the spring, so we’re hoping that Motorola is trying to underpromise now and overdeliver later.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Google

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Via: Android Central

Source: Motorola

Who’d have thought that pricing a high-end smartphone like the Nexus 4 at $350 or less would lead to strong sales? Google and LG certainly appear to have been caught off-guard. LG’s UK mobile lead Andy Coughlin tells CNET that the pair estimated Nexus 4 shipments in the way you’d expect for any phone, but have been rocked by “huge demand” — in short, they didn’t realize that offering such a giant bargain would lead to sellouts within minutes. While we don’t have tangible shipping numbers, that the spending sprees happen over and over again suggests that LG is producing more than a handful of Nexus 4s as it tries to keep up. We suspect that many of you reading this just want to know when sales resume; sadly, Coughlin’s not telling.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Google, LG

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Via: TmoNews

Source: CNET UK