Hasta La Gadget!

At this year’s Uplinq conference, Qualcomm hit Android developers with some exciting news. In the coming months, the chip maker will deliver a Snapdragon software development kit (SDK) that will provide devs with access to the “next-generation technology and features” embedded in its processors. Through APIs, the kit will allow application architects to leverage facial processing, burst camera capture, surround sound recording, echo cancellation, sensor gestures, low power geofencing and indoor location capabilities. Initially, the SDK will only be available for the S4 8960 wafer, but Qualcomm hopes to include more models over time. Head past the break to have a gander at the full press release.

Continue reading Qualcomm to deliver Snapdragon SDK to Android developers

Qualcomm to deliver Snapdragon SDK to Android developers originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 Jun 2012 11:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

After a brief stretch in beta followed by some vague teasing, Firefox’s native Android app update is finally set to hit Google Play. While there are a raft of bells and whistles — a new welcome page, curvy Australis tabs, Flash and HTML5 support, for starters — it’s the browser’s newfound speed that is getting the MVP treatment. That rapidity is as good a place as any to start a quick hands-on, especially since the native browser lag on one of our older handsets, a Galaxy S, often makes us want to hurl it through a pane of glass. Mozilla claims it built Firefox to a new benchmark it developed called Eideticker, resulting in an overall browser experience twice as fast as the stock Android one. As advertised, initial loading is quasi-instant, and navigation, zooming and tab switching seemed smooth as well, even on the two-gen-old phone.

Feature-wise, preferences and other desktop settings imported easily with Firefox Sync’s shared password system, and the unfortunately named “Awesome Screen” is the new home page shown above, from which it’s fairly simple to launch your preferred sites. Flash and HTML5 generally displayed correctly despite a few minor rendering bugs, and the curved tabs and other design touches make it one of the more elegant Android browsers we’ve played with. Unfortunately, many sites display in full because they don’t yet detect Firefox as a mobile app, but the installation of the Phony 3.2 add-in lets it impersonate other smartphone browsers, and it seemed to work well. We also didn’t like that tabbed browsing now requires two taps to get to another page, unlike the previous version, but we imagine that was needed for the increased speed. Overall, Firefox is a welcome addition to the Android ecosystem — we bet you’re just as eager to start browsing as we are, so stay tuned for the app to hit Google Play later today, or jump past the break for a quick speed demo from the kind folks at Mozilla.

Update: The new version is now available at the source link below.

Continue reading Native Firefox Android browser adds speed, Flash, HTML5 and a fresh look (hands-on)

Native Firefox Android browser adds speed, Flash, HTML5 and a fresh look (hands-on) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 Jun 2012 09:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Google Play  | Email this | Comments

Don’t let Carly’s leather skinsuit fool you — Magenta may be rebranding with a focus on high-speed network flash, but it hasn’t forgotten the budget base it’s built upon. Starting this July, the operator’s bringing its prepaid and monthly4G no contract plans to shoppers at over 6,000 Dollar General stores. Cost-conscious consumers that take the plunge won’t have the luxury of cherry-picking their chosen device, though, as only Samsung’s t139 (a modest flip phone, remember those?) will be on offer. Need to know more? Then click on past the break for the official presser.

Continue reading T-Mobile to offer prepaid and monthly4G service at participating Dollar General stores

T-Mobile to offer prepaid and monthly4G service at participating Dollar General stores originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 25 Jun 2012 22:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink PhoneScoop  |   | Email this | Comments

The wait between iOS 6’s unveiling and its planned fall release just got a little bit shorter, as Apple has just pushed out beta 2. If you’re in the developer crowd that can try it out, don’t expect any revelations: the primarily focus is on the bug fixes that nudge the software closer to a final release. As in past years, multiple additional betas are expected between now and the time the iOS 6 is ready to come to the general public, so there’s likely still lots of room left for Apple to polish the release to a shine. Those paid up on their developer accounts can grab the update through the usual means and see just how much luster has been added since WWDC.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Apple sends iOS 6 beta 2 to developers originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 25 Jun 2012 14:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  9to5 Mac  | Email this | Comments

Sony isn’t known for rolling out the red carpet when one of its phones arrives Stateside, although that’s partly because US carrier-endorsed versions are few and far between. It clearly sees the Xperia Ion as worth the five-star treatment it’s giving the rest of the 2012 Xperia line: the company is starting a rare TV ad campaign to pitch its 720p wunderkind to an American audience that might not have noticed the Ericsson badge going away. As you’d expect, the pseudo single-take spot ends up being as much a vehicle for pushing other Sony projects as it does for the Android phone in question; we hope you don’t mind getting a brand overdose. With that in mind, there’s more action and explosions per square capita than in any other smartphone ad in recent memory, so if you’re upset that other smartphone ads are just too… peaceful, click Play and get your fill of danger.

Sony kicks off an Xperia Ion TV ad campaign for the US, meets your daily explosion quota (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 25 Jun 2012 13:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments