Hasta La Gadget!

We’re used to seemingly interminable waits for phone firmware upgrades for carrier-locked phones. What is it that takes so long? Vodafone UK isn’t promising a quicker process, but it’s offering a rare walkthrough of just what itself (and many other carriers) do to rubber stamp a firmware upgrade. Using the Huawei Ascend G 300’s Android 4.0 update as the reference point, Vodafone explains that the actual network testing lasts a week or less, depending on the scope of the upgrade — it’s the requirements for branding and carrier-specific network settings that introduce additional overhead. Android phones that skew closer to Google’s stock OS (like the G 300) tend to be easy updates, although Vodafone warns that the verification process is typically getting longer, not shorter. There’s not much consolation here for phone owners around the world still using Android 2.3; if you’d rather skip the carrier update process entirely, however, you know where to turn.

Filed under: Cellphones

Vodafone walks us through a phone’s Android 4.0 upgrade, explains our protracted thumb-twiddling originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 21 Jul 2012 10:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Vodafone  | Email this | Comments

Nokia gave us a hint of Nokia Drive 3.0’s commuter-friendly additions all the way back at Mobile World Congress in February. It’s been quite the wait, but the update is at last lurking in the Windows Phone Marketplace. Although developed at the same time as Google Now, the Drive update will feel like a small slice of Android 4.1 for Lumia owners through its predictive routing: it can learn when you leave for work and how driving habits will affect the trip, giving a heads-up about traffic jams before you turn the ignition. Windows Phone reasserts itself through the option of pinning favorite destinations as tiles on the home screen, and an automatic switch between day and night modes is just as new. Drive’s My Commute feature will initially work only in the US, but it should be available within the next day or two for any Lumia owner — so those being denied Windows Phone 8 still won’t have any justification for being late to the office.

Continue reading Nokia Drive 3.0 arrives with My Commute, your Lumia is no excuse for being late (video)

Filed under: Cellphones, GPS

Nokia Drive 3.0 arrives with My Commute, your Lumia is no excuse for being late (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 20 Jul 2012 21:25:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Symbian Tweet  |  Nokia Conversations  | Email this | Comments

International HTC One S buyers might look at the black version like it’s humdrum, but if you’re an American who’s had no realistic choice but to get the gray T-Mobile edition, black is a rare and coveted thing. T-Mobile knows this all too well, and it’s using the micro arc oxidized hue as an incentive for loyal employees: work diligently enough, and a black One S with native T-Mobile HSPA+ is yours. There’s no word from the TmoNews tipster as to whether or not the color will ever reach the buying public, which could make it a rare collector’s item for Android lovers — not to mention a mild form of torture for HTC enthusiasts. The optimistic among us are hoping that it’s a sign of phones to come and that both black as well as gray can live in harmony on T-Mobile shelves.

Filed under: Cellphones

T-Mobile USA gives black HTC One S to hard-working staff, leaves other Americans turning green originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 20 Jul 2012 07:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  TmoNews  | Email this | Comments

When v2.0 of the Sky Go for Android app arrived earlier this month it promised another update would follow soon with support for Android 4.0 and more phones, and now it has arrived. We’re not seeing it in Google Play yet, but the press release (included after the break) indicates the app is ready to run on the Galaxy S III, Galaxy Nexus and Galaxy Note from Samsung, and is also finally Ice Cream Sandwich compatible on those devices and the HTC Sensation / Sensation XE. That brings the total supported device count for the video on-demand player to a round 11, which is less than the “all” we’re looking for but still more than the zero supported prior to February.

Continue reading Sky Go for Android adds support for Ice Cream Sandwich, Samsung’s Galaxy S III, Nexus and Note

Filed under: Cellphones, Home Entertainment

Sky Go for Android adds support for Ice Cream Sandwich, Samsung’s Galaxy S III, Nexus and Note originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 20 Jul 2012 04:20:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Google Play  | Email this | Comments

Industry rumors usually come with a heaping helping of salt, unless they’re being issued from a trusted source. In this case, it’s Mary Jo Foley of ZDNet spilling some beans regarding Microsoft’s release roadmap. Though we’ve already caught wind that Windows Phone 8 devices would be arriving sometime this fall with nearly all major carrier support, Foley’s source is now pegging the RTM build of that mobile OS for September, with the finalized consumer version and accompanying hardware hitting the marketplace in November. Given that timing and an impending October 26th bow for Windows 8 also on the horizon, any plans Redmond might’ve had for a dual platform launch will have to be shelved. That’s all she wrote for now, folks — we’ll surely find out more concrete details in the coming months. So, take this gossamer morsel for what it’s worth.

Filed under: Cellphones, Software

Rumor: Windows Phone 8 devices to launch this November? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 19 Jul 2012 19:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink TheNextWeb  |  ZDNet  | Email this | Comments