Jun 29
Why hack your Evo? Free Wi-Fi tethering and plenty of other benefits. OK, but how hard is it? Not too bad with the help of a few apps. This step-by-step, “idiot-proof” guide from Android Forums will hold your hand, gently. More »
Jun 29
Android 2.2 ‘Froyo’ Update Pushed to Google Nexus One
Posted in: Android, froyo, Phones, Today's Chili
Google has finally pushed Android 2.2 Froyo to its otherwise abandoned Nexus One handset. The update should either already be living on your phone, or be arriving over the air any time now.
One of the problems with Android is the scattering of different versions running on various devices. Unlike Apple’s iOS machines, all of which have their upgrade cycle controlled by Apple itself, Android updates are in the hands of individual manufacturers or telcos who would rather you bought a new phone and signed a new contract to get the latest OS.
And while you’d probably be foolish to buy a Nexus One now that you can have the Droid or any number of better phones, Googlephone owners who haven’t already hacked their Nexuses can look forward to some goodies. Best of these is probably the MiFi-like hotspot ability, which lets you share your cellular data connection over Wi-Fi. Even if you don’t care about that, you’ll see a general speeding up of the whole OS, and the premature draining of your battery should you manage to get the browser’s Flash support to work.
New Android 2.2 Software Update for Nexus One phones [Google]
See Also:
- Google Debuts Android-Powered Nexus One 'Superphone'
- Google Nexus One Leaves Customers Sour
- Everything You Wanted to Know About the Google Nexus One
- 5 Lessons for Google From Nexus One's Sluggish Start
- Android 2.2 'Froyo' Features USB, Wi-Fi Tethering
- First Look: Flash Arrives on New Android OS
- FroYo
Photo: Jon Snyder/Wired.com
Jun 29
HTC: expect Desire, Legend and Wildfire to get Froyo ‘beginning in Q3’
Posted in: Android, froyo, Google, HTC, htc sense, HtcSense, sense, Today's Chili, update
It’s summer. It’s hot. Naturally, everyone wants to lick some frozen dessert in one form or another. Shortly after the Nexus One got its absolutely official Android 2.2 update, HTC has once again leaped out to tell us of its own Froyo offering. The Taiwanese mobile giant has informed Recombu that it’s expecting “several of our 2010 models including Desire, Legend and Wildfire” to join Google’s latest green bot party “beginning in Q3.” We went to the trouble of confirming this with HTC ourselves, and while this isn’t really much of an update from the company’s previous statement in terms of time frame, here’s hoping that at least some of its customers will get the delivery before the summer fiesta ends.
HTC: expect Desire, Legend and Wildfire to get Froyo ‘beginning in Q3’ originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 29 Jun 2010 09:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Jun 29
Kindle for Android Joins the E-Book Party
Posted in: Android, e-books, kindle, Phones, Today's Chili
Amazon continues its electronic march across the e-book world with Kindle for Android, which joins Kindle apps for iOS, BlackBerry, Mac and PC.
Like the other Kindle flavors, the Android version will keep your reading organized and synchronized across all your devices via Whispersync, let you make and view annotations and buy titles from the Kindle store. Also like the other version, the Android Kindle app is free to download (find it in the Android Market). What you don’t yet get are the audio and video extras announced for iOS devices yesterday.
The actual hardware Kindle certainly kick-started the mainstream e-book market, but it looks more and more like that was its main reason for existing. Amazon, as we know, makes its money on selling books, not selling Kindles, and the relentless push to make its e-book library available anywhere shows the business plan clearly. It doesn’t hurt that the Kindle’s catalog stands at around 600,000 titles, making it the one of the best-stocked stores around. Kindle for Android will work on any device running Android 1.6 or better.
Kindle for Android [Amazon. Thanks, Kinley!]
See Also:
- Amazon Shows Off Kindle for iPad
- First Look: Kindle for Mac
- Kindle for Android 'Coming Soon'
- Tablet Wars: Amazon Adds Apps to Kindle
Jun 29
Sprint halts EVO 4G update due to reports of it bricking phones
Posted in: Android, AndroidOs, firmware, firmware update, FirmwareUpdate, HTC, ota, Software, Sprint, Today's Chili, update
Uh oh. There’s been a tiny little hitch in the latest EVO 4G update, which has resulted in a number of people finding their superphones becoming unusable. Aside from rooted handsets having their predictable woes with new official software, some users have found that applying the update twice bricked their phones, stock OS and all. That’s pretty worrying, particularly when you consider that checking for updates after a successful install gives you the option to apply it all over again. Sprint and HTC have acted quickly to pull the OTA for the moment, and promise to restore it as soon as its lethal streak has been ironed out:
While the vast majority of consumers successfully downloaded and installed the most recent HTC EVO 4G software update, we have received a handful of reports from customers having some issues with the update. In light of this, HTC and Sprint have decided to temporarily halt distribution of this software release until we can investigate further. We expect to be able to resume software updates shortly.
In the mean time, let’s all just sit, wait, and hope the sky doesn’t fall on our heads.
Sprint halts EVO 4G update due to reports of it bricking phones originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 29 Jun 2010 05:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Jun 28
Dell Streak’s supposed US packaging is gorgeous, unboxed with elegance
Posted in: Android, att, cellphone, mobile phone, MobilePhone, phone, smartphone, snapdragon, streak, Today's Chili, unboxing, us
Well, the Brits ain’t gonna be happy when they see this in the AM. What we’re looking at here is presumably the Dell Streak’s final US packaging — a far cry from the cardboard boxes that the Englishmen are given (and let’s not forget the silly photoshop error on the top). If the features list is correct, this five-inch Android phone is definitely headed to AT&T’s 850MHz 3G band for now (hang in there, T-Mobile fans). Other than that, the accessories and the phone itself look identical to what we’ve got in London, but we totally wouldn’t mind getting hold of this sexy acrylic box — it’d make a pretty cool cradle, don’t you think? Head over to the source link to feed your eyes.
Update: Here’s another found on eBay. [Thanks, Johnny S.]
Dell Streak’s supposed US packaging is gorgeous, unboxed with elegance originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 29 Jun 2010 01:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Jun 28
Android 2.2 Froyo FRF85 now available for Nexus One (update: official)
Posted in: Android, att, breaking news, BreakingNews, froyo, Google, nexus one, NexusOne, Today's Chili
We’ve been receiving numerous tips over the last hour that Nexus One owners on AT&T bands are receiving an over-the-air update for Android 2.2 FRF85, otherwise known as the “bulletproofed” Froyo build. No confirmation at this point, and since you’re asking, no word yet either on an update for the larger T-Mobile N1 install base (though we’ve had at least one report of a user on FRF50 getting the OTA today). We’ve pinged Google for answers, will let ya know what we hear.
Update: Thanks to a few readers, we’ve now got a direct link from Google’s servers to update from EPE54B to FRF85.
Update 2: Tipster Christian R has sent us a picture of his T-Mobile-banded Nexus One with FRF85, apparently updated from Android 2.1 build ERE27. Has the T-Mobile rollout begun? Not for us, at least.
Update 3: And now we’ve got a direct link to download a FRF85 build that’ll supposedly work for any Android build. We can safely say that it worked for us on a T-Mobile device with 2.1 / ERE27. Download from Google here, and if you need direction on how to do the update yourself, take a cue from our commenters. [Thanks, MRCUR and afinite]
Update 4: And now it’s official. Keep an eye on that notification bar if you’re itching for the OTA method. So that’s one phone down, quite a few to go! [Thanks, cl]
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Android 2.2 Froyo FRF85 now available for Nexus One (update: official) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Jun 2010 23:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Jun 28
Sprint lines up Epic 4G against the competition, likes its chances
Posted in: 4G, Android, Google, qwerty, samsung, slider, Sprint, Today's Chili, WiMAX
In case you needed any more evidence that Samsung’s Epic 4G for Sprint is probably going to be awesome, you might take a gander at the competitive analysis they’ve prepared against the iPhone 4, Droid Incredible, and Droid X as an ego-boosting checklist for reps prepping to sell the phone in the coming weeks. The DLNA support trumpeted, but HDMI’s notably missing — something its EVO 4G sibling has — and it’ll be up to customers to decide whether 4-inch Super AMOLED is better than 4.3-inch LCD. Unsurprisingly, the Epic will “feature” the same $10 data surcharge that the EVO has, something that we’re guessing is going to end up being phased in over Sprint’s entire smartphone lineup over time — you know, kind of like those delivery service “fuel surcharges” that end up becoming permanent after a while. Anyhow, the Epic looks killer on paper, but if anything, the chart only underscores how incredibly stiff its competition is going to be. Choice is good, is it not?
Sprint lines up Epic 4G against the competition, likes its chances originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Jun 2010 21:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Jun 28
Mario live wallpaper for Android: better than a Tanooki Suit in the summer
Posted in: Android, GoogleAndroid, Today's Chili, video
Seriously, words cannot describe how incredibly entertained we are by this Mario Live wallpaper for Android 2.1 and above devices. All across the home and locked screen, our favorite Italian faux-plumber protagonist runs through randomly-generated levels across various themes like outside, underground, and castle. It’s very customizable, allowing you to change the level’s difficulty, see the alternate paths Mario’s AI has plotted, and rendering the background (all at a cost to CPUs and battery life, of course). Free download — donations suggested, of course — and if you’re looking for a way to stare at your phone even longer, well, look no further. Videos through which you can live vicariously are after the break.
Continue reading Mario live wallpaper for Android: better than a Tanooki Suit in the summer
Mario live wallpaper for Android: better than a Tanooki Suit in the summer originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Jun 2010 21:03:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Jun 28
Engadget app updated for Android and webOS
Posted in: Android, engadget, froyo, Today's Chili, webos
Is it possible we’ve been so busy we didn’t notice our Android app getting a handful of totally fresh new features? Maybe, but hey — you still win. If you’re an Android user, you might like to know that some time last week we flipped the switch on an update to our app that includes some pretty sexy new features, such as search and video playback inline (for Froyo devices). Additionally, our webOS app was recently bugging out, but that issue has since been fixed. Of course, the iPhone and BlackBerry apps are still available and as fly as ever — so go grab a copy right now! We’re including the changelog for the Android app after the break, too. Feel free to nerd out on that.
Continue reading Engadget app updated for Android and webOS
Engadget app updated for Android and webOS originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Jun 2010 19:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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