Hasta La Gadget!

Less than a week after it disappeared from iTunes, the Apple-friendly Google Voice app is back and declared iOS 5 friendly, per its official Twitter account. Also improved is operation sans-internet connection, since now there’s no data required to dial numbers you’ve previously called. Hit the source link below for v1.3.1.1891 — we’ll never go back to the dark days of v1.3.0.1771.

Google Voice app returns to iTunes, iOS 5 crash bug fixed originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 21 Oct 2011 19:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Continue reading Sony Music Unlimited arrives for Android tablets, bearing gifts of unlimited music

Sony Music Unlimited arrives for Android tablets, bearing gifts of unlimited music originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 20 Oct 2011 09:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We know that Samsung has the first crack at Android 4.0 with the Galaxy Nexus, but it’ll only be a matter of time before we begin seeing it show up on rival devices. HTC has already made an official statement on its plans (or lack thereof), and now it’s Motorola’s turn. Alain Mutricy, SVP Portfolio and Product Management, was in Germany talking up the European announcement of the RAZR, and slipped in a few details about Ice Cream Sandwich. Mutricy mentioned that while the company’s new flagship device was designed for Gingerbread, plans have been set to introduce the latest version of Android in the start of 2012, with a more precise date naturally on its way. Given past experience, however, it’s probable that the unbranded version of the device will get the refresh ahead of the Droid RAZR on Verizon, so US users may need to exercise a wee bit of patience here. Regardless, it’s time for the competition to step up — if the RAZR is next in line to get the OTA update, the Galaxy Nexus will have the spotlight all to itself for a fair amount of time.

Motorola RAZR to get updated to Ice Cream Sandwich in early 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Oct 2011 09:55:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Samsung was awarded a precious head start in its upgrade path to Android 4.0, but how will its competition respond? HTC may have one of the most difficult jobs ahead, since it has integrated its Sense UI so deeply into the core Android user experience, but that doesn’t mean the OEM isn’t determining the best road it should take to get to the land of Ice Cream Sandwiches. The company released an official statement following this evening’s announcement to confirm that it’s looking over the update’s new features and functionality, figuring out how to make it happen without forcing sacrifices to the usability and performance of each HTC product. We’ll be interested to see what it comes up with, as many of the UI elements popular in Sense appear to now be a part of the stock ICS functionality. The company was careful not to commit to the new Android, nor did it give any particular timeframe or roadmap in the process. Check out the full statement below:

We are excited about the latest update for Android, Ice Cream Sandwich, and are currently reviewing its features and functionality to determine our upgrade plans. Our goal for Android updates is to give every customer an improved user experience, which means balancing each phone’s unique hardware, HTC Sense experience and the Android kernel. While our goal is to upgrade as many of our recent devices as possible, we are committed to maintaining every phone’s performance and usability first. Please stay tuned for more updates on specific device upgrade plans.

HTC: We’re reviewing Ice Cream Sandwich and determining our plans originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Oct 2011 01:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It may not have resulted in much of a numerical bump, but the just-released webOS 3.0.4 software update for the HP TouchPad is a fairly significant one. The big new addition is the ability to pair non-webOS phones, which will let you answer calls on your TouchPad (pairing with third-party Bluetooth keyboards is also said to be “streamlined”). It also adds a new Camera app for photos and videos, plus support for Ogg Vorbis music files, and online / offline messaging status support. Perhaps just as notably, HP is also promising “better performance” and “user interface improvements,” as well as a number of other enhancements and “more robust Skype video calling.” We’ll be giving it a go ourselves, but feel free to share your own impressions in the comments below.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Update: We’ve since spent a bit of time with a TouchPad running webOS 3.0.4, and it is indeed noticeably snappier and more responsive. Receiving phone calls via a non-webOS phone also works as promised (although you can’t make phone calls from the TouchPad), and the new Camera app is simple and gets the job done — though the TouchPad’s camera itself is still decidedly lackluster. Another somewhat minor but important change is the scrolling behavior in the web browser — it now requires a far more deliberate swipe left or right to move the page horizontally, which results in far less accidental jumping around than before.

HP TouchPad gets webOS 3.0.4 update, now able to answer calls from non-webOS phones originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 Oct 2011 11:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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