Android Phone Fans |
- Nexus 5: unboxing and quick Nexus 4 comparison [VIDEO]
- Don’t worry, the wooden Moto X devices are still coming
- CONTEST: ConsoleCopter for a Google Glass invite [DAY 5]
- MOGA Hero Power and Pro Power controllers released, they charge your phone as you play!
- Ingress exiting beta stage, now open to everyone
- Ask me anything about the Nexus 5 at AndroidForums.com [AMA]
- Samsung Galaxy S4 Zoom for AT&T launches November 8th for $200
- FAA now lets you keep your device on throughout all phases of flight, so Amazon celebrates with 15% Kindle sale
- Blackberry lives: won’t sell after $1 billion injection in private funding, new CEO
- One last look at Jelly Bean’s dominance before KITKAT arrives
- Motorola sends save-the-dates for Moto G announcement
- CONTEST: What would you do for a Glass invite? [DAY 4]
| Nexus 5: unboxing and quick Nexus 4 comparison [VIDEO] Posted: 04 Nov 2013 05:52 PM PST
Like many of you, Phandroid spent a good portion of their day in anticipation, eagerly awaiting the moment the Nexus 5 would land on our doorsteps. Well, earlier this evening the UPS man finally arrived and we are now in possession of the Google influenced but LG-made Nexus 5. Rather than give you the typical boring ‘ol unboxing, we decided to boot it up, take a quick gander at Android 4.4 KitKat and quickly see how the Nexus 5 compares to it’s older brother, the Nexus 4.
Without giving away too much, there was a 128MB day-1 update that took a few minutes to download and apply, but after that we booted into the new Google launcher which we found a tad odd, if not endearing. Google Now setup was also tricky (hint: you’ll need to actually search for something just to get it up and running on the homescreen). Of course, we’ll be bringing you more Nexus 5 tips, tricks, comparisons, and our full review once we’ve gotten a chance to put the device through its paces. In the meantime, check out our hands-on video and find out the single biggest reason why I love this phone more than the Nexus 4. Cheers. |
| Don’t worry, the wooden Moto X devices are still coming Posted: 04 Nov 2013 03:18 PM PST
We haven’t heard much of those sweet wooden Moto X devices we fell in love with during the announcement (at least I did). Many of us have been wondering what’s exactly going on with these options. Are they even coming? According to leak Guru @evleaks they are.
We are still not sure about the exact release date, but at the very least we know the plans to release these unique designs haven’t been axed yet. With some luck, we should be seeing them soon! I am really liking the Ebony one, which one are you thinking of getting? [@evleaks] |
| CONTEST: ConsoleCopter for a Google Glass invite [DAY 5] Posted: 04 Nov 2013 02:00 PM PST What could better cure a case of the Mondays than winning a Google Glass invite? Maybe winning a Playstation 4, Xbox One, or Wii U? Today we’ve got another quick Rafflecopter that also helps promote contests from XboxOneDaily, PS4Daily, and WiiUDaily, which are each giving away a next gen console and games. Keep in mind our Nexus 4 Forum Frenzy Contest, Photoshop Contest, and #GlassPhan Contest are still open but closing very soon! Day 5 Contest: ConsoleCopter for Glass!How badly do you want one of our 9 Google Glass invites? To win our Day 4 contest, all you’ve got to do is tell us to what extremes you would go for a Google Glass Invite and entering couldn’t be easier.
If you cannot afford $1,500 for Google Glass or are an International Participant you are still eligible. In the event you win, we'll substitute the Glass Invite with a $50 Google Play Gift Card and donate your invite to one random Android Forums member from this thread. The Great American Glass ContestWe’re giving away 9 Glass invites in 9 days and you don’t want to miss an opportunity to score big… so check out our schedule below to see which contests are still open!
Hints:Follow these Google+ accounts to get an early heads up when contest posts will soon be going live and additional hints at how to improve your chances of winning.
Contest Rules & Requirements
Contest Terms of Service:
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| MOGA Hero Power and Pro Power controllers released, they charge your phone as you play! Posted: 04 Nov 2013 02:00 PM PST
PowerA has just released the all-new MOGA Hero Power and Pro Power controllers. These come with the same quality and form factor we have grown to love, but they really take it away with the controllers’ new feature. These devices actually charge your phone as you play! One of the biggest problems about mobile gaming is battery life. Those powerful games can make your phone’s juice run out very fast. This becomes a problem when you realize you have been playing way too long and don’t have a power outlet around you.
The batteryThe MOGA Hero Power and Pro Power have 1800 mAh and 2200 mAh batteries, respectively. This may be enough to completely charge your device once. At the very least you know you will not be left with little battery power when you are done dominating on your favorite mobile games. How do the MOGA controllers charge my phone?The controller plugs into your phone via microUSB, so there is not much science to the devices. They are simple to pair and use. Price and availabilityThe MOGA Hero Power is the most affordable of the two. It features a slimmer profile and will run you for $59.99. This is a bit of a high starting price, but it will prove to be worth its price if you value battery life (most of us do). The MOGA Pro Power is for more demanding gamers who prefer a bigger, more comfortable controller. One that will give you an advantage while playing those hard core mobile games. This bad boy costs $79.99, but does feature a larger battery. You can get both of these from MOGA’s store, or simply wait a bit for retailers like Best Buy, Target, Sprint and Verizon to have them in stock. Such retailers should have these in “early November”, so any time now.
Are you getting a MOGA Power controller?
This is a first for smartphone gaming controllers. I love the idea that these MOGA controllers double as a charger, and I will not wait one bit to get one of these. I already carry an external battery anyways. Why not take a MOGA Power controller instead? Are you guys buying one? [MOGA] |
| Ingress exiting beta stage, now open to everyone Posted: 04 Nov 2013 01:05 PM PST Joining Ingress has been a bit of a pain. You need an invitation and the game has been in beta for almost a year now. It’s about time we start seeing the augmented reality app taking it’s next steps and that is exactly what is going on. Google is taking Ingress out of beta! Everyone can join Ingress!Ingress exits beta on December 14, 2013, but that is not the most exciting piece of nows. Starting today, everyone can actually join the fun! There is no longer an invite requirement in order to play Ingress. Simply go to the Google Play Store, download the app and play away! Contests and prizesNiantic Labs took advantage of this eventful announcement to also give us some details on their upcoming contests and challenges. First, there is the ‘Founder Medal’, in which all of those who reach level 5 by Dec. 14 will get an exclusive medal. Pretty cool badge to carry around! There is also the Ingress Elite V challenge, in which all Ingress agents will be able to vote for the best 5 Ingress users in the world. Those who win this will get a trip to California for what they are calling “top secret Ingress briefings”, as well as an interview with Ingress’ Susanna Moyer. And there is also the larger event, 13 Magnus. The idea is that Enlightened agent want to resurrect their leader, Roland Jarvis. To do this, they must find the 13 Jarvis Shards, but Resistance Agents will do everything they can to destroy them. These shards will be all over the world. (You can read more about dates and locations at Ingress’ post). Start playing!
As mentioned above, you can now download Ingress from the Google Play Store and play with no invitation! If you are still loving Ingress, you can check it out and try to participate in these cool events. As for me, I am not as excited about the game anymore. Do you guys still play? [Ingress] |
| Ask me anything about the Nexus 5 at AndroidForums.com [AMA] Posted: 04 Nov 2013 11:28 AM PST
We have our Nexus 5, folks. Do you have yours? If not, don’t fret — we’re willing, able and eager to answer any questions you might have before your device makes it to your doorstep. Whether your shipment has been delayed a couple of weeks or you’re just curious about a couple of KITKAT-related details, we’ll do our best to answer any and all questions you might have. We’re talking about all of it over at the Nexus 5 section at AndroidForums.com, where a few other interesting threads are hosting great discussions about one of the newest kids on the block. Here are just a few to sink your teeth into:
And that’s not even half of it. There are tons of great discussions waiting for you over there, and you can take part in them by creating your very own account (it’s easy, quick, and — most importantly — free). Don’t hesitate to make a thread if you have a question that you can’t find the answer to, as our eager community of Nexus 5 enthusiasts will be more than happy to help. Hop to it! |
| Samsung Galaxy S4 Zoom for AT&T launches November 8th for $200 Posted: 04 Nov 2013 07:56 AM PST AT&T has officially announced availability for the Samsung Galaxy S4 Zoom, the point-and-shoot smartphone camera that will make many casual photographers happy. The device is launching November 8th for $200, a price that will obviously come with the need to sign a new two-year contract agreement. You can take the AT&T Next approach, of course, which gives you the phone for $25 a month (no down payment) and the option to upgrade after one year. The 16 megapixel backside-illuminated CMOS sensor is outfitted with 10X optical zoom, which is something quite unheard of for a smartphone. It also has the oft-preferred Xenon flash. This wouldn’t be the first phone with such a camera, but it is the first time a mainstream option from a mainstream company has entered the fold.
Non-camera specs for the Galaxy S4 Zoom include a 4.3-inch qHD display, a Pega-Dual +XMM6262 processor, 1.5GB of RAM, 8GB of internal storage (expandable up to 64GB using a microSD card), Bluetooth 4.0, WiFi N, NFC and more. It should launch with Android 4.2 Jelly Bean from the start, and will have Samsung’s TouchWiz user interface sitting on top. It reads like an entry-level phone through and through, though we’re sure that sweet sensor on the back is going to reel in many folks at the point of sale. Let us know if you’ll be one of those come November 8th when it’s finally available. |
| Posted: 04 Nov 2013 07:19 AM PST
In case you haven’t heard, the FAA — the lovely group that regulates airline safety — made changes to their electronic devices guideline. The biggest change most of us will care about is the fact that devices are no longer required to be powered down, no matter which phase of the flight you’re in. That doesn’t mean you should be on your laptop typing up expense reports during takeoff or landing — that stuff still has to be stowed away during those phases — but you no longer have to shut it down if you don’t want to. With that, Amazon decided to take this opportunity to put all of their Kindle devices on sale. The company has slashed prices on their entire fleet of Kindle products, from the basic e-reader to the new Kindlre Fire HDX, by 15%. This means you could have the Kindle Fire HD for as little as $118, and the HDX for as little as $195. Amazon’s latest Kindle Fire devices include the latest Fire OS 3.0, which brings many enhancements to make for a more beautiful, yet smoother experience. The biggest change is Amazon’s new Mayday button, which will get you a face-to-face Kindle specialist within a minute of pressing it in case you need help with your device. Two-way video chat and the ability for the specialist to remotely control your device gives you a helpline that’s more convenient than looking up online documents or having to swing by a store. You can find out more about what the latest Kindle devices have to offer here. As for today’s sale, be sure to use coupon code ThnksFAA during checkout to get your 15% discount. Let us know if you’ll be taking advantage! PS: the sale ends today, so be as fast about buying it as the airplane you’ll be using it on. |
| Blackberry lives: won’t sell after $1 billion injection in private funding, new CEO Posted: 04 Nov 2013 06:49 AM PST Things weren’t look too hot for Blackberry when it was reported that the company was looking to sell to Fairfax Financial for $4.7 billion over a month ago. Many industry pundits expected such a sale to result in dismantling the company piece by piece and selling off different sectors to the highest bidders. Thankfully (and I do mean that), that won’t be the case.
It’s being reported that Blackberry has called off the sale. We’re not sure what sort of behind-the-scenes mojo caused a “stay of execution,” but Blackberry was somehow able to secure over $1 billion in private funding (from Fairfax Financial and other unnamed investors) to stay afloat. With that, it seems CEO Thorsten Heins’ reign at the top of the company will come to an end. Taking his place at an interim level is John S. Chen.
John Chen is credited with helping Sybase, an information systems company, navigate stormy waters in troubling times. While his new role at Blackberry isn’t yet solidified with the promise of a long-term gig, it seems there’s no one better to help right the ship in the short term. So what does this mean for Android, and the entirety of the mobile ecosystem? A couple of different, polarizing things:
Yes, we all joke about the relevance of Blackberry and how our one friend is the only person we know still using a Blackberry phone, but the truth of the matter is that it wouldn’t have been good for anyone to see Blackberry dissipate. While today’s news doesn’t guarantee long-term success, it does mean they’ll have another real chance at becoming a major player in the mobile space again. [via Yahoo] |
| One last look at Jelly Bean’s dominance before KITKAT arrives Posted: 04 Nov 2013 06:10 AM PST Google has updated the world on Android distribution numbers for the two-week period ending November 1st (which, if you didn’t already know, was the day immediately following the announcement of Android 4.4 KITKAT and the Nexus 5). So how do the numbers stack up before the first taste of chocolate begins to trickle onto the scene?
Jelly Bean is still dominating the charts with a commanding lead over all the rest. It accounts for 52.1% of all Android devices that checked into the Google Play Store over the past two weeks. Of course, that statistic can be a tad misleading — a vast majority of those check-ins were on Android 4.1.x (37.3%), while 4.2.x (12.5%) and 4.3 (2.3%) lagged behind.
While the differences between those three revisions of Jelly Bean aren’t huge, it’s still alarming that only 2.3% of people were on the absolute latest version. That said, it is still an improvement over the 1.5% it had the last time Google updated us on these stats. The slight bump can be credited to companies like HTC and Samsung getting their flagship handsets upgraded to Android 4.3 starting in the past few weeks, and by launching their latest smartphones with the OS. Moving on, we are a bit saddened to see that Gingerbread and Froyo still take up a combined 28% of the pie. We’re not sure which handsets are still keeping those versions’ heads above water, but it’s no less frustrating that it’s taking this long for legacy versions to die. We aren’t quite as saddened about the fact that Ice Cream Sandwich still has 19.8%, but old is old. We should see KITKAT represented on this chart by the time the next update comes around, but history tells us we should expect adoption rates to be quite slow to start. Have you gotten upgraded to Android 4.3 or higher yet? |
| Motorola sends save-the-dates for Moto G announcement Posted: 04 Nov 2013 04:54 AM PST Discuss the Moto G at AndroidForums.com It looks like Motorola’s accidental Moto G slip-up last week has caused the company to throw caution to the wind and confirm that the device exists (we already heard that much in a trademark filing a couple of weeks ago). They did just that with a save-the-date teaser going out to press this morning, with November 13th said to be the day that we see this new smartphone unveiled.
Press folks aren’t the only ones being invited to “attend” this showcasing, though — anyone interested can sign up right here to watch it live. But what is the Moto G, you ask? Rumors say it’s a mid-range smartphone that could be described as a more affordable Moto X. The latest leaked specs are said to include the following:
It’s quite odd that this phone is to be considered a peg below the Moto X when it has a quad-core processor, but we know specs don’t always tell accurate tales. For starters, this Qualcomm-based quad-core processor might not be as fast as the Krait-based Snapdragon S4 Pro-based dual-core processor inside the Moto X. And if Motorola hasn’t customized it for things like Touchless Controls, it certainly won’t be as great of an experience as what you’d find on the Moto X. Of course, we have no clue if the above specs are final or what, if anything, Motorola has done to deliver an experience similar to their Moto X or the DROID phones. The latest rumors say this thing should be priced at about £135, though we can’t be too sure if that’s on-contract of off-contract pricing. If it’s the latter, we’d say there are lots of reasons to get excited once this thing drops this holiday season. |
| CONTEST: What would you do for a Glass invite? [DAY 4] Posted: 03 Nov 2013 08:12 PM PST
The weekend is almost over but the day couldn’t end without putting our 4th Google Glass invite up for grabs. You’re already able to win a Glass Invite by chatting it up on our Nexus 5 Forums or entering our Glass Photoshop contest, so don’t forget to check those out in addition to this: our #GlassPhan contest. Day 4 Contest: #GlassPhanHow badly do you want one of our 9 Google Glass invites? To win our Day 4 contest, all you’ve got to do is tell us to what extremes you would go for a Google Glass Invite and entering couldn’t be easier.
If you cannot afford $1,500 for Google Glass or are an International Participant you are still eligible. In the event you win, we'll substitute the Glass Invite with a $50 Google Play Gift Card and donate your invite to one random Android Forums member from this thread. The Great American Glass ContestWe’re giving away 9 Glass invites in 9 days and you don’t want to miss an opportunity to score big… so check out our schedule below to see which contests are still open!
Hints:Follow these Google+ accounts to get an early heads up when contest posts will soon be going live and additional hints at how to improve your chances of winning.
Contest Rules & Requirements
Contest Terms of Service:
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