Android Phone Fans |
- Forgotten Nexus Q gets Android 4.4 KitKat courtesy of CyanogenMod 11
- HP planning to release new smartphones before the end of the year [RUMOR]
- Reicast is a Dreamcast emulator for Android, now available for free on Google Play
- Samsung’s latest Galaxy Gear ad might be the worst of the year [VIDEO]
- Android 4.3 Jelly Bean rollout begins for Sony Xperia Z, Xperia ZL, Xperia ZR and Xperia Tablet Z
- Koush’s AllCast hits the Google Play Store
- ASUS teasing dual-boot tablet ahead of CES; Android and Windows in tow? [VIDEO]
- Final Fantasy 6 coming to Android — first trailer hits YouTube [VIDEO]
- Disney puts 12 games on sale for $.49, grab them while you can
- Samsung Galaxy Note Pro 12.2-inch Android tablet leaked
- CyangenMod hits 10 million active users
| Forgotten Nexus Q gets Android 4.4 KitKat courtesy of CyanogenMod 11 Posted: 23 Dec 2013 05:28 PM PST It’s been awhile since the Nexus Q was first “released”, given away to attendees of the 2012 Google I/O developer conference. Despite never officially ever going up for sale, some owners simply aren’t ready to quit the Nexus program’s redheaded stepchild. An expensive way to stream your online media to your TV, it was essentially the Chromecast before it was cool. Leave it to those mad geniuses at XDA who’ve found a way to shoehorn Android 4.4 KitKat onto the device, because…. you know, Android. Made possible via CM11, it really doesn’t take much to get up and running with KitKat. Just need to know your way around ADB. Keep in mind the Google Play Music app is a bit finicky, as well as Chrome. A simple sideload of the latest Chrome app for smartphones seems to fix everything up however. Have fun! [XDA] |
| HP planning to release new smartphones before the end of the year [RUMOR] Posted: 23 Dec 2013 03:31 PM PST Despite things not turning out so well the last time we saw an HP-built smartphone, the manufacturer might have plans to reenter the space. According The Information — an online publication who prides themselves on getting the “inside scoop” on tech news — HP could be planning to soon release a new phablet line before the end of the year. These big-screened smartphones would feature display sizes of 6 and 7 inches, just don’t expect Galaxy Note-like prices. Apparently, HP’s gunning for emerging markets with these big fellas, slated for release in countries like India, China, and the Philippines, at a price point between $200 and $250. While there wasn’t any word that these devices would actually feature Android as their operating system of choice, we think it only makes sense given the recently released HP Slate tabs rocking Jelly Bean. [via The Verge] |
| Reicast is a Dreamcast emulator for Android, now available for free on Google Play Posted: 23 Dec 2013 02:26 PM PST The Sega Dreamcast will forever hold a special place in our heart. With the many various Android emulators available on Google Play, we suppose it was only a matter of time before Sega’s greatest — and last — home console was finally emulated for Android devices. With the help of the new Reicast Dreamcast emulator, you can now play all the hottest games from 1999, straight on your Android smartphone or tablet. The developer recommends having a device with at least a 1GHz+ dual-core Cortex A9 chipset for optimal play, and even provides some quick instructions on how to get the BIOS up and running on your Android in the Play Store listing. Just keep in mind Reicast is still in its alpha stages but for the adventurous, you can download it via the Play Store link below.
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| Samsung’s latest Galaxy Gear ad might be the worst of the year [VIDEO] Posted: 23 Dec 2013 11:58 AM PST We’ve been a little apprehensive about the Samsung Galaxy Gear and the real usefulness it offers outside the hardcore tech crowd. A smartwatch that has been struggling to hit mainstream success (compatibility outside Galaxy devices hasn’t helped), one area Samsung really knocked it out of the ballpark was in the initial ad spots that accompanied the Galaxy Gear’s release back in October. No matter your thoughts on the wearable, Samsung’s clever use of nostalgia from our favorite television shows really struck a chord with us. Maybe that’s why Samsung’s latest ad for the Gear felt so… weird. There’s really no better way to describe it. Titled “Are You Geared Up?”, the cringe-worthy video features a strapping young fella who is able to win the affections of a beautiful young lass by showing her all the cool things he can do with his Galaxy Gear. Yeah. You’re going to want to watch the video below. The craziest part is this isn’t even the strangest ad Samsung has published this year. A few weeks ago, Samsung’s ad for their latest solid state drive began buzzing around the net for all the wrong reasons. Besides those who found the ad a bit sexist (it’s since been pulled, but you can find it here), it features acting and mannerisms about as awkward as we saw in the latest Galaxy Gear ad. To be fair, the actor in the SSD video made an attempt to vindicate himself on Reddit, where he mentioned this type of “cheesy acting” was exactly what Samsung’s production company asked for. He went on to explain that the ad was never meant for US audiences, but was merely a promotional video for non-native English speakers. Fair enough. What do you guys think? When it comes to the latest Galaxy Gear video, do we have a contender for “worst ad of the year” on our hands? Before you decide, you might want to check out Nokia’s creepy “mullet” ad for their Lumia 2520. |
| Android 4.3 Jelly Bean rollout begins for Sony Xperia Z, Xperia ZL, Xperia ZR and Xperia Tablet Z Posted: 23 Dec 2013 11:33 AM PST Various Sony devices have started receiving Android 4.3 today, with the Sony Xperia Z, Xperia ZL, Xperia ZR and Xperia Tablet Z all receiving the cool new bits of data. Alongside the standard Jelly Bean 4.3 bits — such as improved project butter performance and other under-the-hood tweaks — Sony has added a lot of great new additions and made a lot of great changes. Here’s the quick list:
And Sony says not to worry — Android 4.4 KitKat for the Xperia Z, Xperia ZL, Xperia Tablet Z, Xperia Z Ultra and Xperia Z1 are all still coming at some point in the near future. For now, enjoy Jelly Bean and everything it comes with by checking for the upgrade in the settings menu of your phone. Be sure to enable WiFi and charge your battery, and note that availability of the update will differ based on market and carrier. [via Sony] |
| Koush’s AllCast hits the Google Play Store Posted: 23 Dec 2013 10:23 AM PST Koushik Dutta’s “AllCast” app has been on a very interesting journey thus far. It started off as a Chromecast-equipped media streamer that would allow you to get your content up on the big screen using the $35 HDMI dongle. Google effectively killed the app by blocking third-party access to unofficial APIs, though, leaving AllCast pretty useless. That wasn’t going to slow Koush down, as the developer roared back with an app that was made to cast your media to ALL the things. Ironically enough, the Chromecast was not included in the list of devices that could be used to stream content from your mobile device. That version of the app has finally exited beta, and is sitting in the Google Play Store for all to download. Here’s a quick list of what you can cast to, in case you’ve forgotten:
That’s no small crop of devices. Fittingly enough, Koush capped off his Google+ announcement with the following line: “Chromecast support coming someday. I hope.” We hope so, too, bro. AllCast can be had in both free and premium (no video length limits, no ads, and no overlays) flavors in the Google Play Store. |
| ASUS teasing dual-boot tablet ahead of CES; Android and Windows in tow? [VIDEO] Posted: 23 Dec 2013 09:02 AM PST It looks like ASUS can’t get enough device convergence, as the Taiwanese company is gearing up to bring us yet another dual-booting hybrid convertible doohickey. This time, they’re teasing a device that might dual boot both Windows and Android. They did so with a video short of the Statue of Liberty holding up both a blue and a green device. The caption? “Green or Blue? One or Two?” It sounds like they’re going to be giving us the goods we want in one solid package. So what can we expect? This isn’t the first time we’ve seen ASUS try something like this, with the company’s Transformer Book Trio giving you a similar dual-boot option. The caveat was that you had to be in laptop mode to gain access to both on-board operating systems. We imagine ASUS has found a way to do away with that requirement, so a brand new product to unveil that achievement is most certainly warranted. It’s all going down at CES starting January 6th, and you know we’ll be there to take it all in live. Watch the quick teaser above. |
| Final Fantasy 6 coming to Android — first trailer hits YouTube [VIDEO] Posted: 23 Dec 2013 07:35 AM PST Square Enix is bringing another 16-bit classic to our beloved platform soon, with the game developer revealing that Final Fantasy 6 will be making its way to Android sometime soon. The first trailer for the new-age port has gone up on YouTube, giving us a glimpse at the game with improved sprites. It’s familiar, yet fresh, and gives us a nostalgic high that not many other games could. Square Enix says this thing is headed to us this winter, though it looks like we’ll be waiting until the new year to see it rolled out. We’ll also probably have to wait a big longer than our Japanese counterparts will. If Square Enix’s previous launches are anything to go by, you’ll probably be paying more than $10 or $15 for the privilege of playing. If that doesn’t scare you off, though, you should get your affairs in order and prepare to lose hours of your life playing this. Watch the trailer above, and if you want to check out the previous releases be sure to catch them on sale for up to 50% off. |
| Disney puts 12 games on sale for $.49, grab them while you can Posted: 23 Dec 2013 06:35 AM PST In case you haven’t realized it, Disney has a pretty big presence in the Google Play Store. If it’s not cute brain puzzlers like Where’s My Water and Where’s My Perry, it’s Disney-infused versions of games like Temple Run: Oz and Temple Run: Brave. No matter what your taste is, though, you can grab all of their paid titles on sale for a limited time. They’re all $.49, which is a small price to pay for the hours of time-draining fun these games can provide. Here’s the full list of titles up for grabs at this irresistible price point (there are 12 in all):
These titles are normally $2-3, so you’re saving more than just a few pieces of copper if you decide to bite on any of them. It’s also worth noting that some of these titles are available in free flavoring, though you can expect ads for the privilege of not having to pay out of your pocket. Be sure to take a look at Disney’s full list of titles available in the Google Play Store. |
| Samsung Galaxy Note Pro 12.2-inch Android tablet leaked Posted: 23 Dec 2013 06:05 AM PST Samsung’s new best friend — that is, their highly successful Note series of devices — has been good to them. The latest phone entry was good enough to join the 10 million sales club alongside the Note 2, the Samsung Galaxy S4 and more. Now, it looks like Samsung is about ready to bring us another Note tablet. A photo of a supposed “Samsung Galaxy Note Pro” has leaked Clien.net. This tablet reportedly sports a 12.2-inch display, which is the size of an unknown 12.2-inch Samsung tablet that made the rounds at the FCC about a month go. If those two are the same devices, we’re told to expect the following list of specs:
That’s about all we know for now, but it’s not hard to figure out that this will be one capable beast of a slate. We imagine it’ll cost a pretty penny to own once it’s available, but we’re getting a bit ahead of ourselves — we’ll need to see this thing unveiled first before we start thinking about any price or release date (though rumors suggest CES will be the platform for its grand arrival). [via PhoneArena] |
| CyangenMod hits 10 million active users Posted: 23 Dec 2013 05:29 AM PST To say that the CyanogenMod team has gained a ton of steam lately would be a huge understatement. It’s been a big year for the custom ROM developers, who got officially incorporated, raised tens of millions of dollars in funding, and are looking to strike up big hardware deals in the very near future. Now, another great milestone has been revealed. Steve Kondik announced on Google+ that CyanogenMod has hit the 10 million user mark. And just in case you were unsure of the language, Kondik clarified to everyone that this is not total downloads, but actual active users reported based on the stats sent through the CyanogenMod statistics reporter. CyanogenMod statistics counts any device that has “checked in” within the last 90 days, so while these might not be true “up-to-the-minute” numbers, it’s still a good mark to measure. Numbers like these are the reason why the company was able to incorporate and attract millions of dollars from investors, money that they hope will be used to bring the world’s first actual CyanogenMod phone (perhaps through Pete Lau’s OnePlus) and roll in millions more users in the years to come. You can find the full statistics over at CyanogenMod’s website. [via Google+] |
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