Android Phone Fans |
- LG G Pro 2 Official:
- Google’s Nest acquisition is now official, met with no opposition
- Customize your own HTC Double Dip case using their new online tool à la Motomaker
- Candy Crush Saga trademarks spark controversy over similar game that launched 2 years prior
- Check out this incredibly convincing HTC M8 render based on all the leaks
- Why Microsoft bringing Android apps to Windows Phone could spell doom for the OS
- Leaked Galaxy S5 schematics might give us our first peek at the device [RUMOR]
- New trademarks suggest LG will be refreshing L-Series and F-Series phones soon
- Jolla’s SailFish OS may be coming to a Samsung phone near you soon
- If this is what HTC’s return to mid-range looks like, we’re all for it [RUMOR]
- Muzei Live Wallpaper is Roman Nurik’s (DashClock) latest open-sourced brainchild [VIDEO]
- You can now get your Verizon Wireless purchases delivered same day in 10 more cities
| Posted: 12 Feb 2014 07:05 PM PST At last year’s Mobile World Congress, LG introduced the LG G Pro, which would win Best Smartphone of MWC 2013 in what was a pretty impressive event industry-wide. Following up on that success, LG has just made the LG G Pro 2 official, and it will fittingly launch at MWC 2014. We’ll be there to go hands on the device, but until that day arrives, here’s what you need to know about the latest addition to LG’s recently impressive and growing Android Portfolio. The camera on the LG Pro boasts some eye-opening features including 120FPS HD recording, 4K ULTRA HD recording for playback on 4K TVs, and some software options to help you get just the right picture with focus, flash, and filters. Key Specs:
The LG G Pro 2 will come in 3 colors: White, Red, and Titan. The company is also touting a bunch of software features that are exclusive to LG devices, including:
Pricing and availability have yet to be determined, but we couldn’t be more excited to check out the LG G Pro 2. It definitely enters Phablet territory and will compete head to head with the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and other large, beefy, multimedia intensive devices. Stay tuned for live coverage on the LG G Pro from Mobile World Congress 2014! |
| Google’s Nest acquisition is now official, met with no opposition Posted: 12 Feb 2014 05:37 PM PST Nest CEO Tony Fadell, Google’s Larry Page, and Nest VP of Engineering Matt Rogers In a regulatory filing from this morning, Google announced that their $3.2 billion dollar acquisition of Nest is now official. We didn’t expect they’d be met with with much resistance — nothing like the AT&T/T-Mobile merger from ___ — especially given both the FTC and Department of Justice gave their blessing on the marriage last week. With Nest CEO Tony Fadell reporting directly to Google’s Larry Page, work can finally begin. Here’s to a bright new Android@Home future and whatever else the guys at Nest/Google can dream up. [Re/code] |
| Customize your own HTC Double Dip case using their new online tool à la Motomaker Posted: 12 Feb 2014 05:16 PM PST We’ve heard it oft argued that there’s not much point in fretting over the the color and build materials of your smartphone when, chances are, you’re simply going to slap a case on it anyway. Okay, we get it. So if services like Motomaker don’t amount to much in the end, how about being able to customize your own case? HTC has launched a new online customizing tool for their Double Dip cases ( HTC One-only for now), that allows participants to choose the colors of the top, middle, and bottom portion of their cases. Originally, the Double Dip case came with a red top, light grey middle, and dark grey bottom. Now there’s 6 different colors to choose from: Glacier Gray, Neon Lemon, Atlantis (green), Bright Peach (pink), Navy Blazer (blue), and Pastel Blue (Holoyolo) — giving One owners the opportunity to create a case as unique as they are. Our favorite mashup? Watermelon (don’t judge). Cases run $30, and if you’re undecided, you can check out our review of the original Double Dip case here (video also below). We can’t help but wonder if this online customization tool will also allow us to design our own HTC M8 cases in the future? Here’s to hoping. |
| Candy Crush Saga trademarks spark controversy over similar game that launched 2 years prior Posted: 12 Feb 2014 04:37 PM PST King CEO Riccardo Zacconi Before there was Flappy Bird, your friends and family were jonsing for another fix of Candy Crush Saga. Staying true to their name, there’s been a bit of a saga unfolding around Candy Crush developer King, and their alleged wrongdoings now being brought to light. Which came first, the Candy or the Swipe? King has been on a bit of trademarking spree as of late, in a move the developer claims is an effort at protecting their IP. Makes sense, Candy Crush Saga is a great game and there’s no shortage of copy-cat games following any title’s new found success. But did you know there was a game strikingly similar to Candy Crush that was actually released 4 months prior (and 2 years before it hit app stores)? The game is called CandySwipe. Created by Albert Ransom of Runsome Apps, CandySwipe launched in the Android Market back in November of 2010. Like any smart businessman, Ransom had the foresight to trademark the its name. Fast forward a few months when Ransom noticed King attempting to trademark “Candy Crush Saga,” in which he promptly filed an opposition. Was he upset that Candy Crush featured similar match-3 gameplay? Not exactly. What about Candy Crush’s icons, which happened to mirror closely the confections found in CandySwipe? Sorta. But Ransom says with good reason… Ransom claims, shortly after Candy Crush Saga began climbing the charts, CandySwipe began receiving multiple 1-star reviews from users claiming his title — which launched first — was a mere Candy Crush rip-off. Jumping onto Twitter, Ransom noticed tweets, once again, from ignorant users claiming CandySwipe was a Candy Crush copy-cat, not the other way around. That’s enough to get under anyone’s skin. But it was more than that for Ransom. As a small time developer, he claimed his entire livelihood was at stake. Here’s an example of the confusion caused after Candy Crush blew up. It wasn’t until King would later file for a trademark on the word “Candy” that the Candy Crush owner began receiving some backlash. In an open letter, King’s CEO Riccardo Zacconi attempted to set the record straight, mentioning that this was done in Candy Crush’s defense, and that they had no intentions of going after every game using the word “Candy” — only those that looked encroached on their IP. He also maintained that King doesn’t clone games, and they wouldn’t want anyone cloning theirs. Fair enough. But just like he did with “Candy Crush Saga,” CandySwipe’s developer said he had full plans to oppose King’s latest attempt to trademark “Candy” as well, and it was in his right to do so. This public call to arms sent King looking for additional ammo, and it seems they found it. King makes a power move After battling the original “Candy Crush Saga” trademark for over a year, CandySwipe’s developer Albert Ransom is now finally ready to admit defeat. This is after King strategically managed to buy a trademark predating that of “CandySwipe” from another company. The trademark in question? Candy Crusher. Ouch. To be fair, Candy Crusher is a much different game from CandySwipe/Candy Crush Saga and it’s still unclear if King is now using this newly acquired trademark to oppose the CandySwipe’s, or if they simply intended on using it as leverage for when Ransom inevitably opposes their “Candy” trademark filing. One thing is clear, CandySwipe’s developer is not happy about King’s latest move, expressing his disapproval in a heartfelt open letter on his site. A real life Candy Crush saga? Who would have thought? Mobile gamers have already begun choosing sides and, in an effort to help boost CandySwipe’s recognition, are downloading the game and leaving raving 5-star reviews for CandySwipe on the Google Play Store. If you feel like helping the underdog, download link provided below.
[via Gamezebo] |
| Check out this incredibly convincing HTC M8 render based on all the leaks Posted: 12 Feb 2014 02:23 PM PST We love a good render. No, we’re not talking about those over-the-top concept images you find plastered all over the internets (although those can be fun too). We’re talking about renders so wonderfully crafted, you just might confuse them for the real deal. In fact, this is actually our reasoning behind this post, So that: 1. you know that this render making the rounds is not official — and 2. because we think it’s flippin’ awesome. Based on a variety of leaks, a talented XDA member with the handle Hamdir was able to create an incredibly convincing HTC M8 mockup in painstaking detail. Multiple sources factored in its creation, including the leak showing a more unibody design in the M8, the 3D carved model, a variety of M8 cases, and finally some alleged closeups of the back and front of the device. Put them together and you get this near-official looking render that, best guess, is probably what you can expect the when the M8 is finally unveiled in the near future. One area to consider is the fact that the M8 will feature slightly more rounded corners (based on many leaks) and possibly thicker bezels. Some have commented that HTC could be making mistake by relying to heavily on the design of their previous offering. We don’t think so. Not only has the original HTC One aged gracefully, HTC is attempting to build a brand around this flagship design for greater recognition. Also, there’s enough differences in the hardware (dual-lens) that no one will mistake the M8 for last year’s model. What do you guys think of this concept render? |
| Why Microsoft bringing Android apps to Windows Phone could spell doom for the OS Posted: 12 Feb 2014 01:37 PM PST It’d probably be an understatement to suggest Microsoft is having trouble getting more developers to fill their apps store with the goods users are looking for. Unfortunately they seem to have found themselves in a classic “chicken or egg scenario” — users won’t come to the platform unless there are apps, but developers won’t develop apps if there are no users. There’s no shame in that problem, as Android suffered it very early on (though obviously quickly eradicated that with being the fastest growing mobile operating system of all time). Unfortunately for Microsoft, gaining market share to attract more developers is easier said than done. If recent rumors are to be believed, they could be getting ready to do something about it. The Verge is reporting that Microsoft is seriously considering developing an Android runtime for Windows Phone and perhaps other Windows-based platforms (including RT and the full Windows experience). This would allow developers to port their apps over to Windows Phone with little to no effort. Would it be the first signs of a doomed platform? History repeating itself?It’s something our friends in Waterloo have already done for Blackberry 10, giving developers an easy and pain-free way to port Android apps (it literally only takes a couple of lines of code and 5 minutes to compile). In the same breath, it’s worth reminding ourselves that little move didn’t give Blackberry the boisterous app store they needed to attract more users to their slowly dying platform. As a result, Blackberry was almost sold off to vulturous investors (but not before some rich knights in very shiny armor managed to scare them off). There’s reason to believe that a move like this is actually counterproductive to the strategies of competing platforms. Their idea is that giving developers an easy way to port existing apps will give them the variety they need to dangle a prettier carrot in the face of potential customers. The problem comes in two areas:
Yes, more apps bring users to your platform, but it’s not going to make a difference if they can get those apps on more popular devices that are bound to be better fits for their needs. And although I’ve never been one to equate the quality of an app store to how many apps there are, the average consumer is going to hear that typical “a million apps!” line from a carrier rep who’s just trying to get them to walk away with a two-year contract, and unfortunately for Windows, they’ll likely be impressed by it. Developers, Developers, ManufacturersWe’ve seen this happen with Blackberry. We’ve seen this happen with Palm. It’s a chicken and egg scenario where the platform needs apps to lure consumers, but developers don’t want to develop for a platform without consumers (and therefore viable revenue). But the case with Windows Phone is different. iOS is the only successful competitor able to sustain itself with a closed ecosystem, making both their hardware and their software. WebOS folded despite having a beautiful OS because they couldn’t pump out phones quick enough and they were the only ones making WebOS phones. Blackberry added Android support for much of the same reason and you know how that’s turned out. Microsoft, though, relies on manufacturing partners to produce Windows Phones. If Microsoft allows Android Apps it displays a lack of confidence in their own OS and ecosystem. And if Microsoft is creating Windows Phones with Android support, and creating Android Phones with newly acquired Nokia, why should manufacturers like HTC, Samsung, or Huawei have any confidence in developing phones? Losing developers is one thing and losing manufacturers is another. By inviting Android Apps into their ecosystem, Microsoft will lose both. If Nokia can become the next Apple of Windows Phones that might work, but let’s not fool ourselves.
Are the “Windows” closing for Microsoft?The Windows Phone platform isn’t bad at all, but it sounds like they could be coming to a point where they’re forced to face a certain harsh reality — there just might not be room for three major platforms in the smartphone space. Android’s already giving iOS a tough time, and any other sliver of market share outside of the pieces those two share is too insignificant to care about. Soon enough, they’re going to realize that they will either have to foster enough innovation to get consumers to pay attention, or concede defeat and come to grips with the truth — that they’re simply not fit for this tough fight. Of course, there’s a chance these rumors could be a big pile of bologna so it’s wise to make sure we aren’t getting ahead of ourselves. Still, you have to wonder if this could be considered the first of many “spaghetti sticking to walls” ideas before an eventual white towel is thrown into the ring. Edgar from ChromeSpot, Joe from WinSource and Phandroid’s very own Chris all had a nice little chat about it on Hangouts earlier today, so be sure to catch that little discussion above if you missed it. After that, meet us in the comments section and let us know what you think! [via WinSource] |
| Leaked Galaxy S5 schematics might give us our first peek at the device [RUMOR] Posted: 12 Feb 2014 12:08 PM PST When Samsung finally unveils the Samsung Galaxy S5 during their Feb 24th Unpacked 5 event, let’s be honest — we don’t expect the design to look too different from previous offerings. With the Galaxy Note 3, Galaxy Tab Pros, and newly revised Galaxy S4, Samsung has invested a lot of time and energy (money) in creating their new Galaxy brand. It’s because of this, we anticipate the manufacturer will largely use the same design language for the next flagship. And while we’ve been hearing a lot about the high-end specs Samsung will cram into the S5 (even seen a few benchmarks measuring its performance), what we haven’t gotten was an actual look at the device. Leave it to Sonny Dickson, a blogger who’s built a reputation on his accurate iPhone component leaks, to come across what looks like design schematics for the upcoming S5. Keep in mind that not even Dickson is sure of this “leaks” legitimacy, but it’s likely these images were provided by a case maker. Judging by the measurements alone (141.7 x 72.5 x 8.2mm), the phone lines up with what we were expecting from a larger 5.25-inch display. By comparison, the Samsung Galaxy S4 sits at 136.6 x 69.8 x 7.9 mm, and the Galaxy S3 was 136.6 x 70.6 x 8.6 mm. This means it could be taller than Galaxy S4, but thinner than the S3 (while still packing an unconfirmed 3,000mAh battery). Sounds exciting. You’ll also notice what appears to be a dual-LED flash. Given the big deal Apple made about their white/amber LED flash combo, it only makes sense that, like HTC, Samsung would want in on this feature as well. Home button looks like it could be returning (did you expect any different). Looking at the bottom, you’ll notice a larger than normal hole on the bottom (bigger than your typical micro USB port). This could indicate Samsung will opt for USB 3.0 in the S5, similar to the Galaxy Note 3. Again, we can’t stress enough to only take this leak with a grain of salt. With the Samsung Galaxy S5 unveiling event less than 2 weeks away, we wont have to wait long before we finally find out what Samsung has up their sleeve. |
| New trademarks suggest LG will be refreshing L-Series and F-Series phones soon Posted: 12 Feb 2014 10:17 AM PST With Mobile World Congress quickly approaching, we’ve been wondering what the “Life’s Good” company over in South Korea is up to. They’ve already given us a couple of hints themselves, with the LG G Pro 2 seemingly on the way, as well as a possible LG G3 launch on the horizon (as evidenced by a previous trademark filing here). But LG could also be visiting their mid-range L-Series and F-Series lineups for a bit of tuning. New trademarks show that the company is getting ready to introduce the L40, L70, and L90, as well as the F70. We typically have to do a bit of guesswork when it comes to these trademarks, but LG’s made this one quite obvious. It sounds like the former 3 could be successors to the LG Optimus L4, LG Optimus L7, LG Optimus L9 Series-II devices from last year, while the F70 could be a successor to the LG Optimus F7. The lines were a bit of a snoozer on the low-end, with the L4 Series-II coming with a dual-core MediaTek processor, 512MB of RAM, 4GB of internal storage, a 3.8-inch HVGA display and more. The L7 II and L9 II were a bit better, but not by much. The former had a 4.3-inch WVGA display, a 1GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4 processor, 768MB of RAM and an 8 megapixel camera. The L9 II was our idea of what a mid-range phone today would be, with a 4.7-inch 720p display, a 1.4GHz dual-core Snapdragon 400 processor, 1GB of RAM and the same 8 megapixel shooter as the L7 II. As for the LG Optimus F7, it was actually quite similar to the L9 II in almost every category.     So what would we expect from a refresh of all these devices? More of the same, really — a mix of low-end through mid-range options that aren’t exciting enough on their own, but could be a good bet for those with light pocketbooks. We’re not sure if LG will be bringing any of them to Mobile World Congress, but the timing definitely suggests we should keep our eye on their booth once we make our way over to Barcelona later this month. |
| Jolla’s SailFish OS may be coming to a Samsung phone near you soon Posted: 12 Feb 2014 08:22 AM PST The Jolla phone with SailFish OS has always been interesting to us. This phone proposes an operating system that can make itself perfect for anyone. SailFish wasn’t that revolutionary on its own merit, but its ability to run Android apps — much in the same way Blackberry 10 devices do using a custom Android runtime — definitely had us standing at attention. But you might not need a Jolla phone to take SailFish OS for a spin in the very near future. A strange Tweet from Jolla engineer Harri Hakulinen suggests holding on to your old Samsung phone instead of trading it for a Lumia. We’re not sure if those two classes of devices were chosen for a specific reason or if he’s just pulling some popular brands out of the air, but we’ll assume the former so as to not get our hopes up for anything more.
It sounds like they’re taking the same sort of initiative Canonical did by releasing Ubuntu Touch for various Nexus devices, giving tinkerers the ability to install and test it on devices with unlocked bootloaders. We’ll be trying to see if we can pry more information out of this particular engineer’s body, so stay tuned for anymore that may come of this story. [via Jolla Blog] |
| If this is what HTC’s return to mid-range looks like, we’re all for it [RUMOR] Posted: 12 Feb 2014 06:25 AM PST We can’t lie — when we heard HTC experienced another troubling quarter and that they were going back to focusing on the mid-range market, we were a little skeptical. It’s not that mid-range devices are automatically bad, but we didn’t know if HTC would just start spitting out uninspired devices for the sake of becoming profitable again. But the latest leak gives us reason to be excited. Engadget has received press renders of a supposed HTC Desire 8, and while that particular line hasn’t produced many handsets worth getting excited for in recent years, this particular one should take the cake. According to them, it features a 5.5-inch display of unknown resolution, a 13 megapixel rear camera (not of the UltraPixel variety), a 5 megapixel front camera, stereo front-facing speakers, and dual-SIM telephony. HTC will reportedly introduce this thing in a number of colors, including white, red, cyan, yellow and orange. The apparent lack of metal helps drive the mid-range stake home. Unfortunately we don’t know much more than that, but there will apparently be a March 18th launch event for the device going down in Beijing. It’s possible we’ll also be seeing the device launched at Mobile World Congress, where we hope HTC will also look to unveil the true successor to the HTC One (known as the HTC M8). |
| Muzei Live Wallpaper is Roman Nurik’s (DashClock) latest open-sourced brainchild [VIDEO] Posted: 12 Feb 2014 06:02 AM PST Getting into the live wallpaper business is nothing new, nor is it particularly exciting — nearly everyone has done it. But when Roman Nurik, the creator of DashClock, does it, we tend to take notice. Turn your attention to Muzei — derived from the Russian word for “museum” (музей) – a live wallpaper that changes every day to show you the many beautiful pieces of art from around the world. Muzei pulls images from a list of artwork curated by Nurik and his fiancée, and displays a blurred version of it as your homescreen wallpaper each and every day. Of course, the blur effect is counterproductive to the underlying goal of highlighting and showing off works of art, so if you want to see whatever image you have and any info about it, simply double tab the wallpaper or open Muzei. Muzei can also pull from your own photos, whether it’s a random assortment of whatever’s in your gallery, or a pre-selected list of photos that you want it to cycle between everyday. And if you know Roman Nurik, you know he had to build this thing with open-source values and extensibility in mind. Not only is he sharing the code he used to build the app, but he’s built APIs to allow developers to have Muzei pull from their own sources of images. You can get Muzei onto your phone for free from the Google Play Store right here. And if you’re a developer interested in the source code and using Muzei’s APIs, Roman’s got you hooked up with all of that right here. Be sure to give it a go if you’ve been looking for a dynamic live wallpaper that spits out beautiful imagery on a daily basis, and watch the video above if you need more of a visual before giving it a try for yourself. [via Google+] |
| You can now get your Verizon Wireless purchases delivered same day in 10 more cities Posted: 12 Feb 2014 05:29 AM PST Same day delivery is something everyone wishes they could have, but the concept is still quite rare for most businesses these days, and the ones that do offer it only offer it in a few select cities. Thankfully Verizon’s not looking to drag their feet on rolling out same day delivery to those who need their smartphones in a jiffy, as the nation’s largest carrier has added 10 more cities to their list. Here’s the full gamut after the new additions:
That’s 15 cities now in case you haven’t been counting, which is a remarkable achievement. Of course, comparing Verizon’s efforts to the likes of Google or Amazon’s isn’t quite fair, as the carrier already has a huge stable of retail locations nationwide that can help facilitate these types of deliveries. Still, we’re excited to see Verizon expanding as fast as they are, and we can’t wait to see even more cities added to this list (and they also get brownie points for still being the only US carrier to offer something like this). There are a couple of small, yet expected caveats to take note of if you want to get your device the same day. For starters, it costs $19.99 — $5 more than overnight delivery — and you do have to order it by 10am local time, so be sure to wake up bright and early and pay for the smartphone if you want to receive it that same day. Otherwise, you can have it delivered the next day using standard overnight options for $14.99. Of course, you can still pick-up in-store at most Verizon locations same day no matter what time you order it, so that’s also an option if you want to get your order the same day. You can also opt for standard delivery options (which typically come in 2-3 days). We’d definitely consider checking all these different options out the next time you’re in the market for a Verizon device. |
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