^looks good. When will the update be available here?
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^looks good. When will the update be available here?
It will depend on the vendor and the phone.Quote:
Originally Posted by Jesus Jones
But I'd say it will be available first on the Nexus Prime in November. Thailand's normally pretty quick at getting Samsung phones.
https://teakdoor.com/images/imported/2011/10/2468.jpg
Dolphin Browser 7.0 for Android Now Available
A new flavor of Dolphin is now available for download for the owners of devices that run under Google's Android operating system.
The new Dolphin Browser 7.0 brings along some new features that will keep users connected to the cloud at all times, along with a series of enhancements to Webzine.
The development team behind the mobile browser notes that, with the new release, users will be able to sync browsing preferences, bookmarks and gestures across a wide range of Android devices.
Basically, this means that they will be able to access important content at all times, regarding the device they are using.
It will also offer them the possibility to enjoy a personalized experience while on the go, all available courtesy of the new Dolphin Connect, an important part of the browser.
At the same time, the new application version arrives on devices with a series of enhancements to the Webzine, through which users can easily explore, experience and interact with the web.
“We are now showcasing our community’s 16 most popular Webzine channels directly on the home screen, making it easy to access on-demand content even quicker,” the company explains.
“Webzine has also received a comprehensive facelift for easier navigation, a smoother interface and the ability to swap between Webzine, mobile or desktop view with the touch of a button in the address bar.”
The new flavor of the application is being released only through GetJar at the moment, but will also become available via more channels in a matter of days.
“Dolphin 7.0 for Android will be available in all other Android app marketplaces as of Sunday, October 23,” the development team explains.
Those who would like to download the new flavor of the mobile browser in the next five days should head over to the GetJar storefront for that.
October 20th, 2011, 07:15 GMT · By Cosmin Vasile
Opera Mobile for Android Gets Opera Reader and getUserMedia
Opera Labs has just announced the availability of a new build of Opera Mobile for Android that adds support for native pages and getUserMedia method.
Although the new build is based on Opera Mobile 11.5 for Android, users should know that the mobile web browser installs next to the standard Opera Mobile 11.5 for Android.
Given the fact that the application has not gone through full release testing it may include unknown bugs or issues, so it's considered experimental and intended for development and testing purposes only.
However, those who want to get a glimpse of these new features can download the latest Opera Labs build for Android device, which is available at Softpedia.
One of the most exciting new features introduced by the new build is codename Opera Reader, and allows users to split pages into paged media, in exactly the same manner that modern e-Readers are doing.
Basically, users will be able to read webpages in a more “book-like” style, by using the “next page” and “previous page” buttons.
Even though this is just a concept the folks at Opera Labs think it's beneficial to have an open technology that allows users to read content in this manner.
Commenting on the subject, Chris Mills, Developer Relations Manager at Opera, said: “To this end, we are very excited to give you a first look at how a browser can split content into native pages. This proof of concept implements CSS3 extensions to split content into pages that can be “turned” in a natural manner through gestures rather than point and click, control the positioning/floating of figures in multi-column layouts more precisely and provide a consistent navigation system for such content that is independent of your documents.”
The new build is available for multiple platforms, including Windows, Mac, Linux and Android.
October 25th, 2011, 07:59 GMT · By Cosmin Vasile
Motorola Confirms New Android 4.0 Devices
Shortly after confirming that Motorola XOOM and RAZR will receive the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade in early 2012, the company came forward and said it will launch more devices running Google's latest operating system.
According to Motorola Mobility, the company will announce new Android 4.0 devices within six weeks after Google releases the latest version of Ice Cream Sandwich:
“We'll be releasing devices for ICS 6 weeks after Google releases the final version of it”
While other Android smartphone manufacturers are still deciding how to approach the Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade for their devices, Motorola made a bold move and announced a time frame for some of its latest Android devices along with the confirmation that new devices will be announced soon.
Moreover, the company added another smartphone to its planned Android 4.0 upgrade, the Motorola BIONIC, which raises the number of Motorola smartphones that will receive the Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade to three.
If Galaxy Nexus hits shelves in November, as the rumors suggest, we might see the first Android 4.0 upgrades being pushed to Motorola devices as early as January 2012.
In addition, other Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS) Motorola devices might be announced around the same time frame.
Although the company confirmed the ICS upgrade only for three devices, it is likely that all its dual-core smartphones will receive the Android 4.0 update sometime down the line.
It is unclear how Motorola will deal with the ICS update for those smartphone that run its proprietary MOTOBLUR user interface, which is one of the main reasons why updates are delayed.
On related news, it might be easier for the company to launch new device with Android 4.0, instead of making the latest operating system work properly on some of its devices.
All in all, Motorola promises new details about its upcoming lineup of ICS devices within the next six weeks.
ICS will first be available via XDA roms would be my guess
The Nexus Prime would be my guess.Quote:
Originally Posted by baldrick
But yes, Custom ROMs before a lot of vendors roll it out to their existing phones.
Android to go boldly in satellite launch
Dan Thisdell, Flight Global
Wednesday 26 October 2011 10:27
The challenge of getting a mobile signal in remote locations will be raised to new heights with the 2012 launch of a satellite with an electronics core consisting of an Android smartphone.
Surrey Satellite Technology (SSTL) and the University of Surrey will not be out of luck if they cannot get three bars in orbit, but they still have their fingers crossed that their experiment with common smartphone technology will work well enough to point the way to low-cost, high-performance commercial applications in a very small satellite built quickly from commercial off-the-shelf components.
https://teakdoor.com/images/smilies1/You_Rock_Emoticon.gif
According to STRaND-1 (Surrey Training, Research and Nanosatellite Demonstrator) system engineer Shaun Kenyon of SSTL, a mobile phone "is 90% of a satellite", with processor, radio, camera, motion sensor, etc already built in. Add solar panels and orientation control and you get to 100%, he says, based on a core component that costs less than $500.
https://teakdoor.com/images/smilies1/You_Rock_Emoticon.gif
Kenyon is not exaggerating. The Google Nexus One phone being used for STRaND includes a 5MP camera, 3-axis accelerometers, a magnetometer and compass, an FM radio receiver, microphone, light sensor and battery temperature sensor.
Plus, the phone's 1GHz processor with 512MB RAM is far meatier than most spacecraft, which can operate on 33MHz or so.
Thus, says Kenyon, the question arose, what could be done in space with such "brute force" processing power?
To find out, SSTL and the university's space engineering department, the Surrey Space Centre, ran a competition on Facebook to solicit ideas for phone apps that could be used to demonstrate in-orbit function.
Four were chosen, including one that will let members of the public visit a dedicated website and record screams, which will be played in orbit on the phone's speaker - and recorded by the phone's microphone, to test the theory expounded by the 1979 film Alien that, in space, "no one can hear you scream".
On the more scientific side are two applications to use the phone's camera to take pictures of the Earth and, via Google Earth, build a map of the planet.
A fourth will measure the local magnetic field using both the phone's and satellite's magnetometers, and compare the readings. The objective is to see if, in principle, such a simple spacecraft could measure oscillations in the upper atmosphere.
Another plan is to take advantage of the touch screen's sensitivity to charged particles. The phone, says Kenyon, is effectively a geiger counter and may be able to measure levels of space radiation.
New technologies
Beyond the smartphone concepts, STRaND-1 will also test some new technologies developed by the Surrey Space Centre, including electric pulsed plasma thrusters, which give very small instantaneous thrusts for orientation control and will be a first on a very small satellite.
University of Surrey lecturer Chris Bridges, one of Kenyon's partners on the STRaND project, says the opportunity to fly the thrusters - the product of six years' work by one of the department's PhD students - illustrates the value of the partnership with SSTL, which got its start as a spin-off from the University 30 years ago.
The spacecraft will also test for the first time a Surrey-developed radio transceiver built around a radio chip that hasn't been used in space before.
And, STRaND-1 features an attitude determination system built by the University of Stellenbosch in South Africa. This consists of two wide angle cameras - one looks for the sun and the other looks for the horizon(s) of the Earth. Associated electronics turn these images into information on the direction STRaND-1 is pointing.
To back up the experimental equipment, STRaND-1 will also carry a GPS unit, a small "normal" thruster with very limited capability, magnetorquers - small coil electromagnets used to help point the satellite by reacting against the Earth's magnetic field - and reaction wheels, which are small metal wheels that spin up and down, used to help point the satellite.
The basic satellite is a three-unit CubeSat, a design standard set out by California Polytechnic State University based on 10cm x 10cm x 10cm units weighing no more than 1.33kg [see box].
The standard is important to developers as associated launch dispensers make it feasible to piggyback several units on a more standard payload. To keep launch costs manageable, STRaND-1 looks likely to piggyback on another mission early in 2012. A three-unit CubeSat like STRaND measures 34cm x 10cm x 10cm, and weighs less than 4kg.
If it works, and Kenyon readily admits it is a big "if", the team already has commercial applications in mind.
Meanwhile, the project is also unusual in its organisation. Kenyon, Bridges and eight colleagues are working in their own time, to keep costs down. SSTL and the University have each put up £35,000 ($55,000) to fund STRaND.
"It's a labour of love," Kenyon says, adding that it is exciting to bring an almost amateur scientist's ethos to one of the most complex engineering endeavours undertaken today
I have been eyeing off the Samsung Note - Samsung Galaxy Note - Full phone specifications
Samsung Galaxy Note preview: First look - GSMArena.com
it has the one thing I would like extra on my SGS 2 - the slightly bigger screen
I want to have a play with one and see if it is the combo phone tablet/ereader it seems to be - then maybe after christmas when it should have ICS I will look to get one to supersede the SGS 2 ( which my brother wants from me )
similar quality internals as the SGS 2 - is also Gorilla Glass
Quote:
Silicon
CPU: Exynos 4210 (same as Galaxy S II), running at 1.4GHz; 2786.91 BogoMIPS
GPU: ARM Mali-400 MP
WiFi / Bluetooth module: Broadcom BCM4330 (same as Galaxy S II and Galaxy Nexus)
Audio codec: Yamaha C1YMU823 / MC-1N2 (Same as Galaxy S II)
FM radio receiver: Si4709
HDMI: Silicon Image MHD Sil9234 transmitter over MHL (same as Galaxy Nexus and Galaxy S II)
USB switch: Fairchild Semiconductors FSA9480 (industry standard)
Battery charger: SUMMIT Microelectronics SMB136 / SMB328
NFC controller: NXP PN544
Power management: Maxim MAX8997
Sensors
Accelerometer: STMicroelectronics k3dh
Barometer / pressure sensor: STMicroelectronics LPS331AP
Gyroscope sensor: K3G (same as the Galaxy S II)
Compass: Chipworks AKM-AKM8975 Electronic Compass
Finger Touch sensor: Atmel MXT540E
Stylus: Wacom E-Pen G5SP sensor
Misc. internals
Device name: GT-N7000
Rear camera: Fujitsu M5MO LS 8MP
Front camera: Samsung S5K5BAF 2MP
Linux Kernel: 2.6.35.7
Android: 2.3.5, built October 8, 2011
LCD Density: 320dpi
Refresh rate: 60Hz
Image processor: Samsung mDNIe image converter (same as Galaxy S II)
Frequency scaler: Ondemand
the understatement: Android Orphans: Visualizing a Sad History of Support
theunderstatement by MICHAEL DEGUSTA
October 26, 2011 730 notes
Android Orphans: Visualizing a Sad History of Support
The announcement that Nexus One users won’t be getting upgraded to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich led some to justifiably question Google’s support of their devices. I look at it a little differently: Nexus One owners are lucky. I’ve been researching the history of OS updates on Android phones and Nexus One users have fared much, much better than most Android buyers.
I went back and found every Android phone shipped in the United States1 up through the middle of last year. I then tracked down every update that was released for each device - be it a major OS upgrade or a minor support patch - as well as prices and release & discontinuation dates. I compared these dates & versions to the currently shipping version of Android at the time. The resulting picture isn’t pretty - well, not for Android users:
Other than the original G1 and MyTouch, virtually all of the millions of phones represented by this chart are still under contract today. If you thought that entitled you to some support, think again:
7 of the 18 Android phones never ran a current version of the OS.
12 of 18 only ran a current version of the OS for a matter of weeks or less.
10 of 18 were at least two major versions behind well within their two year contract period.
11 of 18 stopped getting any support updates less than a year after release.
13 of 18 stopped getting any support updates before they even stopped selling the device or very shortly thereafter.
15 of 18 don’t run Gingerbread, which shipped in December 2010.
In a few weeks, when Ice Cream Sandwich comes out, every device on here will be another major version behind.
At least 16 of 18 will almost certainly never get Ice Cream Sandwich.
Also worth noting that each bar in the chart starts from the first day of release - so it only gets worse for people who bought their phone late in its sales period.
Why Is This So Bad?
This may be stating the obvious but there are at least three major reasons.
Consumers Get Screwed
Ever since the iPhone turned every smartphone into a blank slate, the value of a phone is largely derived from the software it can run and how well the phone can run it. When you’re making a 2 year commitment to a device, it’d be nice to have some way to tell if the software was going to be remotely current in a year or, heck, even a month. Turns out that’s nearly impossible - here are two examples:
The Samsung Behold II on T-Mobile was the most expensive Android phone ever and Samsung promoted that it would get a major update to Eclair at least. But at launch the phone was already two major versions behind — and then Samsung decided not to do the update after all, and it fell three major OS versions behind. Every one ever sold is still under contract today.
The Motorola Devour on Verizon launched with a Megan Fox Super Bowl ad, while reviews said it was “built to last and it delivers on features.” As it turned out, the Devour shipped with an OS that was already outdated. Before the next Super Bowl came around, it was three major versions behind. Every one ever sold is still under contract until sometime next year.
Developers Are Constrained
Besides the obvious platform fragmentation problems, consider this comparison: iOS developers, like Instapaper’s Marco Arment, waited patiently until just this month to raise their apps’ minimum requirement to the 11 month old iOS 4.2.1. They can do so knowing that it’s been well over 3 years since anyone bought an iPhone that couldn’t run that OS. If developers apply that same standard to Android, it will be at least 2015 before they can start requiring 2010’s Gingerbread OS. That’s because every US carrier is still selling - even just now introducing2 - smartphones that will almost certainly never run Gingerbread and beyond. Further, those are phones still selling for actual upfront money - I’m not even counting the generally even more outdated & presumably much more popular free phones.
It seems this is one area the Android/Windows comparison holds up: most app developers will end up targeting an ancient version of the OS in order to maximize market reach.
Security Risks Loom
In the chart, the dashed line in the middle of each bar indicates how long that phone was getting any kind of support updates - not just major OS upgrades. The significant majority of models have received very limited support after sales were discontinued. If a security or privacy problem popped up in old versions of Android or its associated apps (i.e. the browser), it’s hard to imagine that all of these no-longer-supported phones would be updated. This is only less likely as the number of phones that manufacturers would have to go back and deal with increases: Motorola, Samsung, and HTC all have at least 20 models each in the field already, each with a range of carriers that seemingly have to be dealt with individually.
Why Don’t Android Phones Get Updated?
That’s a very good question. Obviously a big part of the problem is that Android has to go from Google to the phone manufacturers to the carriers to the devices, whereas iOS just goes from Apple directly to devices. The hacker community (e.g. CyanogenMod, et cetera) has frequently managed to get these phones to run the newer operating systems, so it isn’t a hardware issue.
It appears to be a widely held viewpoint3 that there’s no incentive for smartphone manufacturers to update the OS: because manufacturers don’t make any money after the hardware sale, they want you to buy another phone as soon as possible. If that’s really the case, the phone manufacturers are spectacularly dumb: ignoring the 2 year contract cycle & abandoning your users isn’t going to engender much loyalty when they do buy a new phone. Further, it’s been fairly well established that Apple also really only makes money from hardware sales, and yet their long term update support is excellent (see chart).
In other words, Apple’s way of getting you to buy a new phone is to make you really happy with your current one, whereas apparently Android phone makers think they can get you to buy a new phone by making you really unhappy with your current one. Then again, all of this may be ascribing motives and intent where none exist - it’s entirely possible that the root cause of the problem is just flat-out bad management (and/or the aforementioned spectacular dumbness).
A Price Observation
All of the even slightly cheaper phones are much worse than the iPhone when it comes to OS support, but it’s interesting to note that most of the phones on this list were actually not cheaper than the iPhone when they were released. Unlike the iPhone however, the “full-priced” phones are frequently discounted in subsequent months. So the “low cost” phones that fueled Android’s generally accepted price advantage in this period were basically either (a) cheaper from the outset, and ergo likely outdated & terribly supported or (b) purchased later in the phone’s lifecycle, and ergo likely outdated & terribly supported.
Also, at any price point you’d better love your rebates. If you’re financially constrained enough to be driven by upfront price, you can’t be that excited about plunking down another $100 cash and waiting weeks or more to get it back. And sometimes all you’re getting back is a “$100 Promotion Card” for your chosen provider. Needless to say, the iPhone has never had a rebate.
Along similar lines, a very small but perhaps telling point: the price of every single Android phone I looked at ended with 99 cents - something Apple has never done (the iPhone is $199, not $199.99). It’s almost like a warning sign: you’re buying a platform that will nickel-and-dime you with ads and undeletable bloatware, and it starts with those 99 cents. And that damn rebate form they’re hoping you don’t send in.
Notes on the chart and data
Why stop at June 2010?
I’m not going to. I do think that having 15 months or so of history gives a good perspective on how a phone has been treated, but it’s also just a labor issue - it takes a while to dredge through the various sites to determine the history of each device. I plan to continue on and might also try to publish the underlying table with references. I also acknowledge that it’s possible I’ve missed something along the way.
Android Release Dates
For the major Android version release dates, I used the date at which it was actually available on a normal phone you could get via normal means. I did not use the earlier SDK release date, nor the date at which ROMs, hacks, source, et cetera were available.
Outside the US
Finally, it’s worth noting that people outside the US have often had it even worse. For example, the Nexus One didn’t go on sale in Europe until 5 months after the US, the Droid/Milestone FroYo update happened over 7 months later there, and the Cliq never got updated at all outside of the US.
double post
All this apple vs andriod doesn't bother me. My GT 7.1 does everything i need and more than the apple or even the Samsung 10.1 can do. Other than sitting with a ten inch screen looking like a femboy and a complete twat, the 7.1 is perfect for satnav clipping neatly in the car and even filming onboard which is great should i get into a car accident which proved it's worth not too long ago.
It does everything i want it do while being reasonably inconspicuous.
^Whats a femboy?
I wonder how many Apple products the snivelling Mr. Degusta has.
What he fails to mention is that the OS is obviously not as critical to Android users as he thinks it is, probably because (a) a lot of people change their phones probably annually anyway, (b) There are independent updates built on Google source code available for many phones (I've updated both my Samsung Galaxy Tab and Samsung Galaxy Spica myself), and (c) As with every bit of technology, as faster processors and cheaper memory come along, so do new OS features to take advantage of them - older phones simply won't support them.
That's why iOS5 will not work on older iPhones, which the author notably omits from his article - and more to the point, it probably never will unless some clever geek does the needful.
There are loads of wanky fanbois out there that write these Android "reviews", but their fear and hatred of Android always shines through.
Android is about customer choice, simple as. You want a better, newer phone, you go and buy a better newer phone.
Instead of frantically waiting and queuing up for the Apple arseholes to get their act together and flog you a "new" phone that turns out to be much the same as the old one.
:rofl:
Quote:
Originally Posted by Little Chuchok
A male that wants to be feminate.
^marmite? :)
I was playing with my Galaxy Mini and now on the home screen task bar I have stupid Google "Talk" which I was trying to get rid off completely. So now "Messaging" is not on the task bar. Anyone know how to remove/change Task Bar icons?
I have tried the intuitive methods and as many settings as I can but no luck.
Android can now be ported on the HP Touch Pad- if I was more of a geek I'd have it running already- I'm waiting for the 'one-click' method to come out.
That android market thing is one big fucking disaster,
^ I agree. It's gonna end up like Apple soon! :mid:
It's now working so I am quite happy with Market,
but a strategic mistake not to make it more open at this early stage,
Those Android tabs are fucking great, I recommend everyone to buy one
I still need to figure out how to "root shell" without rooting the device
technically I can do it with ADB but you need to install the Android SDK on your laptop, a big install I want to avoid
some have recommended using java apps or do shell injection, basically finding some app running as root and sending your root command to that process, a common technique for hacking
it seems that each app run under its own uid, which is an interesting way to do things, need to investigate further
What the Fuck?!?!?!?!?!Quote:
Originally Posted by Butterfly
:rofl:
or an iPad, if they aren't into minor tech hacking