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With the closing of Google I/O 2013 upon us, it seems as though now would be a good time for some reflection for this week's Friday's Big Question. Where to begin? In no certain order, here is what was announced, revealed, and revamped at this year's I/O.
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AOKP, the popular ROM for women and for men who are secure enough in their manhood to use a ROM with pink unicorns in it, has merged the necessary code to support Sony's Xperia Z and ZL flagships into its github. This means official nightly support begins with the next automatically-built nightly, scheduled for tomorrow. Of course, if you don't want to wait until then and wish to build it for yourself, you might be interested to know that the official guide to building AOKP was also recently updated.
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Are you disappointed that there was no announcement about a second-generation Nexus 7 or Android 4.3? Personally, I was expecting I/O to be an exciting event sans such announcements, and my expectations have already been fulfilled, even though there is still another day remaining. Nevertheless, rumors persist about the next version of Android and a successor to the venerable Nexus 7, this time indicating that they will be announced in July.
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Yesterday was a day full of overhauls and updates that were announced during the keynote address at Google I/O. We have seen a future update to Google Maps, a new subscription service and a new look for Google Music, the new Google Hangouts Messaging service, Google Wallet integration with Gmail, and an update to Google Search, which includes some new cards for Google Now.
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During the keynote address for its I/O conference yesterday Google showed off the upcoming update to Maps for mobile devices. Among the updates are a new interface, integrated reviews, and easier navigation of search results.
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The long-awaited cross-platform messaging service from Google has finally arrived, and it is called Hangouts (unfortunately for you "Babel" fans). Hopefully, the "Hangouts" name won't be confusing to you (editor's note: ironically, "Babel" is the ancient Hebrew word for "confusion"). Google Hangouts was already a widely-used feature on Google+ before this announcement, but now it encompasses more than simple video chats over the Google+ platform.
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It turns out that the rumors are true - Samsung is indeed manufacturing a Google Edition of its popular Galaxy S IV, as announced earlier at Google's I/O event. The phone will run stock Android 4.2.2 (as of now, the latest version of Android, since there has not yet been any announcement of a 4.3 update). Also, the bootloader will be unlocked, but this piece of nerdvana will come at the hefty price of $649 (hefty compared to the Nexus 4, at least).
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It truly is Christmas in May this year, as it seems to be every year for Google users. Google I/O never fails to bring us new features & services to enjoy. Straight out of left field, the Gmail team took to its blog to announce a new feature I think very few people saw coming - Google Wallet is now integrated in Gmail, allowing users to send cash to friends and family through email.
Read More]]> http://rootzwiki.com/news/_/articles/general/send-money-to-friends-via-gmail-google-wallet-r1658 1658 Wed, 15 May 2013 21:13:04 +0000
Google packed three hours full of ideas and innovations at this year's I/O keynote. There will be no shortage of topics to discuss over the next several days as this big developer conference begins. What we do have now though are some tangible application updates that most of us can play with right now. The biggest of those app updates comes from Music.
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The first thing on Google's agenda at today's I/O keynote was applications. They talked about how many people are now using Android and how many apps have been downloaded. The numbers were enormous. Over 900 million apps have been downloaded. That's amazing. But in normal Google fashion, they aren't done making things awesome.
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According to a widely-respected writer in tech news circles, Samsung and Google will announce a Galaxy S IV Google Edition tomorrow at I/O - basically, a Galaxy S IV running stock Android rather than TouchWiz. It will not be a Nexus device, in that Google isn't exerting any influence over the hardware design (after all, it's a Galaxy S IV hardware-wise). The device is said to be compatible with T-Mobile bands - no information is available at this time about compatibility with other carriers.
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The Google Play Team has been hard at work to provide a better experience in Google Play for both the user and the developer. We have seen updates to the Developer console as well as account tie-in with Google+ for app reviewers in order to mitigate the anonymous aspect when reviewing apps. Its main focus was to help improve the quality of reviews so they become more helpful to users & developers. Recently the Google Play Team has taken it a step further and has finally implemented the ability for developers to reply to users' reviews.
Read More]]> http://rootzwiki.com/news/_/articles/general/developers-can-now-reply-to-all-user-reviews-r1474 1474 Tue, 14 May 2013 18:43:09 +0000
NVIDIA unveiled Project Shield during CES 2013, much to the surprise of many. A handheld gaming device running stock Android Jelly Bean with some monster specifications was understandably the center of attention in January. After repeated teasers in the months since, we couldn't help but want more information about Project Shield. We need wait no longer - as of today Project Shield will be known as Shield and is finally available for Pre-Order.
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Tuesday morning at Blackberry Live, 2013, Thorsten Heins announced plans for the Canadian company to take their popular messaging application Blackberry Messenger cross platform. BBM essentially is an instant messenger that includes video and audio telephony for business but was widely accepted by many for personal use. Now the application will be available for the Android platform (and iOS but not Windows phone) this summer for free.
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Google just keeps finding new ways to make its G+ platform work for you (not to mention that it keeps releasing significant announcements just before I/O). Earlier Monday we learned that Google will combine your cloud storage for Gmail, Drive and Google+ photos into 15GB shared between the apps, and later we learned that Google will bring content recommendations to your mobile site powered by its popular social network platform.
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In the past, storage space between Gmail and Drive (not to mention Google+ Photos) has been confusing and difficult to manage. In an effort to simplify your cloud storage, the Google Drive team took to its blog Monday to announce that storage between Google Drive, Gmail, and Google+ Photos will be combined, giving you 15GB in common storage. This comes as a welcome change to the counterintuitive storage alloctations of 10GB to Gmail and 5GB to Drive and Google+ Photos.
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While some providers were able to release the new Samsung Galaxy S4 at the end of April, Verizon customers have known for some time that their carrier would be late to the party. It turns out that it won't be as late as previously expected, as Big Red customers will be able to pick their Galaxy S IV's up on May 23rd. The phone will be $200 after $50 mail in rebate with 2 year contract, and will be available in Black Mist or White Frost.
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Most of us in the Android blogosphere expected to see Google launch a social gaming platform at its I/O event in four days. What we (at least I) didn't see coming was a leak beforehand in which all of the goodies are exposed to the public. Ron Amadeo, Android Police's resident app surgeon, has done just that with a leaked version of Google Play Services.
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With Google I/O impending, this week’s Friday’s Big Question is obvious. What are you especially looking forward to Google unveiling at the developer superconference?
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Owners of the international, carrier-unlocked version of the HTC One certainly didn't have to wait long to get their Cid on. CyanogenMod Developer codeworkx has already brought official nightly support to the device, which has only been in the market for about two weeks. Of course, this means all the hardware features are working - RIL (Radio Interface Layer, which gives you mobile data), Bluetooth, WiFi, audio and camera, just to name a few.
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Remember last month's rumor about the Nexus 7 running a Snapdragon processor? A memo by KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo indicates that the Snapdragon of choice will be the APQ8064 - the Snapdragon S4 Pro. Oh, and it's also rumored to have a 1920x1200 display, Qi wireless charging support, Android 4.3 Jelly Bean, a (cough cough) a rear camera and a $199 price tag.
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Cid has found a pair of new friends on the DNA, as unofficial alpha builds of AOKP and PAC have now joined CyanogenMod 10.1's unofficial alpha build on HTC's latest and greatest Verizon phone. While some key functions on the phone are still being worked on, you can test these builds with functional phone, radios, GPS, WiFi and mostly functional audio. The ROMs are based on the unofficial CyanogenMod device tree currently being developed.
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Flipboard for Android users had to wait two months, but the long-anticipated 2.0 release is here. This release brings minor fixes and tweaks, but the biggest update is the ability for you to create your own magazines to share with others.
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Apex Launcher, the popular Holo launcher from Android Does, received a big 2.0 update on Thursday. Along with several feature updates, several new functions were added with a few noteworthy additions made to the paid pro version.
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A Facebook page dedicated to the Galaxy Note 2 today claimed that the Note 2 as well as the S3 will be receiving an update to Jelly Bean 4.2.2 by the end of May.
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The Cyanogenmod team hasn't used the term "release candidate" since the Ice Cream Sandwich days of CM9, but today the team has seen fit to use it to label the latest build that has begun rolling out to supported devices. This might be the last milestone release before the 10.1.x builds start rolling out, according to the team's blog post.
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HTC has a fairly poor track record for timely Android updates and leaving a few of their handsets stranded has done nothing for its rapport with the community. Lately, though it seems that HTC is renewing its promise to keep its devices up to date and in a timely fashion. For example, there is already an update to the One in the queue right now that will give Stateside HTC One owners improved camera, audio, battery life, and performance. Perhaps another early sign of this renewed committment is a system dump that was recently leaked: Sense 5.1 and Android 4.2.2 for the HTC Butterfly (the international counterpart to the Droid DNA).
Read More]]> http://rootzwiki.com/news/_/articles/leaks/sense-51-with-android-422-system-dump-leaked-for-the-htc-butterfly-ports-inbound-r1636 1636 Wed, 08 May 2013 20:45:55 +0000
We are going through different lengths to protect our devices, depending on a variety of factors, such as where we use them, how old they are, and how durable they are out of the box. Some use screen protectors, simple cases, elaborate cases, sleeves, and/or depend on insurance and/or warranty replacements. I tend to dabble between many of these options, and for your benefit I have recently tested a truly elaborate case: the Otterbox Defender case for the Nexus 7.
Read More]]> http://rootzwiki.com/news/_/articles/reviews/otterbox-defender-case-for-nexus-7-r1471 1471 Wed, 08 May 2013 19:59:03 +0000
What feature mattersmost to you when purchasing a case for your device? Is it colors, protection, design, brand, or something else? Personally, I see cases in three categories: light, medium, and maximum protection because I believe protection is the most important “feature” when looking at cases. When it comes to maximum protection cases, you usually have to sacrifice on design and cosmetics. Has Ballistic struck an effective balance between protection and design?
Read More]]> http://rootzwiki.com/news/_/articles/reviews/ballistic-shell-and-gel-case-for-nexus-4-r1470 1470 Wed, 08 May 2013 18:43:07 +0000
Do you like to watch RootzLive but get frustrated by having to refresh your page to see if the show has started? Did you miss something that was said and wish you could rewind to see it? Would you like to be able to watch the show in its entirety on YouTube immediately after the show is over? From this day forward, you will be able to do all these things thanks to an update Google just announced to its Hangouts On Air feature in Google Plus.
Read More]]> http://rootzwiki.com/news/_/articles/announcements/google-plus-hangouts-on-air-receives-a-much-needed-update-r1635 1635 Tue, 07 May 2013 20:14:23 +0000