LG rolls out its new G Pad Android tablets
You may recall that in mid-May South Korean maker LG announced three new slates, part of its G Pad Android lineup. At the time details were scarce, as only the display size was revealed alongside the availability of branded software add-ons like Knock Code and QPair (and, of course, their names).
Today, LG announces the roll-out of the G Pad 7.0, G Pad 8.0 and G Pad 10.1, with the 7.0 being the first to hit store shelves, in Europe, this week. The two other slates will be available starting in the next couple of weeks. Its new devices "offer just the right balance of performance, personality and price to fill the gap between entry and premium tablets", according to LG.
Polaroid announces Mexican Android tablets with TV antennas
I am young enough to never have watched TV on a set with rabbit ear antennas. All of my TV watching has happened by cable or satellite. Believe it or not, many people still watch TV using over-the-air antennas. This is done for a number of reasons, but most recently, cord cutters have made it popular. Proponents of over-the-air TV will be quick to tell you that the HDTV can actually be better because it is uncompressed, unlike cable.
Apparently, OTA TV broadcasts are still very popular in Mexico. Today, Polaroid announces new tablets with integrated telescoping TV antennas for that country. Is this a cool new feature or a relic of the past, being retrofitted on new technology?
Popular Android keyboard SwiftKey goes freemium
Among many third-party Android keyboards, SwiftKey is considered to be one of the best and most popular of the bunch. It has been available in Google Play as a paid app -- I purchased it myself a while back -- but the company behind it just decided to take the freemium route.
This means anyone with a compatible Android device can now take advantage of what SwiftKey has to offer, without having to worry about an expiring trial. Being a freemium app means that, while it may be available for naught, SwiftKey still has to generate revenue. And, it will do just that, through the new SwiftKey Store.
HTC Desire 610: A not-so-good Android smartphone [Review]
HTC has been extremely busy recently in terms of unleashing handsets upon us. Over a period of just a few weeks I have reviewed the flagship HTC One M8, the smaller format HTC One mini 2, and the HTC Desire 816. Now, with barely a pause for breath following those last two reviews, here comes the HTC Desire 610.
Styled by HTC as a good value, entertainment-focused handset, the Desire 610 costs around £235. It shares a lot of design features with its more expensive, higher specified cousin the Desire 816, which will set you back close to £300. So, if you need to save money but like what the Desire 816 has to offer, is this handset a good buy?
CCleaner for Android now available
It’s been well over a year since Piriform first announced plans to bring CCleaner to Android. At the time the company suggested the release would be "soon" but it took until April this year for the first Beta version to be made available.
Tens of thousands of users signed up to test the app, and Piriform has added some additional features along the way. Today, the company finally announces the full version is now available on Google Play, and as you’d expect from Piriform, it's totally free and without ads.
Lumsing's sexy 'Harmonica Style' battery pack delivers power on the move
Battery packs may not be the most exciting or sexiest gadgets on the market, but the LUM-008-01 Power Bank from Lumsing has a good stab at changing things. But stabbing isn’t the first thing that comes to mind when picking up this battery pack for the first time. Yes, the manufacturers "Harmonica style" description is fairly accurate but this is a unit that is rather weightier than the handheld instrument favored by blues and folk musicians. The mass of 236g (8.3oz) coupled with the way it nestles in the hand brings to mind a form of cudgel; this is a battery pack that could double as a murder weapon. Maybe that's just me... I should probably evaluate it for what it is.
Let's cut to the chase. This is a battery pack. There's a limit to how animated one can get about such a device, but Lumsing's offering gets off to a great start by being so easy on the eye. It's good to look at, and it also feels good in the hand. Style drips from every port. In all there are three ports: one USB input for charging the unit itself, and two outputs for charging other devices such as mobiles and tablets. There's one low powered 1.5 A port and one rated at 2.1 A so there's scope for charging all manner of devices.
Storage galore -- Motorola introduces 64 GB Moto X
With lots of apps and games coming in respectable sizes, those who are looking to buy a new smartphone have to pay close attention to the amount of available out-of-the-box storage, as otherwise they quickly risk running out of space. A microSD card can do the trick, but a slot is not offered on all smartphones. So what can you do?
Motorola believes that the best approach in the case of the Moto X is to increase the amount of internal storage. Considering the company introduced the Moto G with a microSD card slot not too long ago, this appears to be a strange call.
LG G3 -- your heart's desire is here [Review]
Android smartphones are a dime a dozen nowadays. If a manufacturer wants to stand out among the sea of rectangular Google-powered devices, it has to bring it. But, what exactly is "it"? Is it specs? Is it the experience? What exactly do consumers want? I'm not sure that is crystal clear anymore. When buying a smartphone, consumers are forced to choose between an iPhone or Android (sorry, Windows Phone). If you want an iPhone, there isn't much choice, it is an easy decision. If you want Android, well, you'd better do your homework. Do you want pure Android or a tweaked UI? What screen size do you want? How much do you want to pay?
Cost is a huge factor now, as devices like the Motorola G push the boundaries of what a low-cost smartphone can be. For a consumer to spend a huge amount out of pocket or sign their life away with a long contract, the phone needs to be exceptional. There must be real reasons as to why they should buy it over a low-cost no-contract variant. When the LG G3 was announced, I was immediately impressed with how the company focused beyond the incredible specs to the overall user experience. But, would the G3 prove to be wonderful in practice? Luckily, I've been using the phone and I can now answer that question.
Netflix brings 'Post-Play' to Android phones and tablets
If you have been using Netflix on any number of devices in your living room, including game consoles and various set-top boxes, then you're likely familiar with the "Post-Play" option. The feature automatically queues up the next episode of a show and begins it playing. For movies, it displays three recommendations at the conclusion.
Now the streaming service is bringing "Post-Play" to its Android app. For phones, this will work only with TV shows, but on tablets you will get the feature with both shows and movies.
The most popular stories on BetaNews this past week: June 1 -- 7
The biggest news of this week came from Apple which held a keynote speech at WWDC in San Francisco. One of the major announcements was the unveiling of iOS 8 which will be making its way to iPhone and iPads around the world sometime in the Fall. There was a lot to take in, including "Hey, Siri", HealthKit and iCloud Drive. OS X also got a new lick of paint with Yosemite, with beta versions made available for immediate download. There was also an intriguing change to the App Store Review Guidelines that suggests the doors may be opened to virtual currencies such as Bitcoin.
Windows 7 continues to grow faster than Windows 8.x, but if you're looking for an alternative to Windows, Linux Mint 17 "Qiana" could be worth a try. Windows XP is still managing to hang on it there for the time being. Microsoft celebrated the news that Windows Phone is becoming increasingly popular -- if not with developers -- particularly when security is important; which is just as well, because reports suggest that handsets need to be made more secure for enterprise. Microsoft also had cause for celebration after helping the FBI to take down the Zeus botnet.
There's a Nokia X successor in the pipeline
At February's Mobile World Congress (MWC), Nokia surprised everyone with the release of its Android-powered phone, the Nokia X, but now it looks like there already are plans for its successor.
Despite Microsoft's recent acquisition of the Finnish phone manufacturer's mobile business, the company looks set to swiftly follow-up on Nokia's first foray into Android phone territory, with the Nokia X2.
Android 4.4 KitKat shows tremendous growth
At WWDC 2014, while talking about iOS 8, Apple CEO Tim Cook took a stab at Android, saying that its latest iteration, version 4.4 KitKat, is only running on nine percent of Android devices. The figure is certainly lower than for iOS 7, which borders on 90 percent adoption. However, as we have become accustomed to, at the beginning of each month Google gives us a fresh set of numbers, which can quickly tell a different story.
The figure Cook used then was from early-May, which was, indeed, from the most-recent data. Skip forward one month, and we see Android 4.4 KitKat posting a 60 percent growth, reaching 13.6 percent distribution. The increase is noteworthy, and suggests that we can expect similar results come future distribution updates.
Amazon unveiling mysterious device on June 18 -- what do you think it is?
Amazon is on a roll lately, delivering some incredible products. Hell, the Kindle Fire HDX tablets alone were home-runs, but the amazing Fire TV took it to another level. The online-retailer has leveraged Android in its own way, refusing to bow-down to Google. It is quite the feat, actually, to think that Amazon broke into the hardware business with relative ease.
While the company has infiltrated markets for tablets, TVs and game consoles, there is one place it is noticeably absent -- smartphones. The company already has its own Android app store, so it's a natural progression. Today, the company teases a product unveiling on June 18. What will it announce?
Android users, beware -- a new Trojan may hold your files for ransom
Security experts have discovered a new Trojan that scrambles the files on memory cards in Android devices and demands a ransom to open them.
Slovakian security company Eset claims it is the first discovery of file-encrypting ransomware for Android. Called "Simplelocker", the Trojan targets SD cards inserted into Android tablets and mobile phones, encrypts the files and demands payment in order to decrypt them.
HTC Desire 816: Attractive mid-range Android smartphone [Review]
HTC has stolen a lot of limelight recently with its flagship handset the One M8 and its smaller One mini 2, and you could be forgiven for thinking that these two are just about all the phone maker has in its range. But in fact the Desire range continues to go strong, and a couple of handsets announced earlier this year have recently popped up for review. I’ll be covering the Desire 610 soon, but today’s review handset is the Desire 816, a large format phone on sale for around £300 which ticks quite a lot of boxes.
The Desire 816 doesn’t have the startlingly good build quality that its top-end cousin the One M8 boasts. The body is unashamedly plastic, and my white review sample had a shiny white plastic back which, while not removable, is quite clearly a separate section. You can see the join where it meets the matte sides of the phone so clearly that it’s almost embarrassing for HTC.
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