Articles about Android

At the cheap end of the laptop market, there isn’t really all that much choice at the moment. Chromebook has the bargain basement side of things covered, but this is not an OS that works for everyone. Android is, by quite some way, the most popular operating system on phones and tablets, so it makes sense that it should also prove popular on a laptop, right? This is what HP is hoping, at least, as it launches its new SlateBook, a 14 inch, touchscreen laptop that runs Android.

Launching July 20, the SlateBook has a price tag of $399 and includes a full-sized keyboard in addition to a 1080p touchscreen. As this is a device running Android, it should perhaps come as no surprise that battery life is fairly high. The quoted nine hours is fairly impressive and this is being touted as an entertainment device. To back up this claim, in addition to the longevity of the battery, four speakers from the Apple-acquired BeatsAudio provide what is described as "the best-sounding, richest audio on a notebook".

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Samsung may be associated with Android thanks to the success of its Galaxy smartphones and tablets, but the South Korean maker is also invested heavily in Tizen. The latter powers its new smartwatches and, via a software upgrade, older models as well. And, today, we can add a new device to the powered-by-Tizen list, the Samsung Z.

The Samsung Z is Samsung's first Tizen-based smartphone, which, on the outside, looks much like the company's premium Galaxy handsets. It features a physical home button, placed between two capacitive keys (home and menu), and a faux-leather back with stitching patterns, like on the popular Galaxy Note 3. It even borrows the now-obligatory gold color trim.

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Acer is probably not the first company you will think of when you start pondering tablets -- but in fact it has quite a pedigree. It has forayed into Windows-based tablets, with recent examples being the Iconia W4 and the Iconia W700 -- an attempt at an all-in-one/tablet combo. And its Android-based tablets are plentiful with A and B series lines alongside the more recently announced Tab 7 and One 7. ITProPortal actually reviewed the predecessor to this new model, the Iconia A1-810, last summer.

As tablets go the 16GB Acer Iconia A1-830 is a bit of a baby. It has a 7.9-inch screen, just a bit larger than the 7-inch Kindle Fire HDX and Nexus 7, and the same as the iPad mini. Its price marks it out as a budget buy at £140. For reference, the Nexus 7 16GB and 16GB Kindle Fire HDX 7-inch are both £199. The 16GB iPad mini is over £300.

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Last year, South Korean maker Samsung introduced a number of variations of its Android flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S4, among which was a ruggedized model designed to work in harsh conditions. Dubbed the Galaxy S4 Active, it could even shoot video and play music through headphones underwater.

The specs of the new Galaxy S5 suggest that Samsung put an end to the Active designation, as the smartphone comes IP67-certified out-of-the-box. This means it is both dust and water-resistant, which suffices for those who do not leave their Galaxy S5 in the desert, construction sites, fish tanks, hot tubs, lakes and the like. Samsung, however, seems to think a Galaxy S5 Active has its place, as the smartphone was just unveiled.

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We are not far off from the proverbial kickoff of the 2014 World Cup. The tournament takes place this year in the South American nation of Brazil, beginning in June. With a major sporting event comes web sites and apps, letting folks follow all of the action. However, in some cases, not all is what it seems.

Avast researchers uncovered an app that, while not actually dangerous, is designed to feed you only ads. "Some of the Android gaming apps we downloaded primarily displayed ads instead of letting us play. Let me just point out a few from many. We were unable to play Corner Kick World Cup 2014 at all because it displayed nothing but a white screen, with ads popping up now and then", says Flip Chytry.

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Smart TVs are all the rage nowadays, but I am not a fan. While some consumers prefer convergence, I like to have my TV serve as nothing more than a display. For streaming media, I like the option of adding my own device, such as the amazing Amazon Fire TV. Sure, you can still add such a device to a smart TV, but if there is anything I hate more than convergence, it is redundancy. I don't want multiple ways to access Netflix or Hulu in the same room.

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Yesterday, South Korean maker LG unveiled its much-awaited and much-leaked G3 Android flagship. My colleague Brian Fagioli, who was in New York at the press event, is impressed by the new smartphone, saying "the experience is greater than the sum of its (awesome) parts".

Less than a day after its unveiling, the G3 is already available to pre-order at UK retailer Clove. And, if you want to get your hands on the smartphone as soon as it is available on the market, you have to shell out £499. That is about €615 for those who live in other countries on the old continent. Those who live outside of Europe can forgo paying VAT, and get the G3 for £415.83, that equates to roughly $698.

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Wireless charging is a convenient alternative to the old-fashioned way of topping up the battery in a mobile device, the latter of which entails a cable connection to a PC or wall charger. Lay the device on a compatible charging plate, that is plugged in obviously, and it will start charging. It is not as fast as some would like it to be, as the amperage is not as high as what wall adapters deliver, but is considerably faster than what a USB connection outputs. And have I mentioned it is extremely convenient?

With a Nokia-branded wireless charging plate -- which is based on the popular Qi standard -- I can charge both my Lumia 920 and Google Nexus 7, without having to deal with wires laying around, worrying that I might trip over one at night. Even though the benefits are obvious, not many smartphone manufacturers have fully embraced the technology, only offering the feature through optional (read: expensive) accessories. Take Sony, for instance, which just now offers a way for Xperia Z2 owners to get their wireless charging fix.

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Toshiba's products have been on my radar for many years. When I worked at CompUSA, I would often sell the company's laptops. They were a good balance between quality and affordability. Sure, Sony's laptops were sexier, but they were more expensive too. HP's laptops were affordable, but not always of the best quality. Toshiba tended to be just right.

Today, the company goes announcement-crazy and shares with the world, a multitude of new computers. These new devices range from Android tablets to Windows tablets and multi-mode laptops.

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Android phones have become rather predictable. Year after year, we see specs increase and little else. In other words, the Android market has become stagnant. Even low-end phones are very good -- case in point, the Moto G. However, many consumers still want to have top of the line devices, so manufacturers keep pumping out flagships.

Today, I had the opportunity to attend the LG G3 event in New York City. Since I had already seen many of the leaked images, I was not expecting to be surprised. However, the company did surprise me by focusing on software and UI improvements in addition to the improved hardware. When I finally got my hands on the beautiful hardware, I surprised myself -- rather than focus on what the G3 hardware is, I focused on what it does.

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In the light of recent events at eBay and Avast, when an Important Notice to Our Users appeared on the Spotify streaming music service's official news feed today you might have been forgiven for fearing the worst.

Oska Stål, CTO of Spotify writes, "We've become aware of some unauthorized access to our systems and internal company data and we wanted to let you know the steps we’re taking in response. As soon as we were aware of this issue we immediately launched an investigation". Read on, however, and you discover that only one user's data has been accessed and this didn't include any password, financial or payment details.

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Android is, undoubtedly, the mobile operating system to go with for those who are enamored with customization options. There are apps that make way for overclocking, change the look of homescreens, add nifty widgets to the lockscreen, or replace the lockscreen altogether.

The lockscreen is one area where a third-party replacement can make a huge difference in usability, if it can bring more information, usually available through the most-used apps and on homescreens, to the forefront. Celltick is touting its overhauled lockscreen app, called Start, can do just that.

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It should come as no surprise that this week's big news was Microsoft's Surface Pro 3 unveiling. Brian had been looking forward to the NYC event and was at the event to get hands on with the new device. There's certainly a lot to love about Microsoft's third generation tablet, but there is that price to consider. If you like the look of what you see, the device is available for pre-order right now -- and if you're undecided between the Surface and a MacBook Air, Mihaita compared the two. Maybe you're one of those who thinks it’s a niche product.

The Surface Mini failed to make an appearance, but there are still lots of other tablets to choose from -- although they are yet to make much of an impression in higher education, unlike Chromebooks which have found their way into Welsh schools. Will Microsoft's tablet manage to attain the longevity of Apple's iPad? You'd be forgiven for thinking that hell itself had frozen over at the news that work is underway that will make it possible to run Android and iOS apps side by side on the same device.

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Not all nerds are fat, but a good amount of us are. It's no surprise that sitting on our butts staring at a computer screen while drinking Mountain Dew and eating Doritos can pack on the pounds.

While technology has taken many a computer nerd down the path of poor health, it doesn't have to be that way. In fact, technology can actually be good for you. Case in point, fitness wearables like the ones from Fitbit can help you gain control of your life by tracking your activity. Today, HTC, AT&T and Fitbit are launching a promotion that will save you $50 when buying an HTC One M8 and a Fitbit fitness tracker.

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Data organization wars have claimed a victim. Springpad, the notebook service designed to help users "get inspired, get organized, get more done" is to close. After six years of helping people store notes, recipes, project ideas and more, Springpad will close in just over a month. The world of note taking tools, managers and general information organizers has become crowded. The likes of Evernote, OneNote and even Google Keep have all been vying for attention in recent years, and there are only so many users to go around.

The closure rumors started last night with the Verge citing the oft-mentioned "person familiar with the company's plans", but now it has been confirmed. In a blog post the Springpad team confirms what hundreds of thousands of users hoped and prayed would turn out to be untrue -- as of June 25, the service will cease to function. At this stage no reasons are being given for the closure, but it will leave users scrabbling to find a new home for their data.

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