Articles about Android

Barely yesterday I wrote "TWRP 2.3 is released, touts speed improvements", but now there is a new version available. This time around, Team Win Recovery Project 2.3.1 focuses on fixing a number of bugs encountered in the previous announced version.

TWRP 2.3.1 brings USB Mass Storage core improvements, better handing of mounting storage during boot for a number of unspecified devices as well as unmount system after boot to prevent errors on .zip install. Other differences include fixing a problem related to the size of images after resetting to default, size errors during backup for "some" devices on recovery and a problem with restoring backups when more than one archive is present.

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Earlier this year ASUS introduced Padfone, a smartphone-tablet dock combo designed as a solution to fit a market segment looking for a device capable of delivering the best of both worlds. Today, the Taiwanese manufacturer unveiled its successor, unsurprisingly named PadFone 2. The device comes with more power, 4G LTE cellular connectivity and redesigned tablet to compliment the smartphone part of the 2-in-1 device.

PadFone 2 packs a 4.7-inch Super IPS+ display with 1280 by 720 resolution, 1.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 processor, 2GB RAM, 2,140 mAh battery, and PadFone 2 Station that transforms the smartphone into a 10.1-inch tablet. The dock comes with a 5,000 mAh battery quoted to deliver up to 36 hours of 3G talk-time. As for cellular connectivity, the former delivers up to 100Mbps through LTE and 42Mbps for DC-HSPA+ compatible data networks. The usual suspects, Wi-Fi and NFC, are also thrown into the mix.

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AT&T's hottest smartphone of the season (well, so far) arrives in 18 days, and it's not iPhone 5. America's second-largest carrier has queued up the LG Optimus G, which will be available for $199.99 on contract -- that means two-year commitment. Optimus G specs impress, particularly that quad-core Snapdragon S4 processor, but the software somewhat disappoints. The device ships with Android 4.0.7, not successor Jelly Bean unveiled in June. Upgrade may be months away.

Older software mars what otherwise is a beauty: 4.7-inch TrueHD IPS+ display, 1280 x 768 resolution, 15:9 aspect ratio; 1.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro processor; 2GB RAM; 32GB storage (internal and card, expandable to 80GB); 8-megapixel rear-facing and 1.3MP front-facing cameras, zero-lag shutter; 4G LTE; Wi-Fi; A-GPS; MHL; DLNA; near-field communication; Bluetooth 4.0; and 2,100 mAh battery. Measures 131.9mm x 68.9mm x 8.45mm and weighs 145 grams.

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CyanogenMod team introduced an in-house updater for its CM10 custom Android distribution, and while it may cover important functionality some users might desire a more comprehensive app. Addressed to more demanding modders, Team BBQ offers BBQTools, touted as an all-in-one tool for delivering updates, changelogs and more.

Just like BBQLog, BBQTools comes with the ability to display the changelog between CyanogenMod 10 nightly or stable builds, but can also download the essential Google Apps package needed by the installed CM version to offer access to Google Play store and other essential Android functionality, as well as stable or nightly builds for compatible devices and capability to install or update the CyanogenMod.

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Running an Android distribution means having a custom recovery installed, with Team Win Recovery Project being one of the most popular solutions. TWRP 2.3 is released, touting a number of speed improvements as well as other fixes.

It's now based on AOSP Jelly Bean source code, and to aid implementing new features and future AOSP recovery updates, TWRP 2.3 has undergone significant under-the-hood changes due to a core rewrite into C++. ADB Sideload, which is a Jelly Bean recovery feature, has been implemented allowing to push and install an Android distribution using a single command from the computer. Also added is the charging indicator that updates every minute. What else?

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Jelly Bean is an elusive update for most high-end Android smartphones today, even though introduced at Google I/O four months ago. Today, LG revealed which devices will receive Android 4.1 in the upcoming months, undoubtedly in a move to catch up to the likes of HTC and Samsung that already have announced smartphones running the software.

The list of smartphones is not extensive, and includes more recent devices, such as the LG Optimus Vu and Optimus G; the latter model comes with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and made waves in the smartphone market for its incredibly powerful hardware. The South Korean manufacturer's flagship, Qualcomm-powered, device will be updated to Jelly Bean in December.

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Little more than a month ago Motorola announced its new Droid Razr smartphone lineup, among which is the 4.3-inch Droid Razr M. The phone ships with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich but, just like with the HTC One X, someone decided that it could use some jelly beans...

On Twitter P3Droid provides a download link for the Razr M Android 4.1 Jelly Bean ROM, with the standard warning regarding the voided warranty if flashed. Named "Blur_Version.77.111.10.XT907.Verizon.en.US.zip", the leaked file comes in at 255MB, and judging by the included files it updates the Verizon Wireless variant to Android 4.1.1 Jelly Bean and not the latest available.

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Looking for a way to better manage the contents of your Android phone or tablet? SnapPea is a free tool, currently in beta, that could meet your needs. Regardless of whether your device was provided with its own management software, which is found wanting in the vast majority of cases, you can use the program to connect to your device to perform backups, transfer data and browse through images and other files.

You’ve probably found that keeping on top of your contacts on your phone can be a pain – with SnapPea you can take advantage of your computer’s mouse and keyboard to make changes, additions and backup more quickly and easily than ever before. Similarly, the program can also be used to browse through your text messages in a simple yet sleek interface, but more importantly it gives you the ability to send text messages from within Windows.

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Yesterday Google updated factory images for the Nexus 7 and Galaxy Nexus; today Android 4.1.2 is available for the almost two-year old Nexus S smartphone and Ice Cream Sandwich for the US-made Nexus Q.

Nexus Q launched alongside the latest mobile operating system during Google I/O in June, but today marks the first time it makes an appearance on Nexus Factory Images, still available with the Android 4.0 it originally shipped with. In late July, Google suddenly suspended sales and delayed the entertainment device's launch. Release of factory images could foreshadow closer release. If nothing else, developers with the device have more options to experiment.

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A month ago the CyanogenMod 10 team introduced M1, the first monthly release of the popular custom Android distribution. M2 is now available, based on Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean, supporting more devices.

Aimed at users looking for a more stable build, it can be used as a daily-driver on an extensive number of supported Android smartphones and tablets. The update, or fresh install for new users, can be performed manually, through ROM Manager or by using the built-in CM Updater app. Between the two monthly builds CyanogenMod 10 has undergone a massive list of improvements and bug fixes for each of the supported devices.

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Google released factory images for Android 4.1 Jelly Bean about a month after announcing the mobile operating system during its developer conference in June. But the Mountain View, Calif.-based corporation only waited two days after releasing the Android 4.1.2 update to post Google Nexus 7 and Galaxy Nexus factory images.

Using the factory images, the two devices can be updated to the latest Android version, 4.1.2 build number JZO54K, without waiting to get them over the air by cellular radio or Wi-Fi, or to be restored to stock after using a custom Android distribution such as CyanogenMod 10 or AOKP Jelly Bean. The factory images have only been updated for the Google Galaxy Nexus HSPA+ sold via Google Play and Google Nexus 7, yet they're likely to make an appearance for older devices as well, such as Nexus S.

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Modding is a very popular activity among Android users, which sometimes is a relatively cumbersome process. To make tweaking your green robot-based smartphone or tablet easier Pimp My Rom comes into play by promising to suit any Android distribution and device, while delivering an impressive number of customization possibilities. Pretty neat, isn't it?

Pimp My Rom, besides having a "naughty" connotation, is a script based on AROMA Installer that is designed to customize Android distributions and brings a number of features, mods and tweaks that can be selected and applied from a touchscreen interface. According to the developer, it can run on any device using Android 2.3 Gingerbread, 3.0 Honeycomb, 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich or 4.1 Jelly Bean, basically covering more than 75 percent of all Android smartphones and tablets that run today.

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As a CyanogenMod 10 user I religiously check for nightly builds, and today I received a bonus. Yesterday my colleague Joe Wilcox wrote "Google updates Nexus 7 to Android 4.1.2" and, while it will take some time for the update to push throughout the Nexus lineup, Android 4.1.2 is already incorporated into the latest CyanogenMod 10 nightly.

CyanogenMod 10 nightly, October 10 build, is based on Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean and sports the JZO54K build number, from the previous nightly that used Android 4.1.1 build number JRO03R. Upon a bit of research, for my Samsung Galaxy Nexus the popular Android distribution has undergone massive changes to include the "jb-mr0-release", similar to other devices such as the popular Samsung Galaxy S III, HTC One X or Google Nexus 7. Upon a bit further research it seems that apart from allowing launcher rotation, the build also includes a significant number of improvements from the previous build.

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My only real complaint with the Nexus 7 is the way apps are displayed. Many times developers have not compensated for a screen larger than 4 inches, and the resulting app looks terrible. Nexus 7 does a decent job of covering this up in some places due to the size of the screen, but when you come across an app that has clearly been designed for many screen sizes, you notice the difference.

Google encourages developers to design their apps to suit the operating system instead of the screen size through a variety of mechanisms, the most recent being a checklist to ensure higher quality design practices are being used when developing apps. In my opinion, this checklist should be much more than a friendly suggestion.

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Launched with Android 2.1 Eclair in January 2010 the HTC-built Google Nexus One is more than two years old, but that is not stopping NASA from re-launching the smartphone... into space this time around.

Part of the PhoneSat program designed to create "small, low-cost, and easy-to-buid nano-satellites", in 2013 the National Aeronautics and Space Administration will launch Google's former Android flagship smartphone into space. According to HTC, NASA will not unbox the Google Nexus One and strap it on a rocket, as it was already put through thorough testing. The smartphone's first contact with space was in 2010, when it was attached to a rocket and launched to the edge of space, while also recording every step of the trip.

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