Android Phone Fans
Android Phone Fans |
- Motorola extends Moto 360 contest until tomorrow, 20 new smartwatches up for grabs
- Google takes battle with Amazon to the sky, introduces a drone-based delivery system of their own [VIDEO]
- Microsoft, Amazon, Yahoo and other tech giants looking to court Cyanogen Inc [RUMOR]
- Motorola’s Yo contest to win a Moto 360 ends in confusion, here’s what happened
- Verizon makes the Motorola Luge official, get the rebranded RAZR M for $200 off-contract
- LG G Watch R price revealed to be €299 in Germany (€100 more than original G Watch)
- Get ready to cash in on your phone insurance — Five Nights at Freddy’s for Android is here
- Chase Bank to update Android app with iOS-like redesign this September
- Sony gives us a quick glimpse of upcoming products in latest IFA teaser [VIDEO]
- Moto 360 vs Samsung Gear S vs LG G Watch R: which looks best? [POLL]
- Samsung officially announces Gear S standalone smart watch, as well as Gear Circle earbuds
- Official LG G Watch R pictures emerge
| Motorola extends Moto 360 contest until tomorrow, 20 new smartwatches up for grabs Posted: 28 Aug 2014 06:17 PM PDT After the unfortunate wording in Motorola’s Moto 360 contest confused participants, Motorola is looking to do fans a solid by extending their contest until tomorrow. Up for grabs is another 20 Motorola Moto 360 smartwatches, all you have to do is add “Motorola” on Yo, then send them a message to enter. Just like last time, the first 20 people to successfully complete the registration form after receiving a Yo reply from Motorola will take home a lovely Moto 360 smartwatch. And just so we’re all crystal clear on how the contest works:
For everyone that sent Motorola a Yo yesterday/today, Motorola says you’re already entered. The contest ends tomorrow at 11AM CT so hop to it. For additional rules, regulations, terms, and conditions, check out Motorola’s official rules page here. Good luck! [Twitter] |
| Posted: 28 Aug 2014 05:23 PM PDT Those boys at the Google X Labs are at it again, announcing their latest project that looks to take the battle with Amazon to the sky: Project Wing. A drone-based delivery system, Google is looking to change the world by removing some of the friction involved with simply moving things around in the world. It’s definitely ambitious, and not too unlike a similar project, Amazon Prime Air, which we saw unveiled late last year. Google uploaded a video a few minutes ago showing off exactly what they’ve been working on these past 2 years. In the video, we watch as the Project Wing team travels to Queensland, Australia where test flights were successfully able to deliver basic items like a first aid kit, dog treats, and water to a few lucky farmers. Google sees a drone delivery system as being more safe, quick, and efficient than traditional methods and despite acquiring a solar drone company earlier this year, are currently looking for partners to help bring this new technology to the world (wherever, you know, it’s actually legal). Those interested can find a sign up form here with more info.
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| Microsoft, Amazon, Yahoo and other tech giants looking to court Cyanogen Inc [RUMOR] Posted: 28 Aug 2014 04:56 PM PDT After gaining $22 million in series B funding last year, Cyanogen Inc’s first foray into the mobile arena was a little bumpy to say the least. Not so much because the new software company failed to live up to any expectations on their end, mind you (CyanogenMod 11S is some pretty amazing custom Android software). It had more to do with oddball devices like the Oppo N1 and constant barrage of bad press OnePlus received time and time again with the OnePlus One. But even with that small hiccup, it seems Cyanogen Inc’s image hasn’t been tarnished as a new report suggests some pretty big names in tech are eyeballing the software startup. If you’re wondering what’s next for everyone’s favorite Android success story, The Information is now reporting that Amazon, Microsoft, Samsung, and Yahoo are just a few of the companies looking to partner up with Cyanogen Inc. Well, that, or acquire them altogether. While nothing is set in stone just yet, it’s being said Cyanogen Inc has already had a sit down chat with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella while Steve Kondik and crew prepare for their series C round of funding later this year. We should warn, we’ve seen reports out of The Information quickly shot down in the past, so take this all with a grain of salt for now. It’s still unclear exactly what kind of work Cyanogen Inc — who built their house working exclusively with Android software — would do for some of these other companies, but it appears CyanogenMod could be a way for Google’s rivals to circumvent Android software that relies so heavily on their apps and services. With countless AOSP apps moving over to exclusive Google properties, there’s not much left to harvest and we’re already shuddering at the thought of a Yahoo Phone. |
| Motorola’s Yo contest to win a Moto 360 ends in confusion, here’s what happened Posted: 28 Aug 2014 02:51 PM PDT Look familiar to any of you? So here we are, 24 hours and not a single Motorola Moto 360 to show for it. Those of you who tuned in yesterday may remember our post notifying readers of a special Motorola and Yo contest where 20 Moto 360s were up for grabs. On the surface, the contest rules were simple:
Easy, right? Not so fast. After digging through the contest rules yesterday, we noticed things were a little unclear. First off, because Motorola mentioned only the first 20 people who signed up after receiving a “Yo” would win a Moto 360 — did that mean Motorola would be notifying more than 20 people? That’s the way it certainly sounded on Twitter where easily more than 20 people were notified that they had “won a Moto 360,” only to find out that after clicking the supplied link and entering in their email, all the units had already been claimed. Ouch. Needless to say, this has lead to a lot of confusion from participants, most of which aren’t too happy with Motorola right now. Again, the contest rules state that only the first 20 people to complete the registration form will actually win a Moto 360, despite the misleading wording in Motorola’s initial “Yo” which should have read: “Yo! You have a chance at winning a Moto 360!” Hope this clears some things up. |
| Verizon makes the Motorola Luge official, get the rebranded RAZR M for $200 off-contract Posted: 28 Aug 2014 02:11 PM PDT After we saw some leaked images of the Motorola Luge packaging back on Monday, it really shouldn’t come as much of a surprise to find Verizon finally making the device official (however quietly). Now available from Verizon for $300 straight up, or $200 with prepaid service, the “Luge by Motorola” is essentially 2012′s Motorola DROID RAZR M to the tee. Because selling people a dusty old product probably wouldn’t sit too well with consumers, Verizon has simply rebranded the RAZR M with a new name to lure in all new buyers. As for a quick refresher, you can find the Motorola Luge packing the following cutting edge features: Motorola Luge
Interestingly enough, the Motorola DROID RAZR M is still offered on Verizon prepay. Same phone, different color, no discount. You know, should you be looking for the white model. Link for the Luge by Motorola provided below. [Verizon] |
| LG G Watch R price revealed to be €299 in Germany (€100 more than original G Watch) Posted: 28 Aug 2014 12:18 PM PDT LG’s global press announcement for the circular LG G Watch R wasn’t keen on sharing pricing details, but the German-specific press release may shed some light on what this thing will be priced. According to it, LG will look to target a €299 price tag for the smart watch. To put that into perspective, the LG G Watch costs €199 in Europe. A straight conversion gives us a figure of $393.98, but LG will likely look to match the same dollar figure digit for digit as they did with the G Watch. There are many reasons why LG might feel the need to price the G Watch R that much higher than the original. For starters, the watch is said to be made of stainless steel, and also has slightly improved internals over the original G Watch. Not only would this drive the cost of materials up a bit, but it would also drive up the cost of assembly. We imagine it also isn’t cheap to manufacture those circular displays. Of course only LG knows the true reason, but it’s up to consumers to vote with their wallets and let the South Korean company know whether this is an acceptable price tag or not. We’re not sure if this pricing will be standard through all of Europe or just in Germany, but we’re reaching out to LG for clarification. Would you buy the G Watch R at $299 or €299? |
| Get ready to cash in on your phone insurance — Five Nights at Freddy’s for Android is here Posted: 28 Aug 2014 09:58 AM PDT The horror game has exploded in recent months, and one of the newest games from the latest crop of jump scare goodness has managed to find its way to Android. Five Nights at Freddy’s has gotten a pretty full port over to Android. The premise? You’re a security guard hired to watch Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza shop at night because the mechanical mascot and his two sidekicks seem to be taking on some strange, sentient behavior at night. The catch? Well, the pizza shop is nearly broke so they have to pinch pennies wherever they can — this means a very limited supply of electricity throughout the night while the shop’s closed. What harm can some cute little robots do, right? WRONG! This game will scare the crap out of you, and might make you drop your phone a few too many times (so it’d be a good idea to make sure your insurance plan is activated before having a go). The developer notes that the game is rather needy when it comes to resources so you’ll want a pretty beefy phone or tablet. We wouldn’t recommend anything less than a dual-core processor and 2GB of RAM. The developer specifically mentions the Samsung Galaxy S3 as a baseline device so use that to determine whether or not your device is powerful enough. Five Nights at Freddy’s is $3 which isn’t a bad price for a couple of hours of digital terror. Find the download in the Google Play by hitting the link below. |
| Chase Bank to update Android app with iOS-like redesign this September Posted: 28 Aug 2014 08:28 AM PDT Chase Bank’s Android app is about as archaic as an old mummy tomb, but they’re finally looking to bring us out of the old ages with an upgrade headed our way soon. The company started sending notices to their customers about a new version that should be headed to Google Play this September. The notice didn’t go into incredible detail about the changes, though if it’s anything like the recent design to the iOS version (pictured below) we should be expecting a new coat of paint atop all the same features we already enjoy in today’s app. Said features include mobile transfers and account management, online check deposits and more. Here’s Chase’s official breakdown of what’s new:
It basically comes down to design, though that can be the difference between a usable app and a frustrating experience. Unfortunately Chase didn’t have an exact date to give for its arrival, but we’ll have our eye on the Play Store and will certainly give you guys a shout when it appears. |
| Sony gives us a quick glimpse of upcoming products in latest IFA teaser [VIDEO] Posted: 28 Aug 2014 07:53 AM PDT Sony’s big, fat cat is well out of the bag in terms of what they’re announcing at IFA Berlin next week. We’ve seen countless leaks of the Sony Xperia Z3 and the Sony Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact. Now Sony is intent on teasing the goods themselves. The company posted a new teaser video to YouTube for the purpose of getting you excited for all that’s to come next week. The teaser is littered with your typical cryptic imagery and secretive theme, but Sony threw in a quick half-second glimpse (around the 40 second mark) of three shadowy devices. We’re almost certain one of them is the Sony Xperia Z3, and another is bound to be the aforementioned compact tablet that borrows a similar name. There’s a third device pictured that looks like it could be the Xperia Z3 Compact, but we can’t know for sure. Confused yet? You won’t be next week when Sony finally lays it all on the table. |
| Moto 360 vs Samsung Gear S vs LG G Watch R: which looks best? [POLL] Posted: 28 Aug 2014 07:32 AM PDT One look at the most recently announced smartwatches from LG, Samsung, and Motorola tells you the chunky, geeky smartwatches we’ve come to know and hate seem to be a thing of the past. Each company got a bit antsy by announcing their latest smart watch products well ahead of IFA Berlin. Consumers will soon have a stylish selection of smartwatches the likes of which we’ve never seen before, but which one takes the cake? LG G Watch ROn LG’s side, they officially confirmed the circular LG G Watch R (find a hearty LG G Watch R image gallery here) that seems to be a direct answer to Motorola’s attention-grabbing Moto 360. The LG G Watch R is upping the ante just a tad in terms of sheer performance with its 1.2GHz Snapdragon 400 chipset. Other key specs include:
For more, check out the full LG G Watch R Specs. Samsung Gear SSamsung decided to go with a more traditional form factor with the Samsung Gear S, though it stands out by having a curved display (don’t see that too often in a smart watch) and its own dedicated 3G radios. Some important notes on the Gear S:
Could Samsung’s decision on the white band be in anticipation of Apple making a similar move? Moto 360This is the one that started the whole “Round Smartwatch” Android Wear craze, yet it’s the only of the three whose specs we still don’t know. When it was first unveiled, it seemed there wasn’t a single thing on the planet like it. Now, just days ahead of its launch, it’s got some sizeable competition. Which one looks best?With that, IFA just effectively became a big fatal 4-way brawl (if you’re counting the ASUS ZenWatch that was officially announced but has yet to be shown in full glory). Each of these devices has reasons for folks to be excited, but we’re curious to hear what you think about their design in particular. LG and Motorola’s options certainly are eye-popping, though the Gear S doesn’t look too bad either. Which of the 3 do you link looks best?    Because smartwatches are also fashion accessories, a greater proportion of the purchase decision will be put on their design, but let’s not overlook their functionality. Jumping into the silicon, the devices all stack up fairly well against each other, though there are enough differences to note when you go to make your purchase decision this fall. Don’t judge a watch by its faceThe LG G Watch R is upping the ante just a tad in terms of sheer performance with its 1.2GHz Snapdragon 400 chipset. The Gear S’s bigger display and higher resolution could be a winning factor for some, though the G Watch R’s display should look just as crisp at its small size and round form factor. The Moto 360 boasts a slightly bigger display than the G Watch R at 1.5 inches, though the resolution is slightly lower at 320 x 290. Which to choose, which to choose? The design will undoubtedly play a huge role in your decision, but let’s be honest- there are more factors that come into play. So that brings us to the ultimate question: which smart watch will end up getting your money? Let us know in the comments below! Don’t forget to circle back next week starting September 3rd as we’ll be getting up close and personal with many of these options ourselves. |
| Samsung officially announces Gear S standalone smart watch, as well as Gear Circle earbuds Posted: 27 Aug 2014 07:56 PM PDT Hold onto your hats folks — looks like LG prompted Samsung to issue their smart watch announcement a bit early. The company today confirmed the existence of a new smart watch that might hold a tremendous amount of value for those who don’t fancy tethering to a smartphone for their smart watch needs. What you see above is what we’ve been calling the “Gear Solo,” and comes with its own embedded 3G radios so you can make calls and use data without having to tether it to a smartphone. Beyond that, it actually sounds like a pretty powerful smart watch under the hood. Here are the specs you can look forward to:
Samsung says you can get up to 2 days of “typical” usage out of this thing, though we’re sure that will eventually vary from person to person. As for software you can expect Tizen to be running on this bad boy (which we know isn’t the most popular thing Samsung could have used).     The design looks pretty sleek, but you’re out of luck if you want to customize the wrist band. Following that announcement is the Gear Circle, an accessory that’ll let you listen to tunes, make phone calls and issue voice commands on either your phone or smart watch. We thought the Gear Circle would turn out to be a smart watch with a circular display, but it looks like Samsung had something totally different in mind. Where does it get its name? The fact that it can wrap around your neck and clasp into a magnetic mechanism, effectively making a “circle.” You can also call it the geekiest necklace you’ll ever wear.     Samsung expects their latest products to be available this October, and we imagine they’ll push them quite heavily alongside the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 expected to be unveiled in one short week. No pricing details have been mentioned at this point, though we’re sure Samsung will be throwing us the details once they are finalized. |
| Official LG G Watch R pictures emerge Posted: 27 Aug 2014 07:33 PM PDT LG G Watch R Specs officially announced! We’ve just learned what’s inside LG’s latest smartwatch as the LG G Watch R Specs have been officially announced. Now we learn about the outside as LG has just issued a number of stunning pictures of the LG G Watch R:
There’s a whole lot we could say… but we’ll let you be the judge in the comments! |
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