Android Phone Fans
Android Phone Fans |
- Nexus 6 vs Samsung Galaxy Note 4 shown off in comparison video
- Leaked Android 5.0 Lollipop apps: new Messenger, Google Play Music, Google Fit, and more [DOWNLOAD]
- Hey Android Devs: $75 gets you a month-long sponsorship on Phandroid.com!
- Android 5.0 Lollipop brings ‘Ambient display’ mode to the Nexus 6, other devices too
- Nexus Player is back in the Play Store for pre-order
- Official: Nexus 6 pre-orders open up October 29th
- OnePlus One pre-orders begin October 27th, and you can get started right now
- AT&T Galaxy Mega 2 drops Oct 24th for $150 on-contract
- DROID Turbo pops up in another classic leak
- Spotify introduces family plans for folks who hate sharing accounts
- Forthcoming Gmail upgrade to add support for Yahoo and Outlook accounts
| Nexus 6 vs Samsung Galaxy Note 4 shown off in comparison video Posted: 20 Oct 2014 06:04 PM PDT After giving us the world’s first underwater unboxing, the folks at UK’s Carphone Warehouse are back again, this time with an early hands-on with the phone everyone’s talking about: Motorola and Google’s Nexus 6. More of a quick comparison video, Carphone Warehouse pits the device against the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 in a quick spec roundup, another Android phablet looking to give Motorola a run for their money. This actually marks one of the few times we’ve gotten to see the Nexus 6 outside of blurry photo leaks and press renders. What we found interesting was how much noticeably larger the Nexus 6 was in comparison to the Galaxy Note 4. If you’re a phablet lover looking to challenge the constrains of your pockets, then this will be the device for you. While it can be argued that having a stock Android experience is more “beneficial” than a manufacturer UI like TouchWiz, keep in mind that often times stock Android trails behind OEM skins in terms of features. And anyone who’s ever experienced a Samsung device knows there’s certainly no shortage of features (overkill even). Check out the comparison video down below for an early look at the Nexus 6.
[YouTube] Thanks, James! |
| Leaked Android 5.0 Lollipop apps: new Messenger, Google Play Music, Google Fit, and more [DOWNLOAD] Posted: 20 Oct 2014 04:18 PM PDT Earlier today a leaked — and much more closer to final — Android 5.0 Lollipop system dump has been making the rounds, popping up all over the net. It seems this build had a few additional Google apps that didn’t make it to the 2nd Developer Preview (which we gave you a look at on Saturday), with updated Material versions of Google Play Music, Calendar, Messenger (formerly Messaging), Gmail, and more locked inside. It didn’t take long for someone to extract all these apps, and while most wont work by simple sideloading, we did find 2 — Messenger, Google Play Music — installed just fine on our Nexus 5 running Android 5.0 Lollipop Developer Preview (although we’ve heard others having luck on KitKat ROMs). Just make sure you uninstall the originals before giving these new apps a try. The rest? Well, most will require root access and you placing them inside the /system/lib folder on your device. Might wanna perform a backup just in case. MessengerSay hello to Messenger, Google’s new SMS/MMS app replacing the aging stock Messages app. As you can see, the app has a fresh new Material design and doesn’t really weigh too heavy with the features. It’s pretty much your standard SMS affair. The familiar “+” button is always present in list view, with the ability to long press to select or swipe-to-archive conversations. When in conversation view, adding attachments is straight forward. You simply snap a photo using the in-app viewfinder (you can make it bigger by swiping up), add photos from your gallery, or record a (very low quality) voice message. Each conversation view has its own color which we admit, will take a little getting used to. Google Play MusicGoogle Play Music was another app we got up and running on our Nexus 5 and although it’s not the drastically overhauled version we saw from Google’s Material Design page back in June, the UI has been updated enough that it can scrape by with calling itself “Material.” Really, it’s not too different from the version you’re probably looking at on your device but don’t get too upset. We’re sure this is only an early version (it was leaked after all) and the final will have all those wonderful animations Google is already previewing on their Android.com page. Google FitWhile we couldn’t get Fit installed on our device, Prashant Gahlot on Google+ didn’t have much trouble getting it up and running on his Nexus 4. Judging from the screenshots, it seems Fit will be geared more to the casual fitness enthusiast, tracking your goals and allowing the user to setup timed activities and goals. Should you guys get any more of these leaked apps up and running on your device, feel free to post a screenshot or let us know how they’re working for you. [via Google+] Thanks, Josh! This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Hey Android Devs: $75 gets you a month-long sponsorship on Phandroid.com! Posted: 20 Oct 2014 01:15 PM PDT It can be tough for a developer to get the word out about their apps and games. Google Play is big, so much so that good apps often get lost in a sea of digital mayhem. The bad news is it won’t be getting any smaller anytime soon. It’d be a shame to let all the hard work and time put into development go unseen. Advertisements work, but many independent developers don’t have very large marketing budgets. The good news? Phandroid understands. That’s why we’re offering affordable sponsorship slots for apps and games right on Phandroid.com! For just $300, your app will get 30 days of prominent placement in our apps and games widget that shows up on desktop and the mobile web throughout the entire site. That will get your app an estimated 1 million+ impressions for every month you’re signed up, and turning even just a few of those impressions into downloads could do wonders for the growth of your app. So what exactly are you getting for your money? Let’s take a look:
A couple of other things to note: when submitting your request for sponsorship, your creative must be that of an app icon in the aforementioned dimensions of 50 pixels by 50 pixels, and it must link directly to your app on Google Play. We also want to stress that we want this to be an opportunity for serious, respected (and respectable) developers looking to advertise legitimate apps and games. In other words, if your app is more along the lines of a shameless Flappy Bird clone or something of the same ilk we reserve the right to deny it based on our own discretion. To top all that off, there’d be no better time to sign up than right now as we’re offering 75% off the usual price to the first 20 developers who sign up by Friday, October 24th — that brings the cost of your first month to just $75! Simply use the promo code phandev at checkout to receive your discount. This is a great opportunity to get your app or game off the ground and into the phones and tablets of the millions of Android users around the world. Be sure to take a look at this and many other great advertising opportunities available on Phandroid right here, and we’d love to hear from you so don’t hesitate to drop us a line if you have any questions! |
| Android 5.0 Lollipop brings ‘Ambient display’ mode to the Nexus 6, other devices too Posted: 20 Oct 2014 01:13 PM PDT You wont find it in the new Android 5.0 Lollipop Developer Preview (which we gave you guys a hands-on with over the weekend), but thanks to a freshly leaked full Android 5.0 ROM, we now have some info on a new Motorola-like feature coming inside Lollipop. Dubbed “Ambient display,” the feature was quickly mentioned on the official Android.com Lollipop page saying,”Where supported by the hardware, your device will wake up as soon as you pick it up or tap the screen twice.” Screenshot taken from a leaked full Lollipop build You may remember Motorola’s “Actively Display” feature (now known as Moto Display), which activates your phone’s display when you pick it up (or approach it with the new Moto X 2014). Seems Lollipop will have something similar — well, only if you’re hardware supports it. We’re sure this has something to do with the processor/sensors found in most higher end Android devices, so in all likelihood, most of us should be good. The ambient display setting is now yet another great idea Android is adopting from manufacturer UIs and joins the ranks of the new Setup Wizard app, Battery saver, and Priority notifications. |
| Nexus Player is back in the Play Store for pre-order Posted: 20 Oct 2014 11:26 AM PDT Late last week the Nexus Player officially went up for pre-order. However, on Saturday we saw it get removed from the Play Store due to some trouble with the FCC. Turns out Google jumped the gun and listed it before the FCC gave the thumbs-up. Yesterday it passed through the FCC right on cue, and now today it is finally back in the Play Store. You can snag it for $99, and it will leave the warehouse in 3-4 weeks. Go get it! [via FCC] |
| Official: Nexus 6 pre-orders open up October 29th Posted: 20 Oct 2014 10:52 AM PDT When Google took the wraps off the Nexus 6 last week, other than a vague “later this month” pre-order date, they failed to give Android fanboys a specific date on when we could expect it to land on Google Play. Without any formal word or announcement, the Nexus 6 listing in the Google Play Store is now showing a pre-order date of October 29th. Available in 32GB for $650, or 64GB for $700, like Google Play edition devices, we don’t imagine too many of you are going to opt for the full-priced unlocked model. Thankfully, unlike any other Nexus devices before it, you can get the phone subsidized or through carrier’s early upgrade / payment plans when it officially launches next month. Still, we’re curious. Anyone planning on actually buying the $650+ unlocked model? |
| OnePlus One pre-orders begin October 27th, and you can get started right now Posted: 20 Oct 2014 09:56 AM PDT OnePlus is nearly ready to kick off their pre-order system for the OnePlus One. The company has announced that pre-sales will open October 27th, giving you a chance to claim a device without having to hunt down an invite. Folks who pre-order the phone will be given solid shipment estimates, however it won’t entitle you to a OnePlus One as fast as they’re available — a good ol’ invite will still get you ahead of the pack for receiving the phone in a timely manner. You can prepare your pre-order as early as today by heading to the company’s website, and your order will be good to go by the time the floodgates open next week. There are a few things OnePlus wants you to keep in mind about the pre-order process:
A couple other things worth noting: you can only pre-order if you have a functional Paypal account, and the pre-order window only lasts for 60 minutes. It’s not a bad route to take if you’re still interested in the OnePlus One but not interested in invite shenanigans. Let us know if you’ll be looking to grab one once things kick off October 27th at 15:00 GMT. [OnePlus] |
| AT&T Galaxy Mega 2 drops Oct 24th for $150 on-contract Posted: 20 Oct 2014 09:31 AM PDT AT&T has announced that they’ll be selling a huge new phone October 24th. Literally. It’s the Samsung Galaxy Mega 2, a 6-inch phablet that’ll run you $150 on-contract or $475 outright. That translates to AT&T Next 12 and 18 prices of $23.75 per month and $19.80 per month, respectively. Go the AT&T Next route and add a new line or upgrade an existing one and you’ll be treated to a $100 bill credit. AT&T hasn’t gone into a terribly long list of specifics, though we do know it’ll have an 8 megapixel camera that boasts 4X zoom, as well as a 2,800mAh battery. We also expect a quad-core processor, at least 1.5GB of RAM and more under the hood, though we’ll have to wait for further official details from AT&T to find out what’s making the thing tick. [via AT&T] |
| DROID Turbo pops up in another classic leak Posted: 20 Oct 2014 08:16 AM PDT In what would appear to be a small scale comeback if we didn’t know better, @evleaks has dished out another juicy render for us to lay eyes on. It’s the Motorola DROID Turbo we’ve been hearing so much about. Verizon is expected to reveal the device on October 28th, and the Motorola-made wonder is poised to be their best DROID yet. The renders don’t really show us anything we didn’t already know about the device. It looks like a DROID, especially that classic Verizon Red model and all the Kevlar shining through on the back. We do get a very clear look at the front of the device which seems to boast a very prominent speaker grill. Shots of the device’s backside don’t turn up any rear-facing speakers so it’s possible the front speaker will be doing the heavy lifting for all external audio needs. A previous leak of ours gave us an idea of what to expect under the hood. Verizon will make it a point to push the following areas once it heads to store shelves:
And with that — plus the news that the Nexus 6 will be made available for all major US carriers — Verizon customers have found themselves with some tough purchase decisions in the weeks and months ahead. Let us know if you’ll be looking to grab this once it’s made available later this year. |
| Spotify introduces family plans for folks who hate sharing accounts Posted: 20 Oct 2014 07:13 AM PDT Spotify is a pretty good deal at $10 per month: unlimited, on-demand access to over 20 million music tracks, personalized radio and the like all make the price tag worth it. Unfortunately, folks who like to share accounts haven’t had an easy life with Spotify restricting playback to one device at a time. It’s also a headache for those who don’t want their recommendations and personalized radio being riddled with wacky suggestions. And that’s why they decided to introduce a family plan. Up to five people can share a Spotify account if you pay $5 for each user after the first. A two person deal would run you $15, while a 5 person party would bring that total to $30. Each user gets their own login and maintain their own playlists, listening history and suggestions — no more getting a load of Disney soundtracks because your offspring had a field day on your account. Splitting payments up evenly would save everyone money so it could make as much sense financially as it does technologically. Of course, some would be even happier with the ability to share accounts the old school way without restrictions, but Spotify has to make their money too, folks. Spotify says the plan will roll out globally in the coming weeks so you might not be seeing the change right away. Keep a lookout on their website for the new feature if this is something that could benefit you. [via Spotify] |
| Forthcoming Gmail upgrade to add support for Yahoo and Outlook accounts Posted: 20 Oct 2014 05:55 AM PDT Google’s polishing up the final pieces of the big Gmail upgrade they’re planning to go along with the final rollout of Android 5.0 Lollipop. The obvious changes will be in the user interface and aesthetics where Google will highlight Lollipop’s Material Design. The app stands to become a lot more colorful, clean and enjoyable compared to what some might consider a current stale experience that’s gotten a bit long in the tooth. But more than just look and feel, Android Police reports that the app will look to support more than just Google accounts for email. The welcome video that will play once a user upgrades to the app tells of support for Yahoo and Outlook. Non-Gmail accounts were typically handled by the stock email client in the past, but this will be a great “one-size-fits-all” option for anyone getting email through the other big two providers. What isn’t yet clear is if Yahoo and Outlook will be the only third-party services supported. We imagine there will still be a wide need for third-party email clients for folks dealing with Exchange or other special email needs, but this is a very nice change that should be happy news for any casual email user. |
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