Tag Archives: android 4

Droid Bionic finally gets an ICS update as everyone else moves on to Jelly Bean

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Droid Bionic finally gets an ICS update as everyone else moves on to Jelly Bean

After nearly a year of suffering with Gingerbread, Droid Bionic owners who haven't given up on their phone will finally be rewarded with that long-awaited ICS update; the rollout starts October 19th, according to Verizon. Those who get it will receive a new customizable launch bar, a direct access lock screen, enhanced notifications, Motorola's SmartActions app, Face Unlock, easier multitasking, and many other goodies most Android owners have enjoyed for awhile now. It looks like Motorola Mobility actually made good on some of its promises to fix the handset that has suffered a number of different problems since its launch (which itself took almost nine months from the initial announce date). However, now that Jelly Bean has taken over as the firmware of choice with no word yet if that'll come to the Droid Bionic, we wonder if it's too little, too late.

Update: We've learned from the comments, Motorola's owner support forum and its own Facebook page that the company is planning on rolling out Jelly Bean to the Droid Bionic "in the coming months" so don't lose hope just yet, Bionic faithful.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

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Droid Bionic finally gets an ICS update as everyone else moves on to Jelly Bean originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 19 Oct 2012 18:18:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony Tablet S gets chunky update: better multi-tasking and IR, ‘guest mode’, new media apps (correction)

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Sony Tablet S gets chunky update better multitasking and IR, 'guest mode', new media apps correction

The original Tablet S has already absorbed a few interesting updates and now it's getting one more: devices are waking up to an Android 4.0.3 update that brings significant additions like a Guest Mode for creating restricted user accounts, revamped media and social aggregation apps, and six assignable macro buttons on the IR Remote Control app. Sony has also bolstered its Small Apps function, allowing you to overlay a browser, IR remote and other utilities in a window on top of another app. What this update isn't is Jelly Bean, which is headed to the Tablet S's similarly-named replacement, the Xperia Tablet S.

Correction: We originally confused the Tablet S with the newer Xperia-branded model. Thanks to all who spotted the error.

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Sony Tablet S gets chunky update: better multi-tasking and IR, 'guest mode', new media apps (correction) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 28 Sep 2012 05:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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LG Intuition review: Optimus Deja Vu with a Verizon LTE twist

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LG Intuition review Optimus Deja Vu with a Verizon LTE twist

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It's not uncommon for US carriers to take an international smartphone under their wings, make a few adjustments to hardware and firmware, stamp their fat logos in multiple places and then sell it to the masses. Verizon is no exception: the LG Intuition is its interpretation of the Optimus Vu, a 5-inch phablet we reviewed over the summer. Perhaps calling it an "interpretation" is a bit of an overstatement: aside from a bump in firmware and Big Red's LTE, it is the Optimus Vu. In fact, going into this review, we had a difficult time believing our experience would be much different than our run-in with the Korean version.

Our first reaction is that this doesn't bode well for the carrier. If Verizon opted for the Intuition in order to fill a gaping hole in its lineup, we have a hard time understanding why it would choose to greenlight this particular device with the Samsung Galaxy Note II coming within the next two months. The device's quiet launch is a solid enough indication that the network isn't planning on throwing a lot marketing dollars behind it, so it feels as though the Intuition's main reason for existing is to bolster Verizon's rapidly expanding LTE portfolio. Is there something intriguing about the Intuition ($200 with a two-year commitment) that wasn't there when we first played with the Vu? Or will we find ourselves in the Twilight Zone, reliving the same moment over and over again? Let's find out.

Gallery: LG Intuition for Verizon review

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LG Intuition review: Optimus Deja Vu with a Verizon LTE twist originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 joins the ICS party with Android 4.0.4 update

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Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 joins the ICS party with Android 4.0.4 update

If 8.9 was the number of inches you required from your Samsung Galaxy tab, you may have been a little frustrated at the general lack of much expected ICS updates. Especially as many of your Galaxy cohorts had already received theirs. Well, wait no more, as the download is finally here in the US. As you might expect it's 4.0.4, and it apparently comes with a new -- and many say better -- version of TouchWiz. Better slide that finger down about 8.7-inches across the screen, and dig up those update settings then.

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Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 joins the ICS party with Android 4.0.4 update originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Aug 2012 09:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Motorola Photon Q 4G LTE review: the best full QWERTY phone on Sprint’s network

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Motorola Photon Q 4G LTE review

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The future of Motorola post-acquisition may still be a mystery, but the manufacturer has managed to stay quite active over the last few weeks: it unveiled the Atrix HD, its first smartphone with an HD display and native ICS build, and there's already much anticipation around Verizon's Droid RAZR HD ahead of the holiday season. For the here and now, however, it's Sprint's turn to soak in the Moto love with the Photon Q 4G LTE. (Say it five times fast.)

Naturally, the name of the phone doesn't leave a whole lot to the imagination. As you'd expect, it's a follow-up to last year's Photon 4G that trades WiMAX for LTE and adds a full-sized QWERTY keyboard. What the name doesn't tell you, though, is that this phone costs a lofty $200 on contract, and features a qHD ColorBoost display (not to be confused with the Atrix's 720p screen, which uses the same branding). In other words, it's gotta be pretty good to have any success at that price point. How does the latest Googorola device hold up against the rest of Sprint's LTE lineup? Is it worth the premium? Follow us southward to find out.

Gallery: Motorola Photon 4G LTE review

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Motorola Photon Q 4G LTE review: the best full QWERTY phone on Sprint's network originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 21 Aug 2012 14:48:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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ICS officially available for AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II beginning tomorrow

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ICS now officially available for AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II

While it's true a few lucky AT&T Galaxy S II owners were able to get their hands on the official upgrade to Android 4.0 just a matter of days ago, the company wasn't ready to push it out to the masses quite just yet. The initial tests must've gone as well as hoped, however, because AT&T will be ready to make ICS publicly available tomorrow to anyone willing to go through Kies to grab it. Indeed, the one drawback to this wonderful news is the fact that ICS doesn't just come to you... you need to go to it. As in, no over-the-air capabilities. The silver lining to that, though, is that this may actually work out better for anyone that feels better off sticking with the tried-and-true Gingerbread TouchWiz experience. On a sidenote, AT&T also reaffirmed its commitment to bringing the next version of Android to more devices this summer, but refused to specify which ones we can look forward to. Head below (or check out the source link) to learn how to grab the update.

Continue reading ICS officially available for AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II beginning tomorrow

ICS officially available for AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II beginning tomorrow originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 25 Jun 2012 10:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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T-Mobile Galaxy S III hands-on (video)

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T-Mobile Galaxy S III hands-on

T-Mob's variant of the Galaxy S III made its in-store debut on this very day, and we just had a chance to go hands-on with the flagship smartphone. The carrier brought the handset down to the Metropolitan Pavilion for Pepcom's baseball-themed shindig and we just had to get our greasy paws all over its shiny Pebble Blue shell -- and it is a serious fingerprint magnet. Aside from that, though, it's hard to take issue with such a slim and marvelously engineered device. The plasticky build quality does leave something to be desired, but it's something we've become accustomed with Samsung devices. We've also got to give it to Sammy for getting carriers, including T-Mobile, to leave well enough alone. Other than the innocuous logo on the back there are no physical differences between this version of the S III and its 4.8-inch cousins on other networks. There's no keyboard, redesigned corners or rejiggered buttons. Truth is, you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference between Big Magenta's variant and the international version.

Gallery: T-Mobile Galaxy S III hands-on

The only obvious changes come once you fire the device up, and you'll have to dig around a bit to find them. T-Mo has added a few apps to the standard Samsung Suite. Most of them are relatively inoffensive, but if you're the type who was taken aback when you discovered My Verizon Mobile on your LTE Galaxy Nexus, you might not be a happy camper. On board you'll find T-Mobile TV, Name ID, Access T-Mobile, Mobile HotSpot and Visual Voicemail -- pretty standard additions. Our brief time with the device turned up no surprises. Performance was snappy -- apps opened without a hitch and webpages loaded as fast as the congested wireless in the room would allow. If you're a Carly Foulkes fan with an upgrade on tap you could do worse than to pick up the Galaxy S III (which is available today) for $279.99. Though, that price tag is, admittedly, a bit hard to swallow. Be sure to check the video after the break.

Continue reading T-Mobile Galaxy S III hands-on (video)

T-Mobile Galaxy S III hands-on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 21 Jun 2012 18:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gigabyte outs four dual-SIM Ice Cream Sandwich phones at Computex

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Gigabyte outs four dualSIM Ice Cream Sandwich phones

While Gigabyte was grabbing headlines at Computex with its world's lightest Ultrabook, the Taiwanese firm was also sneaking out a gaggle of new phones. Four new models, in fact, all of them Android 4.0, all of them dual-SIM. The rest of the specifications are a mixed bag, with the Gigabyte GSmart M1420 winning the camera wars, with an 8-megapixel shooter, backed up with a 4.3-inch 800 x 480 display and 1GHz MT6575 MediaTek processor. A lower specification M1320 was also announced which is more of the same, but with a smaller, 3.5-inch, display and weaker 3-megapixel snapper. The GSmart G1362 might be more interesting if 4.3 inches is a must, and Snapdragon's your thing (1GHz), but you'll lose 3 megapixels on the camera compared to the GSmart M1420 as a trade. Finally the GSmart G1342 which only packs in 800MHz (Qualcomm) and 3.5-inches of display. There's scant detail on price and availability at the moment, but have a sift through the source link if you want the blow-by-blow breakdown, and head to our Chinese site to get a hands-on with the G1342 and G1362.

Gigabyte outs four dual-SIM Ice Cream Sandwich phones at Computex originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 06 Jun 2012 15:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony Xperia U review: a little slice of Android that punches above its weight

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Sony Xperia U review

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There's an oft-used idiom about small packages, which frequently doesn't apply to the world of technology. That's to say that a diminished form factor often doesn't bring the "best things" with it. For example, Sony's NXT family members, revealed between CES and MWC, gifted consumers with the choice of three new handsets: the Xperia P, S and U. The last one in that list is by far the smallest, and in congruence with the general trend of mobile technology, the most lightly armored.

However, we're not ones to make assumptions, and heaven forbid we pre-judge something based on size alone. We're as willing to be surprised as anyone, and the new baby of the Sony bunch is as likely a candidate as any to throw us a curveball. Our initial impressions in Barcelona were largely positive, so this review -- as the firm says on its marketing material for the phone -- is all about (the Xperia) U.

Gallery: Sony Xperia U review

Sony Xperia U reviewSony Xperia U review

Continue reading Sony Xperia U review: a little slice of Android that punches above its weight

Sony Xperia U review: a little slice of Android that punches above its weight originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 06 Jun 2012 14:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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AT&T announces Samsung Galaxy S III plans: preorders begin June 6th for $200, will be available in red

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STUB AT&T announces Samsung Galaxy S III

Sure, it's late to the Samsung Galaxy S III announcement party, but we suppose AT&T is letting the other carriers duke it out for the attention first before it came out with its own revelation. Now that it has the platform all to itself, AT&T has now officially made its intentions known. The Snapdragon S4-powered device will offer three color options and will be available for pre-order on June 6th starting at $200 for a 16GB model (shipping dates and retail availability have not been announced yet). What's the third hue choice, alongside the white and blue? Red. That's right: seeking ways to customize the Galaxy S III as a means of differentiating itself from the other four Galaxy S III devices, AT&T will be proudly selling its new flagship smartphone in glorious red.

There's a bit of disappointing news to go with the good, however -- at least, if you're a fan of more storage. AT&T will sell only the 16GB model, and anyone seeking a total of 32GB will need to go with a $39 16GB microSD card. Aside from this, everything else appears to be exactly the same as the rest of the pack, which is encouraging news for anyone who wishes US carriers would shift to a state of existence as dumb pipes.

Continue reading AT&T announces Samsung Galaxy S III plans: preorders begin June 6th for $200, will be available in red

AT&T announces Samsung Galaxy S III plans: preorders begin June 6th for $200, will be available in red originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 04 Jun 2012 17:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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