Android

Eric Schmidt, executive chairman of Google parent company Alphabet, has made a thinly-veiled attack on Apple Music in a BBC op-ed on artificial intelligence. He described human-curated music selections as a decade out of data and an elitist approach.

A decade ago, to launch a digital music service, you probably would have enlisted a handful of elite tastemakers to pick the hottest new music.

Today, you’re much better off building a smart system that can learn from the real world – what actual listeners are most likely to like next – and help you predict who and where the next Adele might be …

BlackBerry ‘Venice’ running Android’s stock Messenger app spotted in the flesh

Stephen Hall Sep 13 2015 - 4:36 pm PT

Evleaks’ <a href="http://9to5google.com/2015/08/19/android-blackberry-venice-leak-keyboard/">renders</a> of the BlackBerry Venice slider

More evidence that an Android slider from BlackBerry in on the way — probably the “Venice” device that we’ve been telling you about for quite a while — has now surfaced . As seen in a new spy shot originally shared by BerryFlow, BlackBerry looks to be pushing the “Venice” slider running some build of Lollipop out into the field for testing. This time, we’ve caught the phone running what looks to be the stock Messenger app…

The above blurry cam picture taken at the Toronto Film Festival, which assumably was snapped very quickly as to not make its photographer seem too stalk-ish, shows the Venice phone we’ve seen before, but with what looks to be case attached. Along the right side of the device, you can see two buttons aligned just like the ones of the Venice images that just surfaced two weeks ago.

And while the most recent imagery has shown the device running a full-fledged Android OS (meaning there’s not any real reason to doubt that this is the real deal), this is the first image we’ve seen of the phone in public. It’s not perfectly clear, but the app that’s running on-screen looks just like Android Lollipop’s stock Messenger app — with its blue navigation bar and all.

With the leaks continuing to stream in, it’s probably not going to be long before we see the announcement of what might be BlackBerry’s last ditch effort to catch at least a tiny part of the consumer smartphone market.

References to ‘Nexus Protect’ appear on the Google Store

Stephen Hall Sep 13 2015 - 4:14 pm PT

While Google is set to announce a new set of Nexus devices at the end of the month, some new references to something called “Nexus Protect” have started appearing on the online Google Store’s web page source code (via Android Police)…

It’s not clear quite yet what Nexus Protect might be, but it’s possible that Google could be preparing to launch an Apple Care or HTC “Uh Oh!”-like program for protecting accidental damage to your Nexus device. That would be interesting, especially considering that Google has been known to sometimes absorb the cost of accidental damage replacements for the Nexus 5 and other devices.

Clearly, Google is implementing some kind of limitation on the phones you’re ordering when purchasing Nexus Protect. As can be seen in the above image — which shows a pop up surfaced thanks to some page source tinkering — you can’t add a phone to your cart unless it has the same “Nexus Protect choice” as other phones currently in your Google Store cart.

While details are definitely a little light at the moment, we’ll probably be hearing more about Nexus Protect at Google’s Nexus event — which is reportedly scheduled for September 29th.

Cyanogen is bringing OS-level Microsoft Cortana integration to Android

Stephen Hall Sep 11 2015 - 3:01 pm PT

Cortana is currently a lackluster excuse for a voice assistant in the form of a recently-released beta app, but that might change soon. According to a report from the IB Times, Cyanogen — thanks to a partnership that was announced earlier this year — is working with the Redmond company to deeply integrate its voice assistant into the next distribution of its Cyanogen OS…
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PSA: You can now add your Wells Fargo cards to Android Pay

Stephen Hall Sep 11 2015 - 11:19 am PT

Yesterday, Android Pay officially launched with eight total banks supported, across four payment networks: American Express, Discover, MasterCard and Visa. One of the most common banks was unfortunately left unavailable for those attempting to add cards to their Android Pay wallet yesterday, but now that bank — Wells Fargo — is officially supporting the new mobile payments service.

As per yesterday’s announcement, Wells Fargo would be coming “in the next few days.”

American Express, Bank of America, Discover, Navy Federal Credit Union, PNC, Regions Bank, USAA, and U.S. Bank. Wells Fargo will be available in the next few days, Capital One and Citi are coming soon, and we’re adding new banks all the time.

Now, as I can independently confirm myself, Wells Fargo cards can be added to Android Pay just fine.

Android Pay has fairly decent support across banks as well as retail locations that are taking the service, but there are some odd exclusions. For instance, Chase, which is one of the “Big Four” and has more than 5,100 branches and 16,100 ATMs nationwide, still doesn’t support Android Pay. Other banks, including Bancorp-backed Simple (which has confirmed its intentions on Twitter), as well as Citi and Capital One, are slated to be coming soon.

In case you aren’t aware, the Android Pay app is coming as an update to the already-existing Google Wallet app. You can grab the new version on the Play Store soon. Google Wallet, which no longer has support for tap-to-pay, can now be found on the Play Store as its own newly-redesigned app.

Here’s the full press release:

SAN FRANCISCO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Starting today, Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. (NYSE:WFC) customers will be able to use an Android mobile device to use Android Pay to conveniently make purchases at over one million merchant locations nationwide. Customers with an Android device running KitKat (4.4) or higher can simply unlock their device, place it over a payment terminal that accepts contactless payments, and pay for goods and services with the security of a consumer Wells Fargo Debit or Credit Card, or Small Business Debit Card. The new feature will be rolling out to customers gradually over the next few days.

“Today, we’re pleased to participate in Android Pay, increasing the availability of mobile payments to millions of Android device-loving Wells Fargo customers. This represents the latest offering in our commitment to give customers new, innovative ways to pay safely and easily, how and where they want”

After a customer makes a payment with Android Pay using their Wells Fargo card, they then receive a payment confirmation and transaction details on their phone. All transactions are monitored with Wells Fargo risk and fraud detection systems, and Wells Fargo Credit Cards and Debit Cards are protected by Zero Liability, which means customers are not responsible if they promptly report unauthorized transactions.

“Today, we’re pleased to participate in Android Pay, increasing the availability of mobile payments to millions of Android device-loving Wells Fargo customers. This represents the latest offering in our commitment to give customers new, innovative ways to pay safely and easily, how and where they want,” said Jim Smith, head of Virtual Channels for Wells Fargo.

Recent survey data from the Federal Reserve highlights the way that mobile devices are changing the way consumers make payments; 22 percent of all mobile phone owners reported having made a mobile payment in the 12 months prior to the survey, up from 17 percent in 2013 and 15 percent in 2012.

For more information, including which merchants currently accept Android Pay, visit Google’s news announcement.

Elephone’s rumored Android Wear smartwatch could be part of Google’s China plan

Stephen Hall Sep 11 2015 - 9:47 am PT

China-based Elephone isn’t known for making any high-end hardware, and besides being yet another maker of really cheap Chinese phones, they aren’t known for much of anything at all. But that might change soon, as the company is purportedly preparing to launch a smartwatch running Google’s Android Wear. And while that alone might not be all too exciting (other Chinese OEMs like Huawei have beaten them to the punch), this could — knowing Elephone’s target market — be part of Google’s bigger plan to make a move back into mainland China…
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PSA: Samsung’s Galaxy S4 Google Play Edition is now getting Android 5.1

Stephen Hall Sep 11 2015 - 8:28 am PT

According to a few different tips around the web, those who own the Samsung Galaxy S4 Google Play Edition — which isn’t that many people, mind you — are now receiving an over-the-air update to Android 5.1. Yep, that’s the version of Android that started rolling out to Nexus devices a full six months ago.

An Android Police tipster says that the update is arriving on a LRX21P device, updating to Android 5.1 with build LMY47O. You can download the update straight from Google’s servers by clicking here. Otherwise, just keep an eye on your device for an over-the-air update notification to pop up sometime soon.

If it took this long for the phone to get 5.1 Lollipop, I wouldn’t be surprised if we never saw Marshmallow. And who knows if and when the Galaxy S4 Google Play Edition will get the latest 5.1.1 Lollipop build.

Speck’s new CandyShell + MightyShell cases bring best-of-breed protection to top Android Phones

PSA: Sony’s Xperia Z5 phones aren’t as waterproof as you’d like them to be

Cam Bunton Sep 11 2015 - 5:14 am PT

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When the Xperia Z family first launched a few years ago, Sony proudly advertised their waterproof capabilities. For almost every generation of phone, up until this year, the hardware manufacturer used imaged of phones being used to take photos in swimming pools, or in the sea, as a way to sell its products. They’ve even come with some impressive-sound IP-rated certificates to prove their durability under water. And, while the the Xperia Z5 range comes with IP68 rated waterproofing, you might want to refrain from taking them to the beach to take your own underwater pics…

OnePlus co-founder apologizes for month-long delay in shipping OnePlus 2 handsets: “we messed up”

Ben Lovejoy Sep 11 2015 - 4:59 am PT

OnePlus may have created a “new and improved” reservation system for the OnePlus 2, but that doesn’t seem to have helped would-be customers get hold of them. With more than two million customers waiting for them, the company’s co-founder Carl Pei has admitted in a support forum post that the company “messed up” the launch, with almost a month-long delay in shipping.

We messed up the launch of the OnePlus 2 […] We made rosy plans. We were more confident, and prepared a lot more inventory. We told our users it would be 30-50x easier to get invites, and they needn’t worry. Yet, we only began shipping in meaningful quantities this week, nearly a month after our initial targeted shipping date. You can talk all you want, but in the end, flawless execution speaks much louder than unfulfilled promises. I’d like to apologize on behalf of OnePlus for the delay.

We had mixed views on the OnePlus 2 here. Dom Esposito was impressed with the phone, Stephen Hall less happy with the lack of quick-charge and NFC.

Via Engadget

Rumored HTC One A9 could feature 10-core Helio X20 processor

Cam Bunton Sep 11 2015 - 3:03 am PT

Over the past few weeks, maybe even months, it’s been rumored HTC will release a new all-metal smartphone to join its lineup. The HTC One A9 is expected to take design cues from the One M-series, but so far, rumors and leaks have been less than convincing. According to a leaked screenshot, allegedly taken from Geekbench, the One A9 could feature a hugely powerful processor built by MediaTek, and feature 4GB RAM.

Although there’s still plenty of reason to be skeptical, it’s at least interesting to see these rumors crop up repeatedly about the same device. The device benchmark information shows that it has a 10-core MediaTek Helio X20 processor, the same chip found inside the recently announced Acer Predator smartphone. The chip is clocked at 1.96GHz, paired with 4GB RAM on a device which will purportedly run Android 5.1.1.

Twice in recent memory, an HTC event has been teased. Initially rumors predicted a September 6th event, while more recently, a September 29 unveiling was teased. With all this uncertainty surrounding the launch date, it’s worth taking any of the speculation, leaks or rumors with a healthy dose of skepticism. Early leaks were clearly faked, and there’s been a lack of any clear and reliable evidence surrounding the One A9. If today’s leak is anything to go by, a Helio chip could point towards an Asia-specific device. Having a launch event in Japan does nothing but corroborate that speculation.

LG G4c review: A budget curved-screen Android phone with a few notable compromises [Video]

Cam Bunton Sep 10 2015 - 3:22 pm PT

LG’s G4 is one of the best phones on the market this year. It has a phenomenal camera, great display and lasts all day on a single charge. So, when LG used the same brand name for a mini version, expectations were understandably high. Does the G4c deliver as a mid-range smartphone?

Google Play Newsstand get sports information in latest update

Stephen Hall Sep 10 2015 - 2:57 pm PT

Google Play Newsstand is definitely my least used Google Play app. That’s not saying much, though, because Google Play Music is really the only one that I use. Play Books, Play Games, and Play Movies might as well not exist in my eyes. That said, if you do use Newsstand, you might be interested in today’s new update. Within, you’ll find new support for sports scores for your favorite NFL, NBA, NHL, and MLB teams…
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9to5Toys Lunch Break: Refurb Samsung Gear Fit $54, Beats Studio Wireless $264, more

Stephen Hall Sep 10 2015 - 1:02 pm PT

Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.

Today’s can’t miss deals:

Refurbished Samsung Gear Fit Watch: $54 shipped w/ code NEXTIME5 (Reg. $100) | A4C

Bluetooth Headphones: Beats Studio Over-Ear $264 (Reg. $300+), Sport In-Ear $16 (Reg. $24), more

Brand new FitBit Flex: $60 shipped (Reg. $100)

DJI Phantom 3 Standard Quadcopter Drone w/ 2.7K Video Camera: $699 shipped (Reg. $799)

More new gear from today:

Lumsing 8000mAh Power Bank $11 (Reg. $15), Dual-port wall charger and MFi Lightning cable $9 Prime shipped

Games/Apps: Madden NFL 16 (all platforms) $40, Star Walk HD $1, iOS freebies, more

Increase your productivity with the Logitech Performance MX Wireless Mouse for $45 shipped (Reg. $60+)
Daily Deals: Ninja 3-in-1 Kitchen System Pro $99, Westinghouse 48-inch 1080p HDTV $300, more
Disney is giving out copies of Monsters Inc. to users of its free digital movie locker service
M-Audio BX8 D2 8-inch Active Studio Monitors (pair) $349 shipped (Reg. $499)

More deals still alive:

Motorola Nexus 6 Unlocked 32GB in Cloud White/Midnight Blue: $350 shipped (Orig. $650)

Radiation Island for iOS goes free for the first time as IGN’s Game of the Month ($3 value)
Kingdom Rush goes free for iPhone and iPad (Reg. up to $3)
Charge a 12″ MacBook w/ this RAVPower 26800mAh Battery: $53 shipped (Reg. $80), more
Canon Pixma MG6620 AirPrint Wireless All-in-One InkJet: $55 shipped (Reg. $65+)
Garmin Vívofit Fitness Band (refurb) w/ one-year warranty: $40 shipped (Orig. $130)
OontZ Bluetooth Speakers: Angle3 $30 (Reg. $50), Angle Plus $25 (Reg. $35)
Two months of Audiobooks Free from Audible for new subscribers
Scrivener, The Award-Winning Writing App: $20 (Orig. $40)
Download The Very Best of Britney Spears 14-track compilation album for Free ($18 value)
49-inch 4K Smart Ultra HDTVs: Vizio 120Hz $600, LG 60Hz $550, more
Cambond 10-ft MFi Apple-Certified Lightning Cable: $11 Prime shipped (Reg. $14)
App Store Free App of the Week: Flick Kick Football ($2 value)
Apple Productivity App Sale: PDF Expert 5 $5, Fantastical 2, Printer Pro & Workflow $3 ea, more
PlayStation 20th anniversary sale up to 80% off: Final Fantasy Realm Reborn from $10, more
2K iOS Strategy Bundle: Civ Rev 2, XCOM Enemy Within & Sid Meier’s Starships for $20 ($35 value)
1Password secure password manager for Mac: $35 or $28 w/ .edu (Reg. $50)
TwelveSouth BassJump 2 for MacBook w/ El Capitan software update: $50 shipped (Orig. $70)
Audio-Technica AT2020USB+ mic & CAD Acousti-Shield $149 shipped ($244 value)
You can score Nest’s 2nd generation Learning Thermostat for $199 if you move quickly

[tweet https://twitter.com/9to5toys/status/641698383128850432 align=’center’]

New products & more:

Jawbone reformulates its UP2 fitness tracker with a new fashion-forward design

Review: JBL’s new Flip 3 Bluetooth speaker slims down for an ultra-portable form factor

The Raspberry Pi touchscreen display we’ve been waiting for is now available
V-MODA goes wireless with its premium-grade leather and steel headphones
Minecraft: Story Mode gets a release date as pre-orders ramp up
Amazon now offers money back to Prime members after their first Dash button purchase
Parrot’s new Zik 3 Wireless Headphones look like a crocodile with inductive charging
JBL and Sennheiser show off their latest generation headphone line-ups at IFA 2015
Kitchen Tech: Does the Homping Grill deliver on its promise of healthy, smokeless + portable BBQ?
Philips’ latest Hue lightstrips put out white light and are extendable
Review: Tucker and Bloom’s East to West XL Messenger Bag goes big to handle all your gear
Sphero brought the BB-8 Droid from Star Wars to life and we all want it
Bang & Olufsen’s new wool covered AirPlay speaker stuns with its look and price
Philips undercuts the market on price with its new whole home audio system
Polaroid’s latest pocket-sized Snap cam instantly prints photos with no ink
Hulu puts pressure on Netflix with new commercial-free subscription plan
Sony’s new high-resolution headphones have a cringe-worthy name

‘Project Lucky’ Samsung handset, likely the Galaxy S7, appears in benchmarks

Stephen Hall Sep 10 2015 - 12:12 pm PT

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A Galaxy S7 render that’s not real at all

Samsung brought the Galaxy Note5 (sic) and Galaxy S6 Edge+ to market faster than expected (maybe to beat the Apple hype train?), and it looks like they’re pushing the next flagship Galaxy S handset — assumably the Galaxy S7 — through production just as fast. A Samsung device simply labeled as “Lucky-LTE” made its way through Geekbench yesterday, and now a report from the usually-reliable SamMobile claims that the device is indeed an early prototype of the Samsung Galaxy S7…
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One Googler’s 20% project got elephant ivory ads removed from AdWords [Video]

Stephen Hall Sep 10 2015 - 9:56 am PT

We told you a couple months ago about Nat & Lo, a couple of Googlers who are using their 20% time — unofficial allotted time for personal projects — to tell stories about the people at Google. Today, in their latest video, Nat & Lo explore the story of one Googler named Winnie who used her 20% time to spread her love for animals — specifically elephants, in this case…

Marshmallow’s ‘Dark mode’ confirmed to be ditched, but it might make a comeback

Stephen Hall Sep 10 2015 - 9:27 am PT

One of the most exciting new features that popped up in the first Developer Preview of Android Marshmallow was a “Dark” system theme option. While it didn’t do much besides change the background colors of the Settings app, it seemed to be the beginnings of what could have been a system-wide dark theme. Then, the feature disappeared in Developer Preview 2, and its fate was left unclear — until now. For now, the dark mode in Android M is dead, but it might just make a comeback…
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Pokémon Go brings the game to real life on Android with new wearable device

Trevor Daugherty Sep 10 2015 - 9:14 am PT

From 9to5Toys.com:

Today, the Pokémon Company has announced that it is partnering with Nintendo and Alphabet-owned Niantic to produce a new upcoming mobile game called Pokémon Go. This title will be available on both iOS and Android devices for free. The main focus of the game is collecting, training and battling Pokémon characters against other users based on their GPS location.

However, this new adventure will be supplemented by an optional wearable. Imagine a Pokémon smart watch of sorts.

This new wearable is called Pokémon Go Plus. It connects to your smartphone via Bluetooth and flashes its built-in LED light to notify you of nearby players as well as virtual Pokémon you can catch. For example, say you’re on your morning commute on the subway. Pokémon Go Plus will ping your wrist to let you know that a virtual Charizard is closely located. After capturing, you’ll be able to train and battle with that new character.

The wearable isn’t required to play the game but it is an unique add-on that bring another level to the experience. Be sure to check out the video above for a visual representation of how game play works. Pokémon Go will be released on iOS and Android in 2016 as a free download with in-app purchases. Pricing has yet to be released for the Pokémon Go Plus Wearable. The entire press conference and announcement has been uploaded to YouTube for viewing, as well.

Source: The Pokémon Company

Google’s long-awaited Android Pay is reportedly launching today [Update: It’s out!]

Stephen Hall Sep 10 2015 - 8:28 am PT

Update: Yep, it’s official.

Update 2: The update to Google Wallet is rolling out now, but you can grab the Android Pay APK over at APKMirror right now. Keep an eye out for our hands-on.

According to the well-connected Artem Russakovskii as well as a Re/code report, Android Pay is set to be launched today. This little tidbit comes despite previous rumors — thanks to leaked Verizon documentation — that the service would be launching on September 16th…
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Verizon-exclusive Moto DROID Turbo 2 revealed in leaked press render

Cam Bunton Sep 10 2015 - 6:45 am PT

Not long after Motorola officially announced the Moto X Play, X Pure and G at an event in NYC last month, it was rumored that the X Play would be making its way to the States, albeit it as a rebranded Verizon exclusive DROID. Only last week, a render was leaked showing a device code-named ‘Bounce’ or ‘Force’. In many ways, it looked a lot like the Moto X Play, albeit it with a few subtle differences. Today, the device has shown up again, but this time it has the official DROID and Verizon branding, corroborating those earlier rumors that this is the next DROID. Specifically, the DROID Turbo 2.

The Verizon-branded smartphone was leaked by @upleaks on Twitter this morning, and looks virtually identical to previous leaks:

[tweet https://twitter.com/upleaks/status/641946223121862656 align=’center’]

It’s expected that the Verizon DROID Turbo 2 will feature a 5.43-inch QHD resolution display, Snapdragon 810 processor and 32GB or 64GB storage options. What’s more, it could feature 3GB RAM as well as 21MP and 5MP rear and front cameras respectively. With 3,760mAh capacity, its battery is predicted to be larger than the impressive X Play, almost certainly to deal with the extra pixels on the display and more powerful processor. As specs go, it sounds a lot like a flagship phone, which the X Play certainly isn’t. We’re told to expect the supposedly shatter-proof phone to land on store shelves in December, just in time for Christmas.

Samsung had a few taunts of its own after Apple’s iPhone 6s, iPad Pro event last night

Cam Bunton Sep 10 2015 - 5:13 am PT

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Leading up to Apple’s eagerly anticipated keynote presentation last night, Sony had a jab prepared for the iPhone-makers before they unveiled the iPhone 6s, Apple TV and iPad Pro. It seems, however, Sony wasn’t the only manufacturer attempting to rain on Apple’s parade. Arguably Apple’s biggest competitor, Samsung had a few of its own jibes to share with us and took to its UK Twitter handle to publish them…

HTC Mood Player lets you create a custom Spotify playlist just by taking a selfie [Hands-on]

Cam Bunton Sep 10 2015 - 3:06 am PT

To celebrate the launch of its mid-range Desire 626, HTC has just announced that it is collaborating with Spotify to let you create custom playlists using just a picture of your face. HTC Mood Player is a fun concept and one which I’m sure will give you at least a few minutes of fun while you interact with what is essentially just an advertisement for the Desire 626. Of course, we couldn’t let this announcement go by without taking the site for a spin…

Bazel, Google’s software build tool, now available in public beta

Cam Bunton Sep 10 2015 - 1:54 am PT

Google has just released Bazel as a public beta, and the company claims it can help engineers build software quickly, and correctly. It can be used to build client and server software for Android and iOS and is available for Linux and OS X. Despite it being labelled as a public beta, Google’s engineers have been using it for a very long time. As betas go, it’s a very thoroughly tried and tested one.

Google releases new Wallet app with refreshed interface ahead of Android Pay launch

Chance Miller Sep 9 2015 - 5:35 pm PT

2 Comments

Update: Google has officially announced the new app.

Today, we’re announcing a new Google Wallet app — now focused exclusively on sending and receiving money. You can use Google Wallet with your Android or iOS device to send money to anyone in the US with an email address, even if they are not a Wallet user. And now, when you receive money through Google Wallet, you can quickly cash out to a debit card or linked bank account.

Google today unexpectedly released a new Google Wallet app on the Play Store. Instead of updating the original Wallet app, the company released an entirely new app with an entirely new interface. At this point, it appears that the original Wallet app will be converted to Android Pay when it launches, while Wallet itself will live on in the form of today’s new app.