Android

There’s no doubting that CyanogenMod is one of the most well-known custom ROMs available, with it being available for a plethora of new and old devices. Last month, the CyanogenMod team announced that it had raised $7 million in funding and was looking into a direct-to-consumer route for installing the ROM. Today, Cyanogen Inc. has announced (via Droid Life) the CyanogenMod Installer. This app, available on Google Play now, allows users to install the custom ROM incredibly easily.

Once the app is downloaded to one of the compatible devices (list here), it will pair to companion computer software in order to perform the ROM flash. All the user must do is plug their device into the computer and simply hit “start.” The process will wipe everything from the device and install the latest CyanogenMod build. Both the app and computer software are free to download.

As far as device compatibility goes, Cyanogen says that it “will continue to work on supporting additional devices beyond the initial set,” but that for the moment, the software supports “the majority of flagship models currently on the market.”

This is an incredible feat for a company that only received funding last month. CyanogenMod Installer will allow for people who are not technologically-inclined to easily install the latest version of Android to their device.

You can download the app from the Play Store now, and the computer software from Cyanogen’s website.

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Steve Jobs isn’t exactly a man known for keeping his thoughts to himself which is why excerpts found by Business Insider from a new book documenting the Google-Apple smartphone war are grabbing attention. According to the book written by Fred Vogelstein, Google was already working on its first Android-powered smartphone when Apple introduced the iPhone in 2007.

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Update: Republic Wireless now has the Moto X available on their website for purchase beginning this morning, November 14th. 

Republic Wireless is making good on their promise to release the Moto X to the public in November with the expected to hit shelves this week according to a Mashable report. The device will retail at $299 from the Republic Wireless store and features all the tricks we’ve come to expect from Motorola’s first true “Google” smartphone.

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There’s no shortage of camera apps available in the Play Store but few have the name SmugMug and “awesome” attached to them. That’s why we’re taking note that the good folks at SmugMug just dropped word on their blog that their Camera Awesome app is finally out of beta and on the Play Store. Camera Awesome has been downloaded by more than 20 million iPhone users and is almost always near the top of every “best iPhone camera app” list. The developers say the demand for an Android release has been steady every single day and that means today is your lucky day.

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There has been much talk of Motorola’s upcoming Moto G smartphone in recent weeks, the rumored “mini” follow up to its Moto X flagship launched earlier this year. After making a brief appearance on Motorola’s website, the company started teasing a November 13th live online announcement for the device, and now we get what look to be official specs from a German retailer already listing the Moto G. 

The Phone House, a german retailer, today quickly posted and then removed a listing for the Moto G that was caught by The Unwired. On top of listing what we assume are official specs (below), it also quoted a price of £149 (approximately $235 US). That seems a little pricey to be the on-contract price for what many assume will be a budget version of the Moto X, so it could very well be the off-contract price, which compares to the $499 Motorola and carriers charge for the Moto X without a two-year contract. The Moto X currently sells for $99 on contract.

Head below for the full list of Moto G specs:

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Ah yes, winter is in the air and along with it the promise of Black Friday shopping deals. I’ll just get right to it and say if you’re in the market for a Galaxy S 4…you should hold off and take a look at the Walmart and Target deals coming up in a little under two weeks.

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I’ll be the first to admit that I think all smartphones look better dressed in white (no fingerprints!) and this newly leaked image of the LG G2 is no exception. However, even if the white looks more decadent than the black LG G2 that doesn’t take away from those horrible, eye-gouging Verizon logos that are so prominently placed. Twitter tipster @evleaks dropped the press image late last night and oh who am I kidding, those logos, kill them with fire.

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I’ve already written about my disappointment in the Nexus 5 camera and that’s exactly why this news out of XDA Developers is grabbing my interest. A developer by the name of Jishnu Sir created a flashable .zip file that is said to greatly improve the quality of the camera. Any flashable file requires an unlocked bootloader and a custom recovery but beyond those extras, the “new” camera app will add or improve:

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As I come up on a week of use with the LG Nexus 5, a few things become clear:

1. Tradeoffs were made to get this phone to $349. After some thought, I probably would have made the same decisions if $349 was my target price.
2. I hate carrier and manufacturer ‘improvements’ more than ever. Having a ‘pure Google‘ phone is liberating.
3. This will likely be my main Android phone for the next the year.
4. This won’t be a best seller, even if it should be because it is the best value phone we’ll see all year.

How did I draw these conclusions? Start the week ago flashback sequence…

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When it comes to Android, one of the biggest advantages and selling points of the platform is customization, customization, customization. The opportunity to skin, theme, change, alter and design everything from widgets to icons to shortcuts is one of the great aspects of Android life. A quick walk-through of Google’s Play Store shows there is no shortage of launchers and many Android fans rattle off the names Nova, ADW and Apex like they are verbs. However, as popular as those three launchers are, they are just the tip of the iceberg and that’s where my newly minted favorite app comes into the story. Say hello to Themer.

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When Motorola launched its first smartphone as a Google company with the Moto X back in August, the big stand out feature for the device was the ability to apply over 2000 customizations at the time of purchase. Motorola let users pick the front, back, and accent colors, match headphone and case colors, and more all though its MotoMaker.com online ordering tool. Unfortunately, until today the MotoMaker tool was exclusive to AT&T with other carriers only selling white and black models of the Moto X.

The good news is AT&T’s exclusivity window has now officially ended and starting today you can order a customized Moto X through Moto Maker from all major US carriers including AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon.
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Even as HTC promises that next-year will see the return of lower cost handsets in an attempt to boost their fledgling business, the flagship successor to the One is also on the horizon. A tweet by @evleaks teases the HTC M8 for AT&T “unsurprisingly destined for AT&T, among others.” In a response to a secondary inquiry about a potential Verizon offering, the Twitter tipster responds that all four carriers should see a release by the end of the first quarter next year. Considering that all four national carriers carry the HTC One right now, it’s not inconceivable to think that the same will happen for its successor.

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Google is making some improvements to its Google Cloud Platform today that will make it easier for developers to provide cloud services across apps on multiple platforms. After first launching a preview of Cloud Endpoints earlier this year, Google announced today that the web backend solution for app developers has moved to General Availability. Cloud Endpoints provide developers with an easy way of building a simplified cloud backend to deploy across their web, Android and iPhone apps:
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Look, don’t take this the wrong way as I’m not suggesting buying the Nexus 5 from your carrier of choice is a bad move, except that’s exactly what I’m saying. The thing is, it isn’t even the carriers fault as they are simply passing on their cost of the Nexus 5 purchase from LG/Google directly to you. Sprint and T-Mobile have both confirmed that their cost of the Nexus 5 is $450 indicating that Google is subsidizing their pricing of the Nexus 5 via the Play Store. Just like last year’s Nexus 4. 

Yes, there is an argument to be made that not having to fork over the entire up-front cost is something that could appeal to many potential Nexus 5 buyers. However, in the long run I’d rather see customers saving the extra $100 and putting it toward apps, accessories or paying the electric bill. It’s likely Google is taking the $100 loss in the hopes of pushing customers into the Play Store where they will grab apps, books, movies, magazines and all the other things Google will make a profit on. More Nexus users means more Google Maps and search use, more money, more money…

[Ed. note: If you want to save even more money, T-Mobile still offers a super secret Web only $30/month pre-paid plan (meaning little-no taxes) that works great with your Nexus 5.  You have to scroll to the bottom of T-Mobile’s plans page to find it—->.  It includes unlimited data (throttled at 5GB), unlimited texts and a sparse 100 minutes of talk time.  If you aren’t a talker, you are looking at $360 for a year of unlimited data + $350 for the best Android phone (under $60/month total) out there!]

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Today T-Mobile has made things official for availability and pricing on Google’s recently launched Nexus 5. Arriving for online orders Nov. 14 and in stores on Nov. 20, T-Mobile will be offering the 16GB Nexus 5 for $41.99 down with its usual monthly payments of $17. That brings the total cost of the device on T-Mobile up to $450, around $50 more than Google charges for the 32GB model and $100 more than the 16GB model on Google Play. That’s not unusual, however. Google has long subsidized the cost of its Nexus devices sold through Google Play.
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Twitter is sending out notifications to current members of its Android Experiment Google Group inviting them to take part in a new alpha program. For the moment, the alpha program is only open to members of its current beta group which opened up in August of this year.

Beta users have been using early versions of Twitter since August often receiving buggy versions of an app that changes frequently. The note sent to users invites them to try the Twitter app at the earliest of stages providing “an opportunity to provide direct feedback and collaborate with us via a forum, so you can take a more active role in testing out bugs.”

Twitter highlights that it is only accepting users from inside the beta program: “We’ll be accepting requests to join on a first come, first served basis, and we’re turning first to you and other members of the Android Experiment Program.”

So, Android Twitter app beta testing people’s, have you checked for an invite?

via TheNextWeb

Usually reliable @evleaks has struck again, with a claimed photo of Motorola’s mid-range Moto G handset, due to be launched on the 13th.

The specs are rumored to comprise a 1.2GHz Snapdragon processor, 8GB storage, 4.5-inch 720p screen and a 5MP camera. An off-contract price of £135 ($217) has been suggested in the UK, which would make the handset an appealing proposition for those who want decent specs at an affordable price.

Update: Google also announced today that T-Mobile will now allow MMS messages to be sent to Google Voice users:

T-Mobile has allowed MMS messages from their users to be sent to Google Voice users. Similar to MMS messages from Sprint users, these messages will appear in Gmail, and you can be notified of the message via SMS. We continue to work with other carriers to broaden support for messaging and bring MMS to Hangouts. More good things are coming!

Last month, before an official Nexus 5 and Android 4.4 KitKat announcement, Google announced during its Google+ event that it would soon be integrating SMS into the Hangouts app. Starting today, all Android users can download the updated app, which in addition to building in SMS/MMS functionality, also brings animated GIFs, location sharing, and new status icons.

Also available today is an update for Google Keyboard that introduces some of the improvements Nexus 5 owners have enjoyed with KitKat so far, but many users seem to be upset (rightfully so) that the update makes emojis only compatible on Android 4.4 devices at the moment:
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