Android

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=SR1tCDxqS2Y

The much-rumored Galaxy S4 Active was finally announced by Samsung one week ago, but without any sort of United States carrier information. We’d seen press images of the device leak with AT&T branding, and on Wednesday, the carrier released a teaser video that all but confirms the Galaxy S4 Active for its network.

The video shows someone dropping a phone into a bucket of water, but then receiving a call and having to pull it out to answer. At the very end, he holds the phone up to his ear and you can clearly see the top of the Galaxy S4 Active’s design and the same AT&T logo that we saw in the leaked press shots a few weeks ago. The video teases that we will “find out more” tomorrow, June 13th.

The Galaxy S4 Active’s main selling point is obviously the water and dust proof design. It will be protected in those substances for up to 30 minutes of submergence at a depth of one meter:
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Samsung’s Galaxy Note smartphones have had a huge amount of success, so it makes sense that the company would want to try to bring the branding over to its tablet lineups. We’ve already seen the Galaxy Note 10.1 here in the United States on Verizon, and another carrier model looks to be coming soon.

AT&T has announced that it will begin to offer the Galaxy Note 8.0 with LTE capabilities “in the coming weeks”. Pricing details and specific availability information were left out, unfortunately. The WiFi only Galaxy Note 8.0 is offered for $399 stateside, so we can expect the LTE model to come in at at about $100-ish more than that.
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We’ve heard quite a bit about a smaller, low-cost HTC One variant. Originally referred to as the M4, images and specs of the HTC One Mini have been leaked before, seemingly confirming the device’s existence. The main questions now surround the release of the smartphone.

Bloomberg on Wednesday published a report claiming it has heard detailed information about the HTC One Mini from “two people briefed on the plans who asked not to be identified because details aren’t public”. The report mentions that the device will have a 4.3-inch display with a lower resolution than the original HTC One, as well as a “less powerful” Qualcomm CPU. The sources go on to claim that the One Mini will go on sale “by August.”

The new model features a 4.3-inch screen, compared with 4.7 inches for the original version, and will go on sale by August, according to two people briefed on the plans who asked not to be identified because details aren’t public. The device will probably have a less-powerful Qualcomm Inc. (QCOM) processor and lower-resolution screen than the flagship, said one of the people.

Earlier reports had far more specific specifications, claiming a 720p 4.3-inch display, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage, and a 4MP UltraPixel camera.

Miniature versions of flagship devices have become a common trend this year, with Samsung having recently announced the Galaxy S4 Mini.

Most people have stopped carrying compact cameras, considering the one built into their smartphone good enough for the job. But there are those who ask a little more of their cameras, for whom carrying two gadgets is a necessary evil. It’s those people Samsung is targeting with a device we first mentioned last month, the Galaxy S4 Zoom: a compact camera on the front, an Android handset on the back. This one seems to address the major issue we had with our original Galaxy Camera review: its really large, heavy size and inability to make calls… 
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Roger Oddone, a senior graphical designer at Google, has provided a rare look behind the scenes at Google’s design principles, putting the company’s Visual Assets Guidelines online (via Gizmodo). The aim of the documents is to create a …

solid, yet flexible, set of guidelines that have been helping Google’s designers and vendors to produce high-quality work that helps strengthen Google’s identity … 
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Well, I did it. I got my hands on a White Nexus 4 to review. And, as you probably would have guessed it is a lot like the black version. In fact that’s pretty much all I have to say for this ‘review’: It is white and just as, if not more, attractive than the original – and that’s the back. The front is identical and still black. See gallery above.

But there are some things to note here, not the least of which is the white bumper that came along with it. It is great! Fits like a glove, and will help prevent breakage. The downside is that it adds a bit of size to the phone and doesn’t completely cover the glass backside.

Also, the Nexus 4 has been my daily driver since I got it in October. It is still my go to phone after reviewing such beauties as the HTC One or the Samsung Galaxy S4 or even its recent cousin the LG Optimus Pro. How is the Nexus 4 holding up and why do I like it more than the ‘superphones’ released this year?
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BMW has announced that it is adding Samsung S Voice support to the iDrive console on its 2014 model cars, along with a range of other enhancements. The car-maker is also adding support for Apple’s equivalent iPhone service, Siri.

With BMW offering its own voice-control functions, things could get confusing, so you can choose whether you want to talk to the car or your phone by either a single-press or press-and-hold of the steering-wheel button … 
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Samsung appears to be experiencing a taste of those stock market jitters that seems to defy logic, with it’s market value reduced by $12b – 6 percent of its value – in a single day’s trading, reports Reuters.

The share slide of more than 6 percent comes after it recently introduced two stripped-down versions of the S4, fanning worries that profit margins for its mobile business will suffer. It also follows a report that arch-rival Apple will begin a trade-in program for iPhones.

The new stripped-down S4 models will help it widen its lead in the global smartphone market and fend off Chinese competitors, but some fear that the South Korean tech giant is trading in profits for volume … 
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DroidLife spotted that Samsung has added the Galaxy S4 wireless charging kit to the US store. To charge your S4 without being reduced to anything as crude as wires, you’ll need to replace the backplate of your phone with the Wireless Charging Cover for $39.99, plus buy the Wireless Charging Pad (or any other Qi charger) for $49.99.

The charging cover is, however, thicker than the standard one, which means it may not fit any existing cases or docks you have … 
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Facebook is today rolling out updates to its Android apps today that add a few notable features including a new favorites tray for Facebook Home users.

After getting some complaints from users about being able to quickly access apps via the app launcher when using Facebook Home, Facebook is including in today’s update a new dock that lets users quickly launch a selection of their most often used apps. The feature will let users customize the”app launcher by dragging the apps you use most to a new favorites tray.” It also told us folders and widget support is on the way.

Other improvements in the update today for the Facebook for Android app include the ability to change select who sees the content you share, support for sending multiple photos in a message, and other memory/stability enhancements.  
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Google has released its stock touch keyboard, now called “Google Keyboard,” as a download on the Android Google Play Store. The download allows anyone with an Android 4.0+ smartphone or tablet to add the stock Nexus typing experience to their own device. They keyboard include Voice Dictation, Gesture Typing, and multiple dictionaries.

Starting today, you can get the smart-and-easy Nexus typing experience on your Android phone or tablet, by downloading Google Keyboard on Google Play:http://goo.gl/W63Lu

Google Keyboard has Gesture Typing (which lets you glide through letters to form a word, just lift your finger to enter a space), automatic error correction, and word predictions. You can also tap the microphone to compose messages with Voice Typing when you’re on-the-go. Together with dictionaries for 26 languages (plus keyboard layouts for a dozen more), it provides a fast, accurate, and reliable typing experience.

Android is an open platform, so you can customize your device to your liking; choosing your own keyboard is just one example of what’s possible – and there are a lot of great keyboards to choose from on Google Play. (Some of our other favorites are SwiftKey and TouchPal – check them out here: http://goo.gl/Hgj9k)

Google Keyboard is rolling out to Google Play today, for devices running Android 4.0 and above (initially in English-speaking locales but we’ll be adding more countries soon): http://goo.gl/W63Lu

The download is rolling out today for free. 

I gave myself a few weeks to use the $199 w/plan LG Optimus Pro on AT&T to see if a phablet could replace my normal Android device, the LG Nexus 4. The Optimus Pro is very similar to the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 which I reviewed and liked. LG doesn’t include the stylus, which I considered a downside on the Note 2. It also has a less intrusive overlay and a bunch of other handy features which I found helpful…

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Friday we showed you images of the Samsung Galaxy S4 Active that leaked from press material, and today the South Korean handset maker officially announced the latest variant to its most successful smartphone to date.

This variant of the Galaxy S4 can endure the tests of water or other agents that can render an ordinary smartphone useless without an extra accessory that has potential to be costly.

The GALAXY S4 Active has qualified protection from dust and water, so you never have to leave the device at home during a long day at the beach or dusty hike. The fully sealed design keeps dust particles out and protects against water damage for up to 30 minutes of submergence at a depth of one meter. Equipped with a water-resistant earphone jack, the GALAXY S4 Active frees you to use earphones in more adventurous conditions, in the same way you’ve used them in normal ones.  Whether capturing every moment of a wild rafting trip or taking a great underwater photo in the pool, the device’s unique construction lets users capture amazing moments previously impossible using a normal smartphone.

The Samsung Galaxy S4 Active should appeal to users with active lifestyles and less secure workplaces where physical damage could compromise data like government employees. Samsung has been reaching for the corporate and government space. The Wall Street Journal reports that the company is even going as far as hiring former RIM employees and experts in security since BlackBerry has trended toward losing its place in these markets.

Pricing and availability remain unknown but we expect the Active to ship this summer. Samsung is set to announce additional products later this month at its event in London.

Check out the full press release below:
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FreedomPop, a data-only carrier attempting to make the freemium model work for mobile service, plans to add voice calls and texts to its free 4G data plan. The service will arrive first on select Android devices this summer:

FreedomPop, today announced the first-ever completely free mobile service with free voice, free text and free data. FreedomPop’s ground breaking service will give users a guaranteed 500 MBs of 4G data for free, unlimited texting, and 200 free anytime voice minutes each month. In addition, FreedomPop users will enjoy free unlimited calls to each other. The FreedomPop service will be available on several popular Android phones later this summer and will be the first-ever all-data devices running 100 percent VoIP over cellular networks.

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