In its next major release this summer, Android will finally add a multi-window mode for both tablets and phones. Jide is beating Google to release today with a fully featured version of Remix OS 2.0 for its Ultratablet and the Nexus 9 and 10. ROMs for the two Nexus tablets are available to download now.
Update: Previous version of this story said the original post was from yesterday, when it was actually from June 11th. The story made its way to the /r/Android subreddit yesterday.
Last night a story bubbled up in the Android community that led many to believe that older Nexus devices – specifically the Nexus 4, 7, and 10 – would be receiving official updates to Android M, Google’s upcoming major release of Android. Artem Russakovskii from Android Police, however, has come out on Google+ to say that the evidence presented shows no indication that these devices will be updated.
After releasing the file for the Nexus Player earlier this month, Google this evening has posted the Android 5.1.1 factory images for several new devices this evening. Android 5.1.1 Lollipop factory images are now available for the WiFi-only 2012 and 2013 Nexus 7 models, and the Nexus 10.
After making Android 5.1 official earlier this evening, Google has now started posting factory images of the latest version of its operating system to the Android Developers website. Android 5.1 factory images for the Nexus 5, Nexus 10, and 2012 WiFi Nexus 7 are now available to download.
Google has just released Android 5.0.2 Lollipop factory images for the Nexus 10 and 2013 Nexus 7. Previously, Android 5.0.2 images had been available only for the 2012 Nexus 7. Today’s uploads for the 2013 WiFi-only Nexus 7 and Nexus 10 carry the same build number as the build released last month, LRX22G.
Google hasn’t provided any indication of what has changed in Android 5.0.2 for the 2013 Nexus 7 and Nexus 10, but don’t expect major changes seeing that it’s such a small numerical update. The factory images are available to download on Google’s developer site now and should begin to rollout over-the-air soon.
If you need help installing these factory images on your device, you can check out our guide here with all the details, but if you’re not the daring type, you might want to simply wait for the over-the-air update to hit.
Google this evening has pushed out an updated build of Android Lollipop to the Android Open Source Project. Albeit a minor version number increase, Android 5.0.1 is now showing up in AOSP, carrying the build number LRX22C. While it’s unclear exactly what has changed in this build from the initial Android 5.0 release, we don’t expect too many noticeable additions, with most of the improvements likely coming in the form of under-the-hood bug fixes.
As expected, it appears that Google is now slowly rolling out Android Lollipop for the Nexus 4, 5, 7 and 10. A number of users have turned to Twitter to report that their Nexus smartphones and tablets are now beginning to receive Lollipop as an over-the-air software update.
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Following the announcement that Android Lollipop will soon be distributed to Nexus devices as an over-the-air update, Google has gone ahead and posted factory images for the Nexus 5, 7 and 10 this afternoon. If you’re wondering how to install an Android Lollipop factory image on a Nexus device, it’s as simple as following a few step-by-step instructions.
And while most people just let Google handle restoring their data, you might want to keep things that Google doesn’t back up (like your SMS messages and the like). Fortunately, keeping your data intact while flashing a factory image is fairly easy. Read on for the full guide.
Just a short while after announcing the Android 5.0 Lollipop over-the-air update for Nexus devices, Google has now posted the factory images for the Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2012 and 2013 WiFi-only models), and Nexus 10.
It’s definitely one of the most highly anticipated software updates that Android has ever seen. Today, the Android 5.0 Lollipop update—that was first previewed earlier this year at Google I/O—has begun rolling out OTA to Nexus devices everywhere. “Dessert is served,” Google says. We haven’t heard reports of any devices actually having access to the update quite yet, but with this tweet from the Android team, one can expect updates to start appearing very soon.
While the wait continues for Google to release Android Lollipop as an over-the-air software update and post official factory images of the latest operating system version, a number of developers over at XDA-Developers have taken it upon themselves to take the Lollipop source code and create builds for the Nexus 4, 5, 7, 10 and other devices.
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Following this morning’s report that Android Wear 2.0 would drop on November 3rd, Android Police now reports that Google is planning to release Android 5.0 Lollipop to a trio of Nexus devices on that same day. The report claims that Lollipop will hit the 2012 WiFi-only Nexus 7, the 2013 WiFi-only Nexus 7, and the Nexus 10 on November 3rd.
As it usually does with new releases of Android, Google has just posted the source code for the “L” release of Android. The code is viewable on Google’s Android Git repo page for all of the current a previous generation Nexus devices. This includes both the 2012 and 2013 Nexus 7s (WiFi and LTE models), the Nexus 4, Nexus 5, and Nexus 10.
Google has left a few things out of this release of source code, including binary packages and kernel source. This means that developers will not yet be able to build totally stock builds of Android “L” for those devices. This is to be expected, though, as “L” is still a developer preview at this point.
You can view the source code on Google’s Git repo here. If you’re still curious about Android “L,” read our first look here.
Almost immediately following the pandemonium that was the release of Android 4.4.3, Google is now rolling out software version 4.4.4 of its mobile operating system to Nexus devices via an over-the-air update. Yesterday, the company released factory images of its newest version of Android, so device updates were pretty much inevitable. The new release only weighs in at 2.5MB and is believed to squash a few bugs that were missed by its predecessor.
In what comes as somewhat of a surprising move, Google has just posted Android 4.4.4 factory image for several Nexus devices. The release comes not too long after 4.4.3 was rolled out. Android 4.4.3 was a highly antipciated release that we saw several leaks of, but 4.4.4 comes as a surprise.
The Android 4.4.3 update spree continues. Today, Google’s new software started rolling out to the Nexus 4, Nexus 10 and Google Play edition of the HTC One M8. These files have been captured and are available for manual installation if you’re comfy with that sort of thing, however you’ve been waiting this long, so a few more days probably won’t kill you.
Not letting T-Mobile subscribers have all the fun, Google has released the factory image and binaries for Android 4.4.3 today. These tools apply to the Nexus 5, Nexus 7 (2013) and WiFi Nexus 10, Nexus 4 and WiFi Nexus 7 (2012) models.
There’s little question a new Nexus 10 device is on the horizon, in fact we’re already passed a set of rumored release dates. In fact, we’ve already seen the LG-V510 surface thanks to a leaked image via Reddit that showed off a Nexus homescreen. In other words, there’s no “surprise” with this @evleaks tip, but one more confirmation is one step closer to believing this is the real deal.
A combination of two separate images this weekend are pointing toward the next-generation Nexus 10 device complete with LG as the manufacturing partner. The first image (shown below) courtesy of Reddit and one incredibly unhappy Telefonica employee shows off the thinner bezel and what we believe is a front-facing speaker. The device also appears to be launching with Android 4.4 KitKat and the Google experience launcher in tow. Surprise, surprise.
Google has announced that the new Android KitKat operating system will begin rolling out to Google’s own tablets starting today. The rollout process will likely be completed over a period of time. Android 4.4 will be reaching the Nexus 7 (both last year’s model and this year’s new model) and the Nexus 10. KitKat brings several improvements to Android, including changes to Google Now, SMS integration with Hangouts, and general performance enhancements. Google says KitKat for the Nexus 4 and cellular-enabled Nexus 7 is coming soon.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sONcojECWXs&list=PLWz5rJ2EKKc-2quE-o0enpILZF3nBZg_K&index=1]
Update: Google has released a full list of what’s new in Android 4.4 KitKat. We’re digging in and we’ll bring you more details as we discover them.
Alongside the official release of its new flagship Nexus 5 on Google Play today, Google is also of course officially taking the wraps of 4.4 KitKat, the latest version of Android that will ship on the new Nexus 5. When will you be able to get your hands on the new OS? Google said KitKat 4.4 updates will arrive for the Nexus 4, Nexus 7, Nexus 10, and the Galaxy S4 and HTC One Google Play Editions in the coming weeks.
Google confirmed that the update will not be coming to the Galaxy Nexus. Since it’s two years old, it now “falls outside of the 18-month update window when Google and others traditionally update devices.”
In the YouTub playlist above, Google walks through some of the new features of KitKat for developers and also highlights a number of user-facing features such as a new “immersive mode” that allows users to automatically hide onscreen controls for a truly full-screen experience. In a blog post, Google took sometime to explain the performance improvements it’s made in KitKat, noting that Android can now “run comfortably on the 512MB of RAM devices”:
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Update: JD Power’s math seems a little off, when you delve into the scores …
Samsung got 18 stars, Apple 18, with Samsung only ahead on price, yet took the overall lead.
J.D. Power has released its 2013 U.S. Tablet Satisfaction Study–Volume 2 today with Samsung edging out Apple’s iPad for the top spot. Apple has in the past ranked number one in the company’s customer stratification surveys for tablets, but this time Samsung has jumped up from number 3 in April to take the first position from the iPad.
Samsung ranks highest with a score of 835 and is the only manufacturer to improve across all five factors since the previous reporting period in April 2013. Samsung showed particularly strong improvement in the cost factor (25-point increase). Apple ranks second scoring 833 and performs particularly well in performance and ease of operation.
While Samsung only slightly beat out Apple with 835 points vs 833 points on a 1000 point scale, the outcome is quite notable for Samsung who in April ranked even lower than Amazon. The study measures customer satisfaction based on five metrics for 3,375 tablet owners: performance (26%); ease of operation (22%); styling and design (19%); features (17%); and cost (16%).
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[tweet https://twitter.com/evleaks/status/385532994527567872]
We’ve already heard some rumblings of a Asus powered Nexus 10 tablet (to be honest, I’m not a huge fan of ASUS hardware so kinda bummed), but today evleaks has some further evidence of the existence of said tablet.
Honestly, I hope it is better than the current version but now I’m starting to think it might just be cheaper.
According to a new report from Geek.com, Google will be dropping Samsung and picking ASUS to manufacture the next-gen Nexus 10. The site has correctly reported on a few product releases in the past, but today’s report goes against what we heard earlier straight from Google’s own Sundar Pichai.
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