Nvidia Quad Core Tablets For $199. Focus On Android & Windows 8

Nvidia Quad Core Tablets For $199. Focus On Android & Windows 8

 

Back in September of 2011, Nvidia CEO Jen-Hsun Huang stated we might see quad core tablets running Android 4.0 this summer for the very low price of $ 199, and apparently the man meant business. Last week, Nvidia introduced an Android tablet platform code called Kai, and walked investors through their plans for using “the secret sauce” inside Tegra 3 to create a quad core tablet by the end of this year that could match the price of Amazon’s popular Kindle Fire tablet. According to the Verge, those tablets are already being produced and could hit the market sooner than you think. But it's not just Android that Nvidia's Kai could do wonders for, but Windows 8 tablets as well. 

Nvidia’s vice president of investor relations Rob Csonger unveiled their strategy for not only Android tablets, but for Windows 8 tablets as well:

"So first of all, our strategy on Android is simply to enable quad-core tablets running Android Ice Cream Sandwich to be developed and brought out to market for a $ 199 price point. The way we that we do that is with a platform that we've developed called Kai. So this uses a lot of the secret sauce that's inside Tegra 3 to allow you to develop a tablet at a much lower cost by using a lot of innovation that we've developed to reduce the power that's used by the display and to use lower cost components within the tablet."

"Probably the most exciting opportunity for us, however, in the tablet space is a discontinuity and a disruption that's going to occur in the PC world, which is the end of the Windows and Intel, or Wintel monopoly. At the end of the is year, Microsoft is releasing Windows 8 with a new capability, Windows RT, and the ability here to run Windows on ARM is a very big opportunity for Nvidia. Whereas in the phone space, we are moving into the phone space and there are incumbents there, when it comes to Windows and PCs, welcome to Nvidia's home court. This is something we know very well and have done for many years."

This is naturally great news for anyone wanting to get their hands on a high end tablet for a low cost, but I have to wonder, how great can a 199 dollar quad core tablet be? If “lower cost components” will be used in building it, will it physcially feel cheap, or will the lower cost materials be components that are hard to notice when using it?

I also have a feeling that Nvidia’s focus on Windows 8 will be one of their main projects, as it does indeed open up new possibilities for them as a company. I just hope I’m wrong in thinking that Windows 8 tablets could potentially take over the tablet market. Lets just hope Google has something up its sleeve with the upcoming Nexus tablet. 

But one thing is certain: 2012 is certainly shaping up to be a great year for tablets.

Picture credits: www.technologytell.com, cdn1.sbnation.com (edited by myself)

AndroidPIT Blog

RUMOR: Google Releasing 5 Nexus Devices on November 5th!

RUMOR: Google Releasing 5 Nexus Devices on November 5th!

According to TalkAndroid, Google is preparing to release 5 Nexus devices directly from the Play Store starting November 5th. Why November 5th? Well, that happens to be Android's 5th birthday, making the offer quite fitting. 

Of course, at this point, this is all just a big fat rumor. But it would certainly be fitting, given the Nexus tablet rumor mill. TalkAndroid is claiming they've got an official source at the company who verified all this.

Rumor has it that all 5 devices will be running Android 5.0, codenamed Jelly Bean.

AndroidPIT Blog

RUMOR: Google Releasing 5 Nexus Devices on November 5th!

RUMOR: Google Releasing 5 Nexus Devices on November 5th!

According to TalkAndroid, Google is preparing to release 5 Nexus devices directly from the Play Store starting November 5th. Why November 5th? Well, that happens to be Android's 5th birthday, making the offer quite fitting. 

Of course, at this point, this is all just a big fat rumor. But it would certainly be fitting, given the Nexus tablet rumor mill. TalkAndroid is claiming they've got an official source at the company who verified all this.

Rumor has it that all 5 devices will be running Android 5.0, codenamed Jelly Bean.

AndroidPIT Blog

Apple: Oh, FYI, We Store and Sell What You Say to Siri

Apple: Oh, FYI, We Store and Sell What You Say to Siri

This shouldn't really come as a surprise to anyone, but what happens between you and Siri doesn't stay between you and Siri. The ACLU just published a report on their website about how Apple's personal assistant sends our personal voice and user info to Apple to stockpile in its databses. While Apple maintiains that this "Voice Input Data" is used to help Siri perform better, it's also used for "other Apple products and services." 

So what might Siri be storing? Oh, you know: your name, your parent's names, their addresses and phone numbers, song titles and playlists...anything really.

 If you're telling yourself "well, duh," I agree. This is the kind of thing I always figured was happening with a service like Siri. That said, I am surprised that not only is information sent to Apple but that Apple STORES this information and then (possibly) sells it to ANYONE.Now, unlike Google, Apple is NOT in the advertising business, primarily, so they have less of an incentive to sell your data than a company like Google. That said, they could really be doing anything with this data.

Given that the ACLU's report has made the front page of Reddit, I'd say it's pretty likely that a lot more people are going to be talking about what's going on with Siri and I'd expect Apple to respond in the coming days as well.

(Photo: CultofMac.com)

AndroidPIT Blog

Ten Things You Could Buy For The Price Of A Samsung Galaxy S3

Ten Things You Could Buy For The Price Of A Samsung Galaxy S3

 

800 dollars...let me write that again..eight...HUNDRED...dollars. That’s the current Amazon pre-order price of the newly arrived Samsung Galaxy S3. However badly you want the device, one thing is certain: 800 dollars is no small chunk of change folks. I know that most people will get it subsidized on a contract, but the fact of the matter is, there are a lot of people that are prepared  to (and will) spend this amount of money on the phone. Now make no mistake, I LOVE Android phones and Android tablets, and I love playing with new electronic toys that hit the market. I threw money at Samsung for my G alaxy Nexus and for my recently retired Galaxy Tab 10.1, and I can say without hesitation that their products are top notch. That being said, do you actually know what you can buy for 800 dollars? Can anyone really justify shelling out almost a GRAND for a phone?

This article is for anyone who is currently debating on paying that price for this device, and before you do that, I urge you to have a look at 10 things I have found that you can get for the same price (and cheaper) as the Galaxy S3 off contract. After reading it, let me know in the comments if you still feel that this phone is worth this amount of bank.

CyberpowerPC Gamer Xtreme Computer - Price: $ 768.00

For even less than the price of a Galaxy S3, you can get your hands on this beastly gaming computer. Intel I5 quad core processor, GeForce GTS 430, 8 gigs of DDR RAM, 1 Terabyte hard drive, and Windows 7 included. This computer would certainly bring lots of joy to gamers, and you could always upgrade by simply replacing the parts (PC can be purchased here). Speaking of gamers...

Xbox 360 with Kinect + PS3 with Call of Duty 3 + Nintendo Wii Black Edition with Mario Kart - Total Price for all 3: $ 768.22

You’re reading that right. For LESS than the price of a Galaxy S3, you can buy ALL THREE consoles with games and accessories and still have cash left over. That’s EVERY home gaming console on the market for the price of 1 phone. A gamers dream I tell you (PS3 here, Xbox 360 here, Wii here)...But what if gaming isn’t your thing?...

PRS SE "Tremonti" Paul Reed Smith - Price: $ 565.00

Mark Tremonti has been recently voted one of the greatest guitarists of all time (Creed & Alterbridge lead guitarist) and this is a verion of his guitar with Mark's stamp on it. More than 200 dollars cheaper than the phone, and something that will last you for life. I play the guitar myself, and I can tell you that for this price, you are getting a seriously good electric guitar. If you're interested, it can be purchased here for a limited time. 

Three Day Trip To Las Vegas For 2 People With Flight And Hotel Included - Total Price for 2 People: $ 765.15

Oh yeah. Vegas baby. As you can see from this offer on Expedia, you get a package for 2 people including flight and hotel for a weekend trip to the City of Sin. You will naturally require additional funds for all the corruption Vegas has to offer, but the fact that the flight and accommodations for this trip for 2 are covered for almost 40 dollars cheaper than the phone really makes you put things in perspective a bit.

ROLEX TUDOR SOLID 9CT GOLD 15 RUBIES - Price: $ 513.44

If you’re a watch lover, then you could be the proud owner of this Rolex made watch for almost 300 dollars cheaper than what you would pay for  the GS3. A great gift from a company with a hell of a reputation for quality. If you're interested, it can be purchased for a limited time here. 

Jacuzzi 7263959WH Nova 6 Acrylic - Price: $ 733.57

This one is pretty crazy as well. For almost 70 dollars less than the S3 (minus installation of course), you and your lady could get this beautiful Jacuzzi installed in your bathroom, which would provide you with a LIFETIME of romance and relaxation. It also looks pretty freakin BOSS as well. If you're interested, it can be purchased here.

NEW A-10 Warthog Remote Control Electric RC Fighter Jet - Price: $ 645.95

I had to laugh at this one, but it’s just too cool for my immaturity to ignore. For less than the price of a Galaxy S3, you can own a freakin twin engine remote controlled fighter jet. Baller? Indeed it is. These things are so much fun to fly, and are not only a blast for adults, but are a great way for dads to bond with their teenagers :-) Twin engine remote control fighter jet = WIN. If you're interested, the jet can be found here. 

2010 Coolster Atv's Mountopz 110 - Price: $ 685

SCORE! Took me a while to find this one, but for over 100 dollars less than an S3, you can have your very own 2010 Coolster quad. It’s used, but this particular model is known for being a great beginner ATV. Fun? You have absolutely no idea....The ad for it can be found here.

HTC One X - Price: $ 584.76

Naturally, if you’re looking for a quad core phone, there’s always the HTC One X. Packing a Tegra 3 processor, a beautiful display, very solid build quality, and the best camera I have ever used on a smartphone, it will cost you over 200 dollars LESS than the quad core Galaxy S3. You can get your hands on it for this price here. 

LG 32LM6200 32-Inch Cinema 3D Smart TV - Price: $ 649.99

This one is a whammy. For 150 dollars less than a Galaxy S3, you could have a new LG 32 Inch 1080P Full Hd Smart TV including 6 pairs of 3D glasses. Do I need a 3D TV? No. Do I want one? Hell yes. If you're interested, you can pick it up at that price here. 

Bottom Line

So there it is folks. Whether you love phones, gaming, computers, musical instruments, outdoor fun, traveling, luxury items, or TV's, there certainly are lots of cool things you can buy for 800 dollars. That being said, that 800 bucks would also get you one of the best and most powerful smartphones in the business, and it will without a doubt be the Android phone to have in 2012. Is it expensive? Umm...yeah. Will I still get one? Well...yeah. :-)

Either way, if you do decide to get it, I'm sure Sammy and all the carriers working with them will give you plenty of options to get this powerful device very cheap on a subsidized plan. Gotta love subsidization and monthly financing, right? :)

Bring on the S3!!!

Picture credits: Amazon, Ebay, Expedia, and carsunder1000dollars.us

(Prices and availablity of these items are subject to change, but were for the quoted prices when I researched the article today).

AndroidPIT Blog

BREAKING: Android Did NOT Infringe On Oracle Patents

BREAKING: Android Did NOT Infringe On Oracle Patents

We have been reporting a lot recently on the trial of Google vs Oracle, as it was undoubtedly one of the biggest trials directly relating directly to Android that Google has faced. Oracle argued that Android infringed on multiple Java patents, and Google was literally faced with having to pay hundreds of millions of dollars worth of damages. Well the verdict is now in and the jury is being dismissed. The verdict? Not guilty. That’s right folks. The court/jury have determined that Google and the Android operating system did NOT infringe on Oracle patents.

WIN. The jury had been back and forth on this one, and they did find that an infringement had taken place. In the end though, the jury couldn’t agree on a verdict and was split, which could have then led to a mistrial. That was phase 1.

Phase 2 involved copyright infringement issues, which was the focus of the hearing today.The jury was unanimous today in their decision, and agreed that Google did not infringe on the 6 claims that Oracle accused them of. As those claims have now been dropped, the damages Google would have been liable for now also seem, at this point, to be null and void.

This does not mean that the end decision has been decided once and for all, but instead marks the end of the patent infringement phase of the trial. 2 down, 1 to go.

The issue of fair use is now what’s in question, as the jury could not come to a decision as to whether Google’s actions were covered under fair use or not. So at this point, although Oracle did “win” the copyright case, they have no way to collect the 1 billion dollars in copyright claims.

Legal reported Ginny LaRoe tweeted that “The trial is over. Judge Alsuup dismissing jury. Since Oracle won virtually nothing, no damages phase at this point”.

A final ruling from Judge Aslup is expected next week. Google was obviously very pleased with the verdict, and stated:

"Today's jury verdict that Android does not infringe Oracle's patents was a victory not just for Google but the entire Android ecosystem”.

It sure is great to see that Google can defend Android in the patent wars, and I hope that they aren’t faced with any other trials anytime soon. But we’re not holding our breath on that one.

This verdict certainly is a great one for Google, and it’s great to know that Android devices won’t be getting pulled from any shelves.

Picture credits: androidheadlines.com

AndroidPIT Blog

Motorola Is Now Officially Owned By Google...Now What?

Motorola Is Now Officially Owned By Google...Now What?

 

After months of review by regulators in the US, Europe, and Asia, Google’s purchase of Motorola Mobility has finally been approved and officially completed. Google, the world's most popular search engine and owner of the world's most popular mobile operating system now officially owns one of the hardware pioneers of the mobile industry. The question is, what happens now?

A Complex Situation

While Google’s 12.5 billion dollar purchase certainly brings a lot in the way of patent protection and hardware development for the Android platform, the route they could initially go with the company might not be exactly what you would expect. At first glance, you might be thinking:

“Google, a software company that has global marketshare for smartphones, now has their own hardware company! This is brilliant!”.

Unfortunately, it’s not that simple, and for a number of reasons. While it might make sense to use your own hardware company to optimize your own mobile software, Google must tread very carefully now. Samsung, the biggest Android manufacturer also depends on Android (for now) for their mobile devices. HTC, Sony, and LG do as well, and those are just the tier 1 companies that currently release devices regularly. Acer, Asus, Intel, Huawei, and lots of other companies also use/will use Android for their smartphones, and the last thing they want is for Google to play favorites when it comes to Android.

The Danger of Playing Favorites

If that were to happen, Samsung for example (who sell hands down more Android devices than all other manufacturers) might just say “***k you Google” and develop their own mobile operating system. After all, they have the mass majority of Android phone buyers in their left pocket, and market aggressively enough to carry over a big portion of Galaxy series owners if they had too. What’s to stop HTC or LG from doing the same?

Google does have options though, and their latest move in changing their Android strategy by pushing out multiple Nexus devices is a great first step. Basically, if Google does decide to have a flagship Nexus device for Sammy, Moto, HTC, LG, and Sony, and if they would all be sold directly through the Google Play Store worldwide, not only is it good for Google, but good for OEMs. This way, they all have a Nexus device running stock Android, which makes updating their other devices easier and provides consumers with more choice. Because of that, Google could certainly use Motorola to finally develop a Nexus phone with software optimized for their own hardware, as they aren’t playing favorites with their source code if everyone receives it at the same time (why do I have a feeling it won't be that simple?).

The Next Level

For me, this represents a huge chance for the next evolutionary phase of Android, as they are now for the first time on a level playing field with Apple in terms of development. That being said, Google will have to play it safe for a while to keep OEMs calm, so I wouldn’t expect anything too major coming directly from Motorola in 2012. Lots of people disagree with me on this, but I strongly believe that patents wasn’t the only reason Google spent 12.5 billion on this company. Of COURSE they're going to use them. Google not using a mobile hardware manufacturer for Android is like McDonalds buying a 12.5 billion dollar tomato farm, but then still depending on everyone else to send tomatoes to put on their Big Macs. Doesn’t make much sense does it?

If all OEMs do indeed get a Nexus phone this year, my money is on the Motorola Nexus device. Whether the public will see it that way is yet to be seen.

What do you guys think? Will Google use Moto to their full potential, or will they act like they didn’t just spend 12.5 billion dollars on a hardware company?

Let us know what you think in the comments below!

Picture credits: www.enter.co

AndroidPIT Blog

Endless Love: Android's Top 4 Tennis Apps

Endless Love: Android's Top 4 Tennis Apps

The French Open is just days away and the tennis buffs are already getting excited. While it's perhaps not the most popular sport in the States, tennis has a thoroughly enthused fanbase. Are you a true tennis fan? Then dive in and explore the top 10 tennis apps with us here at AndroidPIT.

Roland-Garros® 2012

With the official app of the French Open, you can virtually visit the stadium, challenge friends and share your top players. Track qualifications and match scores, standings, statistics and more. You can even watch recaps on DailyMotion. Download Roland Garros 2012 here. 

Tennis Math

 

Tennis Math is a free app for the whole family. It analyzes your scores to determine your strengths and weaknesses. This app is ideal for tennis players, coaches, parents and anyone interested in playing a better game.

 

Cross Court Tennis

Cross Court Tennis is a 3D tennis game which costs $ 1.99. You control your swing by swiping your finger. Gameplay is super fun and exciting. I like!

Lien vers la vidéo

Virtual Table Tennis 3D

Another 3D sports game, Virtual Table Tennis is one of the most downloaded-apps on Google Play, and for good reason; it's a free, exciting 3D game with 30 levels and great graphics. Table tennis, as all the experts know, is where you can get the hang of the game before graduating to the big net. 

 

AndroidPIT Blog

New Android App Measures Smartphone Radiation Levels

New Android App Measures Smartphone Radiation Levels

While researchers are still divided as to whether or not increased cell phone use actually leads to brain cancer, there's been enough conflictual evidence to cause many phone owners to worry. Tawkon, a new Israeli start-up, wants to make it easier for users to track their cell phone radiation levels and reduce their fears. The company just launched a radiation-monitoring app on Google Play and we had a chance to take a look at it.

Since there's no Geiger counter installed on anyone's smartphone, Tawkon uses information on how far you are from the nearest cell phone tower in order to determine how much radiation you are being exposed to. For instance, a weak network signal means your phone has to boost its radio frequency output in order to make and receive call. Tawkon uses data from your network, signal strength, phone model and other data to predict when your phone is experiencing a spike in RF output. Their algorythm has been approved by electormagnetic-field-testing company Satimo for being almost as effective as walking around with massive raditation monitoring equipment. 

For an app that is basically telling you when your phone has transformed itself into a death-ray machine, Tawkon has a surprisingly cheery interface. There are no red warning lights or nuclear meltdown sirens. A friendly window opens when Tawkon has determined that phone radiation levels are high, urging you to wear an earpiece, and that's about it. 

According to Tawkon, it's rare for radiation levels to be high. About 90% of the time, your phone emits a low amount of radiation. But during that critical 10%, when radiation levels are high, it may be wise to wear an earpiece. Tawkon also has a number of other features, some of which are useless. There's a bogus social-media function that allows you to share your radiation levels with friends and share tips with them. But, in general, I don't think these strange features detract from the overall usefulness of the app. 

Whether or not phone radiation causes cancer is still an open question, but there's no question our phones emit radiation. Even if you think your brain is safe, it doesn't hurt to know when your risk levels are highest. After a rocky beginning (the app was initially banned by Apple's App Store), I think tawkon has a bright future.

(Top photo: WIRED.com)

AndroidPIT Blog

Innovation Vs Improvement: What's Next For Smartphones? Part 1

Innovation Vs Improvement: What's Next For Smartphones? Part 1

 

There's no doubt that 2012 has been a huge year for Android smartphones. Not only have they gotten lighter, thinner, bigger, wider, and sleeker, they have also gotten faster, extremely powerful, and more feature packed than ever before. Smartphones now feature quad core processors, NFC chips, beautiful AMOLED displays, projectors, talking assistants, and many are even in some ways more powerful specwise than a lot of PC’s were 5 or 6 years ago!

But with all the powerful hardware and amazing apps and features, what will be the next big leap in innovation for smartphones? Does it make sense to focus on innovating more in terms of hardware and software, or is it smarter to focus on improving existing technology first? What hasn’t been done yet, and what can we look forward to seeing in smartphones in the future? In part 1 of this 2 part article, we’ll firstly focus on existing features that could be improved within Android.

Improving Existing Software/Hardware Vs Developing New Technology

To illustrate my point, have a look at the picture of the 2 motorcycles above. The one on the left is a classic example of newly created innovation. This Tomahawk Viper motorcycle is a massive powerhouse, with a 500 horsepower V10 engine, 4 wheels, and costs over half a million dollars. Hardware wise, this thing is an absolute beast.

But now have a look at the bike on the right. Looks like a simple dirt bike right? This much more simple looking device is the Zero X, and is a clear example of not only innovation, but of improvement to existing capabilities. This bike, although simple looking, offers the worlds “best acceleration, agility, and durability” of any bike on the market. It runs on a lithium battery, runs completely silent, is very easy to maintain due to the absence of oil or gas, can ride on almost any terrain, and allows you to completely customize your riding experience. This one doesn’t cost half a million either, but rather $ 6,900 dollars.

So which is “cooler”? Which is more useful? Which is more appealing to consumers,... the innovation, or the improved existing technology? Or a combination of both perhaps?

Android devices are certainly beefy when it comes to specs, and Android as an operating system has improved by leaps and bounds. But this certainly doesn’t mean there’s no room for improvement. Quad core processors power smartphones now, yet Android can still run laggy even on the newest devices. Facial recognition and voice activated features also function on smartphones, but they still aren’t at a point to where consumers can take full advantage of them on a daily basis. So while powerful hardware and innovative features are present in smartphones, wouldn’t it be wiser to focus more on improving existing technology vs creating new technology? After all, what’s the use in spending time, money, and developer resources developing specific features if only the minority of consumers end up using them?

Good Technology Vs Great Technology

Talking assistants are a great example here. While Google Voice, Siri, S-Voice, Vlingo, and many others are certainly good at performing lots of tasks, the majority of people with access to these services don’t use them that often. Does that mean they aren’t good? Certainly not. What it means is that in order to attract more consumer usage of this feature, it needs to be implemented in a way that is more USEFUL to consumers. In order for that to happen, a lot more development is needed in order to bring these apps from “cool” to “can't live without it” status. 

Remember on Star Trek how the voice computer functioned on the entire series? Everyone depended on it. Do I think voice assistants could work that well in the future? I certainly do. Do I think people would use the feature more if it did? You bet. Do I think it will happen anytime soon? That’s very hard to say. As the focus of OEMs seems to be more on hardware and software development vs improvement, right now it seems like more of a race to have the same features (or slightly better) than competitors vs focusing less on new technology to streamline the existing software that is already there. Only time will tell if this mentality will shift a bit more towards streamlining in favor of creating. If that would ever happen, maybe we would finally see a battery that would last us a week instead of a day, which is a pretty much ignored topic that consumers have been bringing up for years.

Perfect Your Concepts Before Creating More?

This is a subject I could go on and on and on about, but I think you get the jist of it. New technology should always and will always come, but shouldn't perfecting what you already have take more priority if potential is already present?

What do you guys think? Should Android slow down in terms of “new” and focus more on perfecting the “old”? Let me know what you think in the comments below.

Stay tuned for part 2 of this article, where we’ll touch on a few more improvement points, along with what new technology and features could be the next big thing for smartphones.

Picture credits: www.allpar.com and cdn.uberreview.com (edited by myself)

AndroidPIT Blog

Uppidy App Allows Bosses to Monitor Employee Text Messages

Uppidy App Allows Bosses to Monitor Employee Text Messages

A new app that automatically backs up texts in a cloud could be used by employers to peer into the lives of their employees. The SMS app, called Uppidy, was created by a team of developers in Washington D.C. who wanted to provide a quick and easy way to store text messages for later perusing. Uppidy is already being used by a corporation to back up and monitor 500 corporate-owned phones, and the developers are fielding requests from other Fortune 100 companies.

But before you start having 1984 flashbacks, you should know that the app requires user confirmation in order to operate. With Android and Blackberry, users must download an app to their phone and on an iPhone the app requires synchronization with an iTunes account. So it would be hard for a company to be tracking their employees covertly, since the app would be plainly visible on the homescreen. 

What non-creepy reasons might a company have to spy like this? Corporations often need to save official electronic communication for e-discovery purposes, such as when companies are required to turn over electronic communication as part of legal proceedings. That sounds a little better, doesn't it? Still, it probably provides cold comfort for anyone looking to chat with friends or a girlfriend on a company phone.

Uppidy doesn't think employees using company-sponsored should expect privacy in the first place.  "I would argue that if it's a corporate-sponsored device, and the user doesn't expect the company to be looking at everything on the device, they're crazy," the founder of Uppidy was quoted. Lesson?  You may want to re-think inter-office sexting.

AndroidPIT Blog

Innovation Vs Improvement: What's Next For Smartphones? Part 2

Innovation Vs Improvement: What's Next For Smartphones? Part 2

 

There's no doubt that 2012 has been a huge year for Android smartphones. Not only have they gotten lighter, thinner, bigger, wider, and sleeker, they have also gotten faster, extremely powerful, and more feature packed than ever before. Smartphones now feature quad core processors, NFC chips, beautiful AMOLED displays, projectors, talking assistants, and many are even in some ways more powerful specwise than a lot of PC’s were 5 or 6 years ago!

But with all the powerful hardware and amazing apps and features, what will be the next big leap in innovation for smartphones? Does it make sense to focus on innovating more in terms of hardware and software, or is it smarter to focus on improving existing technology first? What hasn’t been done yet, and what can we look forward to seeing in smartphones in the future? In part 1 of this article, we touched on what can be improved and why maybe that should take priority over new creations. In this article, we will continue to discuss improvements, but will also get into what the next big things for smartphones could be. 

Beefier Hardware Doesn’t Mean Better Software Performance

What’s the point of buying a phone with 4 processors inside if lag still exists when using the device? When consumers walk into a store to get a smartphone or tablet, they assume that 4 processors would provide double the power than 2. Makes sense right? Sure, but that’s not actually how it works. My Transformer Prime runs 4 cores that I have overclocked to 1.8Ghz each. But if I open my System Tuner Pro app and go to the CPU section, you can see that only 1 of the 4 processors is actually online, meaning that in normal day to day use, only 1 core is being utilized by Android. The other cores will only kick in if I’m running a graphic heavy application that’s optimized to take advantage of the 4 cores, meaning that in most cases, unless you play a lot of games or do lots of video editing, you will seldom actually use all 4 processors. This is a feature and not a bug, as having all 4 cores run would quickly drain my already fragile battery. So if you don†™t play a lot of games, does the beefier hardware actually pay off?

Those 4 cores certainly won’t make screen scrolling faster, which is one of my biggest pet peeves with Android. Yes it’s smooth for the most part, but scrolling still isn’t as smooth as it is on IOS or on the newest Windows Phones. This is in part due to Android’s advanced multitasking/memory allocation, along with the amount of widgets that I personally use. But why not find a way to use the extra hardware to be more useful in day to day tasks? For me, if I have 4 processors in my phone/tablet, I should be able to have as many widgets and tasks running in the background that I want and see very very minimal amounts of lag. Unfortunately, this is not the case (more RAM please). Android specifically has a long way to go in optimizing hardware for their own software, which I hope that Google’s acquisition of Motorola will be useful for. When that acquisition finally closes in the next few days, I would love to see Google and Motorola concentrate on optimization rather than on new technology.

Low End Device Performance

It shouldn’t be that high end devices are tweaked the most for performance. Nowadays, a single core device is looked down on as being old and outdated, which is actually a silly mentality. Lots of consumers purchase low to mid end devices, and they also deserve a great experience for their money. When my Prime is only running one core with all others offline, you would be very surprised how well it can work. So that means that any device with a 1Ghz processor (or even a bit lower, as Apple and Microsoft have proved) and a gig of RAM should have the potential to perform smoothly. The issue here is that these devices are often not updated to newer versions of Android. While I do understand that not every device will always be able to support newer software, this trend should actually slowly start to change.

As the standard for high end devices slowly change to quad core architecture, “low end” single core devices should also have the possibility to receive new Android updates, even if those updates require tweaking or modifying for older devices. Internal memory always comes into play here, and what would be nice is to see even low end devices coming with enough internal storage for updates, which naturally provides a better experience. This would naturally require more work for Google and OEMs, but more work is what the most used mobile OS in the world requires, and I know for a fact that the resources are there. What’s missing is the strategy on how to implement it.

The Next Big Thing

So, with massive processors, cameras getting better and better, amazing screens, voice activated features, gps navigation, facial recognition, and so much more...what is the next big thing for smartphones? What’s left to do that hasn’t already been done? Is there anything left?

The human mind works in incredible ways, and I can promise you right now that there are endless possibilities of what can be done with smartphones and tablets. For me personally, the next big things in smartphones would be month lasting batteries (the technology is there) and fingerprint proof (not resistant, but proof) screens for phones and tablets. These 2 features alone would be a huge hit with consumers, and I certainly hope that we’ll see them in the future. In terms of hardware, LG released a game changer this year by releasing the first phone with 2 gigs of RAM. While that may not sound so game changing, I have been waiting to see this for a long time, and am very anxious to see how the extra memory (double that of any other Android phone) could have an impact on daily performance.

But maybe you’re thinking that those 2 things, while cool, arent the next BIG thing. Maybe you had bigger plans in mind. Well, I have a few ideas myself...

The Future Isn't Computers, But What They Can Do

Turning on your car (and car heater) via voice recognition from your phone for example. The technology is there, and some people can even control their entire house from a tablet. Why not take it to the next level? Naturally, you’re phone getting hacked would be the issue here, but I like the thought of never having to keep track of my house or car keys. Also, imagine being able to track and completely stop you’re stolen car all from your Android phone? Again, the technology is there (perhaps it already exists?).

Imagine this scenario: You get called away on a 3 day business trip suddenly and have no time to find someone to watch your cat while you’re gone. Imagine an application that would allow you to view the contents of your cat's water and food bowl via an installed camera in your house, which would let you see how much food was remaining. If empty, a simple press/ hold of a button would release more water and food to your cat through a tube, and after releasing the button, it would stop. I'm not encouraging a way to leave your pet alone, but it could certainly come in handy on short notice. 

Silly right?  What about this one: You’re on an airplane and suddenly something happens to the captain that hinders him from landing the plane. What if an application existed that would allow a passenger to confirm that a problem has occured with traffic control. They then verify they have lost contact with him, and could then grant him control of the plane's steering via his device? Then an “autoland” at “X” location function could allow him to land the plane via an "autopilot algorithum" in an emergency. Silly? Perhaps! But with the right developers working on it? Hmm..

Bottom Line

Maybe you thought this article would be all about what new crazy hardware you can stick in a cell phone or tablet. If so, I apologize for this very long read :-D. As you can see from my very silly ideas, most of what I think would be big innovation comes in the way of applications, not hardware. Hardware will always improve, processors will get bigger, and things will get faster. This is a pretty much a given, as what you can stick in a phone or a computer will contantly get bigger and faster.  To make me a happy consumer, optimize my already great hardware for the software that already I have, improve quality before concentrating on quantity and new technology (that goes for updates and low end devices), and give app developers an easier way to innovate application wise. Computers will always improve, and for me personally,  the future is not what they have on the inside, but what they are capable of doing on the outside. It's how those capabilites can assist us in real life that in my eyes will bring the biggest innovation to the mobile and PC industry. 

What do you guys think? Where do you see smartphones going, and what are some ideas you have for the future?

AndroidPIT Blog

Google's Motorola Acquisition Finalized, New CEO Named

Google's Motorola Acquisition Finalized, New CEO Named

Google has finally completed their purchase of Motorola Mobility today for a cool $ 12.5 billion in cash eight months after the buyout was first announced. The acquisition was formerly held up by government approval processes (most recently China). 

Now, as expected, Motorola's CEO Sanjay Jha is stepping down and Google's own Dennis Woodside will replace him. Previously, Woodside was the president of Google's Americas region, although he's also worked in deals across the Middle East, Africa, Eastern Europe and Russia (In short, dude's got chops).

As you know, the Motorola deal is ginormous. The sheer size and scope of the buyout is baffling. The Motorola deal gives Google access to some 17,000 patents and another 7,500 pending patents across a range of technologies, including 2G, 3G, LTE and video decompression.

(Photo: Engadget.com) 

AndroidPIT Blog

Samsung Galaxy S3 Goodies Leaked -- Ringtones, Live Wallpapers + More

Samsung Galaxy S3 Goodies Leaked -- Ringtones, Live Wallpapers + More

 

If you'd like to install the newest aesthetic updates to Sammy's TouchWiz interface on your device, you're in luck. Users over at XDA developers have started taking apart the Galaxy S3 ROM and singling out ringtones, live wallpapers, notifications and alarms from the firmware you can install on your device. It's Galaxy S3 madness over here â€" and you don't need a rooted device to join in the fun!

Wallpapers

Sammy's newest static wallpapers for the Galaxy S3 are, as you probably guessed, heavily inspired by nature.  We're talking flowers, raindrops, dandelions and ponds, but there are also cool live wallpapers filled with dots you can customize and a "deep sea" live wallpaper featuring jellyfish. Take a look here:

Ringtones and Notifications:

Sammy's ringtones are also heavily inspired by nature (titles include "fog on water," "blowing dandelion seeds" and "rays of sun:" According to some commenters, a few of the ringtones "sound like Kenny G threw up," while others loved 'em. 

To download anything mentioned here, click on the source link below!

AndroidPIT Blog

Motorola's Crappy Response On Why Devices Aren't Being Updated To ICS

Motorola's Crappy Response On Why Devices Aren't Being Updated To ICS

 

It really baffles me sometimes how often big companies treat their customers like absolute CRAP, and if I were a Motorola customer who owned the Droid X2 or the Droid 3, I would take my phone, jump in my car, drive down to Motorola HQ, find the employee who issued this unbelievably crappy official statement, grab his wallet, take the price I paid for the device out of his wallet, leave the phone on his desk, "persuade“ him to get in my car, drive to Google HQ (as they now own Motorola), walk in with the Motorola employee, find the customer relations department manager, make the Motorola employee tell the Google manager exactly what he said to consumers without changing a word of his statement, and then watch his reaction to see what Motorola's new owner thought about how he relays information.

What am I on about? The extremely craptastic response that Motorola gave to consumers in regards to why multiple devices aren't being updated to ICS. 

Owners of the Droid X2 and Droid 3 have probably noticed that they haven't seen an update to ICS, and now it appears that it won't ever happen, as Motorola's update schedule did not list these devices (and others) as being scheduled for the udpate. Fair enough. Maybe they are a bit too old (dual core isn't too old in my book) or have minimum hardware requirements that aren't met for the update (ah common..even low end devices can run ICS). But I do understand that it certainly can happen. But lets have a look at what Motorola had to say when asked about it:

“You may be wondering why all devices aren’t being upgraded to Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich). Here’s the deal. We work very closely with Google and cell phone carriers for every software update. And, obviously we want the new release to improve our devices. If we determine that can’t be doneâ€"well then, we’re not able to upgrade that particular device.”

That's it? Really Motorola? Well, to quote you're language, "here's the deal“: If the update can't take place, why not word it a bit like this:

"Dear customers. We have received many questions in regards to specific Motorola devices not receiving the update to Android 4.0, and wanted to touch base with users of our products to provide an explanation. Motorola works very closely with Google and phone carriers, and we work very hard to make sure that all compatible devices can receive Android updates. Unfortuantely, sometimes we are restricted by factors such as memory, processors, additional hardware, and carrier integration that can at times cause compatibility issues with certain devices and the newest version of Android. We obviously want to do our very best to improve our devices and to bring our consumers the newest software when it arrives, but unfortunately in the case of the Droid X2 and Droid 3, multiple incompatibility issues have led us to determine that these 2 devices will unfortunately not be able to receive the update to Android 4.0.

We deeply apologize for the inconvenience to owners of these devices, and encourage you to check our update schedual for devices that are planned to receive the Ice Cream Sandwich update. If you happen to own one of  the devices not scheduled for the update, we encourage you to have a look at the option of unlocking your bootloader and rooting your device, as there are multiple developers who have worked very hard to bring fully functional versions of Ice Cream Sandwich to these particular phones. We do naturally understand that this may not be the most practical solution, and will do our very best to ensure that we can update as many devices as possible in the future. Motorola is commited to the satisfaction of our customers, so please feel free to contact our customer support line if you have additional questions“.

Seriously Motorola, the last thing I expected to hear from the company Google just bought is that "if that can't be done, well then, we can't do it“. It's not always WHAT you're saying, but HOW you say it, and if you're the company that's supposedly going to help bring Android to the next level, you should do some major work on your people skills.

Picture credits: www.toonpool.com (edited by myself)

AndroidPIT Blog

Galaxy S3 Smart Stay: Anyone Else Slightly Disturbed By this Feature?

Galaxy S3 Smart Stay: Anyone Else Slightly Disturbed By this Feature?

Smart Stay is a new feature on the Galaxy S3 that turns off the phone when you're not staring at it. The feature seems to work VERY well, as you can see in the demo below. But how are we all not just the tiniest bit freaked out that Samsung will now be tracking our faces every time we stare into the screen of the Galaxy S3?

Granted, I have never played around with the Galaxy S3. I do not know if the facial recognition software simply tracks my eyeballs or somehow takes continues shots of my entire face. But when app developers are getting run out of town for installing facial recognition technology in bars, perhaps this feature could lead to a backlash. Face Unlock is one thing; Smart Stay remains in operation the entire time you're using the device.

When you take a photograph and Samsung's sensor scans your friend's faces and sends them a copy of the picture, that's a conscious use of facial recognition technology. But when the technology is used all day long, I can't help but wonder what Samsung will be doing with all the information. I'm NOT saying they're up to anything sinister, just that it's a bit creepy.

What do YOU think?

AndroidPIT Blog

Best Android Apps for the Wait at Your Flight Gate

Best Android Apps for the Wait at Your Flight Gate

Bags checked, security cleared, gate found… all with an hour to spare.

Travelling can be a frantic experience, until quick lines or an unexpected delay has you at the gate, with time to kill. But thanks to your smartphone or tablet, the ‘hurry-up- and-wait’ doesn’t have to be a drag.

Whether you’re aiming for productivity or cures for boredom â€" here are the top six apps that will make your wait at the flight gate fly by â€" even if you won’t be flying anytime soon:

Tango Video Calls â€" Missing a friendly face during your travels? With Tango, make free phone and video calls over cellular networks (or Wi-Fi) to anyone who has Tango installed on their smartphone, tablet, or PC (which is pretty easy, since the app is free). Another new feature â€" free group video messaging to record and share videos with any of your contacts.

Pulse News â€" Stay on top of your favorite RSS feeds and web content, on and offline. Simply add the website feeds, scroll through content and share the best posts with social networks. With all of your go-to information in one place, staying informed on the road is a breeze.

FlightView Elite â€" Be the gatekeeper, plan out the wait with up-to-the-minute flight status information. See the location of your incoming aircraft so you can roam the terminal shops or hit the bathroom without worry. This combined with social sharing, integration with your calendar, and destination weather forecasts, creates an empowered flyer.

TuneIn Radio â€" Tunes from where you’re going or tunes from where you’re from â€" the TuneIn Radio app has over 50,000 stations and 1+ million on-demand programs to access. The streaming shows means local stations are available when you’re down the street, or half way around the world.

TuneIn Radio Free, $ 0.99TuneIn Radio. Browse and listen to radio â€" live, local and global. From RadioTime. Listen live to your favorite radio stations, DJs and programs and find new ones on local, global and Internet radio. Find your faves with over 40,000 channels of music, sports, news, podcasts and national networks like BBC, NPR, SWR. TuneIn for Android is powered by RadioTime. For an ad-free version try RadioTime.Share Android App Review

Evernote â€" Write and sync notes across all devices, save and share files, send tweets, capture photos… Evernote coins itself as an extension of your brain, and that’s exactly what it can be. This app can turn downtime at the gate into a productive wait.

Zamp (coming soon to Android!) â€" Catered to business travelers, Zamp connects air warriors with one another in real time. Share tidbits about traveling experiences and learn key information â€" such as the shortest security lines and which airport restaurant is the best. This bonus app was highly anticipated at SXSW this year, and its Android release is soon to come.

What apps do you use at the gate? Tell us in the comments below!

AndroidTapp » News

Five Of The Most Expensive Android Apps

Five Of The Most Expensive Android Apps

 

I don't know about you guys, but if I spend 10 or 15 dollars on an app, it had better be a DAMN good one. I buy a lot of apps for my phone and tablet, and normally they range between 79 cents to around 6 dollars. But after doing some research about some of the most expensive Android apps, I was pretty damn shocked to see how expensive some of these apps are! What really amazed me was how many iPhone apps I found that costed a cool THOUSAND dollars to download, and while I didn't find any that expensive for Android, I sure did find some very silly apps with an even sillier price tag. With that being said, here are 5 of some the most expensive Android apps currently on Google Play:

Vuvuzela World Cup Horn Plus

Price: $ 200

This application is a popular unofficial FIFA horn app that triggers a horn blast when you shake your phone. When you shake it again, the horn stops. When you touch and hold the screen whenever your favorite team scores, you can hear the announcer go crazy in celebration. Worth the money? You make the call :-D

Med School Loan Viewing App 1K

Price: $ 200

This one serves a better purpose than the World Cup Horn, but is still really on the pricey side. This application is used to view the total of a medical students loans. So if you're studying medicine in the US, you can use the application to get an idea of what type of debt you'll be looking at, and you can use it to help make the public aware of medical student debt. Any medical students out there that could afford this 200 dollar app?

Your Virtual Trainer â€" Advanced

Price: $ 199.99

I don't get this one at all. This physical fitness trainer app has apparently been priced so high on purpose in order to keep customers from downloading it (huh?). Weird thing is, the other "beginner" and "active“ versions of the app are also priced for 199.99. Don't know about you guys, but there's a lot of great fitness videos on Youtube (and on fitness websites), and my gym membership only costs me 20 Euros (25 US dollars) a month. Worth it?

Medicine Central

Price: $ 159.95

This is another app built for medical students and doctors, but this one is more of a mobile reference tool designed especially for physicians, residents, students, and nurses. It allows access to multiple resources on diagnosis and treatments for over 700 diseases and disorders, and is most likely a much more justifiable spend than the 200 dollar football horn. But that's just my opinion.

PcMapper Db

Price: $ 149

This application is designed to allow you to edit ESRI shapefiles on your Android device. I have no idea what that actually means, but this one actually seems like it could be useful for developers. It lets you import and export the ESRI shapefiles, manage feature attribute tablets in the SQLite database, search and label map by attributes, and a lot more. I have no idea what I just said, but if you have a clue, then maybe this app could be useful for you! :-D

Other notable mentions were Redtube Gold, GayTube Gold, and Let's Sext Premium, which are all porn apps that will cost you 100 dollars or more (none of these on Google Play).

Picture credits: www.inflexwetrust.com

AndroidPIT Blog

China Finally Clears Google/Motorola Deal, But There's A Catch

China Finally Clears Google/Motorola Deal, But There's A Catch

 

When Google first gobbled up Motorola for a whopping 12. 5 Billion dollars, the deal was swiftly approved by US and EU regulators. But China didn't give their approval on the deal right away, and took longer to make their decision than the US and EU. China has now given their stamp of approval for the deal, but they did it under one condition: Google must keep Android free and available to all OEMs without any "discrimination“ for five years.

I'm actually very surprised that China was the only country to stipulate this condition, as I feel it was not only clever, but very fair as well. China argued that Google's purchase of Motorola could provide other OEMs with an unfair advantage, and I believe that Google's decision to allow multiple OEMs to all release Nexus devices in the same year was a great move in easing those concerns.

When Google was asked about this subject, they responded that "Our stance since we agreed to acquire Motorola has not changed and we look forward to closing the deal". China's Ministry of Commerce went on to say that it was in alignment with demands from EU and US regulators in demanding that Google comply with existing obligations when it comes to working with Motorola, which calls on Google to be fair, reasonable, and nondiscriminatory. They also pointed out that the merger was restrictive on competition, especially since Android's majority marketshare makes OEMs rely heavily on Google.

As Google now has the blessing of the US, EU, and China, the deal is expected to be closed within the next few days.

What do you guys think? Was this a fair condition from China, and could it ease tension with OEMs in regards to Google playing favorites?

Let us know what you think in the comments below!

AndroidPIT Blog

Samsung Galaxy S3 Preorders: 9 Million And Counting

Samsung Galaxy S3 Preorders: 9 Million And Counting

 

Samsung has definetely been on a winning streak lately, and have even managed to become the worlds biggest smartphone marker in Q1 of 2012. That accomplishment speaks for itself, as dethroning Apple at anything is never an easy task. Adding to Samsungs streak of wins is their new flagship Samsung Galaxy S3, and although it's not even on sale yet, the 9 million preorders for the device certainly seems to be a good indicator that Samsung might just have another consumer hit on their hands.

9 million preorders from more than 100 global carriers were the numbers that Korea Economic Daily recently reported. Samsung is also apparently running at full capacity when it comes to shipping out smartphones, and are still managing to produce around 5 million units per month.

Samsung declined to comment on the report from the newspaper, but have stated that the Galaxy S3 would "substantially contribute“ to its second quarter earnings.

The device will make its debut in Germany on May 29th and will then roll out to other countries.

AndroidPIT Blog

US Court Orders HTC And Apple To Settlement Talks

US Court Orders HTC And Apple To Settlement Talks

 

Two days ago we reported that shipments of HTC One X and Evo 4G devices were confiscated at US Customs because of a ruling Apple won against HTC, and unfortunately for HTC, there's still no word on how long the devices will be held. Now it seems that a US court in Delaware has had enough of the patent insanity, as Apple and HTC have now been officially ordered to meet to discuss a potential settlment in this long running lawsuit. It's Android vs Apple round...I've actually lost count......

The HTC and Apple officials who attend the meetings must be high enough up the management ladder to make independant decisions, meaning that the courts do mean business when they say they want a settlment reached. The talks are scheduled to take place on August 28th, and will be overseen by Magistrate Judge Sherry R Fallon.

I still think this entire lawsuit is really silly, especially if you consider the "patent" that's actually in question here. I mean common...patenting the ability to dial a number in a web browser by pressing on it? With the way these lawsuits are currently going, it will just be a matter of time before Apple claims to own the patent for being able to turn a phone on and off. 

We'll keep you posted with more details as we receive them.

Picture credits: 2.bp.blogspot.com

AndroidPIT Blog

Smackdown Comparison: Samsung Galaxy S3 Vs HTC One X

Smackdown Comparison: Samsung Galaxy S3 Vs HTC One X

 

For anyone debating making the jump from a dual core phone to a quad core device this year, the question of whether to purchase the HTC One X or the newly announced Samsung Galaxy S3 is probably one that many people have asked themselves more than once. While both popular phones are running quad core chips, the devices themselves are very very different in a lot of different ways, which can make your purchase that much harder. Do you want the more premium feel of HTC, or does the lighter more plastic feel of Samsung products appeal more to you? Exynos processor Tegra 3? Sense 4.0 or Touchwiz 4.0? Which has a better user experience? All of these are factors that can influence your decision, and thankfully these 2 devices have been put head to head in a great comparison HTC One X Vs Galaxy S3 video that highlights many of their strengths and weaknesses.

The comparison video was shot by Phone Arena, and provides a very nice side by side look at features, UI, day to day functionality, speed, material, and much more. Anyone debating on buying one of these devices should definetely give it a look, as it touches on a lot of subjects that can make your buying decision a lot easier.

Before we get into the video, here is a quick spec rundown of both phones:

And here is the comparison video courtesy of Phone Arena:

What do you guys think? Which phone impresses you more? Or maybe there's another device that you're more interested in?

Let us know what you think in the comments below!

Picture credits: mobilenapps.com Youtube video link here.

AndroidPIT Blog

Angry Birds Heikki Set For June 18th Release

Angry Birds Heikki Set For June 18th Release

 

As if Rovio isn't doing good enough...as if the Finnish company isn't making enough bank and record profit...and as if there aren't already enough Angry Birds titles floating around right? Well, if it ain't broke, don't fix it, which is exactly what Rovio is apparently doing. Even though it was less than 3 months ago that we saw the newest Angry Birds entry (Angry Birds Space) come to the Play Store, Rovio is keeping to their roots and releasing an all new title next month (don't roll your eyes...No matter how tired of AB you say you are, MOST of you WILL end up downloading it :-D).

The newest title will be called Angry Birds Heikki, and is set to debut on June 18th, which is exactly one month from now. Rovio has already launched a teaser website for the upcoming game, and I'm very curious to see what type of a whacky twist the next interation of Angry Birds will have.

Heikki Kovalainen is one of the best Formula 1 drivers from Finland, and that in combination with the race flags shown on the teaser website are a pretty clear indication that in the next game, you will be firing birds into car windshields in the hope of causing massive multi-pileup destruction.....most likely....possibly......doubtfully.....

I actually have no idea, but one thing is certain: I will most likely download it and at some point in time, play it for a very long time.

I'll go ahead and say it now: Congrats to Rovio on another sure fire 20 million+ downloads. 

Picture credits: Ubergizmo

AndroidPIT Blog

WTF App of the Week: Jesus Christ Hyperspace

WTF App of the Week: Jesus Christ Hyperspace

 

We've brought you some pretty outlandish and ridiculous apps, but this week we've reached an entirely new level of cool. Let's be honest: we've dabbled in some immoral apps, so it's time we attoned for our sins with a Jesus-themed app. Ever thought it was possible to make something as cool as Mario except with a Jesus on jetpacks? Think again because this week's WTF App of the Week is: Jesus Christ Hyperspace. 

We've always thought we deserved at least PhD degrees in terms of our knowledge of ridiculous Android apps, but Jesus Christ Hyperspace went beyond our wildest dreams. The plot of the game couldn't be any more out there. Your goal is to try and get Jesus back to heaven in a spacesuit. Apparently, being the son of God doesn't give you the power to breathe in space (go figure). And while you're flying, don't forget to collect the cross-shaped coins like a real believer. Extra respect points to the developers for the cow-themed background.

Enjoy this serious case of WTF and consult our previous editions of WTF?! App of The Week. 

AndroidPIT Blog

WTF App of the Week: Jesus Christ Hyperspace

WTF App of the Week: Jesus Christ Hyperspace

 

We've brought you some pretty outlandish and ridiculous apps, but this week we've reached an entirely new level of cool. Let's be honest: we've dabbled in some immoral apps, so it's time we attoned for our sins with a Jesus-themed app. Ever thought it was possible to make something as cool as Mario except with a Jesus on jetpacks? Think again because this week's WTF App of the Week is: Jesus Christ Hyperspace. 

We've always thought we deserved at least PhD degrees in terms of our knowledge of ridiculous Android apps, but Jesus Christ Hyperspace went beyond our wildest dreams. The plot of the game couldn't be any more out there. Your goal is to try and get Jesus back to heaven in a spacesuit. Apparently, being the son of God doesn't give you the power to breathe in space (go figure). And while you're flying, don't forget to collect the cross-shaped coins like a real believer. Extra respect points to the developers for the cow-themed background.

Enjoy this serious case of WTF and consult our previous editions of WTF?! App of The Week. 

AndroidPIT Blog

HTC: The One X Memory Management Is No Bug, But Rather A Feature

HTC: The One X Memory Management Is No Bug, But Rather A Feature

 

For the past few weeks there has been lots of concerns in regards to how the worlds first Tegra 3 powered smartphone (the HTC One X) multitasks and manages memory. Users on XDA Developers and other forums have reported that the device is overly aggressive when it comes to closing apps running in the background, which seems to have an impact on overall experience. Some users on XDA even went as far as to say that the multitasking was "a joke“ on the new device, and that apps are completely removed from the cache after being closed for 30 seconds. That certainly doesn't sound like standard Android memory management, as its memory allocation has always been a unique strong point of Android devices. The good news is that HTC has responded, but it seems that their answer may have done a better job at creating more questions than providing answers.

When The Verge asked HTC directly about the issue that has obviously upset many „power users“ of the device, they received this reply:

"HTC is aware of some questions in the enthusiast community about how the HTC One X handles multitasking and memory management for background apps. We value the community's input and are always looking for ways to enhance customers' experience with our devices. That said, right now multitasking is operating normally according to our custom memory management specifications which balance core ICS features with a consistent HTC Sense experience“.

So what HTC is saying here is that not only has their skin (Sense 4.0) altered the look and user interface of Android, but it has also altered the mulitasking behavior. On the good side, it supposedly increases battery life. On the downside, it also effects Android's stock memory management, which is in my eyes core functionality and something that you need to be careful about touching. 

Is this a good or a bad thing? Depends on how you look at it I guess. It's definetely important that the battery life of a phone can reliably get you through the day. But it's also important, to me anyway, that one of the most powerful smartphones in the world manages memory better than phones less powerful...or am I seeing this wrong?

I guess it boils down to personal preference. I personally think it would have been better for HTC to speak on this issue BEFORE they released the phone, as users finding out about it this way only makes this "feature“ look more and more like a bug. After all, why purchase such a powerhouse of a phone if a cheaper dual core device can outperform it in terms of memory management?

What do you guys think? Did HTC handle this the wrong way by waiting until after the fact to mention this "feature“? Would you prefer the multitasking or the better battery life?

Let us know what you think in the comments below!

AndroidPIT Blog

WTF is Child Pornography Doing in Google Play?

WTF is Child Pornography Doing in Google Play?

The Google Play terms of service explictly outlaws any child pornography, but that doesn't stop suggestive apps with underage girls from falling through the cracks.

Today, while searching through new apps on Google Play, I came across a Japanese app that features underage girls in suggestive poses. I have reported the app to Google. But this app just goes to show that in the "open" world of apps Google has created, a lot of really bad things can still end up published.

The Google Play terms of service explictly outlaws any child pornography. The official terms of service read, "Google has a zero-tolerance policy against child pornography. If we become aware of content with child pornography, we will report it to the appropriate authorities and delete the Google Accounts of those involved with the distribution." But the app I found, I suppose, falls into a gray zone. While it's not outright porn, it contains suggestive pictures with girls who are clearly underage.

The app has been in the Google Play store since NOVEMBER 2011.

Now either Google hasn't received any complaints or they have deemed the app to be safe for download. But I don't understand how an app that shows an 11 year old girl in a bathing suit, or lying down and showing off her butt, or suggestively sucking on a bottle isn't deemed majorly creepy at Google. If Google were smart, they would have deleted the app over a year ago.

Reporting it wasn't easy. While on your phone, you can report or flag apps just by pressing a button, on the Google Play store you have to click the "help button," click "contact us," "Android apps," "Contact us" (again) and fill out a form under "report inappropriate app." The process takes far longer than necessary, and should be streamlined.

Google definitely needs to consider the fight against child porn apps to be much more worthwhile and create a better approval process to sift these apps out of the store before they get a chance for publication. As of now, simply including a button that reads "report this app" is a start, but in this case, Apple's App Store is way ahead. There are benefits to creating a constricted ecosystem. For one, child porn stays OUT.

AndroidPIT Blog