Tag Archives: Google Play

Linux

John Baer: Chromebook Pixel – The Saga Continues

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On Thursday February 21 Google pulled the curtain back on the much rumored Chromebook Pixel. Here are the specifications.

    Screen

  • 12.85″ display with a 3:2 aspect ratio
  • 2560 x 1700 at 239 PPI
  • 400 nit screen brightness
  • 178° extra-wide viewing angle

    • Inputs

  • Gorilla® Glass multi-touch screen
  • Backlit Chrome keyboard
  • Clickable, etched-glass touchpad
  • Integrated 720p HD camera

    • Size / weight

  • 297.7 x 224.6 x 16.2 mm
  • 3.35 lbs / 1.52 kg

    • Industrial design

  • Machined from anodized aluminum
  • Active cooling with no visible vents
  • ENERGY STAR® certified

    • CPU

  • Intel® Core™ i5 processor (Dual Core 1.8GHz)
  • Intel® HD Graphics 4000 (Integrated)

    • Ports

  • 2 x USB 2.0
  • mini display port
  • SD / MMC card reader

    • Memory

  • 4GB DDR3 RAM

    • Storage

  • One terabyte Google Drive cloud storage for three years
  • 32GB solid state drive (64GB on LTE model)

    • Audio

  • Combo headphone/mic jack
  • Built-in microphone array
  • Integrated DSP for noise cancellation
  • Powerful stereo speakers tuned for clarity

    • Connectivity

  • Dual-band WiFi 802.11a/b/g/n 2×2
  • Bluetooth® 3.0
  • Built-in LTE modem (LTE model)

    • Battery

  • Up to 5 hours of active use (59 Wh battery)

    • Suggested Retail Price

  • $1,299

The quality of the product is outstanding and I should be reaching for my plastic but I’m not. A ZNet blog post by James Kendrick states it best.

So Google’s wonderful display on the Chromebook Pixel had the desired effect on me. It made me want a great display, so I bought a 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina Display. I don’t think it ended quite the way Google hoped it would, though.

Why did Jim abandon the Pixel and spend $200 more for an Apple?

Perceived value.

  • Apple Brand
  • OS X
  • 2.5GHz dual-core Intel Core i5
  • 128GB flash storage
  • 7 hours of battery operation

In reality the price of the Pixel may very well be a great value for a laptop of this build quality, but the market expected something different. In my opinion priced at $699 or $799 sales would be viral and the Google Play store would be showing “Sold Out”.

Some things I would change to reach these price points.

  1. Replace Intel i5 with a low power ARM SoC (nVidia / Samsung / Qualcomm / LG / Others)
  2. As the product does not morph into a tablet, lose the touch screen
  3. Replace the anodized aluminum case with a stylish polycarbonate material
  4. Up battery operation to 7 hours

If the goal of Pixel was to make a statement the result has to be something different, something better, and something more affordable than a high end Ultra book or Mac book.

Hopefully the next round of Chromebooks will get there.

The post Chromebook Pixel – The Saga Continues appeared first on j-Baer.

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Source: FULL ARTICLE at Planet Ubuntu

Linux

Duane Hinnen: Android Virus Scare

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Today in my C programing class I thought I would try a new application I had installed C4Droid. After completing about half the installation the process stopped. I was then greeted with warnings that I had a virus. I did not get C4droid from some backstreet appstore, I installed it from the Google app store. I am in no way suggesting C4Droid is a virus. According to the Google Play store it has many happy users. I was prompted to install Armor for Android. Wanting to resolve the situation immediately I installed the app. I normally do not install applications without doing a little research on them. The situation seemed desperate though, I know I overreact. I installed Armor for Android and ran the scan. It said I had three threats. So I chose to remove the offending threats. Then i was greeted with a screen wanting my payment information. I was in class, did not have a a credit card on me, and besides I thought their must be a free open source alternative.

First I wanted to remove the Armor for Android. Turns out this app did not get installed through the Google Play store. This made its removal not as straight forward as i thought. Here is how I removed Armor for Android.

    1.Click Settings on your phone

    2.Then navigate to and click Applications

    3.Scrolling through the list of apps I found Armor for Android

    4.Clicking on the application brought me to a screen that offered the option to Uninstall the application.

    5.Clicking uninstall warned me ‘This application will be removed’, I then procedded to click OK.

    6.Fortunately this resulted in the desired outcome and the application was removed.

My experience did not end their, the Virus warnings continued to pop up at what seemed like an increasing rate.

The next thing I did was remove C4droid and a few other apps it had installed while it was trying to install C4Droid on my phone.

Once I got home and in front of my laptop I was able to spend some time looking for a free, although unfortunately not open source, solution to my problem.

Avast Mobile Security
Full-featured, best/top-rated Android antivirus & security app with malware protection (with USSD blocker). Their are also many other features some include a firewall, scheduled virus scans, SMS and call filter, and an anti-theft option which provides you remote options (via web portal or SMS commands) for locating and recovering your phone.

I installed the application from the Google Play store. After a quick registration I was able to scan my phones apps and SD card. Fortunately no viruses were detected.

Hope this helps anyone else who comes across this issue. Have you had a virus on your Android phone? How did you resolve it? Are their apps other then Avast you recommend?

…read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Planet Ubuntu

News, Politics, Government

Amazon Coins Will Be A Welcome Disruption To Android Developers

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By Ewan Spence, Contributor One area that immediately springs to mind is how Coins will interact with Kindle FreeTime. This is the service that provides a walled garden inside the Kindle Fire Android tablets and allows children to play and explore, with their parents reassured that they can’t run up bills or order anything from the Amazon store. I can easily see FreeTime having its own ‘balance’ driven by Amazon Coins purchased by the parents so children can have some digital pocket money to spend as they see fit, but only the fixed amount transferred into the FreeTime account by their parents. 200 coins a month, does that feel about right? It’s the options available to Amazon if they move Coins away from an alternative way to buy apps but start to provide developers tools to use Coins as an in-app currency that really interest me. I hope Amazon will make this as simple as possible for developers to use, and provide an SDK that will work over all Android devices (not just the Kindle Fire). If so they can provide developers an alternative to Google Play for in-app purchasing. While the exchange rate at the moment is set to 1 coin per US cent, I’m sure that there will be special offers and exchange rates to kick start the program. Amazon has shown before they’re happy to buy the hearts and minds of Android developers to get them coming through their stores. Competition is going to be good for the Android ecosystem, and Google Play against Amazon Coins for in-app purchasing is going to be an interesting struggle to watch. Amazon of course want to bring more developers to their attention, and be able to ensure the best apps are available in the Amazon App Store. The Amazon Coin SDK will give them another engagement opportunity, and data points for applications and techniques that are earning money. This increase of income streams might seem, in the short term, to be a problem for the users. After all, aren’t they going to be expected to pay more so developers see more money? That is true, but margins and profits in the mobile app space (especially on Android) are not stunning. Without revenue flowing to the developers, there will be no high quality app economy. In the long term, if Amazon Coins can reward developers while feeling fair to users encountering the service in their apps, then this is for the benefit of the whole app ecosystem on mobile devices. And another thought. Amazon Coins can potentially add more to Amazon’s bottom line than the conversion fee to move between the virtual currency and hard cash. People buying coins are unlikely to spend all the coins in one transaction. Which leaves Amazon with a nice cash pile of purchased but unspent coins. It might not start out large, but if Coins becomes established, with millions of users, expect Amazon to work this reserve for their benefit. As announced today, Amazon Coins is a one way street, to ‘load up’ an account that can be used to buy applications in the Amazon App Store. But let’s not skate to where the puck is, let’s skate to where Jeff Bezos‘ puck is going to be. Which is a time when Amazon will have a micro-currency established across the Android ecosystem, when developers have an attractive alternative that provides them a solid income stream, when users are encouraged to spend their money and reward the developers. That’s something I can see fitting in perfectly to Amazon’s ethos and strategy.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Forbes Latest

Computers

Microsoft can 'start printing money' once it launches Office for iOS

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“The day they introduce Office for iOS and Android, they’ll start printing money,” said Bob O’Donnell of research firm IDC. “But if they wait too long, they risk people finding alternatives, or workarounds.”Microsoft will reap a windfall of revenue as soon as it introduces versions of its Office productivity suite for iOS and Android, but that window of opportunity is quickly closing, an analyst said today.

Talk of Microsoft creating native apps for Apple’s iOS, which powers the iPad, and for Google’s Android, the operating system used by Samsung and most other tablet makers, has circulated for years. The speculation hit a high note last November when The Verge reported that Microsoft would release iOS apps for Word, Excel and PowerPoint in late February or early March 2013, followed in May by software for Android.

According to the report, the apps, collectively dubbed Office Mobile, would be offered free of charge on the iOS App Store and Google Play, but would only let users view documents. To enable editing and other functions, such as printing, customers would have to link the apps to an Office 365 subscription.

tablets

Revamped Office 365 plans are to launch alongside Office 2013, which may debut as early as next week.

To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Source: FULL ARTICLE at PCWorld

Linux

Quad-core Android SmartTV on a stick

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By finid

A new USB stick-sized Android SmartTV from Sanko Co., Ltd of Japan features a quad-core 1.2 GHz Freescale i.mx6 processor. I think that’s more power than any other device of its type that I’ve come across.

With it, you can turn any TV with the right connectivity into an Android device or TV.

It supports Google Play, Japanese input (it’s from a Japanese company), plays most popular audio and video files, and comes with all the accessories you need, all for ¥14,800 or $167.00 USD.

It has 8 GB of storage, expandable to 32 GB via the microSD slot. It also features:

  • Android 4.0 ICS
  • Vivante GC2000 GPU
  • microUSB, USB host, microSD connectivity
  • 1 GB memory
  • Supports full HD, 1080p (1920×1080 pixel) video
  • Wireless 802.11 b/g/n
  • 8 GB storage with only 5 GB of free space available for use. (about 2 GB ~ 3 GB used for system)
  • Accessories: 5V/1.5 A AC power supply, HDMI cable and microUSB cable included
  • USB host allows connecting mouse, keyboard, and USB hub
  • Bluetooth
  • Supports Google Play
  • Size – 10 (mm) 38 × depth 102 × height width and weighs just 45g

The comany does not have a North American distributor, so the trick, if you want one, is trying to figure out how to get it. Here are a few screen shots.
AndroidQuadCore

AndroidQuadCore

AndroidQuadCore1

More info here (in Japanese).

Source: FULL ARTICLE at LinuxBSDos

Video Gaming

Pebble Watch Now Shipping, Mobile Apps Coming

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As promised at CES, Pebble, the Kickstarter-funded Android and iOS smartwatch, is now shipping in limited quantities to early backers. Announced in a Kickstarter post today, the company will ship less than 500 units out to customers today with “more expected to ship soon.” The company has also issued release information for the watch’s smartphone apps, which allow users to program custom watch faces, download new functions, and update the Pebble’s software. The Android version will arrive on Google Play on January 24th, while the iOS app will arrive soon pending final approval from Apple.

The Pebble was introduced last year as a Bluetooth-enabled watch that syncs with your smartphone to display app, email, phone, and SMS notifications, as well as work alongside third-party apps, such as fitness trackers, via built-in inertial sensors. The Pebble debuted on Kickstarter last year and went on to become one of the most successful campaigns to-date, raising a total of $10,266,845.

Continue reading…

Source: FULL ARTICLE at IGN Video Games

News, Politics, Government

Is Google the New "Think Different?"

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By Darcy Travlos, Contributor Android smartphones are slick.  Google Play is a response to iTunes.  Chromebooks are ultra-affordable.  Apple created the smartphone craze almost six years ago with a look and feel that has remained true to its original design.  Although the form factor has evolved, it still sports the same touch screen, rounded-edge square apps, and home button.  Have we become so accustomed to the iPhone that, today, Android smartphones, tablets and laptops answer our quest to “Think Different”?
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Forbes Latest

Science & Technology

Google Quietly Kills Its Nexus Q Streaming Box

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After launching to mixed reviews and slow sales, Google may have finally put its Nexus Q streaming media player out to pasture. As discovered by SlashGear, the set-top box — or, more accurately, orb — is listed as “no longer available” on Google Play. Of course, the Nexus Q has been listed as out of stock for months, but the recent change suggests that its current incarnation has been banished to the pages of history.

For those unfamiliar, the Nexus Q was introduced in June at Google I/O as an Android-based Apple TV alternative, giving users the ability to feed music, movies, and television from their smartphone or tablet to their home entertainment center. Shortly after its announcement, Google refunded pre-order customers and removed the device from sale due to overwhelming criticism from the media, which cited its high cost and limited functionality.

Continue reading…

Source: FULL ARTICLE at IGN Tech

News, Politics, Government

Silent Circle Adds Android For Encrypted Voice And Video Calls

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By Jon Matonis, Contributor Silent Circle announced today that they have released Silent Phone for Android users which is now available for download in Google Play. As the Apple iOS version has already been available, this new release is good news for the many business users that require a cross platform communications solution. However […]
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Forbes Latest

Computers

Archos targets specific interests with a diversified tablet lineup

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LAS VEGAS–Archos has been making tablets for far longer than most manufacturers, under the guise of souped-up media players. And once again, the company is aiming to target specific audiences, based on its new 2013 Android tablet offerings here at CES. These are no me-too tablets, though; the lineup emphasizes diversity and originality, and includes a high-pixel density 9.7-inch tablet, as well as a smaller model with integrated gaming controls, and a jumbo size model that’s only the second 13-inch Android tablet to come to market.

The Archos 97 Platinum offers a 2048 by 1536 pixel resolution

The shining jewel of the lineup is an unexpected find: The Archos 97 Platinum, with its gleaming 2048 by 1536 pixel resolution on a 9.7-inch display. Do those specs sound familiar? They should… it’s what Apple’s iPad with Retina display has at 264 pixels per inch. This display is Super IPS, so it appears brighter than a standard IPS display, and the colors looked very vibrant and satisfying. It’s not an optically bonded display, but to Archos’ credit, the air gap between the LCD and the glass is relatively minimal, which in turn helps to keep glare lower. Oddly, the spec for the angle of view is just 85 degrees, which feels a bit low for an IPS display.

Physically, the 97 Platinum looks attractive and feels solidly designed, with a reasonably thin aluminum case, white bezel around the display, and light weight. Inside the Google-certified 97 Platinum is Android 4.1.1 Jelly Bean and Google’s services, including Google Play. The tablet runs a quad-core 1.2GHz ARM Cortex-A7-based processor from Chinese chip maker Allwinner; this the system-on-chip has 2GB of system memory and 8 GPU cores. The tablet comes with a modest complement of storage, though—just 8GB, too low considering the resolution of the display. At least there’s a MicroSD card slot for adding your own content, up to 32GB; and there’s a mini-HDMI port, too. Each of the cameras—front- and rear-facing—are 2 megapixels, modest compared to the competition.

But then, you have to consider the 97 Platinum’s price: $300, $200 less than Apple’s iPad with the same resolution display.

The smaller Archos 80 Platinum has the same guts and looks identical, save for its screen size and resolution. This display is jut 1024 by 768 pixels, same as iPad 2. And it costs just $200, one-third less than its larger sibling. Both models are due in March.

To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Source: FULL ARTICLE at PCWorld

Computers

Asus Qube will stream Google TV, offer motion and voice control

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The remote will obey gesture and voice commands.

LAS VEGAS—Asus is planning to serve up Google TV via a little black box. With the Qube, you’ll get more than 100,000 TV shows and movies through Google TV, which includes Amazon, Netflix, YouTube, HBO Go and a lot more. Of course, there are loads of games and apps as well.

The Qube is paired with a remote you can control via gestures and voice commands. Google TV already includes some smarts to understand your voice instructions for opening apps as well as for surfing the Web and TV channels. The back of the remote includes a hard QWERTY keyboard, which means you shouldn’t experience the kind of nightmare that otherwise comes along with navigating, say, Netflix (sans Google TV) on your TV.

Remote too far to reach? You’ll get additional control from your Android phone or tablet via the Mobile Remote app from the Google Play store.

The Asus Qube onscreen interface is meant to let you group the apps you’ve downloaded onscreen into clusters for easier navigation. There’s picture-in-picture TV viewing as well as the Chrome browser, too.

To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Source: FULL ARTICLE at PCWorld

Science & Technology

CES: Nvidia Debuts "Project Shield" Gaming Handheld

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Nvidia has introduced Project Shield, an Android-based gaming handheld. The system uses the company’s new Tegra 4 processor and is housed within a controller with a flip-up screen, complete with its own integrated sound system and the complete array of controls you’d find on a traditional console controller. It features an HDMI port for video output, micro-USB for accessories and docks, and a microSD port for expandable storage. While the exact specs are still forthcoming, Project Shield has a 5-inch 720p HD display. The system, Nvidia says, is “pure Android,” which gives it unhindered access to the standard Android interfaced, as well as apps and games from the Google Play store.

Continue reading…

Source: FULL ARTICLE at IGN Tech

Computers

Google, Apple, Microsoft app number wars heat up

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Apps, apps and more apps.

A new estimate indicates the number of Android apps could surpass iOS applications and hit the 1 million mark in June.

The Google and Apple wars continue, but don’t count out Microsoft.

The website The Sociable says it used documented numbers available since Google Play came onto the scene in 2008 — then called the Android Market — and “a process of polynomial regression” to come up with its prediction.

To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Source: FULL ARTICLE at PCWorld

Computers

Jelly Bean breaks the 10% mark on Android devices

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The latest versions of Google’s mobile operating system, Android 4.1 and 4.2 (Jelly Bean) are running on more than 10 percent of Android devices, chipping away at the Gingerbread version’s dominant share, according to Google.

Android 4.1 is running on 9 percent of devices running the OS, while 1.2 percent of them are operating on Android 4.2, as shown by data collected by Google from its Google Play store for a two-week period ending January 3.

Source: Google

That 10.2 percent share compares to the previous period when Jelly Bean‘s adoption was 6.7 percent, according to ElectronicsWeekly. The bump up is likely due to new owners accessing Google Play after receiving their Android device as a holiday gift.

Google also reports that the version of Android running on most devices remains Gingerbread, although its share continues to decline. Although Gingerbread was introduced two years ago, it remains the most used version of Android.

To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Source: FULL ARTICLE at PCWorld

Automobiles

Get Something Shiny and Gadget-y for the Holidays? Download C/D for Your Mobile Device Now!

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By Car and Driver

Car and Driver e-EditionNot sure if you’ve been paying attention to the television this holiday season, but if so, you probably saw them: ads for tablet devices. Large tablets, small ­tablets, medium-size tablets. Three new screens from Amazon, two from Apple, and one from Microsoft, all being stroked and plied by children and bright-eyed teens of diverse ethnicities over a backdrop of bold color blocks and soft sans-serif type. The future is here, and a toddler is going to show you how to use it. Indeed, the tablet is becoming so enmeshed in modern life that some pundits are saying it is going to replace the desktop. Nice that someone’s not bloviating about the death of print for a change, but of the conventional computer. I digress.

Regular readers might expect me, at this juncture, to rail against all this shiny happiness and huff off, lexically speaking. But I actually like these things, if not the saccharine aftertaste of their marketing. They’re not saviors of humanity, just another product, but I believe they have a lot to offer readers of car magazines. An issue of Car and Driver can be even better on a screen than it can be in print, with deepened storytelling, stunning video, more images, and group conversations that paper magazines can only start. I also like using my tablet (an iPad “classic,” circa 2010) to make my daily sluice through the internet’s various tubes.

Car and Driver is developing content for all these devices, and making it available through all of the major virtual newsstands, including those of Apple, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Google Play, Next Issue, and Zinio. We are readable in forms ranging from straight reproductions of magazine pages to carefully and beautifully reimagined versions. We are in the process of remaking our website so that it conforms and adapts to your smartphone or your tablet. So you can have your C/D any way you like it, anywhere you like it, even if you left your paper copy on the coffee table­ or—let’s be honest here—on the top of the Kohler tank.

We often talk in our office about “putting the reader’s butt in the seat”—somewhat crass imagery, sure, but it reminds us that our primary job is to give you as much of  the experience of driving a car as possible. Previous to the arrival of the tablet and integrated video, the only way we could do that was with carefully selected words and pictures. Now we can deliver the fuller sensory picture. Our goal here is to give you a great experience, wrapped around a great read. Who could be grumpy about that?  — Eddie Alterman





Source: Car & Driver

Computers

Secuity firm warns of malware stealing bank data sent by SMS

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Several malicious Android apps designed to steal mobile transaction authentication numbers (mTANs) sent by banks to their customers over SMS (Short Message Service) were found on Google Play by researchers from antivirus vendor Kaspersky Lab.

android malware

The apps were created by a gang that uses a variant of the Carberp banking malware to target the customers of several Russian banks, Denis Maslennikov, a senior malware analyst at Kaspersky, said Friday in a blog post.

Many banks use mTANs as a security mechanism to prevent cybercriminals from transferring money from compromised online banking accounts. When a transaction is initiated from an online banking account, the bank sends an unique code called an mTAN via SMS to the account owner’s phone number. The account owner has to input that code back into the online banking website in order for the transaction to be authorized.

In order to defeat this type of defense, cybercriminals created malicious mobile apps that automatically hide SMS messages received from numbers associated with the targeted banks and silently upload the messages back to their servers. Victims are tricked into downloading and installing these apps on their phones via rogue messages displayed when visiting their bank’s website from an infected computer.

To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Source: PCWorld

Computers

Does your small business need a mobile app to stay competitive?

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With more than 750,000 apps in the iOS App Store and 700,000 available in Google Play, it can seem at times that absolutely everyone has an app—except you.

As a small-business owner, choosing whether to join the app-development club can be a difficult decision. You may feel like you have to build an app and “go mobile” to stay competitive, but you’ve probably heard that apps are expensive and time-consuming to develop. More and more users are dumping desktops and laptops for tablets and cell phones, so it makes sense to optimize the online experience for them. But is it really worth the effort? Can’t they just use their smartphones to access the website you already have?

It’s a tricky problem with no single cut-and-dried solution, but increasingly even the smallest businesses are saying yes to the mobile question. I’ll take you through the challenges—and the potential payoffs—in a moment.

For those who do go forward with a mobile strategy, two approaches are commonplace: You can build a mobile-optimized website, or develop a full-blown, stand-alone app.
To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
Source: PCWorld