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HTC Jetstream review
StatCounter: Android web browser claims biggest user share
Android’s native web browser can now lay claim to being the most popular mobile browser, according to StatCounter’s latest survey. Mapping use over the past year, Google’s mobile internet browser has grabbed around 23 percent of all users, up from just over 14 percent back in February 2011. The phone and tablet-based browser may have soaked up BlackBerry and Nokia users on its way to the top, with the two companies dropping browser share to six and 11 percent, respectively. Opera continues to hold its own, with a stable market share of around 21 percent throughout 2011, while the iPhone’s Safari isn’t far behind, notching up 20 percent by the end of last month. Conspicuous by its absence, Windows Phone’s Internet Explorer hasn’t made the table just yet and Google is surely hoping to see its mobile version of Chrome enter the table soon — presumably once it’s available on more than one device.
via StatCounter: Android web browser claims biggest user share — Engadget.
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Google replaces Android Market with ‘Google Play’
Say goodbye to the Android Market. Google has officially rebranded the storefront today as they unveiled Google Play, the all-in-one destination for apps, books, and movies. A post on the Android Developers blog tells us that we’ll soon be getting updates on our 2.2+ handsets which will replace the Android Market app with Google Play. In essence nothing changes for the seasoned Android user, and the experience will remain untouched. Head to market.android.com and watch as you’re already redirected to the new website with a familiar layout.
We’ll be rolling out Google Play to devices in a phased OTA update, starting today and continuing over the days to come. With the update, the Android Market app will upgrade to the Play Store app and the Music, Videos, and Books apps will upgrade to Play Music, Play Movies, and Play Books. This update is for devices running Android 2.2 or higher, and users on other devices will continue to have the same access to your apps as before.
Although it gets rid of the “Android” aspect of the Market, we applaud the decision to go less platform-centric for content. ”Get it on Google Play” rolls off the tongue and will help push a larger agenda forward for Google. It also makes sense if we consider that Google has a hardware device up their sleeves as it should play music and/or other media.
Read more about Google Play here.
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Acer Allegro hands-on at MWC 2012
We covered Acers two Android devices at last weeks show, but what in the world happened to its Windows Phone? Its easy to forget about the Acer Allegro because we havent seen it show up beyond the reaches of Asia and France, but we hunted one down at Mobile World Congress and snapped a few shots for posterity. Intended to tempt bargain hunters, the device offers a 3.6-inch WVGA display, 1GHz single-core Qualcomm MSM8255 CPU, 8GB internal storage, 5MP rear camera with LED flash and a 1,300mAh battery. It also features Fast Charge, which provides the Allegro with a full battery two and a half times faster than a standard Acer. On the unfortunate side, its also 13mm thick and lacks a front-facing shooter, which may be enough for the hardcore Windows Phone fan to lose interest. But if youre still reading on, feel free to gaze upon our pics below.
ZTE Tania budget Windows Phone officially unveiled
Budget handset manufacturer ZTE has unveiled it first own branded device of 2012 with the oddly named ZTE Tania landing as the companys first foray into Windows Phone territory.Sticking with its business plan of making budget phones with specs beyond their means the ZTE Tania will land with an array of innards similar to a host of pre existing Windows Phone 7 handsets but with a considerably lower price tag.ZTE Tania SpecsAdopting the latest rendition of the Windows Phone operating system the WP 7.5 Mango powered Tania is to boast an impressive 4.3-inch capacitive touchscreen with a price point leading 5-megapixel rear-mounted camera with LED flash.Expanding the handsets extensive list of features the Tania hosts the ability to act as a Wi-Fi hotspot, a feature that its leading Windows Phone competitor and smartphone great the Nokia Lumia 800 is unable to do.ZTE Tania Release DateWhilst the Chinese manufacturer has yet to announce an official ZTE Tania UK release date the company has revealed the device will be available for a little as £10 on contract with Virgin Mobile, Go Mobile and a leading specialist retailer to stock the device.Will a budget Windows Phone handset help kick the Microsoft made mobile OS to the next level? Let us know what you think via the comments box below
via ZTE Tania budget Windows Phone officially unveiled | T3.
Polaroid SC1630 Android HD smart camera hands-on, is it a cameraphone or a phonecamera?
The camera modules in smartphones continually improve, and these days there are phones like the iPhone 4S and the Nokia N9 who can take snapshots as good — and sometimes better — than point-and-shoots. Polaroid’s known for making cameras, but its newest device, a rebrand of the Aigo A8 we saw at CES last year, flips the script by taking a 16 megapixel point-and-shoot and shoving an Android phone inside.
The Polaroid version’s called the SC1630 Android HD Smart Camera, and its packed with 850/1900/2100MHz WCDMA and 850/900/1800/1900 GSM radios, along with WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS and an FM antenna thrown in for good measure. The SC1630 sports an 800 x 400 3.2-inch capacitive touchscreen, while underneath there’s 512MB of built-in storage and 512MB of RAM, along with proximity and G-sensors, micro SIM slot, Micro USB and a 2.5mm headphone jack. As we said above, the camera is a 16 megapixel unit, with aperture of F3.1 – F5.6, 3X optical zoom and 5X digital zoom, a max shutter speed of 1/1400 and ISO tops out at 3200. It’s got geotagging and anti-shake support as well, and can shoot videos in 720p. Scheduled to arrive in April for $299, the device still has a few kinks to be worked out and there may be some changes to that hardware before it makes it to market. Here at CES 2012, we got a chance to lay hands on the phone and speak with Emanuel Verona, Polaroid’s Executive VP and COO about the company’s first Android offering, so read on past the break for our impressions and his thoughts. Read more 
Lenovo K800 Intel Medfield smartphone hands-on
Well it looks like we have a surprise guest at Showstoppers tonight. Lenovo just dropped by with its just-announced K800 — the first Intel-powered smartphone to see the light of day. The beastly 4.5-inch 720p device sample that the company had on-hand is running a highly modified version of Android, and while the interface may not look familiar, the overall app experience shouldn’t be much different from what you’re used to. The official spec list includes a 1.6GHz Intel Medfield processor, Android 2.3, a TFT display and an 8 megapixel camera with a maximum sensitivity of ISO 3200. For now, the K800 is compatible with WCDMA HSPA+ and was running on AT&T’s 3G network — there’s no word of LTE on this version, which seems logical considering that the 4G network is a bit hard to come by in Lenovo’s native China, where the device is expected to launch first. Naturally, there’s also 802.11 b/g/n WiFi, Bluetooth 3.0 and GPS connectivity. We’ll be bringing you more on what’s undoubtedly the hottest gadget of the evening in the days to come, but jump past the break for an early look at the world’s first Medfield smartphone.
via Lenovo K800 Intel Medfield smartphone hands-on (video) — Engadget.
Ubuntu TV eyes-on
Its still just a proof of concept, which is a bit of a disappointment, but Ubuntu TV was here at CES making its public debut. For the moment its running on an external PC and being controlled by a Boxee remote, but Canonical hopes one day to have its media-focused Linux distro embedded in TVs. Even in its relatively young incarnation, the 10-foot tweak of Unity seams relatively smooth. A rep showed off the media browser and guide, including the interface for tying in movie rentals and purchases we guess we know where the Ubuntu One store will be going next. Its all pretty slick and, to be honest, if we could hack this in to the dumb set currently gracing our TV bench we certainly would. Check out the gallery below and the video walkthrough after the break.
Panasonic to launch new Android smartphones in Europe
Panasonic have officially announced that they will start selling Android smartphones from March 2012 with their first global model coming with some impressive specs to boot.
While it’s not known what the final product will look like Panasonic have unveiled some screenshots of what they’re calling their Global Model concept, a rough design that will form the basis of the models we can expect to see.
What is known however is that the phone will sport a 4.3 OLED qHD screen, it’ll also feature a super-slim D-shaped design which is definitely in keeping with the current trends as demonstrated by the slinky Samsung Galaxy S2.
That super-slim design will also be dustproof and waterproof making it certainly more ‘life-proof’, finally it’s confirmed that it’ll be running Android and while Panasonic haven’t confirmed which OS it’s an almost dead-cert that it’ll be Ice Cream Sandwich.
No word on hardware yet but this could certainly be something that’ll be making an appearance at Mobile World Congress 2012. What do you think, can Panasonic compete with the likes of Samsung and Apple?
via Panasonic to launch new Android smartphones in Europe | T3.
Samsung Galaxy Tab 11.6 release tipped for MWC 2012
Samsung looks set to expand its already varied array of tablet devices with an oversized Samsung Galaxy Tab 11.6 to land in February with a near 12-inch display, new reports have revealed.
Tipped for MWC 2012 arrival at the end of February, the 11.6-inch Samsung tablet is claimed to sport a form factor little bigger than that of its injunction hit 10.1-inch sibling with a much smaller bezel offing increased real-estate for the expansive display.
Samsung Galaxy Tab 11.6 Features
Quoting a “reliable source” the new reports, which come courtesy of BGR, have suggested that the mooted Galaxy Tab 11.6 will boast Google’s recently released Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich mobile operating system with Apple’s seemingly iPad 3 bound Retina Display to be trumped by the inclusion of a hefty 2560 x 1600p Full HD offering.
Driving the leaked tablet to true powerhouse status, a 2GHz dual-core Exynos processor is said to be on the Tab 11.6’s impressive specs list with Android Beam inclusion seeing the users able to sync the upcoming tablet with their Galaxy Nexus handsets.
Is 11.6-inches too big for a tablet device, should manufacturers simply stick a functional keyboard on the bottom and call it a laptop? Let us know what you think via the comments box below.
via Samsung Galaxy Tab 11.6 release tipped for MWC 2012 | T3.
