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Editorial: It's OK to take a breath

Posted: 07 Oct 2011 06:00 PM PDT

Relax

Way too much hay has been made over Google and Samsung's decision to postpone Tuesday's Nexus/Ice Cream Sandwich event at CTIA in San Diego. It's disappointing, to be sure -- especially to those of us who were going to be there. Samsung and Google events, separately, are something to experience. Put them together, and, well, we can only imagine. But it's also disappointing for everyone else, as the event was to be streamed live, for everyone to see it, and not just those lucky enough to be in the room. That's very openy of Google, ain't it?

It didn't help that the postponement message appeared to be somewhat bungled, with word apparently first trickling out from Samsung UK (which being hours ahead in Europe was actually awake), while the U.S. arm was the one that had sent the invitations in the first place, so presumably it would be the one to give us the bad news after breakfast. (And, in the end, it did.) That's inside baseball, though, and shouldn't really matter. When two major companies are coordinating something like this, stuff happens.

And it didn't help that barely hours before, another major Honeycomb/Nexus leak hit with video and screen shots of the new phone and new device. First thing many of us saw after waking Friday was a shiny new phone and version of Android. It's Christmas in October, right?

But then we get official word, and the conspiracy theories began. Ice Cream Sandwich isn't ready. The hardware isn't ready. The event presentation isn't ready. Apple filed another pre-emptive lawsuit. Plausible theories, all (especially the latter, we suppose). A statement was later released, saying "We believe this is not the right time to announce a new product as the world expresses tribute to Steve Jobs's passing."

We should all respect that.

We tend to think of these phones as ours. Our phones, our platforms, our ecosystems. We take them personally. We fight for them. That's not a bad thing. We should care, and maybe even be a little overzealous. But something most of us outside of the companies involved need to remember is that we see the end product -- we don't truly understand the blood, sweat and tears, days and weeks and months and years that go into building these phones. The developers. The engineers. The debuggers. The managers. The PR folks. The countless wives and husbands and children. Trust me, they take these things personally, too. They fight for them. They care. And maybe they're even a little overzealous. That's how they should be.

ZENandTECH helps center your inner geek and de-stress your connected life.

I don't pretend to "know" Google any more than I pretend to "know" Apple. But I do know they're companies made of people. I was lucky enough to spend a few hours in Mountain View earlier this year, and one thing that stood out was just the overall vibe of happiness of the people mulling around, eating lunch, going from building to building and generously tolerating a bunch of nosy journalists in their way for the morning. It's palpable. But another thing I'm pretty sure of is that for all the secrecy and competition, it's also a fairly tight-knit community. Friends. Family. Respected competitors. (Remember that Eric Schmidt was once on Apple's board.)

This week, they -- and to a different extent those of us in the general public -- all lost someone whose effect on our lives, both personal and technological, likely will be measured not in product cycles or releases, but in the way our children and grandchildren live their lives.

Point is this: We want the next Nexus phone. We want Ice Cream Sandwich. And soon enough, we'll have them both. And they'll be spectacular. And they'll be replaced by something else in another year and we'll go though the process again.

If the men and women of Google and Samsung and any other tech industry more directly affected by Apple and Steve Jobs want a little time next week to reflect, regroup and take a breath, let them. They deserve it.

Postponed Nexus, Galaxy S II on T-Mobile [From the Forums]

Posted: 07 Oct 2011 05:15 PM PDT

From the Forums

It's been a chaotic day with things starting off bright and early this morning but -- we're heading into the weekend. A long weekend for some folks with it being Thanksgiving in Canada and Columbus day for the US. A perfect time to get caught up on all things Android,

If you're not already a member of the Android Central forums, you can register your account today.

T-Mobile Galaxy S II benchmarks redux

Posted: 07 Oct 2011 03:50 PM PDT

T-Mobile Galaxy S II

We recently saw some benchmark numbers for the T-mobile Galaxy S II, and like everything else ever put on the Internet many cried foul.  I hate benchmarks.  They tell me nothing about how a phone acts and feels in real world use; you need to actually use it to determine that.  But since there's a bit of controversy, allow me to interject a few new pictures.

Quadrant  Neocore

Nenamark2

Linpack2

Nothing shut off, still getting mail and everything like I should.  Now stop worrying.

A little more inside Sprint's 4G Network Vision

Posted: 07 Oct 2011 03:21 PM PDT

Last year Sprint detailed their plans to rollout their Network Vision -- a unfied system to bring all their network capabilities into one seamless network and in that time, they've been working hard to get things rolling. They're now going to be ramping up their efforts and are ahead of schedule. The combined networks now have a goal of full scale consoldation by 2013.

During their 4G Strategy/Network Vision Update event in New York, Dan Hesse, chief executive officer of Sprint also detailed Sprints National roll out of 4G LTE services on its 1900 MHz spectrum. The complete roll out expected is to be serving 250 Million people by 2013 so, for customers this is great news but what does it all mean?

  • 3G Network Improvement:  Sprint expects an improvement in customers’ 3G network experience, including expanded coverage, improved network reliability, better voice quality, and faster 3G data speeds. Based on forecasts of data demand, Sprint is confident its 3G network will meet customers’ growing data demands.
  • LTE deployment expected to reach 250 million people by 2013: Sprint expects to launch CDMA-LTE devices by mid-2012, with approximately 15 devices coming throughout the year—including handsets, tablets and data cards.  Additionally, CDMA-WiMAX devices, such as the award-winning HTC EVO 4G, Samsung Epic 4G and Nexus S 4G, will continue to be sold throughout 2012.


Better services and more devices -- we like the sounds of that. You can hit the source link if you're looking for the finer details of what to expect from Sprint in the next few years.

Source: Sprint

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Samsung Galaxy S II - now available in white from Bell

Posted: 07 Oct 2011 02:37 PM PDT

Samsung Galaxy S II

As if the Samsung Galaxy S II wasn't already beautiful enough, Bell has now released it in white as planned. As Jerry will tell you, he's a sucker for white devices and I'm sure a lot of others out there are as well. If you've been holding off and waiting, you can now pick one up for $150 on a 3-year contract or $600 without any contract.

Source: Bell

Hands-on with the T-Mobile Galaxy S II

Posted: 07 Oct 2011 01:38 PM PDT

T-Mobile Galaxy S II

The Fed-Ex man just dropped off something I've been itching to get my hands on -- the T-Mobile Galaxy S II.  For all intents and purposes, it's the same Galaxy S II we've seen across the rest of the world, with a few extras -- a 4.52-inch display, and an HSPA+42 modem.  We have to get down and dirty with it for a bit to know the in's and out's, but there's no way we would make you guys wait for a quick preview of what may be the best smartphone T-Mobile has ever carried.  Hit the break for the details, some video love, and a handful of pictures.

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New Google Music and Google+ apps found in Ice Cream Sandwich build

Posted: 07 Oct 2011 12:31 PM PDT

new ICS apps

The fellows at Android Police have their hands on a couple new apps from the Ice Cream Sandwich build that's floating around out there (how 'bout a dump for the community, Mr. Anon?), and with it comes with new Google Music and Google+ apps.  The new music app has a bit of a UI makeover, with more sleek (and less screen real-estate wasting) controls, most noticeable in the "now playing" screen, and a search button has been included since ICS has no dedicated search key.  It appears that everything we know and love about Google Music is there, but in a more refined package.

The Google+ app at first look appears much like the current version in the Android Market, until you look at the Huddle Messenger portion.  Once again, it's been renamed, this time Google is calling it "Chords."  While that may be confusing at first, it's probably less confusing than having the same name as other applications (Facebook, iOS, etc.) that are using the word messenger.  Or it may be something that Google it kicking around, and not even final.  We'll only know for sure when ICS is available for everyone.  For more pictures, as well as a download link for the Google Music app, check out the source links.

Source: Android Police (Music) (Google+)

HTC Sensation XL promotional videos

Posted: 07 Oct 2011 12:09 PM PDT

Sensation XL

HTC has released five new promotional videos showing off various features of the Sensation XL, the new 4.7-inch phone with Beats Audio that was unveiled yesterday at an event in London. We were there. We think "glitzy" is probably the right word to describe it.

The first is an abstract "reveal" video similar to what HTC's done for many other devices, and was shown on-stage at last night's shindig. In addition, there's a thirty-second ad and feature videos showcasing the 8-megapixel camera with f/2.2 lens, the 4.7-inch Super LCD display and the all-important Beats support. Hit the jump to find all five videos, or check out the rest of our Sensation XL coverage using the links below.

Hands-on with the Sensation XL | Sensation XL Specs | Sensation XL Forums

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Acer Iconia A100 mini-review

Posted: 07 Oct 2011 12:01 PM PDT

Acer Iconia A100

Here's our long overdue look at the Acer Iconia a100, a 7-inch Android Honeycomb tablet. On one hand, it's a blessedly simple device. Take Honeycomb and the usual internals that we've come to know in Honeycomb devices, and scale it down.

Acer steps things up a bit on the hardware side by throwing in a bunch of ports -- you've got microUSB, microHDMI, a docking port, and a proprietary charger. There are dual speakers on one edge, which tends to make the audio output a little more directional than we'd like. There's also a capacitive home button that, in addition to taking you back to the home screen, lights up on notifications. (There's also a light in the power button.) A screen lock toggle switch rounds things out.

On the storage side, you've got around 6GB of internal memory, and the a100 will accept a microSD card for additional storage.

The hardware's nicely done, but the screen's been a bit of a deal-breaker for us, with a pretty horrendous viewing angle. As you'll see in the video after the break, it's as if the screen's being lit from one edge only -- turn it even just a tiny bit, and an entire section loses all color. It's pretty rough.

That major caveat aside, there's definitely a market for these smaller -- and less expensive -- Honeycomb tablets. And the a100 is just the beginning.

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Android 101: Clear your Android Market search history

Posted: 07 Oct 2011 11:07 AM PDT

Clear market search data

Tired of seeing the same apps you've already searched for show up over and over when you search the Android Market? You can easily clear your search history and get rid of the usual -- or incriminating -- list of apps.

Just open your Android Market, hit the menu button, and then the settings button. Tap "Clear search history," and you're done. Easy as pie, and no one is the wiser.

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