Apple and Motorola agree to drop lawsuits against each other, work on patent reform
And just like that, the longstanding legal battle between Apple and Motorola appears to be winding down. The two smartphone giants have reached an agreement that will see them drop patent lawsuits against each other. The truce doesn’t involve technology licenses, but Apple and Google (still Motorola’s owner at this point) say they’ll “work together in some areas of patent reform.” Neither side is revealing what this entails, although it won’t be surprising if it involves efforts to curb the patent trolls that they face.
The companies haven’t said what prompted the change of heart. However, it comes hot on the heels of an appeals court reviving patent claims from Apple and Motorola that had been dismissed in 2012. The phone makers faced the prospect of renewing a fight over some relatively old (and no longer very valuable) infringement allegations — peace may simply be the more pragmatic option. Whatever led to the decision, it’s good news for those who’d rather see phone makers compete in stores than in the courtroom.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Apple, Google, Lenovo
Source: Reuters
Gimbal beacons breaking Bluetooth on Android
A very interesting video has appeared on Vimeo by user, samjasuja, who is showing how the Gimbel beacon completly trashes your phone through Bluetooth and ultimately leads to a factory reset. Don’t let this happen to you!
Source: Vimeo
The post Gimbal beacons breaking Bluetooth on Android appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Google Play starts accepting PayPal for digital goods, but not for physical ones
Well, here’s a surprise: Mountain View now accepts PayPal payments for apps, games, books and other digital goods on Google Play. If you’re not exactly fond of paying through credit cards cards or carriers, you can activate the option by clicking Add Paypal and typing in your log-in details. The option has a huge limitation, though: you can’t exactly use it to buy devices and accessories. So, if you want to buy a new Android phone or a Nest thermostat, you need to bust out that plastic. That said, Play has also expanded carrier billing and gift card availability to more countries, and anyone waiting for either may want to check Google Support for the full lists.
[Image credit: Steve Ganz/Flickr]
Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Mobile, Google
Via: Droid Life
Source: Android Developers Blog
Grand Theft Auto III series lands on Amazon’s tablets and Fire TV
The Grand Theft Auto games have been on seemingly every platform known to humankind, but those with Amazon devices have had to make do without Rockstar’s vehicular mayhem. That changes today: you can now snag Grand Theft Auto III, Vice City and San Andreas on both the Kindle Fire tablet line as well as Fire TV. You’ll be very familiar with the experience if you’ve used any of the earlier mobile versions, although that’s no big complaint given the quality of the ports. With that said, the real allure may be the pricing. Each game normally costs $5 a pop, but purchasing San Andreas currently gets you enough Amazon Coins to buy the other two releases — this could be a good way to get started in the crime-filled world of GTA without making a big investment.
Filed under: Gaming, Home Entertainment, HD, Amazon
Source: Amazon (GTA3), (Vice City), (San Andreas)
MapMyFitness brings coaching and improved post-workout stats to Android
After being nabbed up by Under Armour late last year, things have been relatively quiet for MapMyFitness and its activity tracking app. That all changed this week though, as the outfit has rolled out a totally redesigned version of its Android software with a host of new features. On top of the UI refresh, you can now compare stats with friends from Facebook, Twitter and your contacts list from within. Improved data and mobile graphs make bragging about your progress post-workout a bit easier as well. Route recording received a boost, adding Google Maps 3D tech for navigating the course with tilt and compass functions that update in real time as you run or ride. For MVP members, a coaching option is now built in for a dose of extra motivation. This serves up audio cues according to time, pace, speed, distance and duration goals that you’ve dialed in. Of course, that voice to keep you going comes at a cost of $5.99 a month or $30 annually.
Epson now supports native printing in Android 4.4 Kitkat
Epson has added native printing support for Android 4.4 KitKat. With Android printing, you can now print documents, photos, web pages, and emails without the need of a dedicated printing app. Users will be able to discover available printers, change papers sizes and choose specific pages to print. Over 60 new and legacy Epson Connect enabled printers and all-in-ones now offer built-in printing support from manufacturers including Google, HTC, and Samsung.
For more information, check out the source link below. What do you think? Would this be something useful for you? Let us know!
Source: Epson
The post Epson now supports native printing in Android 4.4 Kitkat appeared first on AndroidGuys.
HTC One mini 2 gets its official launch
HTC UK have today officially announced the launch of the much rumoured One Mini 2, the little brother of their extremely popular flagship HTC One (M8) Android smartphone.
With the covers finally taken off, the One Mini 2 is very similar to rumoured design and specs that have been doing the rounds. As expected it is a scaled down version of the bigger sibling but it still packs some impressive hardware and the same eye pleasing design features found on the One M8 although It doesn’t have Duo Cameras with UltraPixel, just a more standard set-up of a single 13-megapixel lens on the rear but is sporting a new wide-angle 5MP front facing camera.
HTC have decided to opt for a MicroSD slot on the Mini 2 plus a lager 2100 mAh battery and BoomSound stereo speakers at the front. Under the hood , its running a 1.2 GHz quad-core Snapdragon 400 processor, 1 GB of RAM, and 16 GB of internal storage.
The handset will run on the latest Android version of 4.4 KitKat, with Sense 6.0 in the mix and sport the same three colour options as the M8 (gunmetal gray, glacial silver and amber gold). It will be available in European stores from June 2014 and hopefully it will be inbound to the US soon.
The post HTC One mini 2 gets its official launch appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Students get iOS apps running (slowly) on Android
Running apps from one mobile platform on another is theoretically great for boosting your app selection, but it’s not a trivial task — even BlackBerry’s Android support is rough. However, some Columbia University students have managed the daunting feat of running iOS apps on Android with their Cider compatibility layer. This isn’t a regular emulator or virtual machine, like you might expect. Instead, it simply tricks apps into believing that they’re in a native environment: they adapt code on the fly to make it work with Android’s kernel and programming libraries. Even 3D benchmarks run properly.
Unfortunately, it’s not quite the Holy Grail of cross-platform compatibility… at least, not yet. As you’ll see in the (sadly vertical) demo below, most iOS apps run at glacially slow pace. They also don’t have access to most hardware features, so GPS tracking and other staple features are right out. This is still better than previous efforts, though, and it raises hopes that platform exclusives won’t be as important in choosing a mobile device as they have been in the past.
Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Software, Mobile
Via: 9to5 Mac, The Next Web
Source: Columbia University
Tesco fixing Hudl screen responsiveness issues with new update
It’s safe to say Tesco’s Hudl has been a success: the company has sold more than half a million units and is prepping a new model for release later this year. It hasn’t been all plain sailing for the supermarket giant though, as some of its Android slates shipped with a display issue that would often cripple the tablet by rendering the screen unresponsive. Tesco, to its credit, has been quick to replace customers’ Hudls no questions asked, but it may not need to anymore after it’s begun rolling out an Android update that eliminates those exact issues. The company tells us that some updates have passed Google certification and are already hitting affected Hudls, but it could take up to three weeks for the fix to reach everyone.
Motorola’s smartphones can now alert your close contacts in an emergency
You’ll usually want to call emergency services if you’re in truly dire straits, but the odds are that your friends and family also want to know if you need help. How do you reach them quickly? If you pick up the Moto E or Moto G LTE, you’ll have Motorola Alert at your disposal. The new app lets you trigger an emergency mode that sends regular alerts and location updates to important contacts. You can also tell people to meet up (at a shelter, for instance), and you can define your home or workplace to let people know that you’re in a familiar area. Alert won’t work on the Moto X or original Moto G until an update arrives in the near future, but you can still get a peek at it on Google Play if you’re curious.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Google, Lenovo
Via: Phone Arena, Mobile Syrup
Source: Google Play
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