Android News
ElegantSteel Android theme
Thursday, 19 August 2010 09:11 greg
Check out this very nice looking them from Xda-developer Jedipottsy , the theme is based around the Tolken icon's (http://brsev.deviantart.com/art/Token-128429570) with elements from Ubuntu 10.04 and other Linux themes.
Google add motion to Gesture search
Thursday, 19 August 2010 09:06 greg
Google has had an Android app from their Labs that lets you search by writing out characters on the touchscreen of your device. Today they announced a new version, Gesture Search 1.2, which includes a new motion gesture. By doing a “double flip”, or flipping your phone away and then back, you can start Gesture Search at any time.
The Double Flip gesture recognizer uses both the 3-axis accelerometer and the 3-axis magnetometer in the phone. There are many factors affecting if a Double Flip can be successfully triggered. But the simple best practice to trigger a Double Flip is to:
•keep the phone more horizontal and less vertical,
•keep the phone pointing away from the magnetic poles,
•and rotate along the phone’s long axis smoothly (not too fast).
Faster dialing with Google Voice on Android and Blackberry devices
Friday, 23 July 2010 11:50 greg
Yesterday Google announced that they have launched "an enhancement to the Google Voice mobile app on Android and Blackberry phones, which makes placing calls much faster. We call this feature “direct access numbers.” Here’s how it works:
Until today, the Google Voice app had to make a request to the Google Voice server every time you wanted to make a call to send us the phone number you wanted to dial. Then the call would be connected via a Google Voice access number. With direct access numbers, we assign a unique phone number to every person you call. This means that we no longer need to use your data network to access the server each time you make a call, so calls will be placed much faster.
The updated Android app is available from Android Market starting today. For Blackberry users, you can download the app by visiting http://m.google.com/voice from your mobile device. You will need a valid Google Voice account to use the app, and at this time, Google Voice is available in the US only"
Nook for Android from Barnes and Noble
Thursday, 22 July 2010 16:51 greg
Barnes and Noble have released their ebook client for Android, adding to versions already available for iPhone, iPad, BlackBerry, Mac and Windows. They state the following features, with the interesting one being sharing an eBook you own with a friend for Free!
- More than 1 Million eBooks -- Just a Touch Away
- All your favorite titles, including hot new releases and bestsellers
- FREE samples of eBooks anytime, plus thousands of FREE titles
- Access to your eBook library on your computer plus hundreds of mobile devices including iPad, iPhone, and NOOK
- Share eBooks with friends for FREE with LendMe™
- Recommended titles from your favorite authors
- Add bookmarks as you read
Last Updated (Monday, 26 July 2010 10:10)
Goby comes to Android
Tuesday, 20 July 2010 08:58 greg
First off, what is Goby! Goby helps you find fun things to do. Whether you're traveling across the country (currently US only) or staying close to home this weekend, Goby's got you covered with over 350 categories of things to do in every city and town in the US! Goby already has an iPhone and iPad client and now they have released an Android version, which you can get from the market place.
The bad news for us folk outside of the US, is that currently Goby only supports the US, with the promise of further countries to come.
The Android version features
- Browse 350+ neatly organized categories
- Or type freely into the search box
- Covers every city, town & region in the US
- Sort your searches by distance, date, price...
- View results in a list complete with photos
- Or flip through listings in a map view
- Share finds via Facebook, Twitter or email
- Oh yeah, it's free!
more cool stuff coming soon
- save & organize listings
- add your own listings with photos
- international coverage
Last Orders for Nexus One
Friday, 16 July 2010 21:04 greg
Please excuse the British humor in the picture, but Google have announced that they have received their last shipment of Nexus One phones, and once they sell out there will be no more, so if you want one, get it quick!
It will continue to be sold by partners including Vodafone in Europe, KT in Korea, and possibly others based on local market conditions.
To ensure developers have access to a phone with the latest Android OS, Google will be offering the Nexus One through a partner for sale to registered developers. Visit the Android Market Publisher site and log into your developer account to purchase a Nexus One.
Follow the HTC team on the Tour de France with Android
Wednesday, 14 July 2010 20:50 greg
I've been using the Google MyTracks application for mountain biking and running, now the Google team have done some tweaking to enable us to follow the HTC sponsored riders on this fantastic cycle race. I think it's great when mobile technology is used like this, and look forward to more sporting events doing something similiar.
To quote from the official Google blog:
The My Tracks application for Android phones lets you record and share your own outdoor activities, and now Team HTC-Columbia will use a special version of the app with SRM to transmit their telemetry and location in real-time as they make their way through the 3,642 kilometers of the Tour de France. The nine riders (sadly, now eight, as Adam Hanson was injured on Sunday) on Team HTC-Columbia are carrying HTC Legend phones with ANT+ that use My Tracks to capture their location along with their power, heart rate, cadence and speed. On www.google.com/mytrackstour, you’ll see a Google Map showing the team members’ location on the course and a detailed telemetry report. You can observe how Michael Rogers’ heart rate spikes as he attacks the climbs in the Alps on Stage 9, see how many watts Mark Cavendish puts out in the sprint on the famous sprinters’ stage into Bordeaux, and see just how fast riders climb the famous Col du Tourmalet.
Looking for an easy way to create Android apps?
Monday, 12 July 2010 13:58 greg
Google have just launched App Inventor for Android, which is an incredibly quick and easy way to create Android applications. To use App Inventor, you do not need to be a developer. App Inventor requires NO programming knowledge. This is because instead of writing code, you visually design the way the app looks and use blocks to specify the app's behavior. You can watch a video demonstration below.
