The all-you-can-eat subscription model has revolutionized the entertainment industry. Whether Netflix for movies or Spotify for music, the practice of users paying one monthly fee and gaining access to an entire library has exposed consumers to tons of content. Audiobooks.com is the Spotify of audio books. Rather than purchase individual titles, it provides unlimited streaming of audio books. Users pay a monthly membership fee of $24.99 and then gain access to all of the 10,000 new best sellers and classic audio books available. There’s currently no Android app for Audiobooks.com, but there is a web app for users who want to listen to audio books on their Android device. The company let me test the service, and so I did. I admit that I’m a person who prefers the written word, so could this service impress me? The AudioBooks.com Web App I tend to shy away from web apps because I like to do multiple things at once, and jumping from window to window is not as seamless or continuous an experience on the web as it is with native apps. But given the nature of Audiobooks, which are about focusing in on listening to narration, it was not as big of an issue. I was actually quite pleased with the iPhone-ish interface, but the slower response when switching between tabs – Home, Browse, Search, and Account – was slower than I would have expected on a native app. However, things looked up once I started listening to books. After hearing about the Steve Jobs biography for months and seeing it as one of the featured titles in the AudioBooks.com app, I made that my first selection. The player shows a progress bar that makes it easy to move to a specific point. It also enables simple skipping back or forward by 30 seconds, and the controls disappear when not needed. The stream quality was strong on both WiFi and 3G. I was especially pleased that the app maintains position, so I could resume from the last point if a phone call interrupted me. There’s little to complain about with the Audiobooks.com web app. Books are organized by category, it’s easy to discover similar titles and recommendations, and the sound quality is good. One of the only problems with the app is that it’s not native, so you’ll have to keep the screen on to listen, but testing was otherwise favorable. It was disappointing to discover that a few audiobooks that I wanted to hear were not available. Audiobooks.com currently supports 10,000 books, which is smaller than competitors, and leaves gaps in its library. That’s one of the problems faced by all forms of the all-you-can-eat entertainment model, so don’t be surprised if something you want to hear isn’t available for streaming. Interested? Head over to Audiobooks.com and sing-up for a free 7-day trial. That way you can test the service on your Android device and see if there are enough interesting audio books to warrant joining the site.
Read More...Posts made in February, 2012
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Ever since the iPhone 4S’ launch, all of Apple’s fanatics have driven us Android geeks crazy with their oh-so-cool, original and innovative Siri voice assistant. And even though I for one can’t understand what this fuss is all about, there was talk for a while now about a similar piece of software made for Android devices. If you have held your breath waiting for such an Android voice assistant, I have two pieces of news for you today. The good news is that a somewhat similar feature has been released earlier today as part of an update for the Dolphin browser. The bad news, however, is that the Dolphin Sonar (I know, a much cooler name than ‘’Siri’’) won’t be able (for the time being at least) to do all the things that Apple users are currently able to do with the help of their ‘’intelligent personal assistant’’. Dolphin Sonar should be pretty easy to use, as you only need to shake your phone or tap on the microphone in the lower right corner during your Dolphin browsing. After that, you can search popular websites such as Facebook, Google or eBay for everything that comes to mind, as well as open a new browsing tab and go to the bottom or top of a web page. That’s pretty much all Sonar will be able to do for now, but its developers have promised to come with several updates in the near future adding useful functions and capabilities. For example, it shouldn’t be long until being able to share a link or a status update on Facebook by simply ‘’commanding’’ your Android device to do so. Sure, Sonar is and will probably always be just a third-party app incapable of fully reaching Siri’s level of functionality, but I’m confident that this is just a first step and we will soon see other more complex such Android programs. As much as I would like to end the article in a more professional and serious note, I can’t help but send a message to all you Apple fanatics out there. Give it up, guys, and step towards the light of the future brought by Android! (I’m only half joking, just so you know). Via VatorNews
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If you didn’t believe me earlier when I told you that this is the time to closely watch the Android Market as more and more exciting games are released or discounted, the joke’s clearly on you. Why? Because another Android game has just been officially confirmed as coming soon and will actually be released in just two days. The game is called Heist: The Score and, even though it will be ready to enrich your Android experience starting on March 2 nd , it still doesn’t have a price tag attached to its name. What is pretty clear is that the app will not be made available for free, as it is pretty much the definition of premium mobile content. Set in the 1920s, Heist: The Score looks like an old-fashioned FPS game at a first glance and will most likely focus on high resolution graphics, stunning sound effects and a simple, but challenging and exciting target. To sum up this game’s ‘’plot’’, you will have to pull off a seemingly simple bank job gone crazy set in the prohibition era. Sounds pretty easy and straightforward, but, at least for me, those are the games that most of the times prove so fun and addictive. While ‘’Heist’’ will most definitely not challenge your strategic mind and gaming abilities, the FPS has a good shot of being a somewhat ‘’educational’’ app aside from helping us to blow off some steam while shooting some a-holes who for some reason are keen to not letting us break the law. How come educational? Well, I don’t think that there are many of you familiar with the prohibition era in the United States anymore, so maybe there will be a couple of Android geeks that will be convinced by the game to ”google” that important part of this country’s history and learn something for a change. Or you’re just going to have some fun while shooting a-holes… Either way, you should keep an eye on the Android Market starting March 2 nd and to come back to our website and tell us all about your heisting. Enjoy being a (virtual) outlaw! Via Droidgamers
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TSF Shell – the heavily-animated, graphically bold, and eye-catching home screen replacement app that appeared in a demo video a short time ago – is now in the Android Market. Not surprisingly, this stylish app launcher comes at a price. What is surprising is that the price is $16.80 USD. I just thought I’d throw that out there before you got excited and ran away for what’s instantly become the most expensive launcher in the Android Market. But for those of you who survive the sticker shock, you’ll get a number of widgets, animations, and gestures that look like it will offer a truly unique experience. I’ll let you decide the worth of that experience. TSF Shell is clearly built upon the old concepts and work first shown by The Astonishing Tribe, a company that was acquired by RIM and then abandoned its work with non BlackBerry/QNX projects. TAT had originally planned to introduce its UI through OEM’s, hoping to sell the launcher to an Android phone maker who would then offer it for free to people who purchased their phones. However, TSF has chosen a direct-to-consumer approach and released it to the Android Market. Android 2.1 or higher is required to use TSF Shell. Head to the Android Market to download the app and give it a go. You’ll then need to browse the company’s Market page in order to get the associated widgets. Here’s another look at the demo video so you can get an idea of how the app works. via Droid-Life - Thanks, Uri!
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Now that this whole 2012 MWC madness has finally chilled out (sort of), we can move on from announcing extremely similar smartphone and tablet releases to… well, announcing Android games and app launches. However, the game we are going to talk about today is anything but ordinary or similar to any other and is set to rock your world. Yes, it’s Another World, the classic 1991 game, now remade by DotEmu, the French developer behind such successful releases as Broken Sword 2 and 3, Atlantis 3, Atlantis Evolution or Commandos 1, 2 and 3. It’s true, those are all PC games, but as far as I’m concerned, the redesigning and rebooting of Another World is certainly in capable hands. The new Another World, also known as Out of This World back in 1991, will hit the Android Market on March 16 th , according to a Facebook message (or status update or whatever) posted on the game’s official page. While we still have no idea what the upcoming platform game will cost (sorry, guys, but it’s certainly not going to be made available for free), we know some of the features and functions this new mobile app will bring to the table. Apparently, Another World 20 th Anniversary Edition will follow the simple, but fun plotline of the original game while adding a few extra ‘’spices’’ and ‘’flavors’’ here and there. Among the improvements to wait for there will most definitely be HD graphics, Bluetooth support and an intuitive touch-based control system, which sounds very, very nice at least in theory. Also, if you happen to get nostalgic while playing around with the new game, you can easily switch between original and HD graphics. There will of course be three difficulty modes to choose from and what the developers call ‘’100 % remastered sounds and effects’’. I don’t know about you, but I for one am very excited about this upcoming rehash of one of my childhood’s classic video games (yeah, I’m that old!), so I will be watching closely the Android Market around the middle of March. Stay tuned on Androinica.com for additional details about the game, but also for a thorough review once Another World 20 th Anniversary Edition will be up for download. Source Droidgamers via Facebook
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I know that usually I tell you about smartphone and tablet deals that offer the respective devices with tens or hundreds of dollars off, but today I am going to make an exception and talk about a discount of only three bucks. Three bucks out of three that is, because the Shopper’s Paradise HD Android game, which usually costs $3, is available only today completely for free. But wait, don’t go running on Android Market to take advantage of the deal, because the discount is offered exclusively on Amazon.com . I also realize that many of you might be more excited about Verizon’s sale offering LTE phones with prices of 100 dollars less than usual , but you shouldn’t overlook this Amazon deal, even though it’s clearly not as spectacular. Not spectacular, but extremely addictive, if we are to trust most of the user reviews available both on Android Market and on Amazon. And if you don’t know what this app is all about, let’s just say that the female Android enthusiasts will go crazy after it and the male audience will most likely enjoy a far quieter life with their special someone keeping busy. Shopper’s Paradise HD combines the excitement of a Tycoon game with the simplicity and fun of a strategy game. On top of all that, the visuals and graphics of the app are surprisingly complex and will keep you hooked for hours and hours. I usually don’t like to give out many details about a game or app on sale, especially one that can be downloaded for free, and I won’t break my rule today, but I am going to say this. If you are a crazy shopper and you have dreamed of becoming a millionaire and/or build a marketing empire, this is your shot of getting an inch close to seeing this dream come true. It will only be for fun, but trust me, it will look and feel real as heck. Hit the source link below to download the game for free on Amazon.com and to find out extra details about it if you are still not convinced that it is worth your time. Via Amazon
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Toshiba has confirmed that it will deliver the Toshiba X10, now known as the Excite 10 LE , to the U.S. market next month. The Android tablet will arrive in a Wi-Fi-only 16 GB model retailing for $529. A larger 32 GB model will cost $599. Toshiba has pegged March 6, 2012 as the release date for the Excite 10. When the tablet debuts, it will have Android 3.2 powering the software, though Toshiba claims an update to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich will arrive later this spring. And while the dated software may disappoint, the hardware may be enough to attract others. The Excite 10′s design and building materials are a prime example of premium features. The device has magnesium alloy on the rear and sides, and the display is protected by the durable Corning Gorilla Glass. The frame also is very thin (0.3 inches) and light (1.18 pounds) to enable portability. You may recall that I loved the physical design of the Excite during my hands-on video at CES , and was impressed that the company managed to squeeze those ports into such a tight frame. Now the question will be if others are willing to fork over the money for the premium experience. In my previous post about Android’s struggles to encourage tablet adoption , people noted price as the biggest roadblock. The Excite X10 does nothing to entice budget shoppers, so it will instead have to appeal to someone who wants a tablet and wants the best in design. Will these specs be enough to attract those users? Android 3.2, Honeycomb (upgradeable to Android 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich) 10.1-inch diagonal LED Backlit widescreen Corning Gorilla Glass display with IPS technology and 10-finger multi-touch support 1280 x 800 resolution, 16:10 aspect ratio Texas Instruments OMAP 4430 multicore processor; 1.2GHz with 1GB LPDDR2 RAM 16GB and 32GB configurations 6 2 megapixel front-facing camera 5 megapixel rear-facing camera with LED flash Micro USB, Micro HDMI ports Micro SD card slot Wi-Fi (802.11b/g/n) and Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR Gyroscope, Accelerometer, GPS, eCompass and Ambient Light Sensor Stereo speakers with sound enhancements by Toshiba and SRS Labs Built-in 25 watt-hour rechargeable lithium ion battery 10.1” (W) x 6.9” (D) x 0.3” (H) 1.18 pounds (535g)
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February gets an extra day only once every four years, so Verizon is marking the special occasion by discounting all of its 4G LTE phones and tablets. Any LTE device, be it Galaxy Nexus or Droid 4, costs $100 less today and today only. The offer is an online exclusive to Verizon Wireless and runs until 11:59 PM, February 29, 2012. A gallery of the phones offered is available here . Verizon 4G LTE phones typically cost as much as $299.99, so today’s discount drops most devices to the more familiar $199. Some devices, like the HTC Rezound and LG Spectrum, are even more affordable at $99. And if you insist on getting the ultimate bargain, the Pantech Breakout, and Samsung Stratosphere are free under thisdeal. This is all part of Verizon’s efforts to off-load customers onto 4G. The company doesn’t want to spend anymore money on its 3G network and has already invested billions to quickly roll-out LTE across the country. However, only 5 percent of customers are currently using 4G based on comments made by a Verizon executive . Deals like this should encourage more customers who were on the fence about Verizon. Anyone who takes Verizon up on its offer should remember to request the double data deal that increases tiered data allowance. That way, users will pay $30 per month for the standard 2 GB plan, but actually get 4GB of data. The same kinds of deals are available for the higher tiers of Verizon. Find out more by placing at order online or calling the Verizon sales line at 1866-247-1583. [ Verizon ]
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Sony’s finally bringing its uniquely designed Tablet P to America through AT&T starting March 4th for $399 on a two year contract. The Tablet P runs Android 3.2 and comes with 4G connectivity. However, the 4G connectivity simply implies HSPA+ as opposed to 4G LTE. In terms of other specs and features, the Tablet P sports two screens measured at 5.5 inches each. The design of the tablet is interesting since it has two screens which can be used together or separately. You can simply put them together to view a video, or when playing video games, the top screen can act as the main viewing screen and the bottom can be the joystick/keyboard. In addition, it boasts 1GB of RAM, 1GHz dual-core processor, 5MP rear facing camera, 6GB of onboard memory, WiFi, and Bluetooth. While the tablet does have a unique design, I’m not sure if it will win over the wallets of budget conscious consumers. One of the short comings of the device is the fact that it will launch running Android 3.2, but it will be upgraded to Android 4.0 in the near future. It will be available on March 4th for $399 on a two year contract. However, if you prefer to purchase it off contract, then you can do so for $549. [ AT&T ]
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Twitter will introduce Promoted Tweets and Promoted Accounts in the Twitter for Android app soon. The company made the announcement today that in the next update to its mobile apps, the paid advertisements known as Promoted Tweets will begin appearing in-stream for users. Promoted tweets already appear when a user performs a search in Twitter for Android. However, unlike on the web version of Twitter, they currently do not appear when a user is simply browsing tweets from the people whom they follow. That will change in a few weeks, according to a post on the official Twitter blog . Initially, a small number of users may see Promoted Tweets near the top of their timelines from brands they already follow. This will help ensure that people see important Tweets from the brands they care about. Basically, you won’t see a promoted tweet from Coca Cola unless you follow the brand. But if you occasionally tweet about your love of soda (or pop) that promoted tweet may someday appear even if you don’t follow Coca Cola. The tweets will appear “like any other Tweet,” other than the fact that they are clearly noted as being promoted. Twitter will only display tweets that it deems relevant, but users can dismiss irrelevant tweets by swiping them away. Meanwhile, Promoted Accounts will appear when browsing the Who to Follow recommendations. The standard recommendations based on your contacts, follows, and subject matter will appear, but so will brands that have paid to be recommended. At the moment, this does not appear to affect third-party Twitter Android apps.
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Here we go folks, yet another Samsung Galaxy tablet that most consumers probably won’t even remember in a couple of weeks. This past week, Samsung announced the Galaxy Tab 2 series and the Galaxy Note 10.1 . In a couple of days, the Galaxy Tab 7.7 will come available on Verizon Wireless for $499 on a two year contract. The 4G LTE capable 7.7 inch device will specifically launch on March 1st. Earlier today, Andrew discussed the problems Samsung (and Android manufacturers) has had with competing with the iPad and Apple. One of his main issues with Samsung is how they keep churning out product after product “at every single tech event.” With two, arguably better, tablets right around the corner for Verizon and Samsung, does it make sense for the average consumer to purchase the Galaxy Tab 7.7 running Android 3.2 now? I’m not sure it does. In any case, let’s see what the Galaxy Tab 7.7 has to offer and whether it is worth the $499 on a two year contract. The device was initially announced earlier at CES, and it sports a 7.7 inch display with 1280 x 800 resolution, a dual-core 1.4GHz processor, 3.2MP rear facing camera, 2MP front facing camera, and 16GB of onboard storage. $499 is a steep price to pay for a tablet that is going to launch without Android Ice Cream Sandwich. Unless you desire a tablet with a sub 10-inch display, then I would recommend waiting for the Galaxy Tab 2 series or even the Galaxy Note 10.1 to launch. Or at the very least, wait until the price comes down a little. [ Verizon Wireless ]
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Verizon will likely introduce shared data plans by mid 2012, CFO Fran Shammo said at an investor conference on Monday. Shammo didn’t give many details about the oft-discussed introduction of family data plans, but he did confirm that such options will be an important part of Verizon’s LTE network strategy. FierceWireless obtained a transcript of Shammo’s comments at the conference, and quoted him as saying: “This is going to be a long-term migration into where we want to get data plan sharing, but this will be more of a 4G play for us and I think it will be critical for us. And you’ll see something launched–even [Verizon CEO] Lowell [McAdam] alluded to it–you’ll see something launched mid-year this year from us.” Shared data plans would allow customers to pay for one data package and split its use among various devices. A family of four could then have a combined 20 GB of data that everyone could share rather than limit each phone to 5 GB. That way, the Mom and Dad who only use 1 GB each could donate their remaining data to kids who are more likely to watch Netflix, video chat, stream music, and do other activities that consume more data. (I’ve been on family plans on Sprint where I accounted for the vast majority of data consumed.) It could also come in handy for single-plan users with multiple devices. I currently have a Galaxy Nexus on Verizon and tether when I need to use data on my Galaxy Tab 10.1, but I limit that activity because I don’t want to consume too much data. I would never sign-up for a contract on my tablet, but if Verizon had a reasonable price for combined devices, I’d be more willing to consider it. AT&T and Sprint have also flirted with the idea of shared data plans, but Verizon is the first to explicitly state when it will introduce it. Expect to see offers made to new and existing subscribers in late spring or early summer.
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AT&T has an interesting proposition: instead of having customers worry about tiered data and monitoring how much that video streaming is going to eat into their monthly allotment, just make app developers pay for the data that its users consume. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal , AT&T CTO John Donovan proposed a program that would allow certain apps to be exempt from data limits if its developer foots the bill. Donovan told the Journal: “A feature that we’re hoping to have out sometime next year is the equivalent of 800 numbers that would say, if you take this app, this app will come without any network usage.” In other words, data-hungry apps like Netflix or Spotify would not count towards data plans if those companies would pay AT&T directly. Someone on a 2 GB plan could then watch as many YouTube videos as he or she wants without fear because Google would foot the bill. Why would Google ever do that? Because it might make enough money on ads to offset the costs. A music streaming service might then have to participate because its rivals joined; why use Rdio if Spotify doesn’t use any data and gives AT&T a kickback? And there lies the lunacy of the whole idea. While Google might have the funds to enable Google Music streaming (they probably wouldn’t, but humor me) in this program, an upstart like Grooveshark never would or could. AT&T would be giving an unfair advantage to select companies, and even big names like Netflix probably wouldn’t participate for fear of setting a dangerous precedent. AT&T would argue that users are more likely to use services that are in the program, but that gives deep pocketed-companies an advantage. The carrier already has some interest from unnamed companies, according to Donovan. Rather than see this as a shakedown for protection money, some companies supposedly see it as an opportunity to spend money to earn money. “What they’re saying is, why don’t we go create new revenue streams that don’t exist today and find a way to split them,” Donovan said. via GigaOm
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Because we here at Androinica like to keep things as diversified as possible and engage our Asian and European readers as much as our American public, we often let you know about gadget announcements in countries like the UK, Japan or India even though the respective devices have very slim chances to ever hit the US. Today we are going to talk about a smartphone intended to be an Indian exclusive, but that, as far as I’m concerned, has the potential to be a successful device in the US of A as well. The gadget has just been unveiled at the Intel press conference at MWC and is called the Lava Xolo X900. Powered by a 1.6 GHz Intel Medfield processor, the Xolo X900 looks pretty great on paper, even though there are many details kept under wraps. Sporting a 4-inch touchscreen display with a yet to be announced resolution, the smartphone will most definitely run Android, but for the time being we don’t have a clue as to what version of the OS. What we do know and makes us pretty excited is that the X900 will feature a rear-facing 8 MP camera capable of capturing up to 10 pictures per second (that’s right, no spelling error there) and will also come with HDMI, NFC support and HD video playback capabilities. As I already mentioned, the Xolo X900 is set to hit India first and foremost sometime in Q2 2012, but if the gadget will prove successful in Asia, I don’t see why it couldn’t come to America as well. As a matter of fact, if you ask me, the guys at Intel are a bit unfair with American Android geeks, as they have announced so far the Xolo X900, destined to be enjoyed by Asians, and the Orange Santa Clara, set to hit the European market this summer. Sure, there is the Lenovo K800 revealed at the CES last month, but that’s already old news and even that will hit China before coming to the United States (or in fact if it will ever come to the US).
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Smartphone buyers often make the mistake of thinking that more megapixels means more quality when it comes to mobile cameras. In reality, better image sensors and software makes for better cameras, and Samsung may reinforce that view in mobile video. Samsung Electronics today announced the S5K3H7 as a new CMOS sensor that should provide a noticeable difference between the mobile cameras of tomorrow and today. The 8 megapixel S5 can record 30 frames per second (fps) at 1080p HD. Plenty of phones that do that already, but the S5 should improve the process by being better at capturing high-speed motion. The split-second jerking and stuttering often seen in videos captured with a mobile camera can be combated with improved sensors, which the S5 might offer. The S5K3H7 will be able to shoot with low-power when filming 1080p, and will support 720p recording at 120fps and VGA at 240fps for slow motion playback. According to today’s announcement, Samsung claims that the S5 is “capable of delivering camcorder-class video quality on mobile handsets.” That would be quite the feat if proven true. We’ve seen tremendous progress in the picture-taking capabilities of Android phones, but enhanced video capture is necessary as well. Samsung says that the S5K3H7 is scheduled for mass production next month. Might we see this beautiful sensor appear in the Samsung Galaxy S III? We can only hope. “Consumers show a growing preference for high resolution image sensors with the diversity and qualities of DSCs on their mobile gadgets. Samsung’s advanced 8Mp imager is a good match for a diverse imaging experience and is expected to further expand Samsung’s leadership in CMOS based imaging technologies.” - Taehoon Kim, VP of System LSI Sales & Marketing, Device Solutions, Samsung Elec.
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Only one mobile payment solution is likely to flourish in the United States, and Isis – the joint venture between AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon – wants to be the one. And though Google Wallet has been available for a few months now, Isis will be ready for the Highlander-style clash soon. Isis announced today that it will begin testing mobile payments through near-field communication (NFC) in Salt Lake City and Austin, Texas by mid 2012. The trials will be done at participating merchants and allow consumers with eligible debit and prepaid cards to link their banking info securely into their phones and make payments using NFC-capable phones. The venture also announced that Chase, Capital One, and Barclaycard have all joined its mobile commerce effort. The three new merchants follow American Express, Discover, Mastercard, and Visa as companies that have signed-on to offer the ability to make payments through NFC. The newly-announced banks will have branded experiences within Isis according to the announcement. Google Wallet is outgunned by Isis in terms of smartphone manufacturers, wireless carriers, and merchants signed on to support it. While I’ve been pleased with the experience so far of using the app, security mistakes , carrier resistance , and the stiff competition in an already tight market have me worried for its chances. In a year or two when NFC mobile payments are really supposed to take off, we’ll see which solution proves to be the most successful. “We believe Isis is strongly positioned to bring the convenience, value and simplicity of mobile commerce to consumers. We’re excited to build this offering for customers and our card partners with Isis and look forward to shaping the future of payments.” – Stewart Holmes, senior director-mobile commerce strategy, Barclaycard US
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Huawei made a big announcement yesterday in the smartphone race, and now the company is entering the tablet lane with the MediaPad 10 FHD. It looks as though the rumors were true . Huawei confirmed the MediaPad 10 as an Android tablet sporting a quad-core processor. The MediaPad runs the 1.5 GHz K3 processor – which has a GPU designed for fast 3D graphics, gaming, and video processing – developed by Huawei. It also has 2GB of RAM to keep things running smoothly. While most of the tablets released later this year will have Tegra or Qualcomm chips, Huawei has its own quad-core processor that it argues is faster and has more endurance. As the name implies, the MediaPad 10 features a 10-inch screen. Huawei opted for an HD IPS display with 1920 x 1200 resolution, which enables a very clear display. You’ll enjoy that display with the latest version of Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich). Huawei hasn’t made any indication that it will make any heavy customizations to the software, but it should be stock Android 4.0 considering that the the Ascend D phone didn’t appear to have any major tweaks, and neither do the press photos for the MediaPad 10. Consumers can expect to see the MediaPad 10, and its unibody aluminum-alloy build, released across the globe in Q2 2012. Price will vary by market, but details should be known closer to availability. Below are a few mow specs on the device. 8 MP rear camera 1.3 MP front-facing camera 2 GB of RAM 1.5 GHz K3 quad-core processor Supports HSPA+21/42/84 Mbps and “a number of network standards including LTE” 10-inch, 1920 x 1200 IPS display Dolby surround sound technology 8.8mm thin, 598g weight
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Qualcomm surrendered much of the processor hype in 2011 to NVIDIA, which powerered the first wave of dual core devices last year. But the company has since made strides in delivering strong experiences to dual-core phones and tablets with the Snapdragon S4, and that experience will get even better with a retooled version. At Mobile World Congress, Qualcomm announced the Snapdragon S4 “Pro” processor, an improved processor that will power many of the phones that interest consumers in 2012. The S4 Pro makes strides in the graphics department by including the Adreno 320 GPU that is four times better than the graphics performance seen in the previous S4. That means game developers can develop more creative graphics that will display faster and more detailed on mobile devices. Adreno 320 has better capabilities for 3D graphics and can support game engines like Unity and Epic. Aside from just providing better graphics, the S4 Pro should enable improved image capture quality for better smartphone cameras, and more efficient computing. People are bound to scoff at devices being “only dual-core” later this year, but the number of cores won’t be as important as the number of hours a phone can last and the rating you’d give the photos you snap. If the S4 Pro can excel in those key areas, a lot of device buyers will be happy. Qualcomm says that the S4 Pro is in development on more than 120 devices, meaning you’ll see it pop-up on a number of phones and tablets (not all Android, though since this can also support Windows 8). S4 Pro-powered devices will start shipping in the second half of 2012.
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Busy, busy, busy! That seems to be the new ZTE slogan, as the Chinese technology manufacturer has unveiled in the space of a few minutes one very great quad-core Android-based smartphone and no less than four interesting and exciting tablets. After taking a quick look at what the Era is set to bring to the overcrowded and extremely competitive smartphone market, it’s time to talk about ZTE’s fresh tablet line-up. ZTE PF100 The first of the bunch is a 10.1-inch slate with a dedicated Icera 450 HSPA modem and an NVIDIA T30S 1.5 GHz quad-core processor. Needless to say that this looks like one heck of a snappy tablet on paper, even though that chipset is paired with ‘’only’’ 1 GB of RAM. Other features include Android 4.0 out of the box (of course), a multi-touch TFT WXGA display with a yet to be specified resolution, 16 GB of internal storage space, dual 5 MP/2 MP cameras, GPS, WiFi, HDMI and Dolby Mobile sound system. ZTE T98 The second quad-core tablet to be unveiled by ZTE on this beautiful Monday morning is the 7-inch T98, also powered by a 1.5 GHz NVIDIA Tegra T30S quad-core CPU. Running Android 4.0 ICS out of the box, the T98 is practically identical to the PF100, with the exception of the screen diagonal. It comes with 1 GB of RAM, 16 GB of on-board memory, dual 5 MP/2 MP cameras, WiFi, Bluetooth and GPS, which are all things you will find on the PF100 as well. However, the ZTE T98 also comes with a dock connector, which means that the Chinese manufacturer will unveil soon enough a docking station as well. ZTE V96 Even though it doesn’t come with quad-core performance, the third ZTE tablet to be unveiled in Barcelona is also a pretty high-end device, being powered by a snappy 1.7 GHz Qualcomm chipset. Also running Android 4.0, the 10-inch V96 features all the things its siblings do, but also LTE connectivity. ZTE V9S I know, I know, the name is at least confusing, but this last ZTE slate has a personality of its own and will most likely target Android fanatics on a tighter budget. Running Android 3.2 Honeycomb, the 10.1-incher is powered by a dual-core 1.2 GHz Qualcomm MSM8260 processor and features pretty much all the things expected from a mid-range slate, including 1 GB of RAM, 16 GB of storage space and dual cameras. No words yet on availability, prices or exact release dates for either of the four tablets, but the guys at ZTE have hinted at Q2 launches for all of them. Also, even though it is yet to be officially confirmed, it seems that at least two of these slates are intended to hit the US market during the course of 2012. Article source: ZTE.com Photo via The Verge
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Android activates 850,000 new devices each day. That number climbs each time the sun rises and sets, leading to more than 300 million Android devices being activated since October 2008. Who would have thought we’d reach that number when asking how many Android phones are there? Google SVP of Mobile Andy Rubin shared the latest round of jaw-dropping Android stats today as Google kicked off Mobile World Congress 2012. The company is once again creating a massive Android-themed stand to showcase developers and devices that power the Android ecosystem, so Rubin decided to point out some astonishing figures associated with that growth. Based on previous history, there’s a good chance you already know that Android has a “break-neck speed of innovation” as Rubin says. But did you know it has: 450,000 Android apps are available for download in the Android Market. That’s 3X the 150,000 apps announced at MWC last year. 1 billion Android apps are downloaded each month, and the number is growing. More than 800 Android devices have been released in the past 41 months, and that number is really growing, especially considering all the product announcements we’ve seen already. Android enjoys 250% year-over-year growth So as Google continues to raise its “x billion served” counter in app downloads, and the number of Android fans continues to climb, count on seeing more apps and more phones covered here on Androinica.com. With that, we leave you with a video showcasing the inspiration behind the collectable pins that Google is spreading throughout booths at MWC.
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