Android

Google Drive for Android has been updated. This update brings a handful of new features as well as mention of bug fixes and visual improvements. Perhaps more exciting here though,[...]

From the moment it was announced at I/O I was absolutely hooked. I used talk daily for work and a lot for talking to my fellow Android fanatics, so a face-lift and bundle of new features were definitely a welcome update. First let me talk about what a huge departure this is from the bland old Talk app. I’m loving the new colorful, happy theme. You have the familiar drop down menu to switch accounts on the conversations list. Although when receiving a message it’s usually easier to just tap your notification to switch between accounts. But this is quick and easy as well. Also in your conversations list you have the holo style “swipe to archive”  we’ve come to know and love from Gmail. Although there doesn’t seem to be an option yet to change the swipe action to delete instead of archive as we’ve seen in Gmail. Hopefully we’ll see that in a future version. Moving on to the chat and some new features. First, you can now see the last message your friend read, this icon also makes it easy to know when your friend is paying attention, when they are, their avatar is illuminated, when they leave, it’s dull and grey. Once they’re caught up on the conversation and begin a reply, a dancing little ellipsis to let you know when they’re composing a reply. Here is one of my absolute favorite new features. You see above, I wasn’t actually in a video call at 1.56 AM, I just wanted to get in on the chat, once you join a hangout, you can turn off the video feed and communicate with everyone via chat. Really a cool feature for those bad hair-days when you don’t want to video chat with everyone, but still want to be a part of the fun! Also, you can see this on your device when you have an active video hangout on your PC or other device. I really like that you can use this on multiple devices at the same time. All-in-all the new app, when compared directly to the old Talk app, is a total “win” aside from the few bugs that accompany such a green app. To enable the new Hangouts for you Gmail before Google rolls it out for everyone you just click the camcorder icon drop down menu next to your avatar above the Talk buddy list in Gmail and select the “Try the new Hangouts” option. For all of you Google apps users, you can still use the Hangouts app to send messages, although you won’t get the suite of features until your administrator switches opts your domain in to try the new Hangouts. Be aware though, if want to check out the new features on your Gmail or Google Apps email account, it apparently breaks your voice calling although there is supposedly an extension you can install to fix it. All-in-all, I think Google will have a total winner here once it’s polished. I’ve found myself answering people who send me SMS through the Hangouts app, because I like it more and it seems to be more reliable than the SMS on my network. I’ve never really enjoyed chatting with multiple people at once, but for some reason I’ve found myself looking for groups of friends on G+ I think would be fun to hangout with. The more people adopt Google services like Gmail and Google+ the more friends you’ll have available with whom to Hangout. So everyone, do what I do and get as many of your friends and family using it as possible! Hit the comments below and let us know what you think about the new Hangouts! Is there anyone out there who misses Talk? The post Hangouts (formerly Google Talk) Android app review appeared first on AndroidGuys.

The Galaxy Note III will be the next “big thing” in Samsung’s market domination, and it seems that the phablet has been ran through the AnTuTu Benchmark test. The model number is GT-N7200, and is rocking a 1.6 GHZ processor, while running some brand new Android 4.3. No word yet, on what kind of processor it is, but are speculations believe that it will most likely be the Exynos 5 processor. Other specs that we have received about the Galaxy Note III, is that it will rock a 5.9-inch 1080p display, with 3GB of RAM. These benchmarks could very well be fakes, but even if it is, it keeps the Note III fresh in our minds before we get to see it this September at IFA. Let us know if you are waiting for the third generation phablet. Source: Cult of Android

Here in Vegas for CTIA 2013, Nokia continues to go all in on Windows Phone 8. The Lumia 928 is its latest plastic rectangle sporting Microsoft's mobile OS. It's a 4G LTE device exclusive to Verizon and it's available now for $99 with two-year agreement.Actually, you can get it even cheaper than that. Amazon currently has it on sale for $49. Off contract its $500.The Lumia 928 boasts specs that make it competitive with other WP 8 devices: a 4.5-inch 720p HD display, a 1.5Ghz dual-core processor and 1GB of RAM. The main camera is 8.7-megapixels, and Nokia claims that it offers excellent low-light performance.You've last some weight, haven't you?It's also one of the thinnest Lumia's we've seen, especially when compared with last year's Lumia 920. It's just 0.40-inches thick, 5.24-inches tall and 2.71-inches wide.Like a lot of Lumias, the 928 feels very slick in the hand. We were actually a bit worried about it slipping from our grip. While we've always liked the size and shape of Lumias, there's something to be said for the rubbery grippiness of HTC's 8X and 8S. We also wondered if it might be the last plastic Lumia we see, since the metal Lumia 925 coming to T-Mobile is making quite a splash.This is a carrier exclusive for Verizon, so there is some branding. There's a Verizon logo at the top of the display, and a 4G LTE logo on the rear.Subdued, for a Lumia anywayWith both the 925 and 928, it seems Nokia is dialing back some of its bright color choices. The 928 comes it just black or white. Quite a change from the taxi cab yellow and lime green we often see from Nokia; we're personally missing the bright blue and deep red they usually offer.The 928 sports a signature Lumia feature: wireless charging. It also brags about another Lumia trademark, a strong low-light camera. We weren't able to test this, as the showroom was too bright, but it's something we'll be looking at in our full review.Early VerdictLike a lot of Windows Phone 8 devices, Nokia's Lumia 928 looks sharp and it's priced to move. Even without the Amazon promotion, $99 gets you a lot of phone.Our biggest concerns stem not from the 928 itself, but from from the whole Lumia line, which is becoming bloated and unwieldy. Nokia has a lot of Lumias on the market. There's the 900, the 920, the 925 and now 928. It's getting to the point where its hard to keep them all straight, let alone remember what phone is available on which carrier.Still, if the Lumia 928 truly does have as a good a camera as it claims, that combined with its good looks, thin frame and nice price should help it stand out. We look forward to getting the 928 in for a full review.

The CTIA show is almost irrelevant to Android fans, but Verizon Wireless has a press event scheduled for today, and there is some mystery around what will be announced. One of our sources said we could hear about a new no-contract offering, but others are saying there might be something HTC related or even details about VoLTE (Voice Over LTE). Tune in at 1 PM ET to see what happens.

Full screen browsing and simpler searching highlight the changes in Chrome 27 for Android Chrome for Android has been updated to version 27 (27.0.1453.90 to be exact), bringing one of the most requested features along for the ride -- full screen browsing. In addition, other changes like simpler searching and tab history made it into Chrome 27. The Chrome team is excited to announce the promotion of Chrome 27 to the Stable channel. Chrome for Android 27.0.1453.90 contains a number of improvments including: Fullscreen on phones - Scroll down the page and the toolbar will disappear. Simpler searching - Searching from the omnibox will keep your search query visible in the omnibox, making it easier to edit, and show more on your search result page. Client-side certificate support - You can now access sites that require you to use a certificate and Chrome will allow you to select an installed certificate Tab history on tablets - Long press the browser back button to view your tab history And a ton of stability and performance fixes The update is recommended, and you can get the latest version from the Google Play link above. Via: Google Chrome

The story of HTC is slowly becoming a tragedy. The once popular OEM that gave us the very first official Android phone, and the first Nexus phone, continues to sink into the abyss with no signs of recovering. Many HTC executives have now departed ways from the company, and you got to wonder what the next step will be. Here is a list of executives that have already jumped ship: Chief Product Officer – Kouji Kodera (responsible for HTC’s overall product strategy) Vice President of global communications - Jason Gordon Global retail marketing manager – Rebecca Rowland Director of digital marketing –  John Starkweather Product strategy manager – Eric Lin Peter Chou reported that if the HTC One did not pull the company out of the quicksand he would step down as CEO of the company. No word yet on if that is gong to happen in the near future. One HUGE mistake HTC made this year, has definitely got to be the HTC First. It only took a month before the commercials stopped running, and the price dropped nearly 100%. We can all hope that the HTC One will lift the OEM from the deep hole it has fallen in, but it might be just a little too late. Let us know what you guys think about this. Source: Android Guys

Google Drive has seen a nice little update today, and some of you will probably dig the new UI layout. Just like our other Google applications, they have updated the UI to represent the Google Now card layout. Swiping and using gestures have now been emphasized in this new update, and you will also be given the option to download a copy of the file for when you are offline. Probably the best feature added in this update, is the ability to scan documents into PDF format. Google Drive will now be able to snap a photo with your device’s camera, then convert the characters to a PDF file to make life a little bit easier for us. You will now be able to adjust text fonts, add color, adjust sizes, and you will have alignment options for better formatting. Finally, they have added cloud printing support for wireless printing. You will now be able to print out a document without having to resort to your desktop or laptop. So if you have not updated your Google Drive yet, get in there and do so. If you have not tried out the awesome app, then now is the time to check it out. Let us know how much you like the update. Play Store Link Source: Google Drive Blog

CTIA 2013 is happening this week in Las Vegas and Tim is there in attendance for one reason, because Verizon scheduled a press event to take place, their first in quite some time. We have no idea what to expect once they take the stage, but you can probably think of a few good reasons. [...] Live: Verizon’s CTIA 2013 Press Event is a post from: Droid Life Click the post title to continue through and join the conversation!

At Google I/O, we all marveled at Google Now’s new voice search feature. With that function, the line was blurring between our mobile device and desktop computer. We were seeing the genesis of complete cohesion, and a disregard for platform. Functionality is the order of the day, and with the latest Chrome update we get more of it. Searching by voice is included in the latest stable version of the Chrome browser, which is version 27. As you see in the picture above, there will be a little microphone in the search bar. Simply click on it, tell Google Now what’s on your mind, and get some results. For all the talk of a Chrome-Android merger, and just what that would mean moving forward, it looks like we have a glimpse. We’ve long proposed that both platforms have some functionality that can (and should) be shared, and voice search is one of them. Most computers have a microphone, just like your smartphone. Both search the same place for information, so it was really a matter of sharing a little code. If you’re not sure about which version of Chrome you’re running, or need to upgrade, go to ‘Settings’ in the browser and click on ‘Help’. It will do a little search for which version you’re on, and if you need an upgrade. If you do, it will prompt you to restart your session. If you don’t, go ask Google some fun questions and let us know what answers you get in the comments section below!