Android

Carrier will likely wait for compatible iPhone Vodafone UK will wait until September to launch its 4G LTE services, according to reports. British national newspaper The Guardian reports that Voda will miss the originally-targeted summer launch window for its LTE network, which runs on 800MHz and 2600MHz airwaves purchased as part of the recent 4G spectrum auction. The Guardian quotes Vodafone chief executive Vittorio Colao as saying "We want to be able to launch it when it's really ready. End of the summer means when there is going to be a good commercial window for launching it." That likely means the operator is waiting for refreshed iPhone hardware from Apple. The current iPhone 5 model sold in Europe supports LTE on 1800MHz, the frequencies used by rival EE, but not the 800MHz and 2600MHz that Vodafone will be using. (Most 4G Android phones sold in the UK support all three bands.) As for rival networks, O2 is said to be targeting summer "at the earliest" for its 4G switch-on. Three UK has built its "Ultrafast" brand around DC-HSDPA and its upcoming LTE offering, but says it's in "no rush" to launch the latter, which it's currently targeting for launch in Q4. Source: The Guardian

Just yesterday we featured a deal for the AT&T version of the enormous LG Optimus G Pro over at Amazon Wireless, but if you're willing to put in a bit of legwork (and you live in one of a few specific areas in the US) you can do even better. Fry's electronics stores have the Optimus G Pro available for just $99.99 with a new two-year contract. That's a full half off of AT&T's retail price for the subsidized phone. Unfortunately, the deal is only valid in retail stores - Fry's online store is only allowing the $600 off-contract purchase at the moment. Done With This Post? You Might Also Like These:LG Optimus G Pro Available At AT&T Starting Today Cricket Selling The Latest Version Of The Optimus One (Optimus C) For $130 - Without A Contract AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note II Drops To $249.99 ($50 Off) On Amazon Wireless T-Mobile Sells Out Of Nexus 4 Stock Online Hours After Google Adds Link From Play Store [Deal Alert] AT&T's LG Optimus G Pro Is Just $99.99 (50% Off) At Fry's Brick And Mortar Stores was written by the awesome team at Android Police.

Opera for Android has gotten a very significant upgrade in the Google Play Store, giving users a lot of great new features. Find out more about the new Discover tab, a new unified navigation bar, and the off-road feature now.

Latest in a string of high-profile departures, including VP of Global Communications HTC's Chief Product Officer Kouji Kodera has left the company, The Verge is reporting. Kodera's exit is the latest in a string of top-level departures at the struggling smartphone maker, including VP of Global Communications Jason Gordon, who announced his exit late last week. In recent months product strategy manager Eric Lin has also called it quits, and The Verge reports that global retail marketing manager Rebecca Rowland and director of digital marketing John Starkweather have also left. Writing on Twitter this Monday, a vocal Lin advised friends still working at HTC to "leave now," adding, "you'll be so much happier, I swear." Across the Atlantic, HTC EMEA President Florian Seiche recently departed for Nokia. Sources for The Verge suggest that the U.S.-based marketing departures could be the result of new CMO Benjamin Ho moving key decision-making away from the company's Seattle office and back to the Taipei headquarters. The site also quotes a source singling out the ill-fated HTC First for criticism, describing it as "a disaster." The "Facebook phone" recently had its price cut from $99 to 99 cents on-contract amid disputed reports that carrier partner AT&T may have decided to drop the handset. By contrast, sales of the flagship HTC One appear to be picking up. Production capacity is set to double this month to keep pace with "strong demand," according to recent comments from HTC North Asia president Jack Tong. However the One will continue to face fierce competition from Korean giant Samsung, whose Galaxy S4 is expected to hit its 10 millionth unit shipped this week. By contrast, HTC's financials remain precarious. Only time will tell how HTC will be able to meet the challenges it's facing, however we can be sure this series of high-profile departures is unlikely to help matters. via The Verge

Clueful, an app that BitDefender has recently launched for Android, allows you to find out which apps on your device constitute a threat to your privacy. BitDefender is offering the app as a free download in the Google Play Store (link below) – similarly, you can get BitDefender Free Edition, also made available at no cost not long ago. Even with a security suite installed and the measures Google is taking to keep the Play Store safe, it’s still not a bad idea to see what risks you’re taking by using one app or the other. Clueful is extremely easy to use: right after installing it, the app will scan your device and give you a privacy score, based on the permissions of the apps you have installed. The lower that score is, the more dangerous the apps you have installed on your Android device. The results come from comparing your list of apps to BitDefender’s cloud database. You’re also getting buttons, at the bottom of the Clueful interface, to see which apps are high risk, moderate risk or low risk. Clicking each one of those will send you to a list where you can check out the permissions each app has. A button that allows you to uninstall the app right away is provided, without the need to go to your device’s Settings menu for that. The app is extremely easy to use, yet it can provide you with some essential information about the dangers which could lurk behind apparently harmless apps. Also, you don’t need to refresh your score every time you install something new, as Clueful will offer you a notification regarding every new app right after installation. Will you be using Clueful on your Android device? Bitdefender Launches Free Clueful for Android App to Protect Users From Privacy Invasion BUCHAREST, ROMANIA–(Marketwired – May 21, 2013) – BITDEFENDER HQ – Bitdefender, the creator of innovative global antivirus software solutions, has launched the groundbreaking app Clueful for Android, giving device owners a way to monitor suspicious or careless apps that endanger privacy, handle sensitive data carelessly, deliver unwanted spam and access private information. Bitdefender Clueful for Android gives you — totally free — a tool to monitor and analyze Android apps to see which ones can use your phone and read your messages without permission, send spam notifications, access your photos, send your passwords unencrypted over the internet, upload your calendar, interrupt your phone calls with audio ads and more. The free app offers a comprehensive analysis of app behavior that is only available from Bitdefender. From the maker of Bitdefender Mobile Security, PC Mag’s Editor’s Choice for Android security, Clueful checks your apps against a constantly updated Cloud database to let you know when your privacy is at risk. Moreover, Clueful checks each app as soon as you install it, and rates the overall security status of your device with a “Privacy Score” to measure your vulnerability. “Your smartphone is probably the most personal device you own, containing private messages, sensitive banking information, personal photos and other data that can leave you vulnerable if handled carelessly,” said Bitdefender Chief Security Strategist Catalin Cosoi. “Meanwhile, the world of apps is still like the Wild West — poorly regulated, chaotic and open to exploitation by unsavory characters. Clueful offers you a solid defense in an often dangerous milieu.” Bitdefender will launch Bitdefender Clueful for Android in an event for the media at Pepcom’s MobileFocus at the Mirage Hotel in Las Vegas on May 21, the opening night of the CTIA 2013(TM). Clueful will be available starting the same day on the Google Play store. Clueful is crafted and maintained by world-leading developers at Bitdefender, drawing on years of experience on the front lines of the fight against malware. Innovation and dedication has won the comp

At CTIA 2013, Android Authority’s Joshua Vergara had some hands-on time with the CAT B15, the latest in Caterpillar’s range of rugged devices. The CAT B15 is one of the strongest Android devices out there, and it’s perfectly capable of getting through anything you might think to throw its way. Available now in the U.S. for $350, after it launched in Europe and the U.K. last month, the device is certainly not for those looking for a discreet smartphone. Although Caterpillar’s reps say that it’s relatively slim and light, the CAT B15 is not a phone you’d expect to see in a woman’s purse. The CAT B15 is aimed at people like executives in the construction industry or at outdoor enthusiasts, and, if you’re one of them, you’ll certainly appreciate what it has to offer.Thanks to its aluminum sides and rubber casing, you can safely drop the B15 from six feet or submerge it in three feet of water for up to half an hour. It’s also dust and scratch resistant. The device, which runs Android 4.1.2, manages to offer a decent set of specs to go with its robust build, including a 4.1-inch screen, a dual-core MediaTek MT6577 CPU, with a 5 megapixel back camera and a VGA front one. Check out our hands-on video below to see the CAT B15 in action. While the CAT B15 is only available through the manufacturer’s website at the moment, the company is working on getting it to retailers and carriers. Are you a fan of rugged devices? Will you get a CAT B15?

Ingress, the augmented-reality game developed by Google in cooperation with Niantic Labs has just received another update, this time a pretty major one, a few days after that huge Ingress event held during Google’s I/O conference. Certain game features received a much needed makeover and Ingress now includes several new elements, in addition to the expected bug fixes. As seen from the changelog of version 1.26, developers have integrated detailed information about the health of the portal and the percentage of faction control right inside the Portal Keys panel from the Inventory menu. Moreover, support for Jarvis Virus and ADA Refactor objects has been added. Ingress is now capable of sending notifications in case someone attacks a portal or neutralizes it. The same applies when another member of the game mentions you using your @codename. Another important addition is the new Recharge visual animation, which will be displayed each time a portal is healed. Even though the update is counted as a major one, Ingress is still in the closed beta stage. Those wishing to join the conquest can request an invite from the official website or from a high-ranked member (level six or above).

We’re live from the CTIA 2013 convention in Las Vegas, where we got some hands-on time with the Stealth Black version of the popular HTC One. There’s no question about it – the HTC One is one of the best looking (many say the best looking) smartphones on the market right now. It’s a beautifully worked piece of aluminum with smooth curves and seamless transitions between its design elements. HTC has touted the attention it put into designing the make-or-break One more than once, as well as the work that goes into machining each and every unit. Our Kristopher Wook was impressed with the device when he reviewed the HTC One, and our drop test against the iPhone 5 shows that the One is as sturdy as it is pretty. Up until now, we only got to play with the Glacial Silver HTC One, with the Stealth Black model eluding us for some reason. Well, not anymore, because Joshua Vergara paid a visit to the CTIA 2013 convention and got to spend some quality time with the black HTC One. Here are his impressions. And here’s a gallery of the HTC One Stealth Black, showing us its best positions. Which version of the HTC One do you prefer? A red edition was also rumored. Which one would you buy? Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

A new Verizon HTC One rumor says that the handset has been spotted in a Sprint store, running Android 4.2.2. An xda-developers forum user who apparently works for Sprint has posted the news a few hours ago, but it looks like the original thread has been deleted from the forums. A cached version of that post still exists so here’s what it says: HTC rep is at my location showing off the one. Asked about the 4.2.2 update and he pulled out a verizon one running it with notification controls in tow…… Looks like Verizon’s will launch with 4.2.2 with us getting the update near there as well. Pictures or any other visual proof has not been included in the post. Meanwhile the phone is available from three U.S. carriers including AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile but also from a variety of retailers and HTC’s local online store. This isn’t the first time we hear that Verizon will get the HTC One at some point in the future. So far HTC has denied these reports a few times, recently saying that it will make a big fuss about a potential HTC One launch with the carrier when and if that happens. Even so, there are various hints indirectly suggesting that a new HTC handset is heading to Verizon, no matter if it’ll be the HTC One or not. The carrier has a special media event scheduled for today at CTIA 2013, during which it may unveil new products. Naturally, the HTC One is one of the suspects, although we’ll be able to tell you more details later today. As for that HTC One Android 4.2.2 update, we heard only days ago that it’s supposed to arrive soon.

Two new mid-range phones from HTC have been spotted in the wild. The first the HTC Desire 200 has been seen in a certification filing in Taiwan, the second the HTC Desire 600 has turned up in a benchmark result. Until now HTC used letters to differentiate between the models in its Desire range: the Desire X, the Desire SV and so on. But it seems as if the company is moving to using numbers rather than letters. The HTC Desire 200, which has an internal model number of 102e, turned up in a filing in Taiwan. Little else is known about the device other than it will support 3G and uses the same 1500mAh battery as found in the HTC Desire C. The Desire C was a 3.5 inch device with a 320 x 480 pixel display released during May 2012. The Desire 200 could be its replacement but maybe with a better display and processor. According to benchmarks found on GFCBench, HTC are also working on the HTC Desire 600. The benchmark results show a phone made by HTC Europe (meaning it is probably destined for the European market) that supports dual-SIM and runs Android 4.1.2. The CPU is clocked at a maximum of 1209MHz and it uses the Ardeno 203 GPU. The only processor which fits these specifications is the dual-core variant of the Qualcomm Snapdragon Play. Although there is also a quad-core variant of the Snapdragon Play, which is also clocked at 1.2GHz and uses the Ardeno 203, this is unlikely as the display on the Desire 600 is reported to only be 960 x 540, making it a lower-end phone. Another intriguing possibility is that the phone will use the Snapdragon 200, however if it does it will be under clocked as the Snapdragon 200 can run at 1.4 GHz. Not everyone has the budget for HTC’s flagship HTC One, do either of these two phones sound tempting to you?