Archive for: apps
Announcements of new hardware and software often get mistakingly posted before their official release (if they’re not already leaked beforehand). The “bad” affect it has on the company in question is debatable. We’d argue that the small leaks here and there only increase the anticipation and hype around a genuinely lusted after product/service.
Instagram for Android is the latest to suffer from pre-release release. The screenshot above was captured by an AndroidGuys reader and shows the Android Market’s “Featured App” as the currently unreleased Instagram for Android. Clicking on the link by said reader resulted in a failed journey into awesomeness (read: the link was broken). Still, despite leaving the Android Market empty handed, the person who caught the image above (as well as the rest of us) shouldn’t have to wait too much longer. Details around Instagram for Android have been constantly bantered back and forth in the online world.
Keep waiting everyone. It’s almost here.
Computing has experienced profound advancements in the decades since the first building-sized, vacuum tube-powered computers were developed in the mid-20th century. The huge leaps made in hardware, from the integrated circuit to the microprocessor to the continuing development of newer, smaller, faster components, have made sure that software development and distribution has changed rapidly as well. It’s mind boggling to think how far we’ve come in a relatively short 30-40 years…
It appears Google and the Chinese government still aren’t the greatest of friends. Over the weekend it has emerged that Google’s Android Market is once again inaccessible from within mainland China — though not for the first time. Google and China have a long, troubled relationship. Google’s anti-censoring stance last year likely did little to help.
The Android Market is the latest Google app to (re-) join the blocklist along with fellow in-house services GTalk, Gmail, and Google+ along with other popular social services such as Twitter and Facebook. Unsurprisingly, local mobile app stores are still accessible.
Are you an Android user based in China? Talk to us at: [email protected]
- September 28, 2011 4:03 pm
Android users looking for a little Instagram love will still have to continue waiting for the “official” app from Instagram. Yeah, we’re getting just as antsy as you are. But remember, Instagram still has six employees that now have to deal with an alleged 10+ million strong userbase — no easy feat. In the meantime, there’s this new app from Flickr for Android that promises just as much photo fun and interaction as Instagram (and then some). Looks like Yahoo is ready to put up a fight for the mobile photo editing/sharing crown.
Give Flickr for Android a shot and let us know what you think.
In other news: The Flickr iOS app will gain similar filter/share options in an update planned for sometime in the future, though head of product Markus Spiering wouldn’t divulge to reporters exactly when that date would be.
- September 28, 2011 8:47 am
It appears one of the few saving graces of RIM’s unloved BlackBerry PlayBook, Android app compatibility, was just revealed to be more or less useless.
Today at the Droidcon developer conference in Romania, RIM engineers began releasing certain stipulations that would prevent Android apps from being compatible on the PlayBook’s Android app emulator. A few here or there were to be expected. But as it looks currently, a large chunk of Android apps will only partially work with gaping holes in functionality/features, with many more being completely incompatible.
According to RIM, features that won’t work within the Android emulator include SIP/SIP VoIP, apps built with the Native Development Kit, apps that contain only App Widgets, and apps with more than one activity tied to the Launcher. Even worse, apps will be completely incompatible if they use any part of the following:
- Android’s text-to-speech engine
- cloud-to-device messaging system
Hopefully RIM has something intriguing and inviting with the PlayBook’s 2.0 update due out later this year. Because as it stands now, QNX is venturing down the same path as webOS and MeeGo — and that’s something we would hate to see.
Lesson worth learning: Don’t rely on a competitors platform to plug the holes in your own.
- September 20, 2011 9:02 am
Samsung apps users on the company’s Bada OS 2.0 Samsung Wave will notice a rather stark change when firing up the app store today. Samsung Apps 2.0 is now live! New number scheme aside, Samsung Apps 2.0 brings several new features such as a revamped user interface (consistant with Bada OS 2.0), new purchasing options (“Try’n Play” and “Rent’n Play”), a “smart” app recommendation service (recommends applications based on current usage trends and the users’ favorite apps and interests), a new wish list, as well as marketing enhancements.
In addition to the 2.0 changes above, in lieu of Samsung Apps’ second anniversary the company is giving away 30 of the top selling apps (Fruit Ninja & Planets Vs. Zombies to name two) for free to all Samsung Wave users.
Samsung Apps may trail the giants by Apple and Google with “only” 40,000 apps, but it’s nice nonetheless to see Samsung giving the platform some much needed attention. Any Apps users care to share a thought or two?
- September 8, 2011 9:51 am
Both dedicated and cross-platform chat apps are a dime a dozen these days. A few notable contenders such as Kik, WhatsApp and LiveProfile stand out amongst the rest. Though ultimately each app varies little from one to another with the biggest difference lying in the user interface. To us, Kik is the best looking cross-platform chat app. The only problem is that it isn’t quite as useful without BlackBerry support. Too bad RIM had to can support for it.
But if you’re open to the idea of another cross-platform chat app, we think you’ll like PingMe…
Between Google Talk, SMS, Kik, AIM, BBM and countless others, it goes without saying we do not need another messaging service. Currently, RIM’s BBM is far and wide unrivaled in ease of use, utility and reach. That will soon change when Apple releases iOS 5, however, which includes Apple’s new SMS replacement “iMessage”. Just like BBM, iMessage allows iOS devices to seamlessly chat amongst each other. In a similar but slightly different approach, non-proprietary services such as Facebook Chat, AIM, Google Talk and so on are also all platform independent. With all the options available to end users, why is Samsung releasing their own cross-device chat service, ChatON?
In Samsung’s defense, ChatON will not be a Samsung-only affair. Instead, users of Android, BlackBerry and iOS will be able to download chatON and send text, images, and hand-written notes. Users will also be able to chat in groups and share video clips. In that light it’s less a BBM/iMessage killer and more of a GoogleTalk/AIM/Kik killer. Nonetheless, the original argument of not needing another messaging service still stands.
Look for ChatON to begin rolling out in September to 120 countries in over 20 different languages.
Yesterday it was jailbreak developer “Comex” that stunned quite a few by announcing his new upcoming internship at Apple. For someone who has spent so many years “on the run” from the very same company, it’s pretty amusing to see the tides turn. As for his jailbreak activities, we can’t see Comex continuing too much longer given his new employer’s past views on the practice of jailbreaking.
Today another iOS jailbreak dev sheds doubt on his own future. @chpwn has mentioned via Twitter that while he’s not joining Apple — a reply jokingly directed at some who have been vocalizing worries regarding future jailbreak efforts — he’s also getting bored (presumably with iOS/jailbreaking) and may not continue doing it much longer.
“I’m not joining Apple, but I’m also bored and probably not going to do much more jailbreak stuff. Probably.”
We’re not too worried at the moment. Chpwn’s statement is far from final. Not to mention, someone will rise up through the ranks and take over the jailbreak developer’s limelight. Worried?
