Jerry Hildenbrand's blog

The 69MB update is available over Wifi only, brings new kernel and new radio

Build UCAMC3 looks like it's rolling out heavy for the AT&T branded Galaxy Note 2. Since last night, plenty of users are reporting that they have received the 69MB OTA. There's no official change log posted, but a quick chat with someone who has received it shows that you'll be getting a new radio and a new kernel. Besides the obvious performance boosts to the network that comes with new radio software, users are reporting better and stronger Wifi, and increased performance overall.

You'll need to be on Wifi to download this update, so be sure you're not using your cell radio when you check (right after reading this) lest you get the check again in 24 hours message. When and if AT&T posts any official list of changes, we'll update this post.

Via: Android Central forums. Thanks, Shawn!

It's the biggest, baddest, and most fun event of the year. See what your favorite folks from Android Central think we'll be seeing

Our favorite time of the year starts in just a few more days -- Wednesday, May 15 to be exact. We're talking about Google I/O of course. Not that we don't get excited by the happenings at Mobile World Congress, or CES, or even carrier and manufacturer events, but I/O is all Google all day (and night), and that's pretty important to any Android fan. In years past we've seen some awfully cool stuff, some were blockbusters and some, well, not-so-much. But we enjoyed seeing every single thing.

And there's more to Google I/O than the keynote extravaganza. Skydiving and announcements of the year's coming tech is pretty exciting, but you also get to sit in and hear the people who make Google and Android great talk shop with some of the best developers in the business. If you're a geeky type, it's like Nirvana. And even if you're not, it's still absolutely awesome to see the passion that everyone has for Google and Android. 

We're going to be there of course, and we'll tell you everything that's going on in and around the Moscone Center. It's going to be a blast, but just what do we expect to see? We're going to answer that one. Hit the break, see what we think, and when it's all said and done we can see just how right (or wrong) we were. 

Could the XT1058 be the XFON we're all waiting to see? This sketch of the rear from the FCC makes us think so.

About a week ago, we got a fairly decent look at an AT&T branded phone from Motorola, labeled the XFON. It certainly resembles an earlier leak from Vietnam, but there was no information to go along with the pictures. Zero. Zilch. Nada.

That might have changed this evening, as the Motorola XT1058 has landed at the FCC, and a quick breeze through the documents tells us a little about what we're looking at. The phone will have Bluetooth 4.0, NFC capabilities, 802.11ac Wifi, and carriers AT&T's LTE bands. It doesn't take much imagination to connect this with the AT&T XFON we saw last week.

Other than what you're reading above, we don't know anything about this one. The timing is certainly convenient for a showing at Google I/O, but nobody can know exactly when -- or if -- we'll see this one. My gut tells me it's soon, though, and it's high time Motorola delivered another high-end GSM Android phone. If this is to debut at Google I/O, we should know in a few short days.

Source: FCC; via: Phone Scoop

What's in the boxes isn't nearly as important as what them being there means

Look at that pallet of swag. Some people think it may be a pile of Chrome devices to give to attendees, others think it's T-shirts and some are guessing it's box after box of fancy pens. Alex is certain that it's "so many bags of Doritos." I'm not particularly concerned about what it is (don't go to Google I/O for the swag), but what it means.

Chrome OS is due for some serious loving from Google. It's been progressing along nicely, but it's high time that it gets some of the special treatment we saw Android get way back when the Nexus One came out with Eclair. Remember how much better Android became -- and so quickly -- once Google started focusing on it? Yeah. Let's do that with Chrome. T-shirts and Chromebooks (or Doritos) will get us excited, but I'm really excited about what we'll see at the keynote and in the developer sessions. 

Just a few more days.

One man's trash is another man's treasure. Help out by donating your old Android phones to a worthy cause.

If you're sitting on any old, unlocked Android phones and are headed to Google I/O this year, Android for Good is ready and waiting to take them off your hands. They have plenty of good homes, filled with people who will appreciate a working Android phone.

Donate your old, unlocked Android devices and make a difference. Android for Good (located on the second floor of Moscone in the Develop for Good Sandbox) will be a part of I/O again this year, helping to bring used Androids to organizations such as Village Reach in Mozambique and Save the Elephants in Kenya. Although the device may seem antiquated to you, it could make a world of a difference to an organization that needs it.

Remember, they don't stop working -- or being useful -- we outgrow them. Spread a little Android love, and help those in need while you're at it.

If you're looking to buy an HTC One, but silver's not really your thing, this "stealthy" black model is for you

AT&T has made the "Stealth Black" HTC One available from their website this evening, offering both the 32 and 64GB versions. Pricing is the same as the silver version we're all used to by now, namely $199 for the 32GB, and $299 for the 64GB with a new agreement, or $599 and $649 off contract and bought at full price.

We knew they were going to offer it eventually, so we're not very surprised, but it's good to see it available for the folks who have been waiting. Consider this your notice so you can jump on one of these if you're one of those people.

Source: AT&T

Profits are up 29-percent year-over-year, revenue up by 3-percent

NVIDIA has posted their Q1 2013 financials, and while profit, at $78,000,000 is down by 55-percent compared to last quarter, the year-over-year numbers is up by 29-percent. Earnings show a similar trend, with today's $955,000,000 down by 13-percent from last quarter, but up 3-percent year-over-year. Today's news beats the projections by Wall Street, and we expect the stock to reflect that when the market opens tomorrow.

NVIDIA  CEO Jen-Hsun Huang says the successful quarter comes from the Kepler GPU, and the Kepler and Tegra 4 platform are both expected to drive next quarter's numbers further into the black.

The success of Kepler-based GPUs within and beyond the PC helped drive another quarter of record margins. Kepler is capturing share among gamers, strengthening our workstation and supercomputing segments, and will fuel new growth opportunities for our GRID server graphics solutions. With Tegra 4 devices and Tegra 4i certification on the way, we're gearing up to return to growth in the second half.

All you financial types can check out the full statement at the source below. 

Source: NVIDIA

Keeping track of the names and numbers can be quite the task. How do you tackle it?

Your contacts, and keeping the list of them safe and sound, is a pretty big deal for some of us. I've got a couple thousand, and that's after paring things down to just the people I might want to get in touch with one day. I'm sure a lot of you have even more. 

A smart phone is a convenient place and method to keep track of them all. And, just like everything else, there are several different places to store them. Most of us here will probably use Google to store the email addresses and phone numbers of the people we want to talk to, but that's certainly not a requirement. You can store all that data on your phone's memory, or even on your SIM card -- provided you keep the number reasonable.

So, we're curious. Tell us where you keep your contacts, and be sure to hit the comments to tell us why, or any interesting tales of woe that you may have. There's a poll over to the right, and you can also find it after the break. Let us know!

A quick look at last week's poll results:

What's your Android keyboard of choice?

SwiftKey is the big winner, with more users than the rest combined. We understand why, because that word prediction is so good it's scary!

Attendees and folks watching from home can keep track of all the happenings at this years Google developer conference

Google I/O 2013 is just six days away, and to help everyone get ready the folks at Mountain View have pushed a mighty big update to the Google I/O app. What began as a way to show off Android fragments and best UI practices has turned into quite the portal for anyone interested in Google I/O, whether you're attending or not. A quick look at the change log.

• NEW! Scan attendee badges via NFC
• NEW! Schedule changes are immediately synchronized between devices
• NEW! Lock screen widget for viewing your agenda on the go
• NEW! Vector-based maps with session info
• NEW! Dedicated HDMI video output for livestreams
• NEW! Automatic WiFi setup for attendees
• NEW! Off-site attendee mode for livestream-only viewers
• Use Google+ for login
• Support for viewing Office Hours sessions
• Improved support for devices with RTL locales

Upon installing the app using your Google+ account credentials, you're asked if you'll be attending. This way the app knows whether or not to set up your Wifi access and let you choose your event schedule in the agenda view. 

The whole UI is now very Google Now-like, with cards and swiping taking center stage, and is optimized for phones, 7-inch tablets and 10-inch tablets. Developer Advocate Roman Nurik has a great overview of the style and design changes and improvements on his Google+ page, be sure to check that out if you're into design.

If you're attending I/O this year, be sure to look for us. If you're watching from home, we'll have all the coverage you could ask for. Six more days!

Check out the world without ever leaving your chair, Street View has come to Google Earth

The Google Earth application has received a major update today, and with version 7.1.1 comes a trio of great changes. The most obvious, and definitely the coolest, is that you can now zoom the whole way down to Street View to check out the world at street level. Long a staple on Google Maps for Android and the web, this is a nice addition.

Besides Street View, Google has improved the search functionality, made directions allowing you to see a 3D view of transit, walking, bike and driving directions. Another major change comes to the UI, which now offers a slide-out panel from the left side much like the Google+ app. 

Google Earth has come a long way, and it's nice to see an app that can take advantage of today's high-powered phones and their processing muscle. If you've never tried it, or if it's been a while since you had a look, grab it from the Google Play link above.