Android's Facebook app got an update yesterday, bringing it to Version 1.2 and bringing native inbox support along with it. In exchange, you lose the option to take and upload a picture from within the main page you see above, but that's not really a big deal given how easy it is to do from the native Android or Sense (or Motoblur or whatever) camera apps, and you can do it from the news page. We'd still like to see Facebook chat, and maybe less reliance on the mobile site, but it's still a welcome update.
If you haven't updated yet, take a gander in the Android Market downloads section. Thanks to everyone who sent this in.
One of the larger issues surrounding applications and the Android Market (OK, one of a number of larger issues) is the current inability to update more than one application at a time. The above screen shot, purportedly from Android 2.2 (which might or might not actually be Froyo; or might be Froyo and not Android 2.2) shows a checkbox for allowing automatic updating. We'll have to think about whether we'd rather see that or just the ability to update all our apps in one fell swoop. But either way, some sort of fix will be a welcome addition. [4chan via Android Community]
One of the biggest misconceptions users migrating to the Android platform have is that they will be sacrificing security compared to their previous flavor of smartphone OS. This couldn't be farther from the truth. Settle in with your favorite beverage, and follow along after the break and we'll talk about Android's security features, and what you need to know and do to keep things going smoothly.
Androlib unofficially has the Android Market surpassing 50,000 applications, quite a leap from the 38,000 figure Google used last week during its first-quarter earnings call. In fact, when we asked Google for an official figure, we were told:
"We're sticking to 38,000 for now. We'll announce when we do our next formal count."
That said, 50,000 items in the Market is a real possibility, but let's be honest here: How many of those "applications" are (a) actual "applications" and (b) something you'd actually want to download? We still think Steve Jobs is being overly childish when he tells people to go to Android if they want porn, but we still think there's a lot about the Android Market that needs to be fixed.
A few of you have asked about graphics benchmarking on the Verizon Droid Incredible, so here you go. It's right up there with the Google Nexus One, and it should be. In other news, that Gundam's pretty darn cool.
More details have become available for the Lenovo LePhone, and not all of them are pretty. Previously thought to be running Android 2.1, it now appears to be running a highly-customized version of Android 1.6 that is being called LEOS (LEnovo OS?).
Despite some quirks such as a proprietary data cable and a back with "striped texture feels like a touch rusty iron in the same chip," the reviewer seems to like the phone quite a bit. The source is all in Chinese, but it's worth a look even with a poor translation. [CNbeta.com]
We all know that E-Readers have grown in popularity over the past couple of months, and we have seen a wide variety of them, most of them rather non pocket friendly, much like that iPad thing. The LiSeng Vbook offers you two 5-inch screens, one E-ink and one 800x600 touchscreen that will be running Android 1.6. While still on the small side in form factor, the device will offer 128MB of RAM, 2GB of flash storage, and even offer Wi-Fi. Unfortunately, pricing and a timeframe of release of this unit still remain unknown, but hopefully now that we have seen this much, we will continue to see more about this unit. [Engadget via Engadget Chinese]
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