android

Yeah, that's pretty impossible to read. Fortunately we're trained in the art of squint-eyed-reading, so we'll translate. The gist of it is that Android 2.1 indeed is coming to the Sprint Moment and Hero, and it should be relatively soon. Important parts in bold.

What you need to know:

With all the anticipation of Nexus One joining the Sprint Android family of...

And so, we wait. But all hope is not lost, as Verizon told Phone Scoop yesterday that the update isn't delayed and is rolling out as planned, with the small, initial batch pushed out.

"The Android 2.1 upgrade for the Droid by Motorola was deployed to a small number of Verizon Wireless test users as scheduled. It is expected the broader phased rollout to all Droid by Motorola users will take place, but not just yet. No date scheduled yet."

That definitely

Any Motorola Droid owners out there looking for a direction to which some frustration needs to be channeled? We present comments today from Palm CEO Jon Rubenstein, who had some things to say about Verizon and the Droid during Palm's third-quarter earnings call this afternoon. Mainly, he says that the Pre's a better product and that it could/...

Whether it's streaming Internet radio or keeping as much of your music collection as you can on a microSD card, you gotta admit there are some great ways to keep the tunes flowing on your Android phone.

Yeah, we probably could have split these into two categories - streaming and non. But no matter, you guys had some great picks. After the break, we take a look at your favorite options.

The guys at Android and Me caught up with Sling at the GDGT Live event at SXSW in Austin, Texas, recently and managed to pin down what may well prove to be one of the most anticipated apps on the Android platform.

Yes, folks, Sling is coming. When? "This summer," Sling said. We see it running on the Motorola Droid and Google Nexus One, two platforms with large screens, perfect for movies and TV. (And there's the Samsung Galaxy Spica, too -- not as...

Vlingo, a very common and powerful speech-to-text tool for smartphone users, has announced a limited beta for the Android platform. Vlingo allows you to speak your emails, text messages, calls and searches and watch the text appear on the screen right before your eyes. For users one the go, this application makes long winded emails, or on the go text messages a breeze. For your chance to get in on this limited beta, point your mouse here. [via Vlingo...

The Motorola Droid's Android 2.1 update should be pushed out to the first 1,000 guinea pigs lucky users anytime now. Sing out if you've got it (we'll know if you're lying!) and be sure to post your thoughts in our Official 2.1 Findings thread.

Update: Not to panic anyone, but we're getting whispers of server problems or some...

As though Google hasn't already covered just about every aspect of digital life from the search engine to the RSS reader to a phone number that you can use across the board, now they want to come to your television? In efforts of trying to bring their relationship with Intel even closer, Google has decided they need to expand in the area of computing to television which is an area they hold very little grounds in currently. Google and Intel have decided to seek the help of Sony in creating a platform that will be used to bring the web to your television through a set-top box. 

While there are...

Realtors, take note: Zillow, the popular Web site that allows estimates your home value -- and more important, your neighbors' home values -- has just announced its first Android application. With it you get:

Our pals at LatopMag (hi, pals!) are getting way into March Madness this year, and they've got a 16-team smartphone tournament (not to be confused with the Smartphone Round Robin) to go with it.

Today features the Motorola Droid up against the BlackBerry Curve 8530. Other Android phones fighting for the Final Four are the HTC Hero vs. the LG Expo and...

We're back to bring you another round of our favorite Android applications. Find out what we like this week after the break.

Meet the new Nexus One, same as the old Nexus One. Only this one has AT&T's -- yeah, yeah, and some Canadian carriers', too -- 3G bands built in. Otherwise, it's exactly the same hardware (so far as we can tell without a teardown) and...

From the Forums is a great way for you, our readers, to see the hottest topics being discussed. But you must be a registered member and becoming a member is a simple process. So if you have not already already done so, head on over and register now!

You may remember when Google announced Google Gesture Search, and many of you were sad to find out that it was only available on Android 2.0 and higher. We did a video walk through of this in action for all those who were unable to use it due to device restrictions, but today has become your lucky day. Google now has released a version of this that will now work on Android 1.6 and above. The...

The above just popped onto Verizon's Web site and, well, you can plainly see it's pointing to the impending Android 2.1 update. We'll let you read through the thing yourself, but there's live wallpapers, pinch-to-zoom, voice-to-text everywhere ... basically all the good stuff that you've been waiting on for so long.

Anybody...

We've said it before. We've seen it already. But we'll say it once again: it's highly unlikely that Verizon is going to sell the Nexus One in stores. So though DigiTimes is saying that HTC is shipping Nexus Ones...

From the Forums is a great way for you, our readers, to see the hottest topics being discussed. But you must be a registered member and becoming a member is a simple process. So if you have not already already done so, head on over and register now!

While it may be the new OS in the game, Android continues to grow, and Google understands they need to grow at the same pace. Recently we saw that the creator of the cell phone has switched to Android, like many other smartphone users. Google has been lucky enough to get the co-creator of XML to join their team as an Android Advocate. Tim Bray has left Oracle, and...

A lot of Windows Mobile users are waiting for Windows Phone 7 Series to release and that's completely fair, it looks amazing. But what should you do with your Windows Mobile devices in the mean time? Why, get them to run Android of course! The Touch Pro 2 joins a series of

Ask us when the Motorola Droid is getting its long overdue (but not yet late) Android 2.1 update, and we'll tell you unequivocally, "Don't know. Soon." Officially, Motorola says it's "expected to roll out soon."

On Motorola's official forums, it's much of the same. Though forum manager...

Vodafone, like AT&T, has decided to join the Android Market a little bit late, but we have reports that they have their first Android device getting ready for release. The Vodafone 845 is rumored to be ready for a May launch, but don't get your hopes up too high if you are looking for a high end Android device. The Vodafone 845 will run the Vodafone 360 services on a 2.8inch QVGA touchscreen, along with a 3.2 megapixel camera. This device will also have the basics, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and GPS, with 512mb of internal memory. While the specs of the device are on the lower side, they have...

If you're the type of person who's into Android source code -- and let's face it, you probably are -- then you should know that Motorola's had the source for the Backflip available for a week now. Now you can play amateur Android chef and cook up your own locked-down, drive-a...

Hootsuite, one of the most recent Twitter clients to come to Android, just announced it acquired the Swift Twitter app. Many users noticed the interface of Hootsuite to be quite similar to Swift App, for those that have used both clients, so the acquisition doesn't come as an extreme surprise to most. With the developer on board fully now, hopefully we will continue to see updates to the application, and see what other features...

Far be it from us to say we told you so, but, well, we told you so. Here's confirmation, plain and simple, that the Google Nexus One on Verizon will not be sold in stores and instead will only be available at google.com/phone -- never mind that...

Opera Mini 5 beta hit the Android Market this morning, and we've been putting it through its paces. It's important to remember that this is Opera Mini, not the Opera Mobile we saw at Mobile World Congress, and the two behave differently.

Opera Mini...

This is another one of those deals that's likely to raise a few eyebrows, or at least produce some unwarranted exclamation points. The long and short of it is that Microsoft and Motorola have come to a deal that will make Bing the default search engine on Android devices released in China in the first quarter.

Here's another way to write that headline: "Manufacturer does what it wants with its own phones."

While it's the first time we can think of Bing...

One of the first questions we get from new Android users is "Great phone. Now how do I get my music on it?" And one of the first answers we give is "doubleTwist." The free software syncs with just about every smartphone out there, has the Amazon MP3 Store built in, and -- best of all -- frees you from the shackles of...

There are upwards of 20,000 apps in the Android Market. Some good, some not so good, and many are flat-out great. So what do your favorite Smartphone Experts editors have on their Android phones? Read on to find out.

Tether, formerly known as TetherBerry, has spent lots of time behind the scenes porting their extremely successful BlackBerry application to Android. Tonight is a great night for many that have been anxiously awaiting the arrival of this beta. Tether has sent out emails to those that have signed up for their long awaited beta so that public testing can begin.

This announcement comes shortly after they announced their 1st Birthday Celebration, which includes some amazing prizes, including...

Chances are if you've been hanging around Android for a while you've run across the Pure series of widgets. There's Pure calendar, Pure messenger and now, Pure music.

The widget works with the stock Android music players (or HTC's music player, if that's how you roll) and like the other Pure widgets is skinnable, so you can make it look however you want. The widget also is available in several sizes, from a 1x1...

Attention, people of Canada: The Samsung Galaxy Spica and its 3.2-inch, 320x480 screen pushing Android 1.5 (it'll be upgraded to 2.1 at some point) is now available on the Rogers network. It'll cost you just $79.99 on a three-year plan (that's standard up north), $349.99 on a two-year deal and $449.99 if you like to fly without a 'chute.

And for your...

On the heels of Goldman Sachs cutting its sales forecast for the Nexus One -- which at the time of this writing is easily one of the top five phones HTC-manufactured phones available -- we're already seeing headlines (at ZDNet) that "Google's online-only phone selling model has failed."

Says who...

Seriously, we're not going to try to explain to you the ins and outs of this one. But know this: The Android NDK (that's native development kit) has been updated and with it comes new Open GL support.

Applications targeting Android 2.0 (API level 5) or higher can now directly access OpenGL ES 2.0 features. This brings the ability to control graphics rendering through vertex and fragment shader programs, using the GLSL shading language.

Cool. That means better graphics for apps on newer versions of Android. As for...

So by uploading your little "Google is Evil" manifesto to YouTube which is ... wait for it ... owned by Google, you're saying what? Cute picture, though. Video after the break. [via Walt Mosspuppet, which makes this even more ironic]

As Android reviewers and the hacking faithful are finding out this week, the Motorola Backflip on AT&T has been locked down a bit. Namely, you can't load apps from outside of the Android market. It's not just that the option is turned off, as it is by default on most (if not all) Android phones. It's that the option isn't even there on the backflip. [via

Meet the new Skype, same as the old Skype. Except that this Skype is exclusive on Verizon (and is no longer welcome on Windows Mobile, apparently). But no bother. We've got the Android-powered Motorola Droid,

From the Forums is a great way for you, our readers, to see the hottest topics being discussed. But you must be a registered member and becoming a member is a simple process. So if you have not already already done so, head on over and register now!

If you are like me and love to take full advantage of the amazing camera that your Android device provides you (at least those of you without Droids), you probably snap tons of pictures. Sometimes they are worthy of sending off to others, and sometimes they could use some touch-ups. Without always having the PC around, having Photoshop Mobile allows quick edits and then you can send the picture on its way. Often times I find that the pictures I take could use a little more light, or would look really cool as a black and white photo, or I want to blur a part of it, and with the...

Just like it was promised, the Motorola Backflip is now available on AT&T for $99, making it the carrier's first and only Android device. You'll want to check out our hands-on with the phone back at CES,...

The HTC Legend -- you'll remember it from our hands-on at Mobile World Congress last month -- at this point remains a European-only phone, and as such it's starting to get into European journalists' hands for review. Don't worry, we fully expect to see a version of it in the States sooner rather than later, and you can already get

Did you hear that Apple is suing the pants off of HTC? Of course you did. And though the lawsuit will likely all be settled with millions of dollars exchanging hands and business will go on as usual...what if it doesn't? What if Apple has its way with HTC Android phones? Wired examines this potential...

The Swype keyboard has been incredibly popular, despite not being openly (or legally, for that matter) available for download for Android. But Swype just opened up a beta program for our beloved platform. Here's what you need to know:

Update: OK, OK. I get it. I've been learned a thing or three over this one. So have at me in the comments, call me a bad person, throw things at my dog, whatever. I only hope one day we'll wake up an our long national multitouch nightmare will be over. :P

Let the debate...

Our pals at JK on the Run put up an excellent piece today breaking down Google's supposed (or blatant, depending on who you ask) favoritism regarding the latest OS versions, features, etc. Basically it boils down to this: Has Google put some of the latest features (i.e. Buzz, Google Maps Navigation

No movement on Day 3 of the Apple-HTC patent saga (or quagmire, actually). Hey, we said this thing's gonna take years. But it did bring another round of analysis. Today's featured piece comes from The New York Times, and it comes with a pretty graphic showing who's suing...

The Motorola Devour (running Android 1.6 with Motoblur on Verizon) made its here this morning, and we've had a couple minutes to give it the what-for. Despite playing second fiddle to the Motorola Droid at least as far as specs are concerned -- smaller screen, less powerful processor, etc. -- it's a very well-crafted smartphone.

The Devour has a...

So for reasons that currently escape us, Samsung has decided to release a commercial showcasing the Samsung Behold II--yep, that middling Android 1.5, TouchWiz UI running phone that never picked up much steam when it was released way back in November. The commercial is a nice spot, we think the stylizing is done rather nicely, but why devote...

For those of you still rotting away stuck on Android 1.5 or 1.6, we thought we'd do a little hands-on with the new Google Gesture search, which is only available on Android 2.0 and up. Because we're sadists and...