All users of Android, and definitely most readers of this website, are likely familiar with Google Play Store, Android’s online directory that connects users with a vast library of Google-approved third-party content, ranging from music and video to third-party apps and e-books. If a newly leaked video today is any indication, Google is getting ready for a major refresh for Google Play, with enhanced features and a much-improved design.
Security flaws are very much the order of the day currently, with both the iPhone and Galaxy Note II finding themselves in the middle of a lock screen-related security storm that just won't go away, even after software releases that were supposed to correct the issue.
Final Fantasy V is headed to iOS and Android devices in Japan before the end of the month, and although there's no word on the official release for fans residing in the United States, it would seem likely to follow shortly thereafter.
One of Android’s biggest strengths over competitive smartphone and tablet platforms is the operating system’s allowance for customization. Indeed, when it comes to Google’s offering for smartphones, there’s hardly an area that you cannot change to you liking and will, ranging from something as mundane as a wallpaper, to theming the whole OS with various launchers, customized lock screens, widgets and whatnot. It was also Android that made popular the concept of live (interactive) wallpapers, and the widgets that the OS has on offer are nothing short, either. In such a scenario, any customization app becomes worth a look, especially if it offers something new.
In these times of strictly limited data bundles and high overage charges, let alone the fact you may not get coverage good enough to actually make use of that allowance, we're all grateful for any help we can get in making the most of what we've got. There are plenty of different apps out there that tell us where the nearest cell tower is, or where the best Wi-Fi network is according to your location, but having all that and more in one place is always preferable, and that's just what OpenSignal does.
Smartphones, in general, have evolved greatly over the course of past few years, with the recent of them seeing the most significant, defining moments in the mobile device technology. With its Retina display introduced in iPhone 4, Apple started a feud that particularly focused on higher resolution screens with remarkably deep blacks and crazy contrast ratios. The trend didn’t stop there, either, as certain manufacturers continued to raise the bar in the pixel density arena even if the Cupertino giant never took it above a certain level. These days, several high-end Android smartphones are boasting a true HD, 1080p screen packed in just about 5” of diagonal real estate, giving the crispiest displays that we’d ever dreamed of, to date.
Google's Gmail is seen by many as the authority when it comes to free e-mail management, and as well as being among the most popular, it's notoriously easy to use. Never is this more evident than in Google's own Gmail app on Android, and today, that very app has been updated with a bucket-load of new and exciting features which you’re going to love. Gmail for Android 4.3 includes, among other things, direct notification replies for those on Jelly Bean, and we've got all the details, as well as the download link, after the break.
Glovebox, a new app courtesy of an XDA-Developers forum member, adds a sidebar to Android which allows users to quickly launch their favorite applications. More details right after the jump.
GApps for Android provides a solid base of highly functional apps for the many millions on the company’s mobile ecosystem, and with Android 4.2 bringing a deluge of new features to the table, it’s only natural those floundering in wait of an OTA update would wish to get their hands on GApps 4.2.
Most of you will, by now, have seen the prime time release of the Samsung Galaxy S4 on Thursday, and while the early opinions are flying about at will, it's pretty hard to gauge just how the device fares against some of its rivals. The handset is overflowing with high-end features, and trumps pretty much everything else in the specs department, but in a face-to-face, real world comparison, how does Samsung's latest outlet compare with its long-standing adversary, the iPhone? Several publications managed to get their hands on the Galaxy S4, and as well as offering in-depth, hands-on coverage, also briefly considered the presence of the iPhone 5.
