One of the great things about Android, and ultimately one of the reasons why a lot of users prefer it over the alternatives, is the ability to customize certain aspects of it. Developers are also able to produce software that essentially acts as a replacement for the native way of doing things. One of the more popular examples of this is rolling out of an entirely new launcher that brings additional features over the stock implementation. HomeFlip for Ice Cream Sandwich and above is one of the latest examples of an app built around the launcher concept.
When it comes to the look and feel of the OS, Android gives much more freedom to users as opposed to any other comparable smartphone operating system. You can theme, make changes through widgets, customize the boot animation, and pretty much change every aspect of the OS itself, all the way from the battery indicator to how the dock behaves (or even exists at all). In fact, the level of customization is so deep, that items like recovery and flashing of ZIP files through it have been given a proper, functional GUI as well (AROMA installer, for instance). The same freedom is also enjoyed by various manufacturers, who have, over time, developed a unique identity of their own through their distinctive Android UI skins. And the most popular one of them, by far, seems to be HTC’s Sense UI.
On Monday, Sony’s vice-president announced that the Galaxy Note 8.0 would be formally announced at this year’s Mobile World Congress at the end of February. Excitement has clearly gone around the company, enough for an alleged picture of the new device, as well as its hardware specifications, to leak online via a Twitter account of Spanish language classifieds website which has not hesitated to spread the word and win its fair share of publicity.
Last year's battle of the smartphones was all about Apple and Samsung, with the iPhone 5 and Galaxy S III proving to be the handsets of choice for a large percentage of consumers. Things aren't showing any signs of being different this year, as most of the chatter has once again been centered around when Apple will announce the next-generation iPhone and when Samsung will lift the lid of the specifications of the mysterious Galaxy S IV. The latest information leak across the web suggests that Samsung will strike first blood by holding a dedicated media event on March 22nd to discuss the next Galaxy S device in the 100 million selling series.
Google's Nexus 10 tablet has hit the ground running in tablet space, with the majority of consumers and reviewers giving it the proverbial seal of approval. It features a dual core Exynos 5 processor to keep things ticking over, and while, all told, it does a fairly good job in doing so, it does struggle to cope with the 2560×1600 display. At a time when quad-core processors are ever becoming the norm, it has been suggested that Google may be planning to slap the revered tablet with a quad-core SoC later on this year.
Samsung fans have plenty to look forward to this side of the summer, and the Korean company's Vice President has stepped out and confirmed the Galaxy Note 8.0 is to be unveiled at Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2013, which commences from 25th February. Perhaps the biggest date in the tech calendar besides CES, we'll be seeing plenty of new and exciting mobile gadgetry at the big event in little over a month, and although the Galaxy S IV will not be rearing its head late next month, Samsung's VP JK Shin has noted it will be arriving 'soon'.
If you take the slightest interest in politics or current affairs, you are likely aware that President Obama is being inaugurated for his second term today, in a ceremony that will drag the attention of large crowds in Washington, DC. But if you live in any other part of America, or the world, and are not able to join Obama in person, there is a new app for iOS and Android, made by the White House itself, which makes it easy for you to celebrate this occasion.
A few decades back, likely even before some of our site’s readers were born, Walkie-Talkies conquered the world, both as war devices and later children’s toys. While no longer trendy, GroupVox is looking to bringing them back to life by adapting the same concept of two-way audio communication to Facebook.
The beauty of Android is that it’s not just limited to one specific manufacturer or operating system variant, which gives it the real edge over Apple’s iOS. The iPhone in comparison has only one company behind it, and while their work so far has been nothing sort of stellar (I am talking the sales volumes here – no judgment), the open source nature of Android and the large manufacturer support behind it makes the platform far more diverse and unique, not to mention variable. The availability of multiple OEMs not only impacts the buyers’ choices and hardware diversification, but also impacts the software side of things. How? HTC has its Sense theme, Sony came up with Timescape. Samsung favors TouchWiz and Motorola cooked up MotoBlur, just to name a few Android skins.
One of the most distinguishing features of Android, among it being open source and much rapidly developing as compared to its major competitor, iOS, is the ability to use widgets. Not only they decorate the launcher’s home screen aesthetically, but also provide much needed functionality without the need to launch the applications that they cater to themselves.
