Mobile gadgets running Blackberry & Android OS'
Android Gadgets & Application Reviews
Everything Android!
Google Plus for Android updated to 1.06!
0165 days
Finally! I hope they’ve ironed out some of the bugs while introducing new features like re-sharing!
Because some countries can’t get it, I post a download link here.
Enjoy!
Google Reader updated
0175 days
Yet another update for Google Reader! A very useful tool for reading and sharing everything we read over the Internet.
This time around they introduced a new U.I and optimized it for tablets. I like the flowing transitions, it’s definitely a big improvement over the dull and static interface we’ve employed for almost a year now. The team also altered a very important function; the “Mark All Read” is now contextual, which means I need to press long on an item in order to mark all previous as read. It’s a bit annoying but I guess it’s the same thing as hitting “menu” and “mark previous as read” – there were two clicks before as now there’s only one…oh, well.
Other than that, I can remark the adding of “share” and “star it” on the top right thus enabling the reader to quickly share with others or mark it in order to read it later.
A good improvement all in all! Keep ‘em comin’!
Pictures courtesy of Google.
YouTube app is updated today!
0184 days
Update: A new version was pushed today; it seems some of the devices required bug fixes. My Desire HD has/had no issue.
YouTube comes baked into each Android phone. It offers OOTB functionality, nice U.I, lots of options including uploading from the phone.
I’ve used it for a long time “as is” – I’m not an avid consumer of video clips, but this app always served me as expected: full screen, HD available, not too much buffering required, no hassle.
And today it has been updated! Things you can expect:
- Edit the title, description and privacy of your uploaded videos
- New uploading UI integrated into the app
- Create/Edit/Delete playlists on the go
- Bug fixes and performance improvements
After fiddling a little bit with it I can safely say that the Google team responsible of this area did a great job! As always!
Hit the Market to download it!
Wi-Fi updated on my HTC Desire HD!
0211 days
HTC surprises me every day: I just received an update for the Wi-Fi function. I had some issues with mine, too, when the phone was not able to hold a Wi-Fi signal, while all the other phones seemed fine.
Again, looks like HTC is really listening to its customer base. That’s what Social Media is all about!
The reviews – the series
0220 days
I am about to start a string of app reviews – the ones I have in my phone to be exact. I mean, why not these ones, the ones I use every day? They are “the keepers” in spite of the 10 apps I install (and quickly delete) weekly.
My HTC Desire HD received the Gingerbread update!
0280 days
So, yes, the update is here! The 2.3 version a.k.a Gingerbread is pushed to HTC Desire HD as promised. My version is 2.3.3 with 2.1 HTC Sense still on it. You can find it in Settings/ About Phone/ Software Updates. It’s 100 MB and it takes 2 minutes to download it over Wi-Fi. All the previous settings, applications, even application’s settings are kept.
I have to say I was a little worried about the whole update business, as there are so many ways in which you can brick your phone. Or you need to spend another 2 hours afterwards restoring everything because something went wrong? Who can you blame?
The main (aesthetics) improvements I spotted while browsing the phone were:
- the Notifications bar got a 2-tab line: first tab holds the usual notifications tab and the second is “Quick Settings”, which allows you to access Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, the Wi-Fi hotspot, G.P.S, Mobile Network and all phone settings. I can think of at least 3 or 4 widget applications becoming obsolete.
- unlock the screen on the Weather/Clock widget and you’ll be presented with the usual animation (the wipers if it’s raining) but ALSO sound: the sound of rain and the sound of the wiper’s motor – quite neat! Also the clock movement is a bit laggy!
- the bottom bar containing the “Menu” button, the Phone button and the “Personalize” button is thinner and the whole design is crisper.
- inside the menu there’s a new bottom bar holding also “Favorite” and “Downloaded” applications tab. It’s a very good idea if you wanna have a faster access to the most important applications for you.
Of course, there are many more important updates coming with Gingerbread, but that should require more than a peek. You can find a complete list with the improvements here.
Looking forward to the power-saving improvements!
Picture courtesy of Christmas-Clip Art.
