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App Review: Pulse

Justin Hubbard — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 14:52:48 +0000

If you’re anything like me, you keep up on the latest Android/Tech news by visiting a barrage of technology blogs and websites every day multiple times a day, this is where Pulse comes in. Pulse is a beautiful app that gives you access to RSS feeds and syncs up with Google Reader, nothing new except for the beautiful part especially in the Android Market where a ton of apps assume this role yet leave out the eye candy UI’s. Pulse however does it elegantly and makes something as simple as reading an article a joy to do so. It started as a highly regarded app for the iPad that Apple even gave some attention to at WWDC and then a month later was released to the iPhone and has had some great reviews. Now its live in the Android Market and I’ve been very impressed with it and even more impressed to find out that its a product of 3 Stanford grads who’ve managed to build an elegant application for 3 platforms in such a small window of time.

At first launch, Pulse already has a list of feeds setup for your reading pleasure, well maybe for your pleasure but not mine as I quickly deleted the ones I could careless to read about, clicked menu and logged in to my Google Reader account. What I really like is that, though it syncs with Google Reader, I don’t have to have feeds show up that I am subscribed to on Reader but rather ones I pick and choose. Once you’ve selected the feeds you wish it to pull you can now manage the order of the feeds in the Manage Sources option after a menu click. Sliding my favorite feeds (in my case, Droiddog, Engadget and Gizmodo) to the top of the list was an easy intuitive task and even deleting was as easy as clicking the “X”, which is nice as clicking Menu or long pressing isn’t always the most efficient way of doing things. Adding sources outside of what you’ve chosen from Google Reader is easy enough and Pulse has nice selection of “Featured Sources” if you just want to browse for a new feed that might interest you.

Once your all set up, the app loads all the feeds into a list thats both scrollable up and down and side to side. The app loads thumbnails horizontally so that when under say the “Engadget” feed, I can scroll side to side to see articles that may interest me as well their accompanying photo’s, which is nice compared to a lot of RSS Readers all text utilitarian UI. Right from the main page with no scrolling I can see my top 3 feed’s latest 3 post for a total of 9 articles in view, which is great, the most info for the least amount of scrolling, yep I’m lazy. Once selecting the article you’d like to read, your given an ad free clutterless presentation with main picture in tact. Find an amazing article you want to share with all your Android Fanboys and girls? Its as easy as a menu button click and your presented with option to “Tweet It”, “Facebook It”, “eMail Story” or if your into that sorta thing, “Open In Browser” ads and all. Getting to the next to the next story is an easy as swiping to the right or left and does so fairly smoothly and without lag. Below the article is an icon of the site your reading from which can be swiped up to reveal a similar side to side scroll bar of the other articles in the feed, again with thumbnails. Jumping back is done by the hardware back button which is easy enough but seeing the addition of an option to quick jump to another feed would be nice.

Overall the app is very nice and loads pretty quickly however does studder and become a little wonky while the articles are still loading. The app has a little room for improvement in performance and features but from an overall stand point, I find it to be pretty amazing for a 1.0 release. Pulse is $1.99 in the Android Market and is also available in Apple’s App Store for both the iPhone and iPad (if your into that sorta thing).

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Dell Streak will retail at $549, $299 on contract

John Walton — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 23:05:06 +0000

Remember that brief slip where Dell took down their pre-order page and posed, in its place, a notice on straight purchases? I didn’t catch it, but Engadget did, and price tags were revealed.

If you get the device with a new contract from AT&T, be prepared to shell out $300. If you’re going straight cash, bring $550 with you. I’m curious how many of you are stoked enough about this product (from a mobile phone freshman) to drop that kind of scratch. The leak also said that pre-orderers (those who filled out the form between the 20th and today) will be getting those emails with links to purchase starting….now. So, it’s nearly time to put your money where your mouse is. Takers? Leave a comment.

Via Engadget

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Retirement party for T-Mobile G1

Andrew Steffy — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 18:48:53 +0000

Well we all knew it would come eventually, its almost been 2 years and thats even worse than dog years when it comes to cellphones. It seems T-Mobile has pulled the G1 from their website making it impossible to buy it anymore. Of course you could still find plenty of them on Ebay but unfortunately this does mark the end of the revolutionary device that started it all.

As many of you I feel pretty sentimental about this. The G1 was the only device that was capable of taking the iPhone head on back in the day. Even though it failed miserably at that seeing as the first few versions of Android weren’t very advanced when it came to the UI and apps available it did begin something fantastic. Pretty much the entire Android community circled around this device for at least the first year of the life of Android OS. But now with some pretty spectacular devices on the market like the Incredible, EVO 4G and Galaxy S people have decided to move on to some greener pastures, leaving the G1 behind and all alone.

Now the only thing left for the G1 is a good old fashion trophy closet. As the icon of the birth of Android there isn’t much else left to say but farewell, you will surely be missed

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Cyanogen bringin’ 2.1 to G1 UPDATE: d/l link up!

Augen $150 Kmart tablet

John Walton — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 13:55:35 +0000

Everyone loves a good deal, and I hope it’s safe to say that Augen’s 7-inch Android tablet is a great deal at just $149.99, but I’ve never used a product from the Florida-based company so I’ll have to wait and see what other folks think of the devices once they’ve had their hands on one…or until I find one at my local Kmart.

Yep, this one is going straight to Kmart and can even be added to your shopping list in Kmart’s circular here. What will you get for your buck fiddy? Android 2.1, WiFi, 2GB of storage and 256MB of RAM. Not bad, right? The GenTouch product page lists the full specs:

•800×480 color TFT touch panel screen
• CPU: 800 Mhz
• Ram: DDR2 256mb
• Internal Memory: 2GB
• Expansion Slots: SD/MMC card slot up to 16GB
• Wi-Fi Connectivity with Full Web Browsing Capability
• Supports Ebook Formats: Text, PDF, E-PUB, HTML
• Supports Media Formats: MP3, WMA, FLAC, AAC
• Supports most popular E-Book formats
• Picture Viewer in JPEG, BMP
• Video Player
• Rechargeable Lithium Battery
• Carrying case included

We’ll see what we can do about scoring one of these for a proper video demonstration.

Via IntoMobile

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Android could run $35 tablet

John Walton — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 19:49:09 +0000

Engineers from the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore and four other institutions have co-developed a tablet with 2GB of memory (or storage; the distinction is unclear) and USB. As the newscaster in the video below states, “There’s no word yet on what kind of software will be used in the device. This often significantly drives up the cost.” Check the notification bar on screen while the news man talks about the need for cheap software.

The Human Resources Development Ministry in Indian believes that continued R&D (along with potential government subsidies for students) will lead to the tablets being sold for $20 or less.

Via Engadget

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Incredible rooted, waiting for OTA

John Walton — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 14:11:09 +0000

The Incredible OTA that’s been talked about over the past few days includes Hot Spot support, 720p video capture, and a new boot animation. Reports are coming in that users are receiving a notifications of the update’s availability. Perhaps coincidentally, the unrEVOked team released their super easy root method for the Incredible within hours of the first OTA appearances.

Will you go for root, flash ROMs, and count on the community for updates (likely getting 2.2 before those who wait for the official Incredible release), or are you going to play by the rules?

Via Droid-Life

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DROID X bootloader locked tight

John Walton — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 14:32:14 +0000

The bad news here is that the bootloader of Motorola’s upcoming beast, the DROID X, is locked down with the same encryption that Milestone hackers have been struggling with for six months. This means that root access is a good possibility, but that custom ROMs are either a long way off or flat out impossible. But considering the quality of the hardware found in the latest generation of flagship Androids, I’m starting to wonder: is it really that big of a deal?

I understand that one of the primary benefits of Android is its openness, and that the possibility for hacks is a primary point of interest for a large community of Android hackers. But with root access, which facilitates the use of CPU adjustment apps and the like, can the phone really be considered “locked down?”

I’ve been a fan of flashing cooked ROMs to my phone since I first rooted my G1. I get it. I know how cool it is to be able to test out a new UI before it’s released to the public or to experience the optimizations of hackers who seem to be more on top of OEM releases than the OEMs themselves – fixes come before the big wigs acknowledge a problem, and dead weight can be shed for optimal performance. So the value of hacked boot loaders is not lost on me.

Do we need to be able to flash ROMs on every single Android that launches? Is this a reason to purchase another, more hackable device? Let us know in the poll below and leave a comment!

If an Android is “locked down,” are you less likely to buy it?survey software

Story via Android Police

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PhoneDog wants to know: Which mobile OS do you use?

Yahoo! lands in the Android Market

John Walton — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 14:51:22 +0000

Yesterday, Yahoo! dropped their Mail and Messenger applications and a search widget for Android a well as an HTML5 mail and news “experience” for iPhone/iPod Touch. The company is aiming for “a seamless, integrated experience across all screens,” and has optimized the Android programs for three devices: the Motorola DROID, HTC Incredible, and Google’s Nexus One. Android 2.0 is prerequisite.

Messenger and Mail have integrated features and also include Yahoo! emoticons, access to the Yahoo! address book as well as the phone’s, rich text formatting, and push notifications.

I have one question: do people still use Yahoo!?

Via Yahoo!

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Even the Dell Streak’s US box looks amazing

Dustin Earley — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 06:16:36 +0000

Hubba hubba! This wouldn’t be the first time I’ve ever wanted a device purely for the box it comes in, but it’s the first in a long time. What you are looking at may very well be the Dell Streak’s final US packaging. Other than the box itself, everything you get inside in identical to the UK’s version of the Streak. I should mention… the version of the Streak inside that beautiful box being shown off on Streak Smart is running on AT&T 3G. This is still unofficial, but c’mon, this looks pretty final to me. You see that clear box there? I wonder… do you think it doubles as some sort of holding bay? That would be awesome. Only a couple more days until July when the Streak supposedly launches for AT&T. I guess we shall see soon enough.

Via Engadget

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DROID X up for preorder

Dustin Earley — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 18:37:15 +0000

Ah, such is the order of life. Leaks > announcement > preorder > release. The DROID X has finally reached it’s next phase of life, preorder. You can go to Best Buy now and get ready to grab the device for a cool 2 Bennys ($199) with, of course, no mail in rebate. Man I love that. If I was on Verizon, I couldn’t possibly think of a better phone to look forward to. The DROID 2 does look sweet, but c’mon… 4.3″ screen, HDMI out, 8MP camera, that sexy new keyboard… mmmmm. Are you still here? Well then make sure to read the press release below, THEN you can go get in line.

Best Buy and Best Buy Mobile have truly become the leading destination this summer for all your mobile smartphone needs – from HTC EVO 4G from Sprint to the iPhone 4 on AT&T to the upcoming DROID X on Verizon. Enthusiasts of the Android platform can be the first to reserve a copy of the new Verizon DROID X by Motorola today at Best Buy. The pre-sale begins June 25 and the smartphone will land in stores on July 15.

“With the buzz we’ve seen around the Android platform, Best Buy is confident that consumers will be thrilled about the Verizon DROID X by Motorola pre-sale,” said Scott Anderson, senior director of merchandising at Best Buy Mobile. “It has been a great summer for smartphones with the HTC EVO and iPhone 4 launches, and the addition of the DROID X adds another strong option for our customers to consider.”

The Verizon DROID X by Motorola features Google’s Android 2.1 operating system, 4.3-inch screen and 720P HD video recording and playback. Android 2.2 will arrive to customers on the DROID X later this summer. The DROID X is available at Best Buy for $199.99 with 2-year activation, with no mail-in rebate hassle.

Via Engadget