Items tagged with android oreo
When it comes to the shameless copying of competing smartphones, we don't often think of Motorola. However, the company's latest P30 smartphone is such a blatant copy of the iPhone X that we wonder what exactly was going on in Motorola's design studio. From the front, the P30 shares much with the iPhone X including its wide and similarly-shaped display notch and trim bezels around the sides. The only place where the P30 really differs is at the bottom, where it has a larger bottom bezel to make way for the internal display connector. Out back, things are also eerily similar, with the same raised, pill-shaped pod housing two cameras and a flash module. Instead of the familiar Apple logo...
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Earlier this year, we heard rumors that a Palm-branded smartphone would making its way to Americans in late 2018. TCL, which breathed new life into BlackBerry smartphones, is also the driving force behind this Palm resurrection, having purchased the rights to the brand back in 2015. Now, we're receiving more evidence that a smartphone launch is imminent. The PVG100 smartphone manufactured by the TCL subsidiary Palm Ventures Group has been certified by both the Wi-Fi Alliance and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). One of the interesting things gleaned from its Wi-Fi Certified Interoperability Certificate is that the device only supports the 2.4GHz Wi-Fi band, and not 5GHz. That's pretty...
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After a few leaks regarding its impending arrival, Samsung has officially unveiled its Galaxy Tab S4, its latest take on a "premium" Android tablet. A few years ago, Android tablets seemed to be all the rage, but they have seemingly fallen out of favor in recent years (Google has abandoned its own fist-party hardware altogether). But Samsung is striking back with a vengeance, giving the Galaxy Tab S4 a Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor (last year's flagship phone chip of choice) and a 10.5-inch Super AMOLED display with a resolution of 2560x1600 (287 ppi). Display bezels are also slimmer this time around and the home button has been completely removed. The tablet includes quad speakers with...
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Fragmentation -- it's a word that many people throw around when talking about the myriad of Android devices that are on the market and their ability to run the latest version of Google’s mobile operating system. Although Google has taken steps to help combat the effects of fragmentation, it's still alive and well. Take for example the latest distribution numbers for Android. As of July 23rd, Android Oreo is sitting with a 12.1 percent share of the entire Android ecosystem. Breaking those numbers down further, 10.1 percent of users are running Android 8.0, while just 2 percent are running the most recent release: Android 8.1. Those numbers are relatively low for an operating...
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A new device called the Renegade Elite (ROC-RK3399-PC) has surfaced as a competitor to the Raspberry Pi 3 that is packing much higher specifications and can stream 4K video, albeit significantly more expensive. The Renegade Elite is made by Libre Computer and will soon surface for pre-order on Indiegogo. One thing not in the favor of the Renegade Elite is the price. While the Raspberry Pi 3 Model B+ sells for $35, the Renegade Elite will set you back $100. That much loot will get you a hexa-core processor, 4GB of RAM, and dual USB 3.0 Type-C ports, one of which can be used for power input. Other features include three standard USB 3.0 ports, HDMI 2.0 output, and Gigabit Ethernet connectivity....
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While we've seen plenty of action at the flagship level when it comes to the 2018 class of smartphones, we haven't seen much activity in the entry-level and mid-range sectors. Thankfully, Motorola hasn't forgotten about consumers that don't want to spend $700+ on a new smartphone. With that in mind, Motorola has unleashed a number of new smartphones in the Moto G6 and Moto E5 product families. On the Moto G6 side of things, we have the Moto G6 and the Moto G6 Play. The Moto G6 comes with a 5.7-inch Full HD display (2160x1080) and an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 450 processor. You'll find 3GB or 4GB of RAM onboard depending on if you select the 32GB of 64GB storage options. The...
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In-car infotainment systems powered by Google’s Android Auto and Apple CarPlay are increasingly being found in new vehicles, and customers often weigh that support heavily when choosing a vehicle to purchase. Up until this point, all versions of Android Auto have required a physical connection with your car via a USB cable to function. However, Android Auto over Wi-Fi is finally ready for primetime. Both JVC and Kenwood currently have Android Auto-compatible head units that support Wi-Fi connectivity, but software support wasn't enabled on Google's side. That changes with Android Auto v3.1. According to Android Police, users will first need to connect their compatible smartphone...
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OnePlus isn't really leaving much to the imagination when it comes to its upcoming OnePlus 6 smartphone. Although we've seen plenty of leaked specs for the smartphone hit the internet over the past few weeks, OnePlus is using its own platform to confirm the specs of the new smartphone instead of saving everything for the official reveal. This week, OnePlus CEO Pete Lau penned a long, meandering post entitled "Our Pursuit of Burdenless Speed". In it, Lau confirms what most of us already have already assumed: the OnePlus 6 will be powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor that can be paired with up to a staggering 8GB of RAM and up to 256GB of internal storage. The storage figure matches the...
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Updated 3/31/2018: T-Mobile has confirmed that its Galaxy Note8 Android Oreo update will be distributed to customer starting April 1st... and no, it's not a joke. If you are a Galaxy Note 8 owner in the United States, we've got some exciting news for you. The Android 8.0 Oreo update is finally rolling out to owners, with those on AT&T and Verizon being the first recipients of the yummy, crunchy treat. Earlier this week, Samsung said that the update would be rolling out within 2 to 3 weeks, so it looks as though AT&T and Verizon decided to jump the gun (not that we're complaining). It remains to be seen if T-Mobile and Sprint will decide to step up their release schedule as well to match...
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Google's Android operating is often seen as having a bad reputation with regards to security. We often hear about malware coursing its way through the Google Play Store that can hijack your smartphone, but Google is here to tell us that Android is secure -- or rather, it is at least as secure as Apple’s iOS. With over 2 billion devices actively running Android, securing the wide variety and types of devices can be a challenge. But Google says that "Android security made a significant leap forward in 2017 and many of our protections now lead the industry." Google lays out its long-running efforts to fortify Android's defenses in a 56-page report when you can find here [PDF]. Rather than...
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Google today announced that ARCore, its augmented reality SDK for Android devices, has exited the beta phase. Now that ARCore 1.0 is expanding into the public realm, Google says that developers are free to publish their AR apps directly to the Play Store. For developers that have been sitting on the sideline waiting for a wider release, now is the time to get started. According to Google, ARCore is supported on over 100 million Android smartphones, which cover 13 specific models from a number of manufactures. These devices include: Google Pixel Google Pixel XL Google Pixel 2 Google Pixel 2 XL Samsung Galaxy S8 Samsung Galaxy S8+ Samsung Galaxy Note8 Samsung Galaxy S7 Samsung Galaxy S7 edge LG...
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Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ owners were excited to learn that Samsung’s Android 8.0 Oreo update had exited beta, and was being distributed to regular customers. Samsung initially began the over-the-air (OTA) rollout for users in Germany, and then expanded it to additional global markets. Unfortunately for Samsung (and Galaxy S8/Galaxy S8+ owners), there appears to be a major bug in its Android Oreo update. The update, G950/G955-FXXU1CRAP, was pulled from Samsung's servers yesterday following wide availability for customers in Turkey, Norway, the UAE, India, Belgium, Germany, France, and Poland (along with the aforementioned Germany). Today, we're learning that the reason for pulling the update...
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It's been a long time coming, but the official Android 8.0 Oreo update for the Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ is now rolling out to customers. News of the final build of Android Oreo being delivered over-the-air to customers came from Germany. The first customers to receive the update are testers that have been in Samsung’s beta program for the past few months. However, according to SamMobile, everyone else currently running Android 7.x Nougat will start receiving the update starting tomorrow (at least in the German market). Additional rollout timetables will depend on what region you live in. Rather amusingly, the firmware version is G955XXU1CRAP, although we're glad to say that Android...
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Few things are more frustrating for mobile device users than having to log on and off Wi-Fi while searching for a network fast enough to support what your current activities. Android Oreo 8.1 can now show you Wi-Fi network speed before you even connect to a network. The new feature is rolling out now and the connection speed will show under the name of the public network. If the connection speed says “Slow”, you can make phone calls and send texts if you have Wi-Fi calling enabled. If the speed is listed as “OK”, you can read webpages, use social media, and stream music without any issues. Public Wi-Fi can be spotty. For the first time, #AndroidOreo 8.1 lets...
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Sony is said to be working on a new "big screen" Android smartphone that will serve as a follow-up to its Xperia XA1 Ultra. There are no surprises when it comes to the namning of the smartphone, which is expected to be called -- surprise, surprise -- the Xperia XA2 Ultra. Unfortunately for those that were hoping to see a big shift in design direction for Sony's smartphone family, the Xperia XA2 Ultra appears to stick pretty closely to the Japanese company’s current conservative design language. Apparent leaked images of the smartphone come courtesy of SlashLeaks, and show a device with huge display bezels. Given the current trend to minimize display bezels to improve pocketability and aesthetics,...
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It didn't arrive in time for Christmas, but we aren't going to rag on LG for finally delivering the Android 8.0 Oreo update for V30 owner (the OS officially launched on August 21st). The OS has been available in preview form for V30 owners in LG's home market of South Korea, but today marks its first official release into the public realm. LG says that it took feedback from customers during the preview period (over 500 specific incidents to be exact) in order to better hone the final release for customers. The company also claims that it is the "first domestic smartphone manufacturer" to release the Android Oreo update for current generation smartphones, which seems like a subtle dig at segment...
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Android Wear, the customized and lightweight version of Google's full-fledged Android platform for smartphones, had fallen a little behind with Google having launched Android 8 (Oreo) several months ago. That just changed, however, as there is a new version of Android Wear that is based on Oreo, and it has already begun rolling out to device makers. As to when consumers will see an update, that is entirely up to each smartwatch manufacturer. Prior to this update, the latest version of Android (2.0) was based on Android 7.0 Nougat. Google began beta testing an Oreo build around a month that initially was only available for LG's Watch Sport. Having presumably squashed any major bugs and polished...
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If you're currently the owner of Google's first-party Nexus or Pixel hardware, we have some good news for you today. Google just pushed out the final release of Android 8.1 Oreo, which brings with it a number of tweaks, with the biggest one being reserved for the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL. For starters, you will have quick access to the battery status of connected Bluetooth devices by accessing the Quick Settings menu. Google has also implemented a feature to help mitigate screen burn-in on the system bar (which was most notable on the Pixel 2 XL, which features an LG OLED display) by inverting the color scheme in certain situations. System buttons will also be allowed to dim while idle to help...
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A little over a month after publishing the first Android 8.1 Developer Preview, Google is back at it with Developer Preview 2 (DP2). If you want to be at the forefront of Android Oreo releases, you can download the latest system images from the Android Developer site, or you can opt to receive the build over-the-air (OTA) through the Android beta program. The big change with Android 8.1 DP2 is that the previously dormant Pixel Visual Core on Google’s 2017 flagship Pixel 2 smartphones is now enabled for developers. For those that need a refresher course, the Pixel Visual Core is Google's first custom-designed co-processor for consumer applications. The chip features 8 custom, Google-designed...
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If you are the proud owner of a OnePlus 3 or OnePlus 3T smartphone, we’ve got a treat of the dark chocolate and sweet creamy filling variety for you today. OnePlus announced this morning that its first official release of Android 8.0 Oreo is now available for the above-mentioned smartphones via OxygenOS 5.0. In mid-October, OnePlus offered up its first Android Oreo public beta, and it appears that everything progressed nicely with the pilot program since the first regular production (stable) build is hitting roughly a month later. OnePlus list the following "highlights" that you will find with this initial public release of OxygenOS 5.0: System Update to Android O (8.0) Added Parallel Apps Added...
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If you're a Samsung Galaxy S8 or Galaxy S8+ owner and have been looking longingly from the sidelines as Google Pixel and Nexus users are chomping down on crunchy Android 8.0 Oreo goodness, your time will soon come. Samsung just recently updated its license agreement and FAQ for the Galaxy Beta Program, both of which reference Android 8.0 Oreo. For U.S. users, in order to participate in the Galaxy Beta Program, you will need to download the Samsung Plus app. You will need to register for or sign-in to your Samsung account in order to complete this process. According to Samsung, both the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ are supported, but the Galaxy Beta Program is limited to Sprint, T-Mobile and unlocked...
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Google launched Android 8.0 Oreo over the summer, but chances are pretty slim that your device has received the update unless you have a supported Pixel or Nexus device in-hand. Smartphone OEMs are notoriously slow to release major Android updates, but that isn't stopping Google from moving on to the next branch of Oreo: Android 8.1. Android 8.1 is now available as a Developer Preview, and brings with a number of optimizations to make this tasty operating system even sweeter. For starters, Google has made optimizations for Android Go, which is a fork of Android that is geared towards devices with 1GB or less of memory. Google has also implemented switches which allows developers to deliver APKs...
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