Items tagged with Ice-Cream-Sandwich
It’s been about a year and a half since Google released Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, yet a majority of Android devices still don’t run it. An even smaller percentage have the ‘tweener release, Android 4.1/4.2 Jelly Bean. There’s still a preponderance of Android devices stuck with Android 2.3 Gingerbread, which is all the more striking when you consider that Android 5.0 (likely codenamed Key Lime Pie) is coming soon. However, according to Android Developer data, all Android 4.0 versions (i.e., Ice Cream Sandwich and Jelly Bean) have finally overtaken Gingerbread on a majority of Android devices. The margin is slim--45.1% to 44/1%--but the gap is growing. (The numbers...
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HBO’s HBO GO and MAX GO streaming services let pay-TV subscribers stream HBO and Cinemax programming to computers and other devices such as the Roku box and Xbox 360, and now those with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich devices can join in the fun. Android Central spotted the update, and they also noticed that the update applies only to phones running Ice Cream Sandwich--their tablets and Google TV devices weren’t supported. The HBO GO and MAX GO app pages on Google Play say “Now supporting Android phones running up to version 4.04 (Ice Cream Sandwich)”, so that certainly indicates that only phones got the update. In addition to adding support for Android 4.0, the update...
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If you’ve been wondering when your Acer Iconia tablet would be getting the Ice Cream Sandwich treatment, wonder no more. The company announced that the update to Android 4.0 is on the way--for the A-series tablets, anyway. Specifically, it’s coming via an OTA update this week for the Iconia Tab A200 and sometime in April for the Iconia Tab A100 and Iconia Tab A500. For the most part, the upgrade will offer about what you’d expect: faster browsing, tweaked interface, better Gmail integration, and so on, but the Iconia tablets will get some Acer-specific features, too, including the customizable Acer Ring navigation and the ability to access favorite apps even when the device...
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The leap from a so-called “dumbphone” to a smartphone is huge; unfortunately, so is the cost in most cases. There’s a growing market domestically and worldwide for entry- and mid-level smartphones, and MediaTek has a platform designed for those smartphone market segments. In a press release, MediaTek quotes Neil Mawston, Executive Director, Global Wireless Practice, at Strategy Analytics, as saying, “We expect significant growth in entry and mid-level smartphones, with wholesale prices under US$190, over the coming years.” STAR A1919 Smartphone With MT6573 The 3rd-generation MT6575 platform runs on a 1GHz ARM Cortex processor and Imagine Technologies PowerVRTM SGX...
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Today is a good day for Android users with devices running Ice Cream Sandwich, and a great day for Android users who prefer the Chrome web browser for their desktop browsers. Google announced Chrome for Android today, and of course, it’s technically in beta. The current default Android browser is fine, but it’s nothing special, so that alone is reason to download Chrome from the Android Market right away. However, Chrome for Android brings not just a slightly better browsing experience on Android devices, but a significant change in the way Android users interact with their devices. As expected, it’s designed to be fast and simple to use, with mobile-optimized tabs (which sound...
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Ice Cream Sandwich (Android 4.0) is a big step for the platform, and Google is clearly interested in maintaining some level of uniformity across the ICS-based products created by developers. In a blog post, the Android User Experience Team announced a new site called Android Design, which is chock full of practical advice and guides for anyone developing for ICS. The idea is to make apps simple and beautiful. The post, written by head of the Android visual design group Christian Robertson states: To help you in that mission, we’re introducing Android Design: the place to learn about principles, building blocks, and patterns for creating world-class Android user interfaces. Whether you’re...
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