Jelly Bean

Tablets
July 20, 2012
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ASUS confirms Jelly Bean is headed to Transformer tablets

By on July 20, 2012 at 7:45 PM.

ASUS confirms Jelly Bean is headed to Transformer tablets

ASUS Transformer Jelly Bean Update

Shortly after HTC (2498) confirmed that its smartphones would receive an update to Jelly Bean, ASUS (2357) announced that an Android 4.1 update will be coming to its various tablets. The company’s Transformer Pad, Transformer Prime and Transformer Pad Infinity tablets are all scheduled to receive an update to Jelly Bean “in the coming months.” Owners of the original Transformer and Transformer Slide will not have access to the new OS at that time. ASUS does note, however, that it’s “still investigating Jelly Bean updates for other devices, but we are not in a position to confirm whether any other products will be eligible for an update at the moment.” ASUS’s press release follows below. More →

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Tablets
July 11, 2012
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Watch out, Nexus 7 – Android 4.1 Jelly Bean ported to Kindle Fire [video]

By on July 11, 2012 at 1:10 PM.

Watch out, Nexus 7 – Android 4.1 Jelly Bean ported to Kindle Fire [video]

Kindle Fire Jelly Bean Port

The latest version of the Android operating system, known as Jelly Bean, has been ported to the Kindle Fire. Along with having the same price, Amazon’s slate features a similar form factor as Google’s newly announced 7-inch tablet, the Nexus 7. The Kindle Fire, however, runs a heavily skinned version of Android 2.3 Gingerbread and only has access to Amazon’s Appstore, rather than Google’s Google Play marketplace. The port, which was created by XDA-Developers forum member Hashcode, is in an early beta stage and not functional enough for daily use. Nevertheless, it highlights the tablet’s hackability and opens it up to more than 600,000 apps on Google’s Play Store. More →

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Software
July 6, 2012
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Google Now can now be ported to Ice Cream Sandwich

By on July 6, 2012 at 7:05 PM.

Google Now can now be ported to Ice Cream Sandwich

Google Now Ice Cream Sandwich Port

Google Now is one of the coolest new features that Google has brought to Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, but since Jelly Bean has only been announced for three different devices so far, it could be a while before most Android users actually get to use it. But thankfully, an XDA-Developers forum member has come up with a way to bring Google Now to a few extra users by concocting a port over to Ice Cream Sandwich devices. XDA-Developers’ Will Verduzco writes on the official XDA blog that “by simply modifying the build.prop” on the app, Ice Cream Sandwich devices can gain access to the program. XDA developer febycv has posted full instructions for completing the port on the XDA Developers forum. More →

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mobile
July 2, 2012
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Android OEMs give Jelly Bean the silent treatment

By on July 2, 2012 at 2:00 PM.

Android OEMs give Jelly Bean the silent treatment

Android OEMs No Jelly Bean Updates

Although Google and its partners have rolled out Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich to less than 10% of Android devices, that hasn’t stopped the company from coming out with the next generation of Android, dubbed Jelly Bean. The Verge decided to ask Android’s original equipment manufacturers how they feel about this current state of affairs and so far Acer, Asus and HTC have all declined comment on when Jelly Bean will be rolled out to their devices, while LG would only say that it’s “evaluating” Jelly Bean for compatibility on its current devices. In fact Samsung was the only Android OEM The Verge spoke with that elaborated on its plans for Jelly Bean, noting that its Galaxy Nexus and Nexus S devices will be two of the first to get Jelly Bean, and also the company also pledged that it “will soon announce which additional devices are eligible for the Jelly Bean update.” More →

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mobile
June 29, 2012
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Adobe won’t support Flash in Jelly Bean, installs end on August 15th

By on June 29, 2012 at 12:00 PM.

Adobe won’t support Flash in Jelly Bean, installs end on August 15th

Adobe Flash Android

The late Steve Jobs famously predicted the death of Flash more than five years ago, and barred it from the company’s iPhone and iPad. One of the apparent advantages Android always had over iOS was Flash, but this will not be the case come August 15th when fresh installs of Adobe Flash will come to an end. “We will use the configuration settings in the Google Play Store to limit continued access to Flash Player updates to only those devices that have Flash Player already installed,” the company wrote on its website. “Devices that do not have Flash Player already installed are increasingly likely to be incompatible with Flash Player and will no longer be able to install it from the Google Play Store after August 15th.” Adobe also revealed that it hasn’t been developing and testing Flash for Android 4.1, and therefore no “certified implementations” will be offered. The company will instead continue to focus its work on improving Flash for PCs. More →

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mobile
June 28, 2012
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Android 4.1 leaked for Galaxy Nexus

By on June 28, 2012 at 7:15 PM.

Android 4.1 leaked for Galaxy Nexus

Android 4.1 Jelly Bean Download

Shortly after Google pushed a Jelly Bean preview update to I/O attendees, RootzWiki made it available to the public. The update was originally intended for GSM Galaxy Nexus smartphones, however hardworking developers were able to iron out the LTE bugs and make it available to all Galaxy Nexus models. The leak is 100% functional and no bugs have been found; the only requirement for users to install the software that root access must be gained. Android 4.1 Jelly Bean includes a new notification system, Google Now, offline voice dictation and a faster user interface enabled by “Project Butter.” More →

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Tablets
May 30, 2012
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Google Nexus tablet confirmed in benchmark tests

By on May 30, 2012 at 12:00 PM.

Google Nexus tablet confirmed in benchmark tests

Google Nexus Tablet Benchmarks

Google’s Nexus tablet has seemingly been confirmed by Rightware’s Power Board benchmark test result site. The rumored device recently appeared in the results database and is confirmed to feature a 7-inch display with a resolution of 768 x 1,280 pixels and a quad-core Tegra 3 processor clocked at 1.3GHz. The benchmarks also confirm that ASUS is the manufacturer, and the device is running Android 4.1 with the build JRN51B, the “J” likely indicating Jelly Bean. The tablet is listed under the name “Google Asus Nexus 7″ and it bears the code name “Grouper,” which lines up with Google’s previous fish-based code names for its Nexus devices. Google’s Nexus tablet is expected to be unveiled at the company’s annual i/O Developer Conference that will take place in San Francisco from June 27th to June 29th — the device is rumored to retail for between $199 and $249. Additional details from the benchmark test results follows below. More →

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Tablets
April 6, 2012
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Google Nexus tablet reportedly delayed until July

By on April 6, 2012 at 8:55 AM.

Google Nexus tablet reportedly delayed until July

The Google-branded Nexus tablet the search giant is rumored to be co-developing with ASUS may be pushed back until July. Earlier reports had the device slated for launch some time in June, with an unveiling possibly set for Google’s annual I/O conference on June 27th. Unnamed sources informed The Verge on Friday that Google pushed back its planned release so it could tweak the device, however. The 7-inch tablet is supposedly equipped with a quad-core NVIDIA Tegra 3 processor, Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and Wi-Fi connectivity. The device would reportedly cost $249 in its current state, but Google and ASUS are both looking to reduce the price. Earlier rumors indicted that the Mountain View-based company was attempting to offer the tablet for as little as $149. It has also been speculated that Google could be delaying the planned release in order to pre-load its tablet with the next version of Android — Jelly Bean. The Verge claims this scenario is unlikely though, as the current product is designed for Android 4.0. More →

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Featured
April 5, 2012
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Is the iPhone fragmented? iOS adoption measured against Android

By on April 5, 2012 at 11:15 AM.

Is the iPhone fragmented? iOS adoption measured against Android

The iPhone’s unprecedented success stems from the combination of multiple factors, not the least of which are Apple’s industry-leading design prowess and its ability to make software that appeals to enthusiasts and mass-market users alike. The culture and hype surrounding Apple products doesn’t hurt either, of course. Where the overall experience is concerned, Apple wisely created a scenario that gives it control of both hardware and software, removing carriers from the equation to an extent and ensuring the end user enjoys the experience Apple envisions without any substantial impediments. Despite this ideal scenario, some industry watchers maintain that fragmentation is unavoidable to some degree, and this issue exists in the iOS ecosystem just as it does with Android. More →

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mobile
April 3, 2012
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Android fragmentation rears its ugly head once again

By on April 3, 2012 at 10:35 AM.

Android fragmentation rears its ugly head once again

Google updated its Android version tracker on Monday, revealing that the latest version of its mobile operating system — Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich — has more than doubled its installed base over the past month. Unfortunately, that only carries Google’s current Android build to a 2.9% share of all devices. Combined with Honeycomb, this means that as of March 2nd, just 6.2% of Android devices are now running a modern version of Android. Meanwhile, the bulk of Android devices run the 15-month-old Gingerbread operating system (63.7%) and the second most popular version of the platform is the 23-month-old Froyo OS (23.1%). First unveiled in October 2009 and currently at 6%, Android 2.1 Eclair is still found on nearly as many devices as Honeycomb and Ice Cream Sandwich combined. Read on for more. More →

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Tablets
March 29, 2012
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Google to launch its own online tablet store, report claims

By on March 29, 2012 at 6:55 PM.

Google to launch its own online tablet store, report claims

Google is planning to market and sell tablets directly to consumers through its own online store, The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday. The paper’s anonymous sources say the search giant hopes the move will turn around the slow adoption rate of its Android-powered tablets. The Mountain View-based company will reportedly look toward its partners such as Samsung and ASUS to manufacture devices for the shop, with the latter creating a Google-branded tablet to be sold in the store later this year. The Journal’s sources also confirmed previous reports that stated the next version of Google’s Android operating system, called Jelly Bean, will be released in the middle of this year. More →

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mobile
March 22, 2012
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Android 5.0 Jelly Bean said to launch in Q3

By on March 22, 2012 at 9:35 AM.

Android 5.0 Jelly Bean said to launch in Q3

Following a report that stated Google’s next major Android updated could launch as early as the second quarter this year, the Internet giant is now said to be prepping Android 5.0 Jelly Bean for a third-quarter release. DigiTimes cited unnamed industry sources on Thursday in claiming Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich-powered smartphones will finally begin to proliferate in the second quarter this year. Read on for more. More →

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mobile
March 5, 2012
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Android ‘Key Lime Pie’ to come after ‘Jelly Bean’, keep bringing the sweets

By on March 5, 2012 at 5:25 PM.

Android ‘Key Lime Pie’ to come after ‘Jelly Bean’, keep bringing the sweets

Google plans to continue the trend of naming Android builds — in alphabetical order — after deserts, according to a report from The Verge. First there was Cupcake, then Donut, Eclair, Froyo, Gingerbread and finally Ice Cream Sandwich. The next major Android build will be named Jelly Bean. Even though Google has not officially acknowledged the next version of Android, it is believed that “Jelly Bean” could be released as soon as this summer, even though Ice Cream Sandwich is on only 1% of all devices. The Verge claims that “Key Lime Pie” will come after Jelly Bean, however no details surrounding the OS were provided and no launch time frame was supplied beyond speculation that Google will launch Key Lime Pie in 2013. More →

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