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Ubuntu for Android Turns Your Phone Into a Desktop Computer

February 22nd, 2012
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Cramming a desktop environment onto a smartphone is a fun project that promises very little actual usefulness. Smartphone screens are too small for desktop OSes, and connecting a keyboard and mouse is usually out of the question. But now Canonical’s Ubuntu for Android takes a different approach, surfacing the desktop OS only when it actually makes sense.

Canonical announced today that it will seamlessly integrate Android with the Linux-based Ubuntu distribution. A device running Ubuntu for Android loads Android during typical smartphone use cases, then switches to Ubuntu once it’s been slid into a dock that connects to a monitor, keyboard, and mouse. The installation basically gives you two devices in one: an Android phone while on the go, and a Ubuntu desktop when plugged in.

There’s no word on who’s manufacturing compatible docks, and what they will cost.

A phone that’s also a desktop computer isn’t new. The Motorola Atrix already does this via Motorola’s “Webtop” OS and hardware Lapdock. But in terms of actual usefulness, Ubuntu’s large installed base and open-source origins might make it a better choice for this type of application.

The system reportedly lets you share your smartphone’s contacts, media, and apps among both Android and Ubuntu. The Ubuntu environment also supports MMS/SMS and phones calls: a pop-up window appears when you receive a call, and you can simply mouse over and click to answer.

Using virtualization tools like Citrix and VMWare, Canonical says that IT departments could issue a single device that covers both the desktop and mobile needs of employees. The company also points to the lower latency of 4G as a good match for Google Doc use. Of course, non-stop 4G usage could lead to data-plan binging — and then data throttling — depending on which carrier you use.

Don’t go searching for an install just yet. Canonical says that Ubuntu for Android will be loaded onto phones by manufacturers, and phones will have to include USB and HDMI hardware support in order to utilize the OS. These devices aren’t yet available, but can be expected to land in late 2012. Canonical was mum on any partnerships with manufacturers they may already have.

Source:http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2012/02/ubuntu-for-android-turns-your-phone-into-a-desktop-computer/

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Chinon Rolls Out Low-Cost Android Tablets

February 15th, 2012
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Chinon USA today introduced a new line of Android® driven media tablets that deliver standout performance and a suite of smart technologies that go beyond expectations at one of the most affordable price points on the market.

Worldwide tablet sales surpassed 72 million units in 2011, and are expected to surge to 383 million in 2017 (NPD DisplaySearch Tablet Quarterly). However, there is a large population of consumers who are being under-served by manufacturers who price their tablets upwards of $600 (U.S.). These are the price-conscious consumers that Chinon is targeting with its new Swift tablets.

“There is no reason why consumers who want to experience the excitement of tablets should be priced out of the market,” said Jensen Fong, President, Chinon USA. “Chinon’s superior design and the improving Android OS allows our Swift tablets to be priced low without compromising performance.”

The Chinon Swift™ 7-inch media tablet has an MSRP of only $159.99 (U.S.), while the 10-inch Swift 10 has an MSRP of $279.99 (U.S.), which compares favorably to similar-sized Android tablets from Sony, Samsung, Motorola, Dell and Asus.

Amazingly lightweight, both Swift tablets give users the portable freedom they crave to explore the web and the Android app ecosystem. Super-fast 802.11n Wi-Fi makes a Swift tablet the ideal mobile companion, ready to go wherever and whenever you are. Battery life rates five hours even when multi-tasking. Plus, the rugged yet stylish aluminum casing is travel-friendly for on-the-go handling. The internal 4GB of memory for the Swift 7 allows the tablet to hold approximately 2,000 songs, 40,000 photos or four full length movies, while the Swift 10 with 16GB of internal memory provides room for 8,000 songs, 160,000 photos or sixteen movies. A micro SD memory card slot provides additional options for storage expansion and file transfer.

Equipped with an ARM Cortex®-A8 Core 1.2GHz processor, Swift tablets deliver entertainment-optimized processing power when you need it most, for example, when watching HD movies, reading eBooks, listening to music, viewing photos, playing intense 3D games or browsing the web. Further enhancing the multimedia experience is support for Adobe® Flash 10.1 enabled content such as games, video streaming, online photo editors and animations.

At the heart of the mobility-focused hardware is the super-bright, highly responsive multi-touch LCD display. Unlike other Android tablets featuring standard 16:9 or 16:10 aspect ratio, Swift tablets sport a 4:3 ratio to better accommodate digital photography, A4-size PDFs and eBooks. As a result, the image completely fills the screen rather than leaves edges cut-off or blank screen spaces. The screen runs in both landscape and portraits modes, plus features a built-in Gyro motion sensor that enables full screen rotation. Swift 7 display is 800×600 while the Swift 10’s IPS display is 1024×768.

Swift tablets provide outstanding connectivity to help you communicate with the devices, networks and people you need to stay in-touch. In addition to Wi-Fi, this includes USB 2.0 (host and slave), 3G when you attach an optional USB modem, microphone/earphones, and a front-facing camera for photos, videos and video chat. In addition, the Swift 10 has a rear-facing camera. Both tablets are powered by Google’s Android 2.3 operating system.

Source:http://hothardware.com/News/Chinon-Rolls-Out-LowCost-Android-Tablets/

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Google launches Chrome browser for Android smartphones

February 10th, 2012
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The launch Tuesday of Chrome for Android Beta caps an engineering effort of more than one year within Google, and marks a convergence between two of the company’s fastest-growing products. Both Android and Chrome launched in the third quarter of 2008, and both have had powerful growth spurts, with Android becoming the world’s most popular mobile operating system last year and with Chrome on a track that could make it the world’s most popular browser later this year.

“This is a big moment for us,” said Sundar Pichai, Google’s senior vice president for Chrome and applications. “The world is going mobile at a pretty phenomenal rate. Using the Web on a mobile device, I think, is in its early stages, and we think this a big step toward where we’re headed.”

The analytics firm StatCounter said Monday that the share of Internet visits that came from a smartphone nearly doubled over the past year, to 8.5 percent in January from 4.3 percent a year ago.

Chrome overtook Mozilla’s Firefox to become the world’s No. 2 browser behind Microsoft’s Internet Explorer in November, according to StatCounter, and currently has more than 26 percent of the worldwide browser market and is growing, while Internet Explorer has about 40 percent and is slipping.

Google hopes the convergence of Chrome and Android will drive more smartphone users to try its browser, and will also attract independent software developers to focus more on apps that run on Google’s products. And while native apps remain the centerpiece of smartphones and tablets, Google believes that’s changing as browsers become ever more powerful under the latest standards of HTML5, the newest computer language for the Web.

“All our data shows increasing usage of the Web on phones and tablets,” Pichai said. “So our goal was to build a mobile browser from the ground up that provides the same fast, simple experience people have come to expect from surfing the Web on their desktop, and really push the boundaries of what is possible on the mobile Web.”

Another goal was to unify a user’s Chrome account on desktop with their mobile devices, so bookmarks – and, soon, passwords – will be synced between a PC and any other device on which users log in to their Google account. The mobile version of Chrome echoes the desktop version’s emphasis on speed, as well as on tabs that allow users to open multiple Web pages at the same time.

“This is not ‘Chrome Lite,’ ” said Arnaud Weber, engineering manager for Chrome. “This is the full Chrome.”

That is one reason why Chrome for Android is limited to a handful of newer devices with more powerful chips that also run the latest 4.0 version of Android, dubbed “Ice Cream Sandwich” by Google – Samsung’s Galaxy Nexus and Nexus S smartphones, and the Motorola Xoom and Asus Transformer Prime tablets. Future Ice Cream Sandwich Android devices will all be able to run Chrome.

“These devices are very powerful, but they are a lot less powerful than a desktop” computer, Weber said. “On a device like this, we just have to push the device as hard as we can go,” with more reliance on the phone’s Graphics Processing Unit, or GPU, chip.

Touch-screen functions are another major feature that Google engineers had to import to the mobile version of Chrome. The mobile version allows users to lay separate Web pages on top of each other like a virtual venetian blind, and to swipe one tab off the screen to close it. There is also a zoom feature that allows users to blow up one small section of the screen, making it easier to find links that are tiny on the screen of a phone.

Writing the code to add those functions and to better capitalize on mobile hardware better was a big job, one that took Google well over a year to complete.

Source:http://www.physorg.com/news/2012-02-google-chrome-browser-android-smartphones.html

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Motorola VP Says Hardware Is The Reason For Android 4.0 Upgrade Delay To Its Devices

February 10th, 2012
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So you own a sweet MOTO DROID RAZR/RAZR MAXX, DROID Bionic or other premium device, but are still aching for that ICS update? Well we know it’s on its way, but as of this time, there’s no estimated release date from MOTO at this time. Owners of the devices previously presumed it was because of customizing the (MOTO)BLUR skin on top of Android 4.0. However, the software development isn’t the hassle— it’s actually the hardware that’s causing a bit of a hassle and prolonging the eventual rollout of the update to the handful of MOTO devices. Christy Wyatt, Senior VP and general manager of Motorola’s Enterprise Business Unit makes that point clear:

“When Google does a release of the software … they do a version of the software for whatever phone they just shipped. The rest of the ecosystem doesn’t see it until you see it. Hardware is by far the long pole in the tent, with multiple chipsets and multiple radio bands for multiple countries. It’s a big machine to churn. I would have to know that every single operator I have is going to want to upgrade every single product, and sometimes they’ll want to control the timing … it’s just not easy to make that blanket statement.”

Motorola completely feels for its customers and wants to push out timely updates as quickly as possible, but it’s not at this point because of various factors involving hardware and mobile carriers. The problem is pretty straightforward: Motorola finds out if the hardware is compatible, throws on the custom skins like (MOTO)BLUR and waits to finally get re-certified by every individual carrier– which is a difficult process by itself. As tedious as the process is upgrading devices to Android 4.0, it’s a necessary one in order to ensure all aspects of the devices are running smoothly and without issues.

All is not doom and gloom though folks. While highlighting the difficulties in updating the software for each phone, Wyatt added some understandable enthusiasm for Android 4.0 because it gives developers a single UI for phones and tablets:

“That has to be one of the promises of Ice Cream Sandwich,” she said. “By bringing these UIs together, you solve the experience gaps and the ecosystem gaps between.”

Our sentiments exactly Christy. While additional tweaks such as the WebTop (laptop) mode needs to be worked out as well, expect MOTO and its great group of developers/engineers to figure out everything sooner than later.

Source:http://www.talkandroid.com/89435-motorola-vp-says-hardware-is-reason-for-android-4-0-upgrade-to-its-devices/#.TzSXOcgcYf0

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Using an Android Smartphone as Your PC

February 10th, 2012
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I don’t remember exactly when I first thought of this idea (your phone being the only computer you need), but I know it was many years ago, probably before Android was on the market. Imagine using your phone/mobile computer everywhere, because it’s always with you, and coming home, putting it on the desk, and boom – it connects to your desk’s monitor, and then you start using it as a PC. This future seems increasingly more likely thanks to Android.

I knew this is getting closer to reality when dual core ARM processors started appearing and when Motorola launched their laptop dock thing, where you can put your phone inside and the “laptop” (well more like a shell in Motorola’s case) would run on the phone’s hardware. It was the start of something interesting, but far from an ideal implementation.

One of the wrong things with it, is that it ran two operating systems in the same time, and a dual core Cortex A9 at 1 Ghz is barely enough to run a full OS at reasonable performance, let alone two. It would’ve made a lot more sense to continue to run the OS on the laptop display. Honeycomb was out around the same time, and Motorola was the first to use it. So I wondered why couldn’t they just use Honeycomb for the laptop, not as a separate OS, but just as the UI for the laptop?

Perhaps Motorola preferred to just sell another device instead of making the phone work with everything, or perhaps Google wasn’t ready for that kind of movement, but I do believe Google made Honeycomb (and now ICS) the way it is because they envisioned some kind of future of hybrid devices, where Android might even end up on laptops or similar devices.

My ideal vision of the future is to have Android use 3 different UI add-ons, so when you have it on your phone it automatically uses the phone UI, but when you connect it to a PC monitor or such, you should be able to select the tablet UI for it, and when you connect it to the TV, you should be able to pick the Google TV UI for it.

The codebase is the same, just the UI needs to change, depending on the form factor of the device. Ideally, you’d have one UI for everything, and while I’m sure Google will continue to try and make them as similar possible, I don’t think that’s ultimately possible. You can’t have the exact same UI for everything, because each form factor’s UI can be optimized to work much better for that specific form factor, so instead of having a mediocre UI for everything, you’re better off having the best possible UI for each scenario.

Perhaps just as important as having these UI’s is being able to do all this wirelessly. Needing separate cables, sometimes different cables for every device, is just way too cumbersome for something like this to become mainstream. It needs a wireless technology can can seamlessly connect all these devices on the spot. Bluetooth can’t be it, because it’s way too slow. Wi-Fi is also a bit cumbersome to use like this, but something like Wi-Fi Direct/Wi-Fi Display should be the future, and I think very soon we’ll start having access to that kind of technology.

So the only other part of this is for Google to enable Android to change UI’s based on what’s connected to. The sooner they forget the idea that ChromeOS is their *only* OS for laptop/PC monitors, the better. ChromeOS might still thrive in parallel with Android for some very niche markets, but I wouldn’t want them to slow down Android’s potential because of it.

Android has a unique opportunity here that neither Microsoft nor Apple have. Microsoft can’t use WP7 in the same way, because they have a totally different OS that they are pushing for PC’s, and they have a different OS for Xbox. So they can’t make everything work through WP7. Apple is closer in a way to Android, but they have such strange display ratios that might make the transitions look awkward – 3:2 for phones, 4:3 for tablets, and soon probably 16:9 for TV’s, while pretty much all of Android’s resolutions are somewhere between 16:9 and 16:10. It might be a lost opportunity for Google to not do this as soon as possible.

A video on using Galaxy Nexus as your PC through MHL (where obviously the tablet UI would make much more sense):

Source:http://www.androidauthority.com/using-an-android-smartphone-as-your-pc-52081/

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Can an Android 4.0 device replace a desktop PC?

February 10th, 2012
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Is Android 4.0 mature enough to replace a desktop PC? I’m writing this post with Chrome Beta for Android on my Asus Transformer Prime and I think it’s almost there. Previously I was disappointed with the Browser performance on the Prime, but the recent software updates to Android 4.0.3 combined with the Chrome browser are starting to live up to my expectations.

Before there was almost no way I could get any real content creation done on the Prime, but it is now passable. The performance still does not match my Samsung ultrabook, but I have noticed great improvements since I first gave this a try last year. The keyboard lag with heavy web apps like WordPress is gone, scrolling is smooth, and my Logitech USB mouse works great.

I’m not the only one that thinks Android 4.0 is passable as a desktop operating system. Android enthusiast Christian Cantrell hooked up his Galaxy Nexus to a computer monitor, wireless keyboard with touchpad, and speakers to demonstrate the user experience. He notes that Android 4.0 has most of the functionality he could need, but the performance of the dual-core OMAP4460 in the Galaxy Nexus leaves a little to be desired.

Most Android manufactures have not really tried to push the envelope for this type of user experience, with the exception of Motorola. Their Atrix 4G was ahead of its time, but it clearly hinted where Android was going. We predicted over a year ago that Android, Chrome, and Google TV would merge onto a single device, and we are almost there.

Motorola’s webtop experience and lapdock accessory were both cool ideas, but the final experience just sucked. Now that Google is taking over Motorola and hardware continues to advance at a rapid pace, we will finally see Sanjay Jha’s original vision come true. Your smartphone will become your most personal computer and eventually replace your desktop or laptop PC.

ASUS is likely to be one of the first companies to produce one of these so called ultraphones. Their upcoming Padfone will dock into a tablet, that can dock into a keyboard, that can connect to any display. This modular design will be copied over and over by every other OEM.

We might still be another generation away from mobile processors that can deliver the PC-like performance we crave, but there are software solutions to fill the gap. NVIDIA CEO Jen-Hsun Huang demonstrated this at CES. Apps like Splashtop provide a virtualized OS that delivers the same exact experience you would expect from a desktop PC.

As I wrote yesterday, I still think Chrome will one day overtake Android as Google’s platform for connected devices, but that could be a decade away. Over the next five years, I see Android becoming the number one operating system on all web clients.

I realize this might sound crazy and Windows still has 70-80% market share depending on the source, but who would have predicted that Android would become the top smartphone OS as fast as it did. Smartphone sales already overtook client PCs in 2011, and that trend will continue to accelerate.

What do you think the Android ecosystem needs to deliver before you would give up your PC?

Source:http://androidandme.com/2012/02/news/can-an-android-4-0-device-replace-a-desktop-pc/

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Sprint Readies $100 ‘ZTE Optik’ Android Tablet with Dual-Core Processor

February 3rd, 2012
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In all likelihood, this will turn out to be the year of the low-cost tablet, a move that was set in motion when Amazon launched its $199 Kindle Fire and Barnes & Noble its $249 Nook Tablet. Continuing the trend is Sprint, which is planning to release a sub-$100 (by a penny) Android tablet on Super Bowl Sunday (February 5, for you folks who aren’t into sports). So, what’s the catch?

To grab the 7-inch slate for a C-note, you have to sign up for a two-year service agreement, or else it’s $350 off-contract. Otherwise, the ZTE Optik appears surprisingly well spec’d. In addition to a 7-inch WXGA (1280×800) screen, it has a dual-core 1.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, 1GB of RAM, 16GB of storage, 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi, integrated GPS, Bluetooth v2.1 + EDR, stereo speakers, 3.5mm audio jack, 5MP rear-facing camera, 2MP front-facing camera, and a 4,000 mAh Lithium-ion battery, all of which comes powered by Google’s Android 3.2 (Gingerbread) platform.

“Sprint is committed to delivering exceptional value and feature-rich devices to our customers,” said David Owens, vice president – Product Development, Sprint. “ZTE Optik packs great features for under $100. When this device is combined with our Tablet Connection plans, customers can easily keep their personal and professional lives organized, stay connected with their social networks and get things done while on the go.”

The ZTE Optic can be activated on one of four Sprint Tablet Connection plans, including $20/month for 1GB of data, $35/month for 3GB, $50/month for 6GB, and $80/month for 12GB. A Mobile Hotspot option is available for an additional $30/month.

Source:http://hothardware.com/News/Sprint-Readies-100-ZTE-Optik-Android-Tablet-with-DualCore-Processor/

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