Posts by Stephen Schenck
Stephen has been writing about electronics since 2008, which only serves to frustrate him that he waited so long to combine his love of gadgets and his degree in writing. In his spare time, he collects console and arcade game hardware, is a motorcycle enthusiast, and enjoys trapping blue crabs. Stephen's first mobile device was a 624 MHz Dell Axim X30, which he's convinced is still a viable platform. Stephen longs for a market where phones are sold independently of service, and bandwidth is cheap and plentiful; he's not holding his breath. In the meantime, he devours smartphone news and tries to sort out the juicy bits
-
by Stephen Schenck | May 16, 2013 3:34 PMYesterday's announcement of what's essentially a Nexus Galaxy S 4 was pretty big news. Sure, it doesn't carry the Nexus 4's crazy low price tag, but if you've got the money, and could care less about all of the Galaxy S 4's gimmicky software, the phone offers the potential for a seriously high-end stock AOSP experience. While this was very cool in and of itself, we couldn't help wonder if Google might run with this idea; could we also see faux Nexus versions of other noteworthy Androids? Maybe of that Android that gives the GS4 a serious run for its money, the HTC One? Don't hold your ...
-
by Stephen Schenck | May 16, 2013 2:52 PMOne rumored Sony Android we've been hearing about for a while now is the smartphone codenamed Gaga. Back in March, a rumor suggested that Gaga could eventually end up launching as the Xperia UL. Today, we get what could very well be our first look at the handset, upon some leaked pics arriving which claim to show the UL in the flesh. As you can see up top, that label clearly marks this model as Gaga. Presumably this image comes from some late-stage testing of the phone, as that "SAR" on the same label likely refers to Specific Absorption Rate testing, one of the parameters looked at by ...
-
by Stephen Schenck | May 16, 2013 12:54 PMOne week ago, Microsoft came out with a really nice overhaul for its Windows Phone YouTube app. It wasn't long after that when we learned of a possibly big problem for this new release, as some of its behavior appeared to conflict with YouTube API terms and conditions. We wondered if Google might go so far as to take steps to disable the app. Sure enough, Google has sent Microsoft a cease-and-desist letter, insisting that Microsoft kill the app. Just as expected, Google takes issue with Microsoft pulling an end-run on content producers that rely on advertising for income, as the Windows ...
-
by Stephen Schenck | May 16, 2013 12:12 PMWere you starting to get excited about the new Google Hangouts? Gave it an early try, liked what you saw, and this news of SMS integration made things sound even better? Unfortunately, someone just had to go and rain on this parade, and this time the bad guy is AT&T, once again sticking its nose into how apps use its wireless data network. Remember all the utter nonsense AT&T spewed over FaceTime on iOS? First limiting access to those users on certain plans, then based on whether you had an HSPA+ or LTE iPhone? Even when it started getting really permissive, it still blocked access ...
-
by Stephen Schenck | May 16, 2013 11:32 AMYesterday's Google I/O keynote may not have brought us the rumored Google Babel - at least not with that name, anyway - but we did learn of work towards a unified messaging system, only adopting the old Google+ name of Hangouts. The company announced Hangouts for web, Android, and even iOS, giving users a consistent experience across disparate devices. It all sounded quite interesting, but it wasn't quite the comprehensive messaging experience we dreamed of, missing one key feature: connection with your phone's SMS messages. Luckily, it looks like that's essentially confirmed, and should ...
-
by Stephen Schenck | May 16, 2013 10:44 AMSamsung's Galaxy S 4 may be a very popular smartphone, but that doesn't make it immune to suffering from some issues. We've already talked in our reviews for the handset about the material choice, for instance, and just how excessively scratch-prone it can be. Another problem getting some publicity is the available storage the phone arrives with. Like the Microsoft Surface went through last year, the GS4 is experiencing some bad publicity upon news spreading that the 16GB GS4 ships with just over half of that space actually available to the user. Now, Samsung's speaking up about the issue, ...
-
by Stephen Schenck | May 16, 2013 7:04 AMCompetition is one of the most powerful forces driving the mobile industry. It fuels innovation, keeps prices reasonable, and opens up worlds of options. Whether we're talking about OEMs, carriers, or the companies crafting mobile platforms, competition is awesome. That said, having more options isn't necessary always a good thing, and when there's already a healthy amount of competition going on, just throwing more contenders in the ring doesn't always lead to positive results. That's what I'm thinking about this morning, specifically when it comes to LG and tablets. LG, Back In The Game ...
-
by Stephen Schenck | May 15, 2013 4:11 PMFor a Google I/O with not much to offer in the way of big Android announcements, there sure were a lot of smaller improvements Google had to share. After telling us about new Android APIs and the AOSP Galaxy S 4, the I/O keynote switched gears to Chrome and some other Google services. A lot of changes were revealed, so let's hit on some of the more notable ones. Some of the most impressive news was about the Google search experience. Voice-based search sees a number of improvements enhancing its ability to parse common language queries, letting you have a bit of a conversation with Google; ...
-
by Stephen Schenck | May 15, 2013 3:49 PMGoogle already sells music through Google Play, and lets users upload their own collections to its cloud locker system, but it's still been facing stiff competition from the likes of Pandora or Spotify, for users who don't necessarily want to build up a big personal library of music, and just ant to be able to listen to whatever they like, whenever the mood strikes them. We had heard rumors that the company was preparing to announce a new streaming service of its own, and it did just that at Google I/O today, unveiling Google Play Music All Access. All Access augments your previous music ...
-
by Stephen Schenck | May 15, 2013 1:14 PMOne of the last Google I/O rumors to arrive before things got started was word of a Nexus-like version of the Galaxy S 4, the GS4 Google Edition. We've been lowering our expectations when it comes to Google I/O device announcements this year, but this one actually ended up happening, with Google announcing the phone today. This GS4 runs stock Android, just like the Nexus 4. Updates will come from Google, quick and speedy, just like with regular Nexus devices. You'll be able to buy the phone right through Google from the Play Store when it start selling next month. This version of the GS4 ...
-
by Stephen Schenck | May 15, 2013 12:51 PMWe've been looking forward to this moment for weeks, and now that Google I/O 2013 is underway, today's keynote has begun, we're finally learning just how many of all those rumors we've heard are actually coming to pass. There have been a number of leaks about new Google Play Services, culminating in the recent leak of the new code along with Google Play Games support. We'll get to gaming in a moment, but that's only a portion of the new services coming to the platform. Google's introducing a number of new APIs for developers to take advantage of in constructing some advanced apps. One is ...
-
by Stephen Schenck | May 15, 2013 10:40 AMTaking a break from the Google I/O news for a moment, some new leaked pics have arrived of a phone we were talking about just a little bit earlier this morning, Samsung's Galaxy S 4 Mini. The GS4 Mini has appeared on-camera a number of times in recent days, and while all the sightings may only add up to circumstantial evidence, they sure all do seem in line with rumors that the phone could get a formal announcement before the month's out. As for specs, there have been some mentioned in various leaks, but we're still not 100% on what to expect. It would be great if rumors of an Exynos 5 ...
-
by Stephen Schenck | May 15, 2013 10:12 AMAs promised, last-minute Google I/O rumors continue to hit our desk, and the latest we want to share with you is some talk about the idea of Google introducing a new streaming music service. Unlike the locker-like system currently used by Google Music to let you stream your own library, this would be a subscription-based system more in line with what you get from a company like Spotify. Supposedly, Google has secured deals with both Universal and Sony that would allow it to feature the companies' music in this service. It looks like there could be multiple ways Google intends to use such ...
-
by Stephen Schenck | May 15, 2013 9:33 AMDespite rumors about devices like that Galaxy S 4 Google Edition, there's a feeling going in to Google I/O that this year's event could be much more focused on services than hardware. We're looking forward to news of Google Play Games, and in the hours leading up to the conference a new version of the Google Play Store has started arriving. On the surface, this looks to be a relatively minor polishing-up job. The app gets a few new button and image designs, and the colors are tweaked in some areas. Google also updated a couple text strings, and cleaned up how you redeem gift cards. There ...
-
by Stephen Schenck | May 15, 2013 8:47 AMWe're now only hours away from Google I/O bringing us the latest announcements concerning Android, but that gives us just enough time to check out some last-minute rumors. It may be too early still for news of a Nexus 5, but could we learn of something a little different but up that same alley? One rumor claims that Samsung could bring word of a Nexus-like pure Android version of its flagship Galaxy S 4. Supposedly envisioned to address demand for a higher-end premium phone that offers a Nexus-like software experience, Samsung and Google would announce a Galaxy S 4 Google Edition running ...