-
by Joe Levi | June 27, 2014 1:48 PMRead OnGoogle recently released a Developer Preview of its latest version of Android: Android L. Though it's not final code by any stretch of the imagination, we wanted to see how it compares to Android 4.4.4 KitKat - the latest official release of the operating system. We headed over to Google's "L Developer Preview" page, downloaded, and installed Android L build LPV79 to our Nexus 5 (there is also a build for the 2013 Nexus 7, though only for the WiFi version). From there we spent half a day using it as our daily driver, hunting through the various screens to try and find differences and ...
-
by Rithvik Rao | June 4, 2014 6:44 PMRead OnGoogle's monthly Android distribution statistics are finally in for the month of June 2014. The Android version we most care about, of course, is KitKat, which has grown by leaps and bounds since our last check-in for May. KitKat has increased from 8.5% distribution to 13.6%, which is remarkable to say the least (especially considering KitKat's seemingly-slow start, as the February numbers showed us). The likely reason for this is the increasing sales of the HTC One M8 and Samsung Galaxy S5, two devices running KitKat right out of the box. Older devices, from these two manufacturers and ...
-
by Jaime Rivera | May 27, 2014 2:31 PMRead OnGoogle's launch of Android 4.4 KitKat is already 7 months old, and it isn't until now that we're seeing most OEMs update their smartphones to the latest and greatest version of the operating system. Such is the case of Samsung, which has done a decent job this year with updates, but not as good as OEMs like Sony and HTC. Still, we've seen the leaked time-lines for the update, and we're now seeing some of last-year's models getting the update. Today Samsung has officially launched Android 4.4.2 KitKat for the Samsung Galaxy S4 Active. This ruggedized variant of last-year's Galaxy S4 has ...
-
by Jaime Rivera | May 21, 2014 2:59 PMRead OnSony may not be doing the best job in getting the US market full of Xperia smartphones, but they are definitely doing a great job in giving Xperia customers a taste of the latest and greatest of Android. It used to be that Sony was the worse company in updating its smartphones to newer versions of Android, but ever since the launch of the Xperia Z early last year, this has been a different story, and it continues today. The company has just announced Android 4.4 KitKat to devices like the Sony Xperia Z, Xperia ZL, Xperia ZR, and Xperia Tablet Z. The update details include: Google’s ...
-
by Michael Fisher | April 16, 2014 7:26 PMRead On"Once we’ve got the 3D pose of each photo, we compute the depth of each pixel in the reference photo using Multi-View Stereo algorithms. MVS works the way human stereo vision does: given the location of the same object in two different images, we can triangulate the 3D position of the object and compute the distance to it. How do we figure out which pixel in one image corresponds to a pixel in another image? MVS measures how similar they are -- on mobile devices, one particularly simple and efficient way is computing the Sum of Absolute Differences (SAD) of the RGB colors of the two ...
-
by Jaime Rivera | April 3, 2014 11:24 PMRead OnWatch today's Pocketnow Daily as we talk about Apple's confirmed dates for its World Wide Developer's Conference, and what we expect to see. We then talk about Intel's attempt to bring 64-bit architecture to Android 4.4 KitKat. Samsung follows the rumors as we land a leaked image for the Samsung Galaxy S5 Zoom, though with another name. Then we talk about Microsoft's possible launch date for the developer preview of Windows Phone 8.1. We end today's show talking about Google's possible new business in the cellular carrier department, though depending on Google Fiber in a way. All this and ...
-
by Jaime Rivera | January 14, 2014 11:00 PMRead OnWatch today's Pocketnow Daily as we talk about the announcement of the Google Play Edition Moto G and its details. We then talk about the Moto X, which is now officially ready to land in Europe in the next two weeks. Samsung is next as we talk about the Samsung Galaxy S 5 launch plans, aside from the rumors of a better battery for its future flagship. Then we talk about the Samsung Galaxy Note 3, and how KitKat was recently made available in certain European countries. We later cover Sony's launch of certain mid-tier phones to the market. We end today's show talking about the new leaks of ...
-
by Jaime Rivera | November 28, 2013 11:58 AMRead OnFor many of us, remembering the Nexus One is bringing back some good memories. Most of us still find this to be one of the greatest Android phones of all time, and if you're still using one or own one, please enjoy our jealousy for a couple of minutes. Sadly, the fact that the device didn't enjoy the benefits of Ice Cream Sandwich and is still stuck to Gingerbread is the main reason why we know that most of us were forced to move on to more powerful hardware. That said, one of the benefits of KitKat is the fact that it was designed to run on low-powered hardware. It was only a matter of ...
-
by Jaime Rivera | November 26, 2013 9:00 PMRead OnWatch today's Pocketnow Daily as we talk about Google's Nexus 7 deals, which are ironically not better than the deals we had already talked about a couple of days ago. We then talk about the Google Edition phones receiving Android 4.4 KitKat as of today. Then it's patent talk as we go through Samsung's probable new flagship feature for the Galaxy S 5. Apple follows the news as the company has also filed a patent, but this time in order to bring Lytro technology into the cameras of their future devices. We end today's show talking about the launch of the Moto G in the United States. All ...
-
by Jaime Rivera | November 22, 2013 9:00 PMRead OnWatch today's Pocketnow Daily as we talk about Nokia's new sale whenever you buy the new Lumia 2520 Windows tablet. We later go through more deals as retailers have dropped the price of the Google Nexus 7. Motorola follows the news as the company has just hired a 3D printing firm to take care of Project Ara. Leaks of Samsung's plans to upgrade the Galaxy Line-up to Android 4.4 KitKat follow after that. We end today's show talking about certain leaks showing a metal frame for the possible Samsung Galaxy S5. All this and more after the break. Stories: - Nokia offering free Power Keyboard ...
-
by Jaime Rivera | November 19, 2013 9:00 PMRead OnWatch today's Pocketnow Daily as we talk about Motorola's plans to upgrade the company's current smartphone line-up to Android 4.4 KitKat. We then talk about Samsung, the results in sales of the Galaxy Gear, and what to believe and not believe. We follow the news with some more rumors of Apple building a bigger iPad at 12.9-inches, and why this makes sense since we currently have the iPad Air and iPad mini, along with the iPad mini with Retina Display. Later we talk about the possibility of a 128-bit chip for smartphones and tablets, as if 64-bits wasn't enough for you. We end today's show ...
-
by Jaime Rivera | November 7, 2013 9:00 PMRead OnWatch today's Pocketnow Daily as we talk about Google's recent update to Google Apps for Android, which brings some of the KitKat updates that Nexus 5 owners are enjoying. Speaking of Nexus 5, there are complaints of a poor speaker and poor camera, and Google talks about it. We later talk about Sony as the company has laid down its plans for Android 4.3 and 4.4 to its Xperia line-up. Apple follows the news as the Cupertino kids might be working on launching more than one iPhone in 2014. We end today's show by talking about Samsung's ISOCELL cameras and foldable displays. All this and more ...
-
by Jaime Rivera | November 6, 2013 9:00 PMRead OnWatch today's Pocketnow Daily as we talk about the Nokia Lumia 1520 reaching AT&T very soon at a very interesting price point. Samsung follows the news as we go through their plans for foldable displays, 4K displays and their custom CPUs for 2014 and 2015. We later talk about Microsoft's possible shortlist for their next CEO. Apple follows in the news, this time because apparently the company has increased production of the iPhone 5S and changed the supplier for the 5C. We end today's show talking about Android 4.4 KitKat reaching other smartphones and already being tested. All this ...
-
by Anton D. Nagy | November 4, 2013 3:28 AMRead OnWe're still learning about all the goodies included with Google's latest version of Android 4.4 KitKat. Google touched on a couple of software features but probably the most interesting one, if you're a fan of taking and manipulating pictures, is the non-destructive photo editor. Google's own Nicolas Roard is making a short demo in the video below showing off the potential of the editor. We're looking at filters, effects, adjustments, and even reframing -- as a concept, similar to Nokia's Camera app. The editor will be included in the Android KitKat Gallery, as well as AOSP, so as long as ...
-
by Michael Fisher | November 1, 2013 7:50 PMRead OnThe Nexus 5 has seen its share of coverage this week - not just at Pocketnow, but all across the internet. It's not just the newest major Android smartphone to see release; it's the once-a-year Nexus phone straight from Google. As such, it commands a degree of exclusive excitement, a hipsteresque appeal that merits a whole lot of media coverage - despite bolder devices hitting the market elsewhere. Much of the excitement for the Nexus 5 comes from owners of the current-generation Nexus 4, last winter's Googlephone Of The Moment that warranted almost the same level of feverish fanboyism. ...
-
by Jaime Rivera | October 31, 2013 9:00 PMRead OnWatch today's Pocketnow Daily as we talk about the FAA, and how they've finally changed their flight rules to allow the use of mobile devices through a full flight, even though the airlines now have to change their procedures to match it. Nokia is next as we talk about their patent lawsuit against HTC, and how this could ban the HTC One in the UK. Rumors of a Nokia Lumia 525 are back, for those of you who remember project Glee. Verizon is next as we have leaked renders of an Ellipsis 7 tablet. We end today's show talking about the Google Nexus 5, the official launch, and what to expect ...
