HMD Global caused a small uproar in the enthusiast community when they first revealed that there won’t be any official bootloader unlock method for the Nokia 8. This seriously affected the Nokia 8’s viability as an alternative to competitors like the OnePlus 5, at least within the enthusiast community,...
Saturday, September 30, 2017
Google Reportedly Retooling User Security with Optional USB Security Keys
Google, a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc., plans to implement the Advanced Protection Program next month according to a report from Bloomberg. This is a system designed to fully replace two factor authentication and is seen as much more secure. It is specifically going to be marketed at those with security...
Upcoming Huawei Mate 10 May Feature a Samsung DeX-like Interface
Integrating a desktop interface in our mobile devices has been attempted many times in the past. Back in 2011, Motorola released a lapdock for their Motorola Atrix device, which turned it into a laptop in order to improve your workflow. With Windows 10 Mobile, Microsoft introduced Continuum, which allowed...
The Sprint-Exclusive LG V30+ is Launching on October 13th With Leasing Deal
The LG V30 is a phone that has managed to turn quite some heads during these past weeks. It drops the gimmicks and includes top of the line specifications, a 6″ 18:9 FullVision POLED display with smaller bezels than the LG G6, improved camera hardware and audio capabilities, and more. And with the LG...
Friday, September 29, 2017
Magisk Module to Allow Location Mocking, Screenshots in Any App, and Disabling System Signature Verification
Magisk is a systemless root and module host for Android devices. With the use of Magisk, users can modify their Android /system partition without breaking SafetyNet. This is because Magisk makes its changes in the RAM without overwriting actual system files, meaning build.prop edits and more are possible....
Amazon Quietly Announces Fire OS 6 for the Amazon Fire TV Gen 3 Based on Android Nougat
If you are unfamiliar with Amazon Fire TV, they are devices used to provide a smart TV experience based on Android, coming preloaded with applications and support for all major streaming services. The applications which are installed are just Android applications, as the devices themselves run on Android...
What’s a Feature From Your Device That You Wish Every Phone Had?
A big advantage Android has for enthusiasts is that we get to try out different flavors of Android. If you are savvy enough, you can even build and add in the features that you want to see in a custom ROM for your own smartphone or tablet. Most people on XDA will try out a number of ROMs that are available...
HTC Sense Home Update will Include a Pixel Launcher Style App Drawer
Smartphone OEMs like to use software to differentiate themselves from the competition. This results in OEM ROMs attempting to have a different style and feature set compared to devices from other companies. HTC has Sense, with their own HTC Sense Home launcher. Right now, this functions like a normal...
Huawei Mate 10 May Debut “Object Recognition” & “Makeup” Camera Modes
While much of the tech press’ attention is focused on Google’s upcoming October 4th reveal of the Google Pixel 2 and Google Pixel 2XL, Huawei is set to unveil the next big thing in the Mate lineup: the...
LG has Dropped the LG G3, G4, G4 Stylus, CK, and Stylo from Monthly Security Update List
Every month Google will gather up all of the Android security fixes for AOSP and make them available so that OEMs can implement them in their ROMs. These go out a month in advance so that all of the companies have enough time to implement them before they are disclosed to the public. Companies like...
Google to Separate its EU Shopping Unit From the Company
Google has been under fire with the European Commission about antitrust violations for years now. The company’s biggest two complaints right now deal with Android and the way they require OEMs to pre-install their applications while the other pertains to its Google Shopping comparison division. The...
Google is Making a Smart Hub Screen in 2018, Similar to the Amazon Echo Show
Recently, Amazon has announced a slew of new devices, which include a new streaming device (the Amazon Fire TV Gen 3), a new, smaller smart hub screen device (the Amazon Echo Spot) and a lot more. It’s pretty clear that Amazon wants to be in every single corner of your home, and they want you to be...
Thursday, September 28, 2017
Google Camera HDR+ Port Updated with RAW Support, HDR Customization, and Major Bug Fixes
Just over a month ago, we saw a Ukrainian developer known as B-S-G bring the Google Camera app with working HDR+ to many non-Google devices. A while after the initial release, the port was updated...
T-Mobile is Rumored to Sell the Galaxy S8 Active in the Future
Samsung’s Galaxy S series has been the main flagship series of the company for years now. They understood that some need a more rugged smartphone with high-end specs though, so they partnered with AT&T for their Galaxy S Active series. Until now, the Galaxy S Active lineup has been exclusive to...
MediaTek MT6739 Launches in India, along with the Helio P23
The MediaTek MT6739 has made its debut at the India Mobile Congress 2017, New Delhi in India for entry-level and mid-level 4G handsets. Its notable new features include dual camera photography support, and a WorldMode LTE.Cat 4 modem. This System on Chip (SoC) is specifically built for the growing Indian...
Google Brings Family Link to All Parents in the United States
Google has done a great job at getting Android into the hands of your average smartphone customer. From there, they needed to work on expanding this outreach to those who may not be able to just walk out and purchase a new smartphone. Back in March of this year they introduced a new program for kids...
Flimsy Leaks Hint at “Ultra Pixel” Smartphone, but Color us Extremely Skeptical
Google is scheduled to host their 2017 hardware launch event next week on October 4th. The company has already started to advertise that date with cryptic marketing banners around the world and it aligns...
Google Assistant is Coming to Android TV, Starting with the NVIDIA Shield TV
Google may have been late to the game when it came to getting Google Assistant into the home, but the company has been working hard to allow 3rd-party developers the ability to integrate it into their products. We’re already starting to see these products appearing but many have wondered why it hasn’t...
NVIDIA SHIELD Experience 6.0 Coming to NVIDIA Shield TV, Brings Google Assistant Support
Earlier today, we’ve learned via the Google Blog that the Google Assistant was soon making its way to Android TV devices, starting with the NVIDIA Shield TV and later coming to Sony Bravia TVs in the following months. Google Assistant brings users the ability to browse content on your TV, search for...
LG V30 to Come to All Major Wireless Carriers in the U.S. Within 2 Weeks
After much teasing, LG officially unveiled the LG V30 to the world on August 31st at IFA 2017. We were able to finally see official images of the device, learned about its hardware specs and this led to many deciding they wanted it as their next smartphone. South Korean customers knew that day that...
Motorola Starts Rolling Out Android Nougat Update to Moto X Pure Edition in the US
For those still holding onto a Moto X Pure Edition in the US, you will be happy to know that your device won’t be stuck on Android Marshmallow forever. It appears that Motorola is finally rolling out...
Google Addresses Annoying Google Assistant Screen Scan Bug, Fix Coming With a Future Update
Since Google Assistant’s introduction as a mobile assistant back in October 2016, it has also come with its fair share of bugs and issues that have been ironed out with subsequent updates, together with new features like keyboard input support, screen scan improvements, and a lot more. A recent issue...
HMD Global to Look into Possibility of Unlocking Nokia 8 Bootloader
Yesterday, we reported on a tweet from the Chief Product Officer at HMD Global, Juho Sarvikas, where he was talking about the bootloader unlock status of the Nokia 8. At that time the company’s stance was that they wouldn’t allow users to unlock the bootloader due to security reasons. However,...
Wednesday, September 27, 2017
Magisk 14.1 Adds Official Support for the Google Pixel & Other A/B Partition Devices
Over the past year, Magisk has exploded in popularity as an alternative to SuperSU for users on our forums. It provides many advantages over other root solutions: it’s open source, plays nice with the SafetyNet tamper check, and has an extensive repository of modules that modify your phone without...
Third Generation Amazon Fire TV Announced, Includes 4K UHD and HDR Support at $69.99
The Amazon Fire TV has been one of the best-selling digital media players available in the market, ever since it was introduced back in 2014. The first-generation player included 2 GB of RAM, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 processor, and support for 1080p video playback, making it a compelling package back...
Amazon Echo Spot is a Smaller, Less Expensive Version of the Echo Show
Amazon is holding an Alexa-themed hardware launch event at their headquarters today and has announced a number of new products. Likely as a way to compete with the likes of Google and Apple who are both gearing up for the holiday season, Amazon is not holding back either and has just announced a flurry...
The Ground Zero Open Source Project (GZOSP): an Android Oreo Base for Custom ROM Development
Ground Zero ROMs, the ROM development team that brought us the popular custom ROMs Tesla, Tipsy, and Validus, has provided a central Android Oreo repository from which custom ROMs can be built without having to start from scratch (meaning straight from AOSP). The idea of the Ground Zero Open Source...
HMD Global: No Official Bootloader Unlock Method for the Nokia 8
A lot of people have a soft spot for the Nokia brand due to the company’s history in the cell phone market. Before smartphones were a thing, Nokia was a big player in the mobile phone business, with millions of devices sold around the world. As smartphones took over, the dominance of Nokia fell...
Second Generation of Amazon Echo is Smaller, and More Powerful and Less Expensive
The first connected smart speaker from Amazon, dubbed the Echo, was released back in 2014 and received mixed reviews at first. As time has gone by the device has become more popular and has spawned a number of other devices such as the Echo Dot and the Echo Show. Today, the company is holding an Alexa-themed...
OnePlus is Seeking Feedback on Potentially Revamping the Alert Slider
For years, virtually all Android smartphones and tablets primarily handled their sound profiles via software. Sure, you could press and hold the volume down button until it triggers this sound profile, but that took more time or effort than the solution found on other platforms, namely the iPhone. Not...
Are You Excited for the Pixel 2 / Pixel 2 XL and Other Google Announcements?
We are exactly one week away from Google launching a new batch of hardware to the world. So far, we have heard about a miniature version of Google Home, a premium Google Pixel Chromebook, an updated version of Daydream View and two new Pixel smartphones from both HTC as well as LG. The smaller of the...
Sony’s Next Flagship Smartphone to Feature a New Design
Last year we saw a big transition in the smartphone market where OEMs were focusing on improving the quality of their camera like never before. This year, there’s been a clear trend where the goal is to reduce the bezels any way possible. Sony though, they’ve been using the same design for their smartphones...
XDA User Turned a Macbook Pro Into a DIY Samsung DeX Laptop
Along with the Galaxy S8 and S8+ announcement earlier this year, we also got to know Samsung DeX. This wireless-charging dock allows you to connect your Galaxy S8, S8+ or Note 8 as a desktop computer, allowing you to do things you would normally do on a proper desktop platform, like web browsing, sending...
Google Removes YouTube from the Amazon Echo Show, Says it Violates their ToS
Amazon and Google have been going back and forth for a few years now. They seem to not want to play nice with each other due to the large competitive overlap of their products and services, and in some case it’s resulted in a worse user experience for the end user. We see this conflict with products...