Android for Windows phones -- simple concept, simple enough installation, but awesome results. The good people behind the XDAndroid project have been working hard to allow you to get your Google juices flowing nice and freely on your WinMo device and the latest build looks to have all but completed the task. Demonstrated on a
Touch Pro2 -- a phone that recently got itself
Ubuntu-ized -- the Android installation experiences no difficulty in making calls, sending SMS or email missives, or browsing the web. There are still limitations, mind you, with GPS, Bluetooth and "other key functions" not yet available, but for the most part you're looking at the full Android experience on devices that weren't initially meant for it. Check it out on video after the break or hit the source link for detailed instructions on how to load this up on your own phone.
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Update: Seems the Touch Pro2's keyboardless cousin has no intention of getting left out of the party --
m8cool has a little exposé on HTC's
Touch Diamond2 dual-booting WinMo with Android. Thanks, stagueve!
Continue reading HTC Touch Pro2 gets a new lease of Android life, loves it (video)
HTC Touch Pro2 gets a new lease of Android life, loves it (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 11 Mar 2010 04:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Think we'd all be better off if HTML5 could somehow instantly replace Flash overnight? Not necessarily, according to a set of comparisons from Jan Ozer of the
Streaming Learning Center website, which found that while HTML5 did come out ahead in many respects, it wasn't exactly a clear winner. The tests weren't completely scientific, but they did find that HTML5 clearly performed better than Flash 10 or 10.1 in Safari on a Mac, although the differences were less clear cut in Google Chrome or Firefox. On the other hand, Flash more than held its own on Windows, and Flash Player 10.1 was actually 58% more efficient than HTML5 in Google Chrome on the Windows system tested. As you may have deduced, one of the big factors accounting for that discrepancy is that Flash is able to take advantage of GPU hardware acceleration in Windows, while Adobe is effectively cut out of the loop on Mac -- something it has
complained about quite publicly. According to Ozer, the differences between HTML5 and Flash playback on a Mac could be virtually eliminated if Flash could make use of GPU acceleration. Hit up the link below for all the numbers.
HTML5 vs. Flash comparison finds a few surprises, settles few debates originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 10 Mar 2010 23:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Uh,
whoa. When we heard
Google's threatened pullout of China had
prompted Motorola to seek out an
alternative search provider for its China-bound handsets, we can't say we were expecting a partnership with Microsoft to result. But here we are, staring at a press release announcing the Bing search and Maps will be the default on Moto's Chinese Android phones starting in Q1 -- and the partnership is described as "global," so there's a chance it could spread. That's just one more slap in Google's face from Moto, following the release of the
Yahoo-powered AT&T Backflip -- and another step away from the tight relationship that produced the
Droid. And does this mean Motorola might yet build a Windows Phone 7 Series device, despite a
very public commitment to Android? We'd say Eric and Sanjay have some unresolved differences to work through.
Motorola partners with Microsoft, will use Bing search and maps on Chinese Android phones originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 10 Mar 2010 21:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Enthusiasts have had plenty to cheer about with the convergence of electronics and bicycling over the years, from bikes that
pedal themselves to the various devices and apps that
assist them with their training. And for those of us who just want to get from one place to another? Google Maps has added bicycling directions to its walking, car, and public transport options -- with travel times calculated to include things like the number of hills and fatigue over time. But that ain't all! The company has also partnered with Rails-to-Trails to provide information on bike trails in more than 150 cities. According to Google, thousands of miles of trails in the US have already been added to the map, with more to come. For the time being, however, only those planning trips in their home or office need apply: while available on the web, those using a Google Maps smartphone app are being excluded for the time being. So much for "
mobile first," guys. Video after the break.
Continue reading Google Maps adds bicycle directions, turns out its nothing like 'Quicksilver'
Google Maps adds bicycle directions, turns out its nothing like 'Quicksilver' originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 10 Mar 2010 15:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Google's certainly made some enterprise inroads with Google Apps, and now it's opened the door for other cloud-based service providers to build on that success: it's launching Google Apps Marketplace to sell third-party web apps that integrate with the Apps suite. The apps are sold as a subscription, with both monthly and annual pricing, and the billing is all handled by Google. Since it's all targeted at the enterprise, the apps themselves are pretty dry -- we're talking notables like Intuit Online Payroll, eFax, and TripIt -- but it's pretty easy to see how Google could build a similar consumer-level marketplace into Gmail and Google Calendar sometime in the future. And then? Skynet. Video after the break.
Continue reading Google Apps Marketplace opens for business, for business
Google Apps Marketplace opens for business, for business originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 10 Mar 2010 13:53:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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While the verdict is still out with regard to consumer appetites for a 3rd portable computing device, PC makers are betting the farm on consumer interest in tablets that fill the gap between small-screened smartphones and bulky (by comparison) netbooks/laptops. We've already seen an uptick in tablet devices on display at the big
CES and
CeBIT trade shows, now tablet and MID device vendors look ready to blow out Computex when it kicks off on June 1st in Taipei. According to Roy Chen, ARM's ODM manager for worldwide mobile computing, more than 50 ARM-based tablet PCs will launch in 2010 starting in Q2 with "a lot more" landing in the third quarter -- a date that just happens to line up with the most optimistic
Chrome OS launch schedule. ARM's seeing so much interest that it had to rent additional floor space to show off the devices. Chen said that many of the tablets are slated for China although all of the world's top 10 carriers have signed up as well. ARM was showing off two Android based tablets at the press event, including the
7-inch Compal device (pictured above) we gave a whirl at CES. Let's just hope that tablet makers have plans for some compelling
content and
service hook-ups with a focus on the
user experience -- 50 near-identical slabs of touchscreen computing won't generate much enthusiasm around here.
Over 50 ARM-based tablets launching this year originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 10 Mar 2010 05:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Remember the
$200 smartbook reference design that we saw at CES this year? Well, it's back, it's holding on to that same price and 7-inch enclosure, but this time it's also showing off an expanded OS compatibility. Adapting the open source Chromium OS and another Linux variant to the ARM architecture of the prototype device was apparently not much of a hurdle for Freescale, who has an Android option in the works as well and claims to be just optimizing and enhancing the user experience at this point. Presumably one of the enhancements will be the installation of a capacitive touchscreen as the present demonstration requires either a mouse and keyboard or a resistive torture test to operate, but we'll accept the company's explanation that this is just a proof of concept and not the final product. Slide past the break to see some HTML5 video running on this bargain bin tablet, and hope that your friendly neighborhood OEM picks these designs up for some retail action.
Continue reading Freescale's 7-inch tablet runs Android, Chromium OS or Linux, costs $200 (video)
Freescale's 7-inch tablet runs Android, Chromium OS or Linux, costs $200 (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 05:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Hey remember that feel-good
iPad introduction video with the Ben Folds cover of "In Between Days" Apple posted on launch day? Yeah, well you're going to remember the hell out of it once you watch it with Google's auto-transcription enabled on YouTube. Trust us, you owe yourself these few moments of absurdity.
Update: Video after the break!
[Thanks, Jeff]
Continue reading The iPad introduction video, as captioned by Google
The iPad introduction video, as captioned by Google originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Mar 2010 23:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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We've definitely heard of a few different
Android-based satellite and cable boxes in the past year, but it looks like Google's exploring a real move into living room: the
Wall Street Journal reports that El Goog and Dish Network are testing a TV search service on a new box that runs on "elements" of Android. (We're taking that to mean it's a stripped-down version of the OS tailored for a set-top, not some totally crazy remix.) The box features a QWERTY remote, and users can search both Dish content and other services like YouTube, which sounds like the same riff TiVo's trying to pull off with the
Premiere. Unfortunately, none of this seems destined to hit consumers anytime soon -- the WSJ also says the trial "is limited to a very small number of Google employees and their families and could be discontinued at any time." Okay, but can we at least get some hands-on pictures first?
[Thanks, Jordan]
Google and Dish Network testing TV search on Android-based set-top boxes originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Mar 2010 18:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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We know from a
brief spat of iPhone 3GS controversy that
OpenGL ES 2.0 brings a new level of immersive realism to 3D gaming on mobile devices, so Android developers (and users, for that matter) should be delighted to hear that a new release of the official
Native Development Kit exposes its capabilities to anyone targeting Android 2.0 or higher. As a refresher, the so-called NDK is a bolt-on to the standard Android SDK that gives folks the ability to write and compile critical pieces of functionality in native code, closer to the processor without that pesky Java virtual machine standing in the way -- in other words, it's exactly what gamers and game devs need to make Android a serious gaming platform, and better access to badass 3D capabilities are a fun little piece of the puzzle. The latest NDK's available for download now -- so seriously, hurry up and go wow us with your revolutionary first-person shooter. Git!
Android NDK hits Release 3, brings OpenGL ES 2.0 access to devs originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Mar 2010 18:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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