How-Tos posts - Android Atlas- Page 13

Savoring Froyo

Bright and early this morning, just as RIM was announcing the new BlackBerry Torch, I downloaded the hefty Android 2.2 "Froyo" update to the already impressive HTC Evo 4G. As I said last week, Sprint is pushing Froyo out to Evo customers beginning Tuesday, and expects to be fully rolled-out by the middle of the month.

Froyo adds a long list of new features, each of which I've explained in detail below. You'll also find my general assessments on how the additions have been integrated onto the device. Most notably, however, Froyo fixes two longtime drawbacks of the Android OS: you now can store apps on a memory card and you can make hands-free voice calls over Bluetooth. On the downside, though Froyo can add Wi-Fi hot-spot functionality, the update will not change the Evo's current hot-spot feature. You'll still need to shell out an extra $29.99 per month to make that happen.

The update will arrive in waves, so not everyone will get it at the same time. Once it hits your Evo, you'll be notified via a message on the display. But if you can't wait--and there's no reason that you should--you can check for the update manually by accessing the "HTC software update" option under the "System update" folder in the Settings menu.

Voice dialing over Bluetooth The lack of hands-free voice dialing has long been a burr in the side of many Android users. The problem was particularly painful for drivers and anyone using a Bluetooth headset on the go. So you can understand why we consider the feature to be one of Froyo's biggest wins. Indeed, we were able to pair the BlueAnt T1 successfully and dial both by phone number and contact name.

App storage We've long complained that Android let you store apps on only a handset's internal memory. Thanks to Froyo, however, you can store titles on a memory card while saving room on your phone for other content. The only caveat is that you can't install a title directly on your memory card during the initial download. Instead, you must download it first to the phone and transfer it to the card later.

The process is easy, but we admit that it took a couple of minutes to figure it out. First, access the "Manage applications" tab under the Applications page in the main Settings menu. Then, after choosing the application that you want to move, select the "Move to SD card" option. The actual transfer takes only seconds and you can move the app back to the phone in as many steps. … Read more

Google Voice newbies, start here

Once invitation-only, Google Voice's free telecommunications service for U.S. residents is now available to all. There are so many features, getting started can be confusing for first-timers. We won't walk you through every step--especially since Google has produced some good help files to explain your options--but we will point you in the right direction.

What is Google Voice?

Google Voice is best known for its visual voice mail features. If you miss a call, Google Voice uses computers to transcribe the voice message into text, which it can send to you via SMS or e-mail.

You can … Read more

Android Atlas Weekly 4: Flash for Android is officially here (podcast)

Flash for Android is released, AT&T's love/hate robot relationship, and a new slate of Motorola Droid offerings. Plus voice navigation tips, and a review of Google Voice. All that and more on this week's edition of the Android Atlas Weekly.

Stories

Flash Launches on Android

Droid X Twitter Feed

Droid 2 Gets a Surprise Hand-On

ios4 vs Android Multi-tasking

Android Team "Laser Focused" On The User Experience For Next Release

AT&T announces Samsung Galaxy Captivate

...and AT&T proceedes to neuter the Android OS in the process.

SlingPlayer Mobile launches on Android phones

Google Maps for Android adds train schedules, live Places info, more Latitude features

How may people are on which version of Android OS?

Google releases teaser video about Google TV… Read more

Comparing smartphone operating systems

Apple's announcement of iOS 4 and the iPhone 4 in just the last three months shows that the smartphone wars aren't cooling yet. Just consider everything that has happened in the space of the last year. Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 is a top-to-bottom overhaul of the Windows Mobile OS, and Google continues to aggressively roll out updates to Android. Palm hasn't been quite as active in the news recently, but we're not discounting its WebOS quite yet.

The following chart compares popular features from the smartphone operating system that have been most active this year. … Read more

Samung Galaxy S hands-on

LAS VEGAS--Samsung and Sprint continue to jostle for the spotlight on the second day of CTIA 2010. Sprint and HTC deserve a lot of attention for launching the Evo 4G, but Samsung is holding its own with its new Galaxy S. Though we still don't know details regarding U.S. availability, the handset's sharp display and loaded feature set are worth a serious look. We got the opportunity to take the device for a short test-drive, and we like what we see so far.

Samsung claims the Galaxy S is the thinnest smartphone out there, and at 0.… Read more

The four best phone stands money can't buy

There's nothing worse than a smartphone that lays down on the job--especially when that job is showing a movie on an airplane, a photo slideshow at your desk, a recipe in your kitchen, or the time of day on your nightstand.

For those and other applications, your screen needs to stand up. Sure, you could drop a few bucks on something like the GoGoStand, a cool and convenient solution, but I think it's a little more fun to take the MacGyver approach.

You can cobble together a fantastic phone stand using everyday household objects. Here's a look at four of my favorites:

1. The gift-card stand

Stop! Don't throw away that used-up gift card. Or hotel room-key. Or even expired credit card. In about 10 seconds you can turn just about any such piece of stiff plastic into a killer stand. One strategic fold here, a second one there, and boom, you're done. Take a look:

If you need more instructions (and/or want to see the stand "in action"), check out the Instructables source page for this ingenious card-hack.… Read more

How Android bests the iPhone

CNET readers often ask us just how the Google Android operating system compares with the iPhone's OS. And with good reason, for Android has grown into a formidable player in the smartphone world. Of course, Android is different than the iPhone, but variety is nothing to fear. Android may lack some of the Apple handset's glamour, but the OS and its gallery of handsets offer a lot to like. And if anyone ever tells you that the iPhone is always superior to Android, you really should listen no further. The little green guy beats the iPhone in quite … Read more

Using your Android phone with your car stereo (How To)

In a world populated with devices that are "Made for iPod" and that "Work with iPhone," the uninformed Android phone owner might mistakenly feel neglected and confused by the lack of Android-specific solutions for using their handsets in their vehicles--specifically for listening to music on the road. Fret not, ye Android loyal. Thanks to the magic of standards, there is no need for a "Made for Android" badge, because chances are that the technology is already there for you to utilize.

In this How-To Guide, we'll be outlining three ways to play music stored on your Android handset (and in some cases, on the cloud) through your car stereo. We'll be using the Motorola Droid running Android OS 2.0.1 and a variety of aftermarket and OEM car stereos, but these instructions should work with any Android phone and any stereo that meets the requirements listed below.… Read more

Camera showdown: Nexus One vs. iPhone 3GS

Rumors cropped up last week that Apple had put down a big order for LED flashes, something useful for one thing, and one thing only: a digital camera. It doesn't take much to figure that the next iteration of the iPhone is likely to be packing one of these, since many of the latest cell phones--including HTC's recently released Nexus One, now have them included.

That got me thinking: how does the Nexus One's 5-megapixel camera and its eye-searing flash stack up against the 3-megapixel flashless camera module of the now-aging iPhone 3GS? Is the ability to take bigger and better-lit photos worth touting as the end-all, be-all feature among smartphone cameras? The easiest way to figure that out is to run a few tests.

Full disclosure here: I'm not a camera-testing expert. I am an avid photographer with a handful of pro gear, as well as a few high school and college photography courses under my belt. I'm not even going to try to get into things like testing dynamic range, color sensitivity, signal-to-noise ratio, etc. So instead, I've set up the two cameras to take essentially the same photo in various situations, to see how the two stack up.

All photos in this comparison were taken within the same minute of each other, while balanced from a leveled tripod to maintain the same height and distance. Images were then transferred directly from the devices for analysis. All comparison shots are presented side by size, at full quality, without any recompression or conversion. Any timings were done with a stopwatch.… Read more

Switching to Android? Read this first

With the recent flood of new Google Android phones, some of you may be thinking of making the switch. You're right to consider it, as there are many advantages to the operating system, not the least of which is the growing line of attractive handsets. But for the uninitiated, Android can be a bit of a mess. It's supposed to be a uniform operating system across all devices, but in practice, the user interface on each device varies slightly. It offers third-party applications, e-mail syncing, and a media player; however, the capabilities of those features also will differ by handset. Lastly, while Android promises a high degree of user customization, that may not mean a whole lot to the average person.

Understanding the operating system Fear not, as Android takes only a brief period of acclimation. Even after a few minutes, you'll get the hang of the interface and you'll be able to navigate your way through your phone. Yet, you need to know a few things about Android before making the jump. Below I've told you what to expect, because I'd hate for you to be surprised by what you find. And equally as important, because your Android experience will vary by device, I'll break down the current U.S. handsets and give you the basic scoop of the Android features on each device.… Read more