Android Atlas

Samsung grabs 95 percent of Android smartphone profits

Samsung took home almost all of the profits generated in the Android smartphone world last quarter, according to a report today from Strategy Analytics.

For the first quarter, global Android smartphone profits totaled $5.3 billion. Samsung captured a hefty 95 percent, or $5.1 billion, of that amount. Strategy Analytics senior analyst Woody Oh pinned Samsung's success on an "efficient supply chain, sleek products, and crisp marketing."

Second place LG Electronics snagged 2.5 percent of Android's global earnings and is far behind Samsung in the volume of its smartphone devices. Samsung could even use … Read more

HP goes Android with x2 hybrid

Hewlett-Packard has a newfound affinity for Android.

After announcing the Slate 7 in February, HP announced Tuesday that it is adding a second Android tablet, the SlateBook x2.

The SlateBook takes its well-received Envy x2 design and loads Android 4.2.2 and Nvidia's brand-new Tegra 4 chip inside a sleek 10.1-inch tablet that can double as a laptop.

An Android laptop, mind you, not a Chromebook.

"With an advanced magnetic hinge design and dual battery system -- one battery in the base and one in the tablet -- users can easily switch from notebook to tablet … Read more

Fit Radio streams up-tempo tunes to motivate your workout

The more I run, the more I realize my regular playlist isn't cutting it. Even with some 150 hand-picked songs, I get bored hearing the same ones over and over. And although they're among my favorite power-pop tunes, they're quite diverse when it comes to tempo. I need songs of at least 128 beats per minute (bpm) to keep me running strong.

Enter Fit Radio, a free app (Android|iOS|Web) that streams up-tempo playlists designed to amp up your workout. It's like Songza for sprinters, or maybe Pandora for bike peddlers.

The app is divided … Read more

Nvidia Shield slams into stores in June for $349

Nvidia's Android-based portable gaming device known as Shield will be released in June with a $349 price tag, the company said Tuesday.

Preorders for Shield -- no longer dubbed "Project Shield" -- began Tuesday for those who had signed up to receive Shield updates from Nvidia. The general public can preorder Shield starting Monday, May 20.

Nvidia debuted Shield at CES 2013. The portable gaming system comes in the shape of a console gaming controller and includes a 5-inch capacitive touch screen with 1,280x720-pixel resolution. The device runs all Google Play apps and can stream full … Read more

Easily import Astrid tasks to Any.Do on Android, iOS

The most important feature your to-do list needs is accessibility. A written grocery list you forgot on your kitchen counter doesn't help you much at the store. For this reason, among others, many people use a to-do list manager on their mobile device. But what happens when the app you're using shuts down their service? That's the thought on many users' minds following Yahoo's recent acquisition of Astrid

Fortunately, some of the other to-do list apps are stepping up to help you migrate your data. Such is the case with Any.Do, which released … Read more

The 11 Google Glass improvements we hope Google I/O delivers

Last year, Google I/O -- Google's annual event for the developer community -- treated us to skydiving, arena-cycling Google Glass wearers, and a whole crazy landscape of wearable tech. This year, Glass is finally in the hands of thousands of developers, tech journalists, and other early adopters, but as we head back to another Google I/O, there's a lot about Glass that's yet to be discovered.

The present of Google Glass is intriguing, embryonic, and very bare-bones. Here's what I hope we see in the near future, starting this week.

Apps, apps, apps There … Read more

Sony unveils waterproof Xperia ZR phone

Sony is launching a new Xperia smartphone designed to be dunkable.

Announced on Monday, the Xperia ZR phone can stay under as much as five feet of water for up to 30 minutes. Using the phone's 13-megapixel camera, you can shoot underwater photos and videos in full HD. The dedicated camera key also allows you to quickly take a shot even if the phone is locked.

The camera takes advantage of Sony's Exmor RS for mobile image sensor with HDR (High Dynamic Range) for both photographs and videos. The company promises that photos and videos are automatically captured … Read more

Zact touts lower phone bills

Why shell out extra bucks each month for a cellular service you don't benefit from? That's the question wireless newcomer Zact poses to customers. In a fresh twist on the MVNO model, today the company unveiled a radical way for people to buy and customize their phone plans on the fly.

… Read more

What Google I/O should bring for Android hardware lovers

Google's hotly anticipated annual developer conference will kick off in just a couple days in San Francisco. And conference-goers and Android fans are excited about the possibility of new products the company may announce and/or give away.

But Android fans may be a bit disappointed if their expectation is brand new hardware. While the 2012 Google I/O conference saw the introduction of the new $199 Nexus 7 seven-inch tablet and the Nexus Q streaming media hub, the 2013 conference is likely to feature no brand new Android hardware. Instead, it's likely that Google will refresh some … Read more