escape

Android 4.1 Jelly Bean update available for LG Escape

AT&T announced today that customers that own an LG Escape can update their devices to Android 4.1 Jelly Bean through a Wi-Fi connection.

A few changes in the new software version include grouping notifications that belong under the same app, and the ability to see the full text or photo of incoming messages in the notifications menu.

In addition, you can also get AT&T DriveMode with the update. Designed to keep drivers from using their phones, the app sends out automatic text responses to incoming texts, e-mails, or calls when it senses that it's … Read more

Running is fun on the yellow brick road

Temple Run Oz (iOS | Android) is another movie-themed version of the mega-popular running game, but just like Temple Run Brave, the developers managed to add enough original content to make it worth your money.

In Temple Run Oz, you play as Oz while attempting to outrun the evil flying baboons from "Oz the Great and Powerful." Like Temple Run 2, you'll need to swipe to jump, turn, and slide under obstacles and you can tilt to move Oz from side to side on the path. But with this themed remake, the scenery has been completely redesigned to … Read more

Temple Run 2 is the best runner for iOS

Temple Run 2 is the sequel to one of the most popular running games on iOS devices, and it has just enough new features to make it an excellent follow-up.

As in the original Temple Run, you use swipe controls to run, turn, and jump as you explore a floating temple. But in Temple Run 2, you're no longer limited to right-angle turns. The path you follow has dips and rises and jogs left and right to make the game more visually interesting than the original. You also get some new methods of transportation, with zip lines that you … Read more

Temple Run 2 is the best runner for iOS

Temple Run 2 is the sequel to one of the most popular running games for mobile devices, and it has just enough new features to make it an excellent follow-up.

As in the original Temple Run, you use swipe controls to run, turn, and jump as you explore a floating temple. But in Temple Run 2, you're no longer limited to right-angle turns. The path you follow has dips and rises and jogs left and right to make the game more visually interesting than the original. You also get some new methods of transportation, with zip lines that you … Read more

Very limited driving game

Crazy Monster Truck Escape is a car race and chase game. The game is designed for Mac OS X, and the free version gives you limited gameplay. To get more, you pay for additional add-ins (three were available at press time for $1.99 each).

Crazy Monster Truck Escape lets you set the screen resolution (on some systems) and the graphics quality. Graphics quality is good at the highest levels but not stunning by any means. Gameplay is where Crazy Monster Truck Escape falls down. Essentially this is a throwback to the driving games of three decades ago. You use … Read more

Running-jumping treasure-hunting game

Temple Run is a treasure-hunting game with shades of a few other popular games thrown in. It installs quickly and launches with a short tutorial that teaches the game mechanics in about 60 seconds. Temple Run is a free download, but you'll want to buy some extra coins to buy upgrades and new capabilities.

Essentially, in Temple Run you need to run through a maze of paths, jumping or sliding over and under obstacles, collecting coins or gems as you go, using different swipes of the screen and by tilting the iDevice. There are power-ups and special abilities (like … Read more

Next-gen 3D runners on iOS

Earlier this year I wrote a blog post comparing older running games to new ones, to see how the genre that works so well on the touch screen was evolving. But even since then running games have gotten much deeper, with more 3D entries than just the popular classic Temple Run (iOS|Android).

I'm a big fan of these types of games because they're so easy to pick up and play for a short time and I'm never too worried about turning them off when it's my turn at the DMV or my bus has reached my stop -- there's always another run.… Read more

Recycled cell phones take wing as robotic birds

A very odd flock of birds landed in Albuquerque, N.M., this past week. There wasn't a feather in sight as four winged creatures sat on bare branches, flashing their eyes and lifting their wings. These art objects are fashioned entirely from recycled phone parts.

Escape, an installation piece by U.K. artists Neil Mendoza and Anthony Goh, turns unremarkable phone scrap into curious and engaging little birds. Each bird contains an Arduino controller.

When hooked up to the cell network in Europe, the birds can take and make phone calls. Here in New Mexico, they are reprogrammed to react to the proximity of people approaching them. … Read more

It's official: AT&T will offer the LG Escape on Sept. 16

Amid brief speculation this morning, AT&T announced that it will indeed carry the entry-level Android 4.0 smartphone known as the LG Escape.

The Escape houses a 1.2GHz dual-core CPU, a 4.3-inch qHD IPS touch-screen display, and NFC capabilities. It will also include QuickMemo, LG's note-taking and drawing feature seen in devices like the LG Optimus Vu and the Optimus 4X HD.

On the back of the handset you'll find a 5-megapixel camera, which offers goodies like continuous and panoramic shooting. It can also record 1080p HD video.

Other specs include a 2,150mAh … Read more

AT&T to soon offer entry-level LG Escape?

AT&T is preparing to offer an "entry-level" Android 4.0 experience in the form of the LG Escape, according to recent internet chatter.

Also possibly known as model number of P870, the LG smartphone will run Android Ice Cream Sandwich and feature a 4.3-inch (960x540-pixel) display, a dual-core 1.2 GHz Qualcomm MSM8960 Snapdragon S4 processor, a 5-megapixel camera, and a 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera. The device is expected to carry a 2,150mAh battery and 1GB RAM.

Additional details for the unofficial phone include NFC and support for AT&T's 4G LTE … Read more