Google Android

[OverTheBelow]

I can't for the life of me think of what they'll name the Nexus 7 reboot without it being completely confusing or out of place in the device lineup.

[kudoboi]

I can't for the life of me think of what they'll name the Nexus 7 reboot without it being completely confusing or out of place in the device lineup.

it will still be called the nexus 7. i guess nexus 7 gen 2?

[Blackadder.]

Nexus 7 (2013) seems to be the way they're doing it, similar to how cars have the same name year in year out. It looks nice though, considering picking one to replace my current N7 which has become a laggy nightmare due to Tegra 3 being kind of rubbish and ASUS using cheap sh*tty flash chips. Bugs me that the camera is off center though.

 

One of the smallest updates for Android in a while, small enough that a few OEMs have decided to jump from 4.1 straight to 4.3 when they update their devices. Hopefully some custom ROMs will update to 4.3 fairly quickly too, although I'm not really bothered considering how little there is to be excited about.

[kudoboi]

moto x will be america exclusive, cost 199 on contract and 575 off contract ( 16GB). customisations is ATT exclusive.

 

not to mention locked bootloader, no 4.3 at launch, no sd card slot and "MEH" specs

 

this phone is set for failure

[Girish]

Got my Nexus 4 yesterday and successfully updated it to 4.3 today. I was skeptical about updating it especially after reading that many users were facing issues. But everything went fine for me and I haven't encountered any problems so far. This makes me very happy.

[Finn 7 five 11]

Okay, um, quickly before I go to sleep.

 

My Galaxy S II suffered a hard fall, screen is all smashed up, still functional though, but since then 3 batteries all brand new have failed on me. After a few uses the phone won't start up when it dies and it just has the battery icon with a yellow triangle when I try charge it.

 

It can't be the batteries, could it be the loose Micro-USB port my SII has? Or something got damaged in the fall? I am replacing soon, but Until then I don't want to spend 20 bucks a week on buying new batteries, my latest one hasn't even lasted one day.

 

Thanks guys.

[Mitsuha]

So I'm thinking of getting either a S3 or a Google Nexus 4 for christmas. Any opinions on those two?

[NCONiall]

Well the CM 10.2 nightlies have been released for some devices, the SII being one of them, so I updated. So far so good, hopefully I'll see an improvement in battery life.

 

@RyujinXKaizer

Oh, that's a toughie. The Nexus runs vanilla Android, and continues to get its updates straight from Google; whereas the S3 has Samsung's own TouchWiz entwined with Android, ergo, it only gets updates from Samsung. I'm mentioning this because some people don't like TW and prefer vanilla. Personally I don't mind TouchWiz, and would go for the S3 because of its battery life and expandable memory. The Nexus is faster but I think you should be able to overclock the S3 to match it. But it's down to personal choice - both are excellent devices.

 

@finn

I would say take it to a repair shop and let them have a look at it, but if you're getting a new phone anyway then it's obviously pointless (and a waste of money). It could be a faulty USB port, seeing as this started after it fell. You could always try opening it yourself (I take it it's no longer bound by warranty) and see if anything has loosened. The port itself could actually be physically damaged though and need replacing.

 

I would say buy a new battery, ease off the WiFi and calls, and get that replacement soon.

Edited August 15, 2013 by NCONiall

[Blackadder.]

finn4life: You can buy chargers to charge the batteries outside the phone. Not the best solution but if the problem is indeed your Micro USB port then it will give you a working phone.

 

RyujinXKaizer: Depends on what features you're looking for. Do you care about additional storage space and a good camera? If either of these matter go with the S3, as the N4 doesn't have expandable storage and its camera is decent at best. Apart from that though both screens are the same resolution, with the N4's being slightly sharper but S3's having better contrast and true blacks. Both phones should be pretty similar speed, although the N4 has the advantage of running the latest version of Android which makes the UI feel much smoother.

 

Personally if I was picking I'd go the N4. A much cleaner software experience with fast updates. But again if you care about camera at all, the S3 is a better option.

[Kevin...]

I bought a Nook HD± after my first Nexus 7 bit the dust when I fell down a few stairs. It was alright but I missed the 7" phablet+ size and its ability to just be tossed in my back pocket. That and the fact that my old 7 ran butter smooth. The new one is fantastic. It seems completely different in your compared to the old one. The shape of it seems like an overly elongated rectangle but its not far off of its original size. The screen is perfect. I could go on with praise for a while. The only gripe I have with it is the lack of expandable memory but that isn't going to change Google's stand on the matter.

 

Now all that is left to do is unlock the bootloader, get rooted, and start customizing.

[Mitsuha]

 

RyujinXKaizer: Depends on what features you're looking for. Do you care about additional storage space and a good camera? If either of these matter go with the S3, as the N4 doesn't have expandable storage and its camera is decent at best. Apart from that though both screens are the same resolution, with the N4's being slightly sharper but S3's having better contrast and true blacks. Both phones should be pretty similar speed, although the N4 has the advantage of running the latest version of Android which makes the UI feel much smoother.

 

Personally if I was picking I'd go the N4. A much cleaner software experience with fast updates. But again if you care about camera at all, the S3 is a better option.

Thanks for clearing that up Blackadder.

 

I have thoughts on getting the S3, mainly because of the expandable storage and removable battery. A phone that has an unremovable battery can be scary. It has decent RAM, yes. 1GB ram for a phone would be enough for me. Though N4's 2GB ram would be great, but maintenance would be hard.

 

Thanks again!

 

EDIT: On second thoughts, I feel like getting the N4 because I would love direct updates. Second is because it's not that common in our country. Third is because after a few reading, it comes with a newer processor. Fourth is because I (to be honest) don't put importance to SD cards. So I'm going with the N4. I just need to take care of it.

Edited August 19, 2013 by RyujinXKaizer

[Kevin...]

Picked up a Nexus 7 last week and gave the Nook HD+ to the wife. Already have it unlocked, rooted, custom ROM and kernel, over clocke the CPU, overclocked the GPU, and ran some benchmarks.

 

26,100 - antutu

13,097 - 3DMark

8,146 - 3DMark (extreme)

8,576 - Quadrant Standard

[Finn 7 five 11]

You'll see on the last page all 3 batteries I had failed, randomly I tried my original again and it was working,.it died from lack of charge and I have no charger on me, tried the other battery and hey presto, it works again, it also has full charge which is handy.

 

 

finn4life: You can buy chargers to charge the batteries outside the phone. Not the best solutionbut if the problem is indeed your Micro USB port then it will give you a working phone.

Nifty, thanks, I'll use that when the port fails. Not ready to sign up another two years,I won't be in Australia for one year of it so I need 1700 spare dollars to pay off a new contract, which I have, but I don't feel like blowing yet.

[Mitsuha]

Anyone here tried rooting their phones already? Since I feel like making an attempt to root (and update) my Galaxy S. Is it very risky?

[NCONiall]

As long as you follow the instructions carefully, nothing should go wrong. Make sure to use a guide specific to your phone model, and make sure your variation is listed (Intl., GT-I9000B, GT-I9000M, etc.). Once you're rooted, there are some folders that you'll want to backup before flashing ROMs; of the top of my head the /efs folder should be backed up. There are guides on how to do this correctly, and software that will do it for you (kTool).

[Mitsuha]

Okay then. Does it have the same process as updating to 4.1.1?

Just want to make everything sure before I do anything with my phone.

[NCONiall]

It varies depending on your phone. For most, you'll use a program called Odin to flash an insecure kernel which will give you root access and replace stock recovery with clockwork recovery. I suppose it's similar in a way to the standard update, but instead of using Kies, you'll use Odin - but follow the instructions carefully.

[Mitsuha]

I have rooted my Galaxy S! I just downloaded SuperOneClick to root my device, followed the primary steps then rooted it!

The app "Superuser" also appeared, which might be a sign of a rooted phone.

[Blackadder.]

The latest version of Android, 4.4, has been announced.

 

 

Android KitKat!

 

Have to say this was pretty unexpected, but Google and Nestle have both started cross promotion between the two products, so its jus a matter of time to see what KitKat holds in store for us.

[Pico]

As interesting as 4.4 being named KitKat, I'm anticipating the new features of 4.4. Hopefully a cool, usable feature. Themes/visual modifications, maybe?

[Mitsuha]

Could anyone help me in flashing Clockwork Mod Recovery? I tried to flash it but if I enter recovery mode it's always Android recovery.

 

Thanks.

[Finn 7 five 11]

The latest version of Android, 4.4, has been announced.

 

 

Android KitKat!

 

Have to say this was pretty unexpected, but Google and Nestle have both started cross promotion between the two products, so its jus a matter of time to see what KitKat holds in store for us.

Quite Interesting, I saw people speculating that it would be called Kit Kat some time ago, pretty damn good guesswork.

[NCONiall]

Could anyone help me in flashing Clockwork Mod Recovery? I tried to flash it but if I enter recovery mode it's always Android recovery.

 

Thanks.

Try using ROM Manager to flash it. Also, I think you need to keep the update zip on your internal sdcard.

 

@4.4KK

I'm looking forward to it. It's supposed to release around October, pity I'll have to wait a while longer until a stable ROM is released for the SII.

Edited September 6, 2013 by NCONiall

[Blackadder.]

As interesting as 4.4 being named KitKat, I'm anticipating the new features of 4.4. Hopefully a cool, usable feature. Themes/visual modifications, maybe?

 

People suspect Google might pull more parts of Android away from the System OS so thatit can be updated independently outside of major system updates, 'breaking off' parts ofAndroid if you will.

 

Apart from that no one has any really idea yet, but given that they've given it a new name I'd expect a bit bigger a jump than we've had the past two versions of Android.

 

 

In other news I wish HTC would just announce the One Max already. I'm looking at getting a new handset and having this one sitting in the dark with hardly any information is bugging me.

[Mitsuha]

 

Could anyone help me in flashing Clockwork Mod Recovery? I tried to flash it but if I enter recovery mode it's always Android recovery.

 

Thanks.

Try using ROM Manager to flash it. Also, I think you need to keep the update zip on your internal sdcard.

 

@4.4KK

I'm looking forward to it. It's supposed to release around October, pity I'll have to wait a while longer until a stable ROM is released for the SII.

 

Oh, so the update.zip is required so I can have the Clockworkmod? Thanks for clarifying!

 

@KitKat

The 4.4 logo looks tasty.

[Edmachine]

Could anyone be so kind as to tell me how to root my S3 Mini? I've found several guides, but they're either for the wrong model (mine's I-8190N) or the baseband versions don't match (mine ends in AMA1). So, I don't want to flash a rooted stock firmware that might not fit, so to speak. Any help?

[Mitsuha]

I don't know if this will be a sure solution, but personally I have tried SuperOneClick for my Galaxy S. Don't know if it works for ICS and above. I don't recommend risking it.

 

You could try

, just follow the steps and hopefully nothing will go wrong.

 

Hope this helps.

Edited September 8, 2013 by RyujinXKaizer

[Pico]

 

As interesting as 4.4 being named KitKat, I'm anticipating the new features of 4.4. Hopefully a cool, usable feature. Themes/visual modifications, maybe?

 

People suspect Google might pull more parts of Android away from the System OS so thatit can be updated independently outside of major system updates, 'breaking off' parts ofAndroid if you will.

 

Apart from that no one has any really idea yet, but given that they've given it a new name I'd expect a bit bigger a jump than we've had the past two versions of Android.

 

 

In other news I wish HTC would just announce the One Max already. I'm looking at getting a new handset and having this one sitting in the dark with hardly any information is bugging me.

 

 

The One Max has caught my eye. I'm not really a fan of the Sense software and would be looking at flashing an AOSP based ROM asap. The large screen would be nice, I'm looking for something larger than the Note 2 I have. If only the Xperia Z Ultra was available through Verizon...

[NCONiall]

Could anyone be so kind as to tell me how to root my S3 Mini? I've found several guides, but they're either for the wrong model (mine's I-8190N) or the baseband versions don't match (mine ends in AMA1). So, I don't want to flash a rooted stock firmware that might not fit, so to speak. Any help?

This guide might be for you (though it's written in pidgin English). It will have you install CWM and subsequently flash a kernel (probably intl. version) using CWM. As far as I know the N model is identical to the intl. version, only that it has NFC capabilities. If you want to root your phone using this method you will lose those capabilities. You'll also keep your data and the stock ROM, but you should be able to flash different ROMs with CWM if you see fit to do so, just remember to create a nandroid backup using CWM.

Edited September 8, 2013 by NCONiall

[Mitsuha]

 

Could anyone help me in flashing Clockwork Mod Recovery? I tried to flash it but if I enter recovery mode it's always Android recovery.

 

Thanks.

Try using ROM Manager to flash it. Also, I think you need to keep the update zip on your internal sdcard.

 

 

Clarification: While in recovery mode, do you need to install package from sdcard-->update.zip?

Much thanks.

EDIT: Also you need CF Root to install the update zip right?

Edited September 9, 2013 by RyujinXKaizer