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Refresh Roundup: week of February 13th, 2012

Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging for an update. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it's easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don't escape without notice, we've gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery we could find during the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!



Official Android updates

  • Motorola Atrix 4G: Android 2.3.6 is now available for download, which brings security, stability and WiFi refinements, along with the ability to launch Voice Command from Bluetooth headsets even when the phone is asleep. [Unwired View]

  • HTC: The smartphone manufacturer has updated its bootloader unlock utility to include the Droid Eris, Hero and Legend, along with the myTouch 3G and myTouch 4G. Props to the company for bringing this choice to some of its older devices. [Android Central]

  • Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 (WiFi): A minor refresh was sent out this week that resolves issues with email attachments, auto-rotation and WiFi. Overall stability and power management have also been improved. Yes, it's still Honeycomb, but it's no doubt an improvement. [Unwired View]

  • ASUS Transformer Prime: A very minor update is now available that bumps the tablet's software version from 9.4.2.13 to 9.4.2.14. It's said to resolve some power-related issues that users had with the earlier build. [Droid Life]

  • Motorola Droid X: Software version 4.5.621 brings improved browser security, more reliable OTA updates, better hotspot connectivity and also corrects an issue that caused the handset to power on without user interaction. WAV files can now be played within visual voicemail, and fixes are also in store for the music and camera apps. [Droid Life]

Unofficial Android updates, custom ROMs and misc. hackery

  • Motorola Droid 4: Despite being the new kid on the block, a root method has already been released for the Droid 4. It's now available as a script that allows users to gain superuser access without breaking a sweat. [Android Community]

  • LG Optimus 2X / G2x: This Tegra 2 handset (and its AWS variant) gained access to CyanogenMod 9 builds this week. While the ROMs are said to be stable enough for daily use, users will need to contend with a few bugs along the way. In particular, the camera and music apps are said to be glitchy, the camcorder doesn't work and support for hardware acceleration has yet to be implemented. Those who join the bleeding edge will most certainly want to take advantage of the updates as they trickle out. [Android Community]

  • Motorola Droid 3: This is entirely unofficial, but two updates for the Droid 3 -- 5.7.902 and 5.7.905 -- were leaked, each of which can be applied within the phone's stock recovery environment. Both packages wield an updated baseband and kernel, and users have also reported increased speed and battery life. A word of caution: the update is a one-way street -- there's no going back. If your phone is currently rooted and you choose to apply either patch, you'll be able to return to superuser access with the previously mentioned Droid 4 method. [Droid Life]

  • CyanogenMod: While the decision is nowhere near final, developers are currently evaluating whether to integrate Cornerstone into the official build of CyanogenMod 9. Cornerstone is an open source project that brings an innovative approach to multitasking on tablets -- it's somewhat reminiscent of tiled windows that can be placed out of sight. [Android Police]

  • LG MyTouch: CyanogenMod welcomed a new entrant to its list of supported devices this week, as nightly builds for the LG myTouch (but not the myTouch Q) have now appeared on the project's official mirror repositories. Stable and experimental builds are not yet available. [Android Police]

  • Samsung Galaxy Nexus: While this mod certainly won't be for everyone, users who'd prefer to eliminate perpetual on-screen navigation buttons may now gain a bit more screen real estate, thanks to a clever hack from mrx8836350. A flashable zip file is available for the HSPA+ model, and yes, you can still summon the necessary navigation buttons when they're needed. [Android Community]

  • Motorola Droid Xyboard: If you're looking to take ownership of this tablet, a new root method from Dan Rosenberg is here to help. It's available as an executable script, which makes the process rather painless, and interestingly enough, the method is thought to work for all Motorola devices with either Gingerbread or Honeycomb. [Droid Life, Android Police]

  • Samsung Epic 4G Touch: A pre-release build of Android 4.0.3 made its way into the wild this week, and was promptly deodexed, rooted and put up for download by the Android Creative Syndicate. Despite plenty of rough edges, WiMax and WiFi are said to work properly. [Sprint Feed]

  • HTC Sensation: If that recent leak of the Endeavor got you all hot and bothered, you'll be glad to know that the phone's ROM -- complete with Sense 4.0 -- has been ported over to the Sensation. Integration with Microsoft's SkyDrive was also discovered in this build, although we'll need to wait for something more official to see if it sticks. [Android Community, Phone Arena]

Refreshes we covered this week