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Refresh Roundup: week of August 8, 2011
Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging to get updated. 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 from 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 Acer took to its Facebook page in Malaysia to announce that the Honeycomb 3.2 OTA update for the Iconia Tab A500 has been delayed until August 25. [via Phandroid] The LG G-Slate is starting to receive Honeycomb 3.1. [via AndroidCentral] We've also heard the HTC Flyer's on the receiving end of a 2.3.4 bump in Germany. [via HTC Inside (translated)] Motorola's announced that Honeycomb 3.1 has arrived on the Xoom in Europe, after several months of waiting. [via ITProPortal] Tomorrow, Sprint's pushing out a maintenance fix known as RD.00.02 for the Motorola Titanium. From a leaked screenshot, the main "enhancement" is correcting a bug that kept users from dialing from a meeting on the Exchange calendar. [via SprintFeed] Android 2.3.4 is making its way to unbranded HTC Sensation units in Europe this week as an OTA update, and will likely spread to carrier-branded devices over the next couple weeks. [via Phandroid] Both Bell and Virgin Mobile Canada are rolling out Gingerbread to its Galaxy S Vibrant. The download is available to any of its users by accessing Samsung Kies. [via MobileSyrup] HTC began pushing Gingerbread to the Inspire 4G on Monday. If you still haven't received your update OTA yet, instructions can be found on how to do it manually via its website. [Thanks, Brian] Are you an HTC Desire owner that's been eagerly awaiting Gingerbread? It's here now, but the manufacturer isn't going to push it out OTA -- rather, you'll need to do it on your own, so head to the via for a video tutorial on how to do it step-by-step. [via PocketNow] T-Mobile has announced that its OTA Gingerbread rollout for the G2x is now officially over. If you missed your opportunity, you may still download it using the LG updater tool. [via TmoNews] This is definitely a rumor, but an HTC support rep apparently emailed a concerned Incredible user to assure them that Gingerbread was still indeed in the plans for the year-old device. No timeframe was given, however. [via Phandroid] AT&T took to its Twitter account to state that the Infuse 4G is on track to receive Gingerbread sometime this month. [via AndroidCentral] Unofficial Android updates / custom ROMs / misc. hackery We heard last week that the Motorola Photon 4G had been rooted, but it required the use of the phone's fancy (and expensive) HD dock. This obstacle has since been removed, and you can root your brand new phone without it. [via AndroidCentral] Speaking of the Photon 4G, a System Boot File (SBF) is now available for the device. The SBF is a backup that comes in handy if something goes awry and your phone ends up getting bricked. By using the SBF, your phone will be restored back to its original factory defaults. [via SprintFeed] A dev preview of CyanogenMod 7 for the HTC Sensation 4G is now being shown at a YouTube near you. Did someone say CyanogenMod 7? Well, this week also witnessed a user updating their Motorola Triumph to Android 2.3.5, but almost nothing works properly on it; since the kernel source hasn't been released for it yet, the update isn't quite up to par. CM7 is also said to be coming to the Motorola Atrix 4G and LG Optimus 3D soon as well. [via Phandroid] Other platforms The tools used to flash Windows Phone Mango's RTM version has been leaked, and you can find instructions on how to get it on this XDA thread. Remember that you do this at your own risk. [via WMPowerUser] A few rumors circulated the web this week that Mango would be released on September 1. WP7's own Joe Belfiore was the one responsible for shooting down that rumor via Twitter. [via WMPowerUser]
Refresh Roundup: week of August 1, 2011
Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging to get updated. 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 from 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 Verizon and Motorola have finally begun rolling out the Gingerbread update for the Motorola Droid X2. [via PCMag] Sticking with Verizon, the LG Revolution is in the process of receiving maintenance update VS910ZV6, which consists of a few new features and bug fixes. This is not a major refresh. [via AndroidCentral] The HTC Desire Z has been updated to Gingerbread in the UK. As of now, only those devices without carrier branding are seeing the OTA show up. [via PocketNow] Unofficial Android updates / custom ROMs / misc hackery Sony Ericsson's Xperia Play, Neo, and Arc should soon be added to the CyanogenMod repository. Once approved, we'll likely see nightlies appear in the near future. [via PocketNow] Did somebody say Xperia Play? Yes, we did. It looks like the phone's finally been rooted, and the bootloader's been cracked. [via Droid-Life] The Motorola Photon 4G came out last Sunday, but XDA was able to root it within a couple days. [via SprintFeed] XDA's also the provider of a Froyo update to the Samsung Continuum. [via XDA] Along with an official update for the Droid X2, an SBF is now available for download. [via Droid-Life] Other platforms The Dark Forces Team has released tools to enable custom ROMs to be used on your first-gen Windows Phone device. Currently, the supported phones are: the HTC Mozart, HTC Surround, HTC Trophy (excluding Verizon's version), and the HTC 7 Pro (excluding the HTC Arrive). [via Windows Phone Hacker] Shortly after this, the HTC HD7 also got its first custom ROM courtesy of XDA. The downloadable package consists of a ChevronWP7 unlock, a Mango Beta 2 update, and the ROM. Head over to XDA to grab it. [via Windows Phone Daily]
Refresh Roundup: week of July 18, 2011
Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging to get updated. 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 from 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! The LG Optimus 3D appears poised and ready to get Gingerbread in October. [via TheInquirer] Another device in the family, the LG Optimus One, is now being updated to Android 2.3.3 in the UK, though we haven't heard if the update has been deployed elsewhere at this point. [thanks, Aaron] CyanogenMod 7 nightlies are ready to go for the Samsung Galaxy S II. Download at your own risk, as these updates are early releases and may contain bugs. [via PhoneArena] The Motorola Droid X2 is about to undergo soak testing for a "future update." No official word on if this is Gingerbread, though it's highly speculative that minor updates wouldn't go through this type of testing. [via AndroidCentral] Speaking of the X2, it's also received its first custom ROM -- despite the bootloader still being locked -- and XDA has managed to put 2nd-init support on it as well. [via AndroidCentral and Droid-Life] A new HTC Desire HD update, 2.50.405.2, is reportedly rolling out to unbranded versions in Europe that includes a fix for WiFi issues prevalent on the device. [via AndroidCentral] Updates to the BlackBerry Bold 9900 and 9930, 7.0.0.261, were leaked. [via n4bb] In what could be the most bizarre update rollout ever, the T-Mobile myTouch 4G is now starting a limited pilot, and will continue until "the end of the year." [via TmoNews] The Dell Streak 7 now has an unofficial update to Android 3.2 Honeycomb available. [via Netbook News]
Sprint updating the Samsung Galaxy Tab with Gingerbread on July 5
It's hard out there for a Samsung Galaxy Tab owner, watching Honeycomb slates hit the market by the bushel, with a lucky few stepping up to Android 3.1 and its resizeable widgets. Sprint, at least, is still giving the 'ol Tab some love -- according to an anonymous tipster, the Now Network will push out an update to Gingerbread, something Tab owners overseas have already been enjoying. The upgrade's expected to roll out starting July 5th, and will include not just Android 2.3, but a step up to HID Bluetooth as well. Oh, and while it's at it, Sprint will also release a fix for a bug in the Samsung Transform that has interfered with PRL and data profile updates. Sounds like as fine a way as any to beat the post-holiday weekend blues.
Microsoft updates Hotmail with more signature options, Gmail and Yahoo Mail keyboard shortcuts
Okay, it's not as titillating as the time Microsoft added conversation view to Hotmail, but the outfit did just freshen up its email service with a handful of helpful tweaks. Topping the list is an assortment of shortcuts, including the ability to right click a message to reply, reply all, or forward (you could already do this for other things, like marking something as unread). Hotmail also now responds to some additional Gmail- and Yahoo Mail-specific keyboard shortcuts, such as "#" for deleting messages -- a Gmail trick. And the company is none too subtle about admitting it wants the service to be user-friendly for folks if -- or when -- they switch from Google or Yahoo. Rounding out the batch of improvements, you get an easy way to recover deleted emails, an improved back button, HTML5-fueled speed improvements, and the option of changing your default font signature -- something we can't believe Hotmail has been missing until now. Hit the source link for the full spill, and find a short demo video after the break.
EVO Shift 4G owners start manually upgrading to Gingerbread
Right on schedule, EVO Shift 4G owners should be able to step on up to Android 2.3. Yesterday, an anonymous tipster gave us a heads up that the upgrade was nigh, and indeed, we're seeing reports that people are manually downloading the update, which includes not just Gingerbread, but Swype, a downloads application, and a fix for apps that haven't been able to stream media. In fact, we've heard some folks say they received the update last night, when we had heard it was scheduled to drop today. If for some reason you want to wait until Sprint pushes the update to you, that should happen on Monday. As always, proceed with caution and let us know how it goes. [Thanks, Jeff]
Samsung Captivate gets Gingerbread through leaked software update
It's been about four months since the Samsung Captivate got a software update, and that was merely to step up from Eclair to Froyo. And while AT&T still hasn't pushed out an upgrade to Gingerbread, leaked versions of the official software are said to be floating around the big, wide Internet. So far, we're not seeing much feedback, good or bad, but it should go without saying that you install this at your own risk. If you're feeling daring or just dubious that AT&T will release this update anytime soon, hit the source links for instructions on how to install the software... and what to do should something go terribly awry. And, as always, do tell us how it goes.
Microsoft outlines new features for Windows Phone Mango's Music and Video Hubs
When Microsoft unveiled Windows Phone Mango last month, the company spent a lot of time walking us through some of the 500-plus changes to the OS -- most notably, conversation threads, people groups, enhanced search functionality, Twitter and LinkedIn integration, IE9, and the instantly responsive Bing Vision. It's no wonder, then, that Redmond didn't have much time to talk multimedia. Well, the company just spilled the beans in a blog post, laying out a raft of new features that run the gamut from podcasts to improved playback controls. We've got a lot to recap, so join us past the break, won't you? %Gallery-125313%
Run your own Software Update Server with Reposado
Apple systems administrators can now use non-Apple hardware to host an internal Apple Software Update Service, thanks to Reposado, an open-source project developed by IT admins at Walt Disney Animation Studios. Running your own Software Update Server allows you to test updates for hardware and software conflicts before deploying them across all your machines. It also allows you to economize on bandwidth, downloading each update just once instead of having everyone in the company download it separately. Until now, you've needed to run such a server exclusively on Apple hardware running Mac OS X Server. Now, Disney Animation Studios' Reposado lets you run your Update Server on any hardware and software server you like. Reposado downloads Apple's Software Update catalogs and even the update packages from Apple's servers. Written in Python, the software hosts the updates using the 'curl' binary tool and a web server like Apache 2. You can setup custom branches to organize updates and keep track of those that passed testing. If you work in a mixed environment with some machines running 10.6.7 and others on an older version of OS x, you can also use Reposado to serve different updates to different machines. [via Managing OS X]
Dual-booting ViewSonic ViewPad 10 gets Android 2.2 upgrade, patient owners join 2010
Good things come to those who wait. If you bought the dual-booting ViewSonic ViewPad 10, Android 1.6 be damned, we have some good news -- the tablet's getting an upgrade to Android 2.2. Just to refresh your memories, that leap from Donut to Froyo means ViewPad 10 owners will now get updated Gmail, Calendar, Google Maps, Gallery, and YouTube apps, a refined onscreen keyboard, compatabilty with newer applications, and a healthy dose of sorely needed eye candy. New customers can choose one that also runs Windows 7 Home Premium and has 16GB of flash storage ($599) or one with Win 7 Professional and 32GB of space ($679). As for those of you champing at the bit to upgrade, ViewSonic is keeping things interesting by compelling you to download Froyo onto a thumb drive, and then plug both it and a USB keyboard into the ViewPad to install the update. Then again, something tells us the kind of person who would opt for the ViewPad 10 over other ViewSonic tablets might actually enjoy the challenge.
Samsung Galaxy S Vibrant will get Froyo tomorrow, says T-Mobile CMO
Sorry, gents, but your conspiracy theories are wholly kaput -- not only is a Samsung Galaxy S getting Android 2.2 stateside, but the speedy software update will start rolling out tomorrow on T-Mobile USA. That's the word direct from T-Mo chief marketing officer Cole Brodman, who tossed the news to PC Magazine this afternoon, saying that the delay was a "quality control and timing issue." Apparently, there's extra work involved in skinning the operating system and adding exclusive apps like WiFi calling -- though he didn't confirm either would specifically appear in the Vibrant's build of Froyo. Here's some more welcome news, though: the gentleman promised that in general, Android updates on T-Mobile will be more prompt from now on, as the firm's shooting to update all phones to new versions within five months of Google making source code available. Does that mean we should expect some Gingerbread men by May? We're not totally sure, but we imagine that T-Mobile's rivals aren't sitting still -- we'll probably hear some fascinating, captivating and totally epic news about Froyo any minute now.
Samsung says it isn't charging carriers for Android updates, promises Galaxy S status report
Buying a Samsung Galaxy S sounded like a fantastic decision when Android 2.1 was hot stuff, but now that Gingerbread's out of the oven, Fascinate, Captivate, Vibrant and Epic 4G owners are starting to get a little tired of being stuck behind the curve. And while we can think of at least one fairly nasty reason why Samsung might be delaying, we've been hearing all sorts of conspiracy theories, ranging from holding back Froyo to sell more dedicated Gingerbread phones to making the cellular carriers foot the bill for Android updates for every handset sold or else not get the update at all. Well, it seems that last rumor's gained a little traction, because Samsung's taken it upon itself to squash the story flat. The company gave Phone Scoop the following statement: "No. Samsung is not charging carriers for Froyo updates to Galaxy S. We hope to have more detail on status shortly. Promise!" At this rate, we're wondering if Samsung should just skip Froyo and just start rolling out some Gingerbread men instead.
iOS 4.2 for iPad, iPhone, iPod touch ready for download
As promised by Apple, iOS 4.2 is now available. Head on over to iTunes and download the latest and greatest iOS firmware to date. iOS 4.2 brings a huge number of improvements to the iPhone and iPod family and finally brings the iPad into the 4.x fold. It's a terrific update, and one, we think, that's been worth the wait. Let us know in the comments how your upgrade went, and how you like the new release.
Report: Fix for MacBook Air displays coming
There's good news for owners of the new MacBook Air. Boy Genius Report has reportedly obtained a memo stating that a fix is coming for that machine's display issues. Several users report that colors are fading light to dark repeatedly after the machine wakes from sleep. Apple has not acknowledged the issue formally, but the memo obtained by BGR suggests that its engineers are aware of it and working on a fix. Expect to see it in a forthcoming software update. If this issue has been driving you batty, hold tight. We'll let you know when a software update is available. Speaking of the MacBook Air's display, it's quite a piece of work, as TechRestore recently discovered. [Via AppleInsider]
RAW compatibility update for iPhoto and Aperture 3
An update was released this week for Aperture 3 and iPhoto, providing really nothing more than RAW compatibility to a bunch of new cameras. For the most part, those concerned with RAW support in software are those who do professional-grade photo editing or are intent on saving uncompressed versions of photos, either for posterity's sake or because disk space is so cheap these days. The casual digital photographer wouldn't likely care about the RAW format. Added to the list of cameras now supported in these applications: Canon PowerShot SX1 IS, Olympus E-PL1, Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2, Panasonic Lumix DMC-G10, Samsung NX10, Sony Alpha DSLR-A390, Sony Alpha NEX-3, Sony Alpha NEX-5.
iLife '08 update adds MobileMe support
As Scott already posted, iLife '08 just released a slew of updates. Although Software Update says that over performance and general compatibility issues were addressed in most products, the biggest change is MobileMe support for all iLife '08 applications.iPhoto, iWeb and iMovie are now properly linked with the MobileMe service. This should be welcome news to iWeb customers who have been unable to maintain or update elements of their MobileMe (nee .Mac) pages since the transition earlier this month.Likewise, galleries and movie can now be published directly to the newly branded mobile offering. You know, assuming you can get the service to work.
Updates galore: Security Update 2007-007, Safari 3.03, iPhone 1.01
Today is a busy day in the land of software updates. Apple has released 3 updates today: security update 2007-007, Safari Beta 3.03, and iPhone firmware 1.01. Let's take a look at each in turn.The security update is recommended for all and addresses issues in bzip2, CFNetwork, Core Audio, cscope, gnuzip, Kerberos, mDNSResponder, PDFKit, PHP, Quartz Composer, samba, WebKit, and WebCore. Full details can be found here. It is available now.The iPhone Firmware 1.01 and Safari beta 3.03 are both security updates that plug various holes in Safari. Sorry, iPhone users, no nifty new features are listed, but it will make your iPhone more secure. Apple does note that the iPhone update will not appear in Software Update on your Mac. You must sync your iPhone using iTunes to get the update. Both are available now.
CERT lists vulnerabilities addressed in 10.4.9/SecUpd003
Your tax dollars at work: the crack team at US-CERT (United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team) has posted a tech alert & vulnerability list for Apple's most recent security update and the 10.4.9 release, which both provide patches for a slew of flaws. Interestingly, some of the patches address problems in Apple-provided third party tools such as Adobe Flash Player and MySQL. Apple's security review page for the 2007-003 update and 10.4.9 was updated on Monday with additional details as well.
Software Update: Security, Final Cut, Web Objects, Java and More
Apple just posted a new Security Update (2007-002) at its download site. The update addresses security in CoreServices, iChat and the User Notification Center and is available as a PPC download, a Universal download and a Panther download -- see Mike's post for more detail. Other software updates today include Final Cut Pro 5.1.3, Web Objects 5.3.3, Java for OS X 10.3 update 5, Java for OS X 10.4 update 5, Daylight Savings Time Update for Tiger, and Daylight Savings Time Update for Panther. Most of these updates are to allow these components to recognize the changes in the way the US and Canada will be observing Daylight Savings Time starting in March 2007; however, the core OS X DST logic has been right on with the new rules since 10.4.5, released about a year ago.
