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Refresh Roundup: week of July 25, 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: Remember the Gingerbread update that's rolling out to the T-Mobile myTouch 4G? If waiting for the OTA download doesn't mesh with your level of patience (or lack thereof), you'll be able to head to a corporate-owned retail store starting August 5th to receive the update manually. [via T-Mobile] The Kyocera Echo's rollout of Gingerbread may be starting tomorrow and getting pushed out to customers over a four-day period. The new refresh also adds Swype 3.0 and security enhancements. [via SprintFeed] Gingerbread is also currently heading to Verizon's Motorola Droid X2. [via AndroidCentral] Sony Ericsson announced that users of the Xperia X10 won't be left off of the Android 2.3 bandwagon either -- it's been confirmed that global and carrier-unlocked versions are receiving the update, though it's up to specific carriers to decide if they want to push the update out as well. [via MobileBurn] Verizon's Droid Incredible 2 is the recipient of a minor software update that aims to improve server connection for email and contacts. The OTA download can be yours by going into settings and having the phone check for updates. [via AndroidCentral] The original HTC Desire's getting its turn for Android 2.3, but the OTA update is currently going out to unbranded devices only. [via HTC Desire Portal] Users have been reporting an issue with their Samsung Fascinates receiving incoming calls after the latest update, and the latest update, called ED05, will be pushed to phones over the next few days to help resolve that concern, while fixing a couple SMS bugs as well. [via Droid-Life] Unofficial updates, custom ROMs, and misc. hackery: A new leaked Gingerbread update for the Samsung Epic 4G, EG22, can be had now. The leak bumps the device up to Android 2.3.4. [via PPC Geeks Forum] The Motorola Triumph hasn't even been out for ten days, but it already has ClockworkMod Recovery. [via AndroidForums] Peter Alfonso's released Android 2.3.5 as a custom download for the original Droid. Follow the via link for instructions on how to download and install it. [via Droid-Life] The Revolutionary S-OFF tool has now been released as an early developer preview. The tool will give you full access to download and install custom ROMs for several devices, including the HTC EVO 3D and Sensation. [via AndroidCentral] Other Platforms: T-Mobile pushed out a firmware update to the HTC HD7 this week, though no change log was provided. If you didn't receive a notification on your phone informing you of the update, connect it to your Zune Desktop and check for updates. [via WPCentral] The Dell Venue Pro's also on the receiving end of a firmware refresh, which brings with it a load of various bug fixes. [via Twitter]
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]
Refresh Roundup: week of July 11, 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 [dot] com and let us know. Enjoy! HTC alerted users of the Desire Z that the handset's Gingerbread update is due in "the coming weeks." The update will likely be sent out in phases, but everyone should have it by the end of the month. [via AndroidCentral] A leaked screenshot indicates Bell may issue Gingerbread updates to several phones in its lineup this summer: Samsung Galaxy Tab and Vibrant, HTC Incredible 2 and Desire Z, and Motorola Atrix 4G. [via AndroidCommunity] A custom ROM update has become available for the original Motorola Droid, allowing users to enjoy Gingerbread. However, as this is an unofficial ROM, install at your own risk and be sure to follow all of the directions precisely. [via AndroidCommunity] File this one under unconfirmed, but the next version of CyanogenMod is rumored to offer a dual-boot setup. This would give you the option of two different operating systems when you boot up your device. [via Ultralinx] The Motorola Atrix 4G is about to undergo soak testing for its Gingerbread update, which likely means the full release is just around the corner. [via DroidMatters] Developer Coolbho3k has overclocked the HTC EVO 3D and Sensation 4G to 1.7GHz stable, without a kernel source or S-Off. [via Phandroid]
CyanogenMod 7 hits 500,000 installs, eclipses previous milestone
Looks like another round of roman candles are in order. After already setting off the celebratory fireworks for its previous user install milestone, CyanogenMod 7's done it again -- this time reaching past the half a million mark. The highly customizable Android homebrew is arguably the biggest aftermarket OS in the ROM-flashing campus, and it has the numbers to back it up. According to the site's stats, the official release of 7.0.3 saw the biggest spike in handset installations -- at 76,897 -- with unofficial nightly builds almost doubling that figure. Sure, it sometimes seems like the rooting community is a vast, silent majority, but it's actually a wafer-thin slice of Google's mobile pie. Still, congratulations are in order for this open-source hackdom triumph. [Thanks, Chris]
PSA: Got a Nook Color? Then you can get dual-booting Nook2Android
Here comes a public service announcement: Eat slower and you'll feel fuller. Oh sorry, wrong one. We meant: Nook Color owners, you can now dual-boot your slate using the specially-created Nook2Android SD card. The card makes installing Android 2.3 a snap and it's now shipping with a dual-boot file courtesy of XDA developers, which means you can choose to boot into the original Nook OS without having to remove the card. You're looking at $35 for an 8GB card, rising to $90 for 32GB. Alternatively, if you're happy to get a bit of oil on your hands, you can try the manual approach. Mmmm, Gingerbread, chew every mouthful.
Keepin' it real fake: Xiaomi M1 melds iPhone and Galaxy S II with custom MIUI ROM (update: no, not really)
Granted, what you're looking at is nothing more than a skillful render, but if Apple and Samsung ever made beautiful babies, this is what would be bestowed upon the world -- pesky lawsuits notwithstanding, that is. The KIRF in question is the Xiaomi M1, a smartphone designed specifically for the MIUI custom Gingerbread ROM. It's sporting a 1.2GHz dual-core Qualcomm CPU, along with a four-inch, 854 x 480 Super LCD capacitive touchscreen display, and the usual assortment of Bluetooth, GPS, and WiFi. Users will find quadband GSM among the mix, but 3G support remains a mystery -- likewise for the RAM, internal storage, and battery capacity. Pricing is an unknown quantity too, although earlier reports suggest we'll see something in the range of RMB 1,600 (approximately $250). This potential KIRF'ers paradise is expected to ship between mid-August and early September in a variety of colors, which will be eclipsed only by the sweet smell of its unboxing. Update: As it turns out, the M1 looks nothing like the render we'd seen. Hence, our dreams of this epic KIRF have been dashed, and the purported "real" image of this curious project is now 'splayed for all to see. Didn't get a chance to see the original render? Just follow the break, where you're able to dream of what could have been.
CyanogenMod 7 on the Nook Color hands-on (video)
It's hard not to love Barnes & Noble's Nook Color, especially if you're amongst those who'd rather look at text on a quality backlit screen than an e-paper display. Not only did we enjoy the e-book reader when we first reviewed it, but it keeps getting better thanks to updates to its hidden Android core plus the recent addition of its own app store complete with Pandora and Angry Birds. And while there's also a decent bundled web browser and music player, it's not the software that we like the most -- it's the hardware, and particularly the value proposition. See, $250 ($200 on sale) buys you a gorgeous 7-inch 1024x600 pixel capacitive IPS panel with excellent contrast and viewing angles, an 800MHz TI OMAP 3621 CPU, a PowerVR SGX 530 GPU, 512MB RAM, WiFi b/g/n, Bluetooth, 8GB of built-in storage, an accelerometer, and a microSD card slot -- all wrapped in an attractive 12mm thin package. Sure, there's no 3G radio, no camera, no microphone, no ambient light sensor, and no haptic feedback, but despite its lower-end specs, the Nook Color just begs to be turned into a full blown Android tablet. And that's just what we did, by installing CyanogenMod 7 on Barnes & Noble's color reader, complete with Android 2.3.3 (Gingerbread) and the full suite of Google apps. Take a look at our screenshots gallery below and hit the break for our hands-on video and impressions. %Gallery-125927%
Samsung shows affection to CyanogenMod, gives its devs a free Galaxy S II (update)
Let's see if we're grokking this: Samsung is not only telling the dev community it's okay to place custom ROMs on its flagship device, it's actually encouraging the practice by handing out free phones? Atinm, the developer responsible for prepping CyanogenMod on the Captivate and Vibrant, took to Twitter to praise the manufacturer for sending him a free Galaxy S II. From the looks of it, Samsung sent the phone to a select number of devs intent on building an official release of CM7 for the GSII. Unlocking bootloaders has already become the new fancy with manufacturers like HTC, Motorola, and Sony Ericsson jumping on the bandwagon, but this is the first time we've heard of a company doling out free devices to the custom ROM community. Does this mean that, instead of enforcing TouchWiz with an iron fist, Samsung is looking at how this practice could actually benefit consumers? We doubt this will be the case for all of the company's future Android phones, but wouldn't you love to live in a world where it was? [Thanks to everyone who sent this in] Update: As it turns out, this was not the first time a free device has been handed out to the CyanogenMod community. It's been done at least once before, when T-Mobile gave out a G-Slate in April.
EVO 3D shipping with locked down bootloader, but HTC may reconsider policy
We've got some good news and some bad news. Let's do the bad news first: much like the Sensation, Thunderbolt, and Incredible S, Android Police has confirmed that the upcoming HTC EVO 3D will also be sporting a locked down bootloader of similar fashion, meaning custom ROM modders will have a hard time glamming up said phone. Not that anyone should be surprised by this finding though, given the sad trend. That said, there is still hope: earlier today, HTC announced on Facebook that it's "reviewing the issue and our policy around bootloaders" -- looks like someone's pulled a page out of Sony Ericsson's good book. If all goes well, we'll just have to wait and see whether HTC will beat Motorola to making their fans smile again. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
New CyanogenMod lets you rule Android app permissions with an iron fist
We've recently seen Google crack down on rogue apps and patch some server-side security issues, but let's not forget Android does have a small measure of built-in security: app permissions. But as with those pesky EULAs, many users tend to breeze through the permissions screen. And Android forces even the most attentive readers to accept or deny all permissions requested by an app. But the newest nightly builds of the CyanogenMod custom ROM include a clever patch allowing users to grant and revoke permissions individually -- something like the TISSA security manager we're still awaiting. Obviously playing God with permissions can crash your applications: with great power comes great responsibility. But we figure if you're running aftermarket firmware on a rooted phone, you're comfortable experimenting. See how it works in the video after the break, then hit the source link to download.
HTC Sensation looks to have signed bootloader, custom ROMs look to be bummed
Did you think maybe HTC would change its ways after locking down the bootloader on the Thunderbolt and Incredible S? Sorry, no. The upcoming Sensation looks to have been similarly afflicted, with Android Police bringing the bad news that its internals are protected by HTC's private key. This will definitely prove to be an issue for those looking to run custom ROMs that are clean as a whistle, but something tells us the hackers shall overcome. They usually do. [Thanks, Foo]
CyanogenMod 7 tops 200,000 downloads, celebrations erupt as development goes forward
Congratulations to the fine developers of CyanogenMod, whose latest aftermarket Android OS, CyanogenMod 7, has surpassed 200,000 downloads -- a huge milestone for this homebrew community. Now supported on 26 devices, the hallmark of this custom ROM comes from its flexible user interface, greater customization options, bonus features and worthwhile performance improvements. While the project gained early notoriety from its dispute with Google, it's become an increasingly popular solution for those wanting to command their phone (or tablet) as they see fit. The latest revision, 7.0.3, includes numerous fixes and refinements since its 7.0 release, so there's never been a better time to check it out -- in fact, we're pretty sure the group would love to bring you aboard. Well done everyone, and keep up the good work.
Official Gingerbread ROM leaked for Desire HD, floodgates open for custom builds
If you've already experimented with the comical (and frustrating) quirks of using the Sensation ROM on your Desire HD, we'd imagine you're ready to move onto something a bit more practical. Good news, as 911Sniper is now offering HTC's official release of Android 2.3.3 for your phone -- a whole two months earlier than expected. Of course, the story only begins here, as this leak gives custom ROM builders a new playground to begin developing finely-tuned variants such as LeeDrOiD, which offers optimizations for performance and battery life. Follow the source link for everything you need to know. Just don't go breaking things, okay?
Visualized: what Motorola Android users want
16,611 votes and counting. We sure hope Motorola is getting the hint here. [Thanks, Arjen G.]
CyanogenMod 7.0 is now final, ready for your consumption
Is your phone manufacturer's Android ROM not treating you quite the way it should? Worry not, Cyanogen's got your back as usual and has just released the final v7.0 of the CyanogenMod, now based on Android 2.3.3. There's an extensive list of supported Android handsets, which is now also augmented with a couple of tablets: the B&N Nook Color and the Viewsonic G Tablet. As usual with custom ROMs, we advise reading up and making sure you know what you're doing before you do it, but if you're already up to speed on the latest in homebrewed Android, this is the moment you've been eagerly waiting for. Full details of the changes made in version 7 plus instructions on how to get it set up on your Android device can be found below. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
HTC locks down Incredible S against custom ROMs too, starts a fight with its best friends
The Thunderbolt, you might have noticed, marked an unpleasant change for HTC by making it a tiny bit difficult to replace the company's own Android software with your favored community-sourced alternative. Well, turns out it's not alone and could in fact be just be the tip of an unhappy iceberg heading our way. The AndIRC guys responsible for cracking it open have also noted with some distress that the Incredible S -- likely to become the Droid Incredible 2 in the States -- features a similar signature check when flashing recovery images. In short, that means any ROMs that don't know HTC's "open sesame" password, won't be allowed to ride on your device. Bogus? Totally, dude.
Does Google's new Android Market website ignore custom ROMs?
Now that the Android Market website has finally launched (and stabilized) we're beginning to see reports of rooted devices, and some running custom ROMs, not being recognized by the website. We're having the very same issue ourselves, where a pristine Desire Z running a factory installed copy of Android 2.2 Froyo is listed on the "My Device" page while an old HTC Hero hacked to run Froyo courtesy of FroydVillain ROM does not, even though it's logged in and syncing using the same Google login ID and the Android Market has been recently used from the device (as Google recommends on the "Trouble Downloading" help page). So what about you oh reader, oh rooter... what are you experiencing? %Poll-59627% [Thanks, Florian]
Notion Ink apps ported over to Viewsonic G-Tablet, promise not to brick it too
A few lucky souls managed to get their Notion Ink Adams early -- only to have them brick themselves. The rest were delayed and, well, it's all a bit of a mess. Now there's another way to get a taste of Ink but on some currently available hardware. User gojimi over at the inimitable xda-developers forums has ported seven applications from the Notion Ink suite to Viewsonic's G-Tablet, including the Calendar, Keyboard, QuickOffice, and the Browser. Some don't run perfectly and we have to say that's something of an unfortunate target, but gojimi does indicate it should be easy to move them to any other ROM. So, you know, make it happen!
CyanogenMod now supports WiMAX on EVO 4G
Do you own an EVO 4G? Do you like CyanogenMod? Do you want to live on the bleeding edge? Well, it's your lucky day. After weeks of hard work, those crazy hackers over at #TeamWin have just served up the first public release of the CyanogenMod WiMAX Alpha, bringing the sweet nectar of Sprint 4G to the custom ROM universe. Of course, the usual caveats apply: it's an alpha, there are some bugs, and controlling the 4G radio still requires some magic incantations -- but it might be a small price to pay to enjoy tasty custom ROM goodness on your EVO.
Gingerbread ROMs start cooking for HTC EVO 4G et al; keyboard ported for rooted Androids
You can have your doubts about when your phone maker will finally get around to delivering an Android 2.3 update (March if you're with HTC, June if Samsung, 2017 if you're unfortunate enough to own a Sony Ericsson), but the smartphone dev community doesn't work that slowly. The guys who build custom ROMs just for the sheer pride of it have already begun work on delivering Gingerbread to owners of HTC's EVO 4G, Droid Eris, and Wildfire. It's all in the very nascent stages and warnings abound that you should only install these ROMs if you intend to contribute to the development process, but it does give us hope for a consumable new OS in the not so distant future. One thing that does look ready to be gobbled up, however, is Gingerbread's new software keyboard -- you'll find the download and installation instructions at the Droid-Life link below, just remember to bring your rooted Android phone along. [Thanks, Jacob]
