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How Google’s smartphones have evolved since 2007
Google is expected to show off a ton of new hardware at a press event in San Francisco this week, and -- as expected -- most of the hype is centered around a pair of new Pixel phones. Now, the Pixel line itself is only a year old, but Google's smartphone ambitions have been part of the company's vision for over a decade now, and we felt that was worth celebrating ahead of Wednesday's big reveal. Join us as we take a look at Google's surprisingly long history in smartphones, starting with a device many of us had forgotten about completely.
A look back at Google's Android flagships: the Nexus family
Android purists have always had the same response to new smartphone announcements from the likes of HTC, Samsung or LG. "I'll just wait for the next Nexus." And why not? For years, Google's Nexus line served both as its official flagship products and as public reference devices for the latest in Android phones and tablets. Now, Google has replaced the brand with a new top dog: the Pixel. At first blush, it's everything users loved about the Nexus line and more -- but before we close the casket on Google's first series of smartphones, let's look back and talk about what made the Nexus brand so special.
Apple wins a US sales ban on ancient Samsung smartphones
Many will tell you that patent lawsuits are useless as competitive weapons, in part because the years-long legal process makes any product bans pointless -- by the time you get a ban, the offending gear is off store shelves. And Apple is learning that first-hand. Judge Lucy Koh has awarded Apple a long-sought US ban on certain Samsung smartphones over alleged patent infringements, but all of the target devices are so old that you're highly unlikely to see them on store shelves. Let's put it this way: the most advanced of the bunch is the 2012-era Galaxy S III, which isn't easy to find even if you go searching through your carrier's bargain bins.
Text message exploit can force your Nexus phone to reboot (updated)
Watch out if someone sends a flood of text messages to your Nexus phone -- they may be trying to break in or otherwise cause havoc. IT administrator Bogdan Alecu has discovered an Android bug that triggers exploitable behavior in the Galaxy Nexus, Nexus 4 and Nexus 5 whenever they're hit by a large volume of Class 0 SMS messages, or texts that aren't automatically stored on the phone. The denial of service attack usually forces the handset to reboot, but it can also disable the network connection (if temporarily) or crash the messaging app. Non-Nexus hardware appears to be safe, although Alecu notes that he hasn't had a chance to test a wide variety of gadgets. Regardless of the problem's scale, affected users will have to be cautious for a while; Google tells PCWorld that it's looking into the exploit, but there's no word on just when we can expect a patch. Update: There's already a firewall app in Google Play that protects against the exploit. Thanks, Chipsy4!
Google: Samsung Galaxy Nexus won't get updated to Android 4.4 KitKat (updated)
From the horse's mouth, we're hearing some unfortunate news: Google has taken to its Spanish support pages to announce that the Samsung Galaxy Nexus is not on the list of devices to receive Android 4.4 KitKat. This seems a bit odd, given the new update's focus on "the next billion" and offering solid performance to other budget devices, but at the moment things aren't looking up for owners of the phone -- or any older Nexus devices, for that matter. We've reached out to Google for clarification on this and will update you if and when we hear back. Update: There's still no official word on why this is the case, but sources close to the company have pointed the finger at a different hardware issue on the Galaxy Nexus: its Texas Instruments-built chipset. The company is out of the mobile business and as such isn't in a great position to give the support necessary for continuing OS upgrades -- presumably some of those 1,700 employees let go in the shift away from mobile could have helped. Now we'll have to see if the community can pick up where the corporations left off or if this is the end of the road for the Gnex and its other OMAP-based kin like last year's Kindle Fire HD, Nook HD and Droid Bionic.
Google posts Android 4.2.x factory images for Sprint and Verizon Galaxy Nexus models
Many would call the HSPA+ Galaxy Nexus the only true Nexus of its era. Still, Google is willing to treat the CDMA versions as equals, and it just posted factory images with the latest available Jelly Bean builds for those devices. Anyone with a Verizon model can now flash with Android 4.2.2 if their existing OS install ever goes awry; Sprint users aren't quite on an equal plane, but do get a 4.2.1 image to work from. Relevant driver binaries are also available. Whether you're a custom ROM creator looking for a starting point or just want a fallback for any risky experiments, the relevant source links should have what you need.
Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean update incoming for Verizon's Galaxy Nexus, rollout to begin 'in phases' today
Verizon's Galaxy Nexus is largely considered to be the (Big) Redheaded stepchild of the Nexus line, lagging behind its purebred bretheren in the update department. But the delays are getting shorter and, as the carrier's just confirmed, users should begin to see Android 4.2.2 rolling out to their handsets as early as today. Initially released back in February, this Jelly Bean update brings with it the ability to snap 360-degree photospheres, various camera UI improvements (i.e., filters and borders), lockscreen widgets and a Swype-like Gesture keyboard. It's set to be released gradually, so don't despair if that OTA update notification takes a few days to make itself known.
Refresh Roundup: week of March 11th, 2013
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!
Refresh Roundup: week of March 4th, 2013
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!
Refresh Roundup: week of February 25th, 2013
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!
The Daily Roundup for 02.15.2013
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
Touch-based Ubuntu preview coming February 21st, will work on Galaxy Nexus and Nexus 4
It's not like we didn't have ample warning, so by now anyone wanting to try out the new Ubuntu smartphone OS should have gotten hold of a Galaxy Nexus to be their test device. Still don't have one? Then you'll be pleased to know that a Nexus 4 will actually serve just as well, and you have six days to get equipped. The Ubuntu Touch Developer Preview will be made public on February 21st alongside the open source code and all the tools necessary to flash those two devices. The official aim is to help devs and enthusiasts learn the platform and start building software for it, whether for core functions or for when a full third-party app store eventually goes live. The bigger picture is that, by the time Ubuntu 13.10 launches in October, an app written in this platform's Qt/QML lingo should be able to run on any Ubuntu device -- whether it be a PC, TV, tablet or smartphone -- with no porting required. Rest assured that we have a couple of Nexii at the ready and we fully intend to give this newcomer a thorough hazing / write-up as soon as possible.
Android 4.2.2 update reportedly arriving on Galaxy Nexus phones, Nexus tablets
After a few sightings early in January we hadn't heard much about a new version of Android 4.2, but posters on Reddit and Android Police say 4.2.2 is starting to pop up on several flavors of Nexus hardware. First spotted on a r/Android poster's GSM Galaxy Nexus and later on Nexus 7 and Nexus 10 tablets (as shown above), there are no changes listed other than "performance and stability," however there's hope that this includes promised fixes for Bluetooth A2DP issues. We haven't seen any new software on our devices and there's no official word yet, let us know in the comments if you're seeing anything new on your mobile device. [Image credit: Marco Duran]
Refresh Roundup: week of January 28th, 2013
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!
Refresh Roundup: week of January 14th, 2013
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!
Canonical narrows timeframe for Ubuntu for smartphones to 'late February'
Our first look at the upcoming Ubuntu phone OS left us excited but wanting for more details, and it seems that Canonical has now indicated when you'll first be able to grab it. According to OMG Ubuntu, engineering manager Alan Pope said that a downloadable image of the upcoming system will be available in late February for the Galaxy Nexus handset. From what we've seen so far, if you're brave enough to grab it you'll be in for a reasonably fluid and hackable experience, although actually doing something with it might be another story, since there's likely to be very few apps available. Still, for tinkerers with the handset who want to give Android a break, it'll be exciting times when a full-fledged Linux distro finally goes small.
CyanogenMod 10.1 nightlies spread to more Nexus models, ASUS and Samsung devices
There was a certain degree of irony to the first CyanogenMod 10.1 nightly reaching a lone device that already runs Android 4.2. What about the rest of us? Thankfully, logic is getting the upper hand with the arrival of regular test builds for a much wider hardware selection. All versions of the Galaxy Nexus, Nexus 7 and Nexus 10 get their expected turn at the code. However, the mix also includes devices that weren't predestined to receive an official update to the latest instance of Jelly Bean, such as ASUS' Transformer Pad Infinity and Samsung devices ranging from the original Galaxy S through to both Galaxy Tab 2 slates. It's still throwing caution to the wind by running an unfinished version of unofficial firmware, but we're sure CyanogenMod's target audience is comfortable enough with the risks to visit the source link.
EE introduces the UK's first 4G Android tablet: Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 LTE available starting today
Adding to its catalogue of flagship 4G slabs, EE's launched its first Android tablet for its relatively young network. You can read up our thoughts on how the stylus-friendly tablet handled in our review, but the addition of some high-speed data should add another temptation -- if you're willing to pay for it. Prices for the Galaxy Note 10.1 LTE start at £99 upfront with 8GB of monthly data at £36 monthly, or you can pick up the 5GB plan (after an initial payment of £200) at £30.99 per month. Choosing the smaller 3GB option will set you back £250 to start with, followed by 24 rounds of £26. EE's also has the Nexus 7 for sale, pairing the WiFi-only device with its own MiFi dongle. One-off payments are £30 for both the 8GB and 5GB services, or £50 for the 3GB option. Monthly costs match the Samsung tablet above, and you'll be able pick up either device (alongside that two-year contract) starting today.
Refresh Roundup: week of November 19th, 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!
Sprint's leaked Black Friday ad touts free Galaxy Nexus and Galaxy Victory after $50 mail-in rebate (update)
Thanksgiving is a week away and as exciting as family and good eats may be, there's nothing more appetizing than a good deal. Not too long ago we took a quick peek at Sprint's Black Friday offerings and now it's time to wrap things up. An anonymous source has served up the carrier's remaining post-Turkey Day sales and it appears that the Now Network is having a Samsung blowout. Running November 23rd through 25th, Sprint will be offering the Galaxy Nexus and Galaxy Victory to new and eligible customers for free after a $50 mail-in rebate and two year service agreement. In typical holiday sale fashion, supplies are expected to be limited, so you'll want to plan accordingly in order to cash in on this deal. Update: Sprint has confirmed these deals and will run the promotions online on Thanksgiving Day. [Thanks, anonymous]
