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The extended Nexus family: Google's golden Android standard
Google's Nexus line has long stood as the company's ideal vision of its widely adopted, open-source Android operating system. The devices, be they smartphones, tablets or even one-off media streamers, are built in conjunction with select hardware partners and represent an ideal marriage of tech specs with an unadulterated version of Android. It's Google's way of dealing with fragmentation (read: skinned versions) in the mobile OS market it created; a reference mark for manufacturers to aspire to, so to speak. On the tail of the original Android handset's sixth anniversary and in the run-up to whatever new Nexuses come next, we take a look back at the hardware path that's been Google's gold standard for Android.
Jon Turi09.27.2014
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.
David Fishman02.15.2013The Daily Roundup for 02.12.2013
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.
David Fishman02.12.2013The Daily Roundup for 01.25.2013
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.
David Fishman01.25.2013
The Weekly Roundup for 12.31.2012
You might say the week is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workweek, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Weekly Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 7 days -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
David Fishman01.06.2013The Daily Roundup for 01.02.2013
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.
David Fishman01.02.2013
Android 4.2 camera, gallery ported to Galaxy Nexus running Jelly Bean 4.1.1
So, you're loving the new gallery and camera options we saw on Jelly Bean 4.2 and have no intention of waiting for that OS for your former flagship Galaxy Nexus? A certain dmmarck on Android Central's forums has sorted that, and you can now grab the camera app for your so-last-month 4.1.1 OS on that handset. Other than a Photo Sphere bug, it's apparently working like the factory version, but newbies beware -- the installation requires some Android hacking chops. You can grab it at the source.
Steve Dent10.31.2012
ITC rules that Samsung violates four Apple patents covering design, touch
The back and forth continues. US International Trade Commission Administrative Law Judge Thomas Pender has made an initial ruling that some Samsung's devices violate four Apple patents, including one iPhone design patent (the one you see above) and three software patents. Apple didn't manage a clean sweep, as Samsung was cleared of treading on two more patents, but the verdict still carries the all-too-familiar potential for a trade ban if the ITC maintains the findings in its final review. It's bleak news for the Korean company, which faced an initial loss to Apple at the ITC just last month -- even though large swaths of the mostly Android-based Galaxy phones and tablets in the dispute have long since left the market, an upheld verdict gives Samsung one less bargaining chip in a protracted legal war.
Jon Fingas10.24.2012
Mobile Miscellany: week of October 15th, 2012
If you didn't get enough in mobile news during the week, not to worry, because we've opened the firehose for the truly hardcore. This past week, we received further evidence of an imminent replacement for the Galaxy Nexus and the Optimus 4X HD found a new home in Canada. These stories and more await after the break. So buy the ticket and take the ride as we explore the "best of the rest" for this week of October 15th, 2012.
Zachary Lutz10.20.2012
Engadget's smartphone buyer's guide: fall 2012 edition
Shopping for a smartphone can be an exciting and arduous experience. Along with the promise of something new and fantastic, it brings the fear of commitment, and even worse, the prospect of saddling yourself to a lousy device for two years. Fortunately for you, Engadget spends tons of time playing with the latest gear and we're constantly on the lookout for what's coming next. If you're wanting to take the pain out of shopping for a smartphone, you've come to the right place. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Engadget's smartphone buyer's guide: your one-stop resource to finding the best and most exciting handsets on the market today. Before you dive in, however, we've introduced a few changes to the buyer's guide, so take a minute to prepare yourself for what's in store. First and foremost, you'll now find alternate selections to supplement our top picks. This should already be familiar to many of you, which is the same format we use for our seasonal gift guides. The next one is a biggie: we've dropped the QWERTY selection. By and large, manufacturers and carriers alike have shifted their focus away from keyboard-equipped smartphones, and you'll rarely find more than one option on any given carrier. That said, if you still insist on the tactile experience, you'll always find everything you need to know in our reviews. Finally, whenever possible, you'll now find prices from Amazon Wireless, which allows us to provide you with more compelling budget selections and highlight the substantial savings that you can score by circumventing the carriers. It's not like they need your charity, anyway. If you're curious to see how it all unfolded -- and we know you are -- join us after the break, where we round up the very best smartphones of the season.
Zachary Lutz10.19.2012
Galaxy Nexus, Nexus S start receiving Android 4.1.2 over the air
When Android 4.1.2 hit the airwaves for upgrades, it was limited to a very exclusive club of Nexus 7 owners. Google has widened the gates considerably as of today: we're receiving multiple reports of GSM-based Galaxy Nexus and Nexus S owners getting the new Jelly Bean build through official, over-the-air channels. Upgrades here aren't as noticeable as they are on the reference Android tablet; besides fixes, we've mostly heard that it's now possible to expand a notification with a single finger. Those with CDMA-based phones are left out so far, but if you discover any surprise extras before 4.1.2 hits our own devices, be sure to leave us a tip. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Jon Fingas10.15.2012
Refresh Roundup: week of October 8th, 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!
Zachary Lutz10.14.2012
Appeals court reverses ban on Samsung Galaxy Nexus
A U.S. Court of Appeals says that a lower California court "abused its discretion" by ordering a sales ban of the Samsung Galaxy Nexus and kicked the case back to the lower court, Reuters reports. The injunction, ordered by Judge Lucy Koh, came about in the days before Samsung and Apple went to trial in California. Samsung filed an appeal two days after the injunction was ordered. The appeals court took the chance to give its two cents regarding the entire mess. "Sales lost to an infringing product cannot irreparably harm a patentee if consumers buy that product for reasons other than the patented feature," the court said in its opinion. "If the patented feature does not drive the demand for the product, sales would be lost even if the offending feature were absent from the accused product." It also said there was not sufficient evidence to show that Apple would suffer irreparable harm if sales of the Galaxy Nexus were to continue, and the district court abused its discretion by having irreparable harm be a factor in determining the injunction to begin with. Judge Koh lifted the injunction on the Galaxy Tab 10.1 on October 3. Since the injunction was filed, a California jury found Samsung guilty of infringing on Apple's patents and awarded Apple $1.05 billion in damages. [via Engadget]
Megan Lavey-Heaton10.11.2012
Court reverses Galaxy Nexus sales ban in the US (updated with Samsung's statement)
A United States appeals court has overturned the injunction banning the sale of Samsung's Galaxy Nexus, arguing that the California district court had "abused its discretion" in granting it. The case between Apple and Samsung, which centers around four patents relating to unified search and Siri, will now be returned to the court of Judge Lucy Koh for reconsideration -- in the same way that she had to reverse her previous decision regarding the Galaxy Tab 10.1. The injunction was granted on the basis that Apple could demonstrate "irreparable harm" to its business, and, that its case had a high likelihood of succeeding. However, the panel of judges felt that Cupertino could do neither of those things to the court's satisfaction, and as such, Samsung's handsets will be available to purchase as soon as the company can get them onto shelves. If you'd care to delve into the full text of the remand order yourself, it's available at the source link. Update: Here is Samsung's jolly statement regarding the reversal: "We welcome this reversal by the Federal Circuit, finding that the District Court abused its discretion in ordering a preliminary injunction against the Galaxy Nexus. Today's decision confirms that the role of patent law is to protect innovation and not to unreasonably stifle competition and restrict consumer choice. We will continue to take all appropriate measures to ensure the availability of our innovative products."
Daniel Cooper10.11.2012
Android 4.2 shows up in our server logs, shocks no one
Reports have been circulating that devices running Android 4.2, rumored to be code-named Key Lime Pie (though it's seeming more likely that it will retain the Jelly Bean moniker), have been popping up in server logs and benchmarks across the web. Well, after doing some digging through our own records, we're seeing quite a few instances of hardware running the unannounced Google platform visiting Engadget. Now, we do feel it necessary to add the caveat that there are some strange reports in our logs as well, coming from hardware allegedly running Android 5.0 and 6.0, but we're not convinced of their authenticity. We are, however, fairly certain that the numerous Galaxy Nexii hitting our site sporting Android 4.2, build JOO90B, are legit. We're also seeing a number of occams, potentially an obtuse reference to the RAZR (a Moto Nexus perhaps?) pinging our servers running the same build. Like others, we're seeing reports of the Arc S running 4.2 as well, but upon further investigation it seems more likely that this is a beta of Jelly Bean 4.1 currently being tested by Sony. Obviously, none of this is official, but it only makes the impending release of a new Nexus or Nexii seem all the more likely.
Terrence O'Brien10.10.2012
Android 4.1.2 goes live, gives Nexus 7 owners landscape home screen
We've been seeing a mysterious Android 4.1.2 update mentioned in conjunction with a few unreleased devices in the past few hours, so it's only fitting that we're seeing the official release today. Google's Android Open Source Project lead Jean-Baptiste Queru has posted word that the 4.1.2 release should be available on Tuesday for at least those relying on pure AOSP builds of the mobile OS. While we haven't seen the update reach our own devices yet, some Nexus 7 owners already report getting 4.1.2 on their tablets with a pleasant surprise in store: in addition to the expected bug fixes and performance boosts, the software lets the home screen rotate to landscape mode on the smaller Jelly Bean slate. We're keeping an eye out for when other hardware gets the patch, although it's expected that the Galaxy Nexus, Nexus S and Xoom will follow quickly enough. [Image credit: EETimes]
Jon Fingas10.09.2012
Refresh Roundup: week of September 24th, 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!
Zachary Lutz09.30.2012
Verizon Galaxy Nexus finally lands Jelly Bean update
As Alton Brown is fond of saying, "your patience will be rewarded." Today, those of you with Verizon-branded Galaxy Nexus handsets (at least those that didn't run out and download an unofficial Jelly Bean) are finally getting your reward. Android version 4.1.1 (better known as JRO03O among the hack happy) is being pushed out OTA to Big Red customers, complete with the preemptive magic of Google Now in tow. If you haven't seen an alert yet, head to the About Phone section in your settings, and tap System Updates. Having recently been welcomed back to the AOSP fold, we'd have hoped for an update sooner, but it's still among the first wave of handsets to move to the latest version of Android. Now if only this would restore Google Wallet functionality. (Hey, a guy can dream can't he?) The complete announcement from Verizon awaits after the break.
Terrence O'Brien09.21.2012
Refresh Roundup: week of September 10th, 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!
Zachary Lutz09.16.2012
Verizon Galaxy Nexus owners lose Google Wallet access (update)
Verizon has never totally been on the Google Wallet bandwagon. First, Big Red refused to support the mobile payment system, citing its dependance upon proprietary hardware. Months later, some folks managed to gain access through the Play Store, but it looks like that the VZW GNex is, once again, Wallet-free. Word on the web has it that those Nexus owners are now, upon opening the app, greeted by a message saying that their version of Google Wallet is no longer supported, and that they need to update the app. Problem is, the Play Store is telling folks that their devices are no longer supported. We've confirmed the issue ourselves, but we don't know if this a temporary problem, or if it's a permanent move. We've reached out to both Google and Verizon for comment, and we'll let you know as soon as we hear back. [Thanks, Tim] Update: Verizon responded to our requests, but declined to add any new comment on the matter. Instead, VZW reiterated its previous statement that "Verizon doesn't block applications. Google Wallet is different from other widely-available m-commerce services. Google Wallet does not simply access the operating system and basic hardware of our phones like thousands of other applications. Instead, in order to work as architected by Google, Google Wallet needs to be integrated into a new, secure and proprietary hardware element in our phones."
Michael Gorman09.14.2012