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HTC will ship all Android phones in China with Froyo on board, fuels fire for immediate update closer to home

IBM — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 08:09:00 +0000

A wordy headline, to be sure, but a pleasing one nonetheless. We came across HTC's Chinese web portal listing the Desire as coming with Android 2.2 (with Sense!) and simply had to ping the official source for confirmation. It turns out the info up there is no mistake: all HTC Android handsets shipping to China -- which includes the Wildfire and Tianyi -- will do so with Froyo preloaded, cutting down on your upgrade angst at least until the Gingerbread man comes a'knocking. HTC has also reiterated that a 2.2 update for its phones already on the market will be delivered "very soon," so if all goes well, we should be looking at a Froyo-dominated August in the land of High Tech Computers.

[Thanks, Christian]

HTC will ship all Android phones in China with Froyo on board, fuels fire for immediate update closer to home originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 29 Jul 2010 03:09:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Motorola Cliq / Dext gets leaked Android 2.1 update, not pinch-to-zoom (video)

IBM — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 15:31:00 +0000

Don't know about you, but our poor Motorola Dext (or Cliq as it's know in the Land of the Free) had been left gathering dust for some time as it got unbearably laggy, even after a few wipes. We only clung onto this Android 1.5 device in the hope that Motorola or T-Mobile would stick to their update schedules. And boy we got lucky, as an anonymous leakster dropped off an allegedly official T-Mobile 2.1 ROM for said phone yesterday, which sounds about right when you think of the carrier's planned August update. Read on to find out how the new ROM's running on our Dext -- we've also got a hands-on video for you.

Gallery: Motorola Cliq / Dext gets leaked Android 2.1 update, not pinch-to-zoom

Continue reading Motorola Cliq / Dext gets leaked Android 2.1 update, not pinch-to-zoom (video)

Motorola Cliq / Dext gets leaked Android 2.1 update, not pinch-to-zoom (video) originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Thu, 22 Jul 2010 10:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Conflipper says Shipped Roms is ‘here to stay,’ will cooperate with HTC

IBM — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 21:06:00 +0000

It looks like those worried that firmware site Shipped Roms would disappear after being hit with a cease and desist letter from HTC can now rest a bit easier -- Conflipper, the man behind the site, says that it is "here to stay." That news comes after the site was apparently able to work out a deal of sorts with HTC, in which it has agreed to no longer host so-called test or carrier files (HTC is said to be providing it with a complete list of files it doesn't want hosted). Conflipper also says that he's asked HTC about becoming a license partner, which HTC seemed to at least be open to. Of course, those test and carrier files are one of the big draws for the site, so we'll just have to wait and see exactly what's left when everything shakes out.

[Thanks, Brian W.]

Conflipper says Shipped Roms is 'here to stay,' will cooperate with HTC originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 02 Jul 2010 16:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple: iPhone 4 reception problem is a software issue, fix coming in ‘a few weeks’

IBM — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 13:32:00 +0000

Whoa, Apple just admitted that there's an issue with the iPhone 4's reception, but it might not be what you think:

Upon investigation, we were stunned to find that the formula we use to calculate how many bars of signal strength to display is totally wrong. Our formula, in many instances, mistakenly displays 2 more bars than it should for a given signal strength. For example, we sometimes display 4 bars when we should be displaying as few as 2 bars. Users observing a drop of several bars when they grip their iPhone in a certain way are most likely in an area with very weak signal strength, but they don't know it because we are erroneously displaying 4 or 5 bars. Their big drop in bars is because their high bars were never real in the first place.

To fix this, we are adopting AT&T's recently recommended formula for calculating how many bars to display for a given signal strength. The real signal strength remains the same, but the iPhone's bars will report it far more accurately, providing users a much better indication of the reception they will get in a given area. We are also making bars 1, 2 and 3 a bit taller so they will be easier to see.

We will issue a free software update within a few weeks that incorporates the corrected formula. Since this mistake has been present since the original iPhone, this software update will also be available for the iPhone 3GS and iPhone 3G.

Sure, the odd way Apple calculates bars has been noted before, but what's troubling is that this is the second time Apple has blamed signal strength / reception issues on software and it doesn't fully explain calls dropping and data degradation when the iPhone 4 is held in a very particular (but common) way. It's also worth noting that Apple in no way admits to an antenna design flaw. Read the full press release after the break.

Continue reading Apple: iPhone 4 reception problem is a software issue, fix coming in 'a few weeks'

Apple: iPhone 4 reception problem is a software issue, fix coming in 'a few weeks' originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 02 Jul 2010 08:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sprint halts EVO 4G update due to reports of it bricking phones

IBM — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 10:59:00 +0000

Uh oh. There's been a tiny little hitch in the latest EVO 4G update, which has resulted in a number of people finding their superphones becoming unusable. Aside from rooted handsets having their predictable woes with new official software, some users have found that applying the update twice bricked their phones, stock OS and all. That's pretty worrying, particularly when you consider that checking for updates after a successful install gives you the option to apply it all over again. Sprint and HTC have acted quickly to pull the OTA for the moment, and promise to restore it as soon as its lethal streak has been ironed out:

While the vast majority of consumers successfully downloaded and installed the most recent HTC EVO 4G software update, we have received a handful of reports from customers having some issues with the update. In light of this, HTC and Sprint have decided to temporarily halt distribution of this software release until we can investigate further. We expect to be able to resume software updates shortly.

In the mean time, let's all just sit, wait, and hope the sky doesn't fall on our heads.

Sprint halts EVO 4G update due to reports of it bricking phones originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 29 Jun 2010 05:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft says Kin software update is scheduled for mid-summer

IBM — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 17:57:00 +0000

We'd already heard some talk that Microsoft's Kin One and Kin Two phones might be in store for an update, and it looks like the phones will indeed be getting one sooner rather than later. While it remains to be seen if it will include those rumored IM improvements, a Kin support moderator has confirmed on the Microsoft Answers forum that an update is scheduled for "mid-summer," and that it will address "many" of the concerns laid out in the post that prompted the response. That included complaints about battery issues, a suggestion for improvements to the Twitter client (including replies and re-tweets), and a plea for YouTube support. The seemingly in-the-know Conflipper also backs up the inclusion of those Twitter updates, and says the Facebook app will also be updated to let folks view more than three pictures.

Microsoft says Kin software update is scheduled for mid-summer originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Jun 2010 12:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sprint: EVO 4G users getting Android 2.2 ‘in the near future’ (Update: No upgrade for Moment, Hero)

IBM — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 16:36:00 +0000

It looks like EVO 4G users will soon have one more thing to smile about, as Sprint has just announced that an Android 2.2 (aka Froyo) upgrade will indeed be coming to the "superphone."

With the Android 2.2 upgrade, customers can expect improvements to include the following benefits: updates to user interface, improved EAS Support, improved browser performance, including Flash 10x Support, voice dialing over Bluetooth and application storage on external memory.

No word on a timeframe yet, but you'll know as soon as we do -- promise.

Update: According to this tweet from the carrier: "HTC EVO will be updated to Android 2.2; Samsung Moment & HTC Hero will not. Future devices launching w/ 2.1 will be also be updated to 2.2."

Sprint: EVO 4G users getting Android 2.2 'in the near future' (Update: No upgrade for Moment, Hero) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 25 Jun 2010 11:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Android 2.2 coming to Droid in ‘late July,’ Droid X in ‘late August?’

IBM — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 13:34:00 +0000

Care for some more specificity on when exactly to expect the Droid X to become even awesomer? Well, according to one "very reliable" source over at Droid Forums, we can look forward to a late August landing for Android 2.2 on the X, which will be preceded by a late July delivery on the venerable Droid. Both dates are caveated with an ominous "currently planned" proviso, so don't consider them carved in (Mile)stone, but we're liking the idea of Motorola having both its flagship devices tasting of Froyo by summer's end. There's no mention of the Droid 2, however, which may mean nothing or might suggest that handset's still a fair way away from its release. We shall see.

Android 2.2 coming to Droid in 'late July,' Droid X in 'late August?' originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 25 Jun 2010 08:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nexus One getting Android 2.2 FRF83 update over the air?

IBM — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 04:41:00 +0000

The Android 2.2 source code just went public this morning, but we're hearing a fully-compiled, legitimate OTA version of Froyo may be hitting small batches of Nexus One handsets as well. Though a 1.78MB ZIP file floating around XDA-developers this afternoon was originally thought to be the droid we've all been looking for, Android and Me reports that they received an honest-to-goodness OTA version of FRF83 after trying (and failing) to get that ZIP to work, and we're getting several similar reports. Let us know in comments if you've received a frozen treat of your own.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Nexus One getting Android 2.2 FRF83 update over the air? originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 23 Jun 2010 23:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HTC slaps phone firmware site with cease and desist letter

IBM — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 02:47:00 +0000

You might be familiar with firmware impresario Conflipper by now, a man who's earned a reputation tearing apart ROMs -- often for unreleased devices -- and pulling out the juicy bits for everyone to see. Turns out the dude runs a site called Shipped ROMs with... yes, you guessed it, a bunch of shipped ROMs for a wide variety of phones on it, and it seems HTC's legal cats in Taiwan have taken issue, saying they've got "very strong reasons to believe that the HTC Intellectual Property was illegally obtained by fraudulent means" in a strongly-worded cease and desist letter sent to him earlier today. We reached out to HTC's US branch for comment and got back the following:

"While HTC tries to take a hands off [approach] about the modder / ROM chef community, this site's sole purpose [is] to make HTC's content available for download from a source other than HTC. That content is not just the open source parts and kernels of Android but all of the software that HTC itself has developed. This is a clear violation of our copyrights and HTC needs to defend itself in these cases."

In other words, these guys are just really against hosting official ROMs on unofficial servers. Anyone can dump a ROM from a phone and flesh it out, so we can't imagine there's any competitive concern -- and no first-party site makes so many firmware builds available for so many devices in such a concise, well-organized way as Shipped ROMs is doing. Ultimately, it's HTC's property -- it seems like they're probably in the legal right here -- but the unsavory PR effect with some of the company's staunchest enthusiasts makes the endeavor more trouble than it's worth, we'd argue. Tread carefully, HTC.

HTC slaps phone firmware site with cease and desist letter originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 Jun 2010 21:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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