Google Android catch-all

farley3k wrote:

Read on slashdot that KitKat was out now. although I have no idea what devices you can actually get it on yet.

Also saw this article about all the new stuff in KitKat from Lifehacker.

Memory improvements for increased OS performance are always nice. At the bottom of the lifehacker article it says:

"KitKat is out today on the Nexus 5, and is coming to the Nexus 4, 7, and 10, as well as the Samsung Galaxy S4 and HTC One Google Play edition in the next few weeks"

EvilDead wrote:
farley3k wrote:

Read on slashdot that KitKat was out now. although I have no idea what devices you can actually get it on yet.

Also saw this article about all the new stuff in KitKat from Lifehacker.

Memory improvements for increased OS performance are always nice. At the bottom of the lifehacker article it says:

"KitKat is out today on the Nexus 5, and is coming to the Nexus 4, 7, and 10, as well as the Samsung Galaxy S4 and HTC One Google Play edition in the next few weeks"

Awww man, I was hoping the rumor that they were going to release it as a launcher to get around manufacturers was true.

muraii wrote:

Why doesn't Google like Verizon?

Because Verizon is jerks. Their Galaxy Nexus turned out not to be Pure Google, and Google doesn't control when updates actually reach those devices, even if they finished writing the software months before.

Gorilla.800.lbs wrote:

Google Nexus 5, AVAILABLE RIGHT NOW (in Black) for $350.

Optical image stabilization? What the heck's a "Hall Effect" sensor?

muraii wrote:

Why doesn't Google like Verizon?

I think the real question is "why does Verizon dislike unlocked devices?"; if it works on Sprint, then it seems pretty likely that the hardware itself would work with Verizon, if only you could connect it.

Kit Kat and the Nexus 5 both look great, but not pushing the update to the Galaxy Nexus is a total dick move -- you'd think it'd be benefit more from the memory improvements than any other Nexus device (except maybe the 2012 Nexus 7). Apparently the code is already going to AOSP, though, so I'm sure we'll see some Galaxy Nexus ROMs before too long.

Speaking of code, from what I've seen so far playing around with the SDK, it seems likely that the new Phone app, and the new launcher, will be closed-source, which is also a bit disappointing.

On a positive note, holy crap that Nexus 5 pricing is good. I'm not sure about the US, but here, the 32GB is AU$449, which is almost half the price of the iPhone 5C, let alone the 5S, and it's $80 cheaper than the still-on-sale 8GB iPhone 4S.

I'm thinking of ditching my Verizon Galaxy Nexus (slow, stutter/pauses, terrible battery life) for a Nexus 5. Probably with T-Mobile's Bring Your Own Phone plan, to get my monthly bill much lower.

I'd like my next phone to work in Europe, if possible (the GN did not). How do I tell if the Nexus 5 will work there? Google said there's a US version and a Rest of the World version, so I'm thinking it won't? Suppose I can wait until T-Mobile has in stock and ask them.

but not pushing the update to the Galaxy Nexus is a total dick move

The hell? Why on earth not?

Proof, once again, that unlocked hardware is important.

Malor wrote:
but not pushing the update to the Galaxy Nexus is a total dick move

The hell? Why on earth not?

Proof, once again, that unlocked hardware is important.

"Too old". They basically only guarantee support for 18 months.

Not the best customer support.

Makes me ready to ditch Verizon at this point.

Not sure where else to go though. ATT generally sucks. Sprint and TM have crappy coverage. Ugh.

Looks like I made the right call buying my LG G2 last week.

BigKid66 wrote:

I'm thinking of ditching my Verizon Galaxy Nexus (slow, stutter/pauses, terrible battery life) for a Nexus 5. Probably with T-Mobile's Bring Your Own Phone plan, to get my monthly bill much lower.

I'd like my next phone to work in Europe, if possible (the GN did not). How do I tell if the Nexus 5 will work there? Google said there's a US version and a Rest of the World version, so I'm thinking it won't? Suppose I can wait until T-Mobile has in stock and ask them.

Do you have a source on the "US" and "Rest of World" thing? That hasn't traditionally been the case with Nexus hardware, so I'd be surprised if they started with this.

I can't easily open the US Play Store to check its specs there, but on the Australian Play Store, it's listed as supporting:

GSM: 850/900/1800/1900 MHz
WCDMA: Bands: 1/2/4/5/6/8
LTE: Bands: 1/3/5/7/8/20

Those WCDMA bands cover everything you'd want for 3G connectivity, at least, throughout Australia, Europe, Asia, and the US. I'm not as sure about LTE, but that's one more band than the Lumia 920 supports, and it's meant to work just about everywhere, so it should be fine. Glancing at Wikipedia, it seems most European LTE networks use bands 3, 7, or 20. Overall, it looks like it should work with at least 3G basically everywhere, and with LTE in most places in the world on at least one band.

Can you check the US Play Store and see if the Nexus 5 specs there list the same bands?

If you'll forgive the double-post, it looks like there are indeed two versions: http://www.fiercewireless.com/story/...

In North America, the phone supports LTE bands 1, 2, 4, 5, 17, 19, 25, 26 and 41, and in international markets the phone supports LTE bands 1, 3, 5, 7, 8 and 20.

So, if you're more worried about use in Europe, it looks like the international model is a better buy. It doesn't look like it'll support LTE in the US, though -- most carriers there are on band 4, along with some other bands that also aren't supported on the international model. That really sucks; it's been great having UTMS support basically worldwide on my Galaxy Nexus, and I was hoping the Nexus 5 would do the same with LTE, but it looks like we're not quite there yet. I didn't realise that the iPhone 5S also seems to have different models that support different sets LTE bands, so it's not just a Nexus 5 problem.

MannishBoy wrote:

"Too old". They basically only guarantee support for 18 months.

Not the best customer support.

Holy sh*t those guys are jerks. It's basically identical to a Nexus 4.

Planned obsolescence for sure.

This, boysengirls, is why you don't buy locked hardware. If it's unlocked, you can keep getting updates as long as people are interested in the device, not solely until the carrier decides that they'd rather not bother with you anymore.

18 months support for a $600 device. That's nuts.

Kurrelgyre wrote:

What the heck's a "Hall Effect" sensor?

My initial thought was that it's for the magnets embedded inside the cover now that there's a flip cover accessory, but the Nexus 7 has that feature too and there's no Hall Effect sensor listed in its specs, so that might not be it.

https://play.google.com/store/device...

My second thought is that it's related to the new Qi charging pad, since there's magnets embedded in that as well.

Lol yeah.. I think the carriers all want their subsidized devices to "break" at the 2 year mark MAX. This new "annual upgrade" plan that they all have is also a bad idea.. essentially you pay more every year than the subsidized price every 2 years... but you get new shiny every year and continue to lock into them.

If work didnt pay for my phones(s) I would buy an unlocked Android phone and stick a $50 prepaid SIM from one of the bigger MNVO's and give the carriers the middle finger.

So apparently Titanium Backup is broken on the new Galaxy S4 ROM. I'm guessing it has to do with the Knox security stuff, but am not sure.

I'm on two updates back still. Guess I'll wait a bit more, or move to the Play version ROM.

I kinda regret trying that Knox app out myself. I do not want to reset everything to remove that damn notifications though. Lesson learned, if someone tells me some on-smartphone app is rubbish _and_ annoying, better avoid it at all cost.

Looks like Google is pulling a Facebook in 4.4: the home screen is Google Search.

I assume this means that Google will default to knowing most or all of what you're doing with your phone.

edit: and to whatever degree Android was ever an open platform, it's certainly a lot less open now.

That article someone posted the other day shows just how "open" Android is these days.. almost makes you feel sorry for Amazon.

TheGameguru wrote:

That article someone posted the other day shows just how "open" Android is these days.. almost makes you feel sorry for Amazon.

Yeah, they only get most of an OS for free now. Somehow I think they'll manage!

Malor wrote:

Looks like Google is pulling a Facebook in 4.4: the home screen is Google Search.

I assume this means that Google will default to knowing most or all of what you're doing with your phone.

edit: and to whatever degree Android was ever an open platform, it's certainly a lot less open now.

I suspect the main reason for doing this is the new Google Now integration in the launcher. It's definitely a shame that the launcher improvements aren't open-source, but I think it's a jump to suggest that Google is tracking everything happening in the launcher until there's some evidence that that's the case.

I think the dialer and messaging changes are more interesting. The new dialer is almost certainly closed-source, which sucks, but it does make a tonne of sense to leverage Google's database of business phone numbers in the dialer -- it's a wonder it's taken them this long. The traditional Messages app is missing on the Nexus 5 too, AFAICT, replaced by the newly-SMS-capable Hangouts app.

I can't wait to see what reviews make of both of these things. They could be great improvements, but if they're not universally-loved then I'm sure someone will have versions of the stock AOSP apps in the Play Store very quickly, just as there are already several AOSP-based launchers there.

Here is the article everyone is referring to.

Google’s iron grip on Android: Controlling open source by any means necessary.

Android is open—except for all the good parts.

I hope now that Cyanogen has Incorporated, they will make good open source alternatives to everything Google is close-sourcing with similar functionality.

Edwin wrote:

Android is open—except for all the good parts.

How much of Samsung's "good parts" has been released for inclusion into AOSP? Of Amazon's? Of HTC's?

Who said any of those were good? In my opinion, they aren't.

Samsung's good parts begin and end at the hardware. The software is just a garbage dump of every random idea they could come up with.

Cannot wait for CMod to release for the Note 3.

My point is that much like other mature OSS projects, or those where releases are also simply thrown over the wall rather than being really developed in the open, there's little incentive for adopters to keep plugging away at the open core. Google may be following that same path of ignore the core to focus on their value-add, but pretty much everyone is already, and their's at least is set up in a way that the device owners can usually find a way to get it even when it's not Nexus hardware.

And I would really love to have Samsung's Reading Mode on my first-gen Nexus 7. It pretty much does the same job as f.lux does on Mac and Windows, but can even be set to toggle per-app. It's the biggest thing I'll miss about my Galaxy Note 8 when it's gone.

Stele wrote:

Makes me ready to ditch Verizon at this point.

Not sure where else to go though. ATT generally sucks. Sprint and TM have crappy coverage. Ugh.

I'm in the same boat. TMo is basically unusable around here if you're in a rural area, and I am in rural areas a lot. My work phone is through Sprint and that's got coverage nearly everywhere I go, but with a lack of LTE almost everywhere, poor 3G speeds, and just being a CDMA carrier, what's the point?

AT&T, I dunno. I'm hoping to eventually find someone with a spare phone I can borrow to try it out.

General Crespin wrote:

I'm in the same boat. TMo is basically unusable around here if you're in a rural area, and I am in rural areas a lot. My work phone is through Sprint and that's got coverage nearly everywhere I go, but with a lack of LTE almost everywhere, poor 3G speeds, and just being a CDMA carrier, what's the point?

Sprint was that way here for a year or two, but it's actually gotten much better as they're new network has rolled out.

TheGameguru wrote:

Lol yeah.. I think the carriers all want their subsidized devices to "break" at the 2 year mark MAX. This new "annual upgrade" plan that they all have is also a bad idea.. essentially you pay more every year than the subsidized price every 2 years... but you get new shiny every year and continue to lock into them.

If work didnt pay for my phones(s) I would buy an unlocked Android phone and stick a $50 prepaid SIM from one of the bigger MNVO's and give the carriers the middle finger.

Done any research on which phone and which MVNOs would be good for this?

Net10 uses both AT&T's and T-Mobile's networks, and recently have gone back to "unlimited" data on both. You can find SIM kits to use your own unlocked phone at GameStop and Wal-Mart, although it may not come with all sizes for both networks--you pick which one you want to actually be on from the different cards in the kit, but last I looked there was no nano-SIM for T-Mobile in there.

MannishBoy wrote:
General Crespin wrote:

I'm in the same boat. TMo is basically unusable around here if you're in a rural area, and I am in rural areas a lot. My work phone is through Sprint and that's got coverage nearly everywhere I go, but with a lack of LTE almost everywhere, poor 3G speeds, and just being a CDMA carrier, what's the point?

Sprint was that way here for a year or two, but it's actually gotten much better as they're new network has rolled out.

3G speed, coverage, or what?

General Crespin wrote:

3G speed, coverage, or what?

4G, coverage quality.

I often get pretty impressive 4G speeds. There are some frustrating dead zones where there isn't coverage and you think it would be populated enough for another tower, but it's improved a lot in the last year.

Still not perfect, but much improved.