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Friday, January 29, 2016

Don’t Miss These Android Stories: January 29, 2016

You can tell that we are getting closer and closer to MWC, because the leaks are springing from every surface of the internet. This week, we got our first look at the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge, LG G5 (in a dummy box), and heard full specs for the HTC One M10. Outside of the leak fun, we also got Hangouts 7.0, saw prices drop for the Nexus 5X and 6P, and watched T-Mobile make a whole bunch of tweaks to services.

The week was packed, but it’ll only get busier over the coming weeks. Be sure to catch-up now so that you can keep up as we hit the end of February, where everything will be really nuts. 

Can’t wait to watch the Pro Bowl this weekend…err, what?

Don’t Miss These Android Stories: January 29, 2016 is a post from: Droid Life



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T-Mobile JUMP! Prices Increase for Some on March 1, Drop for Others

On March 1, customers participating in T-Mobile’s JUMP! upgrade program that currently costs $10 per month will either see a $2 dollar increase per month or a $1 reduction. According to letters being sent to JUMP! participants, T-Mobile is making the adjustments after they “evaluated” their Premium Handset Protection that is included in the JUMP! monthly fee. 

Going forward, T-Mobile will rank phones on a 1-5 tier level. That tier level will determine how much your monthly JUMP! price will be. For example, if you own a tier 1, 2, or 3 phone, your JUMP! price will be $9 per month. If you own a tier 4 or 5 phone, your JUMP! price will be $12 per month.

T-Mobile is determining tier level based on the device value and how much the deductible for it would be. Tier 1 phones have deductibles in the $20 range, whereas tier 5 phones are at $175. Phones like the Galaxy Note 5 and iPhone 6s are tier 5.

You can see a copy of the letter below.

tmobile-jump-prices

Along with the changes to JUMP! pricing, Premium Handset Protection (PHP) will change similarly. Currently, PHP runs $8 for everyone, but the price of it will change to $7 per month for tier 1-3 phones and jump to $10 per month for tier 4 and 5 phones.

Again, this all goes live on March 1.

Cheers Cory!

T-Mobile JUMP! Prices Increase for Some on March 1, Drop for Others is a post from: Droid Life



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Our First Look at the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge?

Hi there, pretty pictures. We haven’t yet met, but I do believe you are the yet-to-be-announced Samsung Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge?

Leaker @evleaks just posted the image you are seeing below without comment other than a link to an article he had previously written that details Samsung’s new phones. While he isn’t saying it directly, we have to assume that these are press renders of the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge. 

Below, we have what should be the regular Galaxy S7 on the left, followed by the Galaxy S7 Edge on the right. Yes, they are different sizes. At one point, we were operating under rumors that there may be three phones: the regular S7, an S7 Edge the size of the regular S6, and then a bigger S7 Edge+. Within the last week, those rumors cooled and we are now expecting just two phones called the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge. Make sense?

So what are we seeing? It should be obvious that the overall design language here is almost identical to last year’s S6 and S6 Edge+. The only real differences standing out to me at the moment, are potentially slightly less bezel in the new models, a bigger front facing camera, and a more rectangular home button. The color also appears to be black, rather than the deep blue we saw last year.

We should also point out that the date of Sunday, February 21 is on the lock screen of both. That’s significant because that is press day at MWC, where we expect Samsung to unveil each.

galaxy s7 galaxy s7 edge

This isn’t to scale, but here is a comparison of the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge+ to these renders from @evleaks. S6 on the left and S7 on the right.

galaxy s6 vs galaxy s7

Thoughts?

Via:  @evleaks

Our First Look at the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge? is a post from: Droid Life



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This Icon Pack is Hot: Material Cards

In our last episode of “This icon pack is hot,” I made an off-handed comment about the world not needing anymore Material Design inspired icon packs. For the most part, I still stand by that comment, because seriously, there are so many icon packs that are some variation of Google’s icons, only they differ by offering a tweaked color scheme or palette or vibe. Where we need to see Material Design put to use is in packs like the one we are featuring day.

This is Material Cards. 

With Material Cards, you get an icon set that is technically in “beta.” I don’t know what that means, other than it only has 640 icons instead of the few thousand you see from others.

The overall look takes in some Material Design cues with its color scheme and attempts at creating subtle depth through shadows. The icons are also very minimal and will remind you of their true Google-inspired counterparts. They remain unique, though, because of their squatty rectangular shape. With Material Cards, it’s as if you are looking at Google’s own icon ideas, only they have been pressed into card form. It’s a fresh take on Material icons, but should also satisfy those of us who like to see icons all of the same shape.

The pack also includes a set of wallpapers that are unique in their own right. Most are flattened, Material takes on the backs of popular phones. You’ll find wallpapers for the Nexus 6P, that actually look like a flattened Nexus 6P. The same goes for the OnePlus 2, G4, Moto X Pure Edition, and V10.

Play Link ($0.99)

material cards icons-5 material cards icons-6 material cards icons-7 material cards icons-8

This Icon Pack is Hot: Material Cards is a post from: Droid Life



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DEAL: 128GB MicroSD Cards are as Cheap as $33 These Days

You would think that after being in this industry for almost 7 years now, that seeing accessories like 128GB microSD cards drop to $33 wouldn’t amaze me so much, but it still does when you consider how quickly everything moves.

At the beginning of 2014, SanDisk introduced one of the first 128GB microSD cards to the world. It was insanely expensive out of the gate, so expensive that we called a price drop to $120 a “deal.” Today, companies like Silicon Power are selling class 10, UHS-1 128GB cards for $32.99 with Prime shipping. That’s so nuts. You can even grab their 64GB cards for under $15. 

In that two years, we saw companies ditch SD card slots and then adopt them and then ditch them and then adopt them again. This year, we’re pretty sure is an adoption year again, with Samsung (reportedly) bringing them back, plus LG will likely keep theirs as well. Now would be the time to stock up on storage, assuming you plan to pick-up one of these new flagships out of Korea.

Amazon Link

DEAL: 128GB MicroSD Cards are as Cheap as $33 These Days is a post from: Droid Life



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Question of the Day: Do You Worry About Android Security?

Security is an important topic in today’s mobile heavy world. It’s starting to feel as if we are almost always under some form of attack from this or that spyware or virus or backdoor. Well, security companies are certainly trying to make us believe that, especially those who have attached their livelihood to Android. This isn’t me completely dismissing potential threats on Android, it’s just that most of these “67% of Android users at risk!” types of headline-grabbing reports almost always contain a big asterisk that involves some form of, “This doesn’t concern you if you install everything through Google Play.” In other words, if you own a legitimate Android phone that has Google services and aren’t installing pirated apps through scary-as-hell 3rd party app stores, you are fine. 

But look, security threats can be real. After all, when you become this widely distributed as an “open” platform through so many different manufacturers and channels, you do sort of open yourself up to security issues. Even Google has started issuing monthly security patches to make sure Android is as up-to-date as is possible and some manufacturers have even joined their crusade.

With that in mind, I’d like to see where you all stand on Android security. Is this something you are at all concerned about? Are you installing some form of a security app (like an anti-virus app) on your devices? Do you understand that sticking to Google Play protects you almost all of the time?

Below, you’ll find a short poll, but I’d really like to hear thoughts in general on Android security in the comments.

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Question of the Day: Do You Worry About Android Security? is a post from: Droid Life



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GIVEAWAY: We Have 50 Promo Codes for Backdrops Pro Up for Grabs!

Waaaaay back in October, we featured an app called Backdrops, a wallpaper app with a Material Design focus that was pushing out daily ‘papers, collections, the ability to share your own with the app’s community, and an incredibly clean appearance. It’s a really nice wallpaper app.

This week, the team behind it released a big update that introduces Google sign-in, so you can now sync your favorites across all of your devices. This is one of those features that multi-device owners will surely appreciate. While unrelated in content form, this was my reason for switching to ParcelTrack for package tracking. Device sync is a big deal, especially as many of us migrate from device to device, whether that’s between personal devices only or work and personal. 

To celebrate this big update, Backdrops reached out to offer the DL crew 50 promo codes for their Pro version. The Pro price was at one time $1.99, so we’re here to save you a couple of bucks.

Play Link

How to win a promo code.

To enter for a chance to win, all you have to do is follow the Rafflecopter widget instructions below, which is basically going to tell you to leave a comment about Backdrops. So you have two steps here. You need to enter information into Rafflecopter, because this is how we’ll choose our winners. Then, after doing so, jump below and leave a comment about Backdrops and why you are interested in it. If you don’t do the Rafflecopter portion and instead just leave a comment, you won’t be entered. I apologize if that sounds difficult, but the widget makes it really easy for us to pick winners.

We’ll choose our winners later today at 2PM Pacific.

Ready? Go!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

GIVEAWAY: We Have 50 Promo Codes for Backdrops Pro Up for Grabs! is a post from: Droid Life



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