APK BRO™ - Download APK Android Apps: 04/19/16

Tuesday, April 19, 2016

Google Camera App From Android N Developer Preview Rolling Out on Google Play

If you happen to use the Google Camera app from Google Play, which would be anyone here with a Nexus device or anyone who downloaded it to use over their device’s built-in OEM camera app, you will be happy to learn that the Google Camera app on Google Play now matches that of the camera app found inside of the Android N Developer Preview. Specifically, it is version 3.2, and inside, it has a few tweaks that mobile photography fans are sure to get a kick out of.

Once updated from Google Play, the Google Camera application allows for users to capture stills while shooting raw video, with a shutter button added in for the quick capture feature. These still shots are saved to your Photos/Gallery app for later viewing. Also, the slow motion feature is no longer a video mode easily accessible, and instead, has been moved to the pullout menu. Accessing slow motion now requires a bit more work, but Google must have decided not enough people were using it.

To top all of this off, Google has created a revamped shutter button, and there is also a new icon for switching between front and rear-facing cameras.

Version 3.2 is rolling out to Google Play right now, so if you rock Google Camera on your Nexus device or any other phone, go grab it.

Play Link

Via: Android Police

Poll: Whats Your Keyboard App of Choice?

We wrote up the big changes for the Chrooma Keyboard app this morning, and inside of that post, I declared that Chrooma was currently my favorite keyboard app for Android. What can I say, I really enjoy the pretty colors. Thankfully, we write about a platform that is all about choice. There are probably hundreds of different keyboard apps to choose from on Google Play, but in reality, there are probably only a handful that receive enormous amounts of downloads and everyday usage.

On Android, our choices are as follows: SwiftKey, Google Keyboard, Fleksy, Swype, Chrooma, and usually whatever keyboard app is built into the device when you first turned it on. If folks are actually using the stock keyboard app on their phone I will be a little worried, but maybe this poll can help them find a better option.

If you happen to use a different keyboard app than the ones listed, let us know about it down below.

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

Leicas Involvement in the Huawei P9 is Essentially Nothing More Than a Name

When announced, Huawei’s P9 smartphone was pretty exciting, thanks to its “co-engineered” with Leica labeling and marketing. For anyone in the photography field, knowing that Leica’s legendary reputation was being placed alongside a Chinese manufactured smartphone is pretty huge, especially with phrases like, “reinvent smartphone photography” and “Leica dual lenses” being tossed on all of Huawei’s promotional material.

At the time of announcement, Huawei explicitly stated that the camera experience has a whole was co-engineered with Leica, leading customers to assume that the camera-maker had some sort of hand in the creation of the modules. Come to find out, that is not exactly the case.

Thanks to recent information clarified by Huawei and written by multiple outlets from across the globe, the origins of the camera hardware inside of the P9 and P9 Plus have been traced to Sunny Optical, a Chinese smartphone camera manufacturer. In fact, Sunny Optical is the world’s largest mobile phone camera module supplier, according to My Drivers. As it turns out, Leica had virtually zero input on the overall camera itself, but instead, lent certification for the module, providing no actual help in the development or production of the optics. On Huawei’s website, it is stated (under a dropdown banner, mind you) that the phones have a Leica co-engineered “Picture Quality Algorithm” baked in, and that’s it from what I can find.

To sum it up, no, these are not Leica lenses. At the end of the day, Leica had very little involvement at all, and really, this was purely a marketing move by Huawei to help sell phones. Is it a big deal? No, not exactly, but I do feel that there is quite a bit of misrepresentation going on here, and from a consumer standpoint, that is not right. When you say “co-engineered” and “Leica dual lenses” directly on your company’s product page, it’s false.

Instead of leaning on Leica’s name to sell people a phone, Huawei should have been more straightforward with what it was offering. According to many who have taken shots on the P9 and P9 Plus, they supposedly have fantastic cameras, so why the gimmicks?

Via: My Drivers | DP Review

Cheers Marc!

How Many Android Applications Does Google Check Every Day for Malware?

6 billion.

That’s according to Google’s latest “Android Security 2015 Annual Report.” The report arrives for the second year in a row as a way for Google to explain to you just how secure Android really is, especially as more and more scheming anti-virus and security outlets, along with Apple bloggers, tell you otherwise. The report is also done so that Google can tell you exactly how it takes on malware and other security issues, including using machine learning to “detect potentially harmful behavior.”

In 2015 alone, Google says that it protected users from malware and Potentially Harmful Apps (PHA) by “checking over 6 billion installed applications per day.” That means they also scanned some 400 million devices per day. They also reduced the probability of you installing a PHA from Google Play by over 40% and reduced some other important numbers like PHAs who attempt to collect data from 40% to 0.08%, spyware from 60% to 0.02%, and hostile downloaders from 50% to 0.01%. Google says that PHAs were installed on less than 0.15% of devices that only get apps from Google Play, which is yet another reason as to why you should never go pirate apps from dirty ass third party sites or app stores.

In this year’s security report, Google reminds us about Android 6.0 Marshmallow and the new security features including in there, like full disk encryption requirements, more control over app permissions, the new verified boot system, status on your Android security patch level in the about tab of settings, etc.

The report also has fun flow charts like this:

You can view the full 49-page report here.

If anything, I’d recommend scrolling through it. Google shows all of the different on-device protections built into Android, how they constantly verify apps, and then dives into trends and changes from 2014 to 2015. It’s pretty interesting info.

Video: Unofficial Hardware Tour Provided for Moto G (4th Gen)

We recently got what could have been our first look at the Moto G (4th Gen), but now, a very unofficial video is taking us on a complete hardware tour. During the video, we get to see the device’s frontside, backside, and even a size comparison between it and what appears to be a Moto G (3rd Gen).

The overall look of the phone appears to match up very well with those first images we saw, but most notably, there is no fingerprint reader on the frontside bottom chin. This phone is likely an early prototype, meaning Motorola didn’t build in that addition, but it is sort of strange to see different multiple prototype variants floating around.

The only other info we can dissect from this video is that Motorola looks to be including either Moto Display or Google’s own Ambient Display software on the device. That’s the software which allows the display to light up when the phone is moved to show the time and a minimal amount of notifications. Other than that, Motorola’s signature vertical camera setup is still there, and the Moto dimple is also visible.

The audio has been muted on the video, probably because someone does not want to get in trouble, but at least the quality of the video is decent enough and not shaky.

Thoughts?

Via: +hellomotoHK

Cheers Geoffrey!

Chrooma Keyboard Now Free of Google Play Updated With Loads of New Features

Chrooma Keyboard, our absolute favorite 3rd-party keyboard app on Google Play, is now free for all people of the world. First launched with a price of $1.49, the developers have switched to a free model, providing a wider audience a chance to try out the keyboard’s unique features.

For those who already purchased the app, don’t freak out, the developers have built in a way for your to restore your purchase and log into the app, meaning you aren’t losing out on any features or updates. To do this, update the app, go through the entirety of the setup process to make sure you are logged in properly, then slide out the hamburger menu and hit “Restore Purchases.” All features will then be made available to you. If you happened to purchase this app in the past 24 hours for its full price, your upgrade will be carried over automatically, so don’t start thinking you somehow got ripped off.

As for what’s new, beyond the free pricing(!), the settings for the app have been completely reworked, multi-language support is added in, new color styles are available for your viewing pleasure, and a new prediction algorithm will offer a better predicting experience.

Additionally, for those looking to help beta test this app, you can join this Google+ community, then download the beta via Google Play. Betas are awesome.

Check out the changelog, then go download it.

What’s New

App is now free
Brand new settings app
Multilanguage
New color styles
New prediction algorithm
Preference synchronization

Play Link

DEAL: Amazon Echo and Tap Discounted 15% Today Only

At one point, I probably would have told you that while cool and a fun party toy, the Amazon Echo wasn’t really worth all that it was cracked up to be. After all, it’s only a decent Bluetooth speaker, doesn’t have access to Google Play Music through Alexa, and does a lot of the things the phone in your hand does, only slower because you have to talk to it. But within the past year, Amazon put its foot on the gas pedal in terms of adding features to Amazon Echo and is turning it into the future hub of your home.

Today, Amazon Echo (which is controlled by Alexa) does more things than I can even keep track of. From controlling a number of different LED smart lights to giving you kid health advice through KidsMD, or finally getting access to Nest and telling you if you need to put gas in your car, this has become an incredibly useful household tool. You can even order pizza through Domino’s or request an Uber. Thankfully, as an Echo owner, you will receive an email from Amazon each week detailing the new goodies. You can also see the list of capabilities here.

For today only, Amazon is discounting Amazon Echo (and the portable Amazon Tap version) by 15% to celebrate the fact that they were voted most reputable company in the US. At 15% off, you are looking at discounts of $26 for the Echo and almost $19 for the Tap.

Amazon Links: Amazon Echo ($153.71) | Amazon Tap ($111.01)

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Tuesday, April 19, 2016

Google Camera App From Android N Developer Preview Rolling Out on Google Play

Via: Android Police

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Poll: Whats Your Keyboard App of Choice?

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Leicas Involvement in the Huawei P9 is Essentially Nothing More Than a Name

Via: My Drivers | DP Review

Cheers Marc!

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How Many Android Applications Does Google Check Every Day for Malware?

6 billion.

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Video: Unofficial Hardware Tour Provided for Moto G (4th Gen)

Via: +hellomotoHK

Cheers Geoffrey!

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Chrooma Keyboard Now Free of Google Play Updated With Loads of New Features

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DEAL: Amazon Echo and Tap Discounted 15% Today Only

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