OnePlus One’s Newly Added MaxxAudio Now Ported To Run On Other Android Devices

A couple of days ago the OnePlus One received an update. Unfortunately for those One owners it was not either the highly awaited stable version of Cyanogen’s Lollipop, CM12 or what seems to be the more highly awaited OnePlus homegrown, OxygenOS. It was, in fact, just an incremental Android 4.4.4 (KitKat) update. However, in fairness, it was not ‘just’ another update, but instead was rather a decent update in terms of its content. There was a whole host of bug and performance fixes (both major and minor) and there was also the introduction of two new features. The first was the inclusion of SwiftKey as a default keyboard option and the second was the introduction of MaxxAudio as the default media player (although the media player still operates as ‘AudiFX’ so really just the introduction of the MaxxAudio technology).

There was some debate about whether or not the SwiftKey inclusion was a worthy inclusion, as a number of One owners seemed slightly against the idea of being pushed a commercial keyboard offering like SwiftKey. That said, the MaxxAudio feature does seem to be one everyone has agreed is a good feature and adds value to their beloved Ones. However, what do you do if you do not have a One or an invite to buy, but would like to test out MaxxAudio on your device? Well, luckily for you, there is always a way. And thanks to the clever folks over at XDA (solarz), anyone can now try and install MaxxAudio on their android devices.

Now before you head over to the link (link below) you do need to be made aware that this has only been tested on devices running CyanogenMod 12 (CM12) and CyanogenMod 11 (CM11). If you are running either of these Cyanogen ROMs on any device, then you should be fine. For all non-CM devices, this has not been tested for your device, so it might work or it might not work. Either way, you do have to be rooted to be able to install MaxxAudio. The reason you need to be rooted is that you need root access available to you, so that you can delve into the root folder (using a file manager) and replace the libraries needed for the app to run. Other than that click here to head over to the XDA listing, where you can find both the downloads (CM11 and CM12) and further instructions.

The post OnePlus One’s Newly Added MaxxAudio Now Ported To Run On Other Android Devices appeared first on AndroidHeadlines.com |.

from AndroidHeadlines.com | http://ift.tt/1AtlrNk

New Report Claims Android 5.0 Lollipop Users Experience 0.2 Percent Less App Crashes Than iOS 8 Users

With each release of a new Android OS version, it seems there is always more to love with improvements over previous versions. That isn’t to say that new releases don’t come along without their bugs and slight hiccups. There have certainly been more than a few cases of weird issues people have been experiencing after updating to the latest software this time around. Usually when stuff like this happens there is a flood of people complaining followed by remarks about how stable iOS is compared to Android. In a recent report by Crittercism however it seems that for all the issues people have been having with Android 5.0 Lollipop, they are still less in number than the issues had by people using iPhones running iOS 8 in regards to app crashes.

The report states that Android users on Lollipop are experiencing 0.2 percent less crashes than those users who are running the iOS 8 version of Apple’s mobile operating system, which may not seem like a lot but when you factor in the amount of people actually using iPhones with that version of software, it ends up being more than you’d think. This doesn’t suggest that iOS 8 is a completely unstable platform by any means, it merely points out that Android’s latest version of the OS is slightly more stable than that of iOS. The exact number of crash rates according to Crittercism is at 2.0 percent for Android Lollipop compared to the 2.2 percent of iOS 8 devices.

Further, the same report claims that iOS 8 is also seeing a higher app crash rate than the previous version of the mobile operating system, iOS 7, which saw an app crash rate of 1.9 percent. Comparing this to previous versions of Android, like Kit Kat for example, which saw app crash rates as a whole of 2.6 percent, it would seem that Android’s instability rate is decreasing while that of iOS is actually increasing, which is just a little bit interesting. Crittercism also notes that comparing the two mobile operating systems of even older versions, saw the same results with Android users seeing lower amounts of crash rates for apps than that of users running the comparable version of iOS at the time, stating the versions of Android 1.6 through 4.0.1 saw less app crashes than users on iOS 3.13 to iOS 5.1. Are you experiencing app crashes often on either iOS 8 or Android 5.0 Lollipop?

The post New Report Claims Android 5.0 Lollipop Users Experience 0.2 Percent Less App Crashes Than iOS 8 Users appeared first on AndroidHeadlines.com |.

from AndroidHeadlines.com | http://ift.tt/1E5IRYe

Leaked Samsung doc hints at March release date for the Galaxy S6, April for Galaxy S6 Edge

We already know the exact date Samsung plans on revealing the Samsung Galaxy S6 and Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge: March 1st during their Unpacked event in Barcelona. What we don’t know is when they plan on releasing the darn thing. Last year the Samsung Galaxy S5 was officially announced on February 24th, launching globally on April 11th, 2014.

While one could assume Samsung would repeat what they did last year and launch the phone about a month after it’s been unveiled, if HTC’s same-day announcement/launch for the One M8 taught us anything, it’s that competition is fierce and being first out the gate could give Samsung that edge they need to reclaim the crown.

Today, the folks at PhoneArena got a hold of a leaked internal document from an alleged Samsung employee, potentially revealing launch dates for both the Samsung Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge by way of black out dates (dates employees aren’t allowed to take days off). According to the doc, March 22nd – March 30th are cited as mandatory work days, as well as April 19th – April 27th. If we were gambling men, we’d be willing to bet that first date is referring to the Galaxy S6, while the more difficult to produce Galaxy S6 Edge (and its curved display) will be available in late April.

Of course, nothing here is concrete and although the leak looks legit enough, the dates could be tentative. If these dates do pan out, Samsung will have effectively pulled off an announcement/launch ratio the likes very few OEMs have managed to pull off. We’ll continue to keep an eye out for you.

from Phandroid http://ift.tt/1AgPBEV

TracFone Sees Lower Growth In Q4 2014 Due To Increased Competition From Bigger Players

TracFone has been around for quite some time, offering up some of the lowest rates available for wireless cell service that a customer could possibly buy. Having the lowest prices isn’t necessarily going to guarantee you continued growth and success. According to the latest reports TracFone has been feeling pressure from the increased competition from the nations biggest players in the wireless industry which resulted in them seeing a fairly low amount of growth in the fourth quarter of 2014, grabbing up only 101,000 new subscribers. This number of new customers is even lower than they posted in the fourth quarter of 2013 which has caused some to be concerned.

TracFone also posted a higher churn in the fourth quarter of last year compared to the year prior in 2013, having boosted churn rates of 4.2 percent, which was only 3.6 percent the year before. Although growth for TracFone Wireless seems to be slowing down than in recent years, they still managed to post some growth last year moving up from around 25.9 million subscribers to about 26 million. Slowing growth is definitely nothing to take lightly but it’s still better than no growth at all, or even worse, posting losses. Nonetheless, TracFone slowed down quite a bit as Q4 2013 saw them post a gain of around 616,000 new subscribers which is a huge margin compared to this past year

TracFone operates a number of different smaller branded networks, borrowing coverage from the larger carriers like T-Mobile, Sprint, Verizon Wireless and AT&T, spanning across services like Net10, Simple Mobile, Straight Talk, Telcel America, SafeLink, and Page Plus. In addition to TracFone’s lower subscriber growth this past quarter, it also posted a EBITDA of $72 million down from $119 million the previous year. This is also alongside the $40 million it had to shell out to the Federal Trade Commission(FTC) over bogus advertising that customers were receiving unlimited data services, when in fact customers were getting throttled with some even getting their data usage cut off after they had crossed a certain point of usage, although TracFone isn’t the only network where customers are complaining about the branding of unlimited data that isn’t actually unlimited. TracFone’s slower growth can also be attributed to the increased competition in Mexico(their main market)that its parent company American Movil is getting from AT&T who has recently purchased Lusacell and plans to acquire Nextel Mexico.

The post TracFone Sees Lower Growth In Q4 2014 Due To Increased Competition From Bigger Players appeared first on AndroidHeadlines.com |.

from AndroidHeadlines.com | http://ift.tt/1EhTZku

Google’s Adrian Ludwig Explains What Google Does To Protect Android Users And Their Devices

In more recent times, security has become more of a prevalent issue for android users. Almost routinely now we are hearing new stories of data breaching, data loss and identity theft and as smartphones become more entwined with our living and working lives, these reports are likely to increase in frequency and attract more debate. Very recently, Google hit the headlines for what seemed to be a known security flaw (that Google were made aware of) to which they did not seem to be providing a fix for. This fueled debate as to who should be responsible for patching security flaws. Google’s argument (which is a good one, to be honest) is that they cannot apply fixes to devices of a certain age without the manufacturers rolling out the updates. As we know, virtually all manufacturers abandoning device updates once a device reaches the two-year marker. Well, in spite of Google explaining their position they did receive a lot of flack at the time.

To continue to help android devices understand the situation and how Google approach the issue of security with their devices Android Central managed to get a bit of a sit down with Google’s Android Security Lead Engineer, Adrian Ludwig. Most of the chat seems to focus around reassuring android users that Google takes security extremely seriously. This was largely explained by Google advising of the various levels of security they employ from hardware features up to the more commonly thought of, Google applications and services. Each level has its own degree of security resulting in a multi-tiered approach. The next issue on the agenda was that of the long-lasting support (which was the issue which caused the headlines a couple of weeks ago). In this respect, Ludwig points out that Google will also endeavor to update fixes and security patches directly through their services and applications if that is possible. Not to mention, that they work with third party partners to provide fixes for the last two generations of the android operating system. With WebKit (the issue from a few weeks ago) being the one exception. Lastly, pointing out that Google continually do (and will) continue to provide third party developers with the information and tools to help combat any and all known security issues.

Following on from this, Ludwig talks about how Google try to help with security issues when it comes to third party apps and custom ROMs. Both of these again are protecting as much as possible through the Google security systems and users are always provided with information on any issues they might have in terms of harmful, malicious or threatening apps or features. It is also worth noting, that the Google Security Services were also continually offered to android users above and beyond any lapse in support for devices from their respective manufacturers. These security features include warnings to the user before they download certain app/services, warnings during downloading of such material and further warning when the content is downloaded and running. As such Google highlights that do try to keep as much support in terms of security as they possibly can. You can read the article in full by clicking the source link below. In the meantime, let us know what you think of the security issue in general and what manufacturers and Google need to do to make sure you and your android device are better protected?

The post Google’s Adrian Ludwig Explains What Google Does To Protect Android Users And Their Devices appeared first on AndroidHeadlines.com |.

from AndroidHeadlines.com | http://ift.tt/1KRaFBN

Samsung’s 64-Bit Galaxy Tab 4 8.0 On Its Way To The U.S. As It Passes Through The FCC

More and more devices are headed our way being powered by 64-Bit processors, and the latest to pass through the FCC waiting for approval is Samsung’s upgraded Galaxy Tab 4 8.0, a slightly improved version with a different processor running on the 64-bit architecture, instead of the 32-Bit quad-core CPU clocked at 1.2GHz that we saw powering the original Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 8.0 which released last year in June of 2014. Samsung has been testing this new and improved version of the mid size tablet and as it landed at the FCC recently it looks like it could be getting ready for a launch. We may end up hearing about the tablet at the upcoming Unpacked event that is scheduled to take place on March 1st as part of Mobile World Congress 2015.

While we already have a slight idea on some of the possible specifications which includes a possible 1.4GB of RAM and 12GB of internal storage space, nothing so far has been made official on what this tablet will be packing. As we’re just now seeing the 8-inch slate pass through the FCC and there were rumors of a possible 10-inch display version with the upgraded processor coming as well, we may end up seeing that model of the Galaxy Tab 4 pass through the FCC before too long as well.

Usually devices passing through the FCC is one of the last stops for a device before it makes its way to a launch or official unveiling, so we wouldn’t be surprised to hear about this from Samsung in the near future although since this is just a revamp with upgraded specs it seems, they may not make a big announcement of the device at all. The FFC documentation lists the tablet that was tested by the FCC last month on January 8th as model number SM-T333, which is the same model number of the device that showed up on Zauba.com in December, so it would be safe to assume that we’re looking at the Galaxy Tab 4 8.0 refresh here. This isn’t going to be a high-end tablet from Samsung but it won’t be a bad device for someone looking for a nice mid-ranger and if the specs come out as they’re expected then we probably won’t be looking at a very high price tag either compared to Samsung’s top tier offerings.

The post Samsung’s 64-Bit Galaxy Tab 4 8.0 On Its Way To The U.S. As It Passes Through The FCC appeared first on AndroidHeadlines.com |.

from AndroidHeadlines.com | http://ift.tt/1vox0zx

Deal: Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5 (Brand New) – $299

Looking for a quality tablet for under $300? Well one of Samsung’s best tablet they’ve ever made is on sale from eBay for just $299 right now. That’s the Galaxy Tab S 10.5. It’s a brand new model, so no refurbs or anything like that here. And it sports a 2560×1600 AMOLED display. You can grab yours from the link below.

Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5 – $299.99

The post Deal: Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5 (Brand New) – $299 appeared first on AndroidHeadlines.com |.

from AndroidHeadlines.com | http://ift.tt/1vox0zj