Indus OS, the startup developing a localized version of Android for India, is now going after international OEMs after it clinched a deal that will local giant Intex sell smartphones powered by its operating system. Intex has around 10 percent of sales in India, according to data from Counterpoint Research, so landing the firm …
Read More »Google brings RCS, the next-gen upgrade to SMS, to Android phones on Sprint
As promised earlier this year, Google is bringing RCS – Rich Communications Service, an upgrade to the SMS standard – to Android devices. Its first carrier partner on the initiative is Sprint, which is rolling out RCS messaging to its customers with Android devices, starting today. Once enabled, RCS will offer …
Read More »Opera Max update adds privacy tools but annoys some users
Opera has rolled out a set of privacy features to its data-saving proxy for Android, Opera Max. It’s now billing it as a “data management and privacy app”. The company previewed the new privacy mode last month, saying it would be starting a gradual rollout — with the feature first available in Samsung’s S Secure mode on the Samsung Galaxy J5 …
Read More »Signal app-maker rebuts criticism of dev direction by calling for more community help
Moxie Marlinspike, founder of Open Whisper Systems (OWS), the not-for-profit software group behind the respected Signal Protocol crypto (and the eponymous Signal secure messaging app) has responded to criticism of how the group is developing its projects by calling for more contributions from the community to broaden implementations of the protocol. “I …
Read More »Google brings Android Auto to the phone
Earlier this year, Google announced its plans to bring Android Auto, its phone-centric in-car infotainment platform, “to every car” by launching it as a stand-alone Android app, too. It’s taken a while, but the company today launched an update to the Android Auto app for — well — Android that …
Read More »Meditation startup Simple Habit adds Android, web app
Mindfulness app Simple Habit has expanded its reach, launching an Android version and also adding a web app to widen the touchpoints for what the team is hoping to build into a platform for guided meditation — touting their Spotify style subscription model as a first for the mindfulness space. The iOS version of the app exited beta in …
Read More »Google responds to EU antitrust charges against Android
Google has now filed its official response to the EU’s antitrust charges against its Android mobile OS. The company had previously been granted a deadline extension by the European Commission, which kicked off a formal investigation into Android back in April. According to Reuters the EC is intending to hit Google with …
Read More »Google ‘strongly’ recommends against third-party fast charging technology on Android
Everyone, it seems, is going the fast charging route these days. Thanks to the nearing ubiquity of USB-C on flagship devices, the feature is quickly becoming a standard – “standard” in the sense that everyone is doing it, not so much that there’s any consistency to the tech. All in …
Read More »More Android devices are running Gingerbread than Nougat 7.0
Slowly but surely, the news of Nougat updates are starting to roll in. The OnePlus 3 and Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge will be getting beta versions in the near future, and ZTE recently announced an update for the Axon 7 arriving in January. But aside from some high …
Read More »Facebook Messenger now works in Android Auto
On the heels of Google’s announcement that its in-car infotainment platform Android Auto can now function as a standalone mobile app, Facebook today announced that it’s now rolling out Android Auto integration on Messenger. That means Android Auto users will be able to listen to and reply to texts from friends on Messenger using …
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