Subscribe:

Ads 468x60px

Labels

Verizon 4G LTE rumored to hit prepaid this month

While Verizon Wireless prepaid service is a viable option, some may have been turned off due to the lack of 4G LTE speeds. Up until now Verizon has only been offering 4G LTE to postpaid customers, which ultimately means prepaid users have been limited to 3G speeds. But in a bit of hopeful news -- it appears this will soon be changing.



Keeping in mind we've yet to see any sort of official announcement from Verizon, it is looking like prepaid 4G LTE support will be arriving on July 17th. Details have been shared by Droid-Life, who are reporting this new LTE coverage will be coming to the ALLSET prepaid plan. For reference, that plan includes unlimited talk and text with 500MB of data. In this case the data would be 4G LTE.


That particular plan is $45 per month. Verizon also allows users to add to that 500MB data limit with BRIDGE DATA. Options here range from 500MB for $5 extra per month and climb to 3GB for an extra $20 per month. Of course, we should caution these plans and prices could change with the introduction of LTE data. These prices are all referencing the current setup which includes 3G data.


Again, this is all expected to take effect on July 17th. Further details suggest these plans will be available for current customers (by calling customer service) and also by way of the Verizon website. Naturally, we would also expect to see some 4G LTE devices added to the Verizon prepaid lineup at the same time. For now this has yet to be confirmed, but with an expected launch date just weeks away it seems we should hear something official sooner rather than later.


SOURCE: Droid-Life





T-Mobile expected to begin financing device accessories

T-Mobile has been allowing customers to finance devices under the Uncarrier setup for quite some time now. But often the accessories are just as important as the device. And as we've seen -- cases and other accessories are not always what could be considered inexpensive. Well, it seems T-Mobile must understand that as they are expected to begin allowing customers to finance accessories.



The accessories will be financed under the same Equipment Installment Plans (EIP) and this is all expected to begin on June 20th. But as you'll notice our use of the word 'expected' -- this has yet to be officially announced. So far what we are seeing comes by way of TmoNews and a leaked internal memo.


It seems T-Mobile will be using the device accessory finance option as a way to build upon the recently announced Music Freedom. According to said memo;



"Music Freedom sets music free for our customers with no limits, which is a great opportunity to leverage accessories. You should be offering accessories to every customer by discussing it in every conversation, making it a part of the complete solution and offering EIP stating July 20th."



Bottom line, it looks like T-Mobile sees this as a way to get more customers buying extras. And what better way to make a sale than allow the customer to leave with an armful of goodies and all their money still sitting secure in their wallet. Of course, those accessories will have monthly payments, which will be in addition to the payments they are making on the device.


SOURCE: TmoNews





Rochester Optical release Sun Lenses for Google Glass

We have been seeing more Google Glass apps, and more accessories in recent weeks. On the topic of accessories, the DVF | Made for Glass collection of frames and shades were released back in June. And looking more recently, Rochester Optical has begun selling Sun Lenses.



Rochester Optical has these available in a variety of different styles, and each of those are then available in a variety of different shade colors. Specifically, these come in 14 tint colors and mirrored finishes. These do offer protection from UV rays, and Rochester Optical describes sun Lenses as being "non-prescription tinted and mirrored lenses that attach to Google Glass when combined with Smart Frames."


Along with those 14 different tint colors and mirrored finishes -- those opting to pick up a set of Sun Lenses from Rochester Optical will be able to choose from 8 frame shapes, each of which offer 10 different colors. Simply put, between the 8 frame styles, the 10 frame colors and the 14 lens finishes -- you should be able to find something that matches your personal style.


These frames are made of a "quality" nickel silver metal alloy which should mean they are lightweight as well as durable. Unlike the shades from Google, these from Rochester Optical are mounted to Glass with a screw (as opposed to being clipped in). These can be ordered direct from Rochester Optical and you can expect to shell out $179.


SOURCE: Rochester Optical (1), (2)





Angry Birds Seasons update takes the “pesky piggies” to South Hamerica

Rovio has rolled out the latest update for Angry Birds Seasons. Those already playing the game will be able to grab the update using the 'My apps' section from the Play Store on their device. And otherwise, as this update adds quite a few new levels -- this seems like as good a time as any to start playing.



Nicely, Angry Birds Seasons remains available for free. But perhaps more important for today are the specifics for the update. Rovio is bringing the "pesky piggies" to South HAMerica. As a result they have added 24 new levels and three additional bonus levels -- all of which are touted as being "tricky" and "packed with relics, artifacts" as well as those previously mentioned piggies.




  • NEW HIGH-ALTITUDE LEVELS! Get ready to navigate mountains in 24 free levels full of ancient statues, shaky rope bridges and swinging relics!

  • STOP THE PIGGIES! Those green swine are digging for treasure and trying to steal it, but you can stop them – right?



That said, Angry Birds Seasons remains available for devices running Android 2.3 and later. This update will bring the app to version 4.1.0. Putting this latest Seasons update to the side -- there is also another version of Angry Birds we can look forward to seeing released.


The latest will be Transformers, and while we have yet to learn a specific release date, Rovio did begin teasing the game last month. We've seen some artwork and have been told the game is "coming soon" and will bring "birds disguised as robots in disguise."


Angry Birds Seasons can be found using this Google Play Store link.


SOURCE: Twitter @AngryBirds





Android Wear smartwatches getting first over-the-air update

The official Android Wear companion app arrived in the Play Store last evening. And along with the official app -- we also saw quite a few other apps release updates adding Android Wear support. And in a continuation of the Android Wear news there is now word about an update. Specifically, Android Wear is in the process of getting the first over-the-air update.



This update will be available for the Samsung Galaxy Live and the LG G Watch. Basically, this means those lucky enough to have been at Google I/O should be prepared to update their wearable. And otherwise, those who have already placed an order, or are considering doing that -- it looks like an update will be waiting for you after the initial unboxing.


The update is on the smaller side, and so far Google has yet to publish any sort of changelog detailing the update. Having said that, there also doesn't appear to be any immediately noticeable changes. Most likely this is a bug fixing update. Anyway, the update will keep your wearable with Android 4.4W and bump the build number to KMV78V.


Those I/O attendees currently wearing an Android Wear watch will be able to grab the update now should they want. You'll need to tap to open the menu, and then navigate to Settings -> About -> System updates to get the process started. Otherwise, those still on the fence should keep an eye on the Android Wear tag here on Android Community to keep up as news flows.





HTC One M8 Dual SIM will have limited launch next week

We should have seen it coming. After all, last year's HTC One was treated the same way. Now HTC is bringing out an HTC One M8 variant for Europe that has one and only one difference: it has two SIM slots. Actually there is a second difference. It is unnecessarily more expensive.



In all other aspects, the HTC One M8 Dual SIM is exactly the same HTC One M8 Single SIM. Given that the original has truly impressed us, that's not exactly a bad thing. Sure, you don't get the LG G3's QHD screen, but you do get a smaller 5-inch 1080p one. The specs are also definitely decent for a 2014 flagship, and the tricks that HTC pulled, like the Duo Camera and even Sense 6.0 itself are nothing to pan. And of course, the metal build makes it a pleasure to hold and look at.


HTC has used that same design, except for the duo camera, for the HTC One mini 2, though not in its entirety, so we'll take what we can get with an exact replica of the HTC One M8 on this dual SIM variant. The change might not make much sense in the US, but in Germany, where it was just announced, and in other European markets like Russia, that feature is commonplace.


Unfortunately, it might not be something that those would-be buyers can easily afford. This model will sell for €799, which feels like buying one and a half HTC One M8 since the latter has a price tag of around €570 in that region. The color options will also be limited, available in that eye-catching gunmetal gray only.


VIA: phoneArena


VLC for Android finally available for North American users

For reasons that baffled users for almost two years, VLC for Android was available on the Google Play Store for everyone except North American residents. But finally, if you live in the United States and Canada, you can now join the rest if the world in accessing and downloading the popular free media player and play all sorts of videos with different formats.



When they launched in the summer of 2012, VideoLAN’s excuse for not being able to give North American users the VLC Android version was that they did not have access to enough gadgets from that region, which sounds ridiculous any way you look at it. But finally, right before the Google I/O conference two weeks ago, they sent out a tweet saying, "Oh, and for once, VLC for Android is also on the USA Play Store. And still on our website for everyone ;)". So if you live in North America (they neglected to mention Canada in the tweet, but it’s there!), head on over to the Google Play Store and you’ll finally be able to download it.


This is perfect timing for US and Canada residents as just a few weeks ago, VLC announced that they are developing Chromecast support for iOS and Android devices. This will allow you to stream your videos from Hulu or Netflix or Google Play Movies into whatever device you want to watch it from.


However, the desktop app for Windows, Mac or Linux will take a little more time to finish since Google doesn’t have an SDK for native apps on these platforms yet. But you probably don’t care about that for now as you’re too busy finally getting the VLC player onto your phone or tablet.


Download VLC from the Google Play Store


VIA: Android Police





Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)