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Droid X gets a new lease on life via CM11

We’re not hating on the Droid X – we think nobody who knows his Android history would ever be able to do that to the phone which at its peak was the “for real” iPhone killer. But just four years after its release, it is already considered ancient – such is the pace of technology today. But XDA senior member “Aaahh” has given the old phone a fitting swan song, by successfully installing CyanogenMod’s Android KitKat-based OS on it.



Motorola's Droid X was a kicker of a phone at its time, giving the iPhone 4 a real run for its money. It was powered by a Texas Instruments OMAP3630-1000 single core processor which turned at 1.0Ghz. It had a 4.3-inch 854x480 TFT display with 8GB of internal storage. All well and good, but to run CM11, an Android 4.4-based OS, on this would be actually surprising. And it’s been done.


The flashing of the custom ROM is a bit roundabout, a bit more tricky than usual because of the difficulty of getting a custom recovery to work with the phone. In the process, you would have to use at least three different versions, one of CWM and two versions of TWRP. Make sure to follow the exact steps via the official thread at XDA – check the source link.


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I don’t think we need to remind you that because of partitioning issues, you will lose data on the original phones when you do this – if you still have personal data on your old Droid X. But if you do, make sure to get it out first before starting the process. When you finish, it will be one of those “there’s some life in the old dog yet” moments. And then you go back to tapping away at your Moto X. Typical.


SOURCE: XDA





Snapshot activates camera of Android phones from locked screen

You are walking through a scenic park in Florence, Italy, when suddenly, you see some birds flocking beautifully together in the plaza. You take your Android phone out, unlock it, open your camera, but it takes forever to do so. By the time you’re finally ready to take a picture, the birds have already flown away and the moment has been lost. A new app called Snapshot is promising that this situation will never happen again as it will remove a few of those steps necessary to opening your smartphone’s camera.



While most Android phones indeed have that camera icon on your locked screen, they don’t always work as quickly as you want them to. Snapshot claims that it is the fastest one out there and all you need to do is hold up your phone like you’re ready to take a picture in landscape mode, press the button that will turn on your screen and it will quickly launch your default camera app.


This is not a new type of app and in fact, it may have been inspired by one of the features of the Moto X, where with just a flick of the wrist, your camera app will open, ready to take a picture. The QuickCamera app also replicated this feature, this time available for all other Android phones. But what Snapshot claims is that it will not make you do “wrist breaking gestures” and also that the app will not drain your batteries as it has “almost zero battery consumption”.


There is a pro version available for $0.99 which gives you a few more options in terms of positioning your phone to activate the camera. But if you’re content with just having the landscape to activate the camera, then you can download the free version of Snapshot from the Google Play Store.


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LG reportedly outing a G Watch 2 at IFA 2014

It’s only been months since Google I/O in July, and only months since LG launched and gone to market with its wearable device, the LG G Watch. But what is this we’re hearing? LG wants to rectify the almost pedestrian design and aesthetic of the G Watch with a new version to come out at the IFA 2014 in Berlin? Most likely a good move for them.



After Google I/O, only LG and Samsung carried their Android Wear smartwatches to market, with Motorola’s Moto 360 possibly launching on September 4. But LG’s G Watch elicited “not so great” feedback from consumers, with users saying that it looked ordinary. The “shock” and corrosion issue also did not help the device’s cause at all.


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Maybe that is why LG was quick to act on the feedback, if the rumors be true. The insider info on the LG G Watch 2 is that it would have an OLED display to improve the pedestrian LCD exoerience from its predecessor. Rumors also point to a better aesthetic design that the original G Watch, more in keeping with consumer tastes than Google’s reference point.


LG is also set to meet up with watch makers from all over during the sidelines of IFA 2014, in search for a partner or multiple partners for the future iterations of the G Watch. With the Moto 360 in the wings set to impress the Android world, it will do LG a lot of good to strategize how to move forward with the G Watch brand.


VIA: SlashGear





LG G3 UX features coming to mid to low end devices

When you finally land on a winning formula, it's only natural to want to capitalize on it as much as you can until the well runs dry. The LG G3 has been praised not just for its premium hardware but for its software suite as well, which LG will now be bringing in parts to its roster of less premium devices down the line.



LG has slowly been introducing a number of custom software features that have reached their crowning glory in the G3. Features like Multi Window, QSlide, QPair, and Knock Code have been improved in the latest smartphone and have likewise made appearances in LG's other devices. The company will be continuing that rollout of features and is now targeting its line of entry-level and mid tier smartphones and tablets.


Of the many UX (user experience) feature in the G3, two will be coming to other LG devices, namely Smart Keyboard and a set of Camera features. Smart Keyboard goes beyond the call of duty of other "learning" keyboards by studying not just your most used words but also your typing habits and mistakes. The keyboard also offers some degree of customization to make it even more personal and tailor fit for different kinds of users. On the camera side, three specific features will be making their way down the chain. Touch & Shoot combines the act of "tap to focus" and "tap to shoot" into a single tap to make taking photos quick and easy. Gesture Shot lets you activate a three-second timer by simply opening and closing your hand in front of the camera. Finally, Clean View removes all the clutter around the camera screen, giving you an unobstructed view of your target.


LG does not mention which devices will be receiving these new features nor when, though it mentions devices released in the second half of this year. The OEM also doesn't mention if there will be other UX features that will join the list in the near future, though that might be a possibility as LG continues to consolidate its UX offering across is different devices.


SOURCE: LG


“Ignore No More” claims it can control children’s phones

One almost certain truth in life is that when children hit a certain age (puberty for some, pre-puberty for others), they will start ignoring your text messages and calls. One mother did not want any other parents to go through that and so she created an app that would “force” children to pay attention to the digital summons of their parents.



Ignore No More is an app that claims it can give you control over your children’s phones, well at least until they are of age. If for example they refuse to answer “urgent” text messages or repeatedly not pick up their phones when you’re calling them, then you can lock their phones and they will not be able to do anything with it until they actually call you back. Only then will the phone remotely unlock. The app has to be installed in both the parent phone and the children’s phones in order for it to work.


It is a devious way of controlling your children (in fact some would claim it’s a violation of their rights) but desperate parents would welcome this kind of control. However, it seems like the early feedback from those who’ve purchased and been using it is not all that positive. Even as the developer claims that this app "cannot be disabled”, there have been several complaints that the children could easily disable it and that there are devices that aren’t compatible with the app. Some have discovered also that you need ICE in order for it to work, but there are some phones out there that do not have that feature.


But if you’re confident enough that your child doesn’t have the capability of disabling a “sophisticated” app like this, you can purchase Ignore No More for $1.99 “per phone” from the Google Play Store. If you use the same Google account for different phones, then it would still work as just one phone. Now, the only challenge would be if your kids are more tech-savvy than you and how you can circumvent that in order to properly use Ignore No More.


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VIA: SlashGear


YouTube Music Key tipped to be new music subscription service

What do you do if you have one of the world’s largest online database and repository of music – some under labels, some indie, some without labels – all searchable and viewable at the click of a button? Why, you think of ways to profit from it, of course. It honestly baffled me why it took this long for YouTube – and by extension Google – to think about this. But “YouTube Music Key” is coming soon.



What is it? Well, YouTube Music Key is set to be an online music-on-demand service (much like Spotify), and will dovetail with Google Play Music Key, the latter being the rebranded Google Play Music All Access. What it does is this – it will be able to offer ad-free, audio-only, music on demand (much like YouTube), and even offline playback.


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From insider information, we might be looking at a 30-day trial for starters, and then USD$9.99 per month moving forward. Just how much music are we talking about? According to information acquired by Android Police, it will be around 20 million high-quality tracks – complete albums, organized into artist discographies like we’re already used to with Spotify.


But once you think about what YouTube really is for you, then you begin to understand how huge this could really be. YouTube, according to your artist preferences, can now suggest HD concert footage, covers, and remixes of the tracks you like – because hey, it’s all in YouTube. Google will have to settle the contracts on the artist’s side of it, but once that gets done – we are potentially looking at a Spotify-on-steroids kinda thing, with the service able to provide you with related creative content that mines the biggest creative database of them all – us. Or more specifically, us on YouTube.


VIA: Android Police





Huawei mystery smartphone leaked with fingerprint scanner

It will be barely two weeks before Huawei finally unveils its next smartphone and still the Ascend Mate7 is still pretty much shrouded in mystery. And to add even more mystery, another new Huawei smartphone is now being leaked, sporting what is noted to be a fingerprint scanner on the back.



OK, it's not exactly a firm confirmation, but, being a leak, this is as close as it can get. It seems that this smartphone shares the same rumored sensor with the Ascend Mate7. As repeatedly pointed out before, the placement of the supposed fingerprint sensor is on the back, below the camera, which is rumored to be a 13 megapixel shooter. This mimics the exact arrangement that is found on the HTC One Max. Even the placement of the LED flash to the left of the camera sensor is the same. The only difference is that Huawei is using the square-ish design of Samsung's camera pieces rather than the rounder shape of HTC's.


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Previous leaked photos of the Ascend Mate7 also hinted that Huawei is going after HTC's design in more ways than one, with the smartphone bearing a brushed metal look and a triple segment back cover architecture. That, however, can't be seen here as the device is enclosed in an "anti-leak" casing.


One peculiarity of this latest leak is the specs for the smartphone, which is named as a Huawei Z100-CL00. The device's stats show that it is running on a 1.6 GHz processor with 1 GB of RAM and 16 GB of internal storage. The screen resolution is noted to be 1280x720 and the size is, of course, not given. There are two possible theories. One is that this is the lower end version of the Ascend Mate7, though the specs are even lower than those rumored for that variant. The second is that this is a completely different device that will just bear some, or at least one, of the key features of the higher end smartphone. Expect to hear more from Huawei when its scheduled September 4 IFA 2014 event rolls around.


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VIA: Weibo





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