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OmniROM extends contact grouping to external syncing

Our phonebook lists have probably grown so long that the only way to tame these wild beasts would be to corral them into groups. While Android's People contacts app does have that capability, it is limited only to Google's proprietary syncing service or Microsoft Exchange. Ever an advocate of open source solutions, OmniROM has introduced a patch that opens the doors for other external syncing services to get the same functionality.



On the one hand, it's almost understandable that Google would give preferential treatment to its own services. On the other hand, contact grouping in this day and age of increasing mobile devices and Internet access seems pretty much a necessity rather than a special add-on. OmniROM's Pulsar, said to be the team's open source guy, wanted to level the playing field for other contact syncing solutions to get group syncing working as well.


The new feature practically revolves around CardDAV, an open protocol used by many services and apps for syncing contacts. The changes have already been accepted into OminROM's source code and is now rolling out into nightly builds. Once this feature hits users, they will be able to take contact syncing apps like the open source DAVdroid and use it with their service of their choice like ownCloud and get the exact same level of group functionality that is otherwise only available with Google and Exchange accounts.


This little episode definitely shows OmniROM's commitment to open solutions and open source thinking, which is all well and good. Unfortunately, the custom ROM still has a long way to go in terms of becoming more stable and more viable alternative to the likes of CyanogenMod or Paranoid Android. That said, the source code changes for this new feature is quite trivial and, of course, open source, so other custom ROMs could easily adopt it in order to give their own users a bit of new freedom.


SOURCE: OmniROM





Malaysian retailer advertises availability of Samsung Galaxy Mega 2

Though there has been no formal announcement from Samsung regarding this newest phablet, apparently the Galaxy Mega 2 is now available in Malaysia through authorised reseller SenHeng. Unless they jumped the gun in advertising the smartphone’s availability, this indicates that they are the first country to have officially released the newest member of the Galaxy family.



Well, it seems more likely that there was some confusion in when the ad should be published, because as per the Samsung Malaysia website, there is still no listing for the Samsung Galaxy Mega 2. The ad was spotted in a local newspaper in Malaysia and on the SenHeng website and advertises that it is available for RM1,299 which is around $410. The ad was also offering a special deal if you use a Maybank credit card to buy the smartphone with their Easy Installment Plan. For comparison, the previously released Samsung Galaxy Mega was priced at RM1,599 or around $505, which makes Galaxy Mega 2 almost $100 cheaper.


In terms of specifications, the ad lists the phone as having a 6” HD TFT display, powered by a Quad Core 1.5GHZ processor and has an 8MP rear camera. It has 1.5GB RAM and 8GB of internal storage, which probably explains why the Galaxy Mega is more expensive, since it has 16GB. Previously leaked details about the Galaxy Mega 2 have shown different specs. The first leak from a TENAA certification showed it had 1.2GHz quad-core Qualcomm, 2GB RAM, 8GB internal storage, rear camera at 13MP and front camera at 5MP. The 2nd leaked specs had 1.5GHz quad-core Pega Pro, 1.5GB RAM, 16GB storage, 8MP rear camera and 2.1MP front camera.


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The Malaysian ad offers the Galaxy Mega 2 and two other Samsung smartphones for the Maybank instalment. You get 1 month free instalment on a 24 months duration, and will also get free dual car charger and a 10,000mAh power bank as well. We’ll be finding out in the next few days whether this was a legit offer or if they were not authorised to release the ad this early, since Samsung has not done any formal announcement yet.


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VIA: SoyaCincau





Chromecast root access achieved via Teensy boards

The Teensy USB Development Board made by PJRC is famous with DIY hobbyists, students, and budding computer engineers for its low-cost microcontroller chip and AVR processor, and for its easy usage via USB. The guys over at XDA have now used the earlier versions of the Teensy board – the Teensy 2.0 and the Teensy 2 ++ – to create an exploit that gives root access to your Chromecast device.



The process itself requires that you have in possession a Teensy 2.0 board or the slightly longer Teensy 2 ++ board. If you don’t have one, those are easily purchased via the PJRC links that are cited in the XDA forum thread (check the source link). There are also some software requirements that are linked on the thread, easily downloadable. You would also need a few cables – an OTG USB cable, and a USB-to-miniUSB for programming the Teensy board. Lastly, you would need a 1GB (at least) flash drive for flashing your Chromecast device.


The process is pretty straightforward and is clearly lined up in the thread. The exploit is guaranteed to work on Chromecast’s current software build, as well as new devices which haven’t been connected to the internet yet. Watch the demo below.




A logical question for non-techy users would be – what are the advantages of a rooted Chromecast? Well for one, you now have the ability to cast video from any Android phone or tablet to your Chromecast, whereas the original unrooted software would be very picky in the devices it allowed to cast to it. Then there’s audio casting, and using custom firmware to get even more out of your Chromecast. The warning, as always, is to research the heck out of the process before even trying it. But the payoff is ultimately sweet.


SOURCE: XDA





Koush reveals ADB GUI extension for Chrome

Google provides a very powerful Android Debug Bridge (ADB) tool for interacting with an Android device, but the default interface is a rather geeky and, for some, a tad arcane. Koushik "koush" Dutta has just pre-announced a new tool that he has been working on that gives a fancy GUI to ADB, accessible via a Chrome web browser extension.



Installing the extension is easy but isn't the usual way you'd install Chrome extensions via the marketplace, at least for now. You download a ZIP archive and extract the contents into a folder of its own. Then in the Chrome browser's settings, you have to enable Developer mode and then click on Load unpacked extension and direct it to your extracted contents. Once installed, you can launch ADB either from the Extensions settings page or from Chrome's Apps page. Remember to stop any currently running ADB server before you do so, in case you have some already running.


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Once everything has been setup properly, you will have access to almost all of ADB's functionality from a clean-looknig graphical interface. There are five tabs available. Packages lists all packages installed on the connected device and lets you do operations like clearing the data, uninstalling, forcibly stopping them. You can also into APKs from this space. The Controller tab lets you control your device right from within your browser window. A separate ChromeADB app on Google Play Store can be installed on the Android device which adds a mouse pad functionality in this tab. Process List simply enumerates the system-level process and apps running, but it doesn't let you do anything about them. App Memory Info and Disk Space do the same for memory space and file storage. These latter three do have some search functionality in them.


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At the moment, only the Nexus 5 is the officially supported device for Chrome ADB, but more will be added to the list soon. Koush will also be making a more proper release of the extension, adding it to the Chrome web store to make it easier to install and manage. This extension removed the need for users to install the Android SDK tools just to get access to ADB, making it a lot easier for anyone to tinker with their devices. It is noted, however, that on Windows, drivers still need to be installed for the extension to work.


SOURCE: +Koush


Android “L” seems to be all about a Lemon Meringue Pie

Are you craving for some lemon meringue pie? Well, Google seems to be hankering for some as more evidence seems to indicate that the upcoming Android release, codenamed Android L, will be called “LMP”. And since it has always been all about sweet nothings when it comes to naming Android updates, then the initials most likely stand for this tangy dessert, unless you can think of any other sweet that the LMP can mean.



Multiple sources indicate that the Android “L” is being referred to as “lmp” and since the final build isn’t available yet, Google most probably will not confirm nor deny this. Let’s look at all the “evidence” that shows that we will probably all be buying lemon merengue pie in the next few months as speculation continues to grow until the official release of “lmp”. The current preview builds for the Nexus 5 and 7 are referred to as the “lmp-preview-release” based on the extract from the Android SDK. Another document that supports this is the WiFi certification for HTC’s upcoming tablet called Volantis. In the specs sheet, the firmware is listed as LMP as well.


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Another key evidence for #teamLemonMeringuePie is the fact that when you search for the initials “lmp” on the Android Open Source Project repository, there are nine hits already. One of them even has LMP on its subject heading. However, it’s still not concrete proof that it will actually be called that, since the previous build was referred to as Key Lime Pie in internal documents, but ended up being called KitKat (probably for that weird tie-up with Nestle though).


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All the speculation for the official name is fun (and making us crave for baked goods) but what’s more important for users is what new things Android L will bring about. Some initial reports indicate it will include multi-user account, a new Material Design, and ART runtime by default among other things.


VIA: Android Police





Dolphin v11 Beta: UI refresh, bookmarks and tabs management

Firefox and Chrome might be the big boys of the browser market, but on Android, there is another name that consistently rises to the top. Dolphin Browser gives users many of the features of mainstream browsers and more via add-ons. And now with an upcoming major version 11 update, it is has added a few new features that will make it an even more enticing option for Android users.



On the visual side, Dolphin now sports an adaptive design that adjusts nicely depending on the device form factor, whether you are on a smartphone or a tablet. The right side panel, accessible via a swiping gesture, now houses oft used options like full screen or night mode for even quicker access. The bottom menu bar has also been redesigned to give the browser a cleaner and more streamlined look. There are also new themes, more than 40 in total, all available for free.


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Of course, the new version won't only be about appearances. Bookmark management has just gotten more powerful, allowing users to sort, import, and export bookmarks. New gestures have been added as well. Swipe up from the Dolphin icon in the bottom menu bar and you get quick access to Gestures and Sonar voice recognition functions. Swipe up from the tab list button in the menu bar and you get to easily close the current tab. While not as quick as Chrome for Android's undo closed tab feature, the tab list now offers a separate section for recently closed tabs. There is also a new add-on named One Tap that lets Dolphin hide in a floating circle bubble for loading pages in the background, similar to what browsers like Flynx, Javelin, and Link Bubble do.


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For all the power and convenience that Dolphin has to offer, it has one disadvantage. The browser is totally Android only and doesn't have any app for other platforms, so its Dolphin Connect syncing service doesn't extend to those as well. Still, if this is your type of browser and want to get an early hands-on experience for the beta version, you can sign up for the Dolphin Google+ Community in order to become a beta app tester.


SOURCE: +Dolphin





Sony may have ‘leaked’ Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact, smartwatch

As IFA 2014 in Berlin draws ever nearer, we are anticipating the big players to make major moves and launches as far as new products are concerned. Sony will be most likely one of those, and we are expecting to see its new flagship phone the Sony Xperia Z3, an Xperia Z3 Compact smartphone, and an Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact. The latter may have just been teased over at Sony’s Xperia Facebook page, together with a smartwatch device.



The rumors say that the Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact will be an 8-inch tablet powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor, an ample amount of RAM at 2 or 3GBs, and most likely 1080p full HD resolution. Sony is known for its premium quality gadgets, and this would surely be a string lineup to highlight at IFA 2014.


The Sony Xperia Facebook page recently highlighted an app called “SmartBand Summer School” which showed off products that were inclined towards the summer season. Among the pictures was a poolside image highlighting a small tablet device and a smartwatch. The assumption to be made, of course, is that both products are water resistant.


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The information about the Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact have been scarce, and so this will be one of the main highlights for Sony in Berlin. And a new smartwatch too? Well, we have not heard a lot about that as well, and if they’re bringing it to IFA, then we’ll all be in for a treat.


SOURCE: Sony Xperia Facebook page





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