Motorola outs new Moto G with 4G in Brazil

Before 2014 ended, we noted that a new Moto G is coming to Brazil with 4G/LTE connectivity and a bigger battery. It wasn't exactly a rumor because it was spotted on Motorola's Brazilian website. We didn't have to wait long as the Lenovo-owned Motorola has just launched a new version of the 2nd-generation Moto G in the country. Main features are still the same but with the addition of 4G support and Android 5.0 Lollipop out of the box.

The Moto G 4G comes equipped with the same 5-inch screen, 16GB of built-in storage, 8 megapixel camera, and a quad-core processor. Phone now has a dual-SIM card slot, an improved battery, and of course, 4G LTE connectivity. This is a higher version so it's now more expensive at R $ 899 which is about $345 in the United States. That's still cheap. Phone will be available in various retailers, operators, and Motorola online store.

The Moto G is quite popular in Brazil mainly because of its affordability. With the addition of 4G and longer lasting battery, we don't doubt more Brazilians will avail of this great smartphone deal. Motorola could expect a bigger market share in the coming months after the Moto G 4G's release in the the country.

Android 5.0 Lollipop may be installed as default on the Moto G 4G but the 1st-gen and the current non-4G Moto G don't have it yet. Motorola has released the official sweet software update for those models. We knew it was coming and India got it first. And of course, who could forget the fact that the Moto G was the first to officially get Android 5.0 Lollipop.

If you own a 1st-gen and 2nd-gen Moto G, upgrade to Lollipop by going to Settings> About Phone> System Updates. For first-gen Moto G owners, just make sure you have the latest Motorola Update Services from the Google Play Store.

Motorola could have easily released the Android 5.0 Lollipop to the supported phones once Google officially released the new platform version but it didn't for good reasons. Motorola wants to test everything first on different units, countries, and carriers. After all the testing, Motorola can then do a "public push".

VIA: Tecnoblog

SOURCE: Motorola

Story Timeline

• Motorola to roll out Lollipop soon for 1st Gen Moto G


• Android 5.0 Lollipop software for Moto G updated in India


• New Moto G coming to Brazil with LTE, bigger battery

Low supply and delay of Nexus 6 caused Google’s Q4 slow growth

It's that time of the year when big companies are releasing their earnings reports for the previous quarter. Yesterday, we learned about Qualcomm's positive numbers for the first quarter of its 2015 fiscal year. And a few hours ago, it was Google's turn to make an earnings call and show off how the search giant is doing the past quarter. Chief Financial Officer Patrick Pichette shared the highs and lows and noted that Google didn't hit the goals because of the low Nexus 6 supply and the exchange rate between international consumers and the United States.

Google's Pichette said that the company faced a number of challenges the past three months. The US dollars have strengthened but this resulted to a "gross negative currency impact of $616 million dollars" during the last quarter. However, impact was lessened to net revenue of $468 million only because of a hedging program effort.

The CFO also shared that Play growth wasn't as impressive in Japan and that the absence and delay of Nexus 6 became a problem. The latest Nexus was well-received but there was not enough supply to meet the high demand. Phone is always out of stock. (We're just not sure if Motorola isn't making enough units or if there are too many orders.)

Google was humble enough to admit mistakes. It's reseting its strategy when it comes to Google Glass--now under a new management. The Glass is a very promising project but Google wasn't able to hit goals yet so the era of the current version and the Google Glass Explorer program will be discontinued. The project isn't totally scrapped but Google could just be working on something new.

VIA: SlashGear

Story Timeline

• Nexus 6 iFixit verdict: easy to teardown, lots of screws


• Nexus 6 now available on US Cellular


• Double Tap to Wake feature brought back to unrooted Nexus 6

Use JSON to Dynamically Load Layouts with json2view

You normally use XML layouts for your applications, but what if you need a simpler way to test different layouts or dynamically generate them? json2view allows you to do just that — all you need to provide it with is a JSON document, and it’ll take care of the rest at runtime.

The post Use JSON to Dynamically Load Layouts with json2view appeared first on xda-developers.

OnePlus names own Android ROM as Oxygen, Hydrogen in China

It's no secret that OnePlus is cutting its ties with Cyanogen over the fiasco with Micromax in India. It has been developing its own custom ROM to replace CyanogenMod in its future devices. And while it isn't yet revealing what that ROM will look like or will offer, it is now announcing its chosen name. Its ROM will be called "Oxygen OS", at least in the rest of the world. But in China, it will be called Hydrogen instead.

OnePlus is not the first to name their product after the life-sustaining element, and its reasons for doing so will probably echo all those other users. It calls Oxygen the "epitome of simplicity" and speaks to the goals of the ROM: lightweight, pure, and a fundamental building block of everything else. Whether it will be able to measure up to that lofty goal remains to be seen when the Oxygen OS finally does come out.

Quite amusingly, OnePlus will be using a different name in China: Hydrogen OS. The principles, however, remain the same. Hydrogen is one of the most abundant elements in the world and also serves as a building block for greater things. It is also light and ubiquitous. OnePlus says that there will be differences between local and overseas versions of the OS, hence the need to use a different name to differentiate the names.

Interestingly, OnePlus is using the chemical formula "H₂" for Hydrogen. Together with Oxygen, the two would make up H₂O, life giving water.

SOURCE: OnePlus, Weibo

Story Timeline

• OnePlus starts working on new Android flavor for OnePlus One


• OnePlus and Cyanogen go head-to-head in India


• OnePlus intros non-Cyanogen ROM, still on alpha


• Cyanogen's Steve Kondik chimes in on OnePlus, Micromax row


• OnePlus to delay launch of 2nd phone, moved to Q3 of 2015

Nexus Player heads to Japan marking Android TVs entry to the country

Google has announced that Android TV has finally made its way to Japan. The product that brings Android TV to Japanese fans is the Nexus Player, a collaboration between Asus and Google. The launch of the Nexus Player in Japan marks the first time that the device has been offered to purchase outside of North America.

Japanese fans will be able to purchase the Nexus Player at the end of February. In Japan, the device will sell for JPY 12,800. With the device in homes and businesses, users will be able to stream all sorts of their favorite programs and play video games as well.

The Nexus Player comes with a video game controller making games more enjoyable than using touch controls to play the games. The Nexus Player will have the same features in Japan that it offers in the US and other countries where it is available.

It will ship with a remote control that allows users to speak commands. Google says that it will also launch apps for Japanese content in the future including apps for Video Market, Hot Pepper Beauty, Ryori Sapuri, and Hulu's Japanese offering.

SOURCE: Google

Microsoft invested in Cyanogen’s anti-Google war chest, says tip

According to sources familiar with the matter, Microsoft has invested in Cyanogen, Inc., making a small contribution in the $70 million of the $100 million that the startup claims to have been able to raise. The startup has so far only accounted for the $30 million of the total. More than just a magnanimous donation, however, this move is seen to be Redmond's play to wrest control of Android away from Google, a sentiment that it shares with Cyanogen. Of course, this rumor is likely to raise many mixed emotions over the future of the platform and Microsoft's involvement.

CyangoenMod is, by far, the most popular Android ROM in existence, but it is no secret that it has little love for Google's ways. In a recent interview, Cyanogen, Inc. CEO Kirt McMaster didn't mince words when he said that "We're going to take Android away from Google". As they say, "them fighting words." CyanogenMod already takes its base from the Android Open Source Project or AOSP, the "non-Google" part of Android that is available to the public. It adds its own features and services on top, some of them matching what Google offers. But how far can Cyanogen really go without, or even against, Google?

Cyanogen wants to build its own OS, Android-based most likely, but without any dependence on Google. It will be that OS that it will be pushing to OEM partners, like Micromax. But it will take more than just the core OS to make a mobile platform a commercially viable enterprise. You will need an entire ecosystem of services and apps. There are some that do already exist outside of Google's control, outside of Google Play Store, but it wouldn't be an understatement to consider them small. Then there's the question of fragmentation, long pointed out to be Android's Achilles heel in the crusade against the iPhone. Android is just slowly catching up in unifying its platform landscape. Should Cyanogen's thrust be successful, there will be another major Android variant that developers might have to mind, unless the two branches can agree on a common trunk. That might be easy for simple apps, but when you insert APIs and services into the equation, things get a bit murky.

Cyanogen has basis for its battle cry, and it is definitely not the only one. Although technically an Open Handset Alliance (OHA) venture, Google practically has a stranglehold on Android's development. OEMs may sometimes have the final say in what goes inside their devices, but even there Google is starting to put its foot down. Google has also been seen to replace core Android features and apps with its own proprietary bits. That may be good for unification, but not exactly for the openness that Android has been known for. Still, relatively speaking, Android is exponentially a more open platform than, say, iOS, but for how long, no one knows. That's the dark future that Cyanogen and its supports are fighting against.

Things get more complicated, however, with Microsoft joining the fray. The tech giant has a rather complicated relationship with Android. For one, it has its own mobile platform which will see a renewed experience with Windows 10 later this year. At the same time, it actually also profits from Android through licensing fees. This investment leaves Microsoft with a minority stake in Cyanogen. A small one, but still a stake. Veterans in the industry might recall Redmond's infamous "Embrace, Extend, Extinguish" strategy of the past and might shudder at what the future may hold.

SOURCE: Wall Street Journal

VIA: SlashGear

Fly through a 3D tubular world in Tail Drift for Android

If you're a fan of arcade racing games like Mario Kart, then this new game available on Android devices will appeal to your love of virtually racing through not just the ground but even in the skies. Tail Drift is a 360 degree arcade racer that will see you through loops, tubes, and various fantastic environments as you try to win the race and get as many points as you can.

The game's creator, Cameron Owen, actually won a gaming competition back in 2012 but it's only now that Tail Drift has finally made its way to Android devices. “It’s great to get the chance to realize the game I always wanted to,” he says. The game lets you fly through a tubular world, breezing through environments like floating islands, ancient temples, and desert canyons. You can choose from three different kinds of games: Classic Race, Time Trial, and Time Extension. You will be able to finish 2 tours, which includes 18 unique events that you can compete in.

If you're bored with the plane you're flying in, the game has 4 available planes that you can switch to, or rather, purchase and upgrade to. You can also upgrade your plane's speed, acceleration, handling, and boost. To get a leg up on your competition, you can use 3 unique power ups to help you along the way: turbo boost, deadly mines, and stun cannons. And you also have 7 beautiful tracks to compete on.

The game has leader boards to track your progress as compared to your friends, if you're feeling a bit competitive. You can download Tail Drift for free from the Google Play Store, but there are in-app purchases available.