Android

Video courtesy of Slashgear

So, if Google's Chrome OS announcement disappointed me, Slashgear's report about the plain looking...

Quanta Android Smartbook hands-on plus Qualcomm tablet prototype [Video]

...is very interesting to me. This notebook/netbook/smartbook looks like any of the hundreds of others on the market. But, it runs Google's Android operating system like the Droid, G1, and other smartphones currently on the market. Android looks like a capable lightweight quick booting OS. And, I think it will be a good fit as a quick-boot netbook for people on the go. It can do everything a Chrome OS device could do (access the web) as well as run Android apps. Sounds good to me!

I bought my Droid on its first day of availability with the idea that I might return it afer a few months (and pay the early termination fee). But, the more I use the Droid and learn how the Android ecosystem has changed since the first few weeks of the G1 back in October 2008, the more convinced that I'm going to stick with the Droid for more than a few weeks. One of my most frequently used web services is the Evernote note-taking and web-clipping service (among other features). Evernote's mobile friendly site...

http://www.evernote.com/m

...looks pretty good on the Droid. However, unlike the desktop/netbook environment (where I prefer to use Evernote's web page instead of their Windows and Mac apps), I prefer to use Evernote apps on my mobile devices (iPhone & Windows Mobile so far).

After a quick search, I found Evernote's beta release of their Android client at...

http://s.evernote.com/androidbeta

It seems to be working well on my Droid (running Android 2.0) so far.

YouTube video courtesy of fringland

The Android smartphone ecosystem has changed a lot (and for the better) between my brief T-Mobile G1 ownership period in October 2008 and today. While the Android app population is nowhere near the size of the iPhone's, it is big enough and rich enough to keep things interesting. One big hole, though, is the lack of a decent Skype VoIP client. And, don't get me started on that Skype Lite thing for Android. I don't even know what to make of it.

Fortunately, even though Skype appears to be ignoring Android, fring is not...

fring it on Android!

And, fring can apparently make VoIP calls over Skype, MSN, and Google Talk. It also works over 3G or WiFi and is free. Very nice!

I downloaded and installed a copy from the Android Market and plan to give it a test (and perhaps record one my mini-podcast sound sample episodes).

Interesting pair of "Google Phone" items from TechCrunch over the past two days...

The Google Phone Is Very Real. And It’s Coming Soon

The Google Phone May Be Data Only, VoIP Driven Device

Smartphones in the U.S. provide voice service using either CDMA (Verizon & Sprint) or GSM (AT&T & T-Mobile). Wireless data is provided by a variety of 3G protocol types as well as slower network protocols like EDGE and GPRS. This rumored Google Phone apparently eliminates the traditional voice service (CDMA or GSM) entirely and, like the Amazon Kindle or netbook/notebooks, only have a 3G radio. You could somewhat simulate this situation today if you have, for example, a MiFi (3G/WiFi router) and an iPod touch (2nd or 3rd generation) with some voice over IP app installed.

Can even Google pull off a phone that doesn't work over conventional cell services? It just might be able to if the phone were very inexpensive with cheap service to match (data only, no voice).

Remember when the first generation Zune stopped working on (I believe) December 31, 2008 because of a leap year date calculation problem? Well, Google has joined Microsoft in creating a date based bug. This item in Engadget is almost surreal...

Motorola Droid camera autofocus fixed in secrecy? (Update: it's a date-related self-correction)

Here's a comment to article attributed to a Google Android engineer: There's a rounding-error bug in the camera driver's autofocus routine (which uses a timestamp) that causes autofocus to behave poorly on a 24.5-day cycle. That is, it'll work for 24.5 days, then have poor performance for 24.5 days, then work again.

The 17th is the start of a new "works correctly" cycle, so the devices will be fine for a while. A permanent fix is in the works.

So, Droid users (like me) should be able to auto-focus until around mid-day December 11. A Verizon technical note discussed here earlier talked about a December 11 Droid update. So, a permanent fix may be available by then.

To be honest, I'm not too impressed by the Droid's 5-megapixel camera so far with or without autofocus. It has a very grainy look IMHO.

Image courtesy of Verizon Wireless

When I visited the Verizon Wireless store near my office, I was disappointed to find it did not have any accessories for my new Motorola Droid. It is a good thing that Costco's Droid bundle included a case, car charger and headset (none is included with the Droid, by the way, unlike other phones). My guess was a vendor had once again underestimated the popularity of a smartphone and neglected to prepare for its ecosystem. While this may be true for the physical store, I learned from a @DroidDoes tweet that Verizon has a web storefront with Droid accessories. The short URL is...

http://tinyurl.com/moreDroid

The full URL is, well, really long. So, I'll use a more conventional linked text if you prefer to follow this at...

Verizon Wireless Droid Accessories

There's quite a few interesting items there including a replacement battery door for $4.99 (you know that thing is going to come loose and be lost sometime soon, right?), display protectors ($12.99) and a swivel hoslster that protects the screen by facing it towards the body ($19.99). If they local VZW store doesn't get accessories in by this week, I'll probably order a couple of items for my Droid.

Daniel Inoshita, a friend and co-worker, bought an HTC Droid Eris from Verizon. I sat down a few minutes with him to get his initial impressions after having the phone for just a few hours.

I apologize for the low sound volume during the initial minute of the conversation. I used a Touch Pro2 to record the video and forgot how unidirectional its microphone is (usually a very good thing). I used volume leveling to try to even out the volume post-hoc as well as possible. One important item that may be difficult to hear is Daniel's explanation of the Droid Eris' price. It is $199 - $100 rebate - another $50 for current Verizon Wireless customers past their previous two-year contract point.

I've owned my Droid for a bit over a week now. I haven't encountered this problem described by Engadget yet...

Droid experiencing external speaker problems, could be a software issue?

The workaround, by the way, is to reboot the Droid.

However, I have noticed two Droid audio issues:

1. A few people I've spoken with while using the Droid have reported hearing an echo when I speak to them. I should not that I was not using the speakerphone during these convesations

2. The audio I hear when listening to someone speak to me while using the Droid seems "noiser" than other phones I've used over the past year (iPhone on AT&T and Nokia N96, HTC Dash, and HTC Touch Pro2 on T-Mobile).

The leaked Verizon memos that Phandroid.com provided documents a similar problem to the one I noted. Verizon technical note discusses the need to power cycle the Droid (turn if off and then on - not just suspend the display) to deal with the Droid user hearing an echo during a phone conversation.

Droid Updates on Dec. 11, 2009 & Jan. 22, 2010: Interesting Info in Verizon Product Technical Bulletin

I hope the rumored December 11 update provides some audio fixes.

Photo courtesy of Dell

Perhaps the worst kept corporate secret of the past few months is Dell's smartphone. As speculated, Dell announced its Mini 3 smartphone will be first sold in China and Brazil...

Hello… Dell’s Getting into the Smartphone Business

Dell's blog post also confirms that the Mini 3 is an Android smartphone. Dell also notes their existing relationships with Vodafone, AT&T & Verzion hinting, I suppose, that one or more of these wireless carriers may also sell the Mini 3.

Looking at the Dell provided photo, the Mini 3 looks like a tiny keyboardless touchscreen device.

Dell's last try at the handheld market was their Windows Mobile based Axim devices. Their first effort, the X5, awas a bulky looking PDA. However, their last device, the X51, was sleek, fast, and had a great hardware design including both CF and SD flash card slots.

YouTube video courtesy of WHEREuLocate

uLocate's free WHERE app is available for a number of platforms including the iPhone, BlackBerry, and Android. A version tuned for the Droid was launched on November 6...

WHERE on the Droid Launches Today!

uLocate claims that 25% of all Android phone users have installed WHERE. Of the 110,000 (or so) people reported to have bought the Droid from Verizon, the Boy Genius Report says that projections indicated that nearly a quarter of Droid buyers will have installed WHERE this past weekend. Since WHERE can use your location information, uLocate could estimate geographic clusters of Droid buyers...

WHERE helps us track DROID infestation, sales numbers

You can find uLocated WHERE Droid map at...

http://droid.where.com/

The current top 5 Droid cities are:

1. New York
2. Los Angeles
3. Washington D.C.
4. San Francisco
5. Philadelphia