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Google says it won China’s approval for Motorola deal
May 19th
(Reuters) – Google said on Saturday that Chinese authorities have approved its $12.5 billion purchase of Motorola Mobility Holdings, the last regulatory hurdle to a deal that would allow the world’s No. 1 Internet search engine to develop its own line of smart phones.
Google, which will be the newest entrant to the handset market, announced plans for the acquisition last year in a bid to secure Motorola’s valuable patents and pave the way for a pairing of Google’s Android mobile software and Motorola’s handset business.
U.S. and European regulators approved the deal in February, leaving only the Chinese regulators as potential spoilers.
“We are pleased that the deal has received approval in all jurisdictions and we expect to close early next week,” Motorola spokeswoman Jennifer Weyrauch-Erickson said.
“Our stance since we agreed to acquire Motorola has not changed, and we look forward to closing the deal,” Google spokeswoman Niki Fenwick said, confirming that the Chinese had approved the deal.
Google, whose Android software is the top operating system for Internet-enabled smart phones, wants phone-maker Motorola for its 17,000 patents and 7,500 patent applications, as it looks to compete with rivals such as Apple Inc. and defend itself and Android phone manufacturers in patent litigation.
A main condition of the deal is that the Android system remain free and open for five years, said a source who is familiar with the Chinese approval but not authorized to discuss it.
“We are pleased that the deal has received approval in all jurisdictions and we expect to close early next week,” Motorola spokeswoman Jennifer Weyrauch-Erickson said.
(Reporting By Kyle Peterson; Editing by Paul Simao)
Article source: http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/BRE84I0E2/US-GOOGLE/
China Approves Google’s Acquisition Of Motorola, Deal Expected To Be Finalized Next Week
May 19th
When we last heard about Google’s deal to buy Motorola, the EU and the US had approved the deal. The one major market we were left waiting on is China and now, according to the Associated Press (known around here as “the other AP”), the country’s regulators have given Google the green light. The deal is now expected to close next week.
The biggest asset of the deal is, of course, Motorola’s 17,000+ patents. Google has already promised that it will not interfere with Motorola’s dealings and continue to operate the company entirely independently. The approach would make sense in the context of rumors that Google would be expanding it Nexus line. If Google were to feature multiple manufacturers in its Nexus line, it could promote a Motorola Nexus without playing favorites in the Nexus program.
Chinese regulators did include a few provisos on the deal, however. First of all, Google must continue to offer Android for free and open source for at least the next five years. This shouldn’t be a problem, as this has generally been Google’s plan for years. However, it could cause problems if Google were to pull a move like they did with Honeycomb, where they withheld source code for nearly a year because it “wasn’t ready,” Google could face worse than internet outrage. The company might face legal troubles.
China also echoes other regulators in that Google must continue to treat OEMs in a non-discriminatory manner, and must honor Motorola’s existing patent licenses on fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory (“FRAND”) terms.
So, not much has changed, aside from Google’s super special extra-honest promises are now being enforced by third-party regulators. This can only be a good thing.
Sources: Article source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/AndroidPolice/~3/QT6kh5hD_lc/story01.htm
Full Galaxy S III Android 4.0.4 ROM Leaked, S-Voice And All The Other Goodies Up For Grabs
May 19th
Hey kids! Looking for an early taste of the new Touchwiz? Well you’re in luck! A leaked Galaxy S III rom is out in all it’s bandwidth crushing glory! A whopping 800MB download awaits those eager to get their hands on Samsung’s latest.
The Galaxy S III and its new version of Touchwiz will make about a million additions to Android. Somewhere in this download are things like S-Voice (A Siri-style virtual assistant), Pop-up Play (a floating video window), and Smart Stay (which uses the front facing camera to refresh the screen timeout), just to name a few. Developers (and eager bloggers) should start ripping into it immediately.
The full rom, if you’ve got about 40 minutes of download time to spend, is available right here.
S-Voice is available as a separate download here, but Samsung’s cloud compute server is very picky about who it responds to. The general theory going around is that is only listens to Samsung devices, but you’re welcome to try.
I just so happen to have S-Voice up and running on my Galaxy Nexus, I’ll have a full hands-on article posted shortly. Stay tuned!
Source: XDA via SamMobile | Android.hdblog
Article source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/AndroidPolice/~3/efg8oldCRV4/story01.htm
Google-Motorola deal approved by Chinese regulators
May 19th
Regulators in China have approved the multi-billion dollar purchase of Motorola Mobility by Google. The particulars have already been approved in the US and elsewhere, and China has been the lone holdout. With that bit of dirty business behind them, the deal can now go forward. In statements released to Bloomberg Motorola and Google both confirm the news, and are looking forward to getting the loose ends tied up in short order.
We expect things to stay unchanged between Google and Motorola, as we’ve heard numerous times that Motorola will remain an independent entity. Only time will let us know how that turns out. It will be an interesting summer, that’s for sure.
Source: Bloomberg; Thanks, Alexander!
Article source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/3scvx-UgX_4/story01.htm
From the Android Forums: Factory data reset questions
May 19th
acr456 asks in the Android Central forums,
Hello, I am going to factory reset my phone. However, my question is, since this is a complete reset will it also rollback to the version of Android that the EVO was launched with? For example, I know have version 2.3.5. Will it roll it all the way back to 2.1? I just want my data erased, I want to keep all my system updates including whatever updates Sprint sent. Do I have anything to worry about?
Also, the EVO I’m resetting is deactivated. Once the reset is complete will I be able to fully use my phone without the need of a Sprint connection? I have Wifi so that will do.
We’re glad you asked! We get this one a lot, and we can see why the term factory data reset would make one think it was being returned to the factory, out-of-box condition. Thankfully, it’s not. A factory reset will erase all user settings (things like home screen customizations, Wifi networks, sound settings and the like) and delete all apps downloaded from the Google Play store. It won’t touch anything that’s part of the system files, so your worse case scenario (and actually the likely scenario) is that system apps that have been updated from the Google Play store (things like the Gmail app or Maps) will just need updated from the Play store again. You’ll still be on the latest 2.3.5 version, but the rest will be clean like a new device.
As for it working without Sprint service, everything but calls and SMS/MMS will work just fine. I’ve had my EVO 4G unactivated for over a year now
Article source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/4d8HMs_XH0Q/story01.htm
Smartphones Reignite the OS Wars
May 19th
Smartphones have become the preferred computer of the masses. Sales surpassed
those of personal computers in 2010, having grown over 50% per year for
several years. Nearly 500 million smartphones shipped
in 2011. This radically shifts the terrain in the consumer operating
system competition that was, for years, firmly decided in favor of
Windows. This article analyzes the New OS Wars.
This chart shows how, over the past three years, smartphones have
decimated Windows’ long OS dominance in popular
computing.
Source: Horace Dediu of Asymco
Tablets play a role in this change, too. TechCrunch projects
iPad sales of 66 million this year. Forrester Research optimistically predicts
that tablet sales will explode to 375 million yearly by 2016.
Smartphones are killing off dumb feature
phones.
The shrinking light blue shading at the top of the chart below shows
the
rate at which feature phones are losing market share to smartphones in
the U.S.:
The chart also shows that Android and iOS market shares grew greatly,
while those
of Palm OS/webOS, BlackBerry OS, and Windows Phone/Mobile dwindled.
Now, let’s consider the future. Here is International Data
Corp’s
projection for world smartphone OS market share in 2015, contrasted
with real 2011 numbers. These estimates show Android and iOS doing
well over the next several years, with minor decline for BlackBerry OS
and major decline for Symbian OS.
The key point here — one that some other predictions dispute — is
that
Windows will dramatically come back in the market.
Source: Mobilemancer
and IDC
Winners
Google Android and Apple iOS are the big winners in the
new
Article source: http://www.osnews.com/story/25970/Smartphones_Reignite_the_OS_Wars
Lookout Ad Network Detector Now Snooping Out SellARing
May 19th
With the advent of the latest and greatest APIs, amazing new apps have been made possible. Unfortunately, these developments have also given rise to another, more insidious trend on Google Play: cruel and unusual advertising. For example, ad network SellARing allows developers to play a 10-second audio ad whenever users make a phone call.
Fortunately, Lookout recently released an app called “Ad Network Detector” to help with such obnoxious, intrusive ads; however, up until today, SellARing was not among the detected networks. No more – as of the latest update, version 1.2, Ad Detector users can identify apps that use SellARing; as with other ad networks, once the applications have been identified, Lookout gives you the option of opting out of the ads, getting more information about them, or completely uninstalling the apps that trigger them.
Here’s Lookout’s official list of supported ad networks (not including SellARing):
- AdFonic
- AdKnowledge
- Admia
- AdMob
- Aduru
- AdWhirl
- AirAd
- AirPush
- Appenda
- Burstly
- BuzzCity
- Casee
- Cauly
- Everbadge
- GreyStripe
- InMobi
- JumpTap
- LeadBolt
- LogiaAd
- MDotM
- Medialets
- Millennial
- MobClix
- MobFox
- MOcean
- Moolah Media
- MoPub
- Pontiflex
- Smaato
- StartApp
- Tapit!
- TapJoy
- Vdopia
- Vserv
- Youmi
- ZestAdz
If you don’t have Ad Network Detector already, you can grab it below (it’s free); otherwise, simply update the app.
Lookout Ad Network Detector
Article source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/AndroidPolice/~3/AT1H7iho3lU/story01.htm
[Deal Alert] Unlocked Black GSM HTC One X Available On eBay Daily Deals For $557
May 19th
Until the Galaxy S III comes out, the One X is the phone that’s stealing all the spotlights. eBay Daily Deals is offering an unlocked One X for $557, the lowest price we’ve seen yet. This device is a GSM quadband model that supports ATT 3G stateside (no LTE, though). Once again, no T-Mobile 3G.
The device is available just for today and is only available in black. Keep in mind, since this is the international version, the device is packing the quad-core Tegra 3 that overseas readers are accustomed to, not the dual-core, but still impressive S4 Krait processor ATT’s One X (known as the One XL overseas) is carrying. Both are fantastic phones, but this one won’t support LTE. As a consolation prize, though, how about a nice Tegra-exclusive Sonic the Hedgehog game?
Hit the source link below to grab this deal before the clock strikes twelve and eBay turns back into a pumpkin.
Source: eBay
Article source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/AndroidPolice/~3/P9gEMopMch0/story01.htm
Motorola: If ICS won’t make our device better, we won’t update to it
May 19th
Motorola yesterday updated its device update schedule, with the crux being that we’ll finally start to see some phones get Ice Cream Sandwich in the next month or so. Specifically, that’s the Droid RAZR/MAXX, with the Atrix, Atrix 2, Droid 4 and Xyboards getting it in Q3.
Have a Droid 3 or Droid X2? Sorry, you’re out of luck. And today Motorola expanded on why, saying:
“… obviously we want the new release to improve our devices. If we determine that can’t be done—well then, we’re not able to upgrade that particular device.”
Interesting choice of words. What it probably means is that Moto determined that the cost in time and effort to update those older phones to ICS outweighs the benefit of Ice Cream Sandwich, which indeed sucks given how young those phones are. But that’s the crapshoot we all enter into these days, unfortunately.
Good luck convincing folks that Ice Cream Sandwich won’t improve their phones, Moto.
You can get the full statement at the source link below.
Source: Motorola
Article source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/h5Ql0xq8ifw/story01.htm
Android Central Editors’ App Picks for May 19, 2012
May 19th
Ready to check out some more of our favorite apps? Each week we bring to you some of our favorites in hopes that they may become your favorites, and we want you to do the same. Drop a line in the comments and let us know some of the awesome applications you have installed on your device, so the rest of the Android Central community can check them out as well!
Anndrew Vacca – Dominos Pizza USA (Free)
My cravings for an entire greasy pizza and 18 cinnamon sticks are nothing to be proud of, but that doesn’t mean I can always deny them. When I just have to have to most unhealthy food on the planet, I turn to my trust Domino’s app. The interactive menu makes building your order ridiculously simple– if you’ve ever used Domino’s online interface (and be serious, who hasn’t?), you’ll feel right at home here. And yes, fear not: the pizza tracker is here. When you’re done ordering your feast, sit back, relax, and watch as Domino’s puts it through the process, all the way from prep to delivery. Entertainment like that is worth every single penny of the $0 you’ll spend on this app. [Google Play Link]
Jerry Hildenbrand – Badass Battery Monitor (Free)
Battery life is a big concern for Android power users, and there’s countless ways people try to get a handle on it. The problem is, that without the right information about what’s eating your battery, none of these ways are very useful. We need detailed history and usage data if we’re going to do anything effective,
Article source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/hdl2RbjcVn0/story01.htm