Nexus One Android 2.2 Froyo Update

Below is a really useful video for users of the Nexus One Android smartphone. They can now access the Android 2.2 Froyo, which is the latest software update. Its main advantage is increased speed (5 times faster) over a range of different features including web browsing. It also gives you access to portable Wi-Fi hotspots. Android 2.2 Froyo will also allow certain mobiles to share their Wi-Fi connection with up to eight other devices.
Jealous? Well the Android 2.2 upgrade should be available to other users including the HTC smartphone soon.
An HTC spokesperson said: "We are working hard in conjunction with our partners to update the HTC Sense experience on Froyo and get it to our customers ASAP. We expect to release updates for 2010 models including the Legend, Wildfire and Desire smartphones in the third quarter of 2010."

Free 3CX Android SIP phone launched

3CX, the company which created a phone system for Windows to replace your proprietary Phone Branch Exchange (PBX), has now launched a free Android Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phone.

3CX has created the Android SIP phone in recognition of the increasing importance of the smartphone in conjunction with a modern VoIP PBX.

The popularity of the 3CX softphone means that a beta version has been brought out for the Android Platform, immediately available for the Android 1.5, 1.6, 2.1 and 2.2

It can be accessed on many smartphones including Motorola, Samsung and Sony Ericsson as well as Google HTC (including HTC Desire and HTC Elite).

The 3CXPhone for Android SIP Phone is available via the Android market place. You just open up the market place and search for 3CXPhone to install it. The 3CX VoIP Phone for Android is free of charge. Not only does it work with the 3CX Phone System, but also numerous other VoIP services.

Are Google apps for Android safe?

While the openness of the Android app market is normally beneficial to users, it can also make them vulnerable.
According to a report by SMobile Systems, a mobile security firm, as many as one fifth of Google apps for Android can expose your data to third party hackers.
The report states: "The Android Market offers flexibility by allowing anyone to develop and publish an application to the consumer market. This presents the opportunity to easily defraud innocent consumers for financial gain. Since today’s Smartphone devices are the equivalent of mobile computers, it is logical that attackers have expanded their focus."
Google said that it was regulating the market but that it had had to remove two dodgy applications so far from the devices of Android smartphone users.
A security lead for Android, Rich Cannings, stated in the blog post that the remote application removal feature is one of many security controls that Google uses to protect Android users from malicious applications.

Google plans are music to the ears of Android users

Industry insiders expect Google to venture into the area of music downloads, according to reports by the Wall Street Journal. The competition between Google and Apple is fierce, not least in the smartphone market where Google's Android OS is fast making ground on the popular Apple iPhone. But Apple executives will get chills when they hear about this new rumour. Up to now Apple has pretty much monopolised the music side of things with its iTunes software for iPod, which is the leading digital music seller in the USA.
The Google music service will be tied to its search engine and available on the Android phone, with a subscription service possibly starting in 2011. By using the search engine music store, Android users will be able to stream music onto their smartphones directly from the cloud.
Google has been exploring branching out into music for a while now and the search engine has partnered with online radio station Pandora among others.
Although Google's plans are at a nascent stage and they have not made any connections with music labels, many music labels in America would like to see a challenge to Apple's dominant market position.

IBM serves up Wimbledon app for Android smartphone

Football fans may not even have noticed but it is that time of year again; strawberries and champagne while watching the cream of tennis players battle it out at Wimbledon.
Tennis aficionados can often be seen feverishly checking their smartphones between points and with that in mind IBM has released its new Seer Wimbledon app.
This nifty app allows you to check out everything that is going on around SW19. You can see how is playing who and where, and work out where the nearest restaurants, toilets and much more are all located.
You can also access a number of radio stations with Wi-Fi technology. The only questions hanging over this app are whether you will have Wi-Fi access and whether your batteries can support it for a whole day (take some spares).
You might also spend so much time playing around with it that you forget to watch the tennis!

The HTC EVO 4G Android phone

There is quite a choice of Android handsets available now so I thought it might be helpful to have a look at some of the pros and cons of each in a sort of mini series.
First up is the HTC EVO 4G smartphone which is known for its Sprint services. This is currently quite a large device so you may not find it as pocket-friendly as you might be hoping.
However industry experts have noted the polished feel of the phone and marvelled at how well-designed it is. The handset seems to be durable with only four moving parts to worry about.
The HTC EVO 4G Android phone is really good for its GPS functions so with a phone like this there is no need to have those tiresome map-reading arguments which can so dominate a holiday. The HTC EVO 4G Android phone also comes with Wi-Fi tethering and is a particularly good way to check your correspondence if you use the excellent Gmail beta email provider. The account set up for all these features is beyond simple and the web-browsing is extremely efficient. The information search function is completely comprehensive, returning you all the possible results.
All of this is performed with effortless scrolling - you won't find responsivity to be a problem with the HTC EVO 4G Android phone. There is long battery life too.
Many users site the network as one of the most enticing factors about the HTC EVO 4G Android phone as it uses Verizon. Verizon has a reputation among many smartphone users in the US for providing better and more consistent coverage than AT&T which handles the iPhone.
The HTC EVO 4G Android phone is also relatively reset-free with a handy way to shut down apps that aren't working without compromising your whole user-experience.
Negatives of the HTC EVO 4G Android phone are an inability to speed-dial easily and some connectivity problems with Bluetooth.
For a comparison with the Palm Pre check out this article. Overall, although using the HTC EVO 4G Android phone may be complicated to start with, it is a very rewarding device.

Versatility among key benefits of the Android smartphone

The Android smartphone can be used in conjunction with a number of other products making it extremely versatile. For instance you can have the 3CX Phone for Android. This free VoIP Softphone is very easy-to-access as you are not locked into any one provider. In fact it works with popular VoIP providers as well as SIP based IP PBXs.
There are also loads of apps and you can now look out for in the Vodaphone 360 Shop application store which supplies Android smartphones such as the Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 Mini Pro and the HTC Wildfire. Network provider Vodaphone is allowing more and more apps to be written for the Google Android OS to improve its functionality.
Vodafone content services chief Lee Epting said: "Developers want to know that their app will be seen by consumers, and the 360 Shop on Android gives all round opportunities to maximise content promotion."
He added: "Our initial data is showing that up 33% of the catalogue gets exposed in a single day. This market-leading approach allows developers and customers to get great value."

Google Android makes ground on Apple iPhone

The Android smartphone OS is currently beating its competitor the iPhone in terms of mobile traffic, according to research from the industry analyst Quantcast.

The last quarter has been a very profitable one for Google’s Android phone, though Apple’s iPhone still has almost two thirds of the total smartphone mobile traffic.

Yet Apple is seeing its market share being consumed by the success of devices like the HTC Incredible, the 4G Sprint Evo and the Motorola Droid.

Google is hot on the heels of Apple and now accounts for just under 20% of the smartphone market, a rise of roughly 12% over the year. That rise has conversely meant the market leader Apple has seen its share of smartphone traffic fall by around 8%.

The Blackberry OS, which is made by Research In Motion, has also taken a hit with a 1.2% traffic fall as have all other platforms by 2.9%.

However, at the World Wide Developer Conference (WWDC) recently held in San Francisco, Apple CEO Steve Jobs said that he couldn’t care less about mobile market statistics.

Download Skype for the Android smartphone

Android smartphone users can now download an application for Skype thanks to the Voice over internet Protocol (VoIP) provider’s partnership with Verizon Wireless.
Using the VoIP service Skype, people who have Google's Android phone can make a range of free calls either between computers or to landlines. These include low cost calls abroad.
Skype teamed up with Verizon Wireless over the winter of 2009/2010 to offer a multitude of unlimited talk plans at low prices. If you have a data plan, Skype-to-Skype calls are free, but calls to wireless or landline numbers use your voice plan minutes.
The Android is just one of many smartphones to benefit with talk plans available on 12 different smartphones with release scheduled for more handsets in the future.
The download can also be accessed on the Blackberry smartphone.
Verizon’s executive director of business development, Jennifer Byrne, said: “These international rates are great for talking to family members who might live abroad.
“Right now you might even use them to chat with fans around the world about the Football World Cup."
In addition to English, Skype mobile will also be available in Korean, Spanish and Chinese. The new version will have a drop down menu with flags which indicate the international dialling numbers.

Motorola ups Android output

The phone company Motorola has announced that it will launch 20 more Android smartphones in the UK before the end of 2010.
Tom Satchwell, Director of Marketing for Mobile Devices for Motorola, said that this was the minimum and even left the door open for more handsets to be released.
However time is short and Motorola will clearly have to move quickly on this one and maintain the success of its US Android campaign.
It is thought though that the FLIPOUT and the XT720 handsets will be among the new releases though there have been rumours of new models such as the Bei Hai and the XTREME.
The Android is becoming ever more popular and there is now even new movement activated software being released for the device.
The Eyesight Mobile Technologies software will work in conjunction with the smartphone. The inbuilt camera will lick up any gestures such as a moving hand and the these gestures can be used to do execute various functions including playing games, moving between the menus and activating music, as well as silencing a ring tone.