Android is ready for work

Over a billion people today carry Android smartphones—devices that are more powerful than the computers we used just a few years ago.

For many, these phones have become essential tools to help us complete important work tasks like checking email, editing documents, reviewing sales pipelines and approving deals. But for the majority of workers, smartphones and tablets are underutilized in the workplace. Their business and innovation potential remain largely untapped.

Today we're announcing the Android for Work program to tap into that potential. With a group of partners, we're helping businesses bring more devices to work by securing, managing and innovating on the Android platform.

Android for Work features four key technology components:

• Work profiles – We’ve built on the default encryption, enhanced SELinux security enforcement and multi-user support in Android 5.0, Lollipop to create a dedicated work profile that isolates and protects work data. IT can deploy approved work apps right alongside their users' personal apps knowing their sensitive data remains secured. People can use their personal apps knowing their employer only manages work data and won’t erase or view their personal content.

• Android for Work app – For devices running Ice Cream Sandwich through Kitkat, or that don’t run work profiles natively, we’ve created the Android for Work app. The app, which delivers secure mail, calendar, contacts, documents, browsing and access to approved work apps, can be completely managed by IT.

• Google Play for Work – Google Play for Work allows businesses to securely deploy and manage apps across all users running Android for Work, simplifying the process of distributing apps to employees and ensuring that IT approves every deployed app.

• Built-in productivity tools – For everyday business tasks, we’ve created a suite of business apps for email, contacts and calendar, which supports both Exchange and Notes and provides document editing capabilities for documents, spreadsheets and presentations.

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Apple Took 89% Of Q4 Smartphone Profits With Android OEMs In A Race To The Bottom

Google’s Android has gobbled up market share world wide, now accounting for over 80% of all smartphone shipped globally. But when it comes to actually making money, Apple is eating all the profits as it continues its focus on premium devices. Today Strategy Analytics said that Apple in Q4 last year accounted for 89% of all smartphone profits, equating to $18.8 billion, with Android taking only 11%, or $2.4 billion.

The blow for Android is softened only slightly less so only by the fact that other platform players like Microsoft, Blackberry and Firefox seemingly made no profit at all.The figures given here relate to profits generated by handset makers, not the services ecosystem and potential profits made by app publishers and others, which, of course, includes Google itself, which adds new users of for its mobile search business, mobile ads business and other apps with each unforked Android sale.
Overall, smartphone handset profits were up 31.4% compared to the same quarter a year ago.
When it comes to who is performing best among Android OEMs, the results speak of the growing competition for Samsung.
Neil Mawson, research director for Strategy Analytics, says the “three big profit drivers” for Android are Samsung, Huawei and Xiaomi.
“Samsung is the Android giant that delivers most of Android’s smartphone profits worldwide,” he tells me. Mawston says the company is not breaking out exact shares, except to say that “Samsung accounted for well over half of all Android smartphone profits globally in Q4 2014.”
As a point of comparison, in 2013, Samsung accounted for 95% of Android profits. That was a time where there was significantly more parity between Apple and the Korean handset maker both in terms of unit sales and revenues, with Apple accounting for “only” 57% of profit at the time.
It’s not too surprising that Apple — which last quarter had the most profitable company of any quarter, ever — is dominating in smartphone profits, but what is striking is just how wide the gulf has become.
The bigger picture seems to be that Android handset makers are in something of a race to the bottom at this point: the markets that are driving growth in smartphone adoption these days are emerging economies, where consumers are price sensitive. That’s leading to the production of a number of models that are pushing down the average sale price for devices, which long ago dropped below the $100 mark.
Apple may have missed the boat (so far) when it comes critical mass in market share in these developing markets, but it has more than made up for it by making a killing in places where it is strong. China is one such crossover example. While there is clearly a market for lower-cost and Android devices, Apple has been posting record sales in the country, reporting sales of $16 billion in the country in Q4. (China is not — yet — however overtaking Apple’s sales in markets like the U.S.)
In the world of smartphones, Android’s gains do not equal Apple’s loss. But Android’s gains might translate into Android losses down the line, Strategy Analytics notes.
“Apple’s strategy of premium products and lean logistics is proving hugely profitable,” Mawston writes in the report. “Android’s weak profitability for its hardware partners will worry Google. If major smartphone manufacturers, like Samsung or Huawei, cannot make decent profits from the Android ecosystem, they may be tempted in the future to look at alternative platforms such as Microsoft, Tizen or Firefox.”

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Samsung to be ready when Android moves to 64-bit

Apple broke new ground last year by launching a 64-bit mobile processor, the first of its kind in the mobile industry. Since then, a number of other chip makers have put their 64-bit ambitions into overdrive to keep pace including Samsung.

The Korean tech giant expects to join the 64-bit race later this year. During a recent chat  with CNET at Mobile World Congress, Kyushik Hong, vice president of marketing for Samsung's system LSI business, said 64-bit was very important in the sense that there is a real demand regardless of whether or not it is needed.As such, Samsung is actively working on it and their chip will be ready whenever the operating systems and ecosystem (Android) moves to 64-bit. Apple enjoys an advantage in this area as they control both the operating system and the design of their processors. Crafting the hardware and software under the same roof means they don’t have to wait on one side to “catch up” to the other.

Apple and Samsung aren’t the only ones invested in 64-bit. Late last year, Qualcomm moved to 64-bit with the announcement of the mid-range Snapdragon 401 SoC and earlier this week, the company revealed two more 64-bit chips: the Snapdragon 610 and 615. Intel also showed its hand at Mobile World Congress earlier this week with the Merrifield and Moorefield mobile chip lineup while Nvidia did the same at last month's CES with its Tegra K1 SoC.

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Google’s Project Ara $50 Modular Smartphone Could Change The Way We Buy Phones Starting Next Year

Google’s Advanced Technology and Projects Division just announced its first developer event for Project Ara, a modular smarpthone, yesterday, and a new follow-up profile by TIMEindicates we could see the device come to market by next year, with a $50 price tag to start. The key phrase there is “to start,” however, as this smartphone with swappable components could get a lot pricier, very quickly.

Ara is designed to offer consumers choice, with an open platform design that provides a basic chassis from Google with, the option to customize functionality using modular components sourced from third-party hardware developers. Users could buy sensors, additional storage, more battery capacity, better speakers and so on, slotting in and out components as needed. Including stupid ones, by the way: project lead and DARPA vet Paul Eremenko tells TIME an “incense burner” could be a module

Google wants to get the price point on the base Ara hardware to $50, but you wont’ get much in exchange for that – the only connectivity on board will be Wi-Fi at that price point. But the point is that users could build it up however they liked, rather than being stuck with whatever they got when they signed up. But that entails additional expense: Depending on what you want your phone to be able to do, it’s easy to see the price rising quickly.

This leads to a couple of different analogies about how this might work out in practice – it’s a little like a razor and blades setup, offering the potential for a continuing revenue stream from upgrade components. But it’s more akin to a freemium software model, since the modules aren’t expendable like razor blades, but rather optional add-ons that enhance the experience, but aren’t strictly necessary to it.

Ara’s aim isn’t to upsell, however, or at least that doesn’t seem to be the intent of the Ara founding team. Instead, it wants to bring full-featured devices to the world’s next 5 billion potential smartphone users, without forcing them to swallow a huge price tag as well. Of course, this will definitely appeal to hobbyists as well, including the same kind of people who liked the Handspring Visor and its Springboard, but with modern smartphone styling that ATAP says will keep overall device depth down to less than 10mm, with 4mm deep modules.

The TIME profile also sheds light on some of the fundamental mechanics of how Ara works. Modules are designed to slot in to each compartment on the basic chassis interchangeably, regardless of what each does. They’re also hot-swappable, so you don’t need to power down the phone to replace individual parts. Finally, the modules are secured to the device using hardware latches, which use magnets to lock stuff in place. That lock is released using an app of the phone, so that they won’t fall out when jostled or when the phone drops.

Ara is definitely an amazing innovation, and a project that it would be amazing to see come to fruition. It’s also massively ambitious, and not every experimental tech Google develops ends up as a proper shipping project. Modularity has a lot to potentially offer the smartphone market (and could also be very interesting when applied to tablets) but there’s a lot of ground to cover between here and selling these things in stores. Still, if anyone has the resources and runway to make it happen, Google is a pretty good candidate.

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Google’s Project Ara Modular Smartphone Gets Its Own Developer Conference This April

Google is not abandoning Project Ara, after taking over the ambitious experimental smartphone design concept along with the Advanced Technology and Projects (ATAP) group from Motorola. ATAP only just announced Tango, its 3D-environment sensor for mobile devices, and now it’s revealing a two-day developer conference April 15 and 16 at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View.

Ara, for those who aren’t familiar, is a modular smartphone project that would allow users to swap out interchangeable parts to give their device a different sensor load out, a better camera, more battery power or anything else your heart might desire. You source new sensors from a store that would operate similarly to a hardware version of the Play mobile software marketplace, and theoretically upgrade your phone piecemeal instead of having to buy a brand new one every few years just for a few new highlight features.This is the first in a planned series of Ara dev conferences for 2014, Google says, and this event will focus specifically on the alpha release of the Ara Module Developers’ Kit (MDK) which will hit the web in early April. The free platform will offer developers “everything [they] need” to get up and running building Ara hardware modules, ATAP promises. Limited in-person attendance is available, with a $100 fee ($25 for students) covering food and a special social session. Google is approving these based on the strength of your application, so make it a good one.

Ara is meant to be a one-size fits all solution for smartphones, offering anything to any potential user in the world with its range of modules. That’s a hugely ambitious goal, of course, but in ATAP’s own words, they “like epic shit,” so that aim seems within its scope.

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Android users warned: Think twice, check math before downloading WhatsApp

Users of mobile devices running Google's Android operating system may have to think twice and check their math before downloading and installing the popular WhatsApp application.

Panda Security said  perpetrators of the new attack used advertising on Facebook to trick victims into downloading installing rogue apps.

"Cyber-criminals are always trying to attract people’s attention in order to carry out their crimes. So it should be no surprise that they have now found a combined way of using Facebook (the world’s largest social network), WhatsApp (the leading text messaging program for smartphones, recently bought by Facebook) and Android (the most popular operating system for mobile devices) to defraud users," it said.


Victims who access Facebook from an Android mobile device will see a "suggested post" advertising tools for WhatsApp.

Those who click on the post will be redirected to a page resembling Google Play.

Check math

But Panda Security said users should check their numbers: the app has a score of 4.5 but the number of stars is 3.5.

"You can see that the score is calculated on the basis of the votes from 35,239 users. Yet if you add up the number of votes that appear on the right, the total is 44,060 votes," it added.

Careful users can then detect the page is "really a Web page designed to look like the Play Store, so users think they are in a trusted site," it added.Another sign that something is fishy is that the browser address bar is hidden at all times.Victims risk downloading an app that calls a premium rate SMS service that can drain their load.

Also, Panda noted the malware hides messages from the number 22365, a warning SMS to users who have activated this kind of premium service. — VC, GMA News

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Nokia: Imaging SDK set for Android Nokia X Platform

NOKIA HAS REVEALED to The E-Information that its Imaging software development kit (SDK) likely will come to its Nokia X platform, enabling developers to build high-end photography apps for its low-end, Android-based smartphones.Nokia's Imaging SDK allows developers to create imaging apps for Windows Phone 8 and Windows 8.1, such as Nokia's own Creative Studio app that it boasts was built using the developer kit.However, Windows Phones didn't feature heavily at this year's Mobile World Congress (MWC), as Nokia instead focused on showcasing its Android-based Nokia X smartphone line, comprising the Nokia X, Nokia X+ and Nokia XL.While you'll find some of Nokia's usual apps onboard, such as Music and Here maps, there are none of the high-end camera applications found on the Nokia Lumia 1520 and Lumia 1020 handsets, due to the Nokia X devices' low prices. However, Nokia said that its Imaging SDK might appear on the Nokia X range "when the time is right".During an interview with The INQUIRER, Amit Patel, VP of developer relations at Nokia, said that the firm hopes to open the Imaging SDK to developers working on Nokia X apps, with imaging still a "key differentiator" for the firm. Patel said, "On the hardware side, it's bill of materials, so you may not get a Nokia X handset with a 41MP camera. However, the important thing will be the software manipulation and imaging features, which is going to be something that we can bring down to the low end when the time is right.

"A lot of those software techniques are actually portable from the high end to the low end. If you've got a reasonable processor in the device, you can run a lot of those capabilities. Imaging is of course one of the key differentiators, not just on the Lumia side, but in the affordable smartphone space as well."

During our interview, Patel also spoke about what developers can expect when submitting apps to the Nokia X Store, promising that the firm will carefully vet apps before they are approved. Thanks to this thorough apps validation process, he added that out of 100,000 Android apps tested for the Nokia X, nine percent were found to contain malware.

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Haiti's Android tablet maker Surtab to crank up production

The stark and sterile white room in an industrial park in Port-au-Prince is a world away from the chaos and colour of the annual carnival, but both are being touted as part of a new "Made in Haiti" brand.

The clean room, to use its official name, is a 2,000 sq ft space where Haiti's first tablet computers are assembled. There are three models of the Surtab Android tablets, the most expensive of which is not dissimilar to an iPad Mini or Samsung Galaxy – but at half the price.

"They show that Haiti can do hi-tech manufacturing and assembly," says Maarten Boute, Surtab's Belgian CEO and co-founder. "Everyone knows Haiti, but for the wrong reasons. Now, Surtab associates the Haiti brand with something cool."

At $100 (£60) plus local taxes for the cheapest model and $285 for the high-definition Surtab 7, the Haitian tablet is an oddity in a country better known for hunger, extreme poverty and near-mediaeval healthcare.

The Danish philanthropist JP Bak came with the idea as a jobs-creation scheme while he was working in Haiti after the 2010 earthquake, Boute says, but the trigger was the much-hyped low-cost Aakash tablet manufactured in India. "We thought, why can't we do the same here? Using components bought in Asia, just like Apple and other companies?"

Boute says the competitive advantage lies in geography and relatively low labour costs. "Microsoft Trinidad wants a low-cost tablet for the Caribbean region. We're at the same wage level as China even though we pay the workers at least twice if not four times the [Haitian] minimum wage," he says.

Surtab comes at a symbolically significant time for Haiti. As of this year, a UN international force will have been keeping the peace on the island for a decade; agricultural productivity was marginally higher last year , staving off food shortages in the hinterland; 30 months after taking office, President Michel Martelly's government is finally talking to the opposition about holding long-delayed elections  during 2014. The Catholic church is leading the negotiations , newly emboldened by Pope Francis's decision to give Haiti its first cardinal.

"It feels like the clouds are lifting, just a bit," says Marcus Garcia, who edits the diaspora weekly Haiti en Marche from Port-au-Prince.

To some, Surtab symbolises a nascent and unfamiliar sense of Haiti on the move. Boute and the Haitian businessman Richard Coles invested capital and a $200,000 USAid grant through the Pan-American Development Fund to get the company on its feet.

It was a sizeable investment of faith as much as money in an energy-deficient country, where the cost of doing business is high and which, according to Transparency International, is one of the most corrupt places in the world.

Not everyone is convinced by Surtab's vision. "It sounds wonderful, but this is not mass jobs creation. It's just a few jobs. Haiti needs thousands, hundreds of thousands of jobs," says a prominent Port-au-Prince businessman who spoke on condition of anonymity. For this, the government would have to pass new corruption laws, enforce existing laws and create an investment-friendly climate. "That's how the Dominican Republic, Barbados and Mauritius have done it," he says.

Garcia agrees. "We are a broken country and to remake ourselves, we need jobs. Lots of jobs."

Unsurprisingly, the logistics of setting up tablet production in Haiti were a great deal more complicated than securing the startup funding. Haitian workers had to be hired and trained for two months, and in a canny move to circumvent the national disclaimer of pa faut mwen, Haitian Creole for "not my fault", Surtab has ensured that its staff take responsibility for their work by dispensing with the traditional assembly line and having each worker create tablets from start to finish.

The fastest workers assemble 15 tablets a day, and the company has shipped  650 to a Kenyan university and 220 to an educational foundation in Jamaica. The remainder of the initial production run of 4,000 have been sold at home, to the government and NGOs and through the mobile phone company Digicel's 116 Haitian outlets.

With bank loans to cover the cost of increasing production quotas, Boute plans to turn out 7,000 tablets a month. His target market includes an estimated 500,000 Haitians, and he says the tablet business is a safe bet even if Surtab fails to make it as a standalone brand

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Boeing’s Ultra-Secure, Self-Destructing Smartphone

Boeing unveiled its new, ultra-secure “Boeing Black ” smartphone on Wednesday, saying it plans to sell the modular device to government agencies and companies engaged in contractual activities with those agencies related to defense and homeland security.

“The U.S. defense and security communities demand trusted access to data to accomplish their missions. Despite the continuous innovation in commercial mobile technology, current devices are not designed from inception with the security and flexibility needed to match their evolving mission and enterprise environment,” Boeing said in itsannouncement .

The new phone, simply called “Black,” will run a security-enhanced variant of the Android operating system, and will include a 4.3-inch qHD (540×960) display, Dual 1.2 GHz ARM Cortex-A9 processors, and support for LTE 700/1700/2100, WCDMA 850/1900/2100 and GSM 850/900/1800/1900 bands along with major storage (USB, HDMI, SIM) and wireless (Bluetooth, Wi-Fi) standards.

Perhaps the most interesting of Black’s features is the ability to self-destruct if anyone attempts to disassemble the phone to learn about its secrets.

“Any attempt to break open the casing of the device would trigger functions that would delete the data and software contained within the device and make the device inoperable,” Boeing said.

While disclosing the basic features of the new device, Boeing declined to elaborate on any of its specialized capabilities.

“The device will be marketed and sold in a manner such that low-level technical and operational information about the product will not be provided to the general public,” the company said in an FCC filing  about the device.

Boeing’s Black appears to be a direct challenge the BlackBerry, which has long been a favorite for government employees.  The Canadian smartphone maker still enjoys a number of government smartphone contracts, and recently announced a new deal with the Pentagon to provide 80,000 BlackBerrys to defense department employees.

In its FCC filing, Boeing said that purchasers of Black would need to sign an agreement that ”specifically designates and protects as ‘proprietary information’ the components, hardware, Product Software, applications, functionalities, or internal structure or workings” of the device, “including without limitation those that can be obtained by disassembling or opening the Product or its software or components.”

The agreement also states that there are “no serviceable parts on Boeing’s Black phone and any attempted servicing or replacing of parts would destroy the product.”

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A look at Boeing Black, the self-destructing Android phone

If you thought Snapchat’s self-destructing pictures were cool, wait till you get a load of this. US company Boeing has unveiled a new smartphone that appears to come straight from a James Bond spy movie.In addition to encrypting your communication over the phone, any attempt to open the casing of the Boeing Black smartphone deletes all data and rendering the device inoperable. The secure phone marks an extension of the communications arm of the Chicago-based aerospace and defense contractor, which is best known for jetliners and fighter planes.Made in the US, the phone runs on Google’s Android. The 5.2-by-2.7-inch (13.2-by-6.9 cm) handset, slightly larger than an iPhone, uses dual SIM cards to enable it to access multiple cell networks instead of a single network like a normal cellphone. “The Boeing Black phone is manufactured as a sealed device both with epoxy around the casing and with screws, the heads of which are covered with tamper proof covering to identify attempted disassembly. Any attempt to break open the casing of the device would trigger functions that would delete the data and software contained within the device and make the device inoperable,” the company said.The self-destructing phone contains a rather small 1590mAh battery and is quite chunky looking from the renders Boeing has released. It sports a 4.3-inch 540×960 display of unspecified type and will play nicely with LTE, UMTS, and GSM networks. Customisation is also a major selling point for Boeing Black — the back door can be swapped out for add-on modules such as satellite radio, expanded battery packs, solar chargers, precise GPS receivers, secure discrete radio channels, biometric scanners, etc. The Black also sports a PDMI port that combines USB, audio, power, HDMI, and DisplayPort output in one connection. You will also find a a standard USB port for data and charging, along with a microSD slot. An unspecified dual-core 1.2Ghz ARM Cortex-A9 processor is ticking within. Due to the phone’s security features, Boeing is releasing few details about the wireless network operators or manufacturer it is working with, and has not provided a price or date by which the phone might be widely available, but said it has begun offering the phone to potential customers. Boeing has not mentioned any specific details about the cameras on the phone, but we can clearly see one on the backBoeing’s website says the phone can be configured to connect with biometric sensors or satellites. Other attachments can extend battery life or use solar power. The phone can operate on the WCDMA, GSM and LTE frequency bands and offers WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity.Such a phone might have prevented damage to Washington’s diplomacy in Ukraine from a leaked telephone call. A senior US State Department officer and the ambassador to Ukraine apparently used unencrypted cellphones for a call about political developments in Ukraine that became public.Boeing’s tamper-proof phone is aimed at government agencies and contractors who need to keep communication and data secure, according to Boeing and filings with the U.S. Federal Communications Commission.The company has been developing the phone for 36 months, said Boeing spokeswoman Rebecca Yeamans. “We saw a need for our customers in a certain market space” that Boeing could meet with its technology expertise, she said.A sample purchase contract submitted to the FCC says the phone would be sold directly by Boeing or its agents. Yeamans said Boeing combined its own engineers with the talent of people who joined Boeing recently through acquisitions that included Argon ST Inc, Digital Receiver Technology Inc, Kestrel Enterprises Inc, Ravenwing Inc, and Solutions Made Simple Inc.

With inputs from Reuters

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Boeing builds self-destructing Android phone to shield top secret info

US aerospace firm Boeing has made a secure smartphone that will destroy its data and render itself inoperable if tampered with.

The phone has been designed with the needs of the "US defense and security communities" in mind, and attempts to satisfy security requirements not met by current devices, according to Boeing .

The phone is what Boeing terms a "sealed device", due to the physical and digital countermeasures designed to protect the phone's hardware from interference.

"The Boeing Black phone is manufactured as a sealed device both with epoxy around the casing and with screws, the heads of which are covered with tamper proof covering to identify attempted disassembly," Boeing states in a filing with the US Federal Communications Commission .

"There are no serviceable parts on Boeing's Black phone, and any attempted servicing or replacing of parts would destroy the product," according to the filing, spotted by community site MyCE . "Any attempt to break open the casing of the device would trigger functions that would delete the data and software contained within the device and make the device inoperable."

The Boeing Black phone. Image: Boeing

The Black phone will be sold with an end-user non-disclosure agreement, as well as being "marketed and sold in a manner such that low-level technical and operational information about the product will not be provided to the general public."

The handset is driven by a dual-core 1.2 GHz ARM Cortex A9-based processor and will run the Android operating system with "enhanced software security policy configuration". It has a 4.3-inch qHD screen with a 540 x 960 resolution display and GSM, WCDMA and LTE connectivity, as well as supporting Bluetooth 2.1 enhanced data rate connections.

Black phones also have a dual-SIM capability that enables users to switch between government and commercial networks.

The phone's listed security features are "embedded FIPS 140-2 key storage, hardware inhibits, trusted modules and configurable OS security policies". The phone supports disk encryption, hardware root of trust and crypto engine, and secure boot.

"Hardware media encryption and configurable inhibit controls are embedded to protect the device, its data, and the transmission of information, significantly reducing the risk of mission compromise due to data loss," according to Boeing .

A modular expansion port allows additional sensors or add-ons to be fitted to the phone to provide satellite connectivity, expanded power capacity, or other additional features. The device also includes a portable digital media interface (PDMI) and a micro USB port. Onboard storage can be expanded via microSD card.

The Black phone weighs 170g and has a 1590 mAh lithium-ion battery.

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Hey This Design Was Actually Really Nice

Manufacturers desperately wanted Android fans to use keyboards in the beginning. Heck, the first Android handset to launch featured one, and many devices followed suit. In a world where mobile was very clearly heading toward touch-only, many were resistant to the change, or at least too stubborn to admit they had no clue what to do. Some companies adapted, while others did not.At the time, this company had a very apparent design philosophy, though this one strayed slightly. Crafted as a machined aluminum slab, the device was a hefty mobile rectangle that featured a tiny screen and an even tinier set of physical keys. But it actually doesn’t feel half bad, and features a pretty terrific spring mechanism for unveiling the device’s keyboard. Strangely, it also has an odd touchpad on the lower-left, forgoing the typical trackball or d-pad configuration.Even when the market wasn’t being saturated by “mini” variants, companies were already releasing flagship devices with cheaper alternatives. This device fell in the “alternative” category, though it still tried catering to a certain crowd with a nice design and solid keyboard experience. Sadly, it was doomed to fail, as consumers clearly preferred using devices with touch keyboards. Why do you think we have phablets?

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Now, an Android app for the LGBT community

For over three years, IT professional Sukhdeep Singh has been running an online magazine focussed on the Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community in India.

After work hours, a group of 10 scattered around the country have doubled as editors, tech support and even done on-the-ground reporting on events and issues that involve the community. Last week, on Valentine’s Day, the group launched an official app for the magazine, called ‘Gaylaxy’, and with it plans to do much more than a magazine.

“Currently all we have is a lot of dating apps,” says Mr. Singh. “We wanted to have a social app where we can not only share articles but also allow for interaction, provide information on events or pride marches, and create a support-system like platform for members of the community,” he said. The decision to move to the mobile platform was provoked by the fact that a majority of traffic to the online site was from mobile phones. The e-zine is also available in Hindi.

After the Supreme Court verdict recriminalising gay sex, the group decided that such a forum was necessary. Apurv Gupta, who manages the tech side, said plans are on to also make the app available for iOS and Windows devices. “Now our focus is on making this as current, relevant and interactive as possible,” he added.

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Android 4.4.2, Sense 5.5 Rolling Out Now For T-Mobile, AT&T Coming Shortly [HTC One]

Earlier this week, America’s two predominant GSM carriers, T-Mobile and AT&T announced they had received clearance to start pushing the latest version of Kit Kat, 4.4.2 onto their flagship HTC One models. According to reports, that push has now begun for T-Mobile. The AT&T model should start pushing out shortly.

The original “promise” from HTC is that they would have the latest update pushed within a 90 day window. That announcement was made a little over 90 days ago in October, but they have at least stayed true and pushed the latest update. The announcement came originally from @moversi, executive director of product management at HTC.

T-Mobile HTC One Owners! We have received technical approval for 4.4 OS + Sense 5.5! Expect the OTA out shortly! Thank you for your patience

— Mo (@moversi) February 21, 2014

Another Great News! We have received AT&T’s technical approval for the HTC One w/4.4 + Sense 5.5. Looking to get the OTA out soon. Thanks!

— Mo (@moversi) February 21, 2014

The 4.4.2 update brings the following enhancements according to their own OTA changelog:

System improvements:

• Android 4.4.2 update
• Security enhancements

Printing improvement:

• Cloud Print Service

Bluetooth improvement:

• New Bluetooth profiles to support more media interactions

These updates are typical across the board for anyone making the upgrade to Kit Kat 4.4.2. They also suggest making sure the phone is connected to Wi-Fi and has a nice, full battery. The software update does run around 565 MB.

Sense 5.5. brings the following improvements:

• Updated BlinkFeed
• Redesigned Gallery application
• Lock screen widget setup
• Do not disturb
• Improved Highlights management
• Low light enhancements

Great enhancements all around for the both variants of the HTC One. Many of our T-Mobile readers have probably already seen the same, but if you are on AT&T let us know when you begin to see this update in the comments.

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HTC Desire 8 detailed; Google Now watch in the works; Project Tango launches

This coming week should have plenty of Android news from the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. This past week in the Android world wasn’t quiet though. Reported details of the HTC Desire 8 leaked out in advance of MWC. The Desire 8 may be the biggest news from HTC at the show because the company isn’t expected to introduce its next flagship phone until March 25.That means the Desire 8 will be a more affordable device and the alleged specifications show exactly that: A 1.6 GHz quad-core Snapdragon 400, 1.5 GB of memory, 8 GB of internal storage with microSD card expansion, and a 5.5-inch 720p display. The phone also has Boom Sound and a pair of cameras with the rear sensor expected to be 13 megapixels. Apart from the screen size, the Desire 8 is similar to Motorola’s $179 Moto G but with slightly more RAM, a faster version of the same CPU chip and better cameras.Potentially then, HTC could be looking at a device price at $299 or less, which could help boost sales; something the company desperately needs. And that price off-contract could be desirable for consumers with less disposable income, which is the fastest growing smartphone sales segment in the U.S. I’m also expecting the phone to be marketed heavily in China where there are hundreds of millions that don’t yet have smartphones.HTC isn’t just counting on mid-range phones to turn things around. This week a report surfaced suggesting the company is working on three different wearables, with at least one launching this year. The most interesting of the three is an HTC watch based around Google Now; the contextual personal assistant software that Google provides to Android, Chrome and Google Glass.I’ve been on record saying a Google Now watch could be more innovative and successful than smartwatches that run other apps or act as second screens for a phone. If HTC can be the first to deliver such a device, I think it would enjoy some heaver first-mover status until competitors — or even Google — offered the same.Google doesn’t currently have a Google Now watch but it did unveil Project Tangothis week: An Android developer phone that can sense and see the world around it.Google says the goal of Project Tango is “to give mobile devices a human-scale understanding of space and motion.”In order to do that, the company worked with hardware partners to get vision processing and 3D mapping working together in a handset. But Google is just providing the tool; it’s up to developers to see what they can do with Project Tango.

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What is Google’s Project Tango? Google to Revolutionize 3D in Mobile Tech?

Google, known for many mysterious and discreet projects in tech field, has come out with another innovative breakthrough in an experimental Android-powered smartphone with powerful 3D sensors called Project Tango.

The project is part of Google’s Advanced Technology and Projects (ATAP) group and it is still in early stages of development. The first 200 prototypes will be available for developers by mid-March, 2014 and Google is handpicking those whom it would send the prototypes.

“The goal of Project Tango is to give mobile devices a human-scale understanding of space and motion,” Johnny Lee, ATAP’s chief wrote in a Google+ post.

The 3D Android phone will be equipped with a series of 3D sensors capable of taking more than a quarter of a million measurements each second, which will have applications such as gaming, indoor navigation and others.

Google says these devices will directly be vetted by companies in gaming, data processing and navigation, mapping application and other related sectors.

Google, however, has asked interested developers to sign up on Project Tango’s website for a chance to get one of the early prototypes.

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Google Nexus 8 set to launch with Android 4.5 in July: Report

Reports have for a while indicated Google may be working on a Nexus 8 tablet, and the latest claim which is being said to launch in July this year, along with the next Android version, said to be v4.5.It has being speculated that the search giant might be shifting away from its 7-inch devices because of the high competitiveness of the segment, which would be much less in the 8-inch bracket. Some of the popular 8-inch tablets in the market are Apple iPad Mini, Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0, Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 and LG G Pad 8.3.

As claimed in a report by Taiwanese publication , a senior employee of Google Dublin confirmed that the firm will be launching Android 4.5 OS in July along with the new tablet, Nexus 8. The source is also quoted to have that the upcoming Google I/O conference, which will start from 25 June, will concentrate more towards the services Google plans to bring for its users.The 8-inch Google Nexus 8 is most likely expected to launch with the next Android 4.5 OS version. There is no word on the features of the OS, but we believe that by the time Google I/O nears in, we might get a faded glimpse of it via leaks and rumours.Furthermore, the report from Taiwan claimed that Nexus 8 will be launched by April-end with "initial shipments of two million units." The same report has also indicated Asus as the manufacturer of theGoogle Nexus 8.Reports from last month indicated that Google might adopt Intel's Bay Trail-T platform for the alleged Nexus 8 tablet, instead of the Qualcomm chipset currently used in the Nexus 7 (2013).

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Tmo HTC One update to Android 4.4.2 KitKat finally here

Apologies for grabbing this so late, but for those of you who haven’t already downloaded and installed it, 4.4.2 is finally here for the Magenta-flavored HTC One. It landed late last night, very inconveniently while I was in the middle of travelling to Barcelona for this year’s MWC conference.

As for the update, it marks the start of HTC’s campaign to ensure that all future devices will support the latest software updates, and will receive them for two years after launch. In theory, it’s fantastic for those of you who hate having the uncertainty of whether or not there will be an update to your device’s OS.

If you haven’t already had a notification for the update, head in to your settings menu, and check for software updates manually.

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Android 4.4 KitKat Update Is Here: US Cellular Galaxy S4 And Galaxy Note 3 Receive New OS; International Galaxy S4 (GT-I9500) Rollout Also Begins

Android 4.4 KitKat change log for US Cellular Samsung Galaxy S4 US Cellular

Several Samsung Galaxy models are now receiving the Android 4.4 KitKat update just days after the Korean manufacturer officially announced its rollout plans.

Stateside, the U.S. Cellular Galaxy S4 and Galaxy Note 3 models are both now receiving the new operating system, while the international Galaxy S4 is now updating in Russia. After several months of silence, Samsung released a press statement on Tuesday detailing that 14 of its Galaxy brand devices for various carriers would be updating Android 4.4 KitKat.

U.S. Cellular updated the change logs for its Galaxy S4 and Galaxy Note 3 models on Thursday with all the information needed about this models’ Android 4.4 update. The Galaxy Note 3 N900R4TYUCNAB build software and the Galaxy S4 R970TYUFNAE build software is now available over-the-air and through Samsung Kies, and includes such enhancements as a new phone dialer and Camera features, Hangouts and text integration, always on capability with Google now and a full emoji keyboard. A leaked document had proposed that the U.S. Cellular Galaxy Note 3 would begin on update on Feb. 19 and the actual rollout date was not of by much.

The Android 4.4 update for both devices will be staggered and may take several days or weeks to complete. Users can prompt the Android 4.4 update manually by accessing Settings > General > About device > Software update on their U.S. Cellular Galaxy S4 or Galaxy Note 3 handsets.As said, the international Galaxy S4 GT-I9500, featuring the Samsung Exynos 5410 chipset is now updating in Russia. The Galaxy S4 I9500SERFNB3 build software is also available over-the-air and through Samsung Kies, but does not include a change log at this point. Update features will likely not differ much from what has already been seen.

Reports also indicate that the Sprint Galaxy Note 3 has begun updating to Android 4.4, as did the Sprint Galaxy S4 last week. The Samsung Galaxy Note 3 first began updating internationally in January, but the Sprint Galaxy S4 was the first model to receive Android 4.4. Samsung Galaxy S4 and Galaxy Note 3 models for other carriers and locations may update at any time, so users can also check manually to see if Android 4.4 has hit their handset. There has been no indication as to when other designated Galaxy devices will begin to update.

Is your U.S. Cellular or international Galaxy S4 or Note 3 model receiving the Android 4.4 KitKat update? Let us know in the comments below.

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Nike hiring Android SDK developers suggests more compatibility lies ahead

Nike has announced it is advertising for Android SDK developers, suggesting the long-term monogamous relationship with Apple could be coming to an end.Thanks to the Bluetooth LE functionality offered by Apple, Nike has previously used iOS as the only mobile platform compatible with its devices such as the Fuel Band SE and running trainer sensors.However, the release of Android KitKat has now brought Bluetooth LE connectivity to the Android platform and it looks like Nike is ready to jump on board.The listing advertises for nine Android developers to join Nike, one of which is a job on the Nike+ APR team to build an Android SDK “for use in any Android application that integrates with Nike+", to help build the "future of activity measurement for internal and external clients".Current Nike apps use the Android SDK so the Android SDK build job is an important one, as it means a new Nike Android SDK to allow Android devices and third-party movement sensors to use Nike.It might even mean we see an Android-specific app similar to Move for the iPhone 5S. Either way, it looks like it should be an interesting year for Nike and Android.

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