Category: Android

Nextbit has dropped the long awaited beta 3 of Android Nougat for the Robin today.  The update comes some 8 weeks after the release of the 2nd beta, a point at which the Paranoid Android team joined up with them to get the beta built.  This new build is expected to be the last beta as the team has indicated their is just one blocking bug that is preventing it from going public.

The Android Nougat beta is a closed beta for those who have a Nextbit Robin.

The fact a beta came out for the phone is a great sign, especially in light of Nextbit being acquired last month.  It was stated at the time that software updates would continue to come until February of next year and this is a good early indicator that the phone is not abandoned.

As for changes, they are pretty significant in this new build.  First, the build has the January Android Security Bulletin patch so it is relatively up-to-date from that regard.  Multiple bugs and stability issues have been fixed, particularly around Wi-Fi and overall system stability.  Power management has also been improved which should help battery life while running the beta.

A new version of the YouTube app for Android is rolling out in the Play Store, bringing a new double-tap gesture to rewind or advance the video you are watching by 10 seconds.  The new gesture works exactly as you would expect.  If you double-tap the right side of the video you are watching, you will advance 10 seconds into the video.  Double-tap the left side and you go back 10 seconds.  No more having to use the seek bar to try to go forward or get back on a video.

The new feature is something that should make video viewing a bit easier and faster to navigate.

As expected, Google has released the February Android Security Bulletin today, highlighting the security vulnerabilities and fixes addressed since last month.  The company has also released the OTA updates for the February builds which means that owners of compatible Nexus and Pixel devices will get the update shortly.

Like last month, the February update consists of two distinct patches.  The first patch, dated February 1, deals with general vulnerabilities in Android Nougat while the second patch, dated February 5, is more specific to Nexus and Pixel devices.  Both patches have security fixes but the second patch deals with security patches with specific device drivers.  In all there are 35 fixes, 8 of which are considered critical and 18 are considered high priority.  You can read about all of them in the Bulletin release notes.

Late last week it came to light from various sources that Google is going to be removing the Google Now Launcher from the Play Store in March.  The ultimate reason behind this remains a bit of a mystery with those of us who have the Nexus 6P or Nexus 5X hoping that the Pixel launcher will become the new default. But regardless, one thing that needs to be made perfectly clear:  If you have the Now Launcher installed, it won’t disappear from your phone when Google removes it from the store.  It just simply won’t be available for download.

All-in-all, the Now Launcher is a solid launcher option that has been around since the Nexus 5 days and became a stand alone download in 2015.  It works well, gets the job done and with a swipe to the left you get all your Google Now cards.  Those Now cards are the key reason I’ve kept the launcher installed. But, to be fair, those Now cards are available in the Google app itself now so you don’t necessarily have to have the launcher installed.  This, likely, was part of the deciding factor for Google to kill off the launcher.

The question for some however who use it will be if it will still work after Google removes it from the Store.  The answer is absolutely.  Equally, it won’t be uninstalled from your phone either.  The only way that could happen would be if you completely reset your phone as you won’t be able to download it from the Play Store again.  You can get around that too by side-loading it from APKMirror.

While there were a few bright spots, the Android tablet market continued to constrict in the last quarter of 2016 according to Strategy Analytics.  The site Q4 2016 report is out and with it, you see that overall, Android tablet sales dropped by 10% year-over-year with Samsung seeing a 10% drop themselves year-over-year.  Interestingly, relatively new comer Huawei saw a 49% increase in growth over last year as they made their first significant efforts in the tablet space in 2016.  It seems to have paid off – at least for now.  Amazon also enjoyed a nice growth rate of 21% thanks to their Fire lineup of Android-powered tablets.

The news on tablet sales didn’t just impact Android.  Apple saw a 19% drop in iPad sales year-over-year in Q4 2016.

As 2017 gets started, one thing has become abundantly clear to me:  The days of the Android tablet form factor are numbered.  Its not that the Android experience on tablets will kill them – which is pretty poor to be fair – but rather the flood of Chromebooks and other Chrome OS devices that are set to hit the market this year.  2017 will be the year that Chrome OS takes off for good with a wide range of form factors expected to be release and the much anticipated support of Android apps on the platform in Chrome 56.  The latter is due within days and the former, with the likes of Samsung’s new Chromebooks, will set the stage for a transformative year.

The push for the tablet form factor came fundamentally from Apple.  With the launch of the iPad, it suddenly became a tool by which you could get more things done on a larger screen.  Add to that portability and a lower cost, generally, than a laptop and you set the stage for a form factor that seemingly many wanted.  But for all the might of Apple, the iPad has never really taken hold.  Samsung, HTC and Google themselves have had the same struggles.  They brought the conveniences of a mobile Operating System and the associated apps but equally, they brought limitations that users did not experience on laptops.  It was, as if, they were a stop-gap measure until a proper merger of a desktop OS and a mobile OS could take place.

That merger is happening now with Chrome OS and Android.

Android apps running in Chrome will be more than just a stop gap.  You will get the benefits of an app ecosystem along with the power and productivity of a desktop OS.  Is it perfect?  No but it is a far cry better than having two completely desparent solutions to meet your productivity and entertainment needs.

I suspect that my usage of my Nexus 9 Android tablet is similar to many of you.  I like the tablet but 90% of my use of it is for entertainment:  Games, movie watching and social networking.  Rarely do I use it for productivity, even with the solid Google productivity apps like Docs, Sheets and Slides.  The only time I really use it for productivity is when I’m on an airplane, in coach, crammed into a little seat with little room to pull out a 14″ Chromebook to work.  If I’m in business class or First class, the Chromebook is always the weapon of choice to get things done.  So the question becomes, if I had my entertainment on a slate or convertible Chrome OS-based device, would I need a tablet?  The answer, in my mind, is a resounding no.