Tag: Android

The first maintenance update to Android Nougat will be hitting devices by the end of this year.  The update, Nougat 7.1, is scheduled to be released as a technical preview later this month with a final release coming in December according to a post on the Android Developer site.

Initially, we’ll offer the Developer Preview for Nexus 5X, Nexus 6P, and Pixel C devices, extending to other supported devices by the end of the preview. At the final release of the Android 7.1.x platform, due in early December, we’ll roll out updates to the full lineup of supported devices — Nexus 6, 5X, 6P, 9, Player, Pixel C, and supported Android One devices — as well as Pixel and Pixel XL devices.

Google announced earlier this year that they would be moving into a more consistent maintenance cycle with Android which will over new features, security and other fixes with each release.  With the new Pixel line up running Nougat 7.1 out-of-the-box, it was just a matter of when other devices would start seeing the update.  Now we have a rough timeline from the company.

The long, painful and expensive saga of the Galaxy Note7 is over.  Samsung today has halted all sales and production of the beleaguered device, citing safe concerns over batteries catching fire.  The Korean manufacture has requested all consumers power down the devices and return them to the retailer or carrier from which it was purchased for a refund or exchange for another device.  The news comes just a day after all the major carriers here in the United States along with retailer Best Buy announcing they were no longer selling the phablet.

Amid reports of replacement units catching fire, AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon have all stopped selling the Samsung Galaxy Note7.  The carriers are all offering their customers either refunds or the option to select another phone from their lineup.  The news comes at the same time as reports have surfaced that Samsung themselves are “adjusting” the production of the Note7 with some suggested it has been stopped outright.

While it may not be clear what Samsung will do with the Note7, what is clear is that the device and to a lesser extent Samsung themselves are tainted and have lost an amount of trust with consumers.

For those who have the ClintonFitch.com app installed, there is an update coming your way.  I pushed version 6.0.4 to the Play Store earlier today which has several improvements and fixes in it.  Most notably from a visual perspective, the menu is a lot cleaner and a bit easier to navigate than in the previous build.  I’ve also updated the API level of the app which means it will no longer work on devices running anything lower than Android KitKat at this point.  Based on statistics I don’t think this will impact anyone with the app installed, but be aware if you are on an older device.

Prisma has become one of the most popular Android and iOS apps out there.  The AI-driven photo manipulating app allows you to quickly and effortlessly turn a photo into a work of art and can produce some amazing results.  The only real drawback to the app, however, has been that in order for you to use it, you had to be online.  With the latest update to the app, which is rolling out to the Google Play Store now, that changes.  You can now use the app offline to do your art creation and even better, you only really need to be online when you are downloading Prisma styles.

AT&T has begun pre-orders of the LG flagship Android phone, the LG V20.  The 5.7″ phone that is powered by the Snapdragon 820 and 4GB of RAM will start out at an eye watering $829 putting it higher than the Google Pixel XL and nearly as much as the iPhone 7 Plus.  If you do place a pre-order, it will be shipping out to you at the end of this month and you aren’t actually charged until the phone ships so you do have some time to think about it.

Fortunately AT&T is offering a few promotions to help ease the cost pain.  First, you can pay out the phone interest free for 30 months.  That will cost you $27.67 per month.  If you opt for the 24 month plan, which will allow you to trade the phone in come October 2017, that plan is $34.59 per month.