Foursquare for iOS update adds notification tray

If you're a heavy Foursquare user on the iPhone and wished that there was an easier way to keep track of what's going on like the website version of the service, you're in luck. The latest update to Foursquare for iOS adds a new screen to the app - the notification tray. Every time there's a new activity (i.e. somebody checked in, or comments on your check in), it adds a number to the counter on the top of the app.

If you want to check what's been going on, just tap the number and the notification tray will pop up showing you all the events that have been happening. A pretty useful feature if you disabled push notifications for your alerts so you don't have to get spammed by updates, yet you still know what's been going on.

One interesting thing about this new feature is that it was pushed out to Android devices before it made its way to the iOS platform - pretty strange, considering how Foursquare has always been rolling out its updates to iOS first. Could this be a new trend? Either way, you can head over to the Apple App Store to get the latest version of Foursquare for your iOS device.
source: Ubergizmo

LG Optimus Black Skype Edition Now Available At Telus

Telus has just announced the availability of the new LG Optimus Black Skype Edition on their network. The handset is currently being offered for $49.99 with a new three-year contract or $399.99 without a contract. The LG Optimus Black Skype Edition packs a 4.0-inch 480 x 800 capacitive touchscreen display, a 2MP front-facing camera, a 5MP rear-facing camera, GPS, WiFi, Bluetooth, 3G, Skype integration and runs on Android 2.2 Froyo OS.
source: TechFresh

LG Optimus Net P690 Gingerbread Smartphone

LG Electronics today introduced the new Android Gingerbread smartphone namely the Optimus Net P690. The phone offers enhanced multimedia support, enhanced power management and better gaming support. The Optimus Net P690 features an integrated social widget that provides one-click photo sharing with multiple social media accounts from the home screen. In addition, the phone also provides a 3.2-inch HVGA (320 x 480) display, a 1500mAh battery, an 800MHz CPU, and the LG SmartShare function that allows easy sharing of content with other DLNA-friendly devices. Specifications for the LG Optimus Net will vary market by market. The North American version will include a QWERTY keyboard. In Brazil, China, Asia and CIS countries, the phone will have dual SIM capabilities. Also, in selected European markets, the Optimus Net will be NFC-ready.
source: TechFresh

Samsung starts rolling our Gingerbread update for Ace

Although the Gingerbread ROM for the Samsung Ace leaked months back Samsung never got around to releasing it officially. Until now, that is.

SamFirmware is reporting that Samsung has started rolling out the Gingerbread update for the Ace through Kies. The update for now is available in limited countries, namely, Russia and Poland but will be available in other regions soon.

As for the update, there is nothing much to report on it. It will update the Android version to 2.3.3 and bring the usual Gingerbread goodness to your Samsung Ace.
source: GSM Arena

Cincinnati Bell Releases Samsung Nexus S 3G

Cincinnati Bell has released the Samsung Nexus S 3G for $149.99 (after a $50 mail-in rebate) with a new two-year contract. In case you didn't know, the Samsung Nexus S 3G is the first smartphone to launch with a contour display. The curved glass screen fits comfortably in the palm of your hand and along the side of your face. The smartphone features a 4-inch (800×480) widescreen AMOLED display, a 1GHz Cortex A8 (Hummingbird) processor, the Google Android 2.3 Gingerbread OS, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR (A2DP), WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, GPS and a 5-megapixel rear-facing camera. Cincinnati Bell offers free UPS shipping for this phone, and the activation fee (usually $35) has been waived.
source: TechFresh

Samsung Admire (SCH-R720) Android Phone For MetroPCS

Word on the street has is that Samsung is currently working on the mid-range device with Android 2.3 Gingerbread as the Operating System for MetroPCS under the Admire (SCH-R720) model name. The new device should come with 3.5-inch HVGA screen, 800MHz CPU, TouchWiz UI, 3.2MP camera, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, GPS, and a 3G support (no LTE). That is the MetroPCS planned to release the Admire on August or September this year with a price tag of $149.99 after rebate. [ SammyHub ]

Updated : The Samsung Admire (SCH-R720) could be the first Metro PCS Android Smartphone.
source: Today Gadgets

Android Dropbox app updated – now with picture icons

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Android Dropbox app updated – now with picture icons
Android Dropbox app updated – now with picture icons
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A small but excellent couple of changes have been made to the Android Dropbox app recently, with the popular sharing tool now generating icons for any photos you have saved to your account. Which makes managing your collection of pics much easier.

Plus it's now possible to delete entire folders from within the app. Here are the small but lovely changes in action:

This takes the Android Dropbox app up to version 1.2.1 and it's on the Android Market right here. And if you need to register for Dropbox itself, why not do me a favour by using this affiliate-coded link to do so, which will get me an extra few MB of space for storing photos of Korean models holding telephones.
source: Eurodroid

Apple wins initial patent victory in fight with HTC

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Apple wins initial patent victory in fight with HTC
Apple wins initial patent victory in fight with HTC
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The long-running patent dispute between Apple and HTC has really kicked off this weekend, with a US judge ruling that HTC has infringed two of Apple's tech patents by using designs owned by Apple in its Android phones.

Many media observers, such as the Financial Times, are saying this ruling could make things very difficult for HTC and possibly threaten Android as a whole, but it depends on which patents HTC is judged to have been using without license.

Here's HTC's response to Apple's legal win:

“We are highly confident we have a strong case for the ITC appeals process and are fully prepared to defend ourselves using all means possible … We strongly believe we have alternate solutions in place for the issues raised by Apple. We look forward to resolving this case, so we can continue creating the most innovative mobile experiences for consumers”

We suspect, to the end user, nothing much will change. Maybe the multitouch will have to be tweaked so it only respond to thumbs rather than fingers. Here's HTC's full statement on the ruling.

ITC JUDGES RELEASES INITIAL DETERMINATION IN APPLE VS. HTC CASE

Taoyuan, Taiwan–July 16, 2011 – HTC received notice of the ITC judge’s initial determination in the Apple vs. HTC case, ITC No. 337-TA-710. Apple originally asserted 10 of its patents against HTC in March 2010, and the judge ruled today that HTC infringed on 2 patents. HTC does not yet have access to the judge’s full opinion and analysis to determine the details of his findings.

“We are highly confident we have a strong case for the ITC appeals process and are fully prepared to defend ourselves using all means possible,” said Grace Lei, General Counsel of HTC. “We strongly believe we have alternate solutions in place for the issues raised by Apple. We look forward to resolving this case, so we can continue creating the most innovative mobile experiences for consumers.”

The ITC’s Staff Attorney independently studied the facts and argued at trial that HTC does not violate any of the 10 Apple patents.

The ITC has already ruled that Apple is infringing the patents of HTC's subsidiary S3 Graphics as part of ITC Investigation No. 337-TA-724. HTC announced its acquisition of S3Graphics on July 6, 2011.
source: Eurodroid

Galaxy S Android 2.3.4 update coming this quarter in Europe

Having released the Android 2.3.3 Gingerbread update for the Galaxy S I9000 a while back, Samsung is now looking to upgrade it to the latest version, which is 2.3.4 and put that front facing camera on the phone to some better use.

SamFirmware has come across an image which suggests that Samsung is currently working on the update. The ROM build that you see in the picture below is dated back to the June 3 and includes features such as Google Voice calls through the Google Talk application, support for video calls over UMTS network and performance improvements and hotfixes.

Although an exact date is not known right now regarding the release of this new update, Samsung Europe has confirmed that the update will start rolling out for European countries in Q3, 2011. We assume the international launch won’t be too far away then.
source: GSM Arena

Motorola announced XT316 budget Android QWERTY phone

Motorola has announced a new budget smartphone based on Android. The XT316 has a candybar form-factor and a full QWERTY keyboard and is likely to compete against the likes of the Nokia E5 and the BlackBerry Curve 3G.

The XT316 has a 2.8 QVGA touchscreen display, 3 megapixel, fixed focus camera, 600MHz CPU ARM 11 with Adreno 200 GPU, 256MB RAM and 512MB built-in memory expandable with microSD cards. The XT316 supports 3G HSPA, Wi-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth and runs on Android 2.3 Gingerbread.

The XT316 will be sold in Europe as ‘Fire’ and in Latin America as ‘Spice Key’. The phone is already on sale in China and is coming to Hong Kong, Taiwan and Latin America starting mid-July and Asia later this summer.
source: GSM Arena