Google: All New Android Phones Must Ship With KitKat

According to MobileBloom, a leaked memo has been identified, stating that all Android smartphones will have to run KitKat or else Google will not endorse the handset.  The Android memo is the first sign that Google is finally sorting the problem it has with fragmentation.  Because Google offers hundreds of phones to customers from many manufacturers across the world, Google’s operating system is swiftly becoming fragmented.  This issue is one of the top objections the operating system receives from application developers.

Apparently, the memo was sent from the Android team to its top OEM partners: Sony, Samsung, HTC, and LG who are all original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) for Google.  “Starting February 2014, Google will no longer approved GMS distribution on new Android products that ship older platform releases,” the memo states. “Each platform release will have a ‘GMS approval window’ that typically closes nine months after the next Android platform release is publicly available.”  Any handset that does not get approval from Google Mobile Services (GMS) will not be able to ship with Google’s main applications which include Now, Maps and Google Play store.

Does this mean the end of all budget Android phones?  It could be! If real, the memo could mean an end to cheap  Android handsets and increase the price of middle of the road smartphones.  KitKat also has higher minimum specifications than foregoing operating systems.  This may mean that phones like the Samsung Galaxy core are no longer possible.  It has been said that KitKat has been coded to work better on lower powered smartphones. However, this could still have enough of a knock on effect to possibly  give the developing market to opponents such as Mozilla’s FireFox and Tizen.

Last year, Android CEO Sundar Pichai said him and his team were working on solutions for Android fragmentation. Figures showed, at the end of January 2014, that approximately 1.4 per cent of all Android smartphones were running the latest version of the operating system. While in contrast, over 80 per cent of iPhones were running iOS7, Apple’s latest operating system.  Android released KitKat just weeks after iOS 7 was released for Apple’s devices.  It is uncertain how Nokia will be affected as they use older versions of Android. We will just have to wait and see. 

As always, if you have any sensible comments regarding this story, please leave your comments in the section below.

 EnjOy..:)

Bugs Of Techn0l0gy

: HTC One Preview :

: HTC One Preview :

The name is quite a statement, but one that befits a smartphone that has the makings of a masterpiece. The HTC One builds on a time-honored tradition of unibody design and packs all the very latest tech available - some of which exclusive - to make what is perhaps one of the best all-rounded packages to see the light of day in the first half of 2013.

    

HTC One official photos

The HTC One is like a supercar - it's the best that current technology has to offer and while not everything is completely practical, it looks and handles great and is ready to wow its owner. And much like a car dealership, HTC is ready to offer you money if you trade in your old HTC phone - it's $100 or the value of the old phone, whichever is greater.

The biggest bullet point in the features list is the camera - a 4MP "ultra-pixel" camera. Yes, the resolution sounds too low, but this camera marks a first in the mobile phone imaging world, which puts it next to the Nokia 808 PureView and Lumia 920.

Speaking of a feature list, here it is. The One (camera aside) is basically a Butterfly with bumped up specs and a cool aluminum unibody.

HTC One at a glance:

·         General: Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE, quad-band UMTS/HSPA, optional LTE Cat 3 (100Mbps downlink, 50Mbps uplink)

·         Form factor: Aluminum unibody touchscreen bar phone

·         Dimensions: 137.4 x 68.2 x 9.3 mm, 143 g

·         Display: 4.7" 16M-color 1080p (1080 x 1920 pixels) Super LCD 3 capacitive touchscreen, 469ppi pixel density; Corning Gorilla Glass 2

·         Chipset: Qualcomm APQ8064T Snapdragon 600

·         CPU: Quad-core 1.7 GHz Krait 300

·         GPU: Adreno 320

·         RAM: 2GB

·         OS: Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean with Sense 5

·         Memory: 32GB/64GB storage

·         Camera: 4 megapixel auto-focus camera with ultra-pixels and Optical Image Stabilization; LED flash

·         Video camera: Full HD (1080p) video recording at 30fps with HDR; 720p @ 60fps

·         Front camera: 2.1MP front-facing camera, 88°; 1080p@30fps video with HDR

·         Connectivity: Wi-Fi a/b/g/n/ac, Wi-Fi hotspot, Bluetooth 4.0, standard microUSB port with MHL and USB host, GPS receiver with A-GPS and GLONASS, 3.5mm audio jack, NFC, IR port

·         Battery: 2,300mAh Li-Po

·         Misc: Beats Audio, BoomSound stereo speakers on the front, HDR microphone, HTC Zoe photo gallery

The camera is backed by ImageChip 2, which enables some advanced functionality. It takes the Scalado tech we first saw on the HTC One X and puts them into overdrive.

HTC is trying to move away from Android slightly. Yes, it's still a full-blown Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean, but the new Sense UI version 5 transforms the interface into something that isn't instantly recognizable as Android, including a brand new homescreen and a gesture-based replacement for the menu button.

   
Handling the HTC One

The company is also playing to its audio strengths - the usual Beats Audio is on board, but there's also BoomSound for the front-facing stereo speakers, which are said to blast out up to 93dB. Then there are the HDR microphones to ensure good call sound quality.

HTC One full specifications

GENERAL	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	3G Network	HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100
	4G Network	LTE (market dependent)
	SIM	Micro-SIM
	Announced	2013, February
	Status	Coming soon. Exp. release 2013, March

BODY	Dimensions	137.4 x 68.2 x 9.3 mm (5.41 x 2.69 x 0.37 in)
	Weight	143 g (5.04 oz)

DISPLAY	Type	Super LCD3 capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors
	Size	1080 x 1920 pixels, 4.7 inches (~469 ppi pixel density)
	Multitouch	Yes
	Protection	Corning Gorilla Glass 2
		- HTC Sense UI v5

SOUND	Alert types	Vibration, MP3, WAV ringtones
	Loudspeaker	Yes, with stereo speakers
	3.5mm jack	Yes
		- Beats Audio sound enhancement

MEMORY	Card slot	No
	Internal	32/64 GB, 2 GB RAM

DATA	GPRS	Yes
	EDGE	Yes
	Speed	HSPA+; LTE, Cat3, 50 Mbps UL, 100 Mbps DL
	WLAN	Wi-Fi 802.11 a/ac/b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct, DLNA, Wi-Fi hotspot
	Bluetooth	Yes, v4.0 with A2DP
	NFC	Yes (Market dependent)
	Infrared port	Yes
	USB	Yes, microUSB v2.0 (MHL)

CAMERA	Primary	4 MP, 2688 x 1520 pixels, autofocus, LED flash
	Features	1/3'' sensor size, simultaneous HD video and image recording, geo-tagging, face and smile detection, OIS
	Video	Yes, 1080p@30fps, HDR, stereo sound rec., video stabilization
	Secondary	Yes, 2.1 MP, 1080p@30fps, HDR

FEATURES	OS	Android OS, v4.1.2 (Jelly Bean), upgradable to v4.2.2 (Jelly Bean)
	Chipset	Qualcomm APQ8064T Snapdragon 600
	CPU	Quad-core 1.7 GHz Krait 300
	GPU	Adreno 320
	Sensors	Accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass
	Messaging	SMS (threaded view), MMS, Email, Push Email
	Browser	HTML5
	Radio	Stereo FM radio with RDS
	GPS	Yes, with A-GPS support and GLONASS
	Java	Yes, via Java MIDP emulator
	Colors	Black, Silver, Red
		- SNS integration - Dropbox (25 GB storage) - Active noise cancellation with dedicated mic - TV-out (via MHL A/V link) - DivX/XviD/MP4/H.263/H.264/WMV player - MP3/eAAC+/WMA/WAV/FLAC player - Google Search, Maps, Gmail, YouTube, Calendar, Google Talk - Organizer - Document viewer/editor - Photo viewer/editor - Voice memo/dial/commands - Predictive text input

BATTERY		Non-removable Li-Po 2300 mAh battery
	Stand-by	No official data
	Talk time	No official data

EnjOy.. :)

MamoOn..