Category Archives: Android

OnePlus Pad Pricing Announced

Android, tablet, ,

OnePlus LogoAfter several months of waiting, the price point for the OnePlus Pad has been announced at UK£449 (499 € / US$479) for 8GB RAM and 128GB storage with pre-orders in Europe from 10:00 BST on Friday 28th April. Pre-orders will come with the choice of the OnePlus Folio Case or the SuperVOOC 80W adapter. Shipping is from 18th May so it’s a few weeks until the courier drops it off, as it were.

The full price list for the Pad and accessories is:

  • OnePlus Pad £449
  • Stylo (Pencil) £99
  • Magnetic Keyboard £149
  • Folio Case £59
  • 80W SUPERVOOC Adapter £39.

The original Early Bird offer when the pricing was unknown sold out in five days so it looks it’s going to be popular.

Toumas Lampen, European Head of Strategy, commented ’Earlier this year, we announced our ambition to build a Superior Digital Life for consumers. Today we take our next big step in that journey by announcing the price and pre-order dates of our first ever tablet, OnePlus Pad. Following a complete sell out of our Early Bird Offer earlier in April, we’re thrilled that people are as excited about OnePlus Pad as we are.’

A quick reminder of the specs….it’s a MediaTek Dimensity 9000 CPU driving an 11.6″ 2800×2000 pixel screen with a 144 Hz refresh rate and powered by a 9510 mAh battery. Four speakers support Dolby Atmos audio for great sound. The colour way is Halo Green and it has this lovely circular pattern on the rear, spreading out from the large camera array.

I think this is a good price point as it fills space that’s missing in the Samsung range. The Galaxy Tab A8 is in the £200+ range but the Tab S8 is £700+, so there’s a convenient slot there for OnePlus to position itself as a “not-quite-a-flagship-killer-but-only-about-half-the-price-of-one”.

I’m looking forward to getting my hands on one (fingers crossed!)

Reduce Uninstalls For Your App With Auto-Archive

Android

Android Developers Blog posted information titled “Reduce uninstalls for your app with auto-archive”. It was posted by Chang Liu and Lidia Gaymond, Product Managers, Google Play. From the information:

Did you know that one of the main reasons users uninstall apps is to free up space? Today, whenever users try to install a new app on a nearly-full device, they see a dialog that allows them to manually uninstall the app to make room. However, sometimes uninstalling a whole app, including all of the user’s app data just isn’t necessary.

To reduce unnecessary uninstalls and help users successfully install new apps, we are introducing a new feature: auto archive. Once a user opts in, auto-archive can help them automatically free up to nearly 60% of an app’s storage space, without removing the app presence or users’ data from the device.

What is auto-archive?

Auto-archive is a new feature that allows users to free up space on their device without the need to complete uninstall an app. Once the user opts in, infrequently used apps will be partly removed from the device to save space, whilst the app icon and the user’s personal app data will be preserved. When the user wants to start using the app again, they can simply tap to re-download it and pick up where they left off (as long as the app is still available on Google Play).

Eligibility of auto-archive

Auto-archive is only available for developers using the App Bundle to publish their apps. If your app supports archiving, users will be less likely to see it surfaced amongst uninstall suggestions.

TechCrunch reported that Android users will see a prompt to use the auto-archiving feature when their device is running out to storage while trying to install a new app. They can then choose to activate the feature, which automatically archives their unused apps while also removing things like permissions and temporary files and disabling notifications.

“Your device is out of storage, and you won’t be able to install this app. With app archiving turned on, your device will detect when you don’t have enough storage and automatically archive apps that you don’t use often. Your personal data will be saved in case you download the app again,” the prompt reads.

The feature will make Android devices more competitive with iOS, which for years had made suggestions about apps to unload. In 2017, Apple introduced personalized recommendations to remove unused apps in iOS 11. To enable the automatic removal of these apps, iPhone users can head to Settings > General > iPhone Storage and tap Enable on the Offload Unused apps toggle.

To me, it sounds as though both Google and Apple want to give their users a way to offload unused apps by allowing them to archive the apps they do not regularly use. I like that there is an option, for both Android and iOS users, to save space on their devices without entirely losing an app.

Chrome For Android 13 Gets Updates

Android

Google posted an article on The Keyword titled: “Productivity just got better in Chrome on Android tablets”. It was written by Lola Adams, Product Manager, Chrome.

Tablets let you browse the web at home or on the go, whether you’re shopping for a new TV or finishing up some work. With the next release of Chrome on Android, we make it easier to navigate between tabs and get work done faster on your tablets.

Here’s a closer look at the latest Chrome updates available now on all Android tablets, and on the new Pixel Tablet, when it launches next year:

Find the Tap You’re Looking For

Google added a new side-by-side design that makes finding the right tab easier in Chrome. If you’re switching back and forth between two tabs, the auto-scroll back feature can help you swipe back to your previous tab. And to prevent you from accidentally closing tabs in the first place, we’ll hide the close button when tabs become too small. If you close a tab you didn’t intend to, one-step restore can get you right back to where you were.

View Your Tabs Through The Visual Tab Grid

This feature is perfect for people who have a lot of open tabs. Instead of searching through all your tabs in one single horizontal stream, tabs are shown in a grid, with a preview that helps you navigate with fewer taps. Google says visual tabs also help if you have a foldable device, because the smaller, folded screen on the outside matches the bigger screen on the inside of your tablet.

Drag and Drop Out Of Chrome

You can now easily drag images, text, and links that spark your interest from Chrome and drop them into another app like Gmail, Photos, or Keep.

Easily Browse in Desktop Mode

If a website isn’t working the way it should on your tablet or you just prefer the desktop experience, you can set Chrome to always request and display the desktop version of the site. This may give you capabilities that are currently only found on the desktop version, like certain menus and buttons.

Use Tab Groups on Your Tablet

Tabs groups are coming to Chrome and Android tablets. You’ll be able to stay organized by grouping related tabs together so you can better focus on one task without seeing clutter from other open tabs.

Gizmodo reported that the Chrome for Android tablets update is rolling out now through the Google Play Store. According to Gizmodo, it will take a few days, but is easy to tell if it reached you – check the app in Play Store on your tablet device, tap About this app, and then scroll down to see the date when it was updated.

TechCrunch reported: After ignoring the app experience on Android tablets for years, Google appears increasingly focused on turning things around… At the developer conference Google IO in May, it promised to fine-tune over 20 of its own apps for the tablet experience. Now, the search giant is beginning to deliver on that pledge, starting with the browser Chrome.

Obviously, the updates to Chrome for Android are only available for those who are using Android 13 (Go edition), which was released five years ago. Hopefully, people will find that the update provides them with features that they like.

Nothing Launches Phone(1) from London

Android, smartphone,

Carl Pei (and a parrot) launched Nothing‘s Phone(1) today in London. Starting in a café, moving to a theatre and ending at the after party, it was a surprisingly brief run through of the new phone.

The big thing is the glyph feature on the back. Glyph’s will be familiar to anyone who has played Niantic’s Ingress but simplistically it’s four shapes on the rear of the phone: a circle in the middle, a vertical line bottom centre, an angled line to right and an oval C round the cameras. The glyphs are multifunctional and can synchronise with ringtones, indicate who is calling, show charging activity or simply act as a light while recording video. There are videos of the glyphs in action over on Instagram.

Moving to the rest of the phone, the body of Phone(1) has an aluminium frame with a Gorilla Glass 5 front. Everything that’s touched is made of premium materials and where plastics are used, over 50% is either recycled plastic or a bioplastic. In what’s believed to be a first, any tin used inside the phone comes from recycled materials.

There’s a 6.55″ AMOLED 2400×1080 pixel display supporting HDR10+ with a 120Hz refresh rate so it’ll be smooth too. There’s some clever trickery involving flexible displays to make the bezels even all round – now that’s an attention to detail.

Round the back, there are only two cameras but they’re both pretty good. Both are 50 MP sensors and the main camera is a Sony IMX766. The ultrawide is a Samsung JM1 with a 114 degree view. These sensors are widely used and should take decent photos. If you want to see some untouched photos from the Phone(1), there’s a selection here.

Inside is Snapdragon 778+ processor which provides stability whilst still being fast and smooth. Carl says, “Buttery smooth” – I think we’ve heard that somewhere else already but I’m sure it’s true. A 7-series processor fits nicely into the upper mid-range as per expectations. While it may be the current flagship for Nothing, it’s not going up against those £1000 top tier devices.

Powering it all is a 4,500 mAh battery. Wired charging is 33W so should charge from flat in a little over an hour. There’s wireless charging at 15W and reverse wireless charging is 5W.

NothingOS is obviously based on Android and Carl was keen to point out that Android is good with loads of natice apps. There’s no need to re-invent the wheel, as it were, so it stays close to the original. Nothing will develop software where they can add value, and in the first instance there’s extra software that works with Tesla Cars and NFTs. Both are hot at the moment, so quite understandable.

The Phone(1) is available in both black and white, and there are three RAM and storage combinations with prices to match.

  • 8GB + 128GB = UK£399 (this one seems to be only available in black)
  • 8GB + 256GB = UK£449
  • 12GB + 256BB = UK£499

There are some extras: a clear case is £25, a charger is £35 and screen protector is £19. The blurb suggests a screen protector is already applied to the phone in the box.

There will be open availability from 21st July but if you are really desperate to get one, hotfoot it round to the Nothing Kiosk in Convent Garden from 16th July.

Overall, The Phone(1) looks a good upper mid-range phone that’s priced a little below the competition: I’m thinking of the Xiaomi 12 and the OnePlus 9 though it’s a little more than the Nord 2. It will be interesting to see if the glyphs make interesting enough to stand out from the crowd.

Disclosure: I have a small shareholding in Nothing.

Android Released The Third Beta of Android 13

Android

Google’s Android Developers Blog posted “Android 13 Beta 3 and Platform Stability” on June 8, 2022. It was written by VP of Engineering, Dave Burke. The blog post talks about the release of the third beta and platform stability.

Today, we’re releasing the third Beta of Android 13, taking us into the final phase of our cycle where we’re focusing on polish and performance. With Android 13, we’ve built on our core themes of privacy and security, developer productivity, and tablet and large screen support.

In the blog post, he mentions features in Android 13. This includes privacy features like the new notification permission and photo picker, to productivity features like themed app icons and per-app language support, as well as modern standards like HDR video, Bluetooth LE Audio, and MIDI 2.0 over USB.

They also extended the newer updates they made in 12L, giving you better tools to take advantage of the 270+ million tablet and large screen devices in active use.

Those who want to participate in Beta 3 on their Pixel device can enroll for over-the-air updates. Anyone who has previously enrolled will automatically get the June 8 update.

Regarding platform stability, they are asking all app and game developers to start their final compatibility testing now, and to prepare to publish their compatibility updates as soon as possible ahead of the final release. It is important for app and game developers to move quickly, because those who don’t may find their apps blocked until Android receives their updates. There are more details in the blog post for developers to consider.

Gizmodo explained that Android’s Beta 3 is now available as an over-the-air update to anyone already using Android 13 as their daily driver on a respective Pixel device.

Gizmodo also pointed out that this version of the Android beta has also reached Platform Stability, which means that the developer APIs and how apps perform on this next version of the operating system are final. According to Gizmodo, from here, until the software’s public release sometime in a few months, developer are to focus on app compatibility and overall quality.

The Android Developers Blog says that the Android Beta 3 can also be tested on tablets. According to the blog, Android 13 builds on the tablet optimizations introduced in 12L. As part of your testing, make sure your apps look their best on tablets and large-screen devices. You can test with the large screen features by setting up an Android emulator in Android Studio, or you can use a large screen device from their Android 13 Beta partners.

OnePlus Expands Nord Range with Two Phones and Earbuds

Android, smartphone,

Never Settle LogoAfter a couple of leaks and a few heavy hints, OnePlus have announced that two new Nord phones and a set of Nord earbuds will be officially unveiled next Thursday afternoon (19th May).

On the phone side, there’s the OnePlus Nord 2T 5G, an upgraded version of the Nord 2 with the Oppo’s 80 W SuperVOOC charging system: that’s the same charge and battery tech as in the OnePlus 10 Pro. For comparison, the Nord 2 does 65 W and comes in at UK£369.

At the lower end, there’s the OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite 5G. This will bring fast charging and a large battery in at an even lower price point than the CE 2 which drops in at UK£299. I doubt either phone will make it to the USA, which has a different OnePlus portfolio.

For Nord’s first audio product, there’s the Nord Buds. And that’s about all we know, though there are a few early release videos and rumours that suggest they’ll be US$40 for a set of wireless earbuds.

In the meantime, I here are my reviews of the Nord 2, Nord CE 2 (also below) and the Buds Z2. Hopefully they’d tide you over until next week…

 

 

OnePlus 10 Pro is Out of this World….nearly

Android, camera, smartphone, ,

OnePlus LogoOnePlus have announced the launch event for the OnePlus 10 Pro 5G in Europe, North America and India – it’s going to be 1500 BST on Thursday 31st March 2022. That’s next week and yes, the clocks go forward this weekend (if you are in Europe). The 10 Pro’s been available in China for a couple of months now, so it’s good to see it coming to other countries.

To celebrate the news and the on-going collaboration with Hasselblad, OnePlus strapped a 10 Pro to a weather balloon and sent it 38,000 m up to take a few pictures. Ok, so it wasn’t quite as straightforward as that….

The team built a light-weight module, nicknamed The Stratosphone, to house the phones and protect them from the wind and cold (-60 C). As remote control wasn’t possible – 38 km is a bit far for Bluetooth – a special app was developed to help take pictures and try to get the best shot possible. The team were able to retrieve the module and cameras – some of the pictures are spectacular! Click through on any of the photos to see more detail.

The OnePlus 10 Pro is the first OnePlus phone equipped with a camera system to take pictures in full 10-bit colour to deliver a more natural and delicate display of colour in every photo. In theory, the benefit of 10-bit colour is smoother colour transitions in photos without colour banding and the ability to manage 64 times more colour than in 8-bit colour. Although it might seem this would be imperceptible to most people, it means that professionals can work with the full10 bits before any final conversions for output.

Kate Parkyn, Associate Marketing Director, OnePlus Europe, said, “Since the launch of OnePlus 9 series, we have been in a close-knit strategic partnership with Hasselblad to co-create and improve on OnePlus flagship camera technology. This is the second year of our partnership with Hasselblad where we have further developed and improved the colour science with the second-generation Hasselblad Camera for Mobile. Our campaign is inspired by Hasselblad’s historical voyage to space to take images of the moon and we were confident that our camera too will be successful in delivering the same image quality. We are extremely delighted to see the stunning images of the horizon captured by OnePlus 10 Pro and proudly present this trusted camera quality to OnePlus users.”

Anyway, great pictures and great news about the OnePlus 10 Pro launch next week (1500 31/3/22). Tune in on all the usual channels. Apparently pre-orders for the 10 Pro will entitle the purchaser to free OnePlus Buds Pro wireless earphones which is a good bonus.