The Android Site

When the Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 came out, about 6 months ago, it was one of the highest spec’d Android phones available. With it’s 8.1MP camera, and 1Ghz SnapDragon processor as well as a 4 inch touchscreen, it still can hold its own with the flagship phones of today (Droid X and HTC EVO 4G). But there’s one little thing holding it back, and that’s the fact that it STILL runs Android 1.6 and that’s not suppose to change till later this year. But the good news for AT&T users, is that you should soon have yet another option in Android. Just passing AT&T’s technical review, it’s said to be available “in the coming weeks”, which could be sometime next month. We don’t want to know what AT&T is going to do to the phone meanwhile, but let’s hope they don’t chain it up too much. No other immediate info is available, but look for it around $200 on a new two year contract.

Is anyone still excited about this phone like they were at the beginning of 2010?

The Archos 32 is a 3.2 inch screen Generation 8 device from Archos. Running Android 2.1 on an 800Mhz ARM Cortex A8 processor. The only bad part is that we still don’t know exactly what it looks like. But it should look like one of the above devices from the specs leak a while back. According to Amazon, 4.1 x 2.2 x 0.4 inches, which are the exact dimensions of the HTC HD Mini for size comparison. And it has 802.11n Wi-Fi, a built in camera and microphone, bluetooth and composite video output, as well as 720p video playback. 8GB of storage on this particular model, but look for a few different storage options as is common with Archos players.

Really, you’re getting mid to high end range Android phone specs, for quite a price deal at only $147. But of course, it’s missing the phone part. So, anyone gonna take the leap and preorder? Or wait for a bit more information, like pictures and reviews? I have to say, I’m almost tempted to preorder myself, maybe I’ll hold out for a 32GB version.

[Amazon via Engadget]

Don’t feel like waiting around for Verizon to push you the Android 2.2 update? Great, let’s show you how to upgrade manually. The process is fairly straight forward, and not very risky like rooting your phone. Also, this is the official update, so it will not harm your phone or void your warranty. Thanks to Android Forums for this great guide! Let’s get started:

What You’ll Need:
- A MicroSD Card inserted into your Droid
- An Internet Connection

1. Install Astro File Manager:
Install Astro File Manager for free from the Android Market if you don’t already have it.

(Scanning this QR code will take you to the Android Market listing for Astro File Manager.)

2. Download the update.zip file to your phone:
Download the update.zip file from one of the following locations directly from the internet to your phone:

Location 1 | My Droid Does [Tested and Verified!]

Location 2 | Dev-Mob [Tested and Verified!]

(Scanning the QR codes from above will automatically begin the download from its respective location.)

3. Move the update.zip file to the root of your SD card:
To move the update.zip to the root of your SD card, do the following:
- Open Astro File Manager
- Enter the Downloads folder
- Press and hold on the update.zip file
- Select “Edit” and then “Copy”
- Now press the “Astro Up” button once which will take the root directory
- Press the “Astro Edit” button followed by “Paste”
The update.zip file should now be in the root directory.

4. Prepare for the Update:
Once you have unmounted the phone, it is now time to prepare the Droid to perform the update. You will be accessing Recovery Mode to do this. Start by powering down the phone completely.

While holding “X” on the physical keyboard, hold the power button to turn on the phone. You may let go of the power button, but do not let go of X.

After a few seconds, an Exclamation Mark icon will appear. You may now let go of X. To access Recovery Mode from the exclamation mark icon, hold the volume up button and then press the camera button.

5. Perform the Update:
You will then open a text menu with four options. Using the directional pad, navigate to “apply sdcard:update.zip” and push the gold, center button to select it.

The update process will begin immediately and should take no longer than a minute or two. It will let you know when the process is complete.

You might get this error:
Code:
E:Can’t open /cache/recovery/command
DON’T worry about it… it just blows right past it and installs fine.

From here, navigate to “reboot system now” and select it. Your phone will shut off and reboot.

Some users are reporting a longer than usual boot time after installing this, be patient and do not be alarmed, this is normal.

6. Congratulations!
Your Droid has now been updated to the official Android 2.2 Froyo release! If you have any questions, comments, or concerns what so ever, please post them to this thread. I will be closely monitoring this thread to provide assistance to those who need it.

ENJOY!

[via Phandroid]

Good news for both Android developers and downstream users as well. Motorola has released the source code for the Verizon Droid X, and Samsung goes open source with the Captivate (AT&T’s Galaxy S).

And once programmers get a bite into the source code, look for hacks, fixes, customization and ROMs to come flooding out. Bravo to Motorola and Samsung for sticking with the Android spirit. (Despite Moto’s earlier comments about hacking your phone)

Developers, head over to here for the Captivate, and here for the Droid X.

[via BGR]

Announced via a blog post here, Sprint is patting themselves on the back for being the first wireless carrier to bring 2.2 to its customers. But of course that comes with a little footnote: “Users of Google’s Nexus One may currently use Android 2.2. Sprint is the first carrier to offer Android 2.2 to its customers.” Yeah, ok. Regardless, a big bravo to Sprint for getting this out with the quickness. Let’s hope all the updates go off without a hitch. Evo users, let us know when you start getting those updates!

The award-winning HTC EVO 4G just got that much better. We are excited to announce that beginning the week of Aug. 1; Sprint will begin rolling out the Android 2.2 upgrade to its HTC EVO 4G customers.

Sprint will be the first wireless carrier to bring the latest version of Android to its customers. The Android 2.2 software release provides a significant number of feature enhancements, including:

• Voice Dialing Over Bluetooth.
• Application Storage on External Memory, giving users more storage room for all their apps.
• Camera 4-way rotation allows the camera icons to rotate with the camera.
• Improved Browser Performance including a faster JavaScript engine and Flash 10x Support improving the user’s ability to view videos and available content associated with web pages.

“Sprint is thrilled with our customers’ response to HTC EVO 4G and the innovative and exciting experience it offers,” said Fared Adib, vice president – Product Development for Sprint. “It is exciting for us to lead the industry in bringing the Android 2.2 update to these customers and improve on the amazing experience they receive with America’s first 4G capable phone.”

Easy Downloading

Sprint will begin sending update notifications to users in waves beginning Tuesday, Aug. 3 and the upgrade should be available for all HTC EVO 4G users by the middle of August.

The notification will let the users know that the update is available and it will provide the simple two-step over-the-air download process.

1. Users will receive a notification that Android 2.2 is available for download.
2. Once the user has downloaded the update, they will be prompted to install the update. The user will be notified that their device will be disabled during the installation process. The phone will be ready to use once the process completes.

For those who just can’t wait to get Android 2.2, there will be an easy user initiated option to download the upgrade. Customers can access the software update through their HTC EVO 4G under the Settings Menu > System Updates > HTC Software Update. This will initiate the three-step process also.

This must be the week for leaks. Besides the reports of Droid X’s running 2.2, and the rumor of the Desire get an update really soon.

A test build of Android 2.2 has been leaked out and you can flash it to your phone now. Unwired View has the details on how to try it out.

And the fine folks over at xda-developers have the hot and fresh Droid Incredible 2.2 ROM for you.

As always, I have to warn, these are not final versions, you could void your warranty, brick your phone, or cause harm to kittens by flashing these leaked ROMS. If you decide to take the leap, let us know how it went.

What would seem like a case of vaporware on the scale of something like Duke Nukem Forever, the Android 2.1 Eclair update for the GSM version of the HTC Hero has suffered endless delays, empty promises and rumors. Orange just issued a statement saying they hope to begin rolling it out next week:

“We apologise for the delay in Orange Hero customers receiving their Éclair update. Testing the update across European markets took longer than anticipated. However, we hope to receive final approval by the end of the week and Orange handsets should start updating from next week.”

Does that mean we should still keep our fingers crossed? Let’s hope not.

[Orange via Phandroid]

In the UK, from the first three months of 2010 to the second quarter of the year, the sales of Android smartphones have grown 330%, yup that’s more than tripled. With Android phones counting one in every eight contract handsets sold between April and June, compared to one in 33 for the first quarter of the year.

Android’s overall market share jumped from 3% up to 13.2%, not a whole lot, but it’s growing fast. Which brings us to Apple, who saw a decline in market share, from 75% down to 64%. iPhone users are jumping ship, and many of them are going with Android.

RIM also saw market growth, going from 2 up to 7% market share.

The data comes courtesy of a report by German analyst firm GfK.

Engadget got this spy shot from a tipster clearly showing what we know as the HTC “Vision” with T-Mobile branding. No way of knowing right now if it’s headed to T-Mobile US or UK, but it is believed that this is the HSPA+ that TMO referenced on their Twitter account. Supposedly featuring a 1GHz processor and a 3.7-inch WVGA screen, it may be called the “G1 Blaze”. We’ll be watching closely for more leaked information and waiting patiently for that official announcement “in the coming weeks”.

It’s not secret that AT&T has blocked the installation of .APK files from 3rd party vendors that aren’t available in the market. Of course you could root your Aria or Captivate if you want that function. Previously you could use HTC Sync to sideload apps, but that loophole has since been closed. Or you could just use this nifty little tool courtesy of Android Central. It’s called the Sideload Wonder Machine and it takes out the technical aspect of using the Android SDK and the command line to load applications on your phone via USB cable.
All you need is a Windows PC and a USB cable to get started. Check out the video below to see the Sideload Wonder Machine in action, or head on over to Android Central to get your hands on it.

This will not void your warranty, BTW. This is the Google-approved procedure using the developer’s SDK, just packaged in a user friendly application.