Latest in Google Android

With the recent releases of the Samsung Galaxy S4, the HTC One, and the Nexus 4, there's a pretty good chance that, as an iPhone user, you may be looking at switching over. These Android phones have been creating a lot of buzz because of the great hardware and software they've been packing. However, switching over to Android isn't as easy as simply picking up the new phone -- or at least not as long as you have contacts, pictures, music, and more that you'd like to move over. How can you do this as quickly and painlessly as possible? Sadly, there isn't a single utility which can do everything for you automatically, but with a minimal amount of effort you'll get things moved over in no time.
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Free call and text platform Viber is coming to desktop with the release of a new client for Windows and Mac OS X. The new desktop version of Viber brings all calling and texting features to your PC or Mac, and adds some new ones such as video calling and desktop to desktop calls, which are currently still in beta. The announcement comes as part of the roll out of Viber 3.0, which includes major updates for the app's iOS, Android, and Blackberry versions as well.
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If you're like me, scoring a great program feels like discovering Picasso or Caravaggio for the first time — but finding gems requires installing a lot of really bad software. XDA makes the discovery process much easier by highlighting praiseworthy apps. If you find an interesting program, pop it onto your phone and BOOM. You just got bragging rights as a true app epicurean. This article highlights ten of the latest and/or greatest apps originating from XDA.
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Have you ever thought that there might be a reason Android users brag about their customizability? Sure, as an iPhone user, you can add and configure apps, change your wallpaper, and otherwise make yourself feel at home. But at the end of the day, you've only changed a few small details. If you happen to have jailbreaked your iPhone and are enjoying Cydia, you can do more. But users with stock iOS are able to do much less. Don't believe me?
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Did you know that Android allows the installation of app stores other than the Play Store? You might already use apps from the Amazon Appstore and GetJar—but you probably never heard that a completely free, and open source, library of apps exists: F-Droid. Standing out in striking comparison, it emphasizes security, transparency and open source products—an outstanding departure from the competitors.
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When I speak to friends who prefer iPhones over Androids, many of them cite "ease of synchronization" as one of their most important reasons. I have to hand it to Apple on that point: even though they like to create exclusivity with their products, they make integration between their products very easy - in particular, syncing from iTunes to a mobile device. But what if you have an Android?
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Voice recognition has become increasingly popular, and more options are becoming available over time. One can hope that with this increased popularity comes increased accuracy as well. Can you really dictate whole sentences to your Android device, without wasting more time than it's worth correcting mistakes? To find out, I took two major voice-enabled keyboards, and one lesser known one, and put them all to the test. Which one offers the best accuracy? Read on to find out!
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Most Android launchers are relatively similar: Nova, Apex, and friends usually offer what you'd expect: One or more homescreens with some third-party widgets, an app drawer, and app folders. And then there's Chameleon: A bold rethinking of the launcher -- not quite on the order of Facebook Home, but definitely distinguishable from most other launchers. Being different doesn't mean it's necessarily better, but it does merit a close look, especially given its slick aesthetics.
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Facebook Home is the social network's home screen replacement for Android phones, currently only available on select HTC and Samsung devices. By acting as a launcher, the app takes over a central position on the phone and provides instant access to Facebook. Mark Zuckerberg expects Home to change the relationship people have with their mobile devices. Not surprisingly, the app is highly controversial.
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Let's face it, touch controls are terrible for many games. Have you ever tried playing a platformer game on a touchscreen? It's an exercise in frustration. The good news is that you can connect a game controller to your Android device and play games the way they were meant to be played, whether they're controller-enabled Android games or old games played via an emulator.
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Keeping a personal journal can often help us make sense of the difficult times in our lives, or better remember the good times. If you're carrying around a smartphone, you already have a powerful and compact device at your disposal, just waiting for your thoughts. And there's an app for that: Diaro. This polished app/website personal journal combo is not perfect, but has a lot going for it.
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I'm not frugal or thrifty, I'm cheap. My food comes only in yellow and black packaging. My Dad would say that I was "so cheap, he'd skin a fart for the grease." I will stop in the middle of crossing the road to pick up a penny, and we don't even use them in Canada anymore. So when I wanted a holder for my Samsung Whizzbang Z 28 and our office budget didn't really cover that, I got to thinking about using paper instead.
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Never buy a smartphone from a carrier—ever. Most consumers don't know that they can purchase their phones from retailers and pay less than if they did from the carrier. The key word that you're looking for is unlocked. The six phones presented in this article provide excellent value, with prices starting at $120 and going as high as $650.
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Sick and tired of unknown callers hammering away at your sanity? The vast majority of such calls originate from commercial entities, rather than your friends or loved ones calling from roadside assistance phones. But how would you know the difference between a telemarketer and a family member? Simple: There are apps that can identify your callers in real-time and check the caller ID against a database of known telemarketers and scammers.
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A lot of games tend to be rehashes of the same concept. Meon isn't one of them.. Fact is, it's rare to find new concepts in mobile gaming; instead, we usually just end up with refinements which are admittedly nice, but sometimes we need breaths of fresh air. Meon may have its flaws, but it presents a new gameplay concept that I haven't seen before.
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