We had another busy week at TalkAndroid so here’s a recap of all the top stories. The big news of the week had to be the launch of Facebook Home. Initially it’s only available on select devices, but unofficially it’s available to everyone thanks to patched APKs. Samsung officially announced the mid-level Galaxy Mega that puts big displays into budget-conscious pockets. We reviewed some cool apps too, and is that the DROID Bionic getting Jelly Bean? It’s time to get caught up and get ready for another exciting week.
Reviews
MMGuardian Parental Control [Tools]
Accessories
Nexus 10 flip covers now available in the Google Play Store
Apps – New
Facebook Home Now Live in Google Play
Facebook Home now available for everyone with patched APK
New redesigned Google Play Store (version 4.0.25) now available to download
More evidence of the existence of Google Babel appears in string of code and pop-up message
Revamped Google Chat screenshots leak, further confirms that Babel is coming soon… very soon
Facebook Home pre-release gets leaked, gives Android users a half-baked taste of sweet glory
Photosphere Live Wallpaper lands in Google Play Store
Overlays Android Application Floats Widgets Over Currently Running Apps
Google Voice to be included in Google Babel, but not right away
Worms 2: Armageddon blasts its way onto the Google Play Store
Leaked roadmap indicates Microsoft Office won’t hit Android devices until Fall 2014
Download black themed Play Store and other Google apps
Official Speedway GP 2013 brings motorcycle racing action to Google Play
Zeptolab teases upcoming Cut the Rope: Time Travel [Video]
New Twitter Music app sort of released today
Dungeon Hunter 4 trailer released, Android version pending
Apps – Updates
Tumblr Rolls Out Enhanced Sharing Capabilities with Newly Redesigned Android App
Real Racing 3 gets updated to bring more events, more cars and cloud save functionality
Xbox SmartGlass Comes to Android Tablets
Facebook Messenger adds chat heads to Android app
Carriers
Best Buy Will Offer T-Mobile Simple Choice Plans By February 2014
Virgin Mobile offers 100 bucks for T-Mobile customers to switch teams
Boingo and AT&T enter into a global roaming agreement
UK’s EE Doubling 4G Network Speeds in 10 Locations
Deutsche Telekom Approves Better Deal For MetroPCS Merger
Dish Network in talks with Deutsche Telekom about T-Mobile merger
Verizon Details Changes to Their Upgrade Plan
New training materials implying Verizon will implement a new device payment plan?
Google could buy WhatsApp for $1 billion
Austin, Texas added to the list of cities to receive Google Fiber
Record high 60,000 apps deleted from the Google Play Store in February
WhatsApp says no deal with Google is in the works Google Play Store gets fresh new look starting today
Tweet about your favorite things in the Play Store for a chance to win some prizes from Google
Google Glass
Google Glass Explorer Editions shipping next month
Google TV
ASUS Qube to finally launch on April 23
Hardware
Samsung Begins Mass Producing 128GB Flash Memory Chips Using 10nm Process
NVIDIA Demos Kepler Mobile Chip, Closest Yet To PC-Level Graphics
Phones – HTC
HTC releases the DROID DNA and One source codes
HTC Teams Up With Funny Or Die To Promote The One
Phones – Huawei
Huawei EDGE flagship smartphone gets outed, flaunts its slim 6.3mm body in the process
Phones – LG
AT&T picking up the LG Optimus G Pro, slated for a May release
LG Optimus G Pro To Receive ‘Value Pack’ Upgrade April 12
LG Optimus F7 Heading To Boost Mobile, LTE Onboard
Phones – Motorola
Motorola unlock tool for RAZR HD, RAZR M and Atrix HD released Root method for Motorola RAZR HD and other devices running 4.1.2 released
Motorola X Phone release date pushed back a few months
Phones – Oppo
Oppo working on building the world’s thinnest smartphone, again, set to be released on April 26th
Phones – Pantech
Pantech working on new flagship device based on Snapdragon 600
Phones – Samsung
Samsung ads for Galaxy S 4 surface on YouTube
Samsung Galaxy S 4 teardown shows that it’s a lot easier to repair than the HTC One
Galaxy Note 3 Will Be First Device With Samsung’s S Orb Photo Feature
Samsung Galaxy Mega 5.8 and 6.2 officially announced
Phones – Sony
Native DUALSHOCK 3 support may be coming to Sony Xperia devices
Sony’s Xperia ZL heading to Cincinnati Bell on May 1st
Phones – Xiaomi
Xiaomi Unveils The Mi2S And Mi2A Smartphone
Phones – ZTE
ZTE Geek Revealed Running 2GHz Intel Clover Trail+ Processor
ROMs
CyanogenMod 10.1 M3 builds now available for a handful of devices
Tablets
Acer Iconia A1-810 tablet gets outed, flaunts its 7.9-inch display to the general public
ASUS MeMo Pad now on sale for $150
ASUS finally spills the beans on the FonePad’s release date and price
Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0 coming to U.S. on April 11
Toshiba AT10-A could be the first tablet with the NVIDIA Tegra 4
Updates
T-Mobile Galaxy S II Receives Android 4.1.2
Miscellaneous
HTC profits continue in wrong direction in record-setting fashion
Gamestick delayed, release slated for June
Survey says Samsung Galaxy phones are simpler than the iPhone
Could LG ship flexible displays before Samsung?
Samsung’s Exynos 5 Octa Defeats Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 600 In Latest Benchmarks
NYPD uses Android as a tool of its trade
OUYA confirms all Kickstarter Backers will receive their devices by the end of May
NVIDIA releases teaser video showcasing Arma Tactics on Project Shield
Come comment on this article: TalkAndroid Weekly Recap for April 8 – April 14, 2013