Author: AndroidGuys

Hey look, a success story for an Android developer!  We’ve been waiting for the day when a developer steps up and says, “Hey!  I make pretty decent money from Android!”  While it’s not quite the runaway success that Trism was, Edward Kim is tickled pink with his app’s performance.  We’re only too happy to share his story.

Kim’s app, Car Locator, started out as something he did on the side when he was on vacation. Fast forward about 5 months and just under 7,000 downloads later and his app is on pace to grab $13,000 a month. The free version of his app has seen over 70,000 downloads of its own as well. So what’s the secret? Turns out, it might be Google.

Car Locator is now a featured app in the Android Market. This means that you see the name and app more often than you do for other titles. You’ll see the application sliding in and out of the front page of the market each time you open it up.

Buy Car Locator for Yourself!

In terms of overall paid apps, Kim estimates that he’s somewhere in the ballpark of 100-200th. Can we assume that there are this many other developers enjoying a similar fate? Hard to say. The featured status is probably the key. It also doesn’t hurt when you can put “3rd place in ADC2” in your app’s description.

Here’s a couple of things pointed out by Kim on his blog:

• The application was netting an average of about $80-$100/day, until it became a featured app on the Marketplace. Since then, sales have been phenomenal, netting an average of $435/day, with a one day record of $772 on Valentine’s Day. Too bad I didn’t have a Valentines date this year — we would’ve gone somewhere real special!
• There appears to be clear peaks on the weekends and during holidays. This was always my hunch, but I think I can finally say this with certainty since the signal-to-noise ratio is much better now.
• Some may be quick to point out that a featured Android application is only able to net $400/day, while top iPhone apps make thousands. But the Android market appears to rotate applications in and out of the featured apps list in some psedo-random fashion. Every time I open the Marketplace app, the featured list is different and most of the time, I don’t even see my app on there.
• The price of the application was increased from $1.99 to $3.99. I ran a few price experiments and was surprised to see that though I doubled the price of the app, the number of purchases decreased by much less than half. Android users appear to have a willingness to pay more than a couple dollars for apps.
• Piracy appears to be an increasing problem. A quick search for Car Locator on Twitter reveals links where people can download the .apk file without paying. I tend to have the same attitude on piracy as Balsamiq, so I’m not too worried about it, but I would love to hear some typical statistics on Android piracy.

Congratulations to Edward for his newfound success.  We’re sure you’ll see an additional bump as a result of your story hitting the internet!

We’re heading into the final days before Motorola and/or T-Mobile officially announced the Cliq XT.  How do we know?  Spy shots, of course. A few pictures of the handset passed along to AndroidCentral show the smartphone formerly known as the Zeppelin wearing T-Mobile clothing. Generally, the trend for Android has been to make announcements shortly after pics like these hit the web. The last we heard, this handset was tipped for a release on the 10th. Yep – just a few days from now.

Along with the pictures come a feature not reported yet. The sides of the phone (outside of trackpad) also detect touch. Users can select apps and perform similar functions without using the physical pad on the front. AndroidCentral’s source says that function ends about a third of the way up the device. It’s also assumed that both Swype and doubleTwist will be loaded on the Cliq XT based on separate deals and announcements from T-Mobile in the past.

Head to AndroidCentral for another 2 pics of the handset.

Archos has officially unveiled their new 7-inch Home Tablet and the price may surprise you.  For less than $200, customers can grab this mobile internet device (MID) with a 600MHz processor, 2GB storage, microSD slot, and 800×480 resistive touch-screen.  Although the screen size is a few inches larger than that of their A5 unit, the chipset is somewhat slower.  According to Charbax of ArchosFans, we can expect an 8GB version (or larger) as well. 

Archos 7

Archos also dropped their 8-inch model which looks like a large picture frame that pulls double duty as an Android device.  Designed primarily as a web device and for video playback, it weighs less than a pound and is only 12mm thick.

The Archos 7 is due in in April while the Archos 8 follows in May with both selling for under $200 a piece.

A minor update to the T-Mobile G1 started to trickling out late last week.  Designed only to improve call performance, Android 1.6 update (DMD64) should be complete by the middle of March.  All flavors of the myTouch 3G including the Fender Edition have already received this update.  If you own a G1, look for your notification over the next two weeks.

Since the day that the Nexus One was announced, Verizon and Vodafone customers have been anxiously awaiting the super phone on their respective networks.  With a promised “spring 2010” release, it appears spring might be in the air.  Recent rumblings and FCC documentation hint at releases for the carriers this and next month.

For Verizon subscribers, your wait may only be a few short weeks away.  A Neowin source familiar with the matter says that the nation’s largest carrier will be dropping the Nexus One on March 23rd at a price “competitive” with the T-Mobile version.  Being that this day also marks the kickoff of CTIA, it could make sense to announce something.  Adding to the rumor of an impending launch, a CDMA version of the Nexus One has recently cleared the FCC.

Vodafone customers will need to wait just a bit longer as it’s being reported that the handset will go on sale in April.  According to the Telegraph, the phone will be only available through the google.com/phone outlet and priced “very similarly to comparable smartphones such as the iPhone.”

For those not familiar, the Nexus One sells for $529 unlocked and $179 with a 2-year contract on T-Mobile.

While some users are are enjoying Android 2.1 on their Nexus One handsets and others (Droid) are poised to see it any day now, the rest of us are left to wonder just how much life and OS support remains.  G1 users are probably the most concerned here due to the limited amount of memory.  If the latest  rumor proves to be true, all Android owners in the US will see Android 2.1 next quarter.

According to a source for AndroidAndMe, some handsets will not be able to take all (live wallpapers) of Android 2.1 features but will maintain the general backbone (firmware).  This matches up with previous information we’ve heard before where Android 2.1 might be available in pieces via apps and select downloads.

As of right now, it’s said that the carriers and handset makers are hammering out details as to how and when the updates will roll out.  AndroidAndMe’s sources also indicate that some handsets will require a wipe to get the update and may or may not involve tethering.

G1 and myTouch 3G owners are rumored to be among the first to see these updates if/when they start next quarter.

The dual screen (LCD & e-paper) enTourage eDGe device is a unique blend of e-reader and netbook with and Android backbone. Built to handle internet, ebooks, games, music, videos and notes, the eDGe starts shipping out next few weeks. Ron Mertens of E-reader-info.com recently spent some time talking to the team behind the device as they prepped it for release.

It’s interesting to read how the enTourage sees the device fitting in and how various demographics can take advantage of it. From general consumer to business users, they see the eDGe as being functional for all walks of life. Naturally biased, they see great things ahead for both e-readers and, more specifically, their unit.

When asked about how having 2 screens in one device benefits users they point to a few possible scenarios:

• Drag the stylus across grayscale images on the E-Ink screen to view them in color on the LCD screen
• Attach Web pages, notes and video on the WiFi-enabled LCD screen to passages in an e-book
• Export PDF notes or revised documents (such as contracts that are marked up on the E-Ink side) so that they can be emailed to colleagues
• Open hyperlinks or view video embedded in an e-textbook on the netbook side

Due to the high demand, the eTourage eDGe was pushed back from a February release to early March.  For those of you who pre-ordered on before January 12th, expect it in the next few weeks.  If you haven’t placed an order yet, you can grab one in Midnight Blue, Piano Black, Ruby Red, Glacier White, and Ice Blue.

Collectively, Android handsets appear to be outselling the iPhone in the Midwest.  This shouldn’t come as much of a surprise as AT&T’s 3G coverage is practically non-existent out that way.  Verizon, on the other hand, has plenty of coverage for their Droid customers.  Sprinkle in some Sprint handsets and it’s easy to see how Android is doing better. 

You’ll notice in the map above that there are some states where the race is too close to call.  We should see those, and other states turn Android green over time as more choices in handsets and carriers continue to arrive.

The source of this map, Myxer.com, has a fun little report that breaks down the demographics of Android users on a handset-by-handset basis.  Using their own tools and algorithms, we can see “who” is buying and using the various Android phones.  Scraping different chart data together, we’ve learned that Behold II owners are generally mostly females in their early 20’s, prefer hip hop music, and download ringtones more than other Android users.

Source: CNN Money

Want to see what the chipset behind future Android handsets is capable of?  Of course you do.  Check out a demonstration of Qualcomm’s 7X30 Snapdragon processor that was given to Charbax (Nicolas Charbonnier) at Mobile World Congress last week.  Keeping mind that what you see in the video is only a sample, we understand if you get excited by the possibilities of better games and 3D acceleration.  Imagine the user interfaces and experiences possible with a chip like this!

Skip to just around 3:45 in and you’ll see a game demo that was designed for Android.

Full production and rollout to Qualcomm’s partners should happen over the coming months.

We’ve been sent a handful of emails these few hours from some unhappy Motorola Milestone users.  It seems that music is skipping whenever it’s being played, regardless of the application being used. 

My Milestone skips whilst playing back MP3s via the 3.5mm port. Stereo bluetooth is fine. I’ve tried restarting my phone, amd (sic) trying a different music playback application, but the problem remains.It’s a very short skip every few minutes, but incredibly annoying. – Motorola Support Forums

A quick poking around in some other spots reveals the same thing from users in both the UK as well as those on Telus.  Some have tried their hands at workarounds, but have come away disappointed.  If you’re a Milestone user who has experienced this issue, you’re not alone.  Don’t bother removing widgets, power cycling the phone, or formatting the memory card.  It doesn’t seem to work.  Hopefully the source of this is figured out and a quick patch is released before long.

Thanks to Tom and Jer for their emails!

Recently, one of the hottest topics surrounding Android (and other platforms), is if and when Flash will be arriving.  We’ve seen demos and heard rumblings for well over a year, but where are are now?  Yes, there are handsets like the Motorola Devour with Flash Lite, but what about the full version?  What can we really expect as Android users?  And when can we expect it?The good news is that the final release of Adobe Flash will be available mid-year.  As long as the handset meets certain hardware and software requirements, users can expect to see Flash on select models just a few months from now.  This is where the bad news comes in – Most of the first generation of Android handsets won’t meet the requirements of an ARM v7 (Cortex) chipset like those found in the Qualcomm Snapdragon and TI OMAP3 series.

Taylor of AndroidAndMe put together a quick list of phones that won’t make the cut for full Flash and they are:

• Sprint Hero
• Sprint Moment
• T-Mobile G1
• T-Mobile myTouch 3G
• T-Mobile CLIQ
• T-Mobile Behold II
• Verizon Droid Eris
• Verizon Devour

Keep in mind that some of these phones already offer a version of Flash Lite.  It would be nice to see most, if not all, handsets at least support that iteration.

We can’t leave you on a down note so we thought we’d give you some more good news.  According to some tests and independent studies, Flash will not be the battery killer we’ve heard it might be.  The fear of draining a phone dry at an accelerated rate can be assuaged.  FlashMobileBlog has found that  “video can be played for well over 3 hours over Wi-Fi from YouTube in H.264 (Baseline 1.2).” Naturally, tweaking your WiFi, brightness, and background sync can impact the battery as well.

Battery Performance with Flash Player 10.1 on the Nexus One from Mark Doherty on Vimeo.

Today and tomorrow (Feb 25^th & 26^th), our store is featuring a MobileHeist promotion which spotlights the developers at RESETgame.   For the next 48 hours you can grab 5 of their top-selling apps at 50%off  their normal price!  The titles, which usually go for $4.99 a piece, are Backcountry Ski for Android, Vegas Pool Sharks, Par 72 Golf II, Tank Ace 1944, and Zen Table Tennis.  Hit the jump for a brief description of each!

• Backcountry Ski for Android -Ski down the mountain following smoke to your camp. Watch out for trees, cliffs, avalanches, and exhaustion.
• Vegas Pool Sharks – 3D pool game played against predatory casino types.
• Par 72 Golf II – Realistic 3D golf game with three 18 hole courses. The game features hills, water, sand traps, and sloping greens.
• Tank Ace 1944 – Do you like to drive tanks over rugged terrain, lob artillery shells into the far hills, and blow up lethal opponents lurking around every bend?
• Zen Table Tennis – The world’s most intense sport. Parry paddle thrusts against a ping pong playing demon at an ethereal mountaintop temple. Win or lose, a fortune cookie awaits.

We don’t know about you, but that’s the kind of headlines we like to see.  Thanks to a proliferation of handset makers and good ol’ fashioned competition, the prices of Android handsets is dropping faster than analysts and industry insiders expected. 

Take for instance the forthcoming T-Mobile Pulse Mini from Huawei.  Announced at last week’s Mobile World Congress, the U8110 features a 2.8-inch resistive screen with stylus, a 3.2 megapixel camera, and Android 2.1 under the hood.  When it arrives later this quarter for T-Mobile UK, it’s expected to sell for about £100 (US$155) unlocked.  That’s over 54% less than the price tag that came on the original Pulse only a few months ago.  Granted the screen size does factor in for most heavy users, the general public will likely fall in love with the price.

Here’s a quick hands-on video courtesy of the guys at Mobile Burn.

Are you a specs or price person?  Do you gravitate towards a phone based off of one or the other?

Turn your Android handset into a handy voice recorder with Somyac’s Recordoid Dictaphone.  The free app has been around a while now, racking up over 10,000 downloads out of the Android Market.  One look at the interface and you’ll see that this is one of the most polished apps we’ve seen.  The attention to detail really stands out against other Android applications. 

With Recordoid Dictaphone you can use the microphone in your handset to record voice and:

• Add notes
• Send via e-mail
• Save and view recording location on the map
• Set as ringtone

Scan to download

Right now, the only version available in the Android Market is the Lite edition.  Due to restrictions, the full version is only found in Poland’s market.  Although we checked SlideME, Handango, and Mobile2Day, we couldn’t find any difference in the paid version.  So, go grab that free one!

The January AdMob report (PDF) is out today and it shines a little bit of light on who the typical Android users are.  We already know that Android growth is steady, but just are the people using these phones?  As it turns out, we’re mostly Android Guys.  See what we did there?

A few bits we gleaned from the report:

• 73% of Android users are male
• 24% of Android users are under age 25
• Android users spend about 80 minutes a day using apps
• Only 6% of Android users plan to pick up an iPad (Duh)
• 84% of Android users would recommend their device to others
• Android users download roughly 9 apps every month, nearly identical to iPhone users
• Only 21% of Android users purchase at least 1 paid app per month

Up until now, there haven’t been any “girlie” phones for Android so it doesn’t surprise us that nearly 3 out of 4 users are males.  The 84% satisfaction and recommendation rate should grow over time as users have more options to choose from when buying handsets.

Anything in here surprise you?

If you’re a reality TV junkie, you’ll want to check out the new RealityTVBuzz app from Buzz Network.  Filled with daily news, rumors, and hot gossip(!), the app keeps you up to date with anything and everything related to shows like Survivor, Big Brother, and The Real World.  ReailityTVBuzz landed in the Android Market earlier this month and can be downloaded for free.

Other shows included in the app are:

• Amazing Race
• America’s Got Talent
• American Idol
• Biggest Loser
• Dance Your A*s Off
• Dancing With The Stars
• Dating In The Dark
• Project Runway
• So You Think You Can Dance
• The Bachelor
• The Bachelorette
• Top Chef
• Top Chef Masters
• Tori & Dean

Source: Press Release

Smartphones Technologies has announced that they are currently working on creating college sports apps for over 80 different universities.  The apps will bear the name of  “College SuperFans” when they arrive and will give users breaking news, live game tracking, scoreboards, and more for their favorite college.  Each version will be specifically tailored for your alma mater or team and will cover football and basketball programs.  Future versions of the app will expand to other sports as well as allow for universities to connect with their fans via news updates and messages.

As of today, the first 30 teams are available for iPhone and include the following features:

• Live Game Tracker with real-time scores throughout the game
• Live scoreboard with scores of other games in progress
• Previews of upcoming games, recaps of completed games, and updates with the latest info about the team.
• AP News stories in the app, with links to stories from other sources
• AP & BCS polls and Conference Standings
• Message boards allowing fans to interact with one another regardless of their device

You can currently find an all-in-one version of their College SuperFans 2009-10 Season Pass in the Android Market today. Look for the new College SuperFans in the “near future”.

San Francisco-based web and mobile app company Particle has just unveiled their Android app, Robo.to.  Forget tweets and status updates with boring text.   Using Robo.to one can record and broadcast 3-second video clips as status updates from their Android handset. Why bother reading about your friend at the coffee shop when you can see them enjoying that white chocolate mocha in video? 

Scan to download!

According to Particle, the app provides the ability to “socialize your mobile address book” as well as sync to their network.  Robo.to integrates with twitter, Facebok and a handful of other social networking services in addition to their own so users can connect to friends and family without starting all over.  One of the cooler features in Robo.to for Android is its ‘Mood Ring’  which displays your most recent video status update when someone receives a call from you.  The only catch is both parties have to have Android handsets with Robo.to installed.

Features of Robo.to for Android include:

• Contact List: Navigate directly from a Robo.to contact card to initiate an action
• Import Contacts: Import mobile contacts to Robo.to profile
• Address Book Sync: Automatically sync the native address book in your mobile device with your Robo.to account, so all Robo.to users are added to your Robo.to contacts
• Record & Publish: Initiate Robo.to record from any screen on your phone and publish the video to Robo.to profile
• Mood Ring: Displays caller’s latest status update as the phone rings
• “Pre-Flight” Information: See a contact’s latest Robo.to status update before connecting by call, text or email
• Robo.to Card: Watch as other users “Tag,” “Like,” and “React” to your updates—creating a real-time virtual calling card
• Contact Updates: Automatically update contact information for people in your network, so you always have the latest phone numbers, emails and social networking accounts

SugarSync Inc., providers of  digital backup and syncing, have announced their latest feature called ‘Upload by Email’.  As the name implies, it works by simply sending an email attachment to a special email address.  The file gets applied to a dedicated folder and is immediately available on any synced device, including your Android phone.

“It’s our goal to make your data always available at your fingertips,” said Laura Yecies, chief executive officer at SugarSync. “Upload by Email eliminates the need to download attachments and re-save them. We’re happy to add another way to make sync easier and transparent to you.”

This will come in handy for people who get multiple attachments per email.  Rather than downloading and opening them individually, the user can forward the message and put the attachments in the SugarSync cloud.

SugarSync also announced today that they will be offering a new 500GB storage plan.  Previously capped at 250GB, the new plan runs $39.99/month of $399/year.

If you haven’t checked out SugarSync, you can grab it from the Android Market today.  All accounts come with 2GB of free storage.

At their Winter Media 2010 event, Philips unveiled an Android-based media player/navigation device called the GoGear Connect. Due out in the summer, the unit features a 3.2-inch HVGA touchscreen, 8GB internal memory, WiFi and GPS. Using a microphone and a WiFi connection, it would be possible to make VoIP calls. The GPS component will allow the GoGear Connect to function as a personal navigation device. Other specs include haptic feedback, a front-facing camera, Bluetooth, microSD expansion (up to 64GB), and TV-output via (presumably) HDMI.

Philips has created a special UI (seen in video below) which sits on top of the Android 2.1 platform.  FIt’s being reported that the Android Market will be supported as well. Check back for more information, including pricing, as we can gather it.

Source: Pocket-lint (Thanks Ben!)