Author: David Junior

Now that the long awaited 2.1 update for the Droid has hit, are you bored with it already? Root it and flash a custom ROM. And most custom ROM’s include the 3D draw and 5 home screens. There are many root apps that also add extra functionality to your phone.

How to Root DROID 2.1 Update

1. Downgrade using the 2.0.1 SBF file here.
2. Download the 2.1 update.zip from here.
3. Download the attached .zip file from here, and name it droid-ESE81-update-2.zip
4. Open command prompt and run the following command to combine them:
5. copy /b signed-voles-ESE81-from-ESD56.fa406da6.zip+droid-ESE81-update-2.zip update.zip
6. Then copy the update.zip to your SDCard, reboot to STOCK recovery
7. In recovery, press Volume + and Camera then use the D-pad to select Apply update.zip
8. Voila, DROID 2.1 has been rooted successfully.

Note: Proceed with caution, you will be responsible if anything goes wrong. We take no liability in anything that may go wrong. And, this does NOT update the recovery image to 2.1’s recovery.

[via gadgetdna,mydroidworld]

It does exist!! The all white version of the X10 has been listed on Orange’s order page. This is my personal favorite off all the X10’s including the Mini’s. If this would’ve come out sooner, I would’ve been the first in line to get it.

The guys over at Eurodroid uncovered this sweet device. it can be yours for £49.99 if you agree to a 600 calling minutes and unlimited text messages for £30 per month. Or you can get it for £149.99 with a £22.50 per month plan. There’s no price set for buying it outright yet. If this is not your cup of tea, Orange will also have the black Desire in stock in a few weeks.

Shortly after releasing their iPhone version, Digg has decided to give Android some love as well. the app is in the Android Market right now. Click this link from your device to get the app or scan the qr code below.

Brian Wong from Digg said:

“The Digg Android app has been designed for an ideal mobile Digg browsing experience on an Android phone. You can browse and digg stories and comments, and the app supports landscape mode for browsing story titles and pages that load in the in-app browser.

The Digg Android app looks great on newer Android phone models with higher resolution screens like the Nexus One and the Droid.

We’re glad to be able to make an even greater commitment to bringing Digg onto mobile devices today and, as always, we’d love your feedback so please tell us what you think. We’ll be working hard on releasing more improvements to this app in the coming weeks.

Finally, it’s definitely worth mentioning that as our mobile efforts expand, we’re hiring more people. If you are interested, please check out our jobs page.

Happy browsing!”

[via Digg]

Another Android beast is making its way into the North American market. The X10 may not be the hottest Android on the block but it is still a highly anticipated phone by many. It has the best camera of all the current Android and Rachael is a sexy UI.

The rumored launch date is anywhere between April 7th and the 14th. Rogers in Canada would be the new home of the X10. AT&T here in the US has the same 3G bands as Roger’s Wireless so this news will make a few of us here happy as well. An official announcement hasn’t been made so I guess we have to wait and see. I wouldn’t be surprised if it don’t happen though.

The device will cost you $550 outright which is half of the previously rumored $1000. If you choose to be locked down for 3 years then you could get it for $150.

[via mobilesyrup]

Need some extra juice for you Nexus? Unleash the full multimedia capabilities of your Nexus One with the Seidio 3200mAh extended battery. This battery comes with a replacement back cover and will make the phone thicker. But, if you need power over looks for your long road trip, this battery is a life saver.

The guys over at Engadget did a power test with this battery and got over 30 hours of use out it. This battery is available now for purchase in our store for $69.99. So far it has a 5 star rating by the 6 people who responded with their experience with it.

Features:

• Made from the highest quality cells
• Comes with black replacement door featuring Seidio’s signature soft touch coating
• Textured bar to mimic the phone’s original design
• Door is contoured to compliment the shape of the original device – no hump
• Adds only 6mm to your device
• Keeps your phone charged and ready, even with heavy phone and data usage
• Compatible with Seidio Innodocks
• Capacity: 3200mAh

Skyfire is perhaps the best browser available for Windows Mobile devices. It’s my default browser on the HD2. This browser is fast, stable and has Flash support. Soon we will be able to enjoy this awesome browser on our Android handsets.

I just signed up to be an Alpha tester for their upcoming browser and you can too. To get started head to their site, input your name, device and country. There are a limited number of spots available so if you like beta testing and want to help make this better for Android, participate an enjoy. I’m sure the browser is pretty good.

Wirefly has just announced their first annual blog awards. We need all of your help in winning this thing, as a matter of fact, we want it every year. So head over to Wirefly and cast your vote for AndroidCommunity.com and help us bring this home.

We were contacted personally by Wirefly alerting us of this new award. Finalist will be announced on the 16th and any of our viewers can vote. Click this link, put androidcommunity.com in the reply and thank you all for your support.

Well, looks like it has happened again. Modaco, the same guy that rooted the Nexus One before it was released, just achieved root on the Desire and Legend before they have been released. HTC must’ve gotten wind of this because they are now working on an update to the Desire’s firmware which will most likely patch this exploit before it is released.

Modaco is likely working on custom ROM’s for both devices and porting them to other devices. It shouldn’t be long before we have a perfect Sense UI ROM for our Nexus One’s. I’m sure the OTA was already in the making but the reason above seems cooler.

[via twitter]

The BlueAnt Q1 Android application is now here. A few weeks ago we told you all about BlueAnt’s plans for Android and their Q1 headset. Well, the wait is over, the app is here. This app is for 2.0 and up devices.

Head over to BlueAnt’s site to get started. This app is free and it includes connection guidance, support information, and provides a link to BlueAnt Customer Service. Once installed, you now have the ability to answer your calls, hear the name of whose calling and have your text messages read to you all without touching your handset. BlueAnt has a promotional video as well, enjoy!!

Click here to view the embedded video.

HTC has released a promotional video for the upcoming HTC EVO 4G. up until now there hasn’t been a video that really showed how beautiful this device is. It would’ve been up sooner but I couldn’t stop watching it.

Click here to view the embedded video.

At first I thought this would be the official commercial for the device bit it’s a minute and a half and that a minute too long for today’s commercials. The features and hardware are beautifully displayed in this video and now I want it even more (too bad it’s on Sprint).

I knew it wouldn’t be long until someone made an imitation iPad with Android as the OS. This device features a 600MHz ARM processor, 256 MB RAM and 1 to 64GB of storage, 10 inch screen and pricing will start around $150. And yes folks, this will be running Android, the version is not known but 1.6 is a strong contender.

Currently this tablet is just a prototype still in the beginning stages of development. There will also be a 7 inch version that has 800X480 resolution, 3500mAH 7.2V Lithium and WIFI. The official announcement of these two tablets is expected to happen sometime in April. If you like the looks of the iPad but want to have an Android experience, this is your device.

[via shanzhaiben]

DoubleTwist has been the most popular way to sync all your media to your Android device for a while now. It even comes preloaded on a few devices these days. The latest update to the Mac version now allows you to browse apps, find the qr code, displays screenshots of the app and the recent reviews. The update for the PC client is on the way.

Unfortunately you can’t sync apps from doubleTwist to your device so you have to scan the qr code with your phone to get the app. Also, the MAC version now includes the ability to search for podcasts and soon you will be able to sync and subscribe to them. There’s even a new music player in the MAC doubleTwist client. So, MAC users head over to doubleTwist site and get started.

The long awaited 2.1 update for the Droid is finally. The first batch of OTA’s has been pushed out to a fraction of Droid users, all users should receive this update by the weekend but why wait when you can have it now? You don’t even need to be rooted to update your device manually.

1. Download the official OTA here or use this from AllDroid. MAC users don’t use the Safari browser, it will extract the files and you don’t want that.
2. Rename the file update.zip. Remember .zip is the file extension, make sure it’s not renamed update.zip.zip
3. Put the files in the root of your SD card. Make sure it is not in a folder.
4. Power on your device while holding down the letter “x” on the keyboard and then hold down the power button. If you do this right you will see a triangle with an exclamation point inside.
5. Press the volume up button and the camera button at the same time. You may have to do this a few times until it goes to the bootloader.
6. Navigate to the update.zip file by using the D-Pad, do not interrupt the process once it starts.
7. Enjoy the bliss that is Android 2.1

Sprint has released an early version of the developers guide for the upcoming HTC EVO 4G. the phone looks pretty cool tethered to the television in the picture below. Oh, and it is outputting 720p video to that TV.

If you like, the full guide is here. Here is an excerpt from it:

This documentation covers additional functionality that will be available for the HTC EVO 4G Android device. This documentation is intended for the 3rd party developers who want to start developing applications for the device prior to official launch of the product. While every attempt has been made to ensure the included documentation is accurate, Sprint reserves the right to make changes to device functionality and API design prior to the release of this device for public sale. This document will be updated with changes and/or additions as they become available during the final stages of the devices testing.

Any new APIs covered in this documentation will be depreciated when an Android release supports the standard API that can replace the APIs in this documentation. In some cases constant values will need to be hard-coded in your application until a future SDK is released from the Android team that supports these future constant values. In the included code samples some CDMA values may be new as of the Android Éclair release, in order to compile these values on prior builds such as the Android Cupcake release we have included the constant values.

Like beta testing? The long awaited fennec browser for Android is finally here (kind of). This app was complied for the Droid but don’t feel left out if you don’t have a Droid. It’s slow and buggy on whatever Android device you install it on. It is something to play with so the download link and a few videos are after the break.

http://www.schirrmacher.eu/fennec/index.php/download

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

The official Android Community App is now in the market. It is a free download available for every version of Android. Now you can stay up to date on all the news in the world of Android and hit the forums and discuss the hottest topics. There’s a photo gallery and a quick description after the break.

Those of you that are familiar with tapatalk should feel right at home navigating your way through the app. This standalone app gives you access to the site without the need to open your phones browser. It loads quickly and displays images beautifully. Once you hit the forum you can subscribe to a thread that peaks your interest, reply, quota another user in your reply and even upload images right from your device. There’s even an option to send users private message and you can view their profile. So head over to the market or scan the qr code below and get started. Thanks Ewdi for all your awesome work on bringing this app to the market.

One of the largest Japanese telephone operators AU is teaming up with Sharp to bring two Android MID’s to the market. The two Android devices will be called the JN-DK01 and the IS01. The JN-DK01 is developer’s edition of the Iso1 which can be used to make alterations to the device and the OS.

Although we do not know which version of Android they will run, both will come preinstalled with the OS. The inclusion of Google’s apps is not known either. We do know that two devices will be available in two colors black or light blue. The touch screen is made by Sharp and there is no multi-touch. There is a full QWERTY keyboard.

Other specs include:
• 5.27 megapixel camera
• front facing 0.43megapixel camera
• TV tuner
• Wi-Fi b / g
• IRDA support for Blu-Ray support (you will be able to rip your Blu-Ray discs on the IS01 via Aquos Blu-Ray transport)
• Bluetooth
• FM Transmitter
• 4GB of internal memory

[via akihabaranews]

With the recent announcement of the HTC EVO 4G and all the news on the Desire, the HTC Legend is still managing to stay in the news. This is one of the sexiest Android devices to date with its high quality aluminum unibody chassis and Sense UI under the hood.  This beauty has just popped up on Vodafone UK’s preorder page.

If you signup today this phone will be yours on April 6th. You can even get it for free with the right service plan. This phone features an optical trackball, an all aluminum body that has been made from one piece, Sense UI 2.1 and a 5 MP camera. So head over to Vadofone’s preorder page a place reserve your phone.

When this phone finally made its way into the market, it quickly sold-out within three weeks of its launch date. The wait for the second batch to arrive seems like an eternity for those of us that want one. Well, that way may be over very soon.

According to Tmonews, T-Mobile is expected to receive the second shipment tomorrow. Also, this will be the last shipment of these devices so you may want to get in line now. This second batch will surely sell just as fast as the first, maybe even faster. And to further sway your decision, T-Mobile has pretty much confirmed that all myTouch 3G’s will get Android 2.1 this spring.

Click here to view the embedded video.