Author: Jared DiPane

One thing that seems to be a common complaint is "My pictures just look crappy." Many mess with settings, lighting, and more but nearly all of us have overlooked one very obvious thing, which Locoman from our forums reminds us. He just brought us some amazing moon pictures from hi HTC Droid Incredible, and now he brings us the simple tip: Clean your camrea. Simply take a cleaning cloth, any microfiber cloth should work just fine, and clean off your lens, and voila, clearer pictures. Could it be any simpler? Check out the improvement seen in the example pictures here, and be sure to use the forums to share any other tips you may have for us!

This is a post by Android Central. It is sponsored by the Android Central Accessories Store

Over at LevelUp Studio they have been hard at work in their continued development and support of a highly popular application we have all grown to know and love, Beautiful Widgets. Lately there have been a slew of updates, which we have not covered, and for those that may have missed them, some of them include:

• Ability to customize color of widget text
• Show four day weather forecast
• Hide background / adjust transparency
• Download various weather skins
• Custom live wallpaper

This custom live wallpaper takes your standard grass live wallpaper and adds a very nice touch, showing current weather conditions as long as you have Beautiful Widgets installed on your device. If you don’t have it installed, the wallpaper will still work, except you will only have the sun and moon animations, and it will not adjust to your current weather conditions. If you have the Beautiful Widgets, be sure to check out this latest update, and if you are interested in purchasing, be sure to check it out in the Market.

This is a post by Android Central. It is sponsored by the Android Central Accessories Store

While the Marketplace continues to grow and it gets harder and harder to weed through all the new applications, we aim to make your experience as smooth as possible. And so, we bring to you another week of applications that we use.

This is a post by Android Central. It is sponsored by the Android Central Accessories Store

Location based services have become very popular, as we all know. Gowalla, one of the more common applications, started as an iPhone application, and since their Android development has began the application has come a long way. Gowalla 2.0 was just released, and let’s take a look at it after the break.

This is a post by Android Central. It is sponsored by the Android Central Accessories Store

Another week finished, and boy was it a busy one. Phil went to tackle Goole I/O and brought the world some great news, reviews, and more. It was a busy week, so let’s take a look at what took place.

News

• Spruce up your Android phone with wallpapers, ringtones
• HTC Hero with Cox branding spotted
• Samsung Galaxy S most likely going to T-Mobile
• Android 101: Tethering
• Verizon CEO says LTE Android tablets will debut next year
• HTC Wildfire headed to Virgin Mobile UK
• Firefox for Android pre-alpha updated, gets nightly builds
• Android 2.1 for the Sprint Hero is now officially official (update with link)
• Google co-founder says bad apps to blame for poor Android battery life
• Android, iPhone now make up one-quarter of all smartphones
• Google I/O Recap – What you missed (so far) [#io2010]
• Froyo on the Nexus One already? Yeah, we did it already
• Screenshot shows Motorola Cliq running Android 2.1
• Comparing Android-iPhone to Mac-PC wars: ‘We’re lovers, not fighters‘
• HTC Vision looks to be a WVGA Android slider

Applications

• Android Kindle app coming this summer
• Android Launcher Pro beta makes an OK home screen even better
• Android quick app: Android Town
• AT&T releases myWireless Mobile app for Android
• Android’s Google Voice app updated

Contest

• Win a free Evo 4G from Android Central! [contest]

In what seemed like the wait of a lifetime, the myTouch 3G Slide is now available for pre-order in T-Mobile stores, with an official release date of June 2. While pricing has been rumored to be $149.99, some other whispers are that the device could be seen at the $199.99. So, what are you waiting for? Get yourself to your nearest T-Mobile location and pre-order yours today! [via T-Mobile]

Update: To alleviate some confusion — we’re hearing some outlets may be doing $199. T-Mobile, on the other hand, has already announced $179.

Google I/O started off a little slow on Wednesday, but boy did Thursday take over, with the announcement of Android 2.2 — Froyo — and Google TV. Here’s what we’ve posted thus far. And while we’re headed home from San Francisco, we’re not done with the news just yet. More to come.

Day One

• Android Writers Roundtable: Predictions for Google I/O
• Official Google I/O T-shirt has a few surprises
• Google IO Keynote liveblog — live at noon EDT / 9 a.m. PDT
• Sports Illustrated shows what print publications can (and should) do online
• What else is going on at Google IO?
• Hands-on with the Android Kindle app
• Seesmic shares new Android beta with Google I/O attendees, with support for Google Buzz
• The Great Wall of Android

Day Two

• Today: Froyo; tomorrow (er, Q4): Gingerbread
• Hands-on with the Chevy Volt OnStar Android app
• Google IO Day 2 Keynote: Froyo time!
• Android: 100,000 units per day, 2nd in smartphones, 1st in usage
• Google takes plenty of shots at Apple at Google IO
• Android to stream your desktop music over the air.
• Google shows off new mobile ad formats
• Most 2010 HTC Android phones will get Froyo …in 2010
• Android 2.2, Froyo, officially announced, but no release date in sight
• Google Announces Google TV, coming Fall 2010 (Update: Video demo)
• Adobe explains Flash 10.1 on Android
• Logitech + Google TV details: specific remote, Video calling software
• Android 2.2 / Froyo to bring Bluetooth voice dialing
• Hands-on with Laminar Research’s X-Plane Android flight sim
• Why the Google phone store didn’t work out (and what happened to the Sprint and Verizon Nexus Ones)

No, you’re not going crazy, we just did this on Sunday, but out of dedication, and to get back on the routine, here it is again folks. Without further ado, we bring you some more selections.

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Development for Android continues, even if unofficially, and it seems as though just about every day we see something new surface. HTC G1 owners sometimes feel as though they are on the back burner, as their device was the original, and at this point it is slightly behind the times in some categories. But that doesn’t stop Cyanogen from developing great custom ROMs. And 5.0.7 is the latest and greatest of all the Cyanogen builds for older phones, and it’s now available for download. (And above, Cyanogen crony Kmobs shows off some of the finer points.) We’re still waiting on the build to actually be released, but it should be any time now. Keep your eyes peeled here.

So, just a few hours ago Phil showed us some custom themes for the HTC_IME keyboard. I know you readers love to support us, so I figured I would make a sweet Android Central keyboard to share with all of you! The install of the keyboard is rather easy, and goes as follows. Note: Your phone does NOT have to be rooted to do this.

• Download this file (Android_Central_Keyboard.apk, ~4 megabytes), and install with your favorite file browser.
• Go to Settings then Language & Keyboard > Check HTC_IME mod
• Open a text entry area, long press anywhere, select input method, and select HTC_IME mod
• Enjoy your new keyboard, and show it off to all your friends!

Hope you all enjoy this keyboard as much as I am, and if you come up with your own Android Central creations, we would love to see them in the forums!

We all know that E-Readers have grown in popularity over the past couple of months, and we have seen a wide variety of them, most of them rather non pocket friendly, much like that iPad thing. The LiSeng Vbook offers you two 5-inch screens, one E-ink and one 800×600 touchscreen that will be running Android 1.6. While still on the small side in form factor, the device will offer 128MB of RAM, 2GB of flash storage, and even offer Wi-Fi. Unfortunately, pricing and a timeframe of release of this unit still remain unknown, but hopefully now that we have seen this much, we will continue to see more about this unit. [Engadget via Engadget Chinese]

Open your text messages application on your Droid, and notice it’s, well, empty? Apparently a new known issue that has been plaguing a group of Droids is this rather random deletion of your SMS and MMS messages from your device. This means that all of those lovey dovey texts you sent your significant other, all the pictures of your friends drinking at the bar while your working, or the video of the guy walking into the street sign are now gone, vanished into thin air. Unfortunately there is no simple way to just back these up so they are able to be restored, unless your all fancy and keep current nandroid backups of your device (if you happen to know what that is), or if you, say, used Google Voice. Well, in all seriousness, if you have seen this issue, or happen to know any magic fixes, please, share your experience with us in the forums. [code.google.com via Consumerist]

If you have read anything about Android, you will know that it is an open-source style platform, which means that development for the Android is pretty common, and many people have come up with some amazing things for it — including custom ROMs.  But the process and sheer number of available ROMs can be rather scary. Some great developers have created an application that essentially has become a one-stop shop for all your custom ROM needs. Read on after the break.

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Ever wish you could set your phone to an away status much like you can for many of your favorite instant messaging clients? Personally, I know there are periods of time where I have to walk away from my Droid (sad, yes I know it is a bit difficult each time it happens), and I know that people get extremely frustrated when phone calls go unanswered. Well, now instead of the person wondering if you were just ignoring, you were busy, didn’t hear the phone ring or what happened, you can set the phone to send them a SMS reply, and even customize the message. Let’s hop in and take a look at some of the features of this very useful and practical application — Auto Responder. [Market link]

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Well, what have we here? The device pictured above is what appears to be called The "Boston" and has it’s eyes set to Orange for the carrier. What started as a rumor was followed up with some rather official looking pictures, and some basic specs about the device as well. It appears as though this device will have a 320×480 screen that will be displaying Android 1.6 (*sigh*), along with a 5MP camera, and 256MB of RAM in the device. While yes this device appears to be on the lower end of the Android spectrum, what can you really expect from a device that is said to release with the price of just 1 Euro. [via Phandroid]

As we all know, social networking has become a huge part of many people’s lives, and with this they want to keep as up to date as possible. Boxcar, which currently is only available on the iPhone, allows you to do just this with its push notifications. Some of the big complaints about the Android platform is that no third-party applications really offer this push style support, where if someone mentions your Twitter name, or messages you on Facebook you get a rather instant notification of it without having to refresh the application. It appears as though Boxcar looks to have their Android application out within the next 90 days, so for all you iPhone converts that miss it, the wait is almost over. [via TechCrunch] 

So you think you can Swype? Many of you remember the video of Swype on the Samsung Omnia II where the Guinness World Record for fastest text was broken, and this seems to have sparked some inspiration amongst many. There are quite a few videos, where many come close to breaking this record themselves, only to miss by a few seconds, or a minor spelling error to get in the way. One of the most impressive videos, is this speed deamon typing this rather intricate phrase on his Motorola Droid, and completing it 4 seconds faster then the previous record. Think you got what it takes to beat this record? We would love to see it, as would Samsung on their YouTube page, so be sure to check out the details of this contest here. For those unsure, the phrase for this contest is:

The razor-toothed piranhas of the genera Serrasalmus and Pygocentrus are the most ferocious freshwater fish in the world. In reality they seldom attack a human.

Be sure to check out this sweet video after the jump.

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The headline is pretty clear, Netflix has posted a job opening seeking an Android Video Playback Expert, which can only mean that it is looking to finally venture into the Android market. Netflix is nothing new in the world of smartphones. Heck, our friends over at WMExperts have been covering Netflix for WindowsMobile for a while now, and over at TiPB they have been boasting about Netflix for the iPhone, iTouch and iPad now. It’s long overdue for an Android application for such a vastly popular service, but hey, better late then never right? While we have no real information, as its rather clear development is in the earlier stages from the job opening shown, we can hope development is quick and easy, and we see the Netflix for Android application show up in the marketplace soon! [via Engadget]

We’ve been watching this one for signs of life since it first appeared (and now has been pulled). DroidDog was given an image an unknown square Motorola device running Android 2.1 and MotoBlur. The story goes that it was from someone’s brother’s best friend’s sister’s, cousin’s roommate (or something like that) who was lent this device to use, and didn’t realize they weren’t supposed to send pictures to people on the internet. Either way, real, fake, specs, who knows, there is no information, and the original post was removed at the original leaker’s request.

But now that it has been leaked, odd’s are people with further information will come forward about it, and hopefully we can get some factual information about the device, and some better pictures. If you happen to have them, feel free to use that "Tip Us" feature above! [via DroidDog]

The long anticipated Xperia X10 looks like it has finally landed a home for itself on the Rogers network. This device, which we’ve got in-house (and had our hands on not only once, but twice now) doesn’t seem to get more appealing the more you look at it. The Xperia X10 sadly will was released running Android 1.6, but have no fear, it is supposedly going to be joining the real world with Android 2.1. The device will also release with an updated Timescape, and Mediascape, which is a few of the features of the phone that are geared towards social networking. It appears as though you can snag one of these upon release for $149.99 and three years of your life, but don’t worry, they are going to include a 16GB microSD for you! Check out more information about the device as well as pricing after the break. [Rogers Pre-order via Mobile Syrup]

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