Refresh Roundup: week of September 5, 2011
Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging to get updated. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it’s easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don’t escape without notice, we’ve gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery from the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!
Official Android updates
- Verizon was spitting out new refreshes left and right this week, as we saw Gingerbread begin to roll out as OTA downloads on the Motorola Droid 3, HTC Droid Incredible, and — get this — even the Motorola Droid 2 R2-D2 edition. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
- Interestingly enough, Android 2.3 for the Droid 2 Global was already getting pushed out, but was pulled just a couple days later after a Microsoft Exchange encryption issue was discovered. We’ve been told the updates will resume “soon.” [via Droid-Life]
- Finally, Verizon also pushed out one other software upgrade — this time on its 4510L LTE MiFi. (Thanks, Matt)
- HTC continues to expand its bootloader unlock tool to more phones, region by region. This week the company enabled support for the EVO 3D in Canada and Europe. [via Phandroid]
Unofficial Android updates / custom ROMs / misc hackery
- The Motorola Droid 3 and Droid X both now have access to an SBF — System Boot File — to act as a safeguard for anyone who manages to brick their phones. [via Droid-Life (1) and (2)]
- Recently we heard about the Honeycomb ROM for the HTC Flyer getting leaked by MoDaCo, but no screenshots were available at the time. This week, however, someone successfully grabbed a few images to share with the world (shown in the above image). The ROM appears to run on Android 3.2 with HTC Sense 1.1 for tablets as the featured UI. [via AndroidBugle -- thanks, Dennis]
- Let’s talk a little more about leaked Sense ROMs. We’ve already seen Sense 3.5 working on the Desire HD, and now we have another device to add to the list: the EVO 4G. [via XDA]
- The first kernel for unlocked bootloaders on the Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 is now waiting for your download, so head over to the link for instructions. [via XDA]
- If you’ve been waiting and hoping for CyanogenMod 7 on your HTC Sensation or EVO 3D so you can shed the Sense UI, that time may be very close at hand. According to a member of the CyanogenMod team, an early alpha build for both devices may be available by the end of this weekend, so keep an eye out. [via Phandroid]
Other platforms
- Two new unofficial ROMs — one for Windows Phone Mango and another for NoDo –are now available for the Samsung Omnia 7. The Mango ROM improves the device’s radio, camera drivers and motion sensors, in addition to a few other enhancements. [via WPCentral]
Refreshes already covered this week
Refresh Roundup: week of September 5, 2011 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 11 Sep 2011 10:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Refresh Roundup: week of August 29, 2011
Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging to get updated. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it’s easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don’t escape without notice, we’ve gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery from the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!
Official Android updates
- The biggest update we saw this week was a widespread push of Android 2.3.3 to the Motorola Droid 2. This one is done OTA, so simply go into your settings menu and check for updates to see if it’s there. (thanks to everyone who sent this in)
- While we saw a rollout of Android 2.3 to a select few LG Optimus Ones in June, we’re hearing reports that the update’s now getting pushed out again to a few more regions. This refresh must be done manually through LG’s updater tool, so you’ll definitely want to check to see if your phone is one of the lucky recipients. [via PocketNow]
- US Cellular took to its Facebook Page to let customers know it’s working on revamping the Samsung Mesmerize to Gingerbread at some point, though no official date or timeframe was given aside from “as soon as possible.” [via AndroidCentral]
- HTC announced the arrival of Android 2.3 for the Thunderbolt and Droid Incredible this month, via its Facebook page. [via AndroidCommunity]
- In fact, some users have already reported getting Gingerbread for the Incredible, and we suspect the rollout will be complete no later than the end of the month, to fulfill the company’s promise. [via Phandroid]
- Gingerbread is in the plans for the Motorola Milestone 2, and according to the company the refresh will begin rolling out in early Q4. [via MyDailyGadget]
- The Samsung LC11 LTE mobile hotspot is getting a new build, EF07, that appears to improve its handling of multiple devices and congested WiFi locations. It also adds security patches and new protocols. [via Verizon]
- An update for the Droid 3 was apparently available to soak testers and leaked online, but was pulled from Motorola servers shortly thereafter. It appears to add video chat support in GTalk and adds a new radio that’s supposed to save battery life. The via link still has the update available for anyone interested. [via Droid-Life]
Unofficial Android updates / custom ROMs / misc hackery
- The root method used on most Motorola Android devices has been employed to root the Droid Bionic before it’s even been released. [via Droid-Life]
- LG has released the kernel source for its Gingerbread build of the Optimus S. [via AndroidCentral]
- The HTC Dev site expanded its support for the bootloader unlock tool this week, now encompassing all versions of the Sensation — including T-Mobile’s. [via AndroidCentral]
Other platforms
- SPB Shell 3.0 is now available for Symbian^3 devices. It brings a fresh 3D-style UI to the OS, and can be yours for $15. [via IntoMobile]
Updates already covered this week
- HP planning TouchPad OTA update for added functionality
- HTC Flyer Honeycomb ROM leaks
- Samsung Nexus S updated to 2.3.6, fixes voice search and breaks tethering
Refresh Roundup: week of August 29, 2011 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 04 Sep 2011 10:03:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Refresh Roundup: week of August 22, 2011
Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging to get updated. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it’s easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don’t escape without notice, we’ve gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery from the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!
Official Android Updates
- Motorola’s Photon 4G was the recipient of a minor over-the-air firmware revamp that offers improvements to responsiveness and voice calls, and offers more bug fixes and other enhancements. [via PhoneArena]
- Want another bug fix update? The HTC EVO 3D is the next contestant, rolling out its second OTA refresh in as many weeks. This time it appears that a new “Corporate 4G” widget and a new radio have been added. [via AndroidCentral]
- Gingerbread 2.3.4 is now rolling out to Bell’s Motorola Atrix 4G OTA. [via MobileSyrup]
- Now that its official Gingerbread support page has gone live, Verizon’s Motorola Droid 2 will likely be receiving Android 2.3 in the very near future. [via AndroidCentral]
- Sasktel’s HTC Incredible S is now the beneficiary of Android 2.3.3 in an OTA install. [via MobileSyrup]
Unofficial Android updates / custom ROMs / misc hackery
- Remember that Gingerbread update the HTC Droid Incredible was supposed to get? The official version’s been leaked out and is awaiting your download. Just remember the follow the directions and back up your device before proceeding. [via AndroidPolice]
- Speaking of leaked versions of Gingerbread, the Droid 2 Global has one now. More info can be found here. [via Droid-Life]
- The Motorola Droid 3‘s been successfully rooted. As it turns out, there may be a couple different methods to do so, so check out the link to learn how to do it. [via XDA and AndroidCentral]
- An official build of Android 2.3.4 for the Samsung Captivate has been leaked to XDA. [via Phandroid]
Other platforms
- The Nokia N8 was recently blessed with Symbian Anna, but a few camera-related upgrades were left out. No need to fear, as an “experimental” update is now being offered, which adds continuous auto-focus and tweaks the UI to allow for faster access to the camera — among other improvements, such as a boost to 30fps. Check out the change log here. [via ZOMGitsCJ]
- Given last week’s news about webOS, we were concerned the newly-launched Pre3 would be DOA, with no promise of future updates. HP’s proving this isn’t the case, however, as the device got a minor update that brought the phone’s help center live and fixed a few bugs along the way. [via PreCentral and PhoneArena]
- Research in Motion released an upgrade to its Tablet OS for the BlackBerry PlayBook. Unfortunately, it’s not the 2.0 version we saw leaked screenshots of earlier this week, but it still brings a nice feature to the tablet: differential updates. This means that in future OS refreshes, only the affected sections will be changed. In addition, the new version, dubbed 1.0.7.2942, will improve WiFi connectivity via WEP and enhancements to BlackBerry Bridge. [via RIM]
- WP7Mod showed a video of the HTC HD2 booting up with Windows Phone Mango’s RTM build installed. We’ve been told that it’s almost ready for any daring souls interested in a new challenge for their Windows Mobile device. [via WMPowerUser]
Refresh Roundup: week of August 22, 2011 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 28 Aug 2011 09:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Motorola says Droid 2 Global Gingerbread update isn’t ready after all
Verizon said otherwise earlier this week, but Motorola has now finally chimed in to say that a Gingerbread update for the Droid 2 Global is not, in fact, rolling out at the moment — as Droid 2 Global owners have probably noticed. Unfortunately, it’s not provided any indication as to when such an update will start rolling out, but it does seem like you can rest assured that it’s still a question of “when” not “if.”
Motorola says Droid 2 Global Gingerbread update isn’t ready after all originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 17 Jun 2011 20:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Droid 2 Global gets Gingerbread, customizable dock and more in latest update from Verizon
Droid 2 Global users, your moment in the Gingerbread sun has arrived. Verizon’s put up a page with download instructions for a 103MB update, taking your QWERTY slider from version 2.4.330 to 4.5.600. Updating isn’t the most taxing of activities, you just look for a system update in the About Phone menu and then give your blessing for the download to commence. VZW will also be prompting tardy users to take their OTA medicine in due course. So what’s new apart from Android 2.3? Well, the big change is that the previously static phone, contacts and apps icons at the bottom of the UI have now been turned into a user-customizable dock, with three links of your choosing sidling up next to the App Launcher. There’s also a freshened up UI look, a Download Manager App, user-definable App Groups, encryption for data both on the device and its SD card, improvements in battery life while using WiFi and Bluetooth, and the obligatory stability fixes. If all that sounds irresistible and you have the requisite phone in hand, go get it!
[Thanks, Jon]
Droid 2 Global gets Gingerbread, customizable dock and more in latest update from Verizon originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 15 Jun 2011 02:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Gingerbread finally coming to Droid X Friday, Droid 2 and Pro to follow?
After several leaks Verizon and Motorola have finally gotten their act together — Droid X owners, get ready for a little love in the form of Blurified Gingerbread. Verizon just reached out to let us know that Android 2.3 will start hitting the big-screened phones on Friday. You can find a full list of new features that it and the latest version of Blur bring to the party, along with instructions for downloading and installing. A Motorola employee also let slip in the company’s support forums that other devices may soon follow suit: “other [Gingerbread] updates are currently scheduled to be released before the end of the third quarter.” While he wouldn’t name specific handsets, it seems safe to assume that the Droid 2 (including the Global version) and possibly the Droid Pro will be included.
Gingerbread finally coming to Droid X Friday, Droid 2 and Pro to follow? originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 May 2011 11:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Droid Life | 
Motorola Support Forums, Verizon | Email this | Comments
Droid X and Droid 2 get unofficial Android Gingerbread 2.3
Is your Motorola Droidphone hungry for some Gingerbread? Well, the lucky little guy can now get its taste with the recently released Android 2.3 builds for Droid X and Droid 2 from My Droid World. Droid Life’s got all the details, including a hands-on video (provided after the break) and complete instructions for rooting your device and downloading the OS. Gingerbread brings you the new blue Blur, a customizable dock, an app management shortcut, an overhauled camera app, and super fast navigation speeds, among other things. So for you eager beavers who just can’t wait for an official release, follow the source links below and feed your phone.
Continue reading Droid X and Droid 2 get unofficial Android Gingerbread 2.3
Droid X and Droid 2 get unofficial Android Gingerbread 2.3 originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Mar 2011 20:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink Droid Life | My Droid World (1), (2) | Email this | Comments
Blur 3.0 update for the Droid 2 leaked and customized
If you have a rooted Droid 2, you’re going to love this. Team BlackHat has released version 3.0.0 of Froyo for the Droid 2, completely deodexed, with Busybox installed, rooted and ready to go. This one is available to all, for free and you can grab it at the source link. Better hurry, you know how Motorola feels about this sort of thing. For those of you who have the TBH app, just use it to grab this one instead. It’s in update.zip format, and is ready to flash from either ClockWork Mod or SPrecovery.
Once you get it up and running, let us know how it’s working out for you in the Droid 2 forums. [MyDroidWorld]
Blur 3.0 update for the Droid 2 leaked and customized posted originally by Android Central
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Droid 2 Global maintenance update set to arrive soon, fixes Global calling issues
Proud owner of a Droid 2 Global but seeing some bugs? If so, Verizon has some bug fixes for you on the way. As noted in the image above which was taken from a .PDF off of the Verizon website, it looks like Big Red will be rolling out the update at some point in time soon. When installed, you should find yourself sitting at v2.4.330. As for the bugs it fixes, the .PDF notes the following:
Improvements:
- Device now prepends 011 to Country Code to send SMS messages.
- Device no longer indicates “No Service” after powering up.
- Device no longer resets when changing from Global Mode to GSM/UMTS communication.
- Device now refreshes the user interface display when switching from GSM/UMTS to Global Mode.
- Eliminated the blank screen when dialing the call forwarding string *71.
Other improvements:
- Improved audio during voice calls.
- Reduced user interface lock-ups.
Maybe after the update, Global users won’t have so much trouble using their device, you know — globally. Feel free to discuss the update potential here. [Android Central Forums, Droid Life]
Droid 2 Global maintenance update set to arrive soon, fixes Global calling issues posted originally by Android Central
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Droid 2 Dock Review: Motorola Multimedia Desktop Charger
Picking out accessories for my Motorola Droid 2 is almost as exciting as the device itself or the applications that it will be running. The Motorola Multimedia Desktop Charger is an amazing accessory, and a must-have for everyone that owns this device. How many times have you sat down at your desk, looked around for your charger, only to realize the cable has dropped behind the desk or become buried under all your paperwork? Well, fear no longer, let’s take a look at this unit, and find out exactly why it is a must have for everyone.
Droid 2 Dock Review: Motorola Multimedia Desktop Charger posted originally by Android Central
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