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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Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 getting Gingerbread in August, can finally show face in public (video)
It’s no big surprise that Sony Ericsson’s Xperia X10 has some Android 2.3-filled days to look forward to — heck, we’ve known that the smartphone would eventually be treated to Gingerbread before it actually got 2.1. At long last, the handset maker is finally offering up a few extra details about the inevitable upgrade, now set for early-August. The company has addressed some user concerns regarding changes to functionality that will come with the upgrade, assuring users that new version of the software will keep the phone’s camera UI intact and will feature newer functionality like the company’s Facebook Inside Xperia feature. Catch the Gingerbready video below, which unfortunately makes surviving the summer on a lesser build no less painless.
Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 getting Gingerbread in August, can finally show face in public (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 20 Jun 2011 12:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Android 2.1 update now available for AT&T Xperia X10
Sure, all your friends are rocking Android 2.3. But hey, quit complaining AT&T Xperia X10 owners, everyone knows that Eclair is way better than vanilla Froyo.
Android 2.1 update now available for AT&T Xperia X10 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 31 May 2011 06:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Xperia X10 goes on sale for just a dollar on contract, Gingerbread-flavored future makes it appealing
Okay, so a couple of weeks back, we wouldn’t have cared if Best Buy was willing to give us money to carry the Xperia X10, we still would have steered clear of its flawed UI and outdated software. But Sony Ericsson did a funny thing last Friday by promising to slap Gingerbread on this 4-inch sucker, which makes its current $1 contract price an eminently more intriguing proposition. We scouted out Best Buy’s web outlet and couldn’t find the X10 listed at all, so this could very well be a final stock clearance of the handset available on a store-by-store basis. If you’re tempted to jump on what’s looking like one of the cheapest Gingerbread devices for a while, you should be aware that the Android 2.3 update won’t be dropping until the end of Q2 at the earliest, so there will be a modicum of patience required.
[Thanks, Adam]
Xperia X10 goes on sale for just a dollar on contract, Gingerbread-flavored future makes it appealing originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 03 Apr 2011 09:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Xperia X10 to get Android 2.3 this summer, makes us rub our eyes in disbelief
Who’s in charge of Sony Ericsson today and what did they do with the old crew? Reversing a previous statement saying there’ll be no Android updates for its Xperia X10 family beyond Eclair, SE has just announced that it’ll bring Gingerbread to the X10 at the end of Q2 / start of Q3 this year. That’s right around this summer, when we should expect a user experience roughly equivalent to that on the new Xperia Arc, Neo and Play devices, whose Gingerbread implementation looks to have served as the basis for the elder X10′s upcoming update. Seriously, Gingerbread on the X10, we still can’t believe it.
P.S. – If you’re wondering about the X10 Mini, X10 Mini Pro or X8, those are all stuck on Android 2.1.
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Xperia X10 to get Android 2.3 this summer, makes us rub our eyes in disbelief originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 25 Mar 2011 07:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Source code for Xperia X10 multi-touch update released
You’ve got to feel for Xperia X10 owners. They spent most of 2010 stuck on Android 1.6, and so far 2011 has brought the news that the device will never get an official update to Android 2.2 Froyo.
Some good news has emerged recently, however, with the publication of some new source code for the X10, X10 Mini and X8 on Sony Ericsson’s Developer World site. The code for the unreleased version 2.1.A.0.390, based on Android 2.1, includes an updated multi-touch driver allowing for dual-touch support, according to the resourceful people at xda-developers. This would be a first for the X10 series, as current touchscreen drivers for these phones only support pinch-to-zoom rather than full multi-touch.
Unfortunately, since the X10′s bootloader is locked, X10 owners will have to wait for Sony (and possibly their carrier) to approve this update before they can get it on their phones. Despite months of effort, the Android community has not yet succeeded in getting custom firmware loaded onto the X10. [xda-developers]
Source code for Xperia X10 multi-touch update released posted originally by Android Central
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Android Market update not so welcome for Xperia X10 users
Life is rough for the Xperia X10. When released (overseas, anyway), it was top-of-the-line hardware, chained to an outdated version of Android, and we still have no idea if it supports multitouch. The custom overlay (TimeScape) is beautiful, but it really hampers performance. We all want to love it, but it’s hard. It just got harder since Google has updated the Android Market.
Seems like the new and improved version of the Market wont run on the X10, with users waiting forever as it fails to load. Sony Ericsson was quick to address the issue via their Facebook page, telling users to uninstall the updates for the Android Market. But, as we all know, the Market auto-updates — leading some users into an endless loop, and no Android Market on their expensive phone. I’ve reached out to SE, but short of keeping the updates for the Market uninstalled, I have no advice to offer to help. This one needs addressed — if not from SE, then from Google, who may be able to halt the updates for the affected devices.
If we hear anything that may help, we’ll be sure to let you know. Thanks for the heads up, Conan!
Android Market update not so welcome for Xperia X10 users posted originally by Android Central
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Xperia X10 goes buy-one-get-one on AT&T
If you’re in the mood for a year-old smartphone that’s struggling to get to Android 2.1, know that the Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 is available as buy-one-get-one free until Jan. 1, 2011. At that point it’ll be about a year old — we had our first hands-on at CES in January 2010 — and it’s been plagued by a lack of updates ever since. But you can’t beat BOGO, even on the X10. [via Twitter]
Xperia X10 goes buy-one-get-one on AT&T posted originally by Android Central
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Sony Ericsson explains why U.S. X10 hasn’t been udpated yet
Sony Ericsson USA took to its Facebook page today to attempt to explain why the U.S. versions of the Xperia X10 have yet to be updated to Android 2.1. Here’s the meat of the post:
One factor in determining a software update is when a country first received the handset. The Xperia™ X10 has been available in some countries since March 2010 and they are also the first to receive the update. The U.S. received the X10 in August 2010 and will receive the update after the initial countries.
The second and more impactful factor of the timeline addresses the technical requirements that must be met in order for an update to take place — no matter which country you live in. Unfortunately, we have no control of that timeline factor. Those requirements are provided to us and we work hard to meet and test them as quickly as we can. In the U.S., the testing process is especially rigorous, and can take months to complete, which is why we cannot announce the timing for availability of the X10 update in the U.S. It’s not that we don’t want to; it’s that the timing is undefined until such testing is completed.
These things do take time, we know. And it’s a good point that the United States didn’t get the Xperia X10 until some seven months after we first got a taste of it at CES. But even as rational as the explanation may be, it grows tougher and tougher to swallow as each day brings us that much closer to Android 2.3 Gingerbread — and puts the X10 that much farther behind. [Facbeook]
Sony Ericsson explains why U.S. X10 hasn't been udpated yet posted originally by Android Central
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Pinch to zoom still in the works for Sony Ericsson X10 family (really?)
Prior to the release of the Xperia X10, Sony Ericsson made it clear to potential buyers that their premiere Android phone would not receive any multitouch love. However, in a recent post on their product blog, Sony Ericsson appears to be going back on their word. And that’s a good thing. According to this post, some of their hardworking engineers were able to dig a little deeper into the driver and firmware for the touch digitizer, and enhanced (or enabled) its multi touch tracking.
They also mention that the X10′s digitizer is not perfect when it comes to multitouch, so multitouch functionality will be very limited. How limited, you ask? Right now they plan on enabling pinch to zoom for just the browser and Google Maps. It might not sound like much, but when I stop and think about it, most of my pinching and zooming is done within those two apps. SE also noted that third party applications will also support multitouch/pinch to zoom on the X10, but the experience may be a bit buggy.
SE hasn’t given an exact date as to when you can start using two fingers on your X10, but they’re aiming to have this pushed out via OTA in Q1 of next year. [Sony Ericsson]
Join in on the Xperia X10 discussion in our X10 forum
Pinch to zoom still in the works for Sony Ericsson X10 family (really?) posted originally by Android Central
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