LG Nitro HD, White Galaxy S II Skyrocket Now Available at AT&T

        As of yesterday, both the LG Nitro HD and Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket in White are available through AT&T both online and in stores. The Nitro HD is the latest Android Gingerbread smartphone from LG and features a dual-core processor as well as a namesake 720p HD display. The white Galaxy S II Skyrocket, which also features a dual-core CPU and large 4.5-inch display, brings a new color option to a handset that has already been available a few weeks now. Both handsets support AT&T’s LTE network and both will set you back $249.99 after contracts and rebates. Head over to AT&T’s site now to learn more or make a purchase.

Posted on Friday, December 30, 2011 / 0 comments / Read More

Sprint Releases Software Fix EK02 for Epic 4G Touch to Fix Loss of Signal

Sprint has finally released a software fix for the Epic 4G Touch for the dreaded loss of signal bug that’s been plaguing the community for quite some time. The bug would cause the voice and data radios to lose signal, something that was only fixable by a reboot.

It was originally believed that the bug most commonly affected those who were in bad coverage areas. Those who lose signal in bad coverage areas are supposed to be handed over to Verizon’s network until they can recover a Sprint signal, but the handoff to Verizon tends to stall and eventually the radios shut themselves down until you reboot the phone.

We’re glad that this was easily fixed through software even if it took a long time to come to fruition. Sprint also fixed the bug where your 4G hotspot connection would periodically disconnect while on a phone call. Head to this link for instructions on how to pull the update down. If you’re rooted, we’re sure your favorite ROM developer will make no delay in updating their ROMs based on this version if they haven’t already

Posted on Friday, December 30, 2011 / 0 comments / Read More

White Galaxy S II Skyrock Landing at AT&T Dec

Dreaming of a white Christmas? How about a white Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket? AT&T is getting in the holiday spirit with a new deco for their LTE-enabled handset. The all-white Skyrocket doesn’t change any of the features of it’s darker counterpart, and with that pricing remains the same at $249 on a two-year contract. Just don’t go dropping this one in the snow.

Posted on Thursday, December 29, 2011 / 0 comments / Read More

Samsung Galaxy S2 Music Hub

An advertisement for the Samsung Galaxy S2 that mentions the technology maker’s “Music Hub” service was the subject of a consumer complaint

Samsung was recently ordered by the Advertising Standards Authority of South Africa (ASA) to withdraw an advertisement for their Galaxy S2 smartphone that punted its “Music Hub”, a feature that isn’t available to South Africans.

The advertising appeared on Samsung’s own African microsite for the device, and according to the complaint it claimed, “Samsung’s new native music player provides an intuitive playback system to search, discover, preview, purchase and download tracks on the go.”

According to the ASA ruling, Samsung’s response stated that it did not misrepresent availability of the music hub to the consumer, as the terms and conditions are provided when accessing the site.

In particular, Samsung cited that these terms stated “Samsung does not guarantee the continued availability of such content and services”.

Ruling on the matter, the ASA said that it had to determine whether or not the advertisement created a reasonable expectation that the music hub feature is accessible to the consumer.

“It is common sense to appreciate the fact that when consumers are in the market to purchase a new handset, one of the key factors they consider is the capabilities of the phone or its features,” the ASA said in its ruling.

It went on to rule that the promotion of the “music hub” application for the Galaxy S2 phone to local consumers when it is not available in the country constitutes misleading advertising.

Posted on Thursday, December 29, 2011 / 0 comments / Read More

Samsung Galaxy S2 On Three Special Offer

Three have put the Samsung Galaxy S2 on special offer which means its available at a reduced price until November 7th.

You can now pickup the Three™ Galaxy S2 for £27 a month which gets you 500 minutes, 5000 texts and 1GB of mobile data. It’s also available on other deals on Three including the One Plan which costs £35 a month and gets you 2,000 minutes , unlimited texts and unlimited mobile data. However, that’s not all because you’ll also get two months free Spotify included !

And to sweeten the deal, Three is throwing in a two-month subscription to music mavens’ steaming service of choice Spotify and a free Three pay as you go SIM for a friend

Posted on Thursday, December 29, 2011 / 0 comments / Read More

Samsung Galaxy S2 Skyrocket LTE 4G Unveiled by AT&T

AT&T has finally announced its plans to release its first two LTE smartphones that includes the launches of the HTC Vivid and the Samsung Galaxy S2 Skyrocket, whose “Skyrocket” moniker is probably in reference to how fast LTE connections are.

In terms of hardware specs, the Samsung Galaxy S2 Skyrocket will sport a 1.5GHz dual-core processor, which is an increase over the regular Galaxy S2’s 1.2GHz dual-core Exynos processor. It will also see an increase in screen size from 4.3” to 4.5” (800×480) and it too will be featuring Samsung’s Super AMOLED Plus display.

Samsung Galaxy S2 Skyrocket  will run on Gingerbread OS and match T-Mobile’s version with a 1.5GHz dual-core processor along with an 8-megapixel camera capable of filming 1080p HD video. It also includes a 2-megapixel front-facing camera with 16GB of internal storage and a microSD card slot.

Price

Samsung Galaxy S2 Skyrocket will set you back $249 on a two year contract along with AT&T’s LTE data plans.

Posted on Thursday, December 29, 2011 / 0 comments / Read More

How to get AllShare on the Galaxy S2 to work

If you have the Galaxy S2, you would have noticed an app in the list called AllShare:

See, that blue one in the top row.

Now, at first it didn't work on my phone, it just didn't connect. What you can do with it, however, is actually pretty cool - you can play items that's on your PC on your phone, and vice versa. NEAT!

I did a little digging, and found out how to get it to work. Note, I have Windows 7, and use the normal Media Player program that comes per default out with Windows, so this guide will help you to get yours working if you have the same OS and use Media Player...

So, to get it to work, you must first allow your PC to be accessed in this way. In Media Player, that's quite simple to do. When your Media Player is open, just below the Title bar, you'll see the Back and Forward buttons, and below that the Organize, Stream and Create playlist options:

Clicking on the Stream option, gives you a few options:

If you want to control your Media Player from your phone, tick the "Allow remote control of my Player..." option, and if you want to play the files on your PC on your phone, tick "Automatically allow devices to play my media..." option. You'll get some warnings, but if you're confident that your network is secure, and you don't mind sharing your files like this, you can go ahead and enable the features.

That should set up your PC to allow the AllShare app to fully work now.

So, the AllShare app works like so - starting it up gives you this:

From this screen you can share the Videos, Pictures and Audio files on your phone - that is, view them on your PC. The only small issue I have here, is when tapping on any of the options, it just gives you one big list with everything of that category on your phone, no folders or any order, so if you have lots of files, it can take a while to sift through them.

Here's a list of my Videos:

And, when tapping one, you get to choose on which device you'd like to play it:

Playing the file gives you the controls for it on your phone, but it obviously plays on the device (in my case, my PC):

And here's a screen shot to serve as proof that the movie is playing on my PC:

Now you have to admit, once again, that is a very cool feature! :)

You can just as easily play the files that are on your PC (loaded in your Media Player) on your phone. You tap on the Remote device option at the top, which will show you all the devices that have media sharing like this enabled on your network:

Tapping on the device, will open it up, and give you the options to browse the various media files in your Media Player, including play lists.

Here is my Collective Soul (GREAT BAND!) playlist:

And tapping on a file, plays it in your phone:

The AllShare app is really cool as you can see, just another awesome feature of the Samsung Galaxy S2. Damn this is a cool phone, if you're even considering getting one, just stop hesitating and DO IT!!

So, that covers how to work with the AllShare app that comes with the phone. It would have been nice for there to be some sort of tutorial or manual on how to get it working, but, luckily, I've written this short guide :)

Till next time!

Posted on Thursday, December 22, 2011 / 0 comments / Read More

App Review: Recipe Search

I've realized over the years that I actually enjoy preparing food, but it's usually just simple stuff, like the age old favourite, Spaghetti Bolognaise, or toast... :)

I was browsing the app market, and saw Recipe Search there in the list, and decided to download it to have a look what it's about:

It's basically an app that gives you access to a huge online database of all kinds of different recipes. It also has some nice features like the ability to create shopping lists, or leave comments and ratings on other people's recipes.

There's a What's new? category as well, which lists the latest recipes added:

And viewing recipes gives you a clear list of the ingredients and steps for preparing the dish:

A nice feature is you can switch between US (imperial) and Metric measuring systems, so it caters pretty much for everyone.

Adding stuff to your shopping list requires a very easy registration where you only have to enter your name.

As for the categories, there's A LOT!! And literally thousands of recipes to choose from.

You can even change the theme of the home screen for the app:

If you are in any way interested in food and preparing it, this is definitely the app to get. The only small complaint I have, and this is by no means a deal breaker, is that not all the recipes includes photos. I tend to not even look at recipes when they don't have photos included - I want to see what I'm going to make damnit! :)

Posted on Thursday, December 22, 2011 / 0 comments / Read More

App Review: Instant Heart Rate

Ok, this review isn't of the biggest and awesomest apps out there, but it's of a cool one nonetheless! Last night I was browsing the app market, and saw Instant Heart Rate there in the list, and I had to investigate - I quickly downloaded and installed it, and a few seconds later I had a reading of my heartbeat!

Pretty neat trick for a phone that is! How it works is it uses the phone's camera and LED flash, and you basically hold your index finger on the lens - it then calibrates for a few seconds, and starts recording your heartbeat.

That's pretty much it. I reckon the main reason anyone would want this it to show off :) Oh, I guess fitness fanatics would also like it (but that is definitely not the reason I got it hehehe......)

Posted on Thursday, December 22, 2011 / 0 comments / Read More

Memo Notes, and a better alternative

The Galaxy S2 comes standard with their Memo app, which you'd basically use to make quick notes:

It works ok, but I'm not too fond of it. I decided to look for an alternative, and found Evernote - the nice thing about Evernote, is it includes the ability to take a quick picture or video or even voice recording, as well as traditional text notes. Also, a very handy widget is available.

Furthermore, you must create an online account, which means your notes gets synchronized with the Evernote website, so you can access your notes from pretty much every where.

It works a lot better than the default Memo app that comes with the phone in my opinion, and I'd highly recommend getting it as soon as you can, it will really help when you need to make a note of something real quick :)

Posted on Thursday, December 22, 2011 / 0 comments / Read More

Galaxy S2 Photo Editor

The Galaxy S2 comes standard with a very decent photo editor app, called, wait for it :) - "Photo editor" - very handy for a few quick touch ups, cropping or rotating. It's not a full Photoshop type app, but for every day use, it does the job nicely!

In this post I'll quickly go over all the features it has - starting the app, allows you to select which image you want to edit:

You can either select an existing image, or take a new one... Once you've selected the photo you want to edit, you'll get a neat interface with everything you need right there:

The most basic feature any decent photo editor app must have is a rotate one, and luckily, this one does! It also includes "flip horizontally" and "flip vertically" features:

The next one you'd need would be a cropping tool - we always get stuff like fingers or bystanders that spoil the photo, so cropping the pic can easily fix that. It can even turn a crappy photo into a MASTERPIECE!!!

This little app also have several selection related tools and features, which allows you to make edits to only certain parts of a photo:

At the bottom you'll see a back and forward button, so you can undo and redo any steps you take... Next to that you have a paint pallet icon, which gives you options to play with the brightness and contrast settings:

The magic wand tool gives you options to make some blur related changes to your selection (you need to make a selection first for this to work):

The final tool in the list gives you some other effects you can apply to your pic:

So there you have it, that covers the stock standard "Photo editor" that comes by default with the Galaxy S2 - it's got enough to allow you to do the basics, but it won't be used by professional photographers :) (they'll anyway rather use their PC or Mac)

I'll have a look to see what alternatives to the standard photo editor there are out there, and maybe do some reviews on them too.

Till next time!

Posted on Thursday, December 22, 2011 / 0 comments / Read More