Android

What's in store for digital comics?

Music, movies, television shows, and books have all developed strong digital presences, but what about the comics from which so many of these other media take their story lines? Relatively new to the digital world, some comics publishers feel they finally have a delivery device for their content in the tablet, and they've got plans for how to develop digital comics. What's less certain is how readers will react to those plans, and whether digital comics will help reverse dwindling comic book sales.

DC Comics, publisher of comics involving well-known heroes such as Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman, … Read more

Verizon and Sprint Galaxy Tabs drop to $199

Both Sprint and Verizon Wireless have dropped the price of their versions of the Samsung Galaxy Tab to $199.99 with a two-year agreement.

With at least two new Samsung tablets on the horizon, it makes sense that the tablet's price is coming down. And given the moderate success the company had with sales, I can't help but wonder if it could have done better by dropping prices earlier.

In my opinion, the Galaxy Tab should have been this price all along. After extended time with Honeycomb and kicking the tires on the Evo View, the Galaxy Tab experience feels more like a large Android smartphone by the day.

On a related note, three months after officially announcing the Wi-Fi model of the Galaxy Tab, Samsung has finally tapped the device with a $349.99 price tag and an April 10 launch date. … Read more

$349 Wi-Fi-only Samsung Galaxy Tab available by April 10

Samsung has carved itself a respectable niche market with the Galaxy Tab. Although full sales figures aren't available, most information I've found put sales between 1 million and 2 million.

It's not the 16+ million of the iPad, but this is about as close to that figure as any tablet has gotten.

Although Samsung will be releasing at least two new Android 3.0 (Honeycomb) Galaxy Tabs in the next few months, the company isn't prepared to abandon the original Tab just yet.

On Wednesday, Samsung Announced that a Wi-Fi version of the original Tab would be available from several retail stores and Web sites by April 10.

The Tab comes loaded with Android 2.2, with no known plans to upgrade it to Android 3.0. The tablet includes 16GB of internal memory with the capability of supporting additional expandable external memory of up to a 32 GB microSD card.

Also, Samsung hasn't mentioned any hardware or design changes with the Wi-Fi Galaxy Tab, so we expect it to look and function the same as the original, aside from the whole Wi-Fi-only thing.

Look for more coverage after we get our hands on it.… Read more

Crowdsourced RootMetrics for Android tests carrier coverage

Today RootMetrics brings its free Cell Phone Coverage Map app to Android. Like Speedtest.net, the RootMetrics mobile app tests your phone's signal strength and upload and download speeds at any given time. It also goes a step further to compile the voice and data strength of other RootMetrics users across carriers into a single coverage map of major urban centers in the U.S.

CNET Senior Editor Kent German and I used the iPhone version of the RootMetrics app to pit the Verizon and AT&T iPhone 4 against one another in a data speed showdown around … Read more

Singing the South American 'CDMA blues'

My honeymoon with Verizon is finally over. I knew this would happen when we entered that sacred bond--the two-year-contract. I knew I was locking myself into CDMA, but I was vulnerable. I'd just broken off a rocky relationship with AT&T three weeks before our two-year anniversary. OK, OK, the truth is I cheated. I'd been flirting with Verizon for a few months before I finally ordered a Droid 2--when I should have been spending time reviewing my contract with AT&T, and thinking of the good times with my HTC Tilt.

But I was having a hard time conjuring those memories--too many dropped calls, spotty coverage, no 3G within a hundred miles of my house... I knew in my heart it was over, so why draw it out any further?

So I welcomed Verizon into my life. AT&T was not happy. She sent me a cold, heartless letter asking for $60 and hired a third-party survey company to call and ask, essentially, "Was it you? Or was it me?" I told the scripted voice on the other end of the line about the lack of broadband in our relationship, the coverage problems, and the rest, but I also found myself reminiscing about the good times I had long since buried.

There was an especially delightful trip to Mexico, a romantic month spent driving through Sonora and Baja--the sunsets and 3G coverage were truly beautiful. As we drove together through barren deserts, AT&T stayed with me, and with a stronger signal than we had in more populated areas of New Mexico. … Read more

Unconfirmed report says HTC will unveil dual-core Sensation next week

The much anticipated dual-core HTC Pyramid could be less than a week away from making its official debut. Expected to be among the announcements at HTC's London event scheduled for April 12, the high-end smartphone may carry a different name. According to sources close to tech blog Pock-lint, the handset will arrive as the HTC Sensation at some point over the coming months.

Indeed, HTC has made a habit of releasing similar hardware designs across multiple markets with U.S. carriers branding the phone and loading their preferred applications. In contrast, wireless providers across the pond typically keep HTC's product name and offer the device as is.

The Pyramid name that we've heard whispered over the last few months will likely disappear with the Sensation name signaling a new flagship series. T-Mobile has long been rumored to carry the Pyramid with an expected May launch. Considering the timing of the event, I would anticipate HTC announces the Sensation next week with T-Mobile following shortly after with their own press releases.

The hardware for the Pyramid is a considerable step forward from last year's HTC phones. Expected hardware includes a dual-core 1.2GHz processor, 7,658MB RAM, and an 8-megapixel camera. Factoring in the 4.3-inch qHD 960x540-pixel display and it sounds very similar to the EVO 3D unveiled at CTIA.

In any case, a high-end announcement from HTC is needed. Its announcements from Mobile World Congress this year weren't major steps forward for the hardware maker. The Desire S and Wildfire S were merely refreshes of existing handsets, while the Incredible S basically is a bigger Droid Incredible. … Read more

The 404 793: Where Wilson's back with a vengeance (podcast)

The Bubble Boy gets released from quarantine and joins us back on today's episode of The 404, where we're chatting about Dish Network grabbing Blockbuster for $228 million; a Canadian service that could mean the end of missed packages; a girl who can't close her mouth; and the end of one of our favorite TV shows: "30 Rock."

The 404 Digest for Episode 793

Dish Network wins bidding war for Blockbuster Video. The BufferBox may signal the end of missed packages. Just for fun, here's the delivery guy spoof scene from "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective." Nurse uses Popsicle sticks to reset a jaw in mid-yawn. News anchor falls for Shock Top app prank. "30 Rock" will end next season, according to Alec Baldwin.

Episode 793 Subscribe in iTunes (audio) | Subscribe in iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

Nuclear-site app pinpoints plants

I live in New Mexico, land of the atomic bomb. The National Museum of Nuclear Science & History is a few miles from my house. The state is chock full of nuclear reminders like the Trinity Site and Los Alamos National Lab.

One thing we don't have is a nuclear power plant. I know this handy little tidbit thanks to the new Nuclear Site Locator app for iPhone and Android. It comes from developer LogSat Software, the same company that brought you Sex Offenders Search and Family Tracker.

For $1.99, you can see where the closest nuclear plant is to your location, check up on the proximity of nuclear power to people in your contact list or just simply browse a stream of nuclear sites around the world. The closest plant to me is 500 miles away: the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station just outside of Phoenix. I don't think that will fly as an excuse to cancel my next blazing-hot summer trip to Arizona.

There is a little more than just mapping involved with Nuclear Site Locator. Clicking on a nuclear site's name pops up a picture and lists the total number of reactors, how many are active, when they were built, and what their capacity is.… Read more

Report: Dell 10-inch Android tablet to arrive early

Dell will reportedly launch a new 10-inch Android tablet this summer, according to a Forbes story .

Citing a source at Dell, Forbes said that the Android-based tablet would hit the market earlier than initially expected, possibly by mid-June. Briefly teased at CES in January and mentioned by Dell in February, the new Android tablet wasn't initially slated to launch until sometime next year.

If true, the new 10-inch tablet would add to Dell's current lineup of the 5-inch and 7-inch Streak Android tablets.

Outfitted with Android 2.2, aka Froyo, the Streak 5 offers a WVGA (800x480) display … Read more