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Dropbox v2.1 now available in the Android Market, automatically upload photos and videos using WiFi

2012-02-25T05:35:17Z

Just in case you skipped out on testing the recent experimental builds of Dropbox from their users forums, you can now head on over to the Android Market and grab the official release. As noted in the change log, they've addressed some bugs from the beta and added some new features as well:

Allows you to automatically uploads photos and videos in the background using Wi-Fi or data plan
Up to 3 GB of free space for uploading photos automatically (in 500 MB increments)
Upload files of any size
Various performance improvements & bug fixes
We now store your Dropbox credentials in Android’s secure Account Manager. This means Dropbox can’t be installed on your SD Card and requires the “Your Accounts” permissions. These permissions only allows us to access accounts we create.

If you're a Dropbox user and haven't grabbed the latest release, now is a good time to do so and take advantage of that free space they're offering. Download link is past that for you all.

ABC’s ‘Beauty And The Beast’ Has Found Their Beast

2012-02-25T05:10:00Z

Deadline is reporting that stage actor Darius Campbell who is also a platinum-selling singer will play the part of Shiro, the Beast.

Campbell, who is virtually unknown in the U.S., rose to fame in the U.K. as a finalist on Popstars and Pop Idol. He has starred in a number of West End musicals, including Chicago and Guys And Dolls. This marks the biggest TV acting gig for Campbell whose previous experience includes a guest spot on an U.K. drama series.

Let me remind everyone that ABC's version should not be confused with the rival Beauty and the Beast that is also being developed, but by CW. The CW's version will be a remake of the Linda Hamilton, Ron Perlman series that was on the air from 1987 til 1990.

ABC’s drama pilot Beauty And The Beast, a fantasy re-imagining of the classic Beauty and the Beast tale wherein an embattled princess, Grace, discovers an unlikely connection with a mysterious beast, Shiro (Campbell), a mercenary bodyguard. On the project, Campbell joins recently cast Chris Egan who plays Grace’s fiance Gorrick. (The Grace role is yet to be cast).

Source: deadline.com

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"Making Of" Featurette For JOHN CARTER Reveals Great New Footage!

2012-02-25T01:32:00Z

From Academy Award®--winning filmmaker Andrew Stanton comes "John Carter"—a sweeping action-adventure set on the mysterious and exotic planet of Barsoom (Mars). "John Carter" is based on a classic novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs, whose highly imaginative adventures served as inspiration for many filmmakers, both past and present. The film tells the story of war-weary, former military captain John Carter (Taylor Kitsch), who is inexplicably transported to Mars where he becomes reluctantly embroiled in a conflict of epic proportions amongst the inhabitants of the planet, including Tars Tarkas (Willem Dafoe) and the captivating Princess Dejah Thoris (Lynn Collins). In a world on the brink of collapse, Carter rediscovers his humanity when he realizes that the survival of Barsoom and its people rests in his hands.

Starring Taylor Kitsch, Lynn Collins and Willem Dafoe, Mark Strong, Bryan Cranston, James Purefoy, Dominic West, Thomas Haden Church and Ciarán Hinds. John Carter is set to hit theatres on March 9!

Source: Walt Disney Pictures

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Video: Robert Griffin III throws the media open at the scouting combine

2012-02-25T04:31:40Z

INDIANAPOLIS -- It really doesn't matter whether Robert Griffin III throws at the scouting combine during the weekend's quarterback drills (he won't, as he confirmed on Friday). There's enough on tape for anyone to see -- the ridiculous deep arm that can seemingly fling the ball 50 yards downfield with a little flick of the wrist, the pocket presence people aren't going to think he has because he came from a spread offense, and the football sense that allowed him to complete 72.4 percent of his passes in 2011 with a 10.7 yards per pass average that led the nation.

No, what people needed to see from Robert Griffin was the general intelligence and composure that can fill a room. And during his Friday media session, Griffin hit it out of the park like few draft prospects ever have. Andrew Luck's presser, which came shortly after Griffin's, was the personification of his passing style -- expert, in the pocket, efficient, and always professional. Griffin's was also the manifestation of a playing style that can feature just about anything -- from goofy humor to serious dissertations about just what spread quarterbacks are capable of these days.

The first question posed to Griffin was, "what kind of socks do you have on today?" They weren't the Superman socks we wore when he won the Heisman Trophy; apparently, he felt a bit more stealth this time out.

"I've got Ninja Turtles on today," he said, and pulled his left pants leg up to show the appreciative media.

Asked about more serious subjects, starting with the football acumen that people appear to assume no quarterbacks a few shades darker than the "average" could ever possess, Griffin got into the differences between the one-read spread that Tim Tebow (yes, Tim Tebow!) ran at Florida, and the style of offense played at Baylor.

"I think it's just a misconception that comes with being a dual-threat quarterback," Griffin said of that he does. "You're run-first, throw second. I think I've proven I'm throw first, then run if I need to.

"I'd like to sit down with them [the analysts] and show 'em how simple it is. It's not a simple offense. It's a good offense. It's a really great offense and it's a quarterback-friendly offense. Simple would not be the word to describe it."

For one thing, the Baylor offense Griffin commanded was far from a two-digit "grip and rip it" style; there were multiple options per play, and not just on the ground after the quarterback decides to bail out. And when it comes time to run an NFL offense -- any NFL offense -- Griffin has no doubt that the switch to more base plays and a more complex verbiage will be a challenge he can overcome.

"Different concepts, people understand them differently," he said of the opportunity to draw up plays and memorize concepts with NFL teams looking on. In the NFL they're run a little bit different. We ran a numbers-based and a concept system in college. I like getting on that board or showing them or watching the film with them so they can kind of understand what we're going through as an offense."

I asked Griffin if he would like his future NFL coaching staff, whoever it may contain, to do what the Carolina Panthers did with Cam Newton -- to take certain spread plays from their franchise quarterback's days and add those plays to a more standard NFL playbook.

"I think those elements that they brought out show how good of coaches that they are. If you go back and you work to a player's strengths, it can be great. But I'm not going to be the one that walks in the door with five plays with Baylor and like, 'Hey, we've got to run these.' If they want to do that, I'm more than happy to go with that. If they want to know some concepts from Baylor, I'd be happy to bring coach Briles up there. My job is to learn their offense and to be respectful for them that way."

It's hard to imagine that he couldn't take that on, but already, there are some of the same issues that Newton got a year earlier for one simple (and stupid) reason. When asked about Griffin's ability to show NFL teams that he can get up on the whiteboard and draw up what he's asked, based on what he's learned to far, esteemed draft expert Mike Mayock put it simply: "I don't know how he'll do in that setting."

Griffin has heard that stuff before -- he knows that some people will put him in a box based on nothing to do with his own intelligence and character. All he can do is to put it behind him, and to anyone who watched his media session in Indianapolis, those questions will surely be put to rest.

In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if the rush of NFL teams scrambling to trade with the St. Louis Rams for the second overall pick might be one of the few things Griffin can't outrun.

And that's only because he'd rather let the NFL catch up to him.

HTC sends greetings from Barcelona, shows a box of goodies

2012-02-25T01:30:21Z

On their new official blog, HTC has posted a short greeting from Mobile World Congress in Barcelona post from Director of digital marketing John Starkweather. While it's nice of him to say hello to all of us here on the Internet, and we certainly wish him well, we're more interested in the picture he attached. 54 pieces of "something amazing" are in that box (we counted), covered teasingly in pink bubble wrap.

We don't have much to go on, but I have One good guess. We'll know more when we see HTC on Sunday.

Source: HTC Blog

New WRATH OF THE TITANS Photos Featuring Zeus, Ares And Hades

2012-02-24T23:58:00Z

A decade after his heroic defeat of the monstrous Kraken, Perseus (Worthington) --the demigod son of Zeus (Neeson)--is attempting to live a quieter life as a village fisherman and the sole parent to his 10-year old son, Helius. Meanwhile, a struggle for supremacy rages between the gods and the Titans. Dangerously weakened by humanity's lack of devotion, the gods are losing control of the imprisoned Titans and their ferocious leader, Kronos, father of the long-ruling brothers Zeus, Hades (Fiennes) and Poseidon (Danny Huston). The triumvirate had overthrown their powerful father long ago, leaving him to rot in the gloomy abyss of Tartarus, a dungeon that lies deep within the cavernous underworld. Perseus cannot ignore his true calling when Hades, along with Zeus' godly son, Ares (Edgar Ramirez), switch loyalties and make a deal with Kronos to capture Zeus. The Titans' strength grows stronger as Zeus' remaining godly powers are siphoned, and hell is unleashed on earth. Enlisting the help of the warrior Queen Andromeda (Rosamund Pike), Poseidon's demigod son, Argenor (Toby Kebbell), and fallen god Hephaestus (Bill Nighy), Perseus bravely embarks on a treacherous quest into the underworld to rescue Zeus, overthrow the Titans and save mankind.
Check out two more photos by clicking the source below.

Directed by Jonathan Liebesman (Battle: Los Angeles), Wrath of the Titans is set to hit theatres on March 30th,

Source: Kino Gallery

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VIDEO GAMES: Arkham City Lockdown Gets Free Harley Quinn DLC

2012-02-24T22:20:00Z

Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and DC Entertainment have announced that a new update for the Batman: Arkham City Lockdown App for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch is available now. The update includes a brand new level featuring Harley Quinn, a Bruce Wayne skin and achievements, all for free. In addition, the Batman, Inc. skin is now available for purchase.

The new level expands the World of Gotham City as Batman must track down the Infamous Harley Quinn. Players must fight their way through Harley’s henchmen and can enjoy all new gameplay, using Batman’s Batarangs in a timed showdown.

About Batman: Arkham City Lockdown

Developed by NetherRealm Studios, creators of Mortal Kombat, Batman: Arkham City Lockdown features several of Gotham City’s most dangerous criminals, including The Joker, Two-Face and Solomon Grundy, as well as iOS-exclusive character Deathstroke, and engages players in one-on-one combat as they seek justice in a variety of Arkham City environments.

Batman: Arkham City Lockdown takes advantage of AirPlay, one of the newly released features in iOS 5, enabling players to wirelessly stream their gameplay experience on their iPad2 or iPhone 4S to their HDTV using Apple TV.

The Batman: Arkham City Lockdown App is available for $5.99 from the App Store on iPad, iPhone and iPod touch or at www.itunes.com/appstore.

Lucy Punch's Departure May Not Be the End of FX's POWERS

2012-02-24T21:36:00Z

Deadline reported today that Lucy Punch (Dinner with Schmuck) will be co-starring in Abby Elliott's new Fox comedy, Ned Fox Is My Manny. That news is very important because it means that Lucy has been released from her prior commitment of starring in FX's superhero television show, Powers.

Powers, a Sony TV production, is based on the long-running Image/Icon comic series by Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Avon Oeming is a police procedural with supernatural element. Jason Patric stars as Christian Walker, a cop who works in the Powers division of the police force and deals with crimes involving those endowed with special abilities. - THR

Lucy was set to play Detective Deena Pilgrim. Deena is pivotal role in the series since she is Detective Christian Walker's partner. Of course hearing of Lucy's departure has left fans wondering if the show has finally been cancelled. Since the last piece of news that came out on the series was that the pilot was up to snuff for FX and they had requested a retooling of the show.

Creator Brian Micheal Bendis quickly went to his Facebook page and put the rumors of the show's demise to rest.

Though lucy punch has moved on, Powers TV is not dead. If it was I would tell you honest & true. New scripts have been ordered for more episodes & there will be news in May about how we are going forward. The network is behind us all the way. its quite nice. its going to be a long haul but its all about quality. I desperately want the best show we can make.

Source: craveonline.com

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David Morrissey Will Play The Governor In Season 3 Of THE WALKING DEAD

2012-02-24T21:29:00Z

Deadline has revealed that David Morrissey has joined the cast of AMC's The Walking Dead as The Governor. He will be a series regular in the third season of the show which is expected to air later this year. Fans of the comic book will know that the character makes life very difficult for Rick Grimes and his fellow survivors, although it's unclear just how much the small screen adaptation of Robert Kirkman's series will delve into the source material. Either way, this is fantastic news for fans of the comic and show alike.

Source: Deadline

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More Amazing STAR TREK 2 Set Photos Leak Online

2012-02-24T21:04:00Z

Images Courtsy of Popsugar

Thanks to Twitter's The Black Widow for the heads up and hit the link at the bottom to check out more set photos from the movie.

Star Trek 2 will be released May 17, 2013. The film stars: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana, Benedict Cumberbatch, Peter Weller, Noel Clarke and Alice Eve

Source: Popsugar

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Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S may be heading to Rogers next week

2012-02-24T23:41:16Z

According to a tip received by MobileSyrup, Rogers customers will soon be seeing the SE Xperia Arc S on the shelves. The Arc S is a slight bump from the current Xperia Arc that Rogers now offers with it's 1.4 GHz Qualcomm processor, and it's pretty likely that this will be the last Sony Ericsson branded device to hit North America now that Sony is sole owner of the name and franchisee. The Arc S is a lovely handset, and with Sony releasing a beta version of Ice Cream Sandwich already, it's going to be a fun one to play with.

While it's always just a rumor until Rogers says differently, expect to see the Arc S next week with a possible price point of $30 (CAD) on a 3-year contract, or $475 (CAD) outright.

Source: MobileSyrup

Camera Focus, Invalid Password [From the Forums]

2012-02-24T23:36:07Z

This is it, folks! The countdown for Mobile World Congress kick-off has begun and you're gonna want to keep it locked to Android Central for all the latest news coming from Barcelona. We've got plenty of people on hand to take it all in and bring it all back to us when things get rolling but in the meantime, check out the Android Central forums for a lot more discussion.

Samsung Galaxy Nexus Forums - Almost did not get the Nexus
AT&T Galaxy Note Forums - Visual Voicemail for the Galaxy Note?
HTC Thunderbolt Forums - Camera won't focus, any ideas?
Droid Bionic Forums - Password invalid on built in Picasa account?
Droid RAZR MAXX Forums - Backup Assistant not working any more
Acer Iconia A100 Forums - Leaked Ice Cream Sandwich

If you're not already a member of the Android Central forums, you can register your account today.

Toshiba Excite X10 goes up for pre-order at Future Shop

2012-02-24T22:07:59Z

While we were at CES 2012 we got a look at the Toshiba Excite X10, the 10-inch tablet dubbed the thinnest ever. Since then, we've not heard a whole lot about the release of the device but it has no popped up on the Future Shop website for pre-order.

The Toshiba Excite X10 will come in 2 different variations, being a 16GB and 32GB version. The Excite X10 packs a dual-core 1.2 GHz OMAP 4430 processor, 1 GB of RAM and has a 1280 x 800 IPS touch display but you can check out the full specs here. Pre-order pricing is set at $550 for the 16GB with the 32GB costing only $50 more to bring to $600.

Source: Future Shop; Thanks, CrackTight!

Samsung Galaxy Note review (AT&T)

2012-02-24T22:02:42Z

In regards to this AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note review, we, the writers, editors and readers of Android Central, hereby stipulate the following:

It is a BIG smartphone. Anyone who says differently is just wrong.
Not everybody's sold on using a stylus; nor will everyone ever be - and that's OK.
If we never see another Galaxy Note press release, it'll be too soon. (Unless it's the one saying it's being updated to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich.)
Anyone who calls the Galaxy Note a "phablet" in an un-ironic manner should be unmercilessly ridiculed even more than they likely already are.

Seriously. It's BIG. We know it. We get it. Nothing we say will change that fact.

So what it is about the Galaxy Note that's made it so popular? Samsung's shipped more than 1 million so far. That's different than "sold," but a million is not a small number. And will that popularity translate over to the North American markets? Will Samsung's aggressive marketing win out? Will it just be too darn BIG for our American sensibilities?

It's a smartphone. A BIG smartphone. With a stylus. Not so hard to wrap your head around. But wrapping your hand around it? That's another matter.

A BIG, beautiful display. Fast processor. Great software tweaks. The optional stylus is nicely hidden away when not in use. Has access to AT&T's new 4G LTE network.	It's friggin' HUGE for a phone. Not quite comically so, but it's certainly a handful. Launches with Android 2.3.6 Gingerbread instead of the newer Ice Cream Sandwich. Does not have NFC.

If the 5.3-inch display isn't too BIG for you, and if you don't have to have NFC, and if you're willing to wait for an update to the latest version of Android, the Galaxy Note is a great OVERSIZED smartphone. That sounds more negative than it should. But save for the stylus and SUPER SIZE, at its core it's a very solid Samsung Android smartphone.

Inside this review	More info
Video walkthrough Hardware review The S Pen stylus Software review Camera tests	Galaxy Note specs How to root AT&T Galaxy Note forums

Youtube link for mobile viewing

Pop the Galaxy Note out of the standard (read: boring) orange and white AT&T packaging, and it doesn't look all that different from ... well, a normal phone. You've got the classic Samsung design. BIG display, rounded corners and capacitive buttons at the bottom. Sure, it feels a little bit BIGGER than our current daily driver, the Samsung Galaxy Nexus. But we already know that it's BIGGER. So that's not a huge surprise.

The heft of the Galaxy Note isn't a shock, either. The phone feels nicely balanced, and the weight seems to be proportional to the overall size of the phone. The damn thing's just WIDE and TALL. Otherwise, things are exactly as you'd expect. It looks like a smartphone. It feels like a smartphone...just BIGGER.

The display in and of itself is plenty impressive. And at 5.3 inches diagonally, it damn well better be. (Can you imagine the poop storm otherwise?) The Galaxy Note's got 800x1280 resolution. That's the same as the Galaxy Tab 10.1 -- a traditional tablet -- in about half the size, for nearly double the pixel density. Colors are vibrant and blacks are black.

There's s 2-megapixel front-facing camera just above the display and four capacitive buttons (menu-home-back-search) below the display. Samsung's always been great in the display department (it owns the AMOLED market, after all), and that continues with the Galaxy Note.

Like we said, the Galaxy Note has a traditional Samsung smartphone design. The power button is on the right-hand bezel and the volume rocker is on the right.

The top of the phone has the 3.5mm headphone jack and a secondary microphone.

The bottom bezel has the microUSB port and main microphone and the silo for the S Pen (hereafter referred to as the stylus, because that's what it is). The stylus fits neatly into the phone. You can feel that it's there if you rub your thumb along the edge of the phone, but it's just as easy to forget about it. That's good design.

Around back is the EXPANSIVE battery cover, speaker port, 8-megapixel camera and flash.

Pop off the battery cover and you've got the 2500 mAh battery, SIM card and microSD card slot. That's it. Looks pretty normal, except there's room for the parts to breathe. No weird mechanisms. No weird releases here, just plenty of SPACE.

The obvious question: How does it feel in the hand? BIG. IT's too big for proper one-handed use. But then again, that's something we've had to get used to with the 4.65-inch Galaxy Nexus. It's just taken BIG to a new level here.

The other dilemma is what to do with the Galaxy Note when you're not using it. It'll fit in your pocket, most likely, unless you're wearing Size 0 jeans. (In which case, more power to you and you've probably got a purse anyway.) Samsung's got a bunch of case accessories, too, so you can properly protect that gorgeous display.

It was a year ago when HTC introduced the Flyer tablet, which also sported a stylus. It wasn't quite dead on arrival, but it had one major flaw, on which the Galaxy Note has greatly improved. What's different? Two major things, really, neither of which really involves actually using the stylus.

First is that with the HTC Flyer, you weren't actually guaranteed to have the stylus when you bought the tablet. In many cases, it was sold separately. The other strike against the Flyer was that once you had the stylus, there was no elegant storage solution.

The Galaxy Note is meant to be drawn on and used to take notes. That's part of the reason it's so BIG. The stylus stays hidden in the body of the phone when not in use, and that's perhaps the No. 1 way Samsung's improved on the stylus experience. If you want to use the stylus, it's there. If you don't, it's not in the way but you won't accidentally leave it at home.

Rule No. 1 to get someone to use a weird feature, make sure it's available all the time. Samsung's accomplished this. with the integrated silo.

The stylus itself is a simple enough proposition. It's a slender pen-type thing with a tip and a single button. Touch it to the Galaxy Note's screen, and it does stuff. That's oversimplified -- you can do a bunch of stuff with it -- and it also ignores the fact that this isn't just a plastic pen that touches a display. The stylus is as important as the digitizer (the part that actually recognizes the input) in the display itself. The Galaxy Note's stylus and digitizer are made by Wacom, a long-recognized leader in digital input. So it comes as no surprise that the stylus works really well on the Galaxy Note. It's not perfect -- there's still a little bit of lag when you're writing notes or drawing. But for gestures, it works great.

Oh, and if you need a stylus with a little more girth to it, Samsung has an "S Pen Holder Kit" -- essentially a standard-size pen that the stylus slips into. It's actually pretty nice - with your thumb hitting right where the button is on the stylus. The catch is you have to make sure to line it up properly.

What (else) is under the hood

The internals of the Galaxy Note really aren't any different than that of a more traditional smartphone. The AT&T version has a dual-core 1.5 GHz processor from Qualcomm and 1GB of RAM (with about 731MB available for apps and what not). AT&T's Galaxy note also has a 4G LTE radio in addition to HSPA+ for data.

The Galaxy Note has a 2500 mAh battery. That's a little more than 50 percent more juice than you'll get in a traditional smartphone. (Though it's still a smaller capacity than that of the Motorola Droid RAZR MAXX, with its 3300 mAh battery.) And the kicker is that the Galaxy Note has a removable battery, so you can keep a spare handy if that's how you roll.

Battery life on the Galaxy Note is quite good. It's important to remember that it's got a LARGER-capacity battery than what you're probably used to, but that doesn't change the fact that even with a HUGE (and HIGH-resolution) display, the Galaxy Note not only rocks hard -- it rocks well into the night. Standby time was very impressive. If you forget to plug in the Note overnight, you're not going to wake up disappointed. (Or, at least it won't be the Note's fault.) LTE data, though, still chews through a battery at a pretty good clip.

By now you've noted that the Galaxy Note doesn't have Samsung's Exynos processor. If that sort of thing keeps you up at night, well, better reach for the warm milk. In our usage, the Galaxy Note performed just fine. The user interface was as smooth as it's ever been, and apps worked as expected.

Something that's not under the hood is near-field communication. That's the sexy little short-range radio that lets you do things like mobile payments and "bumping" to share contacts or webpages or whatever. There actually are some NFC files buried in the Galaxy Note's ROM, but that's not necessarily an indication of dormant hardware. We see phones share code all the time. And unlike AT&T's Galaxy S II, there's no mention of an NFC antenna baked into the battery casing. At least we're not being teased too badly.

Probably the strangest feeling you get about the Galaxy Note is that save for its SIZE, it acts just like most every other late-model Samsung smartphone we've had through these offices. OK, it acts a little better, thanks to the customizations for the stylus. But the point is you don't get a grossly different experience than what we've seen from Samsung in the past six months or so.

You've got seven home screens by default. They've got perpetual scrolling -- that its, when you get to the far left screen, you just keep going 'round the bend to the other side. (Or you can scroll to the right, if that's how you roll. Weirdo.) You can rearrange or remove home screens if you want.

You add and remove items to the home screens in the usual way -- long press on the home screen to see the options. Samsung's excellent tweaks via its TouchWiz UI shine through here.

AT&T's loaded up the Galaxy Note with a bunch of preloaded apps -- bloatware, if you will. Sure, there are the regulars like Amazon Kindle and Kik Lite, but you've also got a bevy of AT&T apps like myAT&T, AT&T Code Scanner, AT&T FamilyMap and AT&T Ready2Go. Some of those are just stub apps that take you to the Android Market, but they're no less annoying. (And unlike, say, Motorola's UI, you can't hide unwanted apps from the app drawer.)

As far as stylus-ready apps go -- they're all ready. Web browsing is especially fluid, though having the stylus in your hand makes pinch-to-zoom a little awkward.

Samsung's got its S Memo application preloaded. It's an easy way to take notes either with traditional handwriting, or you can use the stylus on a keyboard. Swype is preloaded, and it works great with the S Pen.

Fun fact: Hold the S Pen button and double-tap on the display to quick-launch S Memo Lite.

All in all, the software experience on the Galaxy Note is pretty much like that of any other recent Samsung phone; that's not a bad thing, either.

The Galaxy Note has a front-facing 2MP camera and a rear-facing 8MP camera. Samsung's done quite well with its camera optics and software over the past year or so, and the Galaxy Note is no exception. The camera app has plenty of options but remains easy to use. We'd love to see a quick-launch option from the lockscreen, though, like on other phones. A physical shutter button would hurt on a device this SIZE, but that's not a deal-breaker.

Warning: Images below open in a new window in full resolution

The front-facing camera

Youtube link for mobile viewing

The rear-facing camera

Youtube link for mobile viewing

Other odds and ends

A few things not to miss:

GPS locked on quickly and easily.
The speakerphone is LOUD. Not sure if that has anything to do with resonance and the SIZE of the phone, but we're pretending it does.
Phone calls sound good. Yeah, you look a little silly with this 5-inch thing held up to your face; either get over it or use a headset.
Get ready to be asked "What is that?" (Or, "Dear, God, what is that thing," depending on who's asking.) It's a conversation starter. (Though not necessarily a deal-closer.)
You've got three keyboards preloaded -- the stock Gingerbread keyboard, Samsung's keyboard, and Swype. You can also load your own.
The backlighting on the capacitive buttons (at least on our review unit) is a tad inconsistent. Not a big deal, but noticeable.
The Galaxy note has USB OTG (On-the-Go), which is a suppliment to the USB 2.0 specifications that uses a master/slave architecture to allow things like USB flash drives and computer mice to be attached to the USB port. Using a special microUSB to USB Standard-A adapter, you can plug a flash drive full of music or documents into your Note and access them the same way you would if there were on your SD card.

So what's the BIG deal?

I tried to fight it. The Galaxy Note is HUGE. It's got a stylus. Two things I've been fine without. And other than that, it's nothing we haven't really seen before. So why the hell can't I put it down? That's the $65,000 question.

At the end of the day, I think the Galaxy Note's appeal comes down to a few things:

The stylus is there when you need it, and invisible when you don't.
The stylus is pretty responsive. Not perfect, but good enough.
Using the stylus is mostly intuitive. That is, you can use it to unlock the phone. To swipe between home screens and active on-screen menus.
The apps that take advantage of the stylus do so pretty well.
The optional "S Pen Holder Kit" -- which turns the thin stylus into a more traditionally sized pen -- works very well. But guess what -- I managed to lose it. That's why being able to slip the stylus into the phone is important.

What's not the BIG deal?

The Galaxy Note is GIANORMOUS. It's THIN (and it damn well better be), but there's there's no denying that thins thing take some square footage. Like we said at the outset, you've got to get over that. Otherwise, why the hell did you buy it? That said, it's not all skittles and beer. A few things about the Galaxy Note that got our goat:

Once again, we've got a phone that's waiting on Ice Cream Sandwich. That's not to say the Galaxy Note isn't a perfectly capable Gingerbread device, but the principle of the thing is starting to wear thin.
For as intuitive as the stylus can be, it is frustrating that it doesn't work on the capacitive buttons. We get that we're talking about different technologies here. It's not just that the stylus interacts only with a capacitive display. Intuitively, you expect it to work with the capacitive buttons. Having to learn when to press the button on the stylus means you've lost that intuitiveness.
There's still a pretty limited number of apps that can really take advantage of the stylus. Or, rather, they use it as a stylus and not as the S Pen with extra functionality.

The wrap-up

And perhaps that's the real question; will developers create enough new apps to take advantage of this technology. We've seen other .. interesting ... design choices hit the streets in hopes that developers would follow, most notably with the Kyocera Echo and its dual screens and the Samsung Continuum with its secondary notification display. In both cases, the phones hit the streets with the promise that developers would work their magic and create new applications to justify the hardware.

In the cases of the Echo and the Continuum, that developer support never happened. We'd argue that neither device had the full weight of Samsung behind them, whereas the Galaxy Note obviously does. And it has the added advantage of also serving as a traditional smartphone, albeit an OVERSIZED smartphone. So even if additional developer support for the stylus never really takes off and we don't see more S Pen-optimized apps, the Galaxy Note is still a more-than-capable device.

At the end of the day, perhaps the Galaxy Note's SIZE really is the deciding factor and not the stylus. It's BIG, for sure, but the Galaxy Note is a great Android device regardless.

Facebook users spreading Android malware, here's how to stay safe

2012-02-24T21:52:04Z

Youtube link for mobile viewing

The Sophos security website has reported a new bit of Android malware, and this time it's being spread on Facebook. If you watch the video above, you'll see how an unknown person on Facebook send you a link, which you dutifully click (because we all click random Facebook links from people we don't know, right?) and it downloads a malware ridden apk file to your phone. It's a trick folks have to use now that Google has a Bouncer at large in the Market.

Unfortunately, the video stops there and leads the viewer to believe that it's another cause for panic and that we need to be up in arms over this. The reality is far different, and this is a classic case of sensationalism. What happens after the part where the video ends is really the important bit.

After the file downloads, you'll have to choose to install it. This also depends on you having disabled the security feature that prevents third party apps from being installed, and failing to read the permission warning that pops up when you verify that you want to install this random file. Of course, across the Internet you'll probably not hear this part, because Android and malware in the same title generates hits. We've seen it before.

So how do you stay safe? It's easy:

Don't interact with random people on Facebook
Don't click random URLs from random people
Don't install random apps that you didn't download

With Android, you get the freedom to install apps from anywhere, not just an official store where the folks that make the OS get 30 percent. You also get notified of what every app can do, and are forced to accept those terms. With that in mind, use just a little bit of common sense and you'll be fine.

Source: Sophos

Towards the Perfect Browser

2012-02-25T00:09:00Z

Chrome is clearly the most Apple-like Google product. Many of its features are copied by other browsers: from the simple interface to automatic updates, powerful JavaScript engines, unified address bar and search box, shorter release cycles and much more. When it was released, Chrome's team had a clear vision and no feature was there by accident. While there are many feature requests, Chrome's team only implements them if they make sense and fit the project.

In an interesting response to Kevin Fox's question about the updated "new tab" button, Chrome's Peter Kasting said that "good design involves hav[ing] a clear and consistent vision for the product which is then informed by user input, not enslaved to it. I think Chrome as a whole shows a remarkable design consistency and focus that Google products as a whole have not always had. I don't think that's an accident. It's a direct result of a process that uses a small group of consistent leaders, rather than endless end-user trials of everything, to make decisions."

Glen Murphy, Chrome's design lead, makes it more obvious: "We're trying to sculpt Chrome down to the perfect browser, and sometimes that means making painful consistency changes in aid of that long-term vision. While we want to minimize disruption for existing users, most people on earth haven't used Chrome, and we have to make the best and most awesome browser possible for them."

Chrome is the browser that has great default options, few settings and an interface that hasn't changed all that much over the years because it was carefully thought out and reduced to the essence. Just like the iPhone and its OS.

A Strange Google Mobile Experiment

2012-02-24T23:13:00Z

Sometimes it's difficult to understand Google. A few weeks after dropping the non-obvious navigation menu from the desktop UI, Google tests a new mobile interface that uses the same menu.

Cascading menus on a mobile device? They're too large and many Google services are missing (Reader, Blog Search, iGoogle, Product Search, Google Finance, Picasa Web, Google Talk, Google Tasks), not to mention that there's no room for displaying Google+ notifications.

This Week in the Future, February 20-24, 2012

2012-02-24T22:30:45Z

This Week in the Future, February 20-24, 2012 Baarbarian

Ah, a nice bucolic, all-American farm scene. Pigs with augmented-reality glasses browse a plate of fast food with prehistoric housecat-sized horses. A farmer shoots a drone. Dear all other countries: this is what it's really like here.

Want to win this patriotic Baarbarian illustration on a T-shirt? It's easy! The rules: Follow us on Twitter (we're @PopSci) and retweet our This Week in the Future tweet. One of those lucky retweeters will be chosen to receive a custom T-shirt with this week's Baarbarian illustration on it, thus making the winner the envy of their friends, coworkers and everyone else with eyes. (Those who would rather not leave things to chance and just pony up some cash for the t-shirt can do that here.) The stories pictured herein:

And don't forget to check out our other favorite stories of the week:

Full predictions for your 2012 All-Star weekend

2012-02-24T22:41:35Z

All-Star weekend is a long, drawn-out event full of contests and games both enjoyable and not, entertaining and dull, important and inconsequential. It's the NBA's version of Spring Break, complete with drunkenness and mistakes and all sorts of fun times.

It can be hard to keep track of it all. Luckily, I have made predictions for every single event that are sure to come true. Read them after the jump, and make sure to check back throughout the weekend to read BDL's coverage and see if I was right.

FRIDAY

7 p.m. ET: Sprint NBA All-Star Celebrity Game

- Appearing in his sixth-consecutive Celebrity Game, Common announces at halftime that he is retiring. Mario Lopez will cover the story as if it were a presidential debate.

- Drew and Jonathan Scott are named co-MVPs, marking the first time that any basketball fan learns that "Property Brothers" is a television show.

9 p.m. ET: BBVA Rising Stars Challenge

- John Wall, upset at being picked so late in TNT's draft, steals the ball from teammate Kyrie Irving at every opportunity.

- Ricky Rubio spends all 24 of his minutes trying to execute the perfect alley-oop with his feet. On the 47th try, he finally succeeds.

- DeMarcus Cousins collects two technical fouls in the second quarter for arguing with officials and is thrown out of the game.

- The game ends in a tie. Instead of playing overtime, Charles Barkley and Shaquille O'Neal will decide the winner by engaging in formal debate about the relative merits of the video games "Shut Up and Jam" and "Shaq Fu."

- Jeremy Lin wins MVP after finishing with four points and three assists.

SATURDAY

7:30 p.m. ET All-Star Saturday Night

1. Haier Shooting Stars

- Announcer Reggie Miller takes the event seriously, even going so far as to analyze Steve Smith's form on half-court shots.

- A thrillingly close contest between Team New York and Team Texas is marred by scandal when Texas legend Kenny Smith shoves New York WNBA representative Cappie Pondexter, believing that her corner three shouldn't count because her foot was over the line.

2. Taco Bell Skills Challenge

- Taking the event name literally, Rajon Rondo begins his run by successfully assembling a Cheesy Gordita Crunch in 45 seconds.

- Special prediction by BDL's Dan Devine: John Wall, angered at his selection ranking in the Rising Stars Challenge, boycotts the Skills Challenge and hands the reins to teammate JaVale McGee. He wins by knocking over every obstacle and Napoleon Dynamiting his way through the challenge in record time.

3. Foot Locker Three-Point Contest

- I pick up my dinner at a local chicken establishment, because shooting contests are really boring.

4. Sprite Slam Dunk

- Chase Budinger pays homage to his volleyball background by wearing very tight spandex shorts, putting bows in his hair, and spiking the ball into the net.

- Jeremy Evans completes the coolest dunks of the competition, but TNT forgets to air them live because everyone thought he was a random guy who wandered out onto the court.

- Derrick Williams makes every dunk a basic alley-oop from Ricky Rubio in the hope that voters will think Rubio is the real contestant.

- Paul George wins after dunking on teammate Roy Hibbert and the complete cast of NBC's "Parks and Recreation."

SUNDAY

5 p.m. ET: Sprint Pregame Concert

- Kayla Brianna steals the show when her father, Kenny Smith, performs a hip-hop verse about the time he went to Arby's with Otis Thorpe.

- A cappella sensation Pentatonix is booed off the stage for performing "a genre of music even old people don't like."

7 p.m. ET: All-Star Game presented by Kia Motors

- In deference to corporate sponsor Kia, Blake Griffin is replaced in the West starting lineup by the all-new Optima.

- Kevin Love has trouble adjusting to a more relaxed style of play and only grabs 10 rebounds in his 15 minutes of playing time.

- Kobe Bryant passes to Andrew Bynum in the post four times more than in any Lakers game this season, because the All-Star game is all about cutting loose and making crazy plays.

- Scott Brooks leaves the West bench in the middle of the second quarter so he can catch the Oscars telecast in its entirety.

- Derrick Rose plays the third quarter with a package of Starburst in his left hand.

- Tom Thibodeau plays Luol Deng for 40 minutes because he likes his defensive intensity.

- LeBron James scores 12 points in the fourth quarter, but receives no credit for it because real winners perform in the playoffs, not the All-Star game, you big loser crybaby.

- Dwight Howard wins the MVP and tells the Orlando fans that it's where he wants to play for the rest of his career, unless another opportunity comes along, in which case he'll totally think about that opportunity, and oh yeah, here's his list of preferred destinations, but that's totally not a trade demand.

ASUS Transformer Prime gets its third OTA this month

2012-02-24T21:49:50Z

The ASUS Transformer Prime is getting it's third OTA update in a month today, with reports of a large-scale rollout happening as we speak. This update puts the build number at 9.4.2.15, and is reported to address the widespread random reboot issues folks have been seeing since the last update a few weeks ago. There's likely other changes, but ASUS hasn't released a change log just yet.

What we do know, and this is all based on user reports, is that this update seems to run poorly the first few minutes after a reboot, so give it some time to settle after you apply the OTA. You can check for the update yourself by going into the settings and forcing the check in the About Tablet screen. We'll keep our eyes open for an official change log, and update when it appears. In the meantime, hit the forums and join the discussion!

Thanks everyone who sent this in!

skylerjcollins.com - Followed Sites: Misc.

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Samsung Galaxy Note review (AT&T)

Inside this review

More info

What (else) is under the hood

The front-facing camera

The rear-facing camera

Other odds and ends

So what's the BIG deal?

What's not the BIG deal?

The wrap-up

Facebook users spreading Android malware, here's how to stay safe

Towards the Perfect Browser

A Strange Google Mobile Experiment

This Week in the Future, February 20-24, 2012

Full predictions for your 2012 All-Star weekend

ASUS Transformer Prime gets its third OTA this month