Care about custom ROMs on Android? Avoid Samsung

Android users often cite customization as one of the primary attributes for going with Google’s OS, rather than Apple’s iOS or indeed Windows Phone. One of the best ways for tech enthusiasts for getting the latest Android OS on their smartphones among other things) is to get custom ROMs available by reputed community developers on places such as xda-developers, instead of waiting for months to get official updates from the smartphone makers.

When asked about the delay in getting new custom ROMs for some of the newer Samsung smartphones, CyanogenMod developer ‘codeworkx’ said, “Samsung doesn’t provide proper sources or documentation for their own platform. And if they do after it’s much to late, it’s outdated and incompatible.”

In comparison both Qualcomm and Texas Instruments provide great support for their chips. Giving an example of the Samsung Galaxy SII I9100 and I9100G models, the former uses Samsung’s Exynos 4 processor, while the latter uses TI OMAP4. In this case when Android Jelly Bean was ported over to the TI equipped model (I9100G), it ran smoothly, while the Samsung Exynos equipped model (I9100) ran it very buggy.

In the end the developer says, “Don’t buy exynos phones.” The current Samsung Galaxy SIII runs on the Exynos 4 processor, however, Samsung do seem to be on top of things by providing the Jelly Bean update within the next few weeks. How this will translate to Android v4.2 (Key Lime Pie) being ported over to Galaxy SIII using custom ROMs is anybody’s guess.

Pranksters glue iPhone 5 to the ground

The world is scrambling to get an iPhone 5, with long lines being the norm on almost every city where the phone has gone on sale.

So a group of pranksters from iPhone5.nl decided to have little fun with this insatiable hunger for Apple’s newest toy. They grabbed a brand new iPhone 5 – and glued it to the street. Yes, you read that correctly…with the help of some industrial-strength glue, they fixed the phone to the floor and watched people helplessly try to pry it off. While some people realized it was a prank, others tried their level best to kick the phone free – didn’t anyone bring a crowbar?

Twitter announces – Users will be able to download their tweets by year’s end

During a keynote conversation at the Online News Association conference in San Francisco, Twitter CEO Dick Costolo confirmed that users will be able to download their entire archive of tweets by year’s end.

“The caveat is that this is the CEO saying this,” Costolo joked, “not the engineer who’s building this…. [But it's] a priority we absolutely want to have out by the end of the year.”

Being able to download their entire tweet history has been one of the most asked for features by Twitter users. The company has never offered this function before and after a set time tweets vanished into the far beyond never to be seen again. This latest announcement confirms that if all goes according to plan, by the end of the year all those tweets will return back into the fold.

This piece of good news for fans comes at a time when Twitter is facing backlash for further restrictions on companies utilizing its APIs. Twitter’s latest tactics are seen as a slap in the face of apps that contributed to making Twitter as popular as it is today.  Addressing this, Costolo stated that the company’s recent moves are all about expanding the value of the service for its 140 million users.

“We have tens of thousands of developers around the world who leverage [our] API and build successful businesses with it,” he said. “We are going to build a platform that enables third-party developers to add value to Twitter and build into Twitter and get all [kinds of] additional value from our distribution engine.”

Motorola takes a shot at Apple maps

After Samsung, it’s Motorola that’s using an ad to poke fun at Apple, more specifically Apple maps. The ad is seen on Motorola’s Google+ page and compares the iOS map app with Motorola’s DROID RAZR M running Google Maps.

The post begins with “Looking for 315 E 15th in Manhattan? Google Maps on DROID RAZR M will get you there & not #iLost in Brooklyn”, and the ad carries the tagline, “The real world that’s fit for your hand”.

Motorola’s ad rides on the back of the fierce criticism that Apple maps have attracted in releasing what seems to be an unfinished app that doesn’t quite get locations right, often with hilarious results.  It may also be remembered that Google owns Motorola now and Apple got rid of Google Maps…yes, the connection is easy to make.

Motorola also took the action to Twitter promoting the iLost hashtag.

Looking for 315 E 15th in Manhattan? Google Maps on DROID RAZR M will get you there & not #iLost in Brooklyn. moto.ly/location

— Motorola Mobility (@Motorola) September 22, 2012

 

Who will enter the fray next? Sit back and be amused by the ad slinging, it doesn’t matter if you’ve never heard of the DROID RAZR M before.

iPhone 5 body easily chipped; Grey market buyers beware

As with any iPhone release, complaints usually start flooding in within days of some issue or the other. With the iPhone 5 we have easily chipped or scratched anodized aluminum bodies.

To make the iPhone 5 even slimmer than the previous versions, Apple decided to opt out of the glass back (found on the iPhone 4 and 4S) and go instead with a metal rear end made with an anodized aluminum finish. Apparently the new rear surface is easily scratched, and if you have keys in the same pocket as your shiny new iPhone 5, then be prepared to see a lot of scratches.

Source: Overclockers UK

Of course, this issue can be easily taken care of with a case, but what about issues straight from the factory? What if you opened your iPhone 5 box all excited, only to see that the chamfered edges are already chipped, revealing the shiny aluminum beneath? While Apple will replace your damaged iPhone 5 from an official retailer, grey market importers in the UAE will not offer replacements because of the high import costs as well as the ridiculous pricing currently going around.

Source: MacRumors

Apart from getting full support via a nanoSIM from Etisalat & du, these chipping issues seem to be another reason to wait for the official iPhone 5 release and not splurge unnecessarily on grey market imports.