Samsung tweet spills beans on BBM for Android launch this Friday

BlackBerry’s cross-platform move for its messaging service looks set to kick off on Friday with the release of its Android client, if a tweet from Samsung Mobile's Nigerian division is to be believed. The chatty community manager for the official account claimed his company had secured a three-month exclusivity period on the app, though Samsung has refused to comment further and BlackBerry distanced itself from such arrangement.

In an emailed statement addressing the claims, BBM Communications Director Victoria Berry told CrackBerry that “no one will have an exclusive on offering BBM.” She didn't comment on the app's supposed Friday launch apart from saying that it will be available to both Android and iPhone users across the globe soon.

The tweet might amount to nothing more than a miscommunication error; after all, the two companies are already in a marketing partnership across Africa that will see BBM form part of the Messaging Hub that comes preinstalled on all Samsung Android devices. That deal is not an exclusive arrangement.

It won’t be long before we find out if BlackBerry makes good on its ‘summer’ launch window. Recent leaks suggest BBM has been in private beta for over a month, while user guides for both the iOS and Android clients accidentally posted on the company’s website suggest the official launch is not far off.

During May's announcement CEO Thorsten Heins said that the service would be free and compatible with iOS 6 and Android Ice Cream Sandwich or later. Initially BBM will be available as a text-only service, with extra features such as voice and screen sharing slowly added to these apps later on.

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Google knows every single Android user's WiFi password

New privacy issues have come to light surrounding Google's Android mobile OS. Experts on the matter are claiming that back up tools in the operating system make it so that a copy of every person's WiFi password (or the password of other networks you log onto) is being stored on Google's servers. Unfortunately, this might mean that Google could be legally forced to hand over the data at the government's request for one reason or another.

In Android 4.2, the back up service under Settings, lists WiFi passwords as part of the data that will be included, where as earlier versions of the OS did not specifically mention that. Although the feature can be turned off, users lose other, helpful functionality like bookmarks etc.

The main problem here is beyond the fact that Google is storing the passwords. The company is storing them in such a way that means it can read the passwords if it wants to. This is clear to see by the way new Android devices can suck in old passwords, login data and device settings from Google servers, once you have setup your Gmail address and new password.

Obviously, this functionality has its up sides, we can easily manage passwords for several devices and services this way, but it certainly leaves the networks we use in a much less secure state than we may have originally thought. Although this isn't shocking in the least, it is surprising that Google would leave these passwords in a readable form as well as opening itself up for an almost guaranteed public back lash if the government ever does strong arm them for that data.

Before sale to Microsoft, Nokia was testing Android on Lumia phones

While Nokia has made a name for itself with its wide range of Lumia smartphones running Windows Phone, a report from The New York Times has revealed that Nokia was interested in Android. "Well before" discussions between Microsoft and Nokia lead to the former company buying the latter, Nokia was reportedly testing Android on their Lumia smartphones, having managed to get it running on prototype devices.

Microsoft apparently knew about Nokia's testing of Android, although it didn't form any part of discussions between the companies during the acquisition stage. Nokia had arranged a deal with Microsoft in 2011 to solely produce Windows Phones, although the deal expired in 2014, meaning Android Lumia phones might have made it to the market in under a year's time.

If Nokia had produced a Lumia-like device running Android, with features we've come to love such as 41-megapixel PureView cameras, it might have been the death of Windows Phone. Nokia makes almost all the Windows Phone devices currently available, and commands an impressive 87% share of the Windows Phone market; without them, Microsoft's small share of smartphone sales would begin to dwindle.

Nokia has had to face a large amount of criticism for choosing Windows Phone over Android. The Finnish company had a 30% of the smartphone market in 2010, before that dropped away to the 3% it is now. Smartphone buyers have also often wished that Lumia phones would run Android rather than Windows Phone, citing the weak ecosystem as a reason against purchasing their devices.

Whether or not a switch to Android would have considerably boosted Lumia sales will forever remain unknown, with the company set to produce Windows Phones from here on out.

Google blocks local video playback with Chromecast software update

Google hasn't made any clear indication on whether or not it will eventually allow users to stream local videos through Chromecast. At this point we know the company doesn't want third party app developers adding this functionality, likely due to legal reasons and the negative effect it could present with prospective future content partnerships.

Root Samsung Galaxy Pocket S5300 with Simple Steps

Samsung Galaxy Pocket S5300 is a new Android Smart phone. This phone is considered as an entry level phone but the features that it shows are truly the one that would not make you believe that it’s an entry level phone. Just like Galaxy Mini, Samsung Galaxy Pocket created a fan base or user base for itself. In fact, in the Android market, this phone is considered as even below the Galaxy Mini 2. But that should not make you feel down. Good thing is, even though it bears an affordable price tag, it is loaded with some really good features and specs. Be it the design or the look, it truly is an attractive Android handset.

Just think, how thrilling it would be, if you get a chance to have an open operating system for this. Yes, you can root Samsung Galaxy Pocket S5300 and this would surely open up much more benefits. Here are some of the advantages of rooting an Android phone that will help newbie to take the decision as to whether it would be apt to root Galaxy Pocket or not.

Benefits of rooting Samsung Galaxy Pocket

After you root this phone you will gain access to the internal file system and thus making potent changes in them or accessing them will be very much possible.

Yes, for all those who love speeding up the operating system, rooting the phone brings in benefit by way of performance and speed enhancement.

Sometimes, you may feel quite irritated with the unwanted default apps which the manufacturers packs in without an uninstall button. But since it is something that the administrator has provided you, nothing can be done. But rooting helps you in removing the unwanted default apps and that too with a very simple method.

Since rooting makes the Android free, you can now update the phone with upgrades and custom ROMs. You don’t need the permission of the manufacturer for this.

New kernel installation can also be taken up and this would surely thrill you up.

You can enhance the visual experience of the phone after rooting.

Reports say it helps in reducing the battery usage of Android phones.

There are many such apps that work on rooted phones only. Yes, after rooting the device, you can seek access to such apps.

Now, since you are aware of the facts of rooting here is the procedure given to root Samsung Galaxy Pocket S5300. But before that, please go through the disclaimer.

Disclaimer: Rooting Galaxy Pocket is risky by way of loss of warranty post rooting and also the small risk of data loss or phone damage. You should be aware of such risks which are quite common with rooting. Kindly note that, you must take up this procedure at your own risk. We shall not be responsible for anything that may go wrong with your handset.

Rooting Galaxy S5300

It is recommended that before you actually begin rooting the android, you must charge your phone to the extent of 60-80 percent. If you can make the battery fully charged, then there is nothing better than that.

Take back up of the phone data, contacts, settings etc.

Now download this link: update.zip

Copy this zip file to SDcard

Switch off galaxy pocket

Get into the recovery mode. You can do this by pressing these three buttons together: volume up + home + power.

Choose apply update from sd card.

You can use volume and home button for navigation.

Choose update.zip now.

Go back to the main menu and choose reboot now.

This will root your Samsung Galaxy Pocket.

Note: For unrooting download unroot.zip and install via recovery mode. 

Congrats, you are done.

You will now be able to get access to the following:

Super User App: Super User App or SU gets installed on an automatic basis as soon as the phone is rooted. In fact, when you wish to check out that the rooting procedure was successful or not, the same can be checked by checking the SU. This is the main app that helps in managing the permission to other apps.

Titanium Backup: This app helps in taking a back up of the applications as well as the data of the same.

Root Explorer: With root explorer app, you can make changes in the internal files of the operating system.

App Manager: This is also an important utility for back up of applications and the data therein. It has some amazing features that will surely come up to your resort.

ROM Manager: You will have to double-check this, that post rooting whether your android phone is supporting this app or not. This is because some phones do not support it. But in the cases where it does, this installation helps in management of the custom ROMs.

SETCPU: This app should accompany some important kernels without which this app does not work. It helps in overclocking the phone.

Barnacle Wi-Fi tether: This app helps in sharing the internet connection.

Update: If you are interested in installing Jelly Bean’s Google Now on Galaxy Pocket then visit this:http://www.androidust.com/install-google-now-on-samsung-galaxy-pocket-with-ics/

Nuance brings Siri-like features to Android and iOS apps with Nina

Nuance, the company behind Dragon Naturally Speaking voice recognition products and Apple’s Siri voice assistant, has released a software developer’s kit and a set of APIs that enterprise clients can use to integrate voice controls into their Android and iOS apps. The new platform, known as Nina, differs from Siri since Cupertino’s voice assistant doesn’t currently work inside non-Apple applications.

All Things D recently had some hands-on time with Nina. The publication described the technology as bringing together what Nuance does best: speech recognition, text-to-speech, natural language understanding and voice-ID biometric technology. The service is designed with banks, insurance companies and other similar customer service businesses in mind where communication with the customer is key.

The Verge also spent some time with Nina, ultimately concluding that it’s Siri for apps, which isn’t exactly a bad thing. The banking app they took for a text drive reportedly lived up to Nuance’s reputation in form and function. Furthermore, they noted that Nina’s voice sounds a lot like Siri’s but don’t expect Apple to head to the court room since the two products are distinctly different in their application.

Nuance is making the SDK and APIs available to developers in the US, the UK and Australia. One of the first companies to take the technology for a spin is USAA, a financial services provider that primarily works with members of the US military and their families. USAA will be running a pilot program set to start later this month before introducing a public version early next year.

Nvidia embraces Miracast Wi-Fi display technology with Tegra 3

Nvidia has announced its backing of the Wi-Fi Alliance's new wireless display technology. Unveiled in May, Miracast is a new certification that will offer Wi-Fi devices a standard by which to stream content to compatible screens over a wireless network connection -- not unlike existing proprietary solutions such as Apple's AirPlay or Intel's WiDi.

Although open standards like DLNA are available, Nvidia says they're plagued with interoperability issues that have limited their adoption. For that reason, the company says it's not just supporting Miracast, but it's embracing the standard with its latest Tegra SoC, which is optimized to use the spec. As explained in a whitepaper released yesterday:

"The Tegra optimized Miracast solution is comprised of two major components -- the multimedia (video/audio) processing block and the industry compliant wireless display networking stack. The multimedia processing block takes advantage of Tegra’s multi-core graphics engine and dedicated hardware video/audio codecs to accelerate the decoding of video content, render graphics surfaces and perform the final compositing operations before encoding into a H.264 bit stream to be wirelessly transmitted."

Additionally, the chip's multimedia architecture can decide how to best allocate system resources based on the type of content being transmitted. For instance, if it detects an HD video or 3D game, it'll make tweaks to reduce latency. Nvidia doesn't mention precisely how much latency is involved, but there's relatively little information available about Miracast in general and that will likely remain true until it launches in August.

The latency seems fine in that video and the company didn't hesitate to tout Miracast's potential for gaming, noting that Tegra's snappy CPU and GPU can be used with the wireless technology to play mobile games on a big screen. "We're not just talking about flinging Angry Birds," Nvidia wrote, "but racing a super-charged jet ski in the game Riptide THD and playing heart-pounding first-person shooter games like Shadowgun THD."

The company said it's working with OEM partners (no names were mentioned) and Miracast receiver vendors to bring the technology to market and promised more details once the spec is ratified by the Wi-Fi Alliance.

Galaxy Note II benchmark shows 1.6GHz quad-core Exynos CPU

Rumors surfaced last month that Samsung would be releasing an update to the Galaxy Note that launched earlier this year. The phone is said to have a massive 5.5-inch display and a quad-core processor among other features. We now know that the latter bit of information is likely accurate thanks to recent test results uploaded to GLBenchmark.

Specifically, the handset will have a quad-core Exynos processor clocked at 1.6GHz, or 200MHz higher than the chip found in the recently released Galaxy S III. The dual-core Galaxy S II was clocked at 1.2GHz while the original Galaxy Note has a dual-core processor ticking along at1.4GHz.

The benchmark results are a little higher than what the Galaxy S III is capable of according to SlashGear. We also know that the screen resolution on the tested device was 1,280 x 720, good for a 16:9 aspect ratio instead of the 16:10 found on the original. This lends some credit to earlier rumors about the screen being a little larger but the phone maintaining roughly the same chassis size.

The phone also appears to be running Android Jelly Bean, likely shipping as the native OS. It would seem a bit foolish at this point to launch what could be a flagship handset with yesterday’s operating system.

We still expect Samsung to introduce the handset on August 30, just one day before Germany’s IFA 2012 trade show begins. It seems that Samsung is keen on launching the smartphone before Apple makes the new iPhone available.

First malware ever found in iOS App Store malicious app removed

For the first time, according to Kaspersky Labs, security researchers have unearthed what appears to be malware on the Apple App Store. "Find and Call", a Russian-language app which touted contact list simplification, was discovered to be a little toointerested in its users' contact lists. Security experts discovered that Find and Call would upload the victim's entire address book and GPS coordinates to a remote server, and then proceed to spam all of their contacts.

Apple quickly pulled the app, citing guidelines which prohibit app makers from uploading contacts to remote servers. However, this is not the first time an app from the App Store has quietly stolen address books from unsuspecting iPhone and iPad users.

Path, a popular social photo-taking app, was busted last year by an observant developer who noticed the app was sending more data to third-party servers than it should have. It was discovered that Path was actually storing contact lists on remote servers in order to suggest friends its users.

While Path responded appropriately and their intentions seemed mostly benevolent, users had no idea this was occurring. Following the discovery, Path modified their app to warn users of the behavior. Apple also responded by updating its developer guidelines; however, Apple has since been criticized for not uniformly enforcing some of those rules.

Love it or hate it, Apple's walled garden has seemingly had a positive effect on minimizing malware -- at least, so far. On the other hand, the Android Market (now known as Google Play) has been portrayed as something very different. Reports of malware on Google Play have been frequent and plenty, but Google has taken steps this year to clean up their app store.

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Atrix HD accidentally posted early on Motorola's website

A blunder by Motorola has revealed detailed information and product photos of the upcoming Atrix HD smartphone. Astute observers noticed the phone on Motorola’s website, although the product page has since been pulled from the site. Of course, the specifications and pics were all copied before anyone at Motorola noticed the error.





According to the product page, the Atrix HD packs a 4.5-inch HD display with ColorBoost and onscreen navigation keys, a dual-core 1.5GHz processor, 1GB of system memory, 8GB of internal storage with up to 32GB via expandable storage using a microSD card and an 8MP rear camera with 1.3MP front cam. The rear camera is capable of recording 1080p video at 30 frames per second.

The phone will ship with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, a 1780mAh battery and is said to measure 8.4mm thick. A 4G LTE radio will ensure a high-speed data connection. The rear casing is constructed of DuPont Kevlar fiber to increase rigidity and strength while the 4.5-inch screen is coated with Corning Gorilla Glass.

The original Atrix 4G was introduced at the 2011 CES and made available in the first quarter. The handset featured a dual-core Tegra 2 processor but it was most famous for its docking ability. The Atrix could essentially be turned into a computer of sorts using what most considered an overpriced notebook-sized expansion dock.

Consumers can expect to see the Atrix HD launch on AT&T in the US and possibly other carriers, although pricing and a release date were not mentioned.

Google: Android 4.0 on 11% of devices, Gingerbread still on top

Google has updated its Android Developer site with data about the percentage of active devices running a given version of its mobile operating system. The good news is that Ice Cream Sandwich is finally picking up some speed, with its share of active Android devices jumping 3.8% over the last month. The bad news is that more than eight months since its release that’s still just 10.9% of all Android devices.

The gain comes as device manufacturers continue to roll out their ICS updates and flagship Android 4.0 devices including HTC’s One X and Samsung’s Galaxy S III launch worldwide.

Android 2.3 “Gingerbread” remains the single most-popular Android version at 63.6%, followed by Android 2.2 “Froyo” with 17.3%. Their installed base is slowly decreasing, dropping 1-2 percentage points over the month, but even today low-end devices are still being shipped and used with Gingerbread.

The data is based on the number of Android devices that have accessed Google Play within a 14-day period ending July 2nd and is provided to developers so they can decide how to prioritize the development of their applications’ features for the devices currently in the hands of users.

With carriers and OEMs taking this long to get Ice Cream Sandwich on a tenth of Android devices in the market, things are not looking too promising for the newly announced Jelly Bean. Google hopes to improve roll out times with the release of a Platform Developer Kit (PDK) for Android device partners, but only said the Nexus S, Galaxy Nexus, and Motorola Xoom will be getting the update in July. Beyond that, manufacturers including Acer, Asus, and HTC remain tight-lipped about their Android 4.1 update plans.

Nokia says Nexus 7 tablet infringes on their patents

Google announced the long-rumored Nexus 7 tablet during their I/O Conference last week. The device won’t be available until mid-July but that isn’t stopping Nokia from claiming the slate infringes on some of their patents with regards to Wi-Fi technology.

The Inquirer believes that the patents in question have to do with the IEEE 802.11 Wi-Fi standard. In a message to the publication, a Nokia spokesperson said they have more than 40 licensees under their standards essential patent portfolio which includes most mobile phone device makers. The problem is that neither Google nor Asus are licensed under this patent portfolio. The spokesperson said that companies who have not licensed up should simply approach them and sign up for licensing rights.

Google’s $199 tablet features a 7-inch backlit IPS display operating at 1,280 x 800 and is powered by a quad-core Tegra 3 processor with 12 GPU cores. 1GB of RAM comes standard while users can choose between 8GB or 16GB of onboard storage. The device will ship with Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, the latest Google OS revision highlighted by Project Butter. This initiative is said to improve overall system performance and reduce lag at virtually every avenue.

It is believed that Nokia will simply seek to have either Google or Asus sign up for licensing rather than try to impose legal injunctions against the tablet. For their part, Asus has refused to comment on the matter for now. No word yet on Google’s response.

Nokia says Nexus 7 tablet infringes on their patents

Google announced the long-rumored Nexus 7 tablet during their I/O Conference last week. The device won’t be available until mid-July but that isn’t stopping Nokia from claiming the slate infringes on some of their patents with regards to Wi-Fi technology.

The Inquirer believes that the patents in question have to do with the IEEE 802.11 Wi-Fi standard. In a message to the publication, a Nokia spokesperson said they have more than 40 licensees under their standards essential patent portfolio which includes most mobile phone device makers. The problem is that neither Google nor Asus are licensed under this patent portfolio. The spokesperson said that companies who have not licensed up should simply approach them and sign up for licensing rights.

Google’s $199 tablet features a 7-inch backlit IPS display operating at 1,280 x 800 and is powered by a quad-core Tegra 3 processor with 12 GPU cores. 1GB of RAM comes standard while users can choose between 8GB or 16GB of onboard storage. The device will ship with Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, the latest Google OS revision highlighted by Project Butter. This initiative is said to improve overall system performance and reduce lag at virtually every avenue.

It is believed that Nokia will simply seek to have either Google or Asus sign up for licensing rather than try to impose legal injunctions against the tablet. For their part, Asus has refused to comment on the matter for now. No word yet on Google’s response.

Sony launches Google TV powered set-top box, fails to impress

First unveiled at CES 2012, Sony has now officially announced the NSZ-GS7, the company’s first ever Google TV powered set-top box. For Google TV in general this is an important launch after experiencing a rocky first year, to put it mildly, with founding partner Logitech abandoning the platform altogether and Google Chairman Eric Schmidt’s unfulfilled promises that the system would ship with "most TVs" by this summer.

Sony’s Google TV powered set-top box is already up for pre-order priced at $200 and will be available in the US and UK, with a ship date of July 9 followed by in-store availability on July 22. The NSZ-GS7 should also launch in Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Mexico and Netherlands later this year.

The device itself has a clean design that will blend with the rest of your entertainment gear. In terms of ports and connectivity you get HDMI in and out, built-in Wi-Fi, digital optical out for audio, an IR blaster, Ethernet, two USB, and an AC connection for the power cable, which thankfully doesn't need a bulky power brick.

Inside is a dual-core Marvell chip, 8GB of built-in storage, and Android 3.2 Honeycomb running the show. The unit ships with a double-sided remote, featuring a touch pad on one side and full keyboard on the other.

Unfortunately, at least looking at early reviews, it doesn’t seem that Google will be conquering people’s living rooms any time soon. Most agree that the concept behind Google TV is compelling and the hardware in question — for the most part — lives up to Sony’s quality standards. But the Google TV software still doesn’t feel polished enough. In Cnet’s words, “It's buggy, true DVR integration really only works for Dish Network subscribers, and it still lacks dedicated apps for services like Hulu Plus, Amazon Instant, and MLB.TV.”

Reviewers also took issue with the remote, which is a step up from the one that shipped with the Logitech Revue, but is still overly complicated, more than any other home theater remote.

Pantech's Element is a waterproof 8-inch Android tablet, hands-on

We got some hands-on time with the just-announced Pantech Elementtablet for AT&T here at CES 2012. The Element is a unique Android tablet that features an 8-inch display and waterproof construction.

Oh, where to start. There are a lot of cool, different things to like about the Pantech Element. For starters, I really like the size and more square'ish aspect ratio of the 8-inch, 1024 x 768 pixel touchscreen display. It offers an obviously larger amount of screen real estate than competing 7-inch tablets, but is still worlds easier to handle than the 10-inch monsters we see all the time. I like that.

I also like the fact that this low-cost, LTE tablet comes with a solid performing dual-core, 1.5GHz processor. In my quick test runs on the tablet, everything performed very smoothly. I didn't have access to data, though, so I can't say how well it performs when it comes to download speeds. I can say that you can spill your drink on it with no ill effects, though, since it is fully water-proof for up to 30 minutes in 3 feet of water. I don't really see people taking tablets out in the rain often, but it's nice to know that it's perfectly safe on your desk. Coffee be damned.

AT&T will offer the Pantech Element on January 22 for $299 with a new two-year data plan commitment. For a limited time, buyers can get the Element along with the Pantech Burst smartphone in a bundle for $249.99.

Skype offers free Wi-Fi in airports, but not for Android

In a display of Skype's holiday spirit, the company will be gifting travelers with one hour of free Wi-Fi access at over 50 major airports across the United States. The offer will begin on Dec 21 and last until Dec 27.

In order to take advantage of this offer, travelers must have a device capable of utilizing Skype Wi-Fi, a protocol found in newer versions of Skype that is being used to authenticate against hotspots around the country, not just at airports. To make sure you can enjoy free Wi-Fi this holiday season, simply install the latest version of Skype on your Windows, Mac OS or iPhone OS device.

Did you notice that Android was missing from that list? While this is a great offer for most devices, it looks as though Android users will be left out in the cold. Although Skype exists for Android, the app currently found in the Android Market is said to not support Skype Wi-Fi. That means a plethora of phones are tablets will not be able to nab free Wi-Fi at airports this year. The Skype Blog goes out of its way to explicitly name Windows, Mac OS and iOS devices without mentioning Android anywhere. Combine this with the fact a new version of the Android Skype app was released about a week ago and it quickly sounds like Android support will not be added any time soon.

Now owned by Microsoft, Skype has some deep pockets to reach into. This campaign sounds like a very effective way to get people installing the software on their portable devices although millions of Android users will be left disappointed.

Google rolled out a similar but more exhaustive campaign last year, offering free wireless Internet at participating airlines and on planes (where applicable). The offer lasted for about six weeks and hit about the same number of locations.

BT sues Google over six key Android patent infringements

This year has been without a doubt the year of lawsuits, with many high profile companies battling it out in courtrooms throughout the world over intellectual property and patent disputes. Barely a day goes by without Apple or Samsung hitting the headlines, and Google has found itself at the receiving end of numerous patent infringement claims regarding its mobile OS. Microsoft has been busy as well, penning multiple royalty agreements with various Android handset manufacturers, despite insiders questioning the validity of the claimed IP violations.

Now British Telecom, a UK-based telecommunications company has taken aim at Android with a lawsuit filed in the state of Delaware, accusing Google of ongoing and pervasive infringement of its patents, and demanding billions of dollars in compensation for the use of six of the firm's key patents.

The move by the British firm could also be repeated in Europe, adding yet another large corporation to the growing list that Google is now fighting off, including giants such as Apple, Oracle and Microsoft.

Speaking to the Guardian newspaper, a BT spokesperson claimed, "the patents in question relate to technologies which underpin location-based services, navigation and guidance information and personalised access to services and content. BT's constant investment in innovation has seen it develop a large portfolio of patents which are valuable corporate assets." 

If successful, they would be entitled to charge a royalty fee per handset sold, in much the same way Microsoft has already penned agreements with major players like HTC and Samsung. It is also possible that the company would be entitled to compensation for loss of earnings on existing handsets, which with Google's announcement in June that it is activating 500,000 handsets a day will likely run into billions of dollars.

Interestingly, according to the Guardian, many of the patents that BT alleges are infringed would also apply to almost all of Apple's iPod, iPhone and iPad range. Whether Apple has licensed the use of these patents is unknown, but the next couple of months could be interesting for the Cupertino-based giant should no arrangement be in place already.

A spokesperson for Google responded with a statement saying, "we believe these claims are without merit, and we will defend vigorously against them."

Google's answer to Siri: Majel

Since the release of Apple's voice-activated assistant, there have been countless "Siri-killers", "Siri-like apps" and "We already had Siri" headlines littering the web. However, Google's Android may finally provide a worthy analogue to Apple's attempt at understanding natural language. 

Codenamed Majel (may-jell), the new system will supplant Android's current system, Voice Actions, early in 2012. The new technology promises to interpret your everyday language instead of relying on Voice Actions' rigid verbal command syntax. 

In an interview regarding Ice Cream Sandwich, Google Android director, Matias Duarte noted, "Our approach is more like Star Trek, right, starship Enterprise; every piece of computing surface, everything is voice-aware." hinting at a future where voice activation is ubiquitous among devices.

If you happen to be a Star Trek nerd, the name choice is a curious one. As fellow trekkies may know, Majel Barrett-Roddenberry was the wife of Star Trek creator, Gene Roddenberry. She portrayed Nurse Chapel in the original series and Lwaxana Troi in later shows (namely TNG) but perhaps her most recognizable role was that of the Enterprise computer. Majel (the actor) did voice acting for the ship's computer throughout most of Star Trek's history, including the 2009 movie.

Few details are known, but it is safe to say Google has the means to make something amazing. Where Siri was based on DARPA research from decades passed, Majel could be based upon many years of voice data analysis from Google's 411 and Voice services. The company also acquired Phonetic Arts in 2010, a business which specialized in human-like voice synthesis. Together, these things lay the foundation for an impressive virtual assistant experience.

Much like Siri, the initial release of Majel is expected to be somewhat less sophisticated than the final product. The software will not feature natural language commands at first, although it should still provide answers to your questions by utilizing Google's own services. Controlling the actions of your phone and its applications by speaking in everyday language will be coming at a later date.

Android 10-cent app sale, 10 billion downloads and counting

The Android Market has hit 10 billiondownloads. Google is celebrating this milestone by throwing an unusual sale: each day 10 different apps will be put on sale for 10 cents. The offer will run for 10 days. If you love to buy apps, you now have the chance to buy 100 of them for $10.

Although Google's app store has reached 10 billion downloads, that number continues to grow at an almost exponential pace. The company claims they expect a growth of 1 billion apps per month and predicts continued acceleration in the coming months. By comparison, the Apple App Store is estimated to have reached 18 billion downloads this month, 5 billion of which came in the first two years of offering apps. 

While the Android Market continues to catch up to the App Store in a variety of metrics, Google continues to lag behind in revenue. As we reporteda couple of weeks ago, Apple rakes in nearly 1200% more in profit than Google through its app market, seemingly the result of Android owners' conservative tendencies toward app purchasing.

Titles listed on on the blog include Minecraft Mobile, Sketchbook mobile, Asphalt 6 HD, Color & Draw for Kids, Endomondo Sports Tracker Pro, Fieldrunners HD, Great Little War Game, Paper Camera,Soundhound Infinity & Swiftkey X. Although these deals were posted Tuesday, they still appear to 10 cents this Wednesday afternoon.

The 10 cent sale is being done in cooperation with developers with whom Google has partnered. So far, we don't know what titles will be available in the days to come, but you can check out the Android Market promotional page to see what has made it into the 10 cent bin.

Full update and round-up of Carrier IQ tracking software scandal

Update: Two new updates worth mentioning before the new week. Just a day after the Senate launched an investigation, Carrier IQ and some involved parties including Samsung and HTC are now facing a a class action lawsuit.

From the other side of the fence, Carrier IQ have started to defend themselves with a number of security experts siding with them. Dan Rosenberg, a security consultant who has discovered more than 100 vulnerabilities in the Linux kernel, FreeBSD, and GNU utilities, reverse engineered Carrier IQ's code and analyzed the tracking data collected by the company.

His conclusion in brief: "The application does not record and transmit keystroke data back to carriers... there is no code in Carrier IQ that actually records keystrokes for data collection purposes." Meaning there should be fewer privacy concerns than originally imagined. Read more here.

--- The original story is below ---

On Wednesday, news broke about a hidden application installed on most popular smartphone handsets that logs nearly everything the user does. Accompanying the news article was a 17-minute long video of developer Trevor Eckhart demonstrating how his HTC Evo 3D was tracking his key presses and even the content of his text messages.

The controversial claims resulted in the producer of the software, Carrier IQ, sending Eckhart a cease and desist letter. Digital rights group EFF jumped to his defence resulting in the company retracting its letter and issuing a formal apology.

Handset manufacturers and carriers were extremely quick to address the mounting criticism and anger from customers at the logging software, with a flurry of press statements clarifying their stance -- here is what is known so far:

Apple does use the logging software, though in an official statement to AllThingsD the company said it "stopped supporting Carrier IQ with iOS 5 in most of our products and will remove it completely in a future software update." They also reiterated that users must actively opt-in to share any information, and should they do so, it would be sent anonymously, encrypted and would not include any personal information. "We never recorded keystrokes, messages or any other personal information for diagnostic data and have no plans to ever do so." More information on how Carrier IQ works on iOS is available in a blog post by iPhone jailbreaker Grant Paul.

Blackberry manufacturer Research in Motion said it "does not pre-install the CarrierIQ app on BlackBerry smartphones or authorize its carrier partners to install the CarrierIQ app before sales or distribution." The Canadian firm added that they do not develop, or comission the development or distribution of the app, but promised to investigate reports and speculation related to Carrier IQ.

HTC outright pointed the blame in the direction of phone carriers: "Carrier IQ is required on devices by a number of U.S carriers so if consumers or media have any questions about the practices relating to, or data collected by, Carrier IQ we’d advise them to contact their carrier." The company also said that they were investigating the possibility of adding the option for users to opt-out of data collection by the software.

In the same vein, Samsung released a statement saying carriers were responsible for the installation of CIQ software and it had nothing to do with them. When speaking to Engadget, they further pointed out that "Samsung does not receive any consumer user information from the phones that are equipped with Carrier IQ."

Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 platform is seemingly clear of any known traces of the software. Joe Belfiore, who oversees Windows Phone Program Management, confirmed as much in a Twitter message on Thursday. It's flagship handset partner Nokia also stepped up to the hot plate, releasing a statement denying the company has shipped any products with Carrier IQ's software installed.

Google also made it perfectly clear to everyone that it had nothing to do with Carrier IQ, and insisted its new Google Nexus phones were free of the tracking software, according to a reliable source as quoted by the Verge. Questions have been raised about how Carrier IQ's software was able to make its way on Android devices given the various compatibility tests required in order to use Google's Android OS, though.

U.S. network carriers Sprint and AT&T have come clean, admitting they use the software in devices they sell. The official word from Sprint is that it helps "analyze network performance and identify where we should be improving service," claiming it is an integral part of the Sprint service. Similarly, AT&T's offical line is, "we solely use CIQ software data to improve wireless network and service performance," according to the Huffington Post.

T-Mobile also confirmed it uses the Carrier IQ "diagnostic tool" to troubleshoot device and network performance with the goal of enhancing network reliability. Meanwhile, Verizon, the largest U.S. carrier clarified they don't use Carrier IQ's software, and according to an email addressed to Gigaomfrom Verizon spokesperson Jeffrey Nelson, any statement saying otherwise is false. 

Users in Canada, as well as Europe and elsewhere across the world so far appear to be unaffected.