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  • nexus one having major issues – yay motorola droid users!

    let’s take a moment and thank verizon and motorola for giving us a device that has really had zero major issues since its launch 3 months ago.  many were frustrated to hear that google’s nexus one would launch only a month or so after our motorola droid yet have the latest and greatest android operating system.  look who’s laughing now?

    nexus one users completely lost data coverage for almost 12 straight hours starting last night about 3AM, finding this message when entering their browser…

    “To connect to the internet with the device you are using, you’ll need a webConnect data plan. Please call Customer Care at 1-800-937-8997 to make sure you have the correct webConnect data plan “

    not only do we have most of the applications from android 2.1, but we also have one hell of a stable phone and operating system.  after hearing about a new nexus one issue almost daily, i think i’m going to be ok with 2.0.1 for a while longer until all these gigantic issues are taken care of.

    cheers motorola droid users.  cheers.

    (photo engadget)

  • last chance contest reminder! 2 google voice invites!

    just a quick reminder to those of you who have not yet entered to win free google voice invites!

    the contest started last week and ends tomororw!  the instructions are about as simple as it gets really…

    1.  follow us on twitter.
    2.  tweet the following message:

    @droid_life is giving away 2 #google voice invites! – just RT this and follow @droid_life to win!

    3.  make sure to subscribe to our feed for exclusive contest notifications.
    4.  tomorrow, the 29th, we will direct message two winners via twitter.
    5.  the winners will then be announced on the blog!

    that’s it people!

  • motorola’s moto phone portal app – download here

    yessir, the mysterious moto phone portal is still around.  discovered back in october 2009, the news of this program leaked out and people were initially excited, and then for some reason quickly forgot about it.  it’s still alive my friends!

    wonder what the moto phone portal is?  this is basically your best friend if you are one of the motorola droid users unable to sync your device via usb cable to your computer.  and for the rest of us, this just makes life easier!

    moto phone portal allows you to connect wirelessly to a pc (any pc) and do a ton of amazing things.  via wi-fi, it doesn’t get any easier than this really.

    here is the list of features…

    • backup and restore contacts
    • check call logs and sms
    • send sms via browser
    • set ringtones
    • play music to your phone
    • manage photos
    • manage bookmarks
    • manage browsing history
    • transfer files from phone to pc wirelessly

    installation instructions:
       
    1.  go into settings -> applications and check the “unknown sources” box.
    1a. if you do not already have astro file manager, download now in the market.
    2.  visit this post from your phone’s browser.
    3.  tap and download this file onto your phone:  MotoPhonePortal.zip
    4.  tap on the downloaded application once it has finished.
    5.  tap on “PersonalPortal029” and then “Open App Manager” when prompted.
    5.  tap “install” and then “open” when finished.
    6.  it will then provide instructions for syncing to pc.

    *note* – to use the file manager, you have to connect via internet explorer.  (yes it sucks, but firefox doesn’t support this feature right now.)

  • motorola building a google-only phone?

    motorola working with google to add a new “direct to customer” device?

    after seeing the subpar sales numbers from the nexus one, it seems a little odd that motorola or any major player would jump to be the next in line, but with google, you can’t really go wrong can you?  their ceo, sanjay jha took to the mic to get the rumor mill in full swing…

    On a conference call with analysts Thursday, co-CEO Sanjay Jha outlined the company’s plans to introduce 20 smartphones this year including “one direct to consumer device with Google.” The move would be similar to Google’s Nexus One phone made by HTC, which boosts Google’s effort to bypass telcos and to reach consumers.

    so who’s got leaked pictures? can i get a wrist strap with that?

  • video: 50 android games 1 video

    gaming on a motorola droid is the one thing i haven’t had a chance to really get into other than robo defense, but after watching this video of 50 games on a droid, i may now be ready to start wasting away hours upon hours…


    (via engadget and @xfenixknightx)

  • tweetcaster now available in android market!

    only a day after reviewing tweetcaster in its beta form, handmark has announced that they are officially going live with their twitter app in the market tomorrow!  as you’ll see from our review, this app will rival seesmic and twidroid for the top spot in the twitter android market.

    after receiving a ton of feedback from users with the beta version, they were able to fix some of the major problems in a hurry…

    The key improvements based on the beta testing feedback included:

    1.    Notifications fully implemented with notification options:  vibrate, LED and audio.
    2.    Force-close issues
    3.    GPS issue that drained batter
    4.    UI related issues

    now, you’ll notice i said that it will be available tomorrow, but as readers of this blog, i’ve got a surprise for you!  you can download the free version of this puppy right now and also upgrade for free.

    now go ahead, download, tweet and tell us what you think!

  • current list of nexus one 2.1 apps ported to android 2.0.1

    to keep everyone up-to-date on android 2.1 apps available for your motorola droid, we thought it was time for a summary post…

    1.  nexus one / sense ui 2.1 launcher –  very similar to the original 2.1 launcher we posted but has the look of htc’s sense ui.  it also feels a little more stable and has some of the bugs fixed from previous version.  if you ever get stuck, make sure to hit the “home” button to free up the phone again.

    2.  flan(eclair) gallery 2.1 – an incredible upgrade from the gallery on our 2.0.1 devices.  “flick” features are everywhere, sharing is nicer, and even has slideshow capabilities when working with multimedia dock.

    3.  genie news and weather 2.1 – customizable news in a reader style format plus weather.  3 widget options available with certain versions working nicely with the new 2.1 clock app.

    4.  launcher 2.1 – the app we all were hoping worked flawlessly, but unfortunately doesn’t completely deliver.  gives you 5 screens, a new launcher, quick buttons and card style shortcuts.  too bad for landscape bugs and intermittent crashes.

    5.  music app 2.1 – needs to be installed on your 2.0.1 device.  this music upgrade, although not groundbreaking, adds some minor features which makes music playing so much nicer.

    6.  clock app 2.1 – a fun app which can replace your current docking app and also act as a stand-alone for those without docks.  works great with flan gallery and genie weather.

    7.  flan(eclair) gallery 2.1 w/ multi-touch –  same as the previous gallery but includes multi-touch or pinch-to-zoom.  also has much quicker load times for photos.

    any other nexus one apps you  want or have heard of?  any bugs with this current selection?  any tips to show off?

  • nexus one 2.1 clock app ported to android 2.0.1

    who needs android 2.1 when we have all the apps from it already?  (ok that was a pretty ridiculous statement!)

    in all seriousness, it’s been nice to have most of the major apps from the nexus one and android 2.1 on our 2.0.1 phones well before we’ve actually received the mysterious and official update from motorola or verizon.  (which is still in limbo by the way!)

    2.1 clock app:

    the newest application to have been ported over is the clock app which can also function with your multimedia docking station.  (for those of us with docking stations!)  very fun app with a couple of changes that once again, makes it worth installing for everyone.

    check out the video…(instructions to follow)

    quick tips before installing:

    -install the genie news and weather widget from 2.1
    -install the flan gallery from 2.1
    -if you do not have these installed, there is a chance it won’t function correctly.

    steps for installation:

    1.  go into settings -> applications and check the “unknown sources” box.
    2.  visit this post from your phone’s browser.
    3.  tap and download this file onto your phone:  DeskClock.apk  (alt link)
    4.  tap on the downloaded application once it has finished.
    5.  install it and tap “open” when finished.
    6.  you can also drop in your docking station and choose “clock.”

    additional tips:

    -if you want weather to show up as fahrenheit you need this version of the genie weather widget.
    -unfortunately, this version sucks as a widget and force closes, but will pull up the correct weather if installed.