New Accessories Surface for the Sold Out Asus Eee Pad Transformer

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Chances are you missed the initial window on picking up the Asus Eee Pad Transformer. By the time most realized it was available units had already sold out everywhere. If you are one of the lucky ones who was able to snag one before stock depleted, you might be interested in taking a look at a few forthcoming accessories for the tablet that moonlights as a laptop. There is a desktop dock, a USB adapter, HDMI to VGA adapter, and a nice folio case. Images of the accessories appeared on Asus’ Italian Facebook page, but official release and pricing info was not detailed.

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American Airlines offers new app for Nook Color

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This week the Barnes & Noble Nook Color eReader received an update that brought to the Android-powered eReader the ability to run apps, check email, and a lot more. The update was the big official step in turning the eReader into a fully functioning Android tablet. There will be third party apps offered on the Nook Color too and American Airlines has announced one of the first.

The airline has its app available on the Nook Color right now. The app is already offered on other Android and Apple devices. On the Nook Color, the app will allow the user to check flight notifications, view flight details, check status and schedules, access mobile boarding passes, and monitor standby status. The app also allows the user to track their AAdvantage accounts and enroll in the program.
Other features include terminal maps and the app has Sudoku installed as well to give the user something to do while waiting in the terminal. This is the first airline app specifically for the Nook Color. “We’re delighted to be the first airline offering an app on NOOK Color,” said Rick Elieson, Managing Director – American Airlines Interactive Marketing. “We know it’s increasingly important for customers to have useful travel tools when they’re on the go, and making our app available to NOOK Color customers is another step in our efforts to give customers what they value.”
 

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HTC Thunderbolt Battles T-Mobile G2x in Comparison Fight

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We have a comparison battle between Android on T-Mobile and Android on Verizon for your consideration below, a two-part video comparison pitting the T-Mobile G2x in a face off against the HTC Thunderbolt.
The HTC Thunderbolt against the G2x comparison videos come our way courtesy of Aaron Baker over at Phone Dog who digs deep into the comparison between the two Android smartphones over a nice long 28 minutes in total.
Both smartphones came out to play sporting Android 2.2 Froyo, but the T-Mobile G2x offers a 1GHz Tegra 2 dual-core processor and 4-inch touch screen, while the HTC Thunderbolt offers a 1Ghz single-core Snapdragon processor and a 4.3-inch touch screen, while both deliver an 8 megapixel camera.
The T-Mobile G2x can play nice on T-Mobile’s HSPA+ (4G) network while the HTC Thunderbolt plays nice on Verizon’s 4G LTE, but can one of the smartphones out pace the other and come out on top?
Well you should know by now I’m not going to tell you the outcome, but let you skip on down to mash the play buttons to find out for yourself, and feel free to let us know if you agree or disagree…enjoy.

 

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Android Beats Out iOS for Customer Preference for the First Time.

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According to a new report put out by Nielsen, Android has overtaken iOS as the platform of choice for users planning to either get a smartphone for the first time, or get a new smartphone, in the next year.
In the July-Sept 2010 report, iOS was reported as the system of choice for 33% of users, while Android was the OS 26% were planning to purchase. However, in the surveys taken from January to March 2011, the tables have turned. Android has risen to 31%, while iOS has dropped to 30%. This is a big deal because it shows that Android is beginning to gain traction by not just luring customers from platforms like Blackberry and Windows, but it has started to solidly chip away at Apple’s customer base.
In terms of actual acquisitions, Android captured 50% of the market share, versus Apple’s 25%, showing Android still has a great deal of momentum with consumers that is only continuing to gain steam.
 

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Verizon’s 4G LTE Network Outages Cause Thunderbolt Users to Settle for 3G

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If you are one of the 500,000 subscribers using Verizon’s 4G LTE network, don’t be alarmed if you are no longer receiving an LTE signal where you once did. Verizon’s 4G services have been experiencing outages over night and this morning, meaning owners of the HTC Thunderbolt might have to settle with 3G for now. If you can’t even receive a 3G signal, well, that’s the phone’s poor 3G/4G switching rearing its ugly head.
We expect Verizon will have the issue cleared up shortly. They’d hate to have the shiny new LTE network still experiencing problems tomorrow when they launch their second LTE handset and first of the Droid line to deploy 4G.
 

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Google looking to hire a new manger for Games at Google division

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The number of reasons to use a smartphone that runs the Android OS are many from web surfing to business use. One of the most compelling reasons for a smartphone to many users is mobile gaming. Games like Angry Birds and others have graphics that are on par with some of the best portable game consoles. Google is set to start a new push into the gaming market and is searching for the perfect person to lead the charge.

IntoMobile reports that Google is searching for a new product manager to lead the new Games at Google business unit. The new business unit will reportedly be operated out of Google’s Mountain View HQ. The product manager will reportedly be responsible for designing the strategies used for game distribution and discovery. The manager will also focus on player identity, game mechanics, and other things.
It’s not clear if this is some internal effort by Google to build games on a first party nature or if this new product manager will be tasked with working with game developers. There is no word on when the new Games at Google initiative will launch at this point. IntoMobile thinks that the manager might be tasked in part with being sure Android games work on Chrome.

 

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Viewdle SocialCamera auto-tags friends for easy Facebooking [Video]

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Social networking integration is one of those elements that pushes Android ahead of the pack when it comes to smartphones, and Viewdle reckons it can make things even better with its new app, SocialCamera. A free photo app, SocialCamera allows you to instantly share images with Facebook, Twitter and other networks, using a carousel of shortcuts.

It’s actually the auto-tagging which is more interesting, however. After you’ve given SocialCamera an initial lesson as to who your friends are, subsequent shots are auto-tagged with their identity.
The video below explains it more thoroughly, or you can just download and try it yourself. Viewdle SocialCamera is a free download from the Android Market.
 

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HTC Doubleshot details surface

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I really love it when details of unannounced handsets surface by way of geeks that pour through user agent profiles. These are long lists of text that unveiled a few little details here and there about what the smartphone will be like. We still don’t have an actual photo of the Doubleshot to go along with the new specs that have surfaced, but a bit of info is better than none. The last time we talked about the Doubleshot was back in early March when it was tipped to be heading to the T-Mobile network.

The latest info that surfaced gives us a bit more to go on and may pique your interest for the new smartphone. The user agent profile shows that the smartphone will have a physical QWERTY keyboard and no soft keys. The smartphone runs Android Gingerbread for the OS. It will support JavaScript and has a pixel aspect ratio of 1×1. The screen resolution for the Doubleshot is 480 x 800.
Other features tipped include sound output and the device will accept text and voice input. Other details that Pocketnow reports are gleaned from an online benchmarking tool include a 1.2GHz CPU, a 6MP camera with HDR capacity. The publication also thinks that the Doubleshot name may refer to a 3D camera the phone has. Other features include WiFi and Bluetooth. The phone may hit T-Mobile in July.

 

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Qik Video Connect adds cross-platform Android & iPhone video calls [Video]

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Qik has launched the latest version of its video calling app, Qik Video Connect, promising cross-platform calls between Android and iOS devices. The new app – a free download – now allows you to see your iPhone, iPod touch and iPad 2 owning friends as you mock them for not having the latest Android.

There’s also video mail, the ability to share videos with Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other social networking sites, and support for the front and rear facing cameras on most devices. Qik has also boosted video quality and reduced battery life impact, and some phones – Samsung Galaxy Tab, Samsung Galaxy Player, Samsung Galaxy S, and Telus Samsung Galaxy S Fascinate 4G – will offer VGA quality streaming when done over WiFi.
You’ll need an Android 2.1 or above device in order to use the app – or of course an iOS device. Video mail is only free until June 1 2011, however, and will be a subscription service after that.

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