Google+ Opens to the public, Hangouts and mobile app get huge updates

Time to start hitting that +1 button and throwing people into your circles over on Google+. Today Google just announced a HUGE update that their new social network Google+ is finally available to all and open to the public. No longer will users need an invite to join in on the fun I’ve been experiencing for months. Facebook should be worried right about now because I don’t think I’ve signed in for about 2 months thanks to Google+.

Along with finally being open to the public so I can convince all my friends to join in on the circles, Google has also added a few highly requested features to the mobile app. The biggest one being the Hangouts. Being able to do a live video chat with a webcam and as many people as you can imagine is now possible right on your Android smartphone. The +mention feature when writing a post or commenting on something has also been updates once again to allow users to mention anyone in any circle, not just people saved in the mobile app like before. The mention feature was lacking on mobile and I was constantly needing my PC to add everyone I wanted to a comment but those times are gone with the latest updates.
Hangouts on Air

Also starting today not only will you be able to do a Hangout and video chat with all your friends or family but we now have something called “Hangouts on Air” for dekstop. This will allow the starter to broadcast the entire hangout session with people from their circles. This means you can join in on the hangout and turn on your camera, or just be a spectator to the event and watch in instead. There is a limit of 10 people to the hangout, but anyone and everyone can watch as you do tricks in your living room or whatever else you feel like sharing on camera.

Google’s changed the name of “Huddles” to “Messenger” and added image sharing within the actual chat system, something we’ve been waiting for here at Android Community since the launch of Huddles. The app for Android has also added more notification options, and the choice to move the G+ app to your SD card for older phones. I’m hoping this latest update will finally improve the push notifications because they still seem hit or miss for me.
Google has also added screensharing (like GoToMeeting), sketchpad support, and Google Docs integration all into the world of Google+. For full details and all the information you’ll need head on down to the source link below. Oh and don’t forget to update the Android app in the market by clicking here.
[via Google Mobile Blog]

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Motorola Atrix 2 leaks again, more details and pictures revealed

Internally known as the Motorola Edison we now have even more pictures today of the upcoming Motorola Atrix 2. The next version of the Atrix was first leaked way back in July and was being called the Atrix HD so we are still up in the air regarding the actual name. With a few design changes and a new placement for the AT&T logo this looks to possibly be the final version we should see hit the shelves soon. More details and pictures after the break.

There was also a few rumors that the next Atrix could be a 4G LTE device and now that AT&T has finally started the rollout of that network it would make sense. According to sources this is not the case, and the Atrix 2 will not feature AT&T’s new 4G LTE. That could end up being a big con when this has to compete with the likes of the Bionic and the Photon 4G from other carriers. I can clearly see a “4″ in the notification bar so it could be a HSPA+ 4G phone. Just like initial leaks suggested the Atrix 2 features a 4.3″ HD display although we aren’t sure on the 720p resolution or not. A 1.5 Ghz dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM, an 8MP camera on the rear like shown in the photos and more.

We have Android 2.3.5 on board like the image above suggests, along with the latest version of Motorola’s user interface like we saw on the DROID Bionic, and even though the sources say this isn’t a 4G phone if you look close you can make out a “4″ in the notification bar for the network status indicator. I’m going to take this leakster with a grain of salt for now because I just can’t see AT&T release this without the new 4G LTE they’ve just rolled out this week.
Either way check out the rest of the photos in the gallery below and let us know what you think about the Atrix 2.
[via BGR]

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NVIDIA shares details on Kal-El, adds a fifth core

The next revolution in the mobile market it almost here, and that is quad-core processors. We’ve heard tons about them in the past and are about to here plenty more in the future. Today NVIDIA is shedding some light into their world of quad-cores, project Kal-El, and even broke some news about a fifth core — yes we said fifth as in five. Would we call that a quin-core processor?

NVIDIA today has added some details giving us a more in depth look at Kal-El quad-cores as well as everything else you’d possibly need to know with a pile of white papers full of useful information. The addition of a fifth stealth-core to help save on energy, and the amazing levels of power efficiency we will be seeing with their quad-core processors that are coming soon. It also looks like 1080p is a thing of the past, with Kal-El and future chips offering 2560×1600 HD video and more. With that high of resolution support I’m excited to see what Kal-El will offer in terms of 3D video output, as I’m sure a few will be excited to give that a try with some 3D gaming or video playback.
Today NVIDIA unveiled that project Kal-el will have something called a stealth-core that is a fifth processing core that will save on energy, keeps things efficient, and pop up to do some tasks only when its needed and let the big guns sleep until their numbers are called. Everything is right here in the NVIDIA white papers. Basically during those daily tasks that are lightweight such as music playback, e-reading, and YouTube watching Kal-el will completely power down all four cores and activate the single companion stealth-core. For higher performance tasks, Kal-El disables its companion core and turns on its four performance cores, one at a time, as the work load increase. Instead of sucking power with all four cores all the time NVIDIA plans to operate in a highly efficient system.
The second whitepaper by NVIDIA details how as crazy as it sounds, quad-core Kal-El uses less power than dual-core processors across all performance points, and even less than single-core processors too. Instead of overloading any single or dual chips Kal-el is able to efficiently and evenly distribute the brute workload and this causes an overall environment that consumes less power.
With faster browser rendering and load times, stellar benchmark performance and multi-threading and more the power of Kal-el aims to impress. Below is a view of Coremark comparing many current dual-core processors and it shows Kal-el performing quite impressively. Delivering over two times the performance of dual-core processors all while using less power is a pretty big task, and NVIDIA seems to have nailed it.

What all this means in the Android tablet and smartphone world remains to be seen. The last leaked roadmap from NVIDIA showed us Kal-El and Kal-El+. I’m wondering if the + will be an even more efficient platform that they’ll use for quad-core smartphones.
I’ll ask you guys the same thing NVIDIA asked us. So, does a quad-core processor that outperforms other processors while using less power appeal to you?

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O2 UK to get HTC Rhyme on October 17

I just mentioned the new smartphone that has launched from HTC called the HTC Rhyme. The smartphone is aimed at women wanting a cute smartphone more than the hardcore Android user looking for power. The Rhyme does come with some nice accessories though. If the Rhyme tickled your fancy and you are in the UK, O2 has announced that it will be getting the smartphone starting on October 17. That launch date isn’t too far away.

O2 will be the exclusive UK carrier for the smartphone packing HTC Sense and Gingerbread. We already ran down the features of the Rhyme today, but if you missed that other post, I will run them down here again. The O2 version will be purple and have the same accessories as the Verizon US version. The accessories include the light-up charm that shows at a glance if there are messages or calls.
The phone also comes with a dock, workout armband for holding the phone, headphones, and a Bluetooth headset. Surprisingly, the armband isn’t purple nor is the dock as you might think all the accessories would be. The phone also has Bluetooth, a 3.7-inch WVGA screen, a 5MP rear camera with flash and a VGA front camera. The phone is expected to be free on a contract.
[via SlashGear]

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Verizon HTC Rhyme Hands-On [Video]

What we’ve got here is a rather feminine device created by HTC to appeal to those who love to be fashion forward and have a bit of a unique coolness to their smartphone. Much in the same way the bright red version of the HTC Inspire 4G, the HTC Rhyme (here in its Verizon iteration) aims to spice up more than just the specifications inside the phone – the exterior aesthetic here is enhanced, made to work with the way the user and the device interact visually. And it finally, finally brings the “charm” to the USA with a little light-up square that lets you know you’ve got a notification. Japan Kawaii, here we come!

I’m actually surprised the team at HTC didn’t call this the HTC Kawaii, as cuteness is certainly the centerpiece here with the Rhyme. It’s also a bit strange that it doesn’t have “Beats” integration given its name and the fact that HTC recently hooked up with Beats officially, but we wont dwell on that for long. Plastic and metal components all around, soft plastic on the back and a construction that reminds us, strangely, of a first-gen HTC device – and that’s not a bad thing.

This device is clearly made to be a full package, with wired stereo headset, Bluetooth headset, and charm all ringing true with the same cool Plum coloring. The charm, like the headset, must be plugged into the headphone jack to work, acting as a simple tell-all for activities as they happen – got a new message? Bright lights for you! The desk cradle is one of the more clear plusses of this entire combination, appearing to be a desktop accessory noone would be opposed to employing.

Inside and out this device doesn’t exactly scream “new”, a single-core 1GHz Snapdragon, WVGA LCD display and 5MP camera with single LED flash leading us to believe that this device isn’t aimed at early adopters, but rather a new generation of smartphone users looking to get in to the game with something that looks rather nice. On the other hand, this device is the first to show off the new HTC Sense 3.5, glossy and impressive as always. The simplified widgets and tabbed shortcut bar are there, as are some excellent dynamic icons that chance based on updates to apps.

The newest update to HTC’s camera app includes 2.5s in burst mode, auto backlight correction, and automatic upload to a user-designated Facebook gallery, amongst many other options you may have seen in the last few impressive HTC camera app releases. That said, in combination with a fairly decent (though not top-class compared to its 8-megapixel cousins) camera makes this device a definite lead-in to other HTC devices. You’ll also notice that this device doesn’t ONLY come in Plum, there’s a sort of silver/white combo for those that love a White Wedding more than they want Purple Rain.
[VIDEO PROCESSING]

What we’ve got here is a mid-range contender that’ll likely appeal to a younger crowd and will take, as all good smartphones should, the feature phone selection at Verizon to lunch (and not leave a tip!) Have a look at our hands-on video as well as photos galore above and below. We’ll also be reviewing this device soon.
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