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Smartphones , Tablets , Computers , laptop and news on every other gadget

Seems like every time we turn around some other company is trying their hand at bringing an Android tablet to market. From the likes of ZTE to Coby to Pantech, there are plenty of option around. No one has specifically targeted the ‘business’ niche specifically though. Not that anyone really needs too. Don’t go and get your hopes up to high, Fujitsu might make some great products, but we aren’t seeing how this one falls in line.

The tablet, names the STYLISTIC M350/CA2 , is a standard 7-inch display with an average 1024 X 600 resolution display. It is pushing a 1GHz Freescale i.MX processor and a mere 512MB of DDR3 RAM. There is a typical microSD card slot and 8GB of built-in memory. The usual Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and HDMI support are also built-in. Don’t expect the latest Android OS though, or even a tablet OS like Honeycomb either. The STYLISTIC looks to be on good old Gingerbread 2.3. Another odd design move are the way they added in the hardware keys for navigation. Each one is a separate button directly above the images for the back, menu, home and search functions.

Price wise they are going to be asking the Japanese for ¥34,800, which is about $455. It is set to release overseas later this month and might find its way to other international locations.

What is it with so many of these company’s having the capabilities to make a create tablet and then launch something is a let down? I suppose much of it has to do with software limitations and specifics that might be found in 2.3 vs other Android builds, but still.

Source: Fujitsu via Androinica

When Google dropped the source for Android 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich, we all got really excited. We knew the devs were equally if not more excited than we were. Even though it has been proven to be one of the biggest builds to date, we know the devs have some serious hardware sitting in their homes already to get to work. From everything we have heard this build is going to be a challenge, but one they will happily take on. So we sit and wait. That is all we can do. Constantly bugging the minds behind the biggest release to be ported ever is going to take time and dedication. So don’t ask for ETA’s from any of them, especially the CyanogenMOD team. That doesn’t stop them for teasing us when ever possible about something though.

Today, Steve Kondik, founder of CM, sent out a little goody that has to make everyone smile just a little. His tweet read – “and we’re off, check back in 2 months “. Typical Steve for ya. This doesn’t mean that a CM9 port will be ready for the masses in January. All it really means is they are working on it and we will all see it someday. It sure would be nice to see some alpha builds out before the end of December, but I won’t hold my breathe. They have done some pretty great things with the HP Touchpad in a fairly short time and they have a team of very talented people. So now we all sit, wait and hit refresh ever couple of weeks to see what the story is.

On a side note, I have seen a lot of people wonder why CM9 is on its way but there was no CM8. The answer to that is pretty simple really. If CM8 would have been possible it would have happened. CM8 would have been Honeycomb. Since that was build specifically for tablets and not really portable to handsets and Google never released the source code, it is being skipped. With Android 4.0, it was designed with both tablets and handsets in mind. Much like CM7.1 is located on various tablets and devices so will CM9.

We will keep an eye out for future news on the availability of nightlies, devices, requirements and all the other goodies you will all want to know when it comes time. Until then, let the guys do their thing and remember, when it does come time to install CM9, it will probably be the only chance your device will have for any ICS love at all.

Source: OMGDroid

Live Wallpapers, LWP’s are a dime a dozen. Some provide more functionality like Bubbleator, others are just colorful, like 3D Fireflies. No matter the style of LWP you choose, they are always fun. A new LWP has landed on the market aiming to change the scene a little bit. It is simply called Rotation Live Wallpaper. It looks similar to the clock that we all wanted from Honeycomb when it was first introduced.

RLW offers you much more than just a few circles rotating constantly on your screen. In the Pro version you get a list of available settings to adjust it just how you want it to look. You can change the rotation speed, direction, multiple-speed rotating circles and number of circles. In the free version you are limited to the multiple-speed rotating circles settings.

On to what makes this LWP so special. It offers themes. Not a huge deal, many LWP’s offer tweaks to colors and things to make it a little more personable. Both versions come with 5 themes included in your download, Tech Blue, Black and White, Hell Red Tech, Metal Tech and Pink Blossom. To kick it up a notch it also supports external themes that you can get from various locations, like the market. The company, Mariux Apps, has opened up their themeing template for all developers to theme out the circles to their specific desire or need. Which means not only should you get this app for the 5 themes that are available, you should also start to see other themes being released by developers to add to it.

Check out the screenshots and video below to get a good look at this awesome LWP -

If you are a developer looking to get your hands on the template for themeing, head on over to Mariuxapps.com

Click or scan the QR code below to go check out the FREE version first to make sure it works well on your device.

Application: RLW Live Wallpaper
Developer: Mariux
Cost: FREE

Everyone is so uppity about ICS that I thought I should go see what else is running around the web and bring it back to light. Originally I was on a quest to find a good working version of the Xperia Arc home screen. This was spurred by me receiving an Xperia Ray for review, which you will start to see shortly. It has been a while since I used the Xperia launcher and wanted to give it a go again on my Vibrant. During that search I found what I was looking for, but I also came across a port of the Acer Liquid home as well. Let’s take a quick little look at both and give you all a chance to mess around with something else for a change.

The Xperia launcher actually has a few different replacements available. I purposefully wanted the one that can be found on the Arc and the Ray. There were a few reason I really wanted it was for one simple widget, the photos and videos widget. It reminds me of the stacks you find on Honeycomb and ICS. It is a Rolodex style view of your photos right on your home screen. Why Sony was able to make that happen in a launcher and no one else is able too is beyond me, I am not a developer. I haven’t even found an app on the market or in the forums that can offer it. Seems crazy to me. I also really like the visuals that Sony has implemented when moving applications and widgets across your home screen.

The Arc launcher also offers a very nice folder option for your dock bar. Simply drag an icon to one of the 4 squares at the bottom and make a folder for certain apps. In the app drawer you can customize the app sorting wither manually, or by standards like alphabetical, most used or recently installed. Beyond that though there aren’t many settings. It just looks really nice, functions really well and offers some visuals that no other launch has that you can easily install.

Snag the files below in the zip, unpack then and install them like any other 3rd party application. It includes DigitalClockWidget, GenieWidget, Home and PhotoWidget. These are not modified and are all pulled directly from the system dump of the Arc. There is a chance that the version found below may be older than others available around the web. If you find newer version feel free to let us all know.

Download – Xperia Arc launcher apps.zip

The second launcher I came across is the Acer Liquid launcher. It has a very unique style to it with some interesting visuals that I haven’t seen in the past. On the bottom of your screen is a dock bar box. it is a 4 X 2 style allowing to have 8 applications docked at once. You slide up the dock to access your app drawer and scroll left to right. While on your home screen you can only slide one panel to the right. This panel is extremely useful and at the same time, not functional at all. You can see all of your folders that are housing any photos along with the folder name. Tapping on it should launch the gallery or a gallery of some sort, but it doesn’t. You can switch to the view to music and videos. Offering you same side ways Rolodex with image preview. the videos work if you tap on one. I don’t have any music on my main memory so I didn’t test that out myself.

By long pressing on the home screen you can alter a few various settings such as Album art as the wallpaper while listening to music or remove the digital clock. Not a lot of customization though. After you have launched an application it then becomes available in the application history to the left of the home screen. Again, offering you a really nice Rolodex style view of recent applications.

One of the most annoying drawbacks to this launcher is the lack of a status bar of any type. It is supposed to appear on the lower dockbar as it is seen in the images, but doesn’t seem to work. This could really become something nice is someone could take the time to solve some of the issues that it has. I would be willing to use it as my primary launcher actually.

Since there are various different download options for this particular launcher, I will refer you to the original thread containing all the information you ever need about it.Just point your browser to aalopez10′s XDA thread and snag what you need.

P.S. I was able to easily install and run both of these launchers on my Vibrant running MIUI. Give it a shot and see what you think. I am sure there is some device incompatibility, so be prepared for things to not look the same or work.

Sources: XDA – Software2Tech – Xperiax10

We are still out trolling the web and the market to bring you as many goodies and themes as we can. By now most of you have a fairly good-looking device rocking lockscreens, wallpapers a few newer apps and icons. You have probably taken the time to sit down and rearrange icons, make new app drawer buttons and set up new dock bars too. I know that some of you have even taken to Desktop VisualizR and dropped widgets on your screen like we have done in the past for Honeycomb. Now that all that time and effort has been expended, check this out.

The developing team, Team Syndicate, has released an app into the market called ICS Launcher. It is designed to not only offer the look but also the feel of Ice Cream Sandwich. I can honestly say that if we had not seen the whole ICS demo and OS up and running, this launcher would have been doubly amazing compared to how you might view it today. It is of course themed to match ICS with all the blue glory that we have all grown to love. It includes ICS style Google Search bar, Analog clock, and 9 wallpapers. You see the soft touch buttons at the bottom of the screen? Ya, those actually function, they aren’t just there for looks And they stay put when you open your app drawer. Pretty nifty.

One thing that makes this Launcher stand out is definitely the launcher dock. Located at the bottom of the screen are 4 icons. As you scroll left and right those icons move across the screen. Cool right? Well, it gets better. If you go to any given screen you can remove any or all four icons and replace them with the icons of your choosing. When you change screens they stay on the screen you left them on. This allows you to essentially have a scrolling dock bar with various apps available at the bottom of each screen. Offing you a very unique user experience.

Take a look below at the short little, boring, video I did using Screencaster of this launcher in action. I think you might be pleasantly surprised.

Application: ICS Launcher
Developer: Team Syndicate
Cost: FREE

Now that we have all had a chance to see the video of ICS and the Nexus Prime in action, it is time for a closer look at the OS. As luck would have it, some lucky international sites have been getting their hands on some great new photos for us all to drool over. The photos show off a lot of what ICS is all about, but as you and I know, it is never enough until we get to play with it our selves.

You can see the lock screen has a Sense look too it. You can easily switch from apps to widgets and get a clear look at what the widget looks like before you drag it to your screen. I even see a market access point directly from the same window, I like that. Just the whole over all look of ICS is amazing. You can tell that a lot of work went into this new version of Android and it has many aspects of Honeycomb shining through. I think it is going to be the best Android version to date. Heck, I might even give up MIUI for this. We will have to wait and see who ports it first.

Source: Phandroid via Mobilissimo

It is time for another dose of Cm7 themes here at the SPIN. One that has somehow managed to go under the radar for many months, now gets a chance to be seen. One of our good friend, @Eugene_373, is behind this themes creativeness. He calls it Greenhoney. Taking a look at the screen shots you can easily tell why. He has taken and themed out a great deal of the device’s screen with various colors of green. He has also added 5 wallpapers all with the same motif.

 If you love the Honeycomb look, but are tired of the blues and purples, this one might be right up your alley. We shouldn’t need to tell you that this designed for CM7 based ROMS which means you do need to be rooted and you do need to be running a custom ROM that supports the Theme Chooser application. Feel free to pick it up below.

Application: CM7 Greenhoney
Developer: Eugene373
Cost:$0.99

We posted up a MIUI theme the other day to test the waters and see if anyone was even interested in them or not. Boy was I surprised to see how many people viewed it and went to download the theme. We thought we should share a little bit more MIUI theme love today and keep the ball rolling in the right direction.

This one is called Red Crystal and is by the same themer as the previous Honeycomb theme, Annex. Take a look - 

What is themed
**FRAMEWORK-RES
**SYSTEMUI
**LAUNCHER
**PHONE
**CLOCK
**STATUSBAR
**TOGGLES
**WALLPAPER
**LOCKSCREEN
**PROGRESSBAR

AND SOME OTHERS

Looks pretty nice. To get this theme added to your collection, head over to Annex’s RootzWiki page for the download. To use the theme, simply copy the MTZ file into MIUI/THEME folder. Open Theme manager, hit import to make the theme visible and then apply. Only a few steps to make this work for you. Beats having to flash a theme and then wonder how to get to another one.

Source: RootzWiki

Themeing is becoming more and more common in the world of our Android device. If you are running stock anything, people seem to look at you funny. I almost get lost on a stock phone anymore. Ya, I know, that is pretty pathetic. When handling someone else’s phone I usually ask what theme or ROM they are using. When they look at me dumbfounded by the question, I hand them my phone. Its always an entertaining conversation after that.

With more and more users of the MIUI ROM are starting to surface, not to mention the upcoming MI-ONE device,we felt like we should put some more effort into finding you guys some great themes too.

This theme is called Honeycomb and has been put together by RootzWiki member Annex.

 (MIUI)[THEME] Honeycomb

I have always loved the color scheme Google went with on Honeycomb. it is so much more eye appealing that the old school Green. If you happen to be running a MIUI ROM at the moment, feel free to hit up Annex’s RootzWiki thread for the appropriate download file. Once downloaded, simply place the file inside of MIUI/THEME folder and apply it.

Source: RootzWiki

We sit, we wait, we wonder, and we get upset when updates don’t get pushed out in what we feel is a timely manner. This last week and upcoming weeks looks to be a huge round of updates for more devices than I can ever keep up with listing.

The latest news in updates to be pushed out is for the ASUS Transformer. Thanks to a tweet a few hours ago by @ASUS, we know that the Transformer will be receiving an Android 3.2 update. Honeycomb 3.2 brings zoom function for phone apps, support for microSD loading, and other tablet-based optimizations. No word on how long the update is predicted to take to get out to all users, but at least you know it is coming.

Source: ASUS Twitter

Here comes another round of themes for the beloved theme chooser app in CM7. This is called Steel Blue and has been put together by TEAMCARBON. They just dumped a ton of new colored themes into the market to satisfy the desired look you are after.

  I am personally a huge blue fan. I always have been. I was mildly disappointing when Google took a somewhat purple approach on Honeycomb, yet they made the Bee Blue. It was confusing.

You can skip this part of the article if you know what your are doing. For the rest of you that want to take advantage of this theme, make sure your device has the theme chooser app installed and works. Then install it.
Click or Scan the QRCode below to find out more information about the Steel Blue Theme for CM7. You can also find out info and share the application with your friends on the AndroidSPIN App Site.

Summary and Downloads:

Application: Steel Blue Theme for CM7
Developer: TeamCarbon
Cost: $1.97

After a leak last week and an announcement on Acer Germany’s Facebook, a release of the infamous Honeycomb 3.1 update for the Iconia Tab A500 was imminent. While nothing was mentioned as to whether or not the US owners would be getting said update, it was mentioned that OTAs would start rolling out July 5th for some European owners. Despite the lack of validity from Acer, a few confirmations from a few US owners suggest that this update is available in the states as well. Recipients of the Android 3.1 update will enjoy new features such as resizeable widgets, enhanced multitasking, increased performance, USB support, and much more.

Let us know if you’ve already gotten yours, and how it’s working out for you.

Source: Android Police

If you thought you had a hard time putting your device down now, wait till you get a look at this super sexy theme. It is called the Honeycomb 3d project and is being meticulously put together by moneymike55 over at XDA. It has been built for any Android device or tablet that can currently run and support the ‘theme chooser’ app. Most notably is any device sporting any CM7 build. Take a look below at a few of the screen shots.

So beautiful. This theme is still in its BETA stage, so there is still lots of things this developer wishes to accomplish. He is even looking for some more devs to work with him in this project, especially someone that is good with xml and using the theme engine.

If this theme even remotely looks like something you are interested in, I highly suggest you head on over to his XDA page to get a closer look. He has full instructions, market links and add on packages for you to get your hands on. To much good stuff for me to list here. Get going over to the Android Theme thread and get started on making that phone or tablet beautiful.

Source: XDA

Swype 3 beta has been released is now available for download on the Swype Beta site.  If you’re already signed up for the beta program, simply head over to the Swype beta download site and get the latest version.  If your not already signed up for the beta, be quick and sign up while the beta is open once more.

Check out the video below and the read the release notes after the break.

Swype v3.0 BETA released!

Here are the details:

• Swype v3 introduces two major new features: Tap Correction and Horizontal Word Choice List
• Our Tap Correction engine utilizes many of the concepts that make swyping so accurate. Seamlessly go from typing to swyping and back without missing a beat!
• The Horizontal Word Choice List replaces our popup word choice window, giving users an experience more in-line with evolving Android standards. It also makes dictionary control and word selection faster and easier.
• Swype v3 is available for devices with HVGA, WVGA, FWVGA, QVGA, WQVGA, WSVGA, qHD screen sizes
• Introducing a special Honeycomb-only WXGA version for Android tablets, with features like “moveable keyboard” that you won’t find anywhere else!
• To see which languages are supported on your device, check the language and resolution table
• Improved licensing: Swype will no longer be disabled after a reboot on some devices; added support for devices that don’t have a cellular radio (wifi-only tablets); no more license failures for CDMA devices in airplane mode.
• Simplified registration by allowing users to authenticate their email address directly through the installer
• Too many other improvements to list! Download Swype v3 NOW to explore everything the next generation of Swype has to offer!
• Limited End User Support – mostly via our forum
• If your phone came pre-installed with Swype
  DO NOT download this beta (it won’t work)

Swype has been the numbe ron alternative keyboard for Android for a long time and comes pre-installed on many new devices, but the beta is adding many features, the biggest of which is the new enhanced version for Tablets.

Being the first Honeycomb tablet available for sale the Motorola XOOM had the market cornered. At prices ranging from $600 to $800 it definitely weighed in as one fo the most expensive devices we’ve seen yet, and did rather well despite this. However now that we’re seeing more and more Honeycomb tablets hitting the market, the XOOM has lost this edge. So what happens now that these more affordable options come about sporting the same hardware? You wait for crazy sales on the XOOM of course.

As part of their daily deals for Father’s day Ebay will be offering select products for exceptional prices. Their most recent deal offers up the Motorola XOOM 32GB WiFi tablet at $500 easily making this a deal. With competitors such as the ASUS transformer selling in the ballpark of $400 this puts the XOOM back in the race. The only downside to this promotion is it’ll be over in 3 hours from now. If you’ve been trying to get your hands on a XOOM without traumatizing your pocket-book now is your chance to jump on it. Head over to Ebay and check it out, better yet pick one up.

Source: Android Police