Saturday, April 9, 2016

Samsung Galaxy Note 4 Getting Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow Update

Users from the US, India and Poland have reported that the Exynos-powered version of the Note 4 has been upgraded to Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow and even a guy from Turkey has shown some screenshots of the N910C model with the Screen off memo feature that was released for the Note 5.

SamMobile and Dutch Samsung blog, GalaxyClub, have reported that Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow started rolling out to the Samsung Note 4 N910C variant with an Exynos chipset. The installation file has a size of 1.3GB and contains the April Android security patch, which was released a few days ago by Google.

This new update comes with Doze, the standby power-saving feature, Google Now on Tap, better app permissions, but it isn’t known yet if the option to use the MicroSD card as internal storage is available, considering that the Note 4 has 32GB of memory, which can be expanded up to 128GB.

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Sprint's Samsung Galaxy S5 starts receiving update to Android 6.0

Sprint subscribers rockin' the Samsung Galaxy S5 should be happy. Their phone is in the process of receiving the update to Android 6.0. And that means that the device will receive Doze. For those of you who have been dozing, or dosing, this is a feature designed to increase battery life on your handset. This is accomplished by shutting down all apps running in the background once the device has been inactive for a spell.

Other new features include users being asked to approve or deny app permissions on a feature-by-feature basis, and Google Now On Tap. The latter uses the content on your screen to offer contextual search results. The new version of the software is G900PVPU3CPCA, and it includes the latest Google and Samsung Security patches and also kills bugs dead.

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Wednesday, April 6, 2016

How to secure Android: 14 top tips for securing your phone or tablet

Securing your Android phone or tablet is more involved than adding a PIN lock (although you should certainly do that). Here we run through 14 ways you can keep Android secure, from dealing with app permissions to locking down apps, dealing with Android viruses and tracking down a stolen phone.

Securing your Android phone or Android tablet is more involved than adding a PIN lock (although you should certainly do that). Here we run through 14 ways you can keep Android secure, from dealing with app permissions to locking down apps, dealing with Android viruses and tracking down a stolen phone.

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10 little-known features that can make your Android taste even sweeter

You may be making the most of your Android phone, but there is much more within your easy reach that can help you make your smartphone experience even better. And this doesn’t require you to put in much effort or install additional apps (in most cases). It only needs bringing to light some useful features sitting deep inside your Android device.

While some of you may be already aware of these tools, there may be many for whom this could be a revelation. These features are easy to use and can be enabled with just a few taps.

If you have more to add to this list, tell us in the comments below.

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Monday, April 4, 2016

Nexus April Android 6.0.1 Update: 5 Things to Know

As expected and right on time, today Google released its monthly Nexus Android update. Back in October when Android 6.0 and the Nexus 6P debuted, Google promised to delivery monthly updates as a part of a new security program for Android. February and March were both quick, and now April is here already with loads of important updates.

After Google, Samsung, HTC, and other manufacturers promised to do the same, and Samsung even released the April patch for the Galaxy S7 today as well. Starting today, April 4th, the April update is headed to all Nexus smartphones and tablets. Details are available on the Nexus security bulletin regarding what changes have been made, and updated factory images for users have been released at the same time.

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Google’s Nexus security update for April fixes 8 critical Android bugs

Google is releasing the monthly security update for its Nexus Android devices today and with it, it is also announcing a list of the security vulnerabilities it has patched in this release. This month, the update includes patches for eight critical bugs, including one that affects the infamous libstagefright library, which has already seen its fair share of well-publicized vulnerabilities.

Google notified its partners about all the issues in this new bulletin two weeks ago and for them (and anybody else who is interested), source code patches will be made available through the Android Open Source Project in the next two days.

Google notes that the most severe of this month’s issues would have allowed remote code execution on an affected device “through multiple methods such as email, web browsing, and MMS when processing media files.”

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Friday, March 25, 2016

Apple Music now has its own Android widget

Home screen widgets still don't exist on iOS, but that's not stopping Apple from taking advantage of Android's unique strengths. Today the company updated its Apple Music app with a new widget that can be dropped onto your phone or tablet's home screen. It's pretty basic (most music app widgets are, to be fair), offering controls for pause, skip, and going back to the last track. There's also a heart, so you can help influence Apple Music's future picks based on your tastes. Apple's is the top widget in the above image, with Spotify's Android widget below.

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