Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging for an update. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it's easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don't escape without notice, we've gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery we could find during the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!

Continue reading Refresh Roundup: week of May 14th, 2012

Refresh Roundup: week of May 14th, 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 May 2012 18:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Each week Ross Rubin contributes Switched On, a column about consumer technology.

Fans of the Lincoln-Kennedy coincidences can appreciate similarly contrived dynamics in comparing Nokia and RIM (neither of which, contrary to the occasionally expressed opinion, has been murdered despite "Apple and Android" consisting of three words and 15 letters). Both companies are former smartphone market share leaders -- RIM in North America, Nokia globally. Both have had success in developing economies with efficient operating systems that they plan to support indefinitely. Both developed reputations for high build quality and good antenna design, and both were initially dismissive of the iPhone as they continue to see Android as the path to commoditization. And after precipitous market share declines, both hired new CEOs. Nokia, a European company, hired a CEO raised in Canada. RIM, a Canadian company, hired a CEO raised in Europe. These men now struggle with keeping their companies part of a viable alternative to the two dominant marketplace offerings.

Since embarking on their new operating system strategies, though, there have been many contrasts. While Nokia hired an outsider as a CEO, RIM hired an insider. Nokia decided to adopt a licensed OS; RIM decided to build its own (based largely on acquisitions). And now that both the Mobile World Congress and BlackBerry World conferences have passed, there's an opportunity to assess their comeback progress.

Continue reading Switched On: Clash of the troubled titans

Switched On: Clash of the troubled titans originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 May 2012 18:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

It's tough being the new kid in town -- ask Voyager Mobile, an up and coming MVNO that had its launch delayed by a "malicious network attack" last week. The tenacious firm may have missed its planned May 15th launch, but managed to pull things together in time for the weekend, piggybacking unlimited talk, text and data off of Sprint's CDMA and WiMAX network for $40 a month. A basic unlimited voice plan is also available to the tune of $20, without data allowances, of course. Phones are available too, albeit without subsidies -- Samsung's Epic 4G Touch or Galaxy S II will each set you back $550, though an assortment of more affordable devices can be had from $120 and up. Tempted to jump ship? Check out the source link below and let all your MVNO dreams come true.

Voyager Mobile shakes off network issues, launches a few days behind schedule originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 May 2012 16:50:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Still waiting for your HTC handset to make its way through customs? Ratchet your hopes just a smidge higher, because the company says it's making progress. "Some models have gone through inspection and been released to our carriers customers," the firm stated in an investor statement today. HTC explained that each of the contested models needs to be reviewed by officials before release, and assures customers that it is working with customs to speed along the process. Which devices are making it through? "We don't have the status of each specific device at this time," HTC says, "We remain confident that this issue will be resolved soon." Sure, that's not much to go off of, but we'll take what we can get.

Continue reading Customs slowly letting HTC handsets into the US, can't say which ones

Customs slowly letting HTC handsets into the US, can't say which ones originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 May 2012 16:20:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The at times very heated legal battle between Apple and Samsung might be softening just a bit ahead of truce talks on May 21st. Samsung's mobile head JK Shin just left Seoul for the mediated discussions saying there were still "several negotiation options" on tap, including the possibility of cross-licensing patents. He warned that there was still a "big gap" between the two sides, and we'd tend to agree -- neither Apple nor Samsung is exactly backing off just yet. However, it's a definite shift in language from March, when Shin was vowing "no compromise," and it parallels Apple CEO Tim Cook's own disdain for lawsuits. We just wouldn't bet money on the two singing "Kumbaya" this week.

In same breath, Shin added that an ongoing 4G chipset shortage wasn't letting up: he didn't see things getting better until the start of the fourth quarter, or October for us common folk. That's a problem for Samsung's phones and tablets most of all, of course, and in a dire case could see LTE-packing American Galaxy S III variants rely on other vendors' chips to stay on the 4G bandwagon. There's also a chance of a ripple effect on other companies that want Samsung's parts, but short of getting a peek at Samsung's inner workings, we won't know the full impact for awhile yet.

Samsung chief: we're open to a cross-licensing deal with Apple, but 4G chip shortage might last until the fall originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 May 2012 13:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

If you find yourself with nothing better to do this weekend, then you might have a bit of fun playing around with Samsung's soon-to-be-released S Voice application on your rooted Android 4.0 smartphone. The APK has now made its way into the wild, and we couldn't help but take it for a spin on our Nexus S. First off, while we can't vouch for the security of the file, we can confirm that it's indeed functional. Secondly, while some of the S Voice features work just fine -- such as search or contact queries -- other requests such as navigation repeatedly caused the app to crash. In other words, if you're expecting this app to behave as it should on the Galaxy S III, you might be in for a disappointment. If you're merely looking to poke around with the S Voice functionality, however, the download seems quite worthwhile. At this point, we're most curious to know whether non-Samsung owners have similar luck. If you're willing to give 'er a go, let us know your experience in the comments below.

Update: We've also now tested the leaked APK on our Galaxy Nexus, and are happy to report that S Voice works quite flawlessly. As always, your mileage may vary.

Samsung Galaxy S III S Voice APK leaked online originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 19 May 2012 21:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Not all mobile news is destined for the front page, but if you're like us and really want to know what's going on, then you've come to the right place. This past week, Verizon Wireless brought its LTE service to 28 new markets and expanded its reach in 11 additional areas. We also saw Straight Talk introduce the Samsung Galaxy Proclaim, and it appears that Rogers will soon offer the HTC One S. These stories and more await after the break. So buy the ticket and take the ride as we explore the "best of the rest" for this week of May 14th, 2012.

Continue reading Mobile Miscellany: week of May 14th, 2012

Mobile Miscellany: week of May 14th, 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 19 May 2012 21:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Going by Microsoft's Greater China COO Michel van der Bel, the launch of Windows Phone in China is off to an auspicious start -- enough to give Apple the shakes. He claims that devices like the Nokia Lumia 800c have helped Windows Phone reach seven percent of the Chinese market, or just enough to get past the six points of the iPhone. We're waiting on hard data before we take van der Bel's word: the top smartphone makers worldwide aren't depending much or at all on Windows Phone, and the iPhone has a thriving gray market in China that masks some of its real numbers. Having said this, we've seen signs of Windows Phone enjoying a bit of a surge even in an iOS- and Android-loving Europe, so we'll be watching to see if there's an uptick in the number of buyers saying ni hao to Microsoft in the near future.

Continue reading Microsoft exec says Windows Phone outselling iPhone in China

Microsoft exec says Windows Phone outselling iPhone in China originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 19 May 2012 18:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

What does one do after generating billions from an initial public stock offering? Go shopping, of course. After falling short of expectations following its somewhat helter-skelter IPO debut, Facebook simply shook off the whole thing and acquired itself some good Karma. No, we're not talking about that Karma. Instead, Facebook purchased the startup responsible for the Karma social gifting app. The move was apparently made to bolster Facebook's mobile chops -- an area the company considers ripe for opportunity. Just recently, Facebook also acquired mobile stalwart Instagram and the Lightbox team, for example. As for its newest purchase, Karma will be allowed to "continue to operate in full force" despite its recent status change, according to a blog post by co-founders Lee Linden and Ben Lewis. Details weren't disclosed about how much the deal was worth but judging from celebratory nature of their post, it doesn't look like Linden and Lewis will "Unlike" the agreement any time soon.

Facebook likes Karma app, buys the whole darn thing originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 19 May 2012 16:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The final significant roadblock to Google's buyout of Motorola has been cleared, as Chinese regulators have just given their rubber stamp. Their approval follows a few months after the simultaneous American and European clearances, and virtually all that's left now is to formally close the deal and start integrating the two mobile giants. It might still come too late for the combined entity to present a united front at Google I/O, but at least they won't have any awkward glances at each other across the room. We're just trying to decide on whether or not Googorola is the best pet name for the loving, $12.5 billion-dollar Android union.

Update: Google has since told the AP that the deal will likely wrap up early next week, so Motorola should be part of the family well in advance of Google I/O. Also, Google has to keep Android freely usable by anyone for at least five years, although no one was expecting that to change anytime soon.

China clears Google acquisition of Motorola, eliminates last barrier to Googorola bliss (update) originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 19 May 2012 14:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.