Category: Google Android

Upgrade Your X10 to Android 2.3 Gingerbread Now!

X10 owners around the world have been more than patient and the wait is finally over: Android 2.3 “Gingerbread” for your Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 is available right now!

Already a beautiful device when running Android 2.1 “Eclair,” things are definitely looking even farther up with all that Gingerbread has to offer. Click here for easy step-by-step instructions to upgrade your X10 to Android 2.3 – you’ll be done in minutes!

Need some incentive? The video below offers a quick overview of just some of what Gingerbread brings to the X10:

Android to Offer Baidu Search in China

Popular Chinese search engine Baidu has announced that their brand will begin to be set as the default flavor of search in all Google Android devices sold in China, effective as soon as Chinese provider’s make the necessary changes to their Android releases.

Given Baidu’s ongoing effort to push Google Search from the Chinese market once and for all, this move can only strengthen their position. Already holding about a 75 percent share of the search market compared to Google’s 19.6 percent, Baidu’s dominance of the fastest growing mobile platform in China means that the homegrown search engine will almost certainly see a big boost in market share, and soon.

Google Maps Hits 50 Million Downloads

A milestone has been reached in the Android Market with one app topping all others in the quest to hit 50 million downloads first.

The Google Maps application for Android-based smartphones hit the mark, given Google two reasons to celebrate. The success of the Maps app for Android dates back to 2009 when Google introduced full GPS functionality with turn-by-turn directions for walkers and drivers. This feature quickly became a staple of Android with the ease and dependability offered by Maps setting Google’s mobile operating system apart from its competitors.

The current version of Google Maps for Android, version 5.3.1, allows users to check-in to places they visit and integrate with the also-popular Google Latitude. Absolutely free of charge, Google Maps can be downloaded and installed on any Android device by simply visiting the Android Market.

Samsung Devices Get Android, Windows Phone 7 Updates

Updates from Google and Microsoft for two of Samsung’s most popular devices, the Google Nexus S and the Samsung Omnia, are currently rolling out though not everything is going as planned for everyone involved.

A tweet posted by Google’s Nexus Twitter account indicates that Google Android “Gingerbread” version 2.3.3 would begin rolling out with a window of “a few weeks” to get all Nexus S and Nexus One handsets updated. The update includes mainly bug fixes with no new major features being added.

Microsoft began rolling out an update of their own for the Samsung Omnia, one of the first Windows Phone 7 smartphones to hit the market last year, but problems reported by users following the update are giving others pause. The upgrade is a small one intended as a bridge to a bigger update expected next month that will include copy/paste functionality among other goodies, but Microsoft is backtracking at this point after reports of various problems. Microsoft says that they are aware of the issue and will have a fixed update prepared as soon as possible; Omnia owners may want to hit the “ignore” button on that update until then.

Free MapQuest App Launches For Android

MapQuest has launched a free app for Google Android-powered smartphones, offering a suite of tools at no cost to users.

The official free MapQuest app for Google Android offers no-cost voice-guided navigation with turn-by-turn directions, voice search, live traffic flow updates and a toolbar to assist in locating places of interest with intuitive support for both walking and driving.

MapQuest for Android can be downloaded for free from the Android Market.