KitKat claws 1.8 percent Android market share

According to stats published by Google, the newest Android release, codenamed KitKat, is powering under two percent of Android devices accessing the Google Play store.

The data, which is based on smartphones and tablets accessing the Google Play store over a 7-day period ending on February 4, 2014, shows that Android 4.4, codenamed KitKat, is installed on 1.8 percent of devices.

This time last month KitKat market share was at 1.4 percent.

(Source: Google)

Android 4.4 was release on 31 October, 2013, and first made its public appearance on the Nexus 5.

This latest version has a long way to go to catch up with the previous release, codenamed Jelly Bean. This release, which includes versions 4.1.x, 4.2.x and 4.3, power 60.7 percent of Android devices and makes it the single most popular version. However, Android version 4.1.x is the single most popular release, installed on 35.5 percent of devices.

This means that there's considerable fragmentation among devices running Jelly Bean, with the majority unable to benefit from features introduced in versions 4.2.x, 4.3, and now 4.4 as KitKat is rolled out to handsets.

However, Jelly Bean's nearest rival continues to be Android 2.3.x Gingerbread, a version first released back in February 2011, and this version continues to power 20.0 percent of the devices accessing the Google Play store. However, the good news is that this version's dominance is eroding slowly as the months progress, but it is likely to remain significant for at least another year.

The problem with getting users up to the latest version is not down to a lack of interest. Indeed, the speed and ferocity with which iOS users upgrade to the latest version shows that users clearly are interested in new versions of operating systems. The problem is that Google is the beginning of a long system that updates have to go through.

Whenever Google releases a new version of Android, device OEMs have to then customize the release, add their own tweaks and personalizations. Then, for smartphones and tablets that are hooked to a carrier contract, the carriers have to add their own branding. The problem is made worse by the fact that neither the OEMs of the carriers feel there's much of a benefit in pushing free software updates to customers, and would rather focus on selling owners a new device.

Beginning in April 2013, Google started delivering data collected from each device when the user visited the Google Play Store. Previously, the data was collected when the device simply checked in to Google servers. Google believes that the new data "more accurately reflects those users who are most engaged in the Android and Google Play ecosystem."

Source: ZDNet

Mozilla previews Firefox Launcher for Android with adaptive app search from EverythingMe

Mozilla today offered a sneak peek at its upcoming Firefox Launcher for Android. The organization has teamed up with EverythingMe, which will power the contextual adaptive app search.

The company says it will share updates as soon as “development is finished” and it prepares for a beta release. It wouldn’t offer any timing details so there’s nothing to mark on your calendar just yet. Update: EverythingMe tells TechCrunch a download will be available “in the coming weeks.”

As you can see, the early version of the launcher lets you group apps into categories and pin contacts for easy access. The search icon above presumably leads to EverythingMe while the microphone icon is probably the usual Google voice search on Android. There’s what appears to be an alarm clock app, but other than that other apps all look alike, with Chrome naturally swapped out for Firefox.

Other than that, Mozilla is throwing around phrases like “makes it easy to discover the content you want in any moment, “optimized for the way you use your phone,” and “a personalized and customizable Web experience that is fun and intuitive.” With no specific features to go on, it’s difficult to say whether this Android launcher will be able to differentiate itself effectively from the many options out there.

The EverythingMe partnership will be the key differentiator. An excerpt of our coverage from just yesterday seems particularly relevant:
 

EverythingMe released the first version of its Android launcher last year, with a search-focused approach. However, the Israeli startup found that not many people actually like to search on their phones, and you can be a lot more successful if you give users what they want, when they want it, without them having to do anything. In fact, they’ve found that there are 20 times the amount of interactions per day with their contextual homescreen than with the previous version.

Mozilla knows it will be very difficult to convince Android users to use its launcher over another. It’s hoping EverythingMe’s unique approach will help.

Source: TNW

Nokia's Android operating system pops up in leaked image

Evidence that Nokia is working on an Android phone is mounting. First, we got a glimpse of the hardware, codenamed Normandy, and today we're getting a first look at the software and operating system that will run on this rumored device.

The first images of the company's Android user interface were leaked by frequent Twitter tipster @evleaks. The images show a series of three design mockups of a what appears to be heavily-modified version Android on a Nokia device, but it's not clear that this operating system is in fact Android.

Cell phone manufacturers often modify the "pure" Android operating system released by Google to include their own designs and software features, such as Samsung's TouchWiz interface and S Voice voice-control service. Looking at the leaked photos, the OS looks more like a newer, more feature-rich version of Nokia's Asha operating system, which Nokia uses on its lower-cost Asha phones sold in emerging markets. It certainly doesn't look like any form of Android I've seen before, and it's nothing like Windows Phone either.

The leaked images reveal a few features inside the alleged Normandy phone, including support for two SIM cards (a popular feature in Europe, Asia, and South America), a pre-installed Skype app, and some sort of notifications system.

The notion that Nokia would be building an Android phone is a bit strange, considering Microsoft is poised to purchase Nokia's mobile business in a $7.2 billion deal announced in September 2013. It's entirely possible that Nokia was working on Normandy and its own version of Android before any sort of deal was discussed. It's also plausible that as Nokia has become more popular in emerging markets, where customers are seeking low-cost smartphones, Microsoft sees an opportunity to continue that vision with Android instead of the lesser-known Asha OS. Whatever Nokia's reason to build an Android phone, we'll keep you updated on this device as we learn more.

We've reached out to Nokia about the leaked photos, and the company said it doesn't comment on rumors or speculation.

Source: CNET

BBM for Android beta app update brings BBM Channels, BBM Voice and more emoticons

Weeks after BlackBerry teased that it'd be bringing BBM Voice and BBM Channels to BBM for Android and iPhone users, the company has done just that. However, the rollout is limited to members of the BBM for Android beta testing group for now.

BlackBerry today updated its BBM for Android app in the BlackBerry Beta Zone with support for both BBM Voice, which allows two BBM users to conduct free voice calls, and the BBM Channels social network that lets users follow and interact with their favorite brands and people. The updated BBM for Android beta also includes improvements to file sharing and more than 100 new emoticons.

BlackBerry previously only said that it would be bringing BBM Channels and BBM Voice to its Android and iOS apps sometime in 2014, so it's good to see that the device maker is rolling out the new features to its BBM for Android beta app less than a week into 2014. There's no word yet on when the goodies will be pushed to the public versions of the BBM for Android and iOS apps, but here's to hoping that since the Android beta app now includes them, it won't be long before testing is complete and they're pushed to us regular folk.

Source: Phonedog

BlackBerry bringing Channels and Voice Chat to BBM for Android and iOS next year

Remember how excited you were for BBM to hit Android and iOS and then BlackBerry continued to fake us all out with imminent releases? Thankfully, that's now all in the past and BBM is a reality for those of us not on BB10 devices, but still its feature set leaves something to be desired. The good news is that BlackBerry intends to flesh out BBM in 2014, though not just for the app.

So what's up ahead? Arguably, the most significant changes are coming to Android and iOS users in the form of BBM Voice and BBM Channels. Think of BBM Voice as you would Skype or Google Hangouts -- it's essentially a way for you to chat with your contacts without touching your allotment of minutes. And Channels, if you'll remember from our preview this past summer, is basically BlackBerry's spin on the social network. Both are already available for current BBM users running BB10, so this addition really just brings the rest of BBM's outsider base up to speed.

BlackBerry's also looking to make sharing with BBM a less cumbersome process in the new year. Though the company hasn't elaborated fully on just how it intends to make photo and voice note sharing that much speedier, it seems as if the process will soon require less fussy UI interactions. Users will even be able to divulge their whereabouts with BBM, albeit on a temporary basis and make use of over 100 new emoticons. All of this is coming "in the next couple of months," so if you need something to sate your curiosity now, check out the video after the break.

Source: engadget

Cyanogen gets $23 million for 'Android on steroids' operating system

You can add all the apps in the world to that phone in the palm of your hand.

But the device manufacturer still has more say over how your phone looks and works than you do.

Some people in the tech community don't think it should be that way.

"I am a big believer that if you buy one of these devices, you should have the freedom to do what you want with it," said Steve Kondik, co-founder of Cyanogen.

Kondik, with co-founder Kirt McMaster, takes the open source code Google makes freely available to create CyanogenMod, an alternative to the Android software that manufacturers put on mobile devices that is itself built on Android.

You don't have to be a hardcore geek to want to personalize your phone. More people are exploring modifying their phone's operating system to extend the life of older devices or breathe new life into devices with buggy software. Others are looking for features they can't currently get on their devices.

Kondik says Cyanogen can get rid of unnecessary software installed by device manufacturers so that Android phones run faster and batteries last longer.

Cyanogen also offers features that some Android phones don't, such as mobile Wi-Fi hot spots, a new theme or look for the phone or putting your name, not the wireless carrier’s name, on the home screen.

It also has its own bells and whistles. One app lets you see at a glance all of your most recent conversations, whether on text, email or social networks. A privacy feature keeps apps from snooping on your personal information. And for true NSA-phobes, there’s a feature that encrypts text messages so you can have secure communications.

"We are like Android on steroids and LSD. There are a bunch of features we enable that Google does not enable," McMaster said.

The company, which has offices in Seattle and Palo Alto, announced Wednesday it has raised $23 million from venture capitalists. It said in September it had raised $7 million.

Cyanogen, which currently has 22 staffers, plans to hire as many as 60 more over the next nine to 12 months as it ramps up its operations and looks to break into the mainstream, McMaster said.

Andreessen Horowitz and other investors are betting the average Android user is going to see the benefits of breaking free from their phone's preinstalled operating system.

"Because consumers are clamoring for increased personalization and customization options, the Android open source community has been happily taking up the task of fulfilling that demand," said Andreessen Horowitz general partner Peter Levine. "We believe that [CyanogenMod] has the opportunity to become one of the world's largest mobile operating systems."

Analysts say it will be some time before the concept of modifying your phone goes mainstream.

"Mainstream consumers are not comfortable with installing system software unless it is packaged in a bulletproof manner and supported by the device maker," said wireless industry analyst Charles Golvin. "While these cooperative development efforts deliver meaningful benefits they will remain attractive largely to those who possess the technical chops to understand and be comfortable with the implications of installing a system-level update like Cyanogen."

Kondik started building Cyanogen in 2009 when he was developer in Pittsburgh. He said he was simply trying to "scratch my own itch" and add some features to his own Android phone.

At the time, you had to be pretty technically adept to customize your phone. Not anymore, Kondik said.

And that's why he and McMaster have taken what was at first an open-source project and turned it into a commercial venture.

Now they are looking to reach beyond Android hobbyists to people who are increasingly interested in personalizing their phones.

Cyanogen's basic service will be free of charge, they said. In the future, the company plans to charge for premium features. It's also shipping preinstalled on the Oppo N1 and Cyanogen says its operating system will ship on more devices.

But can Cyanogen break into the mainstream?

Though Cyanogen has ambitions of becoming a major force in mobile as an alternative to Apple's iOS and Google's Android, it's for now still a niche player. It says it tracks nearly 11 million users but thinks that's a conservative estimate.

Cyanogen has had some hiccups. It launched its installer app in the Google Play store in November. But Google asked Cyanogen to remove it because of concerns that it encouraged users to void their warranty by gaining root access to their Android phone and not giving consumers an easy way to return the device to its original state.
 

"We are actively talking" to Google, Kondik said. In the meantime, you can still download it from the website http://www.cyanogenmod.org/. 

Source: Los Angeles Times

Android customizer Cyanogen notches $23M

 

Talk about a mobile revolution.

A growing software movement is quietly taking hold on Android-based devices, allowing people to customize smartphones and tablets more to their liking.

What's known as Android "software mods" can soup up devices with mobile Wi-Fi hot spots, new looks, alternative text messaging and more. Personalizing Google's operating system has morphed beyond geeky obsession as a means to add new features.

Startup Cyanogen is leading the way. With "tens of millions" of installs, today it announced $23 million in funding for its popular CyanogenMod mobile software.

"Currently, we're like Android on steroids and LSD. There's a bunch of features that you can't get on stock Android ... that you just can't do with any other OS," says CEO Kirt McMaster.

Formed in 2009, Cyanogen is the brainchild of founder Steve Kondik, who launched his Android modification, now dubbed CyanogenMod, into the open-source software community. Developers can make their own modifications to the code to bring new features, and such enthusiast ideas can be adopted by Cyanogen.

"There's kind of a whole underworld," says Gartner analyst Brian Blau of those modifying operating systems. "It totally makes sense, but they have a lot of competition."

Cyanogen's development team wants to make customizing Android phones more accessible to the masses. The startup last month launched an installer in an effort to automate the installation process that was otherwise reserved for the ultra-tech savvy.

"The market is speaking, a revelation is under way here in the sense that users want a 100% compatible OS that is all about customization and personalization," says Peter Levine, a partner with Andreesen Horowitz. "I believe that trend will only continue."

Cyanogen's McMaster says the startup's variant of Android can boost battery life on devices. But he also says that there are a lot ways that apps will be able to communicate and work together to enhance device capabilities in ways standard Android versions and Apple's iOS can't.

Andreessen Horowitz led the funding round in Cyanogen and included participation from Benchmark Capital, Repoint Capital and China's Tencent. The investment in Cyanogen will be used to hire developers to boost the software's functions and ease of use. The investment round brings Cyanogen's total funding to $30 million.

Source: USATODAY