OnePlus Will Reveal Details Of Its ‘Oxygen’ Android ROM On February 12

OnePlus introduced its own version of Android for its One smartphone earlier this month in response to its standoff with Cyanogen, and now the company has revealed that it will unveil its own ROM which can be installed on third-party Android devices on February 12.

Correction: OnePlus told us that, in fact, it won’t launch the ROM on the 12th. This is a tease-of-a-tease, and instead we can expect to see “more information about the ROM” not an actual download. Furthermore, co-founder Carl Pei told TechCrunch that OnePlus is not going to release the ROM for third-party devices, though he suggested some fans will develop unofficial ports.

Named ‘Oxygen’, OnePlus described it as being “open, customizable, and free of bloat and unnecessary features,” but those are the only details you’re getting for now. That vague description chimes with the Android fork for the One, which is initially based on Google’s stock version of Android but will be tweaked with new features over time.

“We’ve spent a lot of time thinking about what this ROM means to us and our fans. We realized that, like everything we do, our true goal is to make the product that we ourselves would want to use—to make great technology more accessible for everyone,” OnePlus said in a post.

OnePlus’s entry into the software side of the smartphone business is an interesting one. Xiaomi was the first major company to develop both smartphones and its own operating system, and its success and unique identity has triggered a number of other firms to do similar. Letv just announced its first smartphone and own LeOS, while Cyanogen itself has grown its reputation through deals with Micromax and OnePlus, while — according to reports — there may be a tie-in with Microsoft coming.

Source: Techcrunch.com

Get Facebook Lite for your Android device

"Made for phones with limited space and connectivity, this may be the lightest version of Facebook for Android yet."

Facebook is testing a stripped down version of its mobile app that requires far less data, which could help increase usage of the social networking service among people with weaker Internet service or older phones.

Facebook “Lite” is available for devices running Android 2.2 and up. The size of the free app is 252 kilobytes, and it’s meant for 2G networks in areas with limited connectivity. Users can perform a bunch of basic functions like post status updates with photos, comment on people’s posts, message friends, have group conversations, and receive notifications. Posts from the news feed are meant to load quickly.

Early reviews on the Google Play store for the app have been positive, with many praising its low data and battery usage.

Facebook launched the app over the weekend in parts of Africa and Asia, said a report in TechCrunch. A Facebook spokeswoman declined to comment further.

The Lite app appears to be related to Facebook’s Internet.org project, which seeks to provide free access to Facebook and other basic Internet services in developing countries. The Internet.org app is already available in a handful of countries such as Zambia, Tanzania, Kenya and Colombia. In addition to Facebook, the app provides access to other services like the weather, Wikipedia, and health and educational information. Carriers can charge users for paid access to other services. In addition to Facebook, other founding partners of Internet.org include Ericsson, Nokia and Samsung.

With the Lite app, Facebook might be testing people’s responsiveness to a set of basic Facebook services without the ancillary ones. It may also help Facebook learn how it could further improve the functions of its Internet.org app.

Facebook tested a different stripped down version of its site in late 2009 and early 2010, although only for the desktop. It was shut down in April 2010.

Facebook has not made this slimmed-down version of its app globally available on the Play Store. If you want to check it out, you'll have to manually install it on your device. To get a copy of the app, visit AndroidPolice's APKMirror website and download it directly onto your device. After the download is finished, tap the notification and install the app. 

Source: CNET & CustomToday

Xiaomi Unveils MIUI 6 Android UI That Looks a Lot Like iOS 7

Xiaomi, as promised at the Mi 4 smartphone's launch, unveiled the next version of its MIUI user interface, MIUI 6, on Saturday at an event in Beijing, China.

MIUI 6, the new smartphone UI for Android-based Xiaomi devices, comes with major design refresh and also brings a slew of new features. Notably, the Mi 4 runs MIUI 6 out-of-the-box.

The company, also referred to as 'China's Apple', defined the new Android skin as "the best MIUI ever." However, as numerous industry pundits have pointed out, the new MIUI version noticeably takes a lot of design inspiration from Apple's iOS 7 and the newly announced iOS 8 smartphone and tablet operating systems.

The Chinese handset maker announced that the MIUI 6 is currently in beta testing with over 1,000 beta testers; though the number is likely to grow up to 10,000 people by Friday.

The company announced that the MIUI 6 developer version will be open to the public by September and will be rolled out to as 'final upgrade' to select Xiaomi handsets by October. 

The Xiaomi will begin testing MIUI 6 on the Mi 2, Mi 2S, Mi 2A, Redmi 1S, and Redmi Note by the end of this year, and updates for these devices can be expected to be rolled-out by next year.

Some of highlight features that the MIUI 6 brings is a brand new design (in what the company calls 'Content is essence' philosophy) with flat app icons. The company said at the launch, "MIUI believes that content is the essence, and has put that belief in the design of MIUI 6."

"MIUI 6 supports moving apps by holding on the app and switch screens. It has the most convenient icons organizing method, supports batch organize and delete icons," added the company.

MIUI 6 also brings a revamped camera app that will allow swipe down to switch between front and back camera, swipe left to launch menu panel, and swipe right to launch filters. The company has also re-worked the lockscreen notifications on MIUI 6, which will now appear as folded by default.

The new Android OS customisation adds a global search function feature that will allow users to place the search box anywhere on home screen, and even locate apps via it. Some other additions on the MIUI 6 include new Linux kernel and RAM optimisation techniques; new power-saving features to adjust the standby time of the device; 10GB free Mi Cloud storage space for storing images, contacts, messages, call logs and more, and the redesigned Mail app.

In addition to the iOS-styled flat icons and lockscreen notification on the MIUI 6, some of the app icons on the new MIUI appear to come straight from iOS 7 or iOS 8, like the calendar, compass, timer, and calculator.

What do you think of the new Xiaomi MIUI 6? Does it look like iOS 7? Let us know via the comments.

Source: NDTV

Sony’s Xperia M2 Aqua is a Waterproof Phone for Cheap

 

Sony just announced the latest addition to its Xperia lineup with the M2 Aqua, a water-resistant variant of its sleek mid-range Xperia M2. The new handset offers the same middle-of-the-road hardware and industrial design as the original M2, but adds the waterproof coating that’s helped the company carve out a niche in the smartphone market.

Just like the the Xperia M2, this water-resistant variant comes equipped with a 4.8-inch qHD display, a Snapdragon 400 processor clocked at 1.2 GHz, a 2300mAh battery, an 8-megapixel rear camera with a dedicated camera button and LTE capability. There’s no official word on software, though we’re guessing it runs Android 4.4 with a bit of Sony’s own stuff on top, including battery-saving Stamina Mode.

The Xperia M2 Aqua is set to launch this fall in Europe, South America and Asia, where it will probably cost a little more than the $300 Xperia M2. Unfortunately there’s no plan to ship the device to U.S. stores any time soon, though you’ll probably still be able to find one through a third-party reseller online. If you’re willing to pay a bit more, it might be worth waiting for the rumored Xperia Z3, which we have on good authority will be available from at least one American carrier when it hits the market.

Source: TechnoBuffalo

BBM Drops its Beta Tag and Goes Public on Windows Phone

BlackBerry Messenger is now officially available on Windows Phone after more than a month of beta testing. The app provides access to almost all of the BBM features you know and love, including groups, multi-person chats, and broadcast messages.

BBM for Windows Phone is unique in that it has its own clean and colorful user interface specifically designed to fit Microsoft’s smartphone platform. In comparison, BBM for Android and iOS was designed to look as identical to the BlackBerry 10 version of possible.

There are some downsides to the Windows Phone release, however, such as a lack of BBM Channels, no voice or video calling, and no Glympse integration. BlackBerry will be working to add these features in later, however, and the basic BBM functionality is still here.

In addition to standard one-on-one chats, you can enjoy multi-person conversations; the ability to send photos, voice notes, and your location; broadcast messaging; and BBM Groups, which lets you organize your contacts into categories like family, friends, and colleagues.

If you’ve been using the BBM beta release on Windows Phone, you should find the public version loads faster and is more responsive overall. It also fixes an issue for Spanish-speaking users that sometimes caused the app to load in English instead.

If you haven’t installed BBM on your Windows Phone device yet, you can find it in the Windows Phone app store now by following the link below.

Download BBM from Windows Phone Appstore

Source: TechnoBuffalo

How to Jailbreak iOS 7.1.2 using Pangu

Apple just released iOS 7.1.2 for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch for bug fixes and security updates.

The good news is that iOS 7.1.2 can be jailbroken using Pangu out of the box, so jailbreakers can safely update your iOS device to iOS 7.1.2, and use Pangu to jailbreak it.

Some important points before you proceed:

1. Please note Pangu is an untethered jailbreak for iOS 7.1, iOS 7.1.1 and iOS 7.1.2.

Pangu supports following iOS 7.1 – iOS 7.1.2 devices:

• iPhone 5s, iPhone 5c, iPhone 5, iPhone 4S and iPhone 4
• iPad Air, iPad 4, iPad 3, iPad 2
• iPad mini, Retina iPad mini
• iPod touch 5G

   

2. Please disable the passcode as the jailbreak may fail, if the passcode is enabled (Settings -> General -> Passcode Lock On -> Turn Passcode Off).

3. Take a backup of your device using iTunes or iCloud before proceeding.

4. Please ensure you’ve updated iTunes to the latest version.

5. Please note that jailbreaking your iOS device may void your warranty and hence proceed with caution and at your own risk.

Step 1: Download the latest version of Pangu jailbreak for Mac or Windows

Pangu 1.1.0
 

Windows version –  [Official, Mirror]
Mac version – [Official, Mirror]
 

Pangu 1.0.0 [Windows]

Or from official website http://pangu.io/

Step 2:

Mac users: Double click on the Pangu dmg file you just downloaded to mount it.

Windows users: Launch the Pangu exe file as an Administrator. Right Click on the Pangu exe and select the “Run as Administrator” option.

Step 3: You should be presented with a screen like the one seen below. Click on the black Jailbreak button.

Step 4: Follow the on-screen instructions. The app will ask you at one point to set your iOS device to June 2nd. To do this, go to Settings -> General -> Date & Time.

Step 5: After you change the date, it should restart the process and install the Pangu app on your iOS device.

Step 6: Tap on the Pangu app on the Home screen of your device when prompted to continue with the jailbreak process. You will get a warning message, which will ask you whether you are “sure you want to open the Application “Pangu” from Developer “iPhone Distribution: Hefei Bo Fang communication technology co., LTD?”. Tap on the Continue button to continue with the jailbreak process.

Step 7: Wait for your device to reboot several times. After a few minutes you should see that you have Cydia on your home screen and you’ll be ready to start installing tweaks on iOS 7.1.2. You can also revert back to set the time automatically via the Settings app.

Source: iPhoneHack

 

iOS 7 Jailbreak: iOS 7.1 Hacker Says Pangu Jailbreak Contains ‘Malware from China’

The jailbreak–released by Pangu–was tested on the update, and it can be used via both Mac or Windows.

However, Pangu was slammed by another hacker, jailbreaker Stefan Esser, who said the Chinese team stole some of his ideas and exploits. He described them as “thieves” and said the jailbreak contains “malware from China.”

Pangu’s tool provides an untethered jailbreak and was apparently overlooked by Apple during its most recent update.

“Yesterday’s iOS 7 update featured relatively minor tweaks and big fixes, but one of the more surprising things about it is what it didn’t address; It appears that the Pangu jailbreak tool — which can provide an untethered jailbreak using either a Windows or Mac computer — was not on Apple’s “To Destroy” list for the most recent update, as the software works on iOS 7.1.2 just as it did on 7.1.1,” says a report from Tuaw.com.

Jailbreaking allows Apple users to modify the iOS to install apps that aren’t permitted via the Apple Store. Apple isn’t fond of the practice and has tried to clamp down on it.

The Pangu jailbreak was released just a few weeks ago after a number of hackers attempted to crack the iOS 7.

It was originally written in Chinese but now it’s in English. The first release also prompted users to download the app store called 25PP, but that’s disabled for English users.

“Like the Evasi0n jailbreak for iOS 7, using Pangu is pretty straightforward once you download the tool. One weird thing you need for the jailbreak to work is to adjust your device’s internal date in Settings to June 2nd and turn off the ‘Set Automatically’ option. The tool will walk you through the process as you jailbreak,” says Cult of Mac.

The Evasi0n jailbreak does not work on iOS 7.0.6 or later.

Source: Epoch Times