Android News

... Almost a year ago , HDR support came to Google Play Movies & TV by way of Google's 4K streaming dongle, the Chromecast Ultra. Now, compatible Sony smart TVs and the best Android set-top box in the game, Nvidia Shield TV, are getting support for HDR content from Google Play as well — but only if it's cast from another device. Of course, you can't watch HDR movies on just any old screen. You'll need a compatible TV — not every Sony set is HDR-enabled — as well as an internet connection that can manage a 4K video stream. The 4K/HDR support page recommends a connection that can maintain a stable download speed of 15 megabits per second or higher (Google's got a quick and easy test you can access by searching "internet speed test"). While it's a little vexing that you can't watch just HDR movies in the Play Movies & TV app that's already on your TV, the extra step of casting them doesn't take all th

If you've been keeping up, there have been several rumors that Google is getting into the gaming console market, at least indirectly. The Yeti streaming service, for example, was suggested to compete with GeForce Now and PlayStation Now, and recently some new interactions were tipped off for the Chromecast that would most likely be used […] Come comment on this article: More rumors point to Google entering the video game market Visit TalkAndroid #Google #Android #Smartphones #OS #News @ndrdnws #ndrdnws #AndroidNews

Free music seems to be making a comeback on Google Play Music. Once a relic of the past, free albums made a reappearance last week with Ariana Grande's "My Everything" and an ICON album featuring The Beach Boys. Four more ICON albums with Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn, Kenny Rogers, and KISS can now be picked up for $0.00 from Play Music as well. These ICON albums are collections of these artists' greatest hits, and each has 11-12 songs. Here are the links: It'll be interesting to see if Google continues to release some more free music. Note that these albums aren't available in all countries, but those in the US, Germany, Uruguay, Colombia, and probably some more seem to have had success in adding them to their libraries. #Google #Android #Smartphones #OS #News @ndrdnws #ndrdnws #AndroidNews

The latest update for Samsung Galaxy S8 / S8+ and Galaxy Note8 included a cool new feature that remain largely unnoticed. The functionality in question allows you to set a video as your lock screen wallpaper. Here's the feature in action on a Galaxy Note8: The functionality - which debuted on the Galaxy S9 series - arrived on the S8 series and Note8 with the update that also brought along the June security patch to these devices. To access video lock screen wallpapers, head to the Backgrounds tab of Samsung themes. In case you want to use one of your own videos as lock screen wallpaper, open the video in the Gallery app, tap the three dots menu icon present on the top right corner, and then choose 'Set as background.' Via #Google #Android #Smartphones #OS #News @ndrdnws #ndrdnws #AndroidNews

It's all Amazon Fire TV, all the time. OK, a lot of the time. Some of the time. The Amazon Fire TV Cube is now shipping, and we've reviewed the little box . The short version? It's really good, actually. But definitely not perfect, and maybe not for everyone. But there's a real reason to give it a good look. Have a taste: In hindsight, it's pretty clear exactly what we should have expected. Amazon Fire TV is a known entity. We've used it for years, and it's a great option for streaming TV. Amazon Echo is a great hands-free voice assistant thing. We've used Alexa for years. Combine the two in cube form, and we've got the Amazon Fire TV Cube. It sits atop the three current models of Fire TV, and is sort of an offshoot in the Echo line. A more capable Echo Dot, if you will. You plug it into your TV, teach it a little bit about what all you have hooked up, and it controls things reasonably well. Your display, speakers or sound bar, other

Users are advised to take a backup of SMS history on their Xiaomi Mi A1 before updating. File size of the Android 8.1 Oreo update is said to be around 1.2GB. #Google #Android #Smartphones #OS #News @ndrdnws #ndrdnws #AndroidNews

Welcome to the roundup of the best new Android applications that went live in the Play Store or were spotted by us in the previous week or so. This week I have a few exceptional apps I would like to highlights such as  Instagram Lite , BBC Sounds , and Navbar Weather. Heck,there is even an app for all you Pokémon GO fans out there with the release of Silph Road . So without further ado, here are the most notable apps released in the last week. Please wait for this page to load in full in order to see the widgets, which include ratings and pricing info. Looking for the previous roundup editions? Find them here . Apps Instagram Lite Android Police coverage : Instagram starts testing a Lite version of its app in Mexico [APK Download] With how bloated many of our apps have become, it makes sense that lite versions are releasing in droves for the ever-expanding Android market. An excess of cheap phones mean you will need apps that aren't resource intensive