Cell Bytes

Keep your eyes wide open for some hot Android 3.0-related info coming next week, maybe screenshots, maybe some details about the platform’s features, as the operating system’s SDK will debut in a couple of days or so. Rumor has it that the Gingerbread SDK will drop next week, but some say the version number might as well be a mere upgrade from Froyo – Android 2.5.

Access to the latest Android SDK means we’ll find out interesting stuff like the new API calls showing the OS features and see an emulator in action for details concerning the looks of the stock Android 3.0. Since Froyo was announced on May 20th of this year and Android has a rollout cycle of 6 months, we’re getting pretty close to its release.

However, the rollout could take a while, since not all handset makers will be ready at once, so the updates could drag into 2011. The arrival of Android 3.0 means that a bunch of tablets will also pop up, since there are some nifty devices that big companies have been holding back, waiting for Gingerbread to launch.

Remember “The Million Dollar Homepage”? This was the site that sold 1000 x 1000 pixels for cash, in order to promote various brands and now this idea has spawned a similar initiative, one focused on Windows Phone 7 apps. Dubbed The Windows Phone Apps Wall, this site sells tiny squares that will promote Windows Phone applications.

There are already 2 apps promoted within the site and we’re waiting for more as WP7 handsets launch all over the world in the following month. This original advertising method is one of the many PR stunts that will try to help the new MS platform reach the popularity of Android and iOS.

How does a developer or company get his app up there? They simply acquire a tiny space or maybe there’s an auctioning system, like on The Million Dollar Homepage. More info can be found on the Windows Phone Apps Wall.

TweetDeck has been collecting data, just like most modern companies and they’ve revealed some interesting facts recently. It appears that the Twitter client found info about some Android 3.0 devices being tested right now and also uncovered some HTC Glacier units with TweetDeck on board.

At least 3 people were spotted using the handset, while some even ran the client from their Nokia N900 and HTC HD2 units with Android ported on them. Motorola Droid 2 Global Edition was also included in the official figures. 103 TweetDeck Android users relied on HD2 units, 6 of them had Nokia N900 handsets and there was even an old HTC Kaiser in the stats, for people fond of oldies but goldies.

More info on the TweetDeck stats can be found here and we’re really keen on getting extra details on that appealing HTC Glacier.

Considered a Verizon response to AT&T’s HTC Aria, HTC Bee will come to Verizon, as it was recently confirmed by a leaked ROM. The picture below shows a press render of the smartphone, looking just like the blurry pictured published on a Russian blog recently. Pocketnow claims that this phone will rely on a QVGA display and it’ll run Android 2.2 Froyo.

A 528MHz CPU is also added in the mix, together with 384MB of RAM and a 5 megapixel camera with flash. Back to the leaked ROM, it actually mentioned that HTC Bee will be heading to Alltel Wireless, but since Alltel is part of Verizon, this pretty much explains the direction where the device is heading.

Motorola is working on a superphone with a dual core NVIDIA Tegra 2 CPU, we all know that, but we have close to zero info about it. Ever wonder why? For one, Moto is keeping the secret about the device and it’s also got a strict non-disclosure agreement with its partners, including NVIDIA.

What’s sure is that this device will come with Android 3.0 Gingerbread, after the OS gets released. Speculations claim that this superphone will make current Android devices look like toys, since it’ll provide 2x faster web browsing and up to 5x faster gaming performance, among others.

Also, Motorola wants to keep it a secret, else it would kill all the Moto smartphones available with Android 2.1 at Christmas time, because people will choose to keep their money and purchase the new phone. The company’s boss, Sanjay Jha considers this handset his baby and it most certainly will be, once Motorola splits into 2 segments and Jha leads the Moto Mobility one.

While some sources claim that the Droid superphone will only be sold by Verizon, it’s possible that the US phone maker uses a strategy similar to the one that involved Samsung Galaxy S, sold through all major carriers. To top it all, this new handset could support 4G LTE, putting the US carriers’ new networks to good use.

It appears some T-Mobile G2 users have been getting an OTA update recently, but it might be a limited test, not the final software. No direct link to the OTA download was found so far and screenshots from the already updated devices show features like native tethering and WiFi calling. Pictures are available courtesy of Stryf3.

Also, for those who already rooted their devices, the expert folks of the g2root IRC channel advise against performing the OTA update right now. Some commenters on Android Police have claimed that T-Mobile’s implementation is not UMA, as it doesn’t transfer the calls between WiFi and T-Mobile towers.

Who would have thought that geohot aka George Hotz, the teen who was the first to unlock the iPhone would stir so much passion that he would inspire a fan-made movie? It’s actually quite a decent production, considering it’s amateur work. Known as “The Official Geohot Movie Trailer”, this video celebrates the hacker’s achievements over the past years, both in jailbreaking and unlocking the iPhone.

Considering the huge box office success of the movie The Social Network, a real movie made for this story would probably cash in as well.

Evernote is continuing development on their note-synching and productivity app, and they’ve recently announced that the latest version – 2.0 – is in beta. The best thing about this announcement is that you can go and grab it from their site right now to try it out for yourself. They warn that – because this is beta software  - you’re at risk of losing any notes you take with this app. I wouldn’t bet on that happening, but a warning is a warning. So just what can you expect upon installing that .apk file? Glad you asked.

Take a nice look at this long laundry list of changes before heading over there to get your fix. (Remember that the file does not automatically update when Evernote releases a new version. You’ll need to make your way back to this page to download any future updates.) [via AC]

What’s new in Evernote 2 Beta
The Evernote 2 Beta is an almost total rewrite of Evernote for Android, here’s an overview:

Great new user interface
You’ll immediately notice our new, more intuitive home screen, which allows you to make notes, gives you a great snapshot of the things you have in your account and shows synchronization status.

Easier sorting and browsing
We made browsing notes, tags and notebooks much easier. You can group your notes by notebook, location, or month and use the scroller to switch between sections. Note sorting happens lickity-split and even works offline. You can also press and hold on any of the notes in a note list to quickly access options like edit, delete, note info, email or tagging.

You’ll noticed that we’ve changed the interface, adding a convenient header bar to make it easy to switch among searches, notes, tags, and notebooks.

Dramatically faster
Evernote 2 Beta dramatically improves browsing, viewing and searching through notes by downloading all data about your notes, such as tags, notebook names, saved searches, note titles, and thumbnails when you first launch the app. It will also do this periodically in the background to make sure you’re always up-to-date (only available on Android).

In addition, whenever a note is viewed or created on the device, it will be stored offline for easy access even when there is no network connectivity. This feature is available for both free and premium users.

The initial sync may take some time, so we recommend connecting your phone to a power source and turning on WIFI.

Offline notebooks for Premium users
Premium users get even more. If you have an Evernote Premium account, then you will be able to specify the notebooks that you want to be saved for offline viewing. Evernote will then download all the notes contained in those notebooks, including any attached images and files, and saves them all onto your device’s SD card.

Simpler note creation and multiple attachments
Creating new notes is now much more powerful, allowing you to attach as many images, PDFs or audio files as you’d like. In the new note and note editing screens, use the buttons in the header to add a picture, assign tags, switch notebooks, or pull in data from other application or your local files. We still have the quick snapshot note.

Sharing from other apps
You can capture information in other apps on your Android and send them to Evernote using the sharing option. We’ll grab the info and turn it into a note.

When viewing a note, you’ll see a little tab at the bottom of the screen. Flip this open and you can see all the notes in your current search. Scroll back and forth through the thumbnails to quickly switch between the notes. Also, you can tap the note title to see more note details.

Work in progress
There’s a few things we haven’t finished yet or aren’t working perfectly.

We’re still working out the kinks with sync, it’s a little early to rely on it offline for critical information. The initial sync takes a while.
Highlighting search results isn’t fully implemented
Editing notes is still in the early stage of implementation
Play back and recording of audio now requires a 3rd party application
Note tag dialog does not yet auto-complete tag names
Upgrading from 1.5 to 2.0 Beta a little rough so you may need to uninstall Evernote 1.5 before installing 2.0 Beta
We still have some polish to add to the UI