Google TV gets Google Play — Movies, TV Shows and Music gets release date of ‘next few weeks’

 



If you’re using Google TV, this should brighten up your day. Google finally updated Google TV to enable users to purchase movies, TV shows, and music from the Google Play Store.

Movies, Music and TV shows are finally coming to Google TV via Google Play. This means that you can buy or rent content directly through Google Play on your TV, while any existing purchases you’ve already made through your Android phone or tablet will be automatically imported when you connect your Google account. You can also discover new content through its TV & Movies app, which reels in recommendations for shows and movies available on live TV, as well as competitors such as Netflix and Amazon.

Whether you’re using the Google TV service through set top boxes or a Google TV integrated TV set, you can find new content from the Google TV & Movies app. The app also includes a recommendation feature that will suggest shows from Google Play and even from its competitors including Amazon and Netflix.

Google has not revealed any information at this point on regional availability of this content outside the US market. The update has already started rolling out today, and should continue pushing out over the next few weeks.

Aakash to have Ice Cream Sandwich pre-installed, and price of just $35 over time

 



Aakash is first in a series of Android-based tablet computers produced by British company DataWind. It is manufactured by the India-based company Quad. The Aakash tablet, initially launched at a record low price of $50, and meant for distribution to University students, is also considered to be the cheapest Android tablet in the world.

Indian Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal, announced yesterday that the latest iteration of the Aakash Tablet would be made available to students across the nation on November 11th.

The Aakash tablet will pack a 1 GHz processor, four hour battery capacity, and will run Android 4.0- Ice Cream Sandwich  out of the box. Priced at $49, Mr, Sibal also said that with the setting up of core manufacturing processes within India, the price is expected to go down to $35 over a period of time.

Quoting Mr. Sibal :

“At the moment, we are actually formulating a Cabinet note for the manufacturing of five million Aakash tablets without any financial burden on the Ministry of Finance,”

With the easy availability of a variety of low as well as high-cost tablets in the Indian Market, it is indeed encouraging to see a product developed for the student niche. If you have any thoughts, do let us know in comments below

Firefox Beta updated to support ARMv6 devices

 



The Firefox Beta browser by Mozilla has received a major update in the Google Play Store, adding support for ARMv6 processors running at at least 800MHz (devices such as the Galaxy Y have an ARMv6 processor). Being a bit resource heavy, I didn’t think Mozilla would be able to pull this off, but it’s nice to see that they did.

There are some other nice changes and improvements as well in the update. Here is the full list:
Support for ARMv6 phones with at least 800MHZ processor and minimum 512MB RAMNew Reader Mode for easy readingShare tabs with desktop/mobile devices using syncFixed Text Selection for static web pagesUnprefixed CSS3 Animations, Transitions, Transforms and GradientsOpus SupportImproved JavaScript responsiveness
Grab the update from the Play Store by hitting the link below. Do let us know how Firefox runs on your ARMv6 phone.


Android Apps, Firefox Beta, updates

32 GB Nexus 7 is so real, now that it’s been actually delivered

While there have been rumours and reported sightings of a 32 GB version of the Nexus 7 in the retailer databases of CPW or Carphone Warehouse and another reseller, one never really knew for sure whether Asus was actually working on higher storage capacity variant of this awesome tablet, with the available options being limited to just 8GB and 16GB.

A Japanese youngster recently ordered a 16GB Nexus 7 from the Google Play Store, and was pleasantly surprised when he received a Nexus 7 32 GB in the mail, most likely due to a shipping error, considering how tight-lipped Asus and Google have both been about this version. Well, that puts all the speculation to rest.

This not only confirms that the 32GB version does really exist, but that it is available in retailer warehouses, ready to be shipped out once announced. It is expected to have the same technical specs of its lower capacity siblings, with just the storage memory increased.

Rumour has it that the Nexus 7 32GB will be launched on October 28th, which is coincidentally (or conveniently) just 2 days before Microsoft’s Windows 8 launch. Availability details across geographies is not known as yet, but is likely to be imminent.
Nexus 7, nexus 7 32 GB

$99 Google Nexus tablet to enter production in December. Jan-Feb Release Date looks probable!

ASUS might have denied rumors of a $99 Nexus tablet, but according to NPD DisplaySearch analyst Richard Shym, the sub-$100 tablet might be in the works after all and could enter production in December, which would make a release in January or February of 2013 likely.

Of course, expecting the $99 Nexus to carry a quad-core processor might be wishful thinking, but we can at least expect it to sport a capable dual-core processor like the Snapdragon S4. But no matter what the underlying hardware might be, a price of $99 will perhaps make it the most affordable Android tablet at that price and spell more trouble for the iPad’s market share, which is already dwindling rapidly.

Then there is also the rumors of Google collaborating with Samsung to produce a 10.1? Nexus tablet with a display having a pixel density of 299ppi, which if true could mean that Google is targeting every segment of the tablet market that exists, which can only be good for us consumers.

Stay tuned for more info on this. Either ASUS is telling the truth and there is no $99 Nexus tablet, or Google has chosen another manufacturer to do the job. Either way, we should know hear more in the coming weeks. Come on Google, let it all be true!

ZTE T81 announced for Australia. Specs include 1.5 GHz dual-core S4 processor, 4.3″ TFT display and Android 4.0

 



ZTE is firing on all cylinders in their quest to spread out to other markets outside China, announcing and releasing many new Android devices in the past few months. The latest device to be announced by the company is the ZTE T81, a dual-core Android smartphone destined for Australia.

The processor powering the T81 is a 1.5GHz Snapdragon S4, making it one of the few high-end devices by ZTE. The display is sized at 4.3-inch LCD of qHD (540×960) resolution, and the OS is powered by Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich. The T81 will also support Australia’s 4G LTE networks.

Here are the official specs of the T81:
Dual-core 1.5GHz Snapdragon S4 MSM8960 processor1GB RAM4.3-inch qHD display8 megapixel c camera, 1080p HD recording4GB storage, microSD support up to 32GB1900 mAh batteryAndroid 4.0.4 Ice Cream SandwichZTE hasn’t announced any pricing or info on the release date, so stay tuned for those tidbits of info in the coming weeks.

Sony puts hold on sales of Xperia Tablet S in US after discovering defect, over 100,000 already sold

Before you dip that new Xperia Tablet S of yours in water to test its water resistance, stop! It turns out that due to a defect in the manufacturing process at the Chinese plant where the device is fabricated, some of the Xperia Tablet S have a gap between the screen and the case, making them susceptible to water damage.

Sony has currently halted all sales of the tablet till the problem can be resolved. Around 100,000 Xperia Tablet S have already been shipped since its release in early September, and Sony has announced that they will fix any tablet that has already been sold.

While this isn’t going to cause a serious problem unless someone willingly puts their Xperia Tablet S in water, it’s still a matter of concern since the tablet is marketed as being water-resistant. For now, make sure you keep your Xperia Tablet S away from anything in the liquid form, and also head to the nearest Sony repair center to turn it in for repairs.