So what’s the big deal about Google TV getting Android 4.2

Google IO came and went and we were left with a huge itch for new Google TV devices. Needless to say nothing “exciting” was announced at Google’s yearly developer conference. In fact, Google TVwasn’t even mentioned during the keynote, but that doesn’t mean that it wasn’t a good year for us.

Google did announce that an update to Android 4.2.2 (and Chrome) would come to Google TV. Well, that’s pretty cool, right? We all love updates… but what is the big deal about it? Will it just helpdevelopers? Will it have some amazing new features?! Truth is, it probably won’t but it will improve the Google TV experience in the lung run. Here is how:

Apps, Apps And More Apps!

The biggest complain about Google TV is the lack of apps. Though it has enough to get us by, we don’t get even close to getting the amount of apps otherAndroid devices benefit from. LG mentioned that its TV sets would get Android 4.2.2 during Q3, and that the main upgrade would be the ability to access more apps designed for smartphones and tablets.

Of course, most of these will not offer an optimal Google TV experience, but at this point I will be happier with some weird-looking apps than with no apps. We do still wish more developers would jump on board with Google TV, though. Did you hear LG is selling 10,000 Google TVs per month in the US?Maybe you want to jump on board now, devs!

Better Performance And Speed

We must remember Project Butter was introduced in Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, which included a series of enhancements that made the OS much smoother and faster. This means Google TV’s Android 4.2.2 update should bring these enhancements as well!

Google TV devices are usually not the fastest. We won’t blame that completely on the software, as Google TV’s specs also tend to be less than premium. Software probably plays a big part, though, and we can expect this update to do wonders, just like Android 4.1 did for smartphones and tablets.

Wrap Up

This year’s Google IO focused mostly on developers, which means that it focused on you! What matters most is your experience with Google’s products and services. Sure, we would have loved to see some exciting new toys to play with, but at the end what will benefit you the most? A better experience, and this is what Android 4.2.2 for Google TV is all about.

You want more apps? You are getting them (albeit not exactly the way we wanted them). You want a faster, better device? You are getting that too! It’s a win-win situation, guys.

Review: Samsung Galaxy Camera

There was a time when people were required to snap photos and look for an usb to transfer all the pictures in to a pc. Instant sharing was almost impossible. It require sometime to shared on web especially on the social media. But, Samsung with its fascinating galaxy camera has made it quite easy. The galaxy camera from Samsung is not an ordinary camera. It has an android service attached to it, through which users can enjoy web surfing and can do instant sharing of the snapshots they have taken at the social media.

 

When you look it from the front it looks like a basic camera but turning it backwards shows a big 4.8-inch HD touch screen quite similar to Samsung Galaxy S3’s one. That is why; when you keep the touch screen upright it looks like S3 is on show. The camera consists of all the Google apps and also has LTE. WIFI is enabled and is updated up Android 4.1 Jelly bean update. The device doesn’t allows its users to do messaging or do calling as it doesn’t looks good with the design of the camera. But, the most worthwhile feature is instant sharing on the main of the phone icons of all the social media sites are provided so sharing is one click away after the capturing of the photos.

The camera has features of being 16.3 mega-pixels and has up to 21x zooming option. The shots taken from the camera were better than the snapshots taken from the either Iphone 5 or Samsung Galaxy. In natural lightning the picture result was good, but, in low lights the results weren’t that good. So, we can conclude are just average to what a typical camera results are.

• 16.3 megapixel BSI CMOS sensor
• 21x optical zoom lens, f/2.8-5.9, 23mm wide angle
• Optical image stabilisation
• 4.8inch 16:9 touch screen 1280×720 HD resolution
• 1.4GHz quad-core processor
• P/A/S/M Manual controls
• ISO100-3200
• 8GB memory built in
• Photo wizard, Best Group Pose
• Smart Content Manager
• Google Play Store – download apps etc
• 3G / 4G / Wi-Fi / GPS / Cloud backup
• Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean)
• MicroSD/SDHC memory card slot

The camera also has some fascinating features too. These include: best photo and continuous shoot. Best photo selects the best shot of the eight shots you have taken of a particular object. The continuous shoot allows continuous snapping of photos; this particular feature is worthwhile especially when you need a lot of pictures of some movement objects. One can also cover videos of up to 1080p quality. The camera has awesome editing features one can change the contrast of the pictures , add frames and can add a lot to the pictures and make the pictures one to be remembered all along the life time. 

Samsung Galaxy Camera Review!

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 could be 6.3-inch eight-core monster

Think the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 is big? Take note, because the Note 3 could break six inches.

The Korea Times quotes a Samsung boss talking about how the next Note will pack Samsung's eight-core chip and a bigger 6.3-inch screen than the current 5.5-inch display. If that does turn out to be the case, an extra inch on the diagonal is quite a boost -- in fact, that edges it towards the 7-inch territory of the Google Nexus 7 and other mini tablets.

Is that excessive? After all, the Note is meant to be big. But it's also meant to provide a middle ground between phone and tablet, and six or seven inches is getting too big to hold with one hand.

Underneath the screen, the Note 3 is expected to be powered by the newly announced Samsung Exynos 5 Octa processor, an eight-core behemoth of a chip.

The Octa features four low-power cores for everyday tasks, and switches to four high-performance cores for more intensive tasks. That way you get superb performance when playing fast-paced games, high-definition videos or heavy multi-tasking, but without draining your battery.

Whatever form the Note 3 takes, the Note and Note 2 were both launched towards the end of the year so we won't see the new model for a good long while yet. In the meantime check out our 25 Note 2 tips for getting the most out of your 5-inch phone.

Should the Note get any bigger or is already the right size? Tell me your thoughts in the comments or on our Facebook page.

Nexus 4 Review and Giveaway (video)

Nexus 4 Review and Giveaway - SoldierKnowsBest by soldierknowsbest

Top 5 Android 4.1 Jellybean Features!

The best of Android 4.1 Jellybean features on the Galaxy Nexus! Thumbs up!

1. 0:23 Project Butter
2. 1:30 Interactive Notifications
3. 2:56 Widgets and Homescreens
4. 4:04 Polish... The little things
5. 5:28 Google Voice Search / Google Now

Huawei Ascend Mate Size Comparison at CES 2013!