Android App of the Day: Skifta

Unless you've been living under a rock the past year, you've probably seen the Samsung Galaxy S3 commercial showcasing how you can "share pictures instantly" (with the baby picture). If you haven't, it's right here

Allshare Play is the app used to accomplish this with Galaxy phones....but what if you don't have (OR LIKE) Allshare? THAT'S where Skifta comes in!

Both Allshare Play and Skifta use DLNA (Digital Living Network Alliance) technology. This allows you to share photos, videos, and music within a network between compatible devices. So for example if you have a Smart Tv which is "DLNA Certified" you could access your files on your phone from your TV! The most common DLNA compatible devices are Computers, Phones, Tv's, Blu Ray Players, and Consoles. What Skifta allows you to do is access these devices easily, and it allows your device to be accessed as well. To test it out, try it with your computer!

- First download the app here
(During the setup, I'd recommend making a username and password. It requires no confirmation and gives you access to the apps full potential for free)

-Next on your computer (I have a PC so here are the windows instructions)
- Open up Windows Media Player
- Click "Stream"
- Select "Automatically allow devices to play my media" (this will allow any device with DLNA capabilities that has joined your private network to be able to access your music, videos, and pictures.)
- If you don't want to allow all devices on the network, click "More streaming options" and configure the devices you allow.

-On your phone start Skifta if you haven't already
-Connect to the wifi network your computer is on
- Click "Choose a media source" and choose which computer in the network you want to connect to.
-Next Select "Choose a player" and select your phone.

Now if you open up windows media player and look under the "Other libraries" section, you should see your phone. You can access the media on your phone from the computer! When you go to your phone and browse the media, you see everything that you're sharing to the computer.

To have some more fun let's switch this:
-Set the source as your computer and your phone as the player

Now you should be able to see all the media on your computer and you'll be able to play any song or video.

Have a PS3? Connect it to the same wifi network as your phone, cut on Skifta, and then on your PS3, navigate to the media server. You'll be able to access the media from your phone or computer if you connected it to that instead.

If you registered, you now have remote functionality!

To enable this, go to windows media player, click stream, then select "Allow remote control access of my player"

Now select your phone as the source, and windows media player as the target.
Now when you click on pictures, music, or video, they will show up on your computer screen in windows media player!

Skifta also gives you functionality to add channels, which will allow you to do things like view your instagram photos on any device, or stream from r.dio.

All in all, Skifta is a cool app which makes great use of DLNA technology. You can easily display media on a friends phone as well, and if you want to show off a photo, you can have everyone in the room check out that photo. It doesn't have group cast photo like Allshare does though, but it's ability to be used on any DNLA device instead of just Samsung devices more than makes up for it! I know this was a long app of the day entry but try it out and tell me what you think! Also I HIGHLY recommend downloading the pc portion of Skifta here. You'll have to make a Windows Live ID to get everything working completely though. This will enable you to access your home network without being on the same wifi network. So for example with my Sprint 4G, I can still stream media from my home computer to my phone (albeit slower). Check it out and I think it's a pretty clear winner which phone dominated 2012, but there are still 3 days left to vote! Thanks for reading!

How to Root Your Galaxy S3

Note: The hardest part about rooting the Galaxy S3 is just getting it in the damn modes lol  I'll walk you through but I'll also have attach a video for you to follow along with just in case. 

First off, if you need an overview for what rooting is all about, I invite you to read this wonderful post here before we begin.

This root method works for the Sprint/AT&T/T-Mobile Galaxy S3's. If you're on another carrier it may not work and therefore is not worth the risk. 

The files you will need are:

 Root Zip - http://k0nane.info/rom/ecm/TeamEpic-Root-from-Recovery-v5.zip 

 The most important link. This is what will actually give you root access. Put this on your sd card (internal or external) and make sure you LEAVE IT ZIPPED.

Samsung Drivers -http://downloadcenter.samsung.com/content/SW/201206/20120620050453899/Sprint_L710_GSIII_Samsung_USB_Driver_v1_4_6_0.exe

Gotta have drivers so your computer can recognize your phone.

Clockworkmod Recovery - http://k0nane.info/rom/ecm/CWM-Recovery-LTE-SGS3-v5.tar.md5

Put this file on your desktop or somewhere you wont forget it. Make sure to extract it if you need to.

A recovery is the mode used to install updates and factory reset your phone manually. Just in case you can't get your phone to boot up. It's a mode which allows you to recover your phone still even if no operating system shows up. With a CUSTOM recovery, instead of using it to put the regular operating system you would put if you need to recover your phone, you'll put a CUSTOM one on there instead. The OS's that you put on are called ROMs. What you're on right now is a STOCK ROM so that's the ROM that comes fresh out the box. What we're going to do to start you off is add root capability to the STOCK ROM. That way you get the best of both worlds until you are ready to go full custom.

Odin - http://k0nane.info/rom/ecm/Odin3-v3.04.zip 

Odin is a special tool that is used to Root and add custom things to Samsung phones only. This is the tool we're going to put the custom recovery on with. Make sure you extract this.

So here is a quick overview of what you'll need to do.

We're going to install the Samsung Drivers so your computer and Odin can recognize your phone. Then we're going to use Odin to put a temporary custom recovery on your phone. Once you are in the temporary custom recovery, we're going to install the root zip. Then you're done! Easy right?

To get into Odin mode (or Download mode) you turn off your phone, then once it's completely off you're going to turn it on and hold the POWER, HOME, and VOLUME DOWN buttons before you see any text. Once some text flashes you should see like a warning message shortly after. THAT'S when you let go. If it still is turning on and you never get the warning message, you gotta power down and try again. 

To get into recovery is much easier. Power down your phone, and then when it's completely powered off, turn it on and hold the POWER, HOME, and VOLUME UP buttons this time. Look for some tiny blue text to flash for a split second in the top left corner. Once you see it, let go and you'll be in Recovery. 

NOTE: 

If your phone starts to load the Stock ROM when you boot it up, it will erase the temporary custom recovery and replace it with the stock recovery. Therefore, it's imperative that after you finish using Odin when you reboot your phone you have to get it into the custom recovery or else you have to re-do the Odin portion. 

Here is a step by step breakdown:

1. Download and install the Root.zip and place it on your internal or external sd card.

2. Download and install the Samsung Drivers

3. Download and extract the Odin tool

4. Unplug your phone (if it's plugged in)

5. Run Odin as an administrator.

6. Uncheck auto reboot

7. Put your phone into download mode (Turn it off. Then once it's off, turn it on and immediately hold POWER, HOME, and VOLUME DOWN)

8. Once in download mode, press Volume Up to continue

9. Plug in your phone to the computer. If done correctly, a blue box should pop up in Odin with the word "Added!" inside.

10. Click the PDA button and select your recovery tar file. 

11. Once the file has been selected click "Start" to start the Odin process.

12. Once completed, you should see the word "PASS." Once you see this word, unplug your phone and turn it off (pulling the battery is the best way to ensure power off)

*NOTE: THIS IS THE IMPORTANT STEP! IT WILL NOT BRICK YOUR PHONE BUT IF YOU DON'T GET THIS RIGHT YOU HAVE TO START OVER AT STEP 7*

13. Turn on your phone and immediately hold POWER, HOME and VOLUME UP. If done correctly you will be in your custom recovery. It should be turquoise color and have many options.

14. To navigate the recovery, you will use volume up and down to move up and down, power button to make selections, and back button to go back.

15. Once here you will go to the "install from sd card" option. If you put the root.zip on your internal sd card (the one you can't take out) then select install from internal sd card. Vice versa for external.

*NOTE: This next step is how you're going to install custom things on your phone from now on. You will boot into recovery, wipe your data and cache's, and install ROMs, Modems, Tweaks, anything via recovery.*

16. After you have installed the root zip (the text will tell you when the process is completed) go back to the main screen and reboot your phone. CONGRATULATIONS! YOU NOW HAVE ROOT!

Now that you are rooted, you can download special apps that require root like ad blockers (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.adaway&feature=nav_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwyLDNd ), but you won't be able to enjoy all the advantages of being rooted until you install a custom ROM or Kernel. When you are ready to do so, you will have to backup your texts, contacts (verify that your contacts are backed up), and apps (note, never backup system apps, only apps you can download from the playstore), use Odin to put the custom recovery back on, wipe data (if installing a ROM), cache (located in cache section on main menu), and dalvik cache (located in advanced section of main menu) , then install the ROM or kernel. Once you have done this you will have a permanent custom recovery until you change ROMS or kernels again. 

Here is the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=XoEVDgjTTdg

And instructions (If you didn't like mine): http://www.epiccm.org/2012/06/cwm-recovery-on-all-sgs3-lte-variants.html

Also for ROM locations, I personally like to use xda-developers to search. When you are ROM and Kernel shopping, make sure to read the posts to see the experiences others are having (good battery life, bad apps etc...) and always always ALWAYS! Read the instructions before flashing a ROM to make sure you do it properly. The ROMS and Kernels are in development sections and the themes and apps are in the themes sections. General section has general topics about the phone, and Q&A is self explanatory. 

Here are the forum links:

Sprint: http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=1707

AT&T: http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=1705

T-Mobile: http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=1706

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions!

Android App of the Day: SUPER VIDEO! Watch videos and do anything else on your phone at the same time

One of the coolest features about the Galaxy S3 is that you can watch videos and then make a popup of the video and use your phone as normal all simultaneously. However, this cool feature is only limited to videos that can be opened in the stock video player (so no youtube). This app takes that functionality, gives it to ALL (except Jelly Bean users) Android phones, and even allows for youtube videos! There are 1 or 2 additional apps that need to be required to get it going but follow the directions and you'll be fine. Unfortunately, for those on Jelly Bean or higher, this app will not work if you don't have flash. I'm on a Jelly Bean ROM and supposedly have flash but it only works for web browsing and not for this app. They include a link to download flash if you don't have it anymore but it didn't work for me. Anyway! Check it out and show off to your friends how you can watch videos and text at the same time!



https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=gpc.myweb.hinet.net.PopupVideo&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsImdwYy5teXdlYi5oaW5ldC5uZXQuUG9wdXBWaWRlbyJd

Taking Your Phone To the Next Level: An Overview on Rooting!

Finally, the much anticipated Rooting series has come to the blog! Over the past few months, more and more of you fellow Android owners have wondered just what "Rooting" is; what's it for, is it dangerous, why do it?  In this overview my goal is to clear it up as much as possible, and in future segments dive a little deeper into the subject. So, without further ado!

What is Rooting?

Well rooting your device gives you administrative control over your phone. You get access to the root directory and in doing so, have direct access to the system files that reside there. With this new found access comes the ability to install custom firmware, as well as modify anything on your phone. Not being rooted is akin to not having administrative access on windows, or having some parental controls on your web browsing. You can do a lot, but there are boundaries. When you root your device, you now have the ability to enhance, tweak, or bork your phone as you see fit.

What are the benefits of rooting?

As you know by now (I hope) rooting gives you administrative access over your phone. Some of the things you will be able to do are

- Upgrade your software to the latest version of Android (or a more recent one)

- Install custom firmware which comes with all sorts of new tweaks, enhancements, and features (for example Beats audio)
- Install new apps which allow you to tweak your phone (like being able to change the boot animation, installing fonts you wouldn't be able to normally, applying a theme otherwise unavailable, calibrate your battery etc...)

- Uninstall apps you don't want (like bloatware)
- Improve your phone's performance via Overclocking (speeding up the cpu in your phone to work harder and produce better performance)
- Improve battery life through underclocking and unvervolting (slowing down the cpu in your phone to a lower frequency which uses less battery power, as well as lowering battery output to save battery)
- Unlock tweaks that you would previously have to pay for (free wifi tethering)
- Enable functionality your phone initially did not have (For example screenshot for older devices)

Is rooting dangerous? Will I void my warranty?
Well as stated earlier, when you root, you have the freedom to make or break your phone really. Breaking your phone is called bricking it (because that's what it becomes when you mess it up that bad). Also as long as you are rooted, you are not covered under warranty. However, you can always unroot and return to stock to be covered under warranty again (Granted if you brick your phone, unless they use a special process called a J-Tag (which may or may not work) it's not like the carrier can know you were rooted anyway).

What are the chances of me bricking my phone?
In my personal experience the chance of bricking your phone is low, but it really depends on how well you can follow directions and read. Bricks are very real and can happen, but once you root, it is your responsibility to do ample research before you flash any new firmware on your phone. "With great power, comes great responsibility" definitely applies to this process. 

Is rooting my phone easy?
Some devices are easier than others. For example Samsung phones are well regarded as the easiest phones to root. Samsung will even attempt to restore your phone if you brick it (but won't replace it) and support the root community. HTC phones, Motorola phones, and phones on some carriers usually are harder to root because they come with locked bootloaders. When a bootloader is locked, you can't install customer firmware on the device. Therefore that's an extra step that needs to be taken in order to get the full root experience. Not to mention S-On and S-OFF (commonly found in HTC Phones) which prevents some changes from being made to the system partition. So yes, different phones come with different levels of root difficulty, and the older your phone is, the less available working resources there are to root your phone. Often times necessary files and applications will be long deleted if your phone is old or not very popular. With other phones, rooting can be as simple as one click. 

Will you root my phone for me?
I'd gladly walk you through the process and answer any questions you may have, but since rooting your phone is a big step and a big test of personal responsibility and accountability, I don't think it's wise to do the work for you, because eventually you're going to want to flash something else and I won't be there to do it for you everytime you want to try something new. You have to learn it on your own. (It's not hard though). 

All in all, I HIGHLY recommend rooting for all Android users who want to get the most out of their phones. High end stock Android phones are already better than iphones. Rooting your device makes them even better. With a rooted phone, you could essentially have a new phone every week if you chose. Don't like something? Uninstall it. Is there a process on your phone that's acting up? Freeze it. Not getting good cell service with the modem you have? Install a new one. The possibilities are absolutely huge. If you're responsible, understand that there will be a lot of reading and learning involved, and are ready to take your phone to the next level, I welcome you to the rooting community, and hope you enjoy the rest of the series that is to come!

Please leave any questions/comments/concerns/suggestions/observations in the comment box below! And don't forget to vote up top for which phone you think will be the top phone of 2012! Thanks for reading!

Android App of the Day: GSAM Battery Monitor!

Today's App of the Day is GSAM Battery Monitor! This app is free (pro version available) and offers a more in depth look at how your battery is being allocated. This is useful for identifying troubling apps and modifying their sync patterns or uninstalling them. Download from the Play Store here:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.gsamlabs.bbm&feature=nav_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDMsImNvbS5nc2FtbGFicy5iYm0iXQ..

Android 4.1 Jelly Bean Review!

Hey people! It took awhile for stable versions of Android 4.1 Jelly Bean to drop for my phone, but after testing for a week to let the OS settle, I can give you a review from my personal experiences with this version. (For more information on Android versions, please refer to this post: http://androidenlightenment.blogspot.com/2012/05/android-versions-and-you.html )

As you guys should know by now, with the numbering conventions of Android, changes in the first decimal usually mark minor changes/updates/tweaks instead of huge overhauls. Android 4.1 Jelly Bean offers these improvements over 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich (courtesy of wikipedia):


Smoother user interface by:
- Vsync timing across all drawing and animation done by the Android framework, including application
   rendering, touch events, screen composition and display refresh
- Triple buffering in the graphics pipeline
- Enhanced accessibility
- Bi-directional text and other language support
- User-installable keyboard maps
- Expandable notifications
- Ability to turn off notifications on an app specific basis
- Shortcuts and widgets can automatically be re-arranged or re-sized to allow new items to fit on home
  screens
- Bluetooth data transfer for Android Beam
- Offline voice dictation
- New interface layout for tablets with smaller screens (closer resembling that of a phone)
- Improved voice search
- Improved camera app
- Google Wallet (for the Nexus 7)
- Google Now
- Multichannel audio
- USB audio (for external sound DAC)
- Audio chaining (also known as gapless playback)

The ROM i'm using to test Jelly Bean is CM10 for the E4GT http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1810315 (Fortunately the bugs don't interfere with the features or experience toooo much)

Feature Review

1. Buttery Smoothness!

The most noticeable feature that Jelly Bean brings is its buttery smoothness. No matter what phone you have or how fast of a processor there is, the Android OS' hasn't been as smooth as iOS on iPhones. Some phones get closer than others, and some android versions get closer than others, but Jelly Bean has finally caught up, and arguably surpassed, the iPhone in regards to buttery smoothness.

2. Google Now!

Google Now offers a completely new searching experience for Android devices. It updates various cards based off of the events you have scheduled in your phone and the things you search for. Some examples of cards are: Weather, Sports, Flights, and Locations. These cards will provide detailed information in regards to their respective topics and how they relate to you, and will update on their own. 

3. Expandable Notifications!

With the notifications you get in the drop down bar, if there are multiples or more information on them, you can expand them to get a better preview of what all exist within the notification. So for example if you have 100 emails, you can expand that particular notification to catch a glimpse of who some of the emails are from and what their subject is.

4. Easier Widget Placement!

This new feature allows the widget you're trying to place to move other icons around when trying to put it on your screen. In previous versions, if you tried to place a widget and there were icons in the way, even if you had enough space on the screen, the widget would not place. This feature just makes your life a little easier during widget placement.

5. New Camera App and Gallery!

The new camera app and gallery creates sort of a film strip effect when you take pictures. So after you take a picture, the phone will push the picture to the right in film strip fashion. Also when reviewing pictures, you can swipe up or down to delete a picture if you don't want it (similar to notifications). 

These were the most noteworthy features to me, outside of additional CM settings (only offered for Root Users). So if rooted, I highly recommend checking out Jelly Bean! 

Manage Your Contacts!

I hear time and time again countless stories about how people lose their contacts, or had them on their SIM card but now they're gone. When I first rooted my phone and put different ROMS on, I would try and backup the contacts on my SD Card. However, Facebook sync would make hundreds of duplicate contacts that really irritated me. I knew my contacts were syncing to Google, but I didn't know how to manage them. Once I found out, I never had problems with my contacts again. I highly suggest you click this link https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#contacts and sign in to delete/add contacts. An alternate route to get there is to go into your gmail, then click "Gmail" in the top left to open a drop down menu. From there select "Contacts" and there you go. I suggest you not only add contacts via this method, but email addresses as well. You can also set your phone to sync new contacts to this list if you like. Many of you will discover that when you log into your gmail and look at your contacts, there will be duplicates or people you deleted/forgot about, or worst case, none there at all. Hopefully this helps some of you as backing up your contacts can save you a lot of trouble later! Don't forget to vote for which phone you think will be king in 2012, and leave a comment below about some future topics of interest you may want to hear about. Other than that, have a great day and thanks for reading!

Maximizing Battery Life!

As Android owners, one of our biggest struggles is with battery life. Having widgets, live wallpapers, and large beautiful screens comes at a price. However, there are tips and trips to reduce this cost as much as possible  (Everyone's experience will vary though). With that being said, let's jump straight to it!

1. Turn off wireless services when you're not using them (i.e. Bluetooth, GPS, 4G Wifi*)
This should go without saying but these services do not come free (in terms of battery life). Leaving these on when not using them is a waste of battery...as is using them when you don't have too. It's your phone of course, but if it's dying in 2 hours, you may not have to update your foursquare at EVERY location.

*Wifi is an exception which I'll cover at the end


2. Turn off auto brightness
Auto brightness is a great feature, but sometimes it gives you more brightness than you actually need. By manually controlling your brightness, you can make sure your phone display isn't beaming when you're indoors (though it looks great). This is probably one of the most effective tips.

3. Turn off auto sync or background data, or data altogether
This is another biggie! When you have auto sync off, the apps listed under your accounts won't sync 24/7. When you turn background data off, all your apps will not sync unless you want them too. This means you wont get twitter, facebook etc... notifications but you save a lot of battery. You can also turn off data (3G/2G) altogether if you're not going to be using it. This helps as well. If you are in a low signal area, turn off background data or data in general! It drains battery to try and pull from data that isn't there.

4. Reduce the number of widgets you use
Widgets are awesome but each widget requires a little bit of the Android OS to run. Reducing these decreases the load and improves battery life

5. Consider not using live wallpapers
This kind of goes without saying. I personally use one but I know my battery life would improve if I didn't. These also fall under your Android OS category and reduce battery life. If you can get through a day with it on then don't worry about it but if not, consider removing it.

6. Use a dark/black wallpaper (AMOLED phones only)
OLED is a screen technology that turns off pixels when displaying a dark image. LCD screens dim the pixel severely but they are still on. So if you have a phone with a OLED type display (For example Super Amoled +) Dark backgrounds help battery life.

7. DON'T Use Task Killers
Task Killers not only kill troublesome apps, but they kill apps that often just restart on your phone regardless. All of these apps restarting consumes battery, so in a sense you're shooting your self in the foot while trying to kill an ant on your shoe. Instead you can use apps to monitor which programs are taking up your CPU. I personally use GSAM Battery Monitor https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.gsamlabs.bbm&feature=nav_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDMsImNvbS5nc2FtbGFicy5iYm0iXQ.. and watchdog lite ( https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.zomut.watchdoglite&feature=nav_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDMsImNvbS56b211dC53YXRjaGRvZ2xpdGUiXQ.. ) *Warning, the notifications can get annoying*) If you find troublesome apps in this program, kill those .

8. Power Save and Power Save Apps
Power save and power save apps usually do numbers 1, 2, and 3 for you, but it doesn't hurt to use these functions

9. Use Airplane Mode
When in an area with no signal or no wifi, you might as well put your phone on airplane mode instead of letting it search for a signal that will never come, or try and pull data that isn't there.

10. Bump Charge Your Phone
When you're charging your phone and it hits the 100% mark, in order to keep from overheating your phone, it'll stop charging for a bit, and then recharge a little bit to get back to 100%. This is why sometimes when you take your phone off the charger, it jumps straight to 99 or 98%. Other times it may charge to the bare minimum of 100%. When you bump charge, you let your phone get to 100%, unplug it, and plug it back in and let it charge some more. After bump charging 2-3 times, you'll be starting from, or as close as you could get, to a true 100% charge.

11. Check what processes are using your battery
Go to settings > About Phone > Battery Usage and see what apps and functions are consuming the most power. Screen should be the biggest battery drain unless you haven't used your phone much, then Android OS would be around the top.

12. Disable/Enable Wifi
This was the exception I was talking about earlier as there has been a debate over this. Wifi does require battery to use, but there are times where using 3G would drain more than wifi would, and vice versa. So here are some separate rules for wifi based on my findings
Conditions:
        1. If you are in a low signal area and have access to wifi, use wifi.
        2. If there is no wifi around, turn off wifi. Do not let it search for wifi all day.
        3. If your 3G speeds are good enough to work with, turn off wifi.
        4. If condition 1 is met and background data is on go to Settings >Wifi > Hit the
            menu button > Advanced > Keep Wi-Fi on during sleep - Always
        5. If background data is off and wifi is available go to Settings >Wifi > Hit the menu button
            > Advanced >  Keep Wi-Fi on during sleep - Never

13. Turn off auto-update for apps in the play store. Your phone will constantly search for updates for apps while active.

*Rooted Phones Only*

(What's Root? We'll cover that in the future)

1. Calibrate your battery

Download the app Battery Calibration from the market. Bump charge your phone to 100% and then calibrate. You'll notice a drastic improvement.

2. Underclock your processor

This tones down the processing speed of your processor and improves battery life. Apps like SetCPU (not free) and CPU Tuner (free) and Rom Toolbox (free) allow you to underclock your processor and the first 2 allow you to create custom profiles (i.e. underclock when screen is off, overclock when on charger). 

3. Undervolt your battery

Same effect as 14. except it reduces how much power your battery uses instead of how fast your processor moves. 

4. Install a different Modem

Modems affect how well the radios in our phones work. Some modems are better than others. Efficient modems pick up solid signals so there is less searching (battery consumption) involved

5. Choose your ROMS and Kernels carefully

Some ROM/Kernel combinations are horrible for battery life and some ROMS alone just aren't that good on battery life. Do your research on it before flashing even though results vary from phone to phone.

That's it for battery life tips! Hope you found something useful! I've managed to pull 50 hours off one charge before. I also know someone with an Lg Optimus M who managed to pull a Day with 30% battery to spare. Use your battery wisely and you will see life that not only rivals, but surpasses the life of some of those..other...phones. Don't forget to vote up top, and leave a comment below. Thanks for reading! Have a great day!

ANNOUNCEMENT! HTC Evo 4G LTE (HTC One X) Release date: May 18th!

That's right! The HTC Evo 4G LTE, better known as the HTC One X, will be released on May 18th for Sprint customers. You can currently pre-order right now. The price for the Evo is $550 off contract but "should" be $199 with 2 year contract agreement + instant savings. Quick spec rundown:

4.7 inch Super LCD 2 Display (One of the best)
1.5 Snapdragon 4 Dual-Core Processor (Keeps up with quad core processing speeds as well as increases battery life)
1 Gb of Ram (allows for more multitasking between apps)
720p Definition (HD)
312 ppi (Pixel Per Inch, almost matches the iPhone; means there will be virtually no pixelization due to pixel depth)
8 MP Camera (One of the best out there)
1.3 MP Front Facing Camera
16 GB of Internal Storage plus Micro SD slot (up to 32 extra gb)
Beats Audio (Sounds great! Headphones sold separately)
2000 mAh non-removable battery (big battery but still keeps the phone slim)
Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich (latest version of Android)
Sense 4 (HTC's latest UI)

HTC Evo 4G LTE

Android App of the Day: Play Music!

This is BY FAR my favorite app. I can listen to my music collection at any time without having 1000+ songs saved on my phone and sd card. I can stream it like pandora, or download certain songs/playlists that I want to listen too offline. It's easy to setup and is my most highly recommended app. Download it here: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.android.music&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsImNvbS5nb29nbGUuYW5kcm9pZC5tdXNpYyJd

and if you're an audiophile like me and don't have a great equalizer on your phone, download this one (Android 2.3+) https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.smartandroidapps.equalizer&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsImNvbS5zbWFydGFuZHJvaWRhcHBzLmVxdWFsaXplciJd and enjoy your music anywhere, on any computer, or any phone!

Android Versions and You!

*While there are many of you who know what version of Android you are on and what they are, there are others who have no clue so this post is for them.*

Like any operating system, there are old and new iterations. Let's take Windows for example. Many of us have seen the progression from Windows 95 all the way until Windows 7. Android has grown as well, though not as long, just as fast. Android versions are in alphabetical order and follow dessert names (though the first 2 iterations were named "Astro" and "Bender" respectively) and also follow a number pattern starting from 1 (though this switched up later)

Below are a list of the Android versions and their respective numbering.

1.5 Cupcake

1.6 Donut

2.0-2.1 Ecclair

2.2 Froyo

2.3 Gingerbread

3.0 Honeycomb (Tablets Only)

4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich 

Why does the numbering increase by .1 sometimes and 1.0 others? I'm not sure. Many speculate that the size of the upgrade (amount of features enhanced) dictates how big the number jump is. Almost 70% of Android phones are on the Gingerbread version and may or may not be upgraded to ICS. Often times people are quick to blame Google for their phones not being upgraded to ICS, but really the responsibility falls on the manufacturers to update the UI (User Interface) on phones, and then for carriers to accept and release the updates. So before you get upset at Google, because your phone is still on Froyo, remember there is only so much they can do. This is why many people get Nexus phones (Nexus S, Galaxy Nexus). Nexus phones are Google to the core and because they don't have to deal with the UI's manufacturers throw on phones, they can receive the updates quickly. Take this into consideration if you would like the latest updates on your new phones without having to upgrade yearly.

To check which version of Android you are on:
1. Open your menu
2. Go to settings
3. Scroll until you see "About Phone"
4. Look under Android Version and you'll see your number. 

Often times there will be 3 digits. For example I'm currently on version 4.0.3. The third digit usually depends on the phone and can be anything from a maintenance update to a bug fix. So sometimes you may see someone with Android Version 2.3.7 while you may have 2.3.5. This does not mean their system is more upgraded than yours, you're both still on Gingerbread. Hopefully you find this helpful and be on the lookout for Android Versions! You wouldn't want to knowingly purchase a Windows Vista laptop when there are Windows 8 laptops out there while upgrading would you? Same concepts apply. Make sure to vote on which phone you think will take the crown in 2012! Have a great day and thanks for reading!

Android App of the Day: Relax and Sleep!

This app lets you choose from a variety of sounds and white noise which helps you sleep easier. Try it out if you're having trouble sleeping!

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.mizusoft.relaxandsleep&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwyLDEsImNvbS5taXp1c29mdC5yZWxheGFuZHNsZWVwIl0.

Droid vs Android Explained!

"Hey check out my new Droid!" We've all seen or heard this at some point in time, but most likely the person speaking does not have a "Droid" in their hands. Verizon Wireless came up with the brilliant idea of naming a series of their phones "Droids," because Droid is short for Android. Little did they know, they were creating a maelstrom of confusion for the masses. Because of this confusion, many Android phone owners will often correct others who call their phones "Droids", though technically the person isn't incorrect. So, to avoid  confusion, owners and onlookers need to grasp this concept: Although "Droid" is short for "Android," because Verizon has a line of phones called "Droids," all Droids (Android phones) are not "Droids" (a specific line of Android phones exclusive to Verizon). If you can, it's best to avoid using the term altogether unless you are 100% sure that the phone in question is a "Droid." Is it that serious? No, but it annoys many people so refrain if possible!

Welcome!

Taking into consideration the very high number of requests from people to stop spamming their Facebook walls and Twitter timelines with Android propaganda, I've decided to move all mobile related information to this blog. The purpose of Android Enlightenment is to do just that...provide information about some of the best apps, insight on some of the newest and upcoming technology, tips and tricks to make the most out of your phone, and even in depth guides and information about rooting. I by no means am an expert on Android or mobile technology, I just have a genuine interest in it and would like to gladly share what I've learned and discover. Hopefully you find something useful here! I thank you for stopping by and welcome you to stay tuned!