Spotify alerts Android users to hack, new app now available (update)

It's not all good news over at Spotify HQ. The music streaming service says it's just investigated a security breach in which one unlucky user's account was hacked. Despite the apparently limited scale of the attack (at least compared to what happened to eBay last week), Spotify evidently considers the incident to be pretty serious: Over the next few days, it'll start asking users to re-enter their login details, and it'll also push out an update to folks who use the Android app -- a step that will additionally require any offline playlists to be re-downloaded. Meanwhile, if you're the person whose account is at the center of all this, then by now you should have received some special instructions all of your own.

Update: The new app is available in Google Play, and it's really a new app. Upon updating their existing version, Android users will no longer be able to use Spotify (hold off on updating if you're not in range of a good connection) and are directed to a different listing in Google Play. You can find the new app here, and it will prompt you to uninstall the previous version once it's installed.

SD-locking, Tor-enabled ransomware hits Android

A new file-encrypting ransomware that can encrypt the contents even of SD cards is targeting devices running Google's Android operating system, a tech site reported.

ESET said the mobile Trojan dubbed Android/Simplocker scans the SD card for certain file types then encrypts them and demands ransom.

"The ransom message is written in Russian and the payment demanded in Ukrainian hryvnias, so it’s fair to assume that the threat is targeted against this region. This is not surprising, the very first Android SMS trojans (including Android/Fakeplayer) back in 2010 also originated from Russia and Ukraine," it said.

ESET said its analysis of the Android/Simplock.A sample indicates the malware is still a proof-of-concept or a work in progress.

Still, it said malware is "fully capable of encrypting the user’s files, which may be lost if the encryption key is not retrieved."

Investigation shows the Trojan will display a message claiming the device is "locked for viewing and distribution child pornography, zoophilia and other perversions."

For the device to be unlocked, the user should pay 260 UAH, after which the files will be released within 24 hours.

But ESET said Android/Simplocker.A will also contact its command and control server to send information from the device such as IMEI.

On the other hand, the C&C server is hosted on a TOR .onion domain "for purposes of protection and anonymity."

Don't pay up

"While the malware does contain functionality to decrypt the files, we strongly recommend against paying up – not only because that will only motivate other malware authors to continue these kinds of filthy operations, but also because there is no guarantee that the crook will keep their part of the deal and actually decrypt them," ESET said.

Instead, it urged users to resort to prevention and defensive measures, including using an antivirus app and keeping away from untrustworthy apps and app sources.

"And if you keep current backups of all your devices then any ransomware or Filecoder trojan – be it on Android, Windows, or any operating system – is nothing more than a nuisance,"

Phone bill payment cleared for Android apps

Google Play store customers could soon pay for apps via their monthly bill after the company signed up to a 12 month trial with PhonepayPlus.

The move means Play store customers on participating phone networks can buy digital content on their phone bill, instead of having to enter account details at purchase point.

The price of apps or other digital purchases including music and films would be added to the user's monthly bill.

One of the biggest implications of carrier-billing on the Google Play store is for consumers such as children who don’t have a credit or debit card, the company said.

The regulator said it was particularly concerned with the problem of children running up high bills when making repeat purchases, such as through in-app payments, and said it was working closely with Google, consumer bodies and other regulators like the Competition and Markets Authority to address the issue.

Jo Prowse, Acting Chief Executive of PhonepayPlus, said: “App stores and developers have particular circumstances that differ from others who operate premium rate services. This pilot scheme’s intention is to address app stores’ differences whilst ensuring consistency for the market, the right protections for consumers and that the outcomes of our Code of Practice are met. We welcome Google’s involvement in the pilot.

“Consumers who pay for app store content on their phone bill will now benefit from additional protections under PhonepayPlus’ Code of Practice, alongside app stores’ own policies. In an environment where payments are frictionless and small impulse purchases may add up to considerable sums, these protections amount to a new digital deal for consumers.”

Toshiba announces first tablets to run Windows 8.1 with Bing

Toshiba announced a number of late additions to its 2014 back-to-school lineup today, including low-priced 8- and 10-inch tablets that run the recently announced Windows 8.1 with Bing. The company also announced an even-less-expensive 7-inch Android tablet.

All three tablets will be powered by Intel’s quad-core Atom Z3735F processor. The 8-inch Encore 2 with 1GB of memory and 32GB of storage will be priced at just $199, while the 10-inch Encore 2 with the same amount of memory and storage will be priced at $269. Toshiba launched the original Encore tablet in an 8-inch configuration for $329.

Toshiba's Encore 2 tablet will be available with 8- and 10-inch

 IPS displays with resolution of 1280x800 pixels. 

The Android-powered Excite Go, meanwhile, will have 1GB of memory and 8GB of storage, supplemented by a MicroSD card slot for storage and a Micro USB port for charging and file transfers. It will carry an MSRP of $109, but Toshiba expects retailers will discount it to a street price of less than $100. 

Toshiba also announced the 7-inch Excite Go Android tablet, that's expected to sell for less than $100.

Aside from display sizes, the specs for both Encore 2 models are similar: They’ll be outfitted with IPS displays delivering native resolution of 1280x800 pixels, and both will support “connected standby” mode, meaning all your data—including email—will be fresh when you awaken the device from sleep mode.

They’ll have front and rear cameras (a 1.2-megapixel (MP), 720p webcam up front, and a 5MP, 1080p camera in back). Storage will be augmented by MicroSD card slots that support up to 128GB memory cards. And they’ll have 802.11n Wi-Fi adapters with Bluetooth 4.0. Both models will be outfitted with stereo speakers.

Although both models will come with one-year subscriptions to Microsoft’s Office 365 Personal, Toshiba is positioning the 8-inch Encore 2 as an entertainment/consumption device and the 10-inch Encore 2 Windows tablet as both an entertainment device and a productivity tool. As such, Toshiba will offer an optional keyboard cover for the larger model that will transform it into a small laptop.

The 10-inch model will also have a micro HDMI port (for TV multi-monitor support) that the 8-inch model lacks. Toshiba wants buyers to compare the 10-inch model to Microsoft’s Surface 2, pointing out that its tablet delivers the full version of Windows 8.1 for $269, where Microsoft charges $449 for a device that’s limited to running Windows RT.

The 10-inch Encore 2 will have an micro HDMI port that isn't available on the 8-inch model. 

The 8-inch Encore 2 will be 0.38-inches thick and weigh 0.81 pounds. The larger Encore 2 will be even thinner—0.35 inches thick—but slightly heavier at 1.2 pounds.

Toshiba will offer additional models with more memory and storage. An 8-inch Encore 2 with 2GB of memory and 32GB of storage will sell for $249, while a SKU with 2GB of memory and 64GB of storage will go for $279. The 10-inch Encore 2 with 1GB of memory, 32GB of storage, and a keyboard cover will cost $299, while a SKU with 2GB of memory and 64GB (but no keyboard cover) will be priced at $329. Toshiba expects the tablets to be available for sale in early July.

Android to iPhone: Top Issues You’ll Face After Switching to iOS Environment

iPhone runs iOS which benefits from a more secure ecosystem compared to the open-source approach of Android OS. However, there are certain factors that may imprison you on the system it uses. Here are five things you should consider when switching to iPhone.

App Restrictions

You cannot install apps on your iPhone found in other sources. In other terms, you need to jailbreak or use crude methods to install apps not available from iTunes. Android and Windows Phone OS can both utilise the “sideload” methodology by allowing users to install apps from other sources in exchange of the risk being vulnerable to viruses at their own expense.

On the other hand, this tight security implementation makes iOSdevices very resistant to various digital infections including Heartbleed.

Fixed Accessories

Not all accessories from other brands are friendly to your iPhone. Apple has its own shop which sells compatible accessories for iPhoneand if you use a substandard accessory such as headphones, you may not enjoy listening to your favourite music because there is something odd with the audio output.

This is a particular disadvantage for those who want to recycle working accessories from Android or Windows Phone.

Less Freedom on Tones

Almost everything on iOS requires payment including making your paid song to become a ringtone. You need to purchase it again for $1 just to customise it in a ringtone format and if you are capable of hacking into the system, you need to incorporate the sound file to  iTunes like any other files used on iPhone.

Messaging Limitation

SMS and MMS services are basic on every smartphone no matter what OS is running. But in the case of iOS, you are limited to what you have and you cannot fully customise everything or modify to make the messaging app reflect your persona and style.

Moreover, iOS messaging application is not totally secure as it can easily be hijacked by spectators. It is not stable due to known major bugs which may interrupt daily messaging habits.

Minimum Toggles

iOS 7 may have improved the Control Centre but not as close with Android 4.4.2 KitKat. In Android, you can include several shortcuts on the notifications shade that are most important for your daily task. In iOS, most basic controls are available in the Control Centre but for certain shortcuts like Tethering, you need to go deep into the Settings menu in order to disable or enable it.

iPhone is a very powerful smartphone and mostly secure against threats. But you must be sure that you are willing to giving up some freedom to get the exclusive and more sophisticated approach of iOS.

Android 4.5 Lollipop OS may be a desktop OS-like mobile firmware

 

The next generation of Android OS dubbed as 4.5 Lollipop will be like a desktop OS packed into a mobile device.

Google is about to unveil the next flavor of Android OS at the company's annual I/O Conference on June 25. Rumors claimed that the upcoming mobile software will have the functions of a desktop OS coming to smartphones and tablets.

Reports claimed that Android 4.5 will redesign its user interface. According to a report of Android Police, the company was currently experimenting with Project Hera, which "essentially represents Google's effort to unify the experience users have in Android, Chrome, and Search all on your Android-powered device."

The new project aimed to alter the experience of users who run Google's Search and Chrome apps on their Android phones. It is also expected that Google will integrate HTML 5 that will enable the users to multi-tasking windows. The project was inspired by Ubuntu's Edge and Google wanted to ease the transition from the mobile phone to the desktop for most users.

Reports said that the new OS will allow users to start a task on the computer, then pause and leave it as a Google task card, which can be completed in one's smartphone. Moreover, Google plans to make its voice assistant OK Google to be as competent as Siri by giving it a facelift.

Fans also expected that Android 4.5 Lollipop will support the processor and graphics chipset of the smartphone. This is relevant since it was rumored that upcoming devices will soon pack upgraded processors with 64-bit architecture, which will make the processing smoother and more stable.

Android 4.5 Lollipop OS is also rumored to give emphasis to the smartphone's security as Android is being targeted by mobile malware given that the operating system is an open source. There were some apps in the PlayStore that are loaded with bloatware that make users turn to .apk or installable files instead of downloading the files in order to avoid the malware. Thus, Google is expected to resolve this issue in the upcoming OS.

Nokia X2: Microsoft’s Upcoming ‘Android’ Smartphone Specifications Revealed

At the Mobile World Congress in March 2014, Nokia launched a series of phones, the X, XL and X , targeting the low-end or budget market sectors. Some of the aforementioned phones were well appreciated for its build quality, which is synonymous with the company, a relatively good battery and the combined dual SIM facility.

Having seen the success with Android based phones, Microsoft is on its way to debut a new Android smartphone aimed at the budget segment. The tech site Unwired View (via BGR) got hold of several leaked specifications from Antutu benchmarking site. The leaked image shows a new Nokia device that comes with a 4.3 inches display and 480 x 800 pixels screen resolution. In addition, the smartphone houses a 5 megapixel rear-facing camera and a 0.3 megapixel front-facing camera unit.

The handset is powered by a dual-core (Qualcomm Snapdragon 200) processor clocked at 1.2 GHz, with 1 GB of RAM. The device runs on Android v4.3. The internal storage capacity is expected to be 4 GB, similar to Motorola's Moto E handset.

It is worth noting that, the Nokia X comes with a 4 inches WVGA display and packs a resolution of 800 x 480 pixels. The handset is powered by a dual-core Snapdragon S4 processor clocked at 1 GHz, with 512 MB of RAM. The phone houses a 4 GB of internal storage, with microSD card support for further expansion up to 32 GB of storage. In addition, it sports a 3 megapixel rear-facing camera unit but there is no front-facing camera. The handset supports dual-SIM mode and it houses a 1,500 mAh battery unit.

Although the Nokia X range of smartphones runs on Android operating system; it is a 'forked' version of Google's Android. That translates to basing the OS on Google's code, but the user interface is Nokia's own 'Nokia X software platform 1.0'. Interestingly, forked OS versions do not come with Google apps. Upon rooting the device, such apps can be installed but that voids the warranty of the handset from Nokia.

It is very clear that the specifications are not over the top. For an inexpensive low-end segment of smartphones, Noika's upcoming X2 is very similar to its predecessor Nokia X. The slight difference comes in the form of hardware and camera specifications.

‘Saavn Music’ offers Saavn radio and full-screen album art for Android

Saavn Music brings easy access to songs in 11 languages.

Saavn, Indian music streaming service on Monday announced its revamped Android application, Saavn Music for Android (version 3.0). The new Saavn app brings easy access to songs in 11 languages and direct entry to Saavn Radio from a tiled homescreen.

The update also includes full-screen album art in the Saavn player.

Developed in collaboration with Google’s Android teams, the new Saavn app for Android is the company’s first to provide full Android tablet support.

Speaking about the new product, Anurag Gupta, CTO and Co-founder of Saavn, said “India is an Android-driven market, and 70% of Saavn’s listeners in India are on Android. We’re excited to deliver the best possible user experience to the majority of our listener base with this new app. It’s been carefully crafted to optimize the multiple screen experience, and to work seamlessly across a wide range of Android versions and hardware configurations.”

Saavn previously released its 3.0 app for iOS in April 2014, garnering a tremendous response. The new iOS app increased Saavn’ s daily streams on iOS by 20%, increased radio streams by 7.5x, increased regional language streams by 15% to 50% per language, and increased Saavn’ s overall daily unique users by 10%.

Founded in 2006, Saavn has over 11 million monthly users worldwide. Its music catalog includes over 1 million Indic tracks for its streaming search-and-play and radio services (including Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Punjabi, English, Marathi, Kannada, Malayalam, Bengali, Gujarati, and Bhojpuri content).

Google+ gets new Android app, automatically generated photo albums

With the future of Google+ in question after the section head departed a month ago, Google’s social network has just unveiled a slew of new features.

First up is "Google+ Stories," an automated photo album creation service. Just upload all your pictures and videos to Google+, and it will automatically detect life events based on the information in the photos, like geotagging and the date taken. Google+ will then package all the photos and video together, pick out the good ones, and create a fancy photo album for others to view. Here’s an example photo album.

The photo albums appear as a horizontally scrolling scrapbook of photos, organized by day and location. Google even throws in custom Google Maps images with dotted red lines to indicate travel. Once Google+ has thrown together the basic framework of an album, users can add titles and captions to photos and tweak the layout—then it's ready to share to all of your Google+ friends.

The other major new feature is a redesigned Android app. The design is along the same lines as the colorful red design that was leaked about a month ago. The big surprise is the new layout, though. Google has completely done away with the navigation drawer, the slide-out panel of app sections that had been a standard on Android apps for the past year. The new app greatly simplifies the Google+ experience and focuses mainly on posts in the social stream.

While some Google+ fans will take these updates as a sign that the service isn't being de-emphasized at Google, these plans were in the works for some time, as demonstrated by the leak a month ago. The new design of the Google+ app might actually hold a few secrets about the future of the service. With no navigation drawer, the "extra" features of Google+, like Photos, Location, and Events, have been relegated to a tiny strip of icons at the bottom of the new navigation screen. After reading the reports by other outlets, including Re/code, that Google+ was going to be parted out to other divisions, it's easy to get the idea that these three services are being de-emphasized and might have one foot out the door.

Gmail Android app is first to hit one billion installations

The Gmail app is installed by default on all Android devices as part of Google’s licensing

Google’s Gmail app has become the first standalone smartphone app to pass one billion installations on Android devices.

The milestone, announced by Sundar Pichai, Google’s head of Android, was crossed sometime last week; the Google Play Store ranks apps by downloads in different ranges and the Gmail Android app ticked over into the one to five billion bracket.

The figure excludes updates, so there is no double-counting when an update is issued. And the Google Play services app is disqualified from the counting, as it is required as part of the Google Play Store.

Default power

The Gmail app is installed by default on all Google Android devices as part of Google’s licensing, which covers most of the Android software-powered tablets, smartphones and other devices available outside China. It is updated automatically when the device connects to the Google Play store.

Amazon’s Kindle Fire range of Android devices and Microsoft’s Nokia X smartphones do not come with Gmail installed as default, nor is it possible to download the Gmail app through their app stores. Nor are there any figures for the number of downloads of the Gmail app for Apple's iPhone and iPad.

Several groups of apps, such as Outfit7’s range of Talking Friends apps, have already passed the one billion downloads milestone, but no one individual app has been downloaded 1bn times on its own before. The Angry Birds collection of games broke one billion downloads in 2012.

Gmail’s billion downloads reinforces data on how many Google-powered Android devices have been sold, with Google's executives saying that more than one billion Android device activations were passed last year.

It also indicates how important Google's agreements to have its apps installed by default are in fuelling downloads, and encouraging use of its services. As it stands, manufacturers cannot have access to Google's Play Store without installing Google's suite of apps and placing them in a prominent position.

There is no data however on how many of the devices which have downloaded the Gmail app are still active.

Other default Google apps include Google+, Chrome, Maps and YouTube, but they all remain under the 1bn app install barrier, with Chrome listed as being installed less than 500,000 times, according to the Play Store. Gmail has been part of the default installation since Google first introduced Android in 2009.

How to Download and Use Google Maps for Android, iOS Without Internet

Lost in Nowhereland with no Internet connection as far as you can see? As always, Google Maps can help you find your way back, as long as you have an iOS or an Android device, even if you are offline. Google recently added a feature to Google Maps, which lets you save maps to your phone.

Yes, you can now check maps even when there is no Internet connection. The downside is that you will not have access to route information, addresses, navigation, traffic, and a host of other data that require an Internet connection. However, having map data for reference might just save you a lot of time. Here's how to use this nifty feature on iOS and Android. The steps are identical for both platforms.
 
What you need to use this feature
 
You're going to need an Android or iOS device. Unfortunately, this feature isn't available on other platforms. Google Maps version 3, which was released last week on iOS, added support for offline maps. Android users, be sure to update to Google Maps version 8 before following the steps listed below.
 
How to save maps offline?
 
1. To use this feature, first sign in to your Google account to use this feature.
 
2. Type "OK Maps" in the search bar and hit the search button. A dialog at the top of the map asks "Save this map?" with a Save button at the bottom of the screen.
 
3. At this point, you can zoom in or out, and move the map, to select the area you want to save. Everything that is on-screen gets downloaded, so if you zoom out to save the entire Delhi area, for example, then you can later zoom in to see the individual localities and streets.

4. Once you've selected the area, tap the Save button at the bottom of the screen. A dialogue box pops up and you are asked to enter a name for the map. Just enter a name and tap on Save.
 
5. Accessing offline maps is easy. Just tap the 'person' icon, which is next to the directions icon on the search bar. This will take you to your profile. Scroll to the bottom to see your saved maps. You can rename saved maps in case you plan to save more than one.
 
There are certain limitations to saving offline maps. Zoom out too far and you will see an error saying that the map area can't be saved because it is too large. We were able to save almost all of Delhi, but Google Maps deemed the area "too large" when we tried to save National Capital Region (NCR).
There's nothing stopping you from saving multiple maps to cover a large area, in case you're worried about that. Another limitation is that map data is available only for 30 days. You'll have to download maps again after this.
The good thing is that the saved map of Delhi occupied just 9.9 MB of space on our phones. That's good news for those who are running low on storage space.

How to See Most Recent Facebook Posts on its iOS, Android Apps

Till recently, users of Facebook's Android and iOS apps could quickly arrange posts on their News Feed in a chronological order. This means that one could see most recent posts first, followed by older ones. However, Facebook's latest updates to its apps have hidden this option.

Now, opening the Facebook apps will show you the most popular posts, which is based on an algorithm. Although Facebook hasn't removed that "most recent" posts option, it definitely has made it a lot harder to find.

The release notes of Facebook's most recent updates to its iOS and Android apps mention these features: review your posts before sharing (iOS only), create posts offline, and News Feed improvements to make it load faster.

What those notes do not mention is Facebook's decision to remove the "News Feed" button from the main screen of the apps. Tapping this button allowed users to access the "Most Recent" button, which shows posts in chronological order.

Here's how you can return to viewing posts in chronological order.

1. Open the Facebook app on iOS (version 10) or Android (version 9.0.0.26.28).
2. iOS users should tap the "More" button at the bottom-right, next to Notifications. Android users can find this button at the top-right.
3. Scroll down to the Feeds sub-head (below Apps) and hit the "Most Recent" button. That's it. Now Facebook will order feeds based on the time of posting, rather than popularity.

Unfortunately, this isn't a permanent fix. We found that we had to select this option whenever we re-opened the Facebook app.

Overhauled Yahoo Mail App for Android Now Available for Download

Yahoo on Friday released its overhauled Yahoo Mail app for Android. The redesigned app, announced for iPhone and iPod touch at the end of April, brings access to mails, news and a Google Now-like personalised stream all in one app.

The updated Yahoo Mail app for Android now comes with a new panel that includes options for Mail, News and Today at the top right of the screen. The Mail panel will show the usual Yahoo Mail inbox, while the second News panel will include a new personalised news stream. Lastly, the Today panel appears more inspired by Google Now-like stream and shows information on weather, news digest, stock quotes, and sports amongst others.

Yahoo Mail's Senior Product Manager, Andrew Molyneux on Tumblr said the new app brought "the same one-tap access to personalized, real-time news and information - to Android." Molyneux added, "Go ahead and check email, read the news, search, look up the forecast, catch up on sports, watch videos and browse Flickr, all in the same place, without the hassle of switching between apps."

Molyneux explains that the new Yahoo Mail app comes with a couple of features that are unique to the Android platform. Users will be able to swipe left or right to quickly move between their inbox, news stream, and Today, as opposed to tapping the relevant icon in the upper right-hand corner.

The updated Yahoo Mail app for Android is currently (v3.1.3) available for download on Google Play.

On the Yahoo Mail (v3.0.1) for iPhone and iPod touch app (released on May 13), the Mail, News and Today buttons were located on a new panel at the bottom of the screen, and not on the top-right like on Android. Also, iOS users aren't able to switch between Mail, News and Today streams by swiping.

Apple apps made to run on Android devices

Cider lets some Apple apps run on Android devices

The software, called Cider, has been created by postgraduate researchers at Columbia University.

Cider lets Android gadget owners mix and match the Android and iOS apps they load on their phone or tablet.

The research team said Cider was only a prototype and that they had no plans to turn it into a commercial product.

Deep link

The six-strong team of researchers said they embarked on the project to create Cider to get around the limitations that smartphone and tablet users are forced to accept.

For instance, they said in an academic paper about Cider that Android users cannot get at apps that call on media in Apple iTunes and iOS gadget owners struggle to use Flash-based content.

Cider would let people use just one gadget to access both, said the researchers.

Getting an application written for one operating system to run on another often involves a technique known as virtualisation.

To avoid the performance problems that virtualisation can introduce, the Columbia researchers adopted a different approach that involves the core or kernel of the Android operating system.

This approach works on the stream of instructions passing through an Android device and alters only those relating to the iOS apps. An additional software helper provides some of the specialised data those apps require to work properly.

A demo video produced by the researchers shows both iOS and Android apps running on a Nexus 7 tablet, though some commentators pointed out that the Apple apps run relatively slowly on the device.

In addition, some Apple apps that call on a phone's camera, GPS system or Bluetooth perform poorly and the researchers are continuing their work on Cider to fix these problems.

Has your Android app been uploaded to the Nokia X store without your knowledge?

As BlackBerry, Jolla, Mozilla and Microsoft know, filling up a new app store can take some time. Of course, there's one way to speed up that process — leaning on the massive supply of Android apps that already populate third-party stores.

The birth of a new app store should also be good news for app developers, offering an extra shop window to put their wares in front of buyers. So if an Android app appeared in the Nokia Store for Nokia's fledgling Android-based X devices — without any effort on the developer's part — that should be a good thing, right?

Not according to Anders Webb, the developer of the Android ADW.Launcher app, who was unimpressed — to put it mildly — when he recently discovered his app "and possibly more" had been "uploaded" to the Nokia Store without his permission.

By email, he was told that all he needed to do to let users download the app from the Nokia X store was "allow the Nokia Store team from Microsoft to contact him".

Exactly how his app arrived in the Nokia Store is an interesting story, given that it's highly unlikely that Microsoft/Nokia would take the app from Google Play.

The answer to the conundrum looks to come from a lesser-publicised aspect of Nokia's and Opera's partnership around the launch of the Nokia X range. The two companies struck an agreement whereby they agreed to publish Android apps that had been submitted to a store known as Handster on the Nokia Store as well.

"Based on Handster’s existing agreements with its developers, they have granted distribution rights to Nokia for these free Android apps which have been published in the Nokia Store," Nokia said in a blog post at the time. Opera acquired Handster in 2011 to bolsters its own Opera Mobile Store.

According to XDA developers, that agreement could be how Webb's app ended up in Nokia's store. ZDNet has asked Opera for comment and will update this story if it receives one.

A spokesperson for Nokia's new owner Microsoft said: "Opera is one of our partners and they have publishing agreements to help developers expand their reach. Nokia Store is one of these channels. In order to keep applications updated and to secure the best consumer experience, developers have been given the option to have an account to manage their applications directly to Nokia Store. This process has been communicated to the developer community. We take privacy very seriously and have a good track record of close collaboration with developers."

Microsoft for its part had its own run-in with developers late last year when it was found to be publishing web apps for Windows Phone devices without asking the company's whose content they were based on. While it didn't necessarily harm anyone, doing so without permission rubbed some companies the wrong way.

Half-Life 2 and Portal are launched on Android... but only for Nvidia's Shield

Half-Life 2 was developed for the Shield by its maker Nvidia

Android has two more conversions of classic PC games this week – Half-Life 2 and Portal – but for now they're only available on one device: Nvidia's Shield.

The gaming handheld has the exclusive on both games, which were converted to Android by Nvidia's own team under licence from their developer, Valve.

Both games are available on Android's Google Play store, but are Shield-only for now – although in the past, such exclusives have supported more smartphones and tablets within a few months of their initial release.

Nvidia said in March it was porting Portal to its Shield, but the appearance of Half-Life 2 alongside it is a surprise for gamers. "We’re huge Half-Life fans. So bringing it to Shield was a labor for love for more than a few members of the team," explained a post on Nvidia's corporate blog. "Using the utmost care, we paid attention to every detail to ensure gamers get the full PC versions natively on Android. The graphic performance is sharp; the controls are precise and natural."

The releases are part of Nvidia's efforts to ensure there is a wide catalogue of games available for its handheld, which went on sale in July 2013. There are now more than 300 available for the $199 device, which isn't yet available in the UK.

Nvidia hasn't given public sales figures for the device, although in August 2013 its senior director of investor relations, Chris Evenden, said sales had been "great", adding that "everything that we shipped so far has sold out, but we're just starting to ramp production".

Early indications are good for the two new Shield games. Half-Life 2 has an average review score of 4.9 out of five on the Google Play store based on 91 ratings from players, while Portal is averaging a perfect 5.0 from 60 reviews.

Nvidia also recently launched a remote-streaming feature for the Shield, enabling owners to play games running on their PCs even when they're away from their home. The company pitched its GameStream feature as a way to play games including Titanfall, World of Warcraft and League of Legends on the device.

Research Project Enables iOS Apps to Run on Android

A team of six students at Columbia University has created a software framework for Android that allows simple iOS apps to run as if they were native. The technique tricks Android into believing the apps were designed for it, while creating an environment that the apps can run in stably.

The students, Jeremy Andrus, Alexander Van't Hof, Naser AlDuaij, Christoffer Dall, Nicolas Viennot and Jason Nieh, managed to create Project Cider at the individual processing thread level rather than using a virtualisation layer, which has already been done across various platforms. 

In an abstract of the full PDF report posted to Columbia University's Software Systems Laboratory website (and reported by TheNextWeb), the team describes two new binary compatibility mechanisms, compile-time code adaptation, and diplomatic functions. The abstract reads, "Compile-time code adaptation enables existing unmodified foreign source code to be reused in the domestic kernel, reducing implementation effort required to support multiple binary interfaces for executing domestic and foreign applications. Diplomatic functions leverage per-thread personas, and allow foreign applications to use domestic libraries to access proprietary software and hardware interfaces."

The team used a Google Nexus 7 tablet to demonstrate the technique, referring to Android as the "domestic OS" and iOS the "foreign OS". By intervening between iOS apps and Android's binary app interfaces, the team was able to successfully run various iOS apps side by side with Android apps. Translation occurs for the iOS apps only, without the rest of the system being affected.

Project Cider has its limitations related to app and hardware functionality. It cannot currently translate instructions and interfaces for access to a device's Bluetooth, GPS, cameras and even cellular radios. iOS apps that can still run with these functions turned off will do so. The team intends to continue development work on this project.

Pregnancy apps for Android, iOS that help track baby, mom's progress

New York: When I became pregnant with my daughter, now 4, I didn't even own a smartphone. I did most of my pregnancy research with my desktop computer and those pregnancy books that nearly every first-time mom reads.

Now, baby No. 2 is on the way and times have changed. With the rise of smartphones, tablets and wearable devices, there's no shortage of pregnancy-related high-tech products on the market.

I get weekly updates explaining what's going on with my body and my baby's development, which show up as notifications from my various iPhone apps. The first time around, I got emails from pregnancy websites.

 BabyBump app encourages you to upload a photo of your expanding                                                belly each week to create a time-lapsed series of your growth.

There are also apps to track how much weight you've gained, how often your baby kicks and eventually how far apart your contractions are. There are even smartphone-enabled devices that let you listen to your baby's heartbeat at home.

Like a lot of second-time moms, I didn't feel the need to gorge myself on pregnancy information this time around. But I did download some of the more popular apps. I stuck largely to free apps, though I also tested a $129 fetal heart monitor that attaches to a smartphone.

Although the apps don't cover everything an expectant mom needs to know, they offer enough that I've barely dusted off my pregnancy books this time around.

- BabyBump (free, or $4 for ad-free version with additional features; for Apple and Android devices):

Like the other pregnancy apps I tried, you start by entering your due date, weight and other information. The app creates a chart tracking your progress and showing the number of days left.

BabyBump also encourages you to upload a photo of your expanding belly each week to create a time-lapsed series of your growth, but I didn't bother with that.

There are daily tips and a weekly update explaining what's going on with your body and baby. You can play slideshows of you and your baby's week-by-week development. These are in the form of drawings showing an expanding belly and what's inside.

You can also join online pregnancy groups and use the app to keep a journal.

The free version has advertising on the bottom. The $4 pro version doesn't. The pro version also has a kick counter and contraction tracker, along with planning tools for shopping, name selection and birth announcements. I didn't feel the need to pay.

- WebMD Pregnancy (free, for Apple devices only):

I like this app the most. Like the BabyBump app, there's a pregnancy calendar and weekly illustrations showing development. But WebMD's pictures are more vibrant and less cartoonish, though a bit more graphic.

There are daily tips and suggested questions to ask your doctor at your next appointment.

You can keep track of your doctor's appointments and log your weight and blood pressure. Although I used the app to track how much weight I was gaining, I didn't bother with the blood pressure and found my Google calendar to be more useful in logging appointments.

The app includes a kick counter and contraction timer for free, whereas I had to pay for those features with BabyBump.

I found this app easier and more fun to use than BabyBump.

- Bellabeat (free app, but heart monitor costs $129; app for Apple and Android devices):

At-home fetal heart listening systems aren't new. There are a handful of products of varying prices and quality, but many people have complained that they don't work well and aren't easy to use, especially in the early stages of pregnancy.

You plug the Bellabeat heart monitor into your smartphone's headphone port, and then plug a set of earbuds into the device. It runs on two AAA batteries.

The companion smartphone app detects the baby's heart rate and lets you record the sound. You can even share the audio clip through Facebook, Twitter or email.

Like the devices used by doctors, the Bellabeat uses high-frequency sound waves to pick up the heartbeat. But this isn't nearly as advanced as the one at my doctor's office.

I had a mixed experience with it.

The first time I tried the Bellabeat, I was 37-weeks pregnant and pretty huge. I managed to pick up my baby's heartbeat after a few tries. But a few days later, after the baby had moved into a new position, I couldn't seem to find it at all. I just got a lot of whooshing noises from the device.

Eventually, I picked up a faint heartbeat. I wasn't worried, but I can see why some doctors don't like these gadgets. They can cause unnecessary distress.

You can get the app for free without buying the device, and it gets you a lot of the same tools that WebMD and BabyBump provide.

The real question is: Is it worth $129 to hear your baby's heartbeat whenever you like?

If you're the kind of new mom who frets when you haven't felt the baby move for a while, the answer might be yes. Personally, I not a big fan of these things. Just like the one at the doctor's office, they involve smearing that sticky ultrasonic-gel on your belly, which I've come to hate. The gel is included with the device.

Yahoo News Digest arrives on Android and launches an international edition

Four months after bringing its unconventional news app to iOS, Yahoo News Digest arrives on Android today along with international editions that bring a global perspective to currents. Yahoo News Digest for Android includes both the regular app, which provides twice-daily summaries of the day's top stories, along with a news widget you can place on your home screen. Previously available only in the US App Store, Yahoo is now making the digest available in English globally, adding a Canada edition and a more general international edition to the app.

News Digest differs sharply from other apps that notify you of current events by eschewing an endless stream in favor of a finite set of stories. Each day at 8 a.m. and 6 p.m., the app sends you a push notification inviting you to read your digest. Inside, you typically see eight to 12 stories that have been summarized by Yahoo algorithms and curated by editors who work for the company. It's based on Summly, which creator Nick D'Aloisio built and sold to Yahoo for $30 million when he was 17.



Yahoo won't say how many people have downloaded the app, but says 40 percent of everyone who downloaded it is still returning to it every day. The average person spends two and a half minutes inside the app every time, and Yahoo doesn't want them to spend any more time than that — the goal is to get in and get out quickly, says Maria Zhang, a senior director of engineering at the company. The updated app is scheduled to roll out this morning on iOS and Android.

Here’s what happens when a longtime iPhone user switches to Android

For Apple loyalists, the mere thought of dumping the iPhone and switching to Android is enough to send shivers down your spine. For Android fans, the idea of using an iPhone in the first place is an awful one. Enthusiasts on either side of the fence seem incapable of imagining life in the other group’s shoes, and online battles between Apple users and Android users erupt constantly. But do things really have to be this intense?

We have covered accounts in the past from people who have made the switch from one mobile platform to the other, and experiences have varied tremendously.

One story we wrote about came from an Apple fanboy who couldn’t stand using the Nexus 5 even for one day. Even the more level-headed anecdotes we have found, like this one from someone who switched from the iPhone 5 to the Galaxy S4 for six months or this one from a from a Silicon Valley investor who made the switch, seem to have one thing in common: Moving from one smartphone platform to another is quite jarring for many users.

But does it have to be?

Writing at CNET, longtime iPhone user Luke Westaway on Wednesday shared his taleof making the leap to Android. The writer explained that the iPhone has been his primary handset since the iPhone 3GS first debuted, but he decided to move over to Android when his most recent iPhone was stolen recently.

Westaway was nervous about making the jump from the iPhone to Android, especially considering how dramatic the switch is for many people.

“I thought I might despise Android,” he wrote. “An admittedly smaller part of me wondered if I’d actually love it. What I wasn’t prepared for was what actually happened.”

So, what actually happened when Westaway took the leap?

“Not much at all.”

The writer noted that there were some initial issues making the adjustment, and the first handset he tried — the Galaxy Note 3 — was far too big to be used comfortably. “But beyond the first 48 hours or so, any sense of strong emotion towards Android, either positive or negative, was notably absent,” he explained.

Westaway wrote that the main reason the switch was so surprisingly simple was that just about all of the apps and services he used on his iPhone were readily available on Android as well.

“The services I used the most were right there at my fingertips, in less than half an hour,” he wrote. “It’s true that there’s a difference in the apps available for iOS and Android, and that iOS still tends to get new apps first, but for me at least, there was nothing missing. I realised the apps I used the most were multi-platform, third-party and free to download.”

There are clear differences between the iOS-powered iPhone and Android devices, and Westaway noted a few of them in his piece. In the end, however, both platforms are comparable and more than capable of getting the job done, and one is not inherently better than the other.

Google now lets Android apps tap into Street View

An update to the Google Play Services utility means apps can use more advanced navigation and can tell when an Android device user is running or walking.

Street View, Google's vast collection of eye-level images showing more and more of the real world, is now available for Android software to use.

That ability comes with the new Google Play Services 4.4, an update to the company's multipurpose software resource that lets Android app developers tap into a range of Google features. With the change, announced Wednesday night, a restaurant-review app could show street-level views of the restaurants.

The Google Play Services software is an important part of Google's effort to let programmers create fuller-featured apps -- and to draw them and their users more deeply into the Google ecosystem. For example, those programmers can link into documents stored at Google Drive, present Google Maps, see Google-supplied advertising, and use Google Wallet for purchasing. The Android operating system's importance to Google lies largely in its ability to drive users to these services and others such as Gmail and YouTube.

Another new feature in Google Play Services 4.4 is the ability to tell an app whether an Android device user is walking or running, contextual information that can be useful for apps that enter different modes in different circumstances. That extends Google Play Services' previous ability to detect whether a user was driving or bicycling.

Google Play Services also helps shield programmers from some of the difficulties of Android operating system version fragmentation, which can complicate matters when developers have to decide whether to use older or newer programming interfaces. Google Play Services provides the same interface for versions as old as Android 2.3 Gingerbread, though it doesn't replace the full set of resources the operating system offers.