Why people get Nexus phones: I rooted my MyTouch 4G after less than one day

Ditching the MyTouch 3G for the MyTouch 4G My first smartphone was the second Android phone released—the original MyTouch 3G. Not the Fender. Not the 3.5mm headphone jack. The original. From the beginning, it was a pretty crappy phone. I mean it did basic smartphone things but the touch responsiveness was poor (you really had… Continue reading Why people get Nexus phones: I rooted my MyTouch 4G after less than one day

Does Android “fragmentation” actually affect end users?

Ever since 2009, I’ve been hearing a lot in tech blog posts and the media about “Android fragmentation.” No actual Android user I know in real life has complained about it, though. I’ve also noticed that criticisms about so-called Android fragmentation tend to be quite vague. From Android fragmentation is real: For Joe Average, this… Continue reading Does Android “fragmentation” actually affect end users?

Android users actually want Netflix streaming, I guess

Hilarious. Netflix just announced today on their Facebook page that Windows 7 Mobile has Netflix streaming. Out of the first 260 comments, 185 are angry Android users wondering where the Android Netflix streaming app is. I’m not angry, but I’m also curious as to why it’s taking Netflix so long to get one out. Jeremy… Continue reading Android users actually want Netflix streaming, I guess

The Pros and Cons of the Android Keyboard

This is a kind of follow-up piece to Lukas Mathis’s Virtual Keyboards on iPhone and Android from a year ago, comparing the virtual keyboards on the iPhone 3GS and the HTC Magic. I bought the Magic (in America called the MyTouch 3G) around that time and everything Mathis said about the keyboard was absolutely true… Continue reading The Pros and Cons of the Android Keyboard

Annoying Android usability issue – Gmail with multiple accounts

I love my Android phone. It’s a lot of fun, and I think Google has done a lot of good things with the Android platform. There are still some major usability issues, though, that I hope Google will iron out in Android 3.0 (Gingerbread). Here’s one, for example: Issue 1664: Gmail should allow choosing the… Continue reading Annoying Android usability issue – Gmail with multiple accounts

You mean products fail for other reasons?

If you read recent press coverage of Google’s Nexus One, it all seems to make sense. Phones weren’t going to sell well being sold only online without a chance for people to try them in person in a brick-and-mortar store. There wasn’t an advertising campaign for it. Very few articles or blogs about the end… Continue reading You mean products fail for other reasons?

Living the Apple and Google life

Ever since Apple rejected the Google Voice application for the iPhone last year, the tech press has tried to play up a corporate rivalry between Apple and Google. Will people pick Android or iPhone? Will Apple make Bing the default search engine on the iPad? Will Google start making touchscreen tablets to “kill” the iPad?… Continue reading Living the Apple and Google life