Kogan Launches World-First Laptop Powered by Google's Chromium OS

London, United Kingdom, 3 June 2011 - Kogan today released the world's first laptop powered by Google's Chromium OS, available for sale and ready to be dispatched. The Kogan Agora Laptop powered by Chromium OS goes on sale today for £269 in the United Kingdom and $349 in Australia and ships direct to customers next week. Kogan's Chromium OS Laptop is based on the popular Agora hardware, adds a Solid State Drive, lets users operate entirely in the cloud, and boots in 4.5 seconds. Ruslan Kogan said the world-first product was testament to Kogan's efficiency and agility. "We've been able to beat the rest of the world to bring the first commercially available laptop running Google's Chromium OS. "Google's Chromium OS is an open source project, making it a constant work in progress. This means the system will improve over time and new features and improvements will keep getting introduced by the open source community. "While Chromium is still in its early stages, we know the operating system is innovative technology which represents the future of computing. It may take some getting used to for some to operate entirely in the cloud, but the massive benefits for the end user are driving acceptance of entirely web-based services. "What we've found from talking to our customers is that many of them are already using cloud services without even realising it. They're uploading photos to services like Flickr, storing all their contacts in Gmail, and even hosting files on DropBox. "Loading up a laptop with Google's open source software can be strange at first. However it's clear that everyone from casual users to pros are embracing cloud services with all their personal computing needs. "The real beauty is that no matter which Chromium powered computer you're on anywhere in the world, it will appear exactly as you expect, tailored to your needs. Google is also working hard to ensure that Chrome integrates seamlessly with all Android based devices. "Samsung and Acer announced Chromebooks based on Chromium OS last month, but we've beaten them to market. Kogan is the most agile consumer electronics manufacturer in the world. We react faster to market trends than anyone else. "The first Kogan Agora Laptops powered by Google's Chromium OS will be in customer's hands next week and we're very excited. Our business has already been operating entirely in the cloud for years!" Kogan said. For more information on Google's open source Chromium OS project, which powers the Kogan Agora Chromium OS Laptop: http://www.chromium.org/chromium-os The full specifications of the Kogan Agora Laptop - Powered by Chromium OS are available here: Kogan Agora Chromium Laptop - United Kingdom Kogan Agora Chromium Laptop - Australia

About Kogan Kogan is a designer, manufacturer and retailer of consumer electronics. Kogan's streamlined business model allows us to bring the latest and best consumer electronics and home appliances direct to the door of smart shoppers through kogan.com.au and kogan.co.uk. We engage our customers through our blog, Facebook and Twitter, and release new products based on the feedback we receive. We believe there is always a better way to create and deliver the technology people want. Kogan has received many awards for success in Australian and International markets including: BRW 2010 Fast 100 BRW 2010 Young Rich List BRW 2010 Fast Starters list Australian Retail Association 2010 Retail Innovator of the Year T3 magazine most influential people in technology The Age Top 100 most influential people in Melbourne BRW 2009 Young Rich List BRW 2009 Fast Starters list Anthill Top 30 Under 30 Entrepreneurs My Business 2010 Best Young Gun in Business Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year, Young Category, Southern Region

How to Upgrade Your Droid X to Official Gingerbread (Android 2.3) Android

How to Upgrade Your Droid X to Official Gingerbread (Android 2.3) Android

LG Announce the LG Ally Android Mobile

LG Announce the LG Ally Android Mobile

» How To Use An Android Phone Without A Data Plan - Android - Lockergnome

» How To Use An Android Phone Without A Data Plan - Android - Lockergnome

Budget Android Phone - £15 a month

Hi , Amazing Ace deals from £15 a month! The Galaxy Ace features a 3.5 inch touchscreen with Swype text input, a 5 megapixel camera, plus a 800Mhz processor to keep all your Android apps running blazingly fast. This latest must-have mobile from Samsung can be yours from £15 a month! Order today!

Adobe speeds Creative Suite releases to catch tablets • The Register

Adobe speeds Creative Suite releases to catch tablets • The Register:

"Creative Suite 5.5, announced today, . . . aimed at mobile platforms from Apple, Research in Motion, and Google. . . is making it easier to build, test, and debug mobile web apps built for iOS, BlackBerry Tablet OS (the software behind RIM's PlayBook, due on April 14), and Android."

Phones 4U gets first dibs on white LG 3D phone • reghardware

Phones 4U gets first dibs on white LG 3D phone • reghardware:

Phones 4U says it has the exclusive on LG's autostereoscopic 3D smartphone, the Optimus 3D - in black or white.

The Android-running Optimus 3D's touchscreen display is 4.3in in size, 480 x 800 in resolution, and incorporates a 1GHz dual-core processor from Texas Instruments - it's an OMAP 4.

It comes with a 5Mp dual-lens camera for taking 3D snaps and videos of your own, and if you don't fancy viewing them on the phone, you can show them on a telly using the handset's HDMI output.

Shelving Made Easy (or Easier) - Wired Campus - The Chronicle of Higher Education

Shelving Made Easy (or Easier) - Wired Campus - The Chronicle of Higher Education:

A new Android app helps librarians keep their shelves in order.

"Shelvar relies on special tags—kind of like QR codes—attached to the books’ spines. Each tag 'exactly represents the call number' of each book, Mr. Brinkman explains. A user with a current-generation smartphone or tablet computer scans the shelf using the app, and Shelvar indicates which books aren’t in the right places. Visual cues, including directional arrows, indicate where the misfiled book ought to go."

HTC Desire S Android smartphone • reghardware

HTC Desire S Android smartphone • reghardware:

. . . the Desire S runs on the latest version of Android for handsets, which offers future-ready enhancements like NFC (Near Field Communication) and SIP calling. Besides the video chat and keyboard improvements, Gingerbread has better cut and paste facilities and promises to speed up the phone’s operation through better memory management and performance enhancements. . .

The Android browser now supports Flash video – so you’ll be able to see more of those fancy animated sites than the iPhone can – and the intuitive text wrapping and pinch to zoom makes surfing the web always fun and never a chore.

Google drops Schmidt for Elop, Android for WinPho 7 • The Register

APRIL FOOL!?

Google drops Schmidt for Elop, Android for WinPho 7 • The Register:

Posted in Mobile, 1st April 2011 18:52 GMT

"Google . . . will abandon work on its Android mobile operating and join Nokia in backing Windows Phone 7. 'The superiority of the unified simplicity of Windows Phone 7 over the fragmented mess that Android has become is abundantly evident,' said the soon-to-be-ex-CEO Eric Schmidt . . ."

Note:"April Fool" is a UK folk custom, when lies can be told before 12 noon. Since this wasn't posted until nearly seven hours later, it might just be true!

Google 'clamps down' on world of Android partners • The Register

Google 'clamps down' on world of Android partners • The Register

RIM's PlayBook to run Android apps • The Register

RIM's PlayBook to run Android apps • The Register:

The PlayBook's app player won't run apps from Google's own Android Market. Instead, a RIM spokesperson told The Reg that Android apps will have to come through its own BlackBerry App World.

RIM's decision to only let Android apps download and run on the PlayBook from its own market will mean that while devs are coding for Android 2.3, they'll have to abide by RIM's rules to gain access to the market and devices.

Winamp for Android 1.0: Now Available - Winamp Blog

Winamp for Android 1.0: Now Available - Winamp Blog

With Winamp & Winamp for AndroidTM you can wirelessly sync your music over Wi-Fi, import your iTunes library, and stream thousands of Internet radio stations with SHOUTcast.

The latest release of Winamp for Android features a completely redesigned Home screen, Now Playing screen, and lock-screen player. You can also download free music, browse songs by genre, swipe album art to change tracks , and use Android's 'listen to' voice action to playback music in Winamp. We also added additional language support for Dutch, Italian, Spanish & Turkish.

A glimpse at Amazon's app store • The Register

A glimpse at Amazon's app store • The Register
Android News managed to grab screenshots of the store showing 48 applications, many priced to undercut Google's Android Marketplace, and two that appear to be exclusive to the Amazon store.

Amazon is best hope of a viable alternative to iPad • The Register

Amazon is best hope of a viable alternative to iPad • The Register: "Amazon . . . may . . . be the biggest threat to Apple's tablet lead should it launch hardware to go with its upcoming Android app store."

» Android Malware Alert: Scam Virus App Can Send Texts, Rack Up Your Carrier Bill - Android - Lockergnome

» Android Malware Alert: Scam Virus App Can Send Texts, Rack Up Your Carrier Bill - Android - Lockergnome

RIM PlayBook fondleslab to 'run Google Android apps' • The Register

RIM PlayBook fondleslab to 'run Google Android apps' • The Register

Acer unveils big-screen smartphone • reghardware

Acer unveils big-screen smartphone • reghardware: "Smart runs Android 2.3 Gingerbread on a 1GHz Qualcomm MSM8255 processor, packs in tri-band HSPA 3G, 2.4GHz 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1, GPS and an FM radio.

It has a 2Mp video call camera, and a second, 8Mp job on the back for stills and 720p video. It'll play 720p content out through its HDMI port, but not higher resolution footage."

CES: Skype for Android two-way video chat all but guaranteed - CES 2011 CNET Blogs

CES: Skype for Android two-way video chat all but guaranteed - CES 2011 CNET Blogs:

Skype's Manrique Benares said at an Nvidea press conference at CES :

We are excited that NVIDIA has leveraged SkypeKit to build a reference implementation of HD video calling on Android Tablets. In the near future, consumers will be able to make video calls from their Tegra-powered Tablets to anyone else using Skype, whether it's on a PC, Mac, TVs, or phones.

We think it's a safe bet we'll see the same in a Skype-made app for Android smartphones.

Android-powered touchscreen Wi-Fi headphones offered • The Register

Android-powered touchscreen Wi-Fi headphones offered • The Register:

With approximately 10⁶ headphone manufacturers battling for mindspace in the marketplace, Nox Audio has come up with a gimmick that hooked our jaded eyes and ears: headphones that run Android.

"The Admiral is a product like no other," said Julie Ma, Nox Audio's president, in a press release promising that her hefty cans will "unleash an audio revolution."

Not content with Android in your smartphone or tablet? Try the Admiral Touch (source: Engadget)

The Admiral Touch features a 2.4-inch touchscreen display that you can poke and stroke to use the Android OS to access the wireless headset's different modes, adjust volume, and switch tracks. The prototype shown at last week's Consumer Electronics Show was running Android 2.1, but who knows what version it'll be running when – if? – it ships in late 2011.

According to Nox Audio, the headphones' Wi-Fi capability will support not only standard audio sources, but also content streamed from Pandora Radio, and VoIP apps such as MSN chat and Skype. Into the chunky cans will be crammed noise-cancelling 7.1 surround sound, and the earpieces can be rotated outward to function as speakers.

With Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, USB, and standard 3.5mm audio-jack connectivity, Nox Audio promises that the set will "offer maximum versatility and compatibility with PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PCs, personal music players such as the iPod, home theaters and cell phones and all other electronic devices."

Although the company suggests that the Admiral Touch's removeable and recharageable lithium-ion battery will provide over five hours of audio pleasure, it remains to be seen how long it can truly handle a 2.4-inch display that's powered by an ARM11 processor and supported by 1GB of flash storage, 256MB of RAM, and a microSD card slot.

If the Admiral Touch should catch on, we wouldn't be surprised if another headphone vendor who's seeking recognition will offer a set into which you could slip your 1.54-inchApple iPod nano. ®

3 Things You Can Do To Make Your Android Device Faster

3 Things You Can Do To Make Your Android Device Faster « OzTech:

1: Disable running services

2. Don’t overdo the widgets

3. Root it!

Dunno about that last one. Doing it wrong can turn a brilliant phone into an unusable brick. Not for newbies!

Beastly Android will batter Apple's iOS beauty • The Register

Apple can still claim top spot in terms of US market share, according torecent data from Nielsen, but its lead is rapidly vanishing in Android's wake.

This means that developers increasingly are going to need to choose the platform they should develop for first, and the answer seems increasingly to be Google's open web.

Android introduces complexity for developers, unlike Apple's iOS: it forces them to think about hardware fragmentation, among other things. It comes with a good app store experience, but not nearly as professionalized as Apple's. There are blemishes throughout the experience.

And yet it continues to win, claiming 40 per cent of new handset shipments in the last six months, according to Nielsen data:

Full report can be read at Beastly Android will batter Apple's iOS beauty • The Register