For those that like to keep tabs on Android’s distribution, the Android Developers blog is more than happy to oblige by offering regular updates on that front. To help encapsulate the trend of Lollipop’s adoption, Google’s latest distribution numbers show Android 5.0 and 5.1′s steady growth.

The latest results show devices that checked into the Google Play Store over the 7-day period ending on September 7. With that in mind, both Android 5.0 and Android 5.1 saw increases in their percentage numbers, with the former at 15.9% and the latter positioned now at 5.1 percent. Compare that to the 15.5% that Android 5.0 registered on in August, and the 2.6 percent that Android 5.1 was tracking in the same month, Android’s latest version saw the biggest bump in a month’s time.

Android 4.4 KitKat is now registering on 39.2 percent of devices checking into the Play Store, which means that’s actually down from the 39.3% that KitKat pulled in during the month of August. Meanwhile, Android 4.1 through Android 4.3 Jelly Bean came in at 31.8%, which is down from the 33.6% the Android Developers blog showed in August.

As should be expected, the percentages drop quite a bit from then on. Android 4.0.3 to 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich is now on 3.7% of devices, while Android 2.3.3 to Android 2.3.7 Gingerbread is now on 4.1% of devices. Finally, the last version that the Android Developers blog is tracking is Android 2.2, Froyo, which is now only on 0.2% of devices.

While the majority of devices are still running Android 4.4, it’s at least good to see that Android 5.1 is seeing a rising number of devices registered with its software.

Which version of Android are you running on your daily driver?

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According to T-Mobile, an update for all Nexus phones since the Nexus 4, as well as the Nexus 7 (2013) and Nexus 9 tablets, will be available OTA over Wi-Fi later today.

The update will be Android 5.1.1 build LMY48M and includes security updates and bug fixes. Following the Stagefright madness virtually everyone — including Google — indicated that they would be instituting more regular update schedules and this would be the first of the monthly updates that Google promised for Nexus devices.

If you have one of the included Nexus devices, the OTA should be popping up later today, and if you are on T-Mobile, they’ll be available over cellular at a later date if you are unable to access Wi-Fi for some reason.

Security updates aren’t exactly exciting, particularly when there isn’t a pressing threat that we know they are correcting, but it’s good to see Google hitting their target for the monthly updates, and perhaps it will silence some of the ridiculous Android security rhetoric that we see doing the rounds all too often.

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While the number of Android devices supporting microSD expansion have diminished in the last year, there are still several that do have one, including the LG G4 and the Moto X Pure Edition. If you are one of the lucky few to still have microSD support, then there are some great deals on SanDisk storage today.

If you are just looking to get in on the cheap a 32GB microSD is down to $10.99, which is 71% off retail and $4 off the typical price on Amazon.

For a penny less than $20 you can bump up to a 64GB microSD card, a $5 savings off the going rate.

If you want to carry your full music collection with you, the 128GB microSD might be the right option for you and at $47.99, today it’s one of the best prices we’ve seen and $12 cheaper than you’ll find it most days.

To up your digital hoarder game to the next level, the 200GB microSD should be your weapon of choice. At just $149.99 today, it is $100 less than retail and $50 less than we’ve ever seen it before.

That’s it for microSD goodness, but there’s a variety of other SanDisk storage on sale so if you need a flash drive, low-profile flash drive, SSD drive or a flash drive with USB and microUSB then hit the SanDisk Gold Box Deal of the Day page by the end of the day.

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Cheap Android tablets have been a thing for years now, but the problem with most of ‘em is that, well, they tend to suck. Amazon apparently hopes to change that later this year.

The Wall Street Journal claims that Amazon is planning to launch a 6-inch tablet that’ll cost just $50. The company reportedly outsourced a lot of the tablet’s development to overseas companies like Shanghai Huaqin Telecom Technology Co. and Compal Communications Inc. in order to help get its price down.

In terms of specs, the only detail included in today’s report is that the device will include a mono speaker. Considering that this is Amazon we’re talking about, it seems like a safe bet that Amazon’s Android-based Fire OS will power the device.

Last year we saw Amazon introduce a 6-inch Fire tablet that was priced at $100, which is a reasonable price for a small Android tablet from a big-name company like Amazon. A $50 6-inch tablet could be big for Amazon, though, giving consumers a super-cheap slate to buy during the holiday season. It could be interesting for folks not looking for a gift, too, because $50 for a tablet would probably an impulse buy for a lot of people.

Would you be interested in a 6-inch Amazon tablet for $50?

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A recent report claimed that Google is going to unveil its new Nexus phones on September 29. That leaves plenty of time for more leaks, and today the LG-made Nexus has made another appearance.

An image shared by AndroidPIT shows the backside of the LG Nexus 5 (2015). The photo shows the rear of the upcoming Nexus, which features a protruding camera that’s said to have a 12.3-megapixel resolution, as well as a dual LED flash and optical image stabilization. Below the camera is a fingerprint reader, and below that is some Nexus branding.

In addition to that 12.3-megapixel camera, the LG Nexus 5 (2015) is rumored to include a 5.2-inch 1920×1080 screen, front-facing speakers, a 5-megapixel front camera, a Snapdragon 808 processor, 3GB of RAM, a USB Type-C port, 16/32GB of storage, and a 2700mAh battery. Unfortunately, none of those details can be confirmed by today’s leak since we can only see the back of the phone.

Obviously we’ll have to wait until we can actually handle this new Nexus before we can make any judgments about it, but if the leaks and rumors hold true, the device could be pretty solid. Not only will it run Android 6.0 out of the box, but it’ll have a smallish screen and front-facing speakers packed into a body that looks like it’ll be comfortable to hold.

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Information has been pretty sparse about Android Pay, especially its release date. We’ve been waiting for a while now, and it might come within two weeks. Verizon claims that the service will be launching on the 16th of September.

Other companies have had dates for the launch of Android Pay before, and they’ve been wrong, so you shouldn’t put too much faith in this one. But it would definitely be nice for it to finally launch. Hopefully the adoption rate will be good!

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Google Translate is the best translator you can find for free (or maybe in general). On Chrome for computers, you can automatically translate foreign languages without having to go to the website, which is easy and intuitive. Unfortunately, on Android you’re stuck copying and pasting text into the Translate app, which requires quite a few steps. Luckily, Google has solved that problem.

Starting with Android Marshmallow, you’ll be able to use a system-wide translation feature thanks to Google Translate 4.3. The app update takes advantage of the contextual selection feature in Marshmallow so you can select text and instantly translate it. It’s an extremely useful feature.

But until we all get Marshmallow, most of us won’t get to experience this feature. We’ll have to wait for official updates. For those of you already running Android 6.0, give it a shot and let us know how it works!

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The new Moto X Pure Edition has just gone up for pre-order, and already we have a leak for a new Motorola device. This is the Moto X Force, and not much is known about it, but it looks like every other recent Motorola device.

It’s likely going to come to Moto Maker, considering how many colors and accents are being shown off. The bottom of the front of the device has a strange setup where it looks like there are two speaker grills, though that could be something else entirely. We’ll have to wait to find out more about that.

With the Moto X Pure Edition launching, do you think it’s worth waiting to hear more about the Moto X Force? Could it be higher end, or will it fall in the mid-range for the US? Leave a comment with your thoughts!

Source: @upleaks (2)
Via: PocketNow

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Google Street View has long been a staple of Google Maps, allowing you to explore an area as if you were there. It’s incredibly useful for looking for business, orienting yourself, getting a sense of parking in an area, or even just looking around for the heck of it. And now, Street View gets its own app for both Android and iOS.

This new app is aimed to help people explore and share their surroundings. There’s a gallery full of photo spheres that people have contributed, and it allows you to contribute your own. This app replaces the Photo Sphere app on iOS, and comes built in with the photo sphere camera on both platforms. You can take beautiful 360 degree photos and share them for all to see.

Not only can you use your own camera, but the app has support for 360 degree cameras like the Ricoh Theta S and the NCTech iris360. All photo spheres taken will also appear on Google Maps for regular folks to see. If you want to download the app to your Android device, head over here to the Play Store!

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Welcome back to our weekly Top 10 Android App Updates column, where we take a look at the most frequently upgraded apps for the week. We’ve found that one of the best ways to discover useful apps is to find the ones that are actually being updated by the developers rather than selecting the apps with the most installs. As in the past, we’re going to filter out minor updates for the super-popular apps that have over 10 million installs, but we’ll make exceptions for apps that have had significant updates. We hope you enjoy this weekly feature and that you discover some apps that end up being useful.

LastPass Password Manager – Version 3.5.20

What’s new in this version:

• New: Start on your phone or tablet for free! (see http://ift.tt/1zuGAHe for details)
• New: Support fingerprint readers on Android 6.0
• New: Support the new Android 6.0 permissions model
• Fixed problem with in-app purchase when trial has expired.
• Fixed input method not allowing autofill. (Requires disabling and re-enabling from LastPass)

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feedly – Version 29.0.0

What’s new in this version:

• [NEW] Chrome Custom Tab integration
• [NEW] Shared collections
• [FIXES] Bug preventing the creation of new collections

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DO Button by IFTTT – Version 2.0.4

What’s new in this version:

• New Channels include: Adafruit, Amazon Cloud Drive, Camio, dondeEsta Family, iSecurity+, Wattio, Wolfram Data Drop
• A few wrinkles were ironed out

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HERE Maps – Version 1.1.1031

What’s new in this version:

• You can now see public transport information for Switzerland, Ottawa (Canada), Brest (France), Charleston and Sioux Falls (USA)
• Long tap anywhere on the map to start drive guidance, get directions or share a location
• See all the stops along your route when taking public transport

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Greenify – Version 2.7.0

What’s new in this version:

• *NEW* Experimental support for Android 6.0, with new “Shallow Hibernation” engine.
• Auto-hibernation in non-root mode now dims the screen, no more annoying screen flicking.
• “Hibernate and Lock Screen” shortcut is now compatible with Smart Lock (root only).
• Foreground app no longer hibernates even if “state always ignored”.
• Native processes are also cleaned in hibernation, to prevent self-awakening.
• Fixed app running state detection on Android 5.1.1_r9 & 6.0.

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GoPro App – Version 2.9.1551

What’s new in this version:

• Create 5, 15 or 30-second clips from videos while they’re still on your camera and share them to Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and more!
• Improved camera software update process

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SmartThings Mobile – Version 6.0.0

What’s new in this version:

• New visual design: redesigned to provide a more impactful experience
• Global navigation: easily navigate throughout the app
• Rooms: organize your devices in rooms
• Primary device: set a primary device in a room
• Rich controls: enhanced controls with a new visual design
• Routines: automate your home

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Google Keep – Version 3.2.0

What’s new in this version:

Zoe – Version 2.0.0

What’s new in this version:

• Create highlight videos locally on your phone without uploading.
• Maximum length increased from 30 seconds to 3 minutes.
• Include as many clips as you like within the 3 minute time limit.
• Smart Trim. Toggling smart trim on/off enables video clips to be trimmed (3-5 seconds each) or to play in their entirety within the Zoe.
• Login to download your existing Zoes from the cloud.

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Maps – Version 9.1.4

What’s new in this version:

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