Wooooo go CyanogenMod!
http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2011/05/cyanogenmod-android-hack/all/1
Modders Make Android Work the Way You Want
By Mike Isaac Email Author
May 19, 2011 |
7:00 am |
Categories: Hacks, Mods and DIY, Phones, Software and Operating Systems
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Photo: In one of many tweaks to the Android interface, a customized boot screen features scrolling lines of code. Photo: Jim Merithew/Wired.com
CyanogenMod is one of the biggest hacks to ever hit the Android mobile platform.
It’s got an estimated 500,000 users. Many Android programmers use it as a starting point for their own coding projects. And according to the project’s founder, a number of Google employees have it installed on their Android devices.
Essentially, CyanogenMod is a tricked-out version of the software you’re already running on your Android phone.
Every Android-powered device comes running a version of the operating system, from 1.5 (Cupcake) all the way up to 3.1 (Honeycomb).
CyanogenMod replaces that stock OS with a custom build, letting you make adjustments to your phone that the official version prevents. It opens the door to more sophisticated custom wallpaper, changing the graphic that appears when the phone boots up, or more significantly, tethering your laptop to your phone’s data connection. With CyanogenMod installed, you can even overclock your phone’s CPU, so you can wring every last drop of processing power from it.
“You can customize the hell out of it,” says Steve Kondik, founder of the CyanogenMod project.
How a Hack Got its Start
Of course, it all began with a phone.
Debuting in 2007 as the flagship device for Google’s Android mobile platform, HTC’s G1 smartphone was the alternative to Apple’s immensely popular iPhone.
The G1 — also known as the HTC Dream — could be easily rooted, which meant giving you superuser access to the phone’s naughty bits. Essentially, it made customizing your G1 as easy as pie.
Steve Kondik had been waiting for a phone like the G1 for a long time.
“I had followed a few other Linux-based phones before,” says Kondik, citing offerings from Motorola and Nokia, “but they never had the sort of momentum that a company like Google could bring.”
And Google’s philosophy fit with what Kondik, a software developer working for a mobile content delivery company in Pittsburgh, was looking for: a more “open” platform for coders coming from a background in open source code, like Linux. Android, after all, is built on the Linux kernel.
After each version of Android was made available for download to the public, Google pushed all of the code to an online repository called Kernel.org, free for all to poke, prod and play around with. Developers could take any and all of that code and modify it to their heart’s desire.
Which is exactly what Kondik proceeded to do. “I had been using desktop Linux for ages,” he says, “and I just tried using some of those concepts to tweak the code. I had no idea what I actually wanted to do with the phone.”
After finishing his first version of CyanogenMod, Kondik posted the file to XDA forums, a popular message board in the Android modding community. “All of a sudden, my single-page thread is one hundred pages long,” Kondik says.
Cyanogen Comes of Age
CyanogenMod was a hit. It racked up downloads from community members, each expressing how they liked the amount of control they finally had over their phones.
“As a mobile enthusiast, I like the ability to make changes to the way that my operating system runs,” says Chris Soyars, who works on CyanogenMod.
In essence, CyanogenMod’s popularity can be attributed to the very thing that draws so many to the Android platform: openness, flexibility, control. The Google-led Open Handset Alliance — a coalition of 80 carriers, manufacturers and tech companies all backing the Android platform — espouses these principles, as seen in the Open Source Project mission statement: “We wanted to make sure that there would always be an open platform available for carriers, OEMs and developers to use to make their innovative ideas a reality.”
Apple, on the other hand, fought aggressively to outlaw the practice of jailbreaking its phones, which is akin to rooting an Android device. Apple ultimately lost the battle in federal court, so iPhone users are free to jailbreak their phones, though they don’t have access to the operating system’s underlying source code to the same extent Android users do.
While Apple’s controlling, “walled garden” approach has obviously worked well for the company — the company has sold 100 million iPhones as of March of this year — Android has become the alternative solution for geeks and hackers who want more control over their devices.
For many, CyanogenMod is the key to unlocking that control.
Photo: The CyanogenMod logo. Illustration courtesy CyanogenMod.com
But while Android allows more access to things Apple doesn’t allow, such as unofficial app markets, there are still some things that the OS places off limits. CyanogenMod takes it to the next level. For example, installing it allows you to remove all that pesky bloatware that came preinstalled with your device. Or as Kondik says, “You don’t have to have weird NASCAR apps stuck on your phone anymore.”
Coders must create a different version of CyanogenMod for each new release of the Android operating system. But the proliferation of different Android devices across multiple manufacturers meant many different versions of code to be dealt with. And with Google beginning to operate on a six month release cycle for each version of its software, Kondik needed help.
Chris Soyars, a tech company project manager from the Gainesville, Florida area, runs the servers that host all of the CyanogenMod files available for download. “We need some pretty high horsepower to handle the amount of traffic we get,” says Soyars. After meeting Kondik over the XDA forums, Soyars set up the file-hosting infrastructure for Kondik after Cyanogen began to take off.
Photo:The "Blue" theme for CyanogenMod. Photo courtesy of Bill Bradford/Flickr
CyanogenMod expanded into a team of 35 different “device maintainers,” who manage the code for the 32 different devices that the project supports. Like Google, the team publishes its code to the Github online repository and accepts online submissions for changes to the code from other developers. Seven core members decide which of the submitted changes make it into the next release of CyanogenMod, and which don’t.
Ricardo Cerqueira, a mid-level manager at a telecommunications company in Portugal, got involved with the project after being promoted to a management position.
“I missed getting my hands dirty,” says Cerqueira, who had worked as an engineer before. Now, CyanogenMod is a major part of his life.
“Right now, I’m in charge of four or five different devices,” says Ricardo Cerqueira. “When Gingerbread [Android OS 2.3] came out, I barely slept for days.”
The Future of the Hack
Ultimately, CyanogenMod aspires to be more than just a software mod.
“I think one of our biggest dreams is to see a phone ship with Cyanogen on it,” says Soyars.
But pairing the software with a phone is no easy task. First, CyanogenMod would have to pass the tests required by Google’s certification program in order to bundle Google’s proprietary apps — Gmail, Calendar, etc. — on the phone.
CyanogenMod initially tried bundling the apps in its software, but Google slapped the group with a cease and desist letter, barring the team from producing any further versions or distributing its software until the two parties settled. Kondik eventually dropped Google’s apps from inclusion in the CyanogenMod download, although obtaining those apps after installing the mod is as easy as going to the Android Market.
Google declined to comment on this story.
The group would also need a willing hardware manufacturer to partner up with. The Geeksphone is one tantalizing option. Based in Spain, the company offers a prerooted device straight out of the box. But Geeksphone is still a small enterprise, miniscule in comparison to the hardware giants that currently dominate the industry.
And third, says Kondik, “to get anything like this off the ground, you have to be partnered with a carrier. And how do you do that unless you’re one of the giants, like LG or HTC?”
While its following is impressive, it’s likely CyanogenMod won’t grow into a giant.
“The mainstream consumer isn’t at all interested in this,” says Al Hilwa, mobile platform analyst at research firm IDC. “However large a group they are, I can’t imagine it being more than 5 percent of the market.”
But it was never about the money, anyway. Virtually all of the team members have day jobs. Kondik says it’s difficult to manage the time spent on CyanogenMod and his actual paid work.
“There are donations here and there,” says Soyars, “but there’s no real way to monetize this.”
In the end, it’s about a love of tweaking code, figuring out how things work, and making them work your way.
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Related
Open source projects follow a pretty standard pattern in my experience. If the project becomes popular, it grows at a breakneck pace. New features, bug fixes, and more are suggested and submitted daily. Eventually, you have to say no to a couple of things. Once enough things are said no to, those who come up with those ideas move on to the next logical thing, which is to take your ideals and your creativity and make your own version of that project. Soon, you’ve got a hundred flavors of Linux and a few hundred thousand people with their own opinions as to why theirs is better than yours.
It turns out, Android isn’t all that different at its core from this description. One such example of this is the Android Open Source Project based distribution of CyanogenMod. The CyanogenMod team is a group of developers, hackers, themers, and more who have all come together to adjust Android to their ideals. This week marks the next version of their distribution, CyanogenMod 7.1.
CyanogenMod is currently the only distribution of Android that supports nearly 70 devices with the same version of Android. Many devices that have been abandoned by the manufacturers, or have been waiting far too long for an update to the next version, are supported equally by the CyanogenMod developer team. New Android phones are typically supported fully within a month or two of the release of the phone.
What’s the cost for CyanogenMod 7 over what is on your phone when it comes out of the box? It varies. For some, it could cost you your warranty. For others, it might just cost a little bit of time to figure out how to install the OS on their phone. One things is certain, if you are even remotely interested in tinkering with your phone and getting the best experience Android can offer, you might want to consider CyanogenMod 7.1.
Customization
From the beginning, the CyanogenMod distribution has been all about customization: Make your phone your own, using the tools that have been in Android the whole time, but were redacted or omitted at the cost of user friendliness.
While it’s cool to be able to set a custom wallpaper for your phone, or custom ringtone and notification tones, that level of customization seems slightly empty when you can’t control how your lockscreen looks, or the incoming call screen. Maybe you’d prefer your lockscreen to offer you more features, such as the ability to launch an app right from the lockscreen. Visually, nearly every element on the screen is completely customize-able. In fact, there’s a theme engine built into CyanogenMod that is filled with themes you can apply to change the color, effect, and style of buttons, battery, icons, and anything else you can find on your phone.
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The customization doesn’t stop at visual elements, either. You can kill the shutter sound on the camera app, allow a friend to browse the web on your phone in a Chrome style “Incognito Mode”, or set your phone to stop ringing after a preset time. The experience is the same across all of the devices they support, including things like tapping the screen to focus the camera or being able to connect a Bluetooth mouse to the device.
Settings allow you to revoke permissions from an app you have installed from the market, meaning you can disable any app’s ability to access your location, access to your contacts, or anything else you’d like. Many of these features you see scattered across the existing Android devices, but there’s only one place you find all of these features together.
New Lockscreen
CyanogenMod offers several different kinds of lockscreens for you to choose from, most of which are enhanced versions of screens that have been found on other devices. CyanogenMod 7.1, however, offers a new lockscreen that allows you to set apps to your lockscreen to launch when you drag the bottom ring to the app. This is similar to what has been seen in the recent lockscreen found in HTC’s custom distribution of Android. Unlike HTC’s attempt, however, this version allows for more apps and a higher level of customization. Additionally, this lockscreen is available on all CyanogenMod 7.1 devices, where the HTC lockscreen is only available on select devices running Android 2.3.4.
Final Thoughts
This is not for everyone. There’s a pretty steep learning curve between stock Android and CyanogenMod, and an even steeper learning curve between one of the heavily themed versions and CM7.1.
CyanogenMod is not a small project anymore. With support from Sony Ericsson, recognition from many Googlers currently working on Android, and devices in the UK like the GeeksPhone line of devices shipping with the ability to easily put CM7.1 on it, the once small collaboration of like minded geeks has grown into a complete distribution of Android with a team of over a hundred different contributors to the project.
Recently, several pivotal members of the CyanogenMod team spoke at a developer panel during the 2011 Big Android BBQ about the project and its future.
Source:
http://www.geek.com/articles/mobile/cyanogenmod-7-1-now-available-for-ultimate-android-customization-20111012/
SOURCE : Kickedface
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WARNING: This post contains rumors and speculation from Android Insiders. If you do not want to know about Android 4.2 then do not read this story and unplug from the Internets. You have been warned – the goods are after the jump. Thanks to androidandme for digging this up!
There is so much to cover in this rumor report that we are going to use a slightly different format. We will list each rumored feature individually and then break it down before moving on to the next.
NEW NEXUS PROGRAM
Rumor: As previously reported, any manufacturer can produce a Nexus device or a Nexus version of an existing device. They work closely with Google on the hardware and driver details (there is a more efficient solution for this in 5.0), but Google is responsible for the updates (don’t know how the carriers factor in). The phones don’t necessarily have to have “Nexus” as part of their name, it works more like a certificate like “HD Ready”.
The devices have to fulfill some basic requirements. The phone has to ship with a stock version of Android, it needs to have the hardware power to run all “Nexus Games”, and they have to support Google Wallet, aka have NFC.
There are two carrots on a stick that probably make the Nexus brand a huge selling point. Google Play gets expanded with a media streaming service component and there will be games that only work on Nexus devices. The streaming service uses the secure memory, making it harder to pirate the content. No word of the type or source of the media, but it seems to be a big deal.
Speculation: This info is all over the map, but it lines up with previous reports. It sounds like Google is going to encourage manufacturers to join their Nexus program, but it will be optional. If manufacturers meet a list of requirements, then they can become Nexus certified and gain access to new services and features.
It almost sounds like the list of requirements that Google currently places on OEMs in order for them to gain access to Google services like the Play store. This will now create a second tier certification program that manufactures have the choice of participating in. OEMs can offer a device that meets the basic requirements and gain access to the Google Play store, and if they include additional elements they get access to the Nexus certification
NEW CUSTOMIZATION CENTER
Rumor: There is a new Customization Center, where you can change ringtones, language packs, background, launchers, and so on. There is nothing too sophisticated (for now). The center is mainly a convenient way to enable the average customer to do some basic customizations. The range of options can be expanded via Google Play of course. However, there are two new features: templates that change the appearance of all (newly introduced) dynamic icons at once, and post filters that change the appearance of the whole UI – think of Instagram.
The manufacturers may provide their custom UI through the Customization Center, but they don’t have to. When Google upgrades Android and a manufacturer fails to provide a compatible version of their custom UI the device reverts simply to the stock UI (or the user waits with the upgrade until the manufacturer catches up).
Speculation: This sounds like a dream come true. Google may have finally provided a solution to the manufactures that allows consumers to update the base Android operating system, without having to wait on the OEMs to update their skins.
NEW PROJECT ROADRUNNER
Rumor: There is major effort to improve the battery life called Project Roadrunner.
Speculation: Details are pretty light on this one, but it sounds like Project Roadrunner will enhance battery life the same way that Project Butter enhanced the overall responsiveness in Android 4.1.
UPDATED GOOGLE PLAY
Rumor: Google Play is enhanced with new features like personalized search, optional promotional campaigns with notification center integration, more billing options, and easier in-app micro-transactions.
Speculation: We don’t have much to add, but we like anything that will help developers generate more revenue.
UPDATED GOOGLE NOW
Rumor: Google Now provides help for basic OS functions, aka “Where can I activate bluetooth?” or “How can I tone down the brightness?”, to make it easy for newbies to settle in.
Speculation: No surprise here. Google said they would be updating Google Now and we expected to be able to control system level functions.
UPDATED VIDEO PLAYER
Rumor: The stock video player app gets a major revamp and provides new APIs for other video services to tie in.
Speculation: Again there is not much to add, but androidandme believe this is part of a bigger media streaming service that Google will soon offer.
DRIVE-BY CONCLUSIONS
Please keep in mind that all of this should only be considered a rumor, but this source has been on the money with previous information. Some of the details are so specific that I have a hard time believing they are just making this up as they go along. The source also shared quite a bit of information about Android 5.0 that we left out so we could focus on the next release.
Hello users with Android 4.2.
By now we are certain that Google has handed out new Nexus devices to their employees who are currently testing Android 4.2. Androidandme have monitored quite a few visits to their site over the last month, but the number of hits from Android 4.2 really started to pick up this week.
I’m not sure if I believe every detail that is included with this report, but all the signs are pointing to some major changes to the Nexus program and the core Android OS. Some of these changes are so big that we wonder if they will even be included with Android 4.2 or be held for Android 5.0.
We previously speculated that a lot of the things in Android 4.2 would be geared towards laying the groundwork for Android 5.0. It is possible that a lot of these new features will only be visible on Nexus devices, while standard devices would be left without them.
The whole concept of a Nexus certification program sounds like Google is putting their foot down and taking more control of the Android experience. Even though the program might optional, hopefully the consumers will realize the benefits of a “Nexus ready” device versus something that is just Android-based.
This sounds neat
Sent from my PG86100 using Tapatalk 2
Here is a video about it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6QnTdY5vUI&feature=youtube_gdata_player
Sent from my SGH-T989 using xda premium
uhmm!
Sound nice!
Thanks for the info
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Using a skinned version of Android? You’re already up-to-date on 4.1.
We’re not huge proponents of using the term “skin” to describe the manufacturer customizations put on most Android-based smartphones. In most cases, the changes are more than skin deep. Look at the latest versions of HTC’s Sense and Samsung’s TouchWiz and you’ll see features and UI changes that go beyond mere visual gimmicks. But it’s a term that most people are familiar with, so let’s stick with it.
So, if you’re using a skinned Android phone, chances are you’re accustomed to waiting for software updates. It’s a fact of life for every non-Nexus smartphone. And with the announcement of Android 4.2 earlier this week comes the certainty of more waiting for 4.2 updates to drop. Few devices are on Jelly Bean, and manufacturer updates already in the works will be based around 4.1 rather than 4.2. After that, there’s the standard maze of regulator and carrier approvals to traverse, adding additional weeks to the update roll-out timeframe. And with the holidays looming, and CES and MWC approaching thereafter, we doubt we’ll see Android 4.2 on many current devices before spring 2013. Engineering effort will be spent getting new products ready for launch, rather than chasing a minor OS update.
But really, that doesn’t matter. And the reason why goes to the heart of what Android 4.2 actually is. Before release it was referred to internally as Jelly Bean MR1 -- MR standing for “minor revision.” And a glance down Android 4.2’s feature list further confirms that there’s not a whole lot of game-changing stuff to be found, rather additional polish to the existing Android UI. Hence the decision to stick with the Jelly Bean moniker -- Google is striking a balance between pushing out new features and allowing hardware partners to catch up.
Read on to find out exactly what's going on, and why owners of Sense or TouchWiz devices need not worry about Android 4.2.
Of the features included in Android 4.2, most will be overwritten by manufacturer customizations, and those that aren't will be made available through the Google Play Store anyway. Let's break down the list of new stuff.
*Multi-user support -- A biggie for tablet users, depending on how they use their devices, but 4.2’s new user-switching support doesn’t apply to phones at all. That’s understandable -- a phone is a much more personal device.
*
Keyboard with gesture typing -- A big deal for users of vanilla Android, but the stock keyboard is one of the first app to be stripped out of Android by manufacturers. Samsung, HTC, Sony, LG and Motorola all have their own custom keyboards, and many of them already license proprietary tech for trace-based typing. If you really must have this feature on an unsupported device, we’d recommend checking out SwiftKey*Flow in the weeks ahead.
*
Photo sphere and the new camera app -- Again, the stock camera app rarely makes it across into manufacturer-customized UIs, so we’d be surprised to see this in 4.2 updates for phones like the Galaxy S3 and HTC One X. As photo sphere uses Google’s own street view imaging tech, it’s highly unlikely it’ll be open-sourced. This*presents a barrier to it being bundled into manufacturers' camera apps.
*
Wireless display -- It’s great to see this included on Nexus devices as standard, but two of the major Android manufacturers, HTC and Samsung, already use competing methods for wireless video streaming. HTC has its Media Link HD, while Samsung has AllShare. In any case, it’s probably fair to call this a niche feature.
*
Google Now enhancements -- These have already been pushed out to devices running Android 4.1 through the Google Play Store. As of the latest update, Google Now can pick up new info like delivery tracking numbers from your Gmail, if you allow it, without requiring a 4.2 update.
*
Lock screen widgets -- Though unavailable at present on our Nexus 4 review unit, lock screen widget support will be present on retail Nexus 4 phones sold from Nov. 13. This allows you to choose*a handful of widgets to place on your lock screen. Major manufacturers tend to have their own custom lock screen setup, but we wouldn't be shocked if they found a way to incorporate this feature into their own UIs. But this is another one*we'd hesitate to call*a major feature.
Music explorer -- This is a feature of the Google Play Store, and so should be quietly rolled out to most handsets over-the-air, regardless of OS version. If you've got access to the Google Play Music store, you'll be able to organically browse through related artists when the latest store update pushes out.
*
Quick settings area in notification bar -- Most manufacturers have been doing this for the past several years, albeit not quite as elegantly as Google does it in Android 4.2. A quick, simple two-finger gesture will throw up a settings dropdown in stock Android, but if you’re using 4.1 on a Galaxy S3 or One X, you’ve already got these options elsewhere in the notification dropdown.
*
New gallery app -- Samsung, HTC, LG, Sony and others replace the gallery app in their skinned versions of Android. Chances are that’ll continue when Android 4.2 rolls out to their handsets.
Whereas Ice Cream Sandwich brought sweeping UI changes, and Jelly Bean (4.1) introduced new usability and performance enhancements, 4.2 is a maintenance release that’s more focused on adding extra stuff for Nexus users, and prettying up the stock Android experience. If you’re running a skinned version of Android, the changes will be all but invisible.
What’s more, we expect to see more of the vanilla Android UI pushed out to Google Play, just as Google's done with its Calendar app in recent weeks. This allows Google to take back some control of its platform without waiting for manufacturers, carriers and regulators to push out OS updates.
That’s not to dismiss the importance of Android 4.2's features for Nexus phones, or for the OS in general. On any Nexus device, the new stock Android experience, though not radically different, will add plenty of new stuff to make phones and tablets more usable and enjoyable. And of course, there’ll be plenty of stuff that’s not user-facing -- bug fixes and security improvements that can’t be shown off in glitzy video demos.
So if you’ve got a Nexus device, you’re in for a treat in the weeks ahead. Android 4.2 will give you plenty of new toys to play with. For non-Nexus, "Android-based" handsets, Android 4.1 is the benchmark to aim for -- features like "Project Butter "and Google Now provide tangible benefits on all devices. Don’t worry too much about 4.2 -- it’ll arrive, in time, and when it does, it won’t be a big deal.
(And if you're a Verizon or Sprint Nexus owner, well, you at least have our condolences.)
-androidcentral-
Sent from my Nexus S
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Is it because Android is the most popular smartphone platform in the world right now, or is it because it’s just fundamentally easier to attack? In any case, Google’s mobile juggernaut Android continues to be the world’s biggest magnet for mobile malware. According to a report out today from security specialists F-Secure, Android accounted for 79% of all malware in 2012, up from 66.7% in 2011 and just 11.25% in 2010. On the other side of the spectrum,*Apple’s iOS, the world’s second-most popular platform for smartphones in terms of new purchases, remains one of the least compromised, with 0.7% of malware on its platform.
Symbian, whose market share is in rapid decline*and is being left for dead by its former parent Nokia, is down to 19% of all malware, compared to 62.5% two years ago. F-Secure predicts that it will go the way of the dodo bird and become extinct in 2013, as users replace their Nokia handsets with Android devices. Meanwhile, Windows Mobile, BlackBerry and J2ME each accounted for less than 1% of threat families in circulation in the year.
Breaking down progress over the past year, Android’s malware record appears to have seen a particularly bad spike in Q4 2012. F-Secure notes that in the fourth quarter it accounted for a full 96% of attacks. In fact, according to its records, all other platforms except for Symbian (at 4%) didn’t appear to have any malware threat families received at all.
Holding these up to Q4 market analysis, these figures are not proportionate to market shares for current sales, but they are somewhat more reflective of what devices are in circulation today.*In that sense, the shift between Symbian falling and Android rising is due to the fact that Android has been the biggest benefactor of Symbian’s decline.
“Malware in general has a parasitic relationship with its host,” writes Sean Sullivan, security advisor at F-Secure Labs. “As old Symbian handsets continue to be replaced by those with other operating systems, especially Android, Symbian malware dies off and will probably go extinct in 2013.”
In terms of what forms malware is taking, F-Secure says that 66% of detections were Trojans (malware masked as something else). F-Secure believes that Google’s increased security prompts, which it introduced with the 4.2 variant (Jelly Bean), should help bring that number down. However, if you look at Google’s most recent stats on distribution, released this week, Android 4.2 is only at 1.6% — meaning that this make take some time to come to pass. (For the record, Gingerbread 2.3.3 and upwards remains the most popular in terms of distribution, at 44%, with Ice Cream Sandwich at number-two with 28%).
Another major problem continues to be dodgy SMS messages: F-Secure notes some 21 of the 96 Android threat variants come from premium SMS that encourages downloads and sometimes end up as repeat problems by way of subscription services to which users unwittingly become subscribed. Then, users don’t know about this until the charge comes up on their bill — if they bother to scrutinize that bill, that is.
Interestingly, F-Secure also notes that those releasing malware have become more sophisticated in their reasons for infiltrating devices. Specifically, there’s been a significant shift in terms of malware attacks becoming financially motivated over the last several years, with financial gains now well outweighing those attacks that have been made in the past. Why the shift? It may be because malicious hackers were still learning the ropes for how to infiltrate devices back in the day.
Or it could be something else:*The rise in financial motivations also speaks to the fact that we as a population are using our devices for significantly more transactional services — and that makes them increasing targets for attacks aimed specifically at that fact. This is something that will eventually have to be squared with all the many ambitions and developments in the market today to turn our handsets into our default wallets.
Update: TC has reached out to Google for a comment, but a spokesperson says that the company does not comment on security company reports. Also worth pointing out a dissenting opinion on the above data from a reader in the comments below, highlighting that what gets identified as malware may sound more alarming than it actually is.
“F-Secure can say that anything is malware, even ‘dodgy sms’ which doesn’t fall under the definition of malware…. They say they detected trojans, but they didn’t explain what were their effects on the system, because if they did, everyone will know they’re not really trojans, that’s only what they want you to think,” he writes. “I’ve been using different droids for 3 years now, never had an issue with them. I’m a developer by the way.”
Be that as it may, there are more than security vendors putting out reports and warnings on malware and cybersecurity threats. Smartphones are still an emerging area — but a hugely popular one — and therefore remain a moving target
Source: techcrunch
thank you for sharing your valuable reserch
Hi, your post has helped me a lot in researching on this topic. It sure makes a lot of sense.
Hi guys .. this is my first post ...
11 features of Android 4.4 Kitkat
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First what is Kitkat :It is an android version which was released after Jelly bean ........ The latest version of android tooo
Many of them will have seen ...... Jelly bean and Ice cream sandwich .....
But this kitkat is very special and fullly Themed ..... :silly:
Google has confirmed that Android 4.4 KitKat will be the next edition of the world's most popular smartphone operating system.
The next version of Android was widely tipped to be known as Android 5.0 Key Lime Pie, but after some deliberation Google opted for a more recognisable name confirmed the change after reaching a deal with Nestle.
Features and release date of Android 4.4 KitKat are yet to be released, but the mobile OS is expected to arrive before the end of the year, mostly likely debuting on the next Nexus branded handset.
I had compiled a list of 12 other improvements we'd like to see in Android 4.4. Do you agree? Are there any features you'd like to see Google introduce? Let us know below.
Features of Kitkat :
12. Improved security
Despite its popularity, security is still a core problem for the Android platform. This is primarily down to the Google Play store being a infiltrated with apps containing malware malware, but isn’t the only cause.
Most recently, Bluebox Security discovered a “Master Key” flaw, which means that 99 per cent of devices vulnerable (900 million) can be hacked. A patch is being rolled out as we speak, it’s another major sign that Google needs to do more to ensure its devices are safer.
11. Performance profiles
We’ve already got the ability to toggle between silent and flight mode, but enhanced profiles which can be customised to alter the performance levels of the device will be invaluable as they can help to save battery life or boost CPU speeds for complex tasks .
OEMs such as Motorola and Samsung already offer users things such as Blocking Mode and Smart Actions, respectively. We would like to see Google step up and offer a variety of modes built into Android, especially for its Nexus range. These will allow the user to save battery overnight, turn up performance when carrying using the device for gaming/multimedia and settings for in between.
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10. Beef up Google Now
Google Now was introduced in 2011 as part of Android Jelly Bean 4.1, but it's usefulness is largely restricted to the US.
In the UK, the software primarily functions as a reminder tool for events you may have – and is always on hand to show you how long it will take to get home from any given location. We expect Google to make some more partnership announcements, which will extend the usefulness of Now outside of the grand ol’ USA.
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9. Ability to turn off OEM skins on any device
When Android 4.4 KitKat launches, it is expected to arrive on a brand-new handset carrying Google’s 'Nexus' branding.
Likely to be dubbed the Nexus 5, this smartphone will ship with the vanilla version of Android, and will be developer friendly. OEMs such as HTC, LG and Samsung will place their custom skins over the top of Android KitKat when it is released on their handsets to differentiate them.
It would be good if Google built-in a master switch into Android, giving users the choice to switch off these OEM skins without having to root devices.
The chances of this happening though are virtually zero. OEMs such as HTC and Samsung add features which will only work with their respective skins active, and they are not going to want to let users disable them. Google is unlikely to pull rank on its partners too – as it feels that one of the strengths of the operating system is its customisation
8. Child/Business-friendly modes as standard
Kids Corner was a useful feature that Microsoft introduced in the Windows Phone 8 OS. Microsoft effectively built a sandbox into the mobile OS, allowing users to lockdown sensitive information like emails, while allowing kids to access features such as games. It would be good to see Google incorporate a similar feature into Android.
BlackBerry built-in its Balance feature into Z10 smartphones. This allows IT admins to separate business and personal data – and means that employees cannot copy sensitive information from one side to the other. It also means when a user leaves an organisation, the business side of the handset can be wiped without affecting the personal information.
Samsung is already trying to make inroads into the enterprise by launching a Secured Edition of Android known as Knox. This aims to replicate the functionality of BlackBerry Balance, so it is possible to do so.
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7. Find my Droid
You'd expect a simple feature like this to be included in a comprehensive system such as Android, but it has yet to materialise.
With the firm’s extensive mapping service, and GPS included into handset, it shouldn’t be too much of a stretch for Google to build this functionality into the heart of the OS.
6. Revamped messaging
This is the feature which has been talked about extensively, due to information leaking. It will be interesting to see to how Google goes about tackling messaging in a world where apps such as Whatsapp dominate.
Google's "Babel” service is expected to allow users to access messages across Android smartphones and tablets. The web giant is also tipped to launch clients for other popular platforms such as iOS.
Folks over at the Google Operating System blog found a javascript file on Gmail servers appearing to confirm the existence of Babel and some of the key features it will include:
Redesigned conversation-based UI
Access conversation lists from smartphones, tablet and PCs
Advanced group conversations
Ability to send pictures
Improved notifications across devices
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5. Offline maps and better control over location settings
Nokia has been leading the way in this field by allowing users to download comprehensive guidance and then use it for free offline. Google already offers comprehensive guidance through its Maps and Navigation apps, but it does crunch through battery when in use.
Privacy hasn't been a strong point for Google, with the firm receiving numerous fines about collecting data from individuals. A way in which Google could try and rebuild its privacy image would be to let users choose whether they want to share their location.
iOS already allows users to turn off location services on individual apps if they choose to. This feature would be welcome on Android so you don’t have all your apps sending off data. Of course it would help to save battery life too.
4. Improved battery life and performance
There are whispers that Google will upgrade the framework of Android to the Linux 3.8 Kernel. What does this mean for regular users?
In short, such an upgrade should make Android less memory hungry. Devices should become more efficient as they gobble up less RAM for tasks and inturn this should result in improved battery life.
Google introduced its Project Butter initiate with Jelly Bean to help solve the latency issues Android was experiencing. This has gone a long way toward reducing the perceived “lag” associated with Android. Improvements to Butter are expected.
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3. Enhanced multitasking
Android has been at the forefront of mobile computing when it comes to features such as multitasking. Users are able to run multiple apps at the same time and flick between them.
With the forthcoming Galaxy S4, Samsung will allow users to snap two apps onto the screen of the 5in device, so they can be used at the same time. It’ll be possible to watch videos when replying to emails, or surf the internet and make notes.
It would be great to see Google take the initiative and make a multitasking feature like this standard across all high-end handsets.
2. Complete Android backup
Although it is possible to sync key features such as contacts and apps with a Gmail account – a full blown native backup is lacking from Android handsets.
When you switch between Android handsets, photos, music and text messages are lost in the transition, as are any customisations you have made.
Apple already has a cloud backup service, which works well when you upgrade your iPhone– and we hope Google will introduce something similar to this with Android KitKat.
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1: Its nothing to say .... it's really awesome in gaming performance and camera has a fully themed and enhanced Digital quality ..... as per for nexus 5 in screenshot
Moto G [ 4.4 ] Kitkat :
Moto g comes with android 4.4.2 ... which got a big hit in market
Cyanogen mod 11
Cyanogen mod 11 is the version of kitkat ...for all supported devices
Feel 4.4.2
Hit thanks if i gave some useful information
Hacking is the feel of Myself ... and yourself
Where is LINK CM 11??? Please give me please...
Sent from my GT-I8262 using XDA Free mobile app
[email protected] said:
Where is LINK CM 11??? Please give me please...
Sent from my GT-I8262 using XDA Free mobile app
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Deleted
Grate review!
Really great thread didn't knew about many. cheers for you