Once upon a time Google treated tablets as second-class citizens in the Android ecosystem. Then the company partnered with Motorola (which Google hadn’t yet acquired) to release the first officially sanctioned Android tablet in 2011. It’s been almost exactly 3 years since the Motorola XOOM was unveiled, and Google and Motorola have largely abandoned the […]
custom roms
Oppo offers official CyanogenMod ROM for the Oppo N1 phone
Chinese phone maker Oppo is the first company to release a phone that comes with CyanogenMod pre-loaded. The Oppo N1 CyanogenMod Edition is a limited edition phone that went on sale December 24th and which features the custom version of Gogole Android. But Oppo also offers a version of the phone that comes with ColorOS, […]
CyanogenMod 11 M1 released for Nexus phones and tablets
Since Google released the source code for Android 4.4 KitKat, plenty of developers have started building custom versions of Android for various phones and tablets. But now the makers of one of the most popular custom ROMs have weighed in with their first build of KitKat. CyanogenMod 11.0 M1 is now available for the Google […]
PwndCast ROM teaches a Chromecast new tricks (but you probably can’t use it)
Not happy with the limitations of Google’s Chromecast device? Good news: There’s a powerful new custom ROM available for Google’s $35 media streamer which you can use to watch videos from unsupported sites, access your device via SSH or Telnet, and much more. Bad news: There’s a good chance you won’t be able to use […]
CyanogenMod Installer is no longer in the Google Play Store
CyanogenMod Installer is an app designed to walk you through the process of installing the company’s custom version of Android on your phone or tablet. The app actually consists of two parts: an Android app that helps walk you through the process and a PC app that does the heavy lifting. Earlier in November, the […]
Android 4.4 KitKat for the Google Nexus One (custom ROM)
Google launched the first Nexus smartphone in the first half of 2010. The HTC Nexus One was well built, had one of the fastest mobile processors available at the time, and showed Google’s vision for what an Android smartphone should be at the time. More than three years later, the Google Nexus One hardware looks […]
Paranoid Android 4.0 Immersive mode gives you more screen real estate
Google rolled out a new “immersive mode” feature with Android 4.4 KitKat. Apps that take advantage of it can run in full-screen mode, eliminating the notification bar and on-screen buttons and allowing you to bring them back with a gesture. But app developers have to tap into Google’s API to fully take advantage of Google’s […]
HP TouchPad gets Android 4.4 KitKat (unofficially)
HP may be pushing new inexpensive Android and Windows tablets, but the HP TouchPad tablet the company launched 2 years ago continues to have staying power — even though HP discontinued the tablet just a few months after it hit the streets. The HP TouchPad is a 9.7 inch tablet with a dual-core processor, 1GB […]
Android 4.4 KitKat ported to run on the Samsung Galaxy Nexus
Google may have no plans to release an official Android 4.4 software update for the Samsung Galaxy Nexus. But the nice thing about phones that ship with unlocked bootloaders is that you can load your own software — and like most Nexus devices, there’s a pretty healthy developer community involved with the Galaxy Nexus. So […]
CyanogenMod 10.1 nightlies for the B&N NOOK HD, NOOK HD+
Barnes & Noble may be done making NOOK tablets, but that doesn’t mean the the tablets that are already on the market will turn into lumps of coal overnight. In fact, the NOOK HD and NOOK HD+ are some of the best tablets you can find in their price ranges, now that Barnes & Noble […]