Motorola developing Android phones with stock software, ‘just right’ size

The Verge

PC Mag spoke with Jim Wicks, Motorola’s chief of design, who said that these new phones are the result of collaboration and influence from Google, as opposed to the other devices that Motorola has released in the time since Google acquired the company. “It will be the unadulterated version of Android, and I feel really good about our embracing Android and being the best Android experience,” said Wicks when speaking about the new devices, adding “there’s a sweet spot for consumers that we’re currently exceeding in the market. There are some people that like a big display, but there’s also a lot of people that want something that’s just about right. I think ‘just right’ is important, and we’re designing so we don’t disappoint those people.”

This is the right move, both for Motorola and Google. Motorola will have an edge by having a pure Android experience, and Google has a platform which they control and which will cary their services unaltered. With the moves being made by Samsung, which is the only one making money on the Android side, they have to do this.

Also, I find it curious that they talk about the size of the phone and not wanting to make a gigantophone. Isn’t Apple doomed because their phone is too small?

Human or Robot?

Singularity Hub

If they could get battery technology to a point where this thing could be running around all day, I Robot would be doing stuff for me.

The Macalope: The buck stops here

The Macalope does something that other tech bloggers don’t do, own a mistake and apologize. Macworld

Lawyers and Psychiatrists Answer the Tough Questions in The Walking Dead

Wired

AMC, Via Wired

 

Although the series takes place during a time when federal, state, and local governments have basically failed, it’s important to remember that, assuming some kind of government is eventually reconstituted, the survivors may still have to answer for their actions during the zombie apocalypse.

Because someone has to think of these things. Just in case.

Blackberry smokes iPhone and Android…on the “I would never buy that” list.

All Things D

Of the consumers Raymond James surveyed, 20 percent said they would never buy an iPhone, 31 percent said they’d never buy an Android phone, and 71 percent said they’d never purchase a BlackBerry.

Hey, at least they’re number one. Right?

Call yourself an ass&#$e for me

The Mac Observer has a nice story about an email conversation with Steve Jobs in 1996, asking him to “please let Apple alone” and not come back to run the company.  Michell Smith wrote to Jobs to tell him:

“Please,’ I implored him, ‘don’t come back to Apple, you’ll ruin it.”

To which Jobs responded with this gem:

“You may be right. But if I succeed, remember to look in the mirror and call yourself an asshole for me.”

That guy was a character.

Google updates Chrome for iOS with full screen option

What’s New in Version 26.0.1410.50

Fullscreen for iPhone and iPod touch
• Scroll the toolbar off the screen to enjoy the full page of content.
• Quickly re-access the omnibox by scrolling back down.

More stuff I would like Apple to do with Safari on iOS.

CNET’s Samsung Galaxy Note 8 review

This is the Cons section of the review by CNET:

The $399 price is a lot for a small tablet, no matter its features. It’s not as thin or as light as the iPad Mini, and some people won’t appreciate the highly saturated look of the OS. Also, its face buttons sometimes get in the way and there are occasional performance hangs.

Remember when everyone thought that Apple was crazy with the iPad Mini pricing? Not only is it made out of cheap plastic, it’s thicker, more expensive, and despite having a supposedly faster chip and more RAM, it lags and hangs when using it. And people still ask me why I prefer to use Apple stuff.

The Android User Experience

The Verge has a review of the HTC One on AT&T, and the phone is packed with bloatware from the carrier.

The most annoying piece of bloatware, however, is AT&T’s Address Book, which attempts to take over the contacts application in an effort to sync it with the carrier’s own cloud service. Not only is it annoying, but its nags are persistent — even if you’ve dismissed it once to tell it that you don’t want to use it, it will come back at a later date to remind you again of its existence. Oh, and this particular carrier app can’t be disabled or uninstalled.

I’ll keep my iPhone, thank you.

Nice iOS 7 concept.

Macrumors