Android ICS 2D Hardware Acceleration

I made a quick video demonstrating the huge difference that hardware acceleration makes in Android Ice Cream Sandwich. Apps need to get on-board with this! I demonstrate with Twitter because it's the most affected. Twitter guys, your app works perfectly with hardware acceleration on. Add the line of code so that we can have it smooth all the time!

UPDATE: The Twitter app on ICS now uses hardware acceleration without "force hardware acceleration." I've got it off on my own phone so that more apps work.

Innovation

Source: http://thedoghousediaries.com/3345

I have seen many a post from [insert technology here] fanboys who say [company x] isn't innovative because they just took something [company y] did before, and combined it with [existing technology]. News flash, everyone. There's nothing new under the sun. Everything is, at some point, a combination of things which previously existed.

As DOGHOUSEDIARIES puts above in a clever way, one of the most frequently cited examples of "lack of innovation" is Apple. "Well, they didn't invent anything new!" No, they combined previously existing technologies into a cohesive whole which had not been done before. That's innovation. Now, Siri is probably a bad example of innovation from Apple, since it was actually a product of another company's innovation, which Apple bought. But I digress.

The point is: Yes, combining things which already existed into a whole which hadn't been done before is innovation. (No, Apple's notification tray isn't innovative. Screw you, Apple.)

Samsung Galaxy Nexus

I finally got myself a smartphone, the Samsung Galaxy Nexus! I spend some time in the video above talking about the merits of the phone. A full review after the break.

Android Updates? It's Complicated.

Source: The Understatement

Several weeks ago, this image was making the rounds. It paints a pretty grim image of Android support. Sucks, doesn't it? It's obvious that if you want a smartphone, you should buy an iPhone.

That would be great. If this picture wasn't a lie.

10 Second News: AOSP 4.0.1

It has been announced on Google Groups that Android 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich, is now available on the Android Open Source Project (AOSP) git servers. There is currently the caution that the version on the servers is not complete, so hang on before you download the whole thing. The code also (finally) includes the source for Honeycomb, though I can't think of any reason to use that over Ice Cream Sandwich.

Enjoy!

UPDATE: Source is fully synced with the repos! Download to your heart's content.

Source: Google Groups

Android vs. iOS

Bias warning: I don't own a smartphone. However, I intend to purchase the Samsung Galaxy Nexus in the next few weeks, when it becomes available. Therefore I have a bit of an Android tilt.

It's hard to read a gadget blog without running into it: Rampant fanboys defending their choice of phone operating system. Fanboyism is apparently so primal that it's hard to turn the reflex off. I'm sure that psychologists would have interesting insights, but I think at some point, it comes down to "I've spent my money on this platform, and therefore I find it superior."