HTC Thunderbolt pictures leak out

Ordinarily this is the type of story we'd save for our weekly Rumor Recap posts, but this rumor is big enough that we felt it warranted its own post.

Behold: Pictures of the upcoming HTC Thunderbolt. This device will be the first 4G phone on Verizon (even HTC admits it). The pictures were obtaind by Droid-Life and very clearly show that this device is headed straight for Verizon's new 4G network. Verizon's network uses LTE technology, which has extremely high theoretical speed capacities. Look for a future post here about the various 4G technologies and how they work.

Sound Hound offers free unlimited song tagging

Anyone who's been using Android since the early days probably knows about Shazam, the music recognizing app that wowed us with its ability to listen to a song and immediately give you details about the track. It was one of the first big-name apps available for Android, and it was free. A year or so later, they changed their business model to a premium app that cost $5. The free version only allowed you to identify 5 songs per month.

Sound Hound, an app that performs the same task emerged later on for both iOS and Android and was marketed in a similar fashion; free versions with only 5 tags, and unlimited versions for five dollars. The key difference, however, was that Sound Hound also identified songs by humming or singing, not just hearing the official album or radio version.

Android weekend rumor recap

The weekend is here, Christmas is past, and another edition of the Android weekend rumor recap is upon us. This is also the final recap post of 2010, so let's make it a good one! We have quite a few juicy rumors this week, so be sure to continue reading for a quick overview of them, as well as our opinions on each.

Froyo updates all over the place

This week saw several announcements regarding the Android 2.2, Froyo update from various manufacturers and carriers. According to Google's Platform Versions page, Froyo is already running on nearly 50% of all Android phones, with 2.1 running on another 40%. The remaining 10% are still stuck on older versions like 1.6 and even 1.5. On that sad note, we'll start with the bad news.

Motorola's new Tablet Evolution video

Last night, Motorola posted an official teaser video for their upcoming Android tablet. The video doesn't reveal any details at all, but it does show that Motorola is going after the competition in a big way. The video seems to suggest that while the iPad and Galaxy Tab are important milestones in the tablet world, they are mere evolutionary steps for what will come later, which is Motorola's tablet, of course.

Android weekend rumor recap

Welcome to another edition of the weekend rumor recap! This is where we discuss the best Android rumors of the past week, along with our thoughts on them. To follow the rumors in a more real-time fashion, we recommend any of the great Android blogs listed on the side of this site. Keep reading for the rumors!

Dual-core LG Optimus 2X announced

Earlier this week, LG unveiled their long-rumored dual core phone, the Optimus 2X. The device packs a remarkable amount of power into a thin housing. It features a 4" screen, Tegra 2 dual-core processor (read: insanely fast), full 1080p recording and playback via HDMI, 8MP camera, 1.3MP front camera, and a high-res screen. It is running Android 2.2, but LG promises updates "in due course."

Android weekend rumor recap

Another weekend is here, and another Weekend Rumor Recap post comes right along with it. This is our weekly post where we briefly recount the various rumors and leaks of the past week, complete with our commentary on each one. If you prefer reading your Android rumors as they come in, we recommend any of the great Android blogs listed on the side of this site. Keep reading for the rumors!

Updated Market coming soon

The Android Developers Blog shared news yesterday of an update that will be coming soon to the Android Market. The update still doesn't include the promised desktop browser-based installing and searching, but that probably won't be too far behind. This update will be pushed out silently and automatically to all devices running Android 1.6 or higher. There won't be any notification for the new version, you will simply open the market and it will be there.

Google Maps 5.0 coming soon

At the Dive into Mobile conference yesterday, Google's Andy Rubin demonstrated a new version of Google Maps for Android. The new version, 5.0, will be released to existing devices sometime this week, and brings a wealth of new features.

Most notably, the new Maps uses vector graphics, meaning zooming, scrolling, etc will all see a dramatic speed boost, and will require downloading 100 times less data, according to Google. Plus, since map data will take up so much less space, it will be able to do offline caching of the map data you use most often. Even if you are using Navigation and have no data connection, Maps will continue to offer rerouting and guidance.

Google ebooks goes live

Google just released their online ebookstore, complete with desktop, Android, and iPhone versions. The service, called Google ebooks, offers over 3 million books for free and for purchase, including classics and new releases alike. It automatically syncs your books between devices, even remembering what page you were last reading.

Your books can be accessed from the desktop, mobile browser, or mobile apps for Android or iOS. The Android version of the app was released today and offers a very nice, smooth interface for reading books. It does redirect to the browser for purchasing/downloading new books, which is kind of a bummer, but it's safe to assume updates to the app will be coming.

The Nexus S is finally official! UPDATE: $529

After literally months of rumors, Google unveiled the Nexus S today! The device runs Android 2.3, Gingerbread, is made by Samsung, and offers a pure Google experience. It features a 4" curved glass screen, front and rear cameras, 16GB of memory, 1GHz processor, and has NFC technology. It will be available very soon either unlocked or with a T-Mobile contract. It will be sold at Best Buy in the US, and Carphone Warehouse in the UK.

This means that all the rumors about the device pretty much lined up exactly.

Android weekend rumor recap

Welcome to yet another edition of the Android Weekend Rumor Recap! This is where we quickly go over all of the best Android related rumors from the past week, complete with out commentary. If you like reading Android rumors as they hit the wire, we recommend any of the quality Android blogs listed on the side of this site. Now, on to this week's rumors!

Official Google Reader app now available

A few days ago, Google released the long-desired official Google Reader app. The app brings the full power of Reader to Android without needing to navigate the mobile website version.

It supports multiple accounts, sharing, and even subscribing to feeds right from the app. It also offers a few unique features, like the ability to use the volume keys to navigate up and down, and folder management.

Angry Birds Seasons now available

Be sure to check out the wallpaper-sized version of this picture at Rovio.com

The special Christmas edition of Angry Birds is now available in the Android Market. This version has been teased several times over the last few weeks, and is finally here. If you recall, a special Halloween edition was released in October, but it was an iPhone exclusive (much to our dismay).

Thankfully, though, the Christmas version is out now for both iPhone and Android! Not only that, but the Android version also includes all of the Halloween levels from the iPhone version. The special edition, called Angry Birds Seasons, is available as a separate app in the Market, and it's free.