Android 4.4 KitKat

Well, this is a surprise. Having long expected version 5.0 of Android to be given the code name Key Lime Pie, Google has instead handed the 'K' release name to Android 4.4 and in a weird cross-promotional deal it's called it Android KitKat.

Android 4.4 release date

Android 4.3 recently arrived on the Nexus 7, Nexus 7 2012, Nexus 4, Nexus 10 and Samsung Galaxy Nexus but is yet to roll out to other devices. It'll also be arriving 'soon' on the HTC One and Samsung Galaxy S4 Google versions, with HTC saying it expects to push it out to developers by the end of September.

So now we can start to look forward to the Android 4.4 KitKat release date. But when? We'll take a guess at late October or early November 2013 for now - which is when we were previously expecting to see Android 5.0 break cover.

On September 20 Nestle Germany confirmed an October launch for Android KitKat on its German KitKat Facebook wall, replying to a question with a translated message which reads: "Hi Tim, Android 4.4 KIT KAT is available in October".

Writing on his Google+ page on 3 October, Artem Russakovskii of Android Police said that the Android 4.4 release date is actually October 31, a date that was set some time in early September.

"Dates do change, and my information is about a month old, so if KitKat or the Nexus are delayed, Google may not hit the October 31 date," wrote Russakovskii. "I really don't see them finishing everything early, so I wouldn't bet on anything earlier than that date."

Russakovskii added that this date fits with a rumoured October 14 TA (Technical Acceptance) date for the next Nexus, which had been earlier misinterpreted by the media as the release date.

Android 4.4 features

Android 4.3 came with a few minor upgrades including better multi-user customisation, support for Bluetooth smart technology and an updated keyboard. As a minor release, Android 4.3 didn't even get its own desert-themed name, sharing the Jelly Bean moniker with Android 4.1 and 4.2.

So with a brand new code name, we can expect Android 4.4 to bring some bigger changes, but all Google is saying at this stage is: "It's our goal with Android KitKat to make an amazing Android experience available for everybody."

From this, we can assume that Google wants to get Android onto less powerful devices, something we were previously hearing about Android 5.0 when it was claimed that the new OS would be optimised to run on devices with as little as 512MB of RAM.

We also learned from Android Central back in February 2013 that Google is working with the Linux 3.8 kernel. One improvement that this kernel brings is lowered RAM usage, which fits with Google's goal of bringing Android to more devices.

The source who tipped Ausdroid with the October 14 release date also leaked some supposed details of the new OS, confirming that it would be available for "older phones", adding that it would also bring gallery visualization tweaks, new animation APIs, new notification widgets and the ability to change the Android default blue to other colors.

Leaked screenshots sent to 9to5Google, as well as other sites, show what might be a sneak peak at the Android 4.4 phone and messaging apps. The screenshots show a cleaner design and a lighter colour, plus a status bar that changes colour according to the colour scheme selected.

Are these KitKat's phone and messaging apps? [Image credit: 9to5Google]

However, Android Police appears to have received the same screenshots, and having taken a close look at them, it reckons that they're actually either full-screen mockups or a custom ROM.

An image that Android Police is more positive about is one of a Korean keyboard that was posted to Google Play. In a small change, that shot shows that the status bar icons have changed from blue to gray. Those images on Google Play have since been replaced with Jelly Bean screenshots.

A screenshot unearthed by Myce suggests that Android 4.4 may indeed come with themes as the icons in the notification area for the image that the site found on the Chromium bug tracker (shown below) are blue. Myce adds: "we found references to theming in the log file but are unsure if it will really become a feature." Android Community reckons the screenshot was taken on a Nexus 4 running KitKat.

Does the change in icon colors signal Android themes ahead?

Another set of snaps claiming to show Android 4.4 running on a Nexus 4 reveal that the KitKat update could sport a re-designed settings menu complete with a print function, plus new photo editing tools in the gallery.

How would you like your print? (credit: Android Authority)

On October 4, Android Police's Artem Russakovskii floated the rumor that Hangouts in Android 4.4 will take care of sending and receiving text messages.

"In fact, the Messaging app is gone and is fully replaced by Hangouts, at least on the Nexus device that was being tested. It should be able to handle MMS as well," he wrote.

Android 4.4 phones

In a commercial for its new operating system, Google revealed what seems to be the long-awaited Nexus 5.

Is this the first Android KitKat handset?

Shown off in a 38 second advert, the new Nexus handset looks to be equipped with a large camera and a matte black finish, carrying an LG logo on the back.

Google has since taken the video down, leading to further speculation that it did indeed reveal the Nexus 5.

An Android 4.4 powered Nexus 5 supposedly raised its head again on 16 September where it was seen flaunting its stuff in a bar. 9to5Google posted photos and video of what might be the new Nexus, apparently left there plugged in and unsupervised by a Google employee so that an eagle-eyed bar worker was able to snap some photos and shoot a video.

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How to Root Your Android Device & Why You Might Want To

You’ve probably heard of people “rooting” their Android phones. If you’ve ever wondered how to do that yourself – or wondered why people would bother – you’re in luck. You can root your Android in just a few minutes.
After rooting your device, you have full access to the entire system and can run special types of apps that require root permissions. These apps can disable bloatware, control app permissions, enable tethering, and do lots of other cool things.

What is “Root,” Anyway?

Android is based on Linux. On Linux and other UNIX-like operating systems, the root user is equivalent to the Administrator user on Windows. The root user has access to the entire operating system and can do anything. By default, you don’t have root access to your Android device, and certain apps won’t function without root access.
With root access, you can disable the bloatware that comes with your phone, manually deny app permissions, run a firewall, access the entire file system, or tether your device, even if tethering functionality has been disabled. You’ll find many apps that require root access in the Google Play store (formerly known as the Android Market), although they won’t function until you root your device.

Rooting isn’t mandatory – you only need to root your device if you want to do things that require root access.

Warnings (WE DONOT TAKE ANY RESPOSIBILITY FOR THE  MALFUNCTION OF YOUR TABLET)

Before you root your Android phone or tablet, there are a few things you should be aware of:
Warranty – Some manufacturers assert that rooting voids your device’s warranty. However, rooting will not actually damage your hardware. You can “unroot” your device and manufacturers won’t be able to tell if it’s been rooted.
Security – Google Wallet, in particular, has a vulnerability on rooted devices that could allow other apps to access your PIN and other wallet information. Google Wallet displays a warning message if you run it on a rooted device. If you’re one of the few people using Google Wallet for NFC payments, you may want to reconsider rooting your device.
Bricking – Rooting a device is a very safe process. However, there’s always some danger of “bricking” a device when you go outside the normal parameters and hack around with it — particularly if you’re trying to root a device or operating system version not supported by a tool. “Bricking” refers to breaking the device, making it about as useful as a brick. When you root, jailbreak, or install a custom ROM, or otherwise hack around, you do so at your own risk. It’s a good idea to do a little bit of research first and see if other people report success rooting your device.

Setup

The actual rooting process itself should only take a single click. However, you’ll need to do a few quick things first:
Download and install the Java JDK and Android SDK on your computer before continuing. Java must be installed before the Android SDK.
Enable USB debugging on your Android. On the device, go into the Settings screen, tap Applications, tap Development, and enable the USB debugging check box.

Connect your Android to your computer using its included USB cable. Don’t mount the device’s SD card on your computer – just plug it in.
You’ll also need the USB drivers for your phone or tablet installed. SuperOneClick itself should be able to automatically install the appropriate drivers – however, if this fails, you’ll need to download and install the appropriate drivers from the device manufacturer’s website.

Rooting With SuperOneClick

We’ll be rooting with SuperOneClick here. It’s a single-click way to root that supports a wide variety of different devices and should work for most people. If SuperOneClick doesn’t support your Android device, head over to the Android Development and Hacking forums at XDA Developers. There are subforums for most Android devices – type your device’s name into the search box and you’ll probably find information from other people that have successfully rooted it, perhaps by using another tool.
You can find download links for SuperOneClick at shortfuse.org, SuperOneClick’s official website. After downloading it, run the SuperOneClick.exe application.

Click the Root button in the SuperOneClick window and SuperOneClick should do the rest.

The process will take a few minutes. If you run into a problem, you might want to check the XDA Developers forum for your device, which we mentioned above, or run a Google search.

Restart your Android after rooting it.

Superuser

SuperOneClick automatically installs the SuperUser binary, which is also available from Google Play. Whenever an app on your device attempts to gain root permissions by calling the su command (just like calling the su command on Linux) you’ll be prompted to allow or deny the request.

Open the Superuser app to control the saved permissions and configure Superuser.

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Now you’re free to install and use apps that require root access

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Top 10 Things to Do After Buying an Android Phone

Mobile Phones are devices which serve a pivotal role in our lives. They are a mode of communication, a mode of listening to music, taking photos, playing games and a whole bunch of other things. Gone are the days where we used mobile phones only to make phone calls and send a few text messages. Today, mobile phones are acting as mini computers, and hence buying a mobile phone is a decision which we make with utmost care.
Android phones are one of the most trending phones at the time. They are available at many price points and are affordable for everybody. But just buying an Android phone isn’t enough. You have to take a few steps after buying an Android Phone to make the process complete. Below, we are giving the top 10 things to do after buying an Android Phone.

1. Create a Google Account

This is something which you are going to have to do immediately, if you do not already possess one. A Google account is needed not only for accessing your emails, but also for downloading apps in the Play Store. So this is the first thing every new Android User Must do.

2. Change Your Launcher

Most Android Phones come with crap launchers, with the exception of maybe the HTC Sense. These not only slow down the phone, but generally also look ugly. We recommend that you install a different launcher pronto. There are various launchers, but some good ones include, Launcher Pro, ADW Launcher, Go Ex Launcher etc. A detailed post will soon be coming regarding the top launchers for Android.

3. Install an Alternative Music App

Although the music app on Android is not bad, but if you want the full experience, we recommend that you install a 3rd Party Music Player App.

4. Install Advanced Task Killer

This is kind of a controversial topic, but we believe that having a task killer does prove useful. We have seen many times that when a phone begins to lag (and Android does lag), task killer have many times help speed the phone up.

5. Install a Flash-light App

Many of you are probably like, “Whoa?” But this is very important. We cannot state enough, how useful a flashlight app is. It has helped out in tight situations many times, and we reccomend it to everybody.

6. Install a Different Web Browser

Android comes with a powerful web browser which supports flash and all, but, its slow and not that visually appealing. So we recommend that you download an alternative browser. This can be anything from Opera Mobile to Dolphin Browser. We recommend Opera Mobile for a complete browser, and Opera Mini for Speed. The New Opera Mini 7 has just come out, and is worth checking out.

7. Install a new Video Player

Android has a decent video player, but it doesn’t support many formats and is low on features. We recommend that you instal Mx Player or Rock Player so as to view all your desired videos on your phone, provided that your hardware supports it.

8. Install Beautiful Widget

This is not essential, but we cannot stress enough how good it looks and how useful it is. It will tell the date, time, weather etc. Many other apps also mimic it, but this is the best.

9. Install a Battery Widget

This can be very useful as it will tell the exact percentage of battery remaining in your phone. This is very useful for those people who wait till the last minute before putting their phone on charge.

10. Root your Phone

This is kind of advanced, but can be very useful. Rooting your phone gives you complete command over your phone, and you can access things which are not normally accessible. This will also void your warranted, and if not done properly, brick your phone. So this is a step to be taken with caution and is not for everyone.
There are loads of other thing which you may wish to do once you purchase an Android Phone, but the above are the ones which we think are most important. If you have any suggestions, please leave them below.

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