Android Tablet Update

Growing tired of HTC Sense 4.0 on your Tegra 3 powered HTC One X? Over the weekend, the Android development community managed to get CyanogenMod 9 and MIUI 4 up and running on HTC’s quad-core flagship phone. As always, the first versions of these ROMs are not perfect.

CyanogenMod 9 is slow to connect to 3G and currently does not feature any camera or WiFi hotspot capabilities. On the plus side, the developers have remapped the buttons on the HTC One X so that the multitasking button now acts as the menu button. This eliminated the black menu bar which would appear across the bottom of the screen on applications which were not optimized for Android 4.0.

While MIUI may not have as many fans as CyanogenMod, a leaked beta of MIUI 4 for the One X is fully functional. The developers managed to keep the stock HTC camera, gallery and music (including Beats Audio) applications in order to retain the unique media capabilities of the HTC One X.

If you’re the adventurous type, click on the source links below and install a custom ROM on your Tegra 3 powered HTC One X. Are any of you planning on running custom ROMs on your HTC One X or will you be sticking to the stock HTC Sense 4.0 experience?

HTC One X CyanogenMod 9 via The Verge
HTC One X MIUI 4 via HD Blog

CyanogenMod is one of the most popular custom ROMs in the Android ecosystem. There is a plethora of options out there, but this team has managed to get a great reputation. The CyanogenMod 9 ROM based on Android 4.0 is still in the works. But root and custom ROM users are dying to know whether their devices will be supported with Ice Cream Sandwich goodness.

It seems the CyanogenMod team gets the same question a lot. “Will the _____ get CyanogenMod 9 support?” To make the answer simpler, they have just released a nice flow chart. It displays the possibilities of your smartphone getting CM9 support, based on general specifications.

We have a feeling this chart won’t exactly stop users from asking. But if you want to see your odds, go ahead and follow the chart questions below. What percentage does your device fall under?

Back in late December, Android Developer Andrew Neal revealed some of the new features coming to the CyanogenMod 9 music app that had control freaks everywhere dying for a taste. While the default music app in Android 4.0 isn’t terrible, it does lack much in the way of customization and control. Andrew Neal’s new CyanogenMod music app aims to fix that. Finally, last night, Neal took to his site Seeing Pixels and released an early 1.0 build of the music app for Android 4.0 devices.

At first glance, the CyanogenMod 9 music app (it just appears as Music with a blue icon on your Android device) isn’t all that different from the default music player. The default theme is slightly varied from what comes stock with Ice Cream Sandwich, but you might not even notice if you weren’t looking. The total overhaul comes from the setting menu.

There’s a ton of options and setting under the customization menu option, but that’s only the beginning. There’s some in-depth audio options including a full equalizer with bass boost, shake and flip gesture support and a theme chooser. The music theme template for the app was also released yesterday, along with a Google Music theme. The default theme that comes with the app looks much more native on Android 4.0 than Google Music, but options are what this app is all about.

As much as I like the CyanogenMod 9 music app, I need Google Music. All my music is on Google Music now. And the CyanogenMod 9 music app lacks Google Music support. Because of this, it could never become my go-to music app for Android. I will keep it installed for anything local, but that won’t be much.

To try out the new music app for CyanogenMod 9, head on over to Seeing Pixels now. Be sure to let us know how you like it.

The default music player in Android 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich, leaves much to be desired in the way of customization. There are options to change some of the settings for Google Music and playback, but that’s about as far as customizations go. The fine folks behind CyanogenMod are looking to change that, for rooted and non-rooted users alike.

Android Developer Andrew Neal recently sat down with The Verge and spilled some details on CyanogenMod 9’s upcoming music application. Among the normal options found throughout the default Android music app, CM9’s music app will feature fully customizable notification area playback options, shake controls, the ability to search the Android Market, options for setting music as ringtones and gesture recognition.

In keeping with the spirit of CyanogenMod ROMs, the music app will eventually come equipped with a full theme engine, allowing users to take total control of their music playback experience.

Fortunately for non-rooted users, the CyanogenMod 9 music app will be made available as a stand-alone download in the Android Market.

Progress on the rest of CyanogenMod 9 is coming along quite nicely. Every day, more and more devices land ports and early alphas of the ROM. The Droid X and Droid 2 Global are just two devices to see their own version of CM9 come out in the last week. Surely, we can expect to see many more devices gain compatibility soon.

While hackers and modders from all over the world are sitting on the edge of their seats waiting for CyanogenMod 9 to make a mass release appearance, anyone lucky enough to own an Android 4.0.3 device can get a taste of the ROM now. Trebuchet Launcher, the launcher that will come preloaded in CyanogenMod 9, is available for download in early alpha form.

There are two requirements for running Trebuchet Launcher, you must be on Android 4.0.3, and you must be rooted. If you happen to own a device that fits that criteria, like a Galaxy Nexus or Nexus S, then you can download Trebuchet and see what the standard launcher for CM9 will come with. TreBuchet is modeled to look just like the stock Android 4 launcher, but comes with a slew of customization features not found in vanilla Android.

• Custom number of Homescreens
• Enable/Disable Persistent Search Bar
• Separated Apps/Widgets in Drawer
• Resize Any Widget
• Show and Fade Scrolling Indicator in Homescreen and Drawer
• Enable/Disable Auto-Rotate
• Drawer Apps Sorting (Title, Install Date)

Personally, I’m really looking forward to app drawer sorting and disabling the persistant Google search bar. Since I have a Nexus S, I still use the search button, making the persistant search bar pointless. And who couldn’t use a little more organization in their app drawer?

As time goes on, more and more features will find their way into Trebuchet Launcher. Infinite scrolling and screen transition animations are just two among many slated to make an appearance eventually.

For more information on Trebuchet Launcher, and to download the alpha, visit XDA now.

Gallery

There’s no doubt that many Android fans already have their Ice Cream Sandwich-filled Galaxy Nexus. Many of us (especially Americans) are still waiting for this device to hit our local stores, but we’re more than eager to play around with Android 4.0. What happens with those users who don’t feel like they need new hardware to get the benefits of Ice Cream Sandwich, though?

When you know your phone is still good, and you want to stick with it for some more time, custom ROMs can be a great option. For some, it’s even better than waiting for the manufacturer update (which can take a long time). Two of the most famous custom ROMs out there are CyanogenMod and MIUI, and both offer very different interfaces.

While CyanogenMod is an AOSP ROM (hence very Android-esque), MIUI has taken things to another level and completely changed the way things look. Some consider the MIUI ROM to be too weird and flashy (looks much like iOS), while others believe it’s simply beautiful. As always, this is a matter of preference. The beauty of Android is that we all have the option to choose whatever we prefer.

Having said that, we would like to know what your preference is! MIUI has just released some images of what their Ice Cream Sandwich ROM will look like once it’s finished ^[1]. They have been working hard since the source code hit the streets and have made some great progress. We should at least be seeing some early builds soon. Check out the pictures below!

We do not have images of CyanogenMod 9 just yet, but as always, it should look pretty similar to stock Android 4.0. Many of us have been loving CyanogenMod for its stability and “stock” feel, among other reasons. If you’re a CyanogenMod fan waiting to get your hands on CM9, the CM team has just given us a quick update of their progress with the Android 4.0 ROM^[2].

To summarize, the Cyanogen team is still working hard on cooking this ROM up for their long list of supported devices. They do claim to have multiple devices with ICS already running, though and mention that the first devices to get this ROM will most likely be devices with OMAP4, MSM8660/7X30 and Exynos processiors. As well as some Tegra 2 devices, which they have already mentioned.

There’s some good news and some bad news about CyanogenMod 9, as well. Good news is that the CyanogenMod team has stated that Carrier IQ has not, is not, and will never be present in any CM ROMs^[3]. The bad news is that not every device in the supported list will be able to run CyanogenMod 9 with ICS. There’s one device that will be left off the list: the good ol’ Motorola Droid (OG).

So, which is your ROM of choice? Will you be going with CM9 or MIUI? We thought it would be a great idea to make a poll, just to see where our readers stand on this dilemma. Please participate, and let us know your reasons in the comments section!

Ice Cream Sandwich ROMs have been coming out of the woodwork for the past couple weeks now, but there are none as anticipated as CyanogenMod 9.

The amount of work that goes into a stable CyanogenMod release is astonishing. Not only does the build have to be fully functional, but bug free as well. With every new release, be it alpha or nightly, more bugs are discovered. So as time goes on, it becomes more and more tedious to perfect a single ROM. It’s going to be awhile before any stable CyanogenMod ROMs go up for download, but alpha builds are already finding their way online.

If you are lucky enough to own a Nexus S, then you can download and try out CyanogenMod 9 now. In its current stage, CyanogenMod 9 alpha 11 for the Nexus S is missing very few essential functions. There some issues with video playback and MMS isn’t perfect, but there are a lot of people using the ROM as a daily driver. As time goes on more bugs will be found and ironed out, and customization features will be piled on until you can change and tweak nearly every aspect of the device. But for now, this is as good as it gets.

If you’re looking to get CyanogenMod 9 onto your Nexus S, you can find all the info in this XDA thread. Of course the standard only you are responsible for hacking your phone disclaimers apply.

While we’re on the subject of CyanogenMod 9, what feature are you dying to try out? Personally, I’d love to see how themes work. The theme engine is CyanogenMod 7 was great, especially once you were sick to death of the orange highlights and black notification bar. The blue highlights in Ice Cream Sandwich will be a welcome change, but for how long? I’ll take my Ice Cream Sandwich in purple or gray please.

It certainly did not take long for the CyanogenMod team to get working on Android 4.0. Soon after the Ice Cream Sandwich source code was released, Cyanogen’s official Twitter account informed us that work had begun. We never thought results could show up so early, though.

Steve Kondik (aka Cyanogen) posted something very exciting on his Google+ account last night. It reads as follows:

ICS on the Galaxy Tab 10.1 is pretty great. Coming soon to a CM mirror near you :)Steve KondikCyanogenMod

This pretty much means that the port to the Galaxy Tab 10.1 is at least close to being ready. Steve does state that the experience “is great,” so he is definitely getting a taste of some Ice Cream Sandwich right now. Expect the port to be available soon. As he states, they will be offering the files through their mirrors, so you might be running ICS on your tab very soon.

Try not to crack your knuckles or pull your hair too much. Let’s just wait and see when the CyanogenMod team can get us some ICS fun. We sure hope more devices get it soon, too. Who will be flashing ICS to their Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1?

Custom ROM fans had a blast last Monday, when Google released the source code for Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich). This means that developers can now download the source code, and get to work on those awesome ROMs.

One of the most popular custom ROM developers in the Android world is the CyanogenMod team. These guys work strictly from source, and have been waiting for Ice Cream Sandwich to be set free, so they can start working on CyanogenMod 9. As expected, it did not take long before these guys started to make things happen. Yesterday, Steve “Cyanogen” Kondik himself let us know that they have started their long hours of coding, and to wait at least 2 months before checking up on CyanogenMod 9 (Wouldn’t it be awesome to have a stable release in January?).

If you like being adventurous and jumping into the game earlier, Beta and Alpha versions should be coming out eventually. Nightlies, anyone?

Stay tuned for more news on this. We are sure the Cyanogen team will be letting us know how things go. Will you guys be flashing CyanogenMod 9, or would you rather purchase a Samsung Galaxy Nexus (or any device with ICS)?

Modders, hackers, developers and lovers of all things root, your time has come. It has just been announced over on the Android Building Google Groups page that the source code for Ice Cream Sandwich, Android 4.0, is available now.

Now that the source code for Ice Cream Sandwich is available, it should only be a matter of time before custom Android 4 ROMs, like CyanogenMod, start making their way online. Not only that, but it means that the official update for the Nexus S should be available soon.

The exact version of Android that hit the Android Open Source Project today is Android 4.0.1. According to Google developer Jean-Baptiste M. “JBQ” Queru, it’s the build that will ship with the Galaxy Nexus.

According to a poll we ran here at Android and Me just a couple weeks back, a lot of you out there like to root and are all about the custom ROMs. So what do you think, who will be the first dev to publish a legitimate ICS ROM from source? And what kind of goodies are tucked inside the code? There will definitely be some surprises to come out of the release, so be sure to stay tuned for any updates.