Best instant messenger apps for Android

Best instant messenger apps for Android

It's not all about WhatsApp you know, there are tons of instant messengers out there. We’ve rounded up ten of best the Android platform has to offer, along with screenshots and feature lists so you can best choose which one suits your individual tastes and needs. Here are the best instant messenger apps for Android

Messenger: because everybody has Facebook

Facebook’s official instant messaging app has recently been made over to deliver a faster, cleaner service and interface. It’s much like WhatsApp (as are most of the apps on this list), but Messenger instantly connects to all of your Facebook contacts, making it one of the most convenient messaging apps if nothing else.

As of recently, however, you can also message non-Facebook friends by using their phone number. Messenger allows you to access all of your Facebook messages without using the main app or website. It’s also got stickers and emojis, groups, voice recordings, location data, free calls, photo sharing and more

 download

Skype: for video calls 

The granddaddy of video calls, Skype has been around for forever and is still kicking strong. Skype is primarily used for calls, but the IM component is just as useful. In fact we use it at AndroidPIT as our primary communication tool.

Skype requires Skype ID’s though, so you’ll only be able to add friends if you know their Skype contact name. But once you do, and basically everyone is on Skype too, you can have video chats anytime you want, for free. You can also add Skype credit and make cheap international calls to landlines and mobile phones.

The chat section offers group chat, media sharing, emojis and more. Plus you can have one account on several devices (something which WhatsApp doesn’t allow offer).

download

Tango: for networking 

It takes two to Tango, but there’s plenty more than that using the service. Tango does much the same as the rest: instant messaging, media sharing, stickers, group chat, video calling, group chat etc, but it also has a ton of extras. Tango recently went through a complete overhaul and now hosts a news feed and even dedicated news channels for you to follow. 

Tango will automatically find your friends based on your contact list, but they must be using the service to show up (or you can invite them). Additionally, Tango can be used to place calls, find like-minded friends or people in the vicinity using the service, which adds a bit more social networking to the mix than some other providers. The mid-call mini-games also help Tango stand out from the rest.

dawnload

 

Hangouts: because it's Google 

Google set up Hangouts as the standard (but interchangeable) messaging app in Android 4.4 KitKat, and thanks to this it picked up a lot more users. Hangouts is a combined SMS and IM app, that separates the two types of messages, but can be used to automatically place voice calls and video calls from your phone via Hangouts rather than traditional carriers.

Because it handles both SMS and IM, it cuts down on the number of apps you need to be working with, and its video calling quality is arguably better than Skype's. In addition, Hangouts integrates with Google+ in much the same way that Facebook Messenger interacts with Facebook, meaning contacts added via the social network can be called/messaged in the separate app. Be careful who you connect with if you're a particularly private person.

Hangouts still has a long way to go, but as YouTube and Google+ grow, so will hangouts. 

download Hangouts

Viber: for sticker enthusiasts

Viber is really pushing the sticker market, where you can get tons of free and paid sticker packs, but the core business of Viber is instant messages. You can, of course, also send recorded voice messages like WhatsApp (but not video calls like Skype) and you now have the option to call any phone number anywhere with Viber Out – much like adding Skype credit to call people not on the service. Check out my tips and tricks for Viber article for more info.

The new look Viber is feature packed and looks great! 

download Viber

Line: if you want the younger, cooler Skype

Line is becoming more and more popular, and for good reason. With the recently added video calling functionality, it is now as fully featured as Skype, but has a younger, sexier feel to it than the tried and true Skype. It’s jam packed full of stickers and other fun stuff, and is immensely popular throughout large parts of Asia. But it’s also feature filled with group chats, multi-platform capabilities (phone, tablet, PC), timeline, recorded voice messages, media sharing and much, much more, including official account messages from celebrities you like. Line is kind of like Twitter, Facebook and Skype all rolled into one.

I'm pretty new to Line, but I'm liking it a lot already. 

download LINE: Free Calls & Messages

BBM: for the important

After a substantial waiting period, BlackBerry's messaging service finally made it to the Android platform last year. BBM is not as Androidy as the rest of the apps on this list, but it does offer some very cool features including: always-on service (you don’t need to open the app to use it), timed and retractable messages, 2-way opt-in (nobody can message you until you specifically allow them), delivery reporting, groups, emoticons, broadcast messages and more. The ability to choose who can message you, rather than it being available to anybody with your number, makes this an attractive messaging option. 

One of BBM's standout features is its ability to schedule messages. 

download BBM

Razer Comms: for gamers

Though Razer Comms is a fantastic instant messenger in its own right, it's first and foremost known for its popularity in the gaming community. With an accompanying PC version too, Razer Comms allows to you to group conversations, free VoIP chat, and it makes it quick and easy to connect with other gamers around the world. Think of it as Xfire for the smartphone era.  

Razer Comms - Gaming Messenger puts a serious focus on gamers.

download Razer Comms - Gaming Messenger

Kik - for fun

"185 million people love Kik!" Says its Play Store description, proving there is more to messaging than just WhatsApp. Kik is a little more playful than the likes of WhatsApp, with more color and sticker options. Kik also houses its own built-in browser, to make video and image sharing between friends simple. It's a fast growing and friendly messenger with users from all over the planet, give it a try. 

Kik Messenger continues to grow its userbase.

download Kik

WhatsApp: because everybody has it

It's not all about WhatsApp... but WhatsApp sure is a big part of it. While it doesn’t have the same feature-rich content as many of the other apps on this list, WhatsApp can’t be beat for simplicity, reliability, and the sheer number of contacts using it. Chances are, if you know someone with a smartphone, they’ve got WhatsApp.

WhatsApp uses your existing contacts’ phone numbers, so you don’t need to add contacts manually. You can send written messages, stickers, emojis and media, as well as broadcast and group messages.

As of a recent update, WhatsApp also allows you to make free calls to your contacts. It's an excellent addition and means you don't have to swap apps when instant messaging is no longer enough. 

• WhatsApp voice calling feature: here's how to get it

Download wahtsup

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HTC One M10: 5 things we want to see in HTC's next flagship

The HTC One M9 has just landed and we're already talking about the HTC One M10. Too soon? We don't think so. Much though we loved the HTC One M9, our time with it also revealed its flaws, and the things that most need improving next time round.

The One M9 has just landed and we're already talking about the one M10. Too soon? Never! / © ANDROIDPIT

But this isn't just about addressing HTC's flaws. In this list of 5 things we want to see in HTC's next flagship, we've also taken into account technologies that aren't ready for the mass market yet, and other projects of HTC's that we're really hoping have some part to play in the HTC One M10. Read on to find out our expectations, demands and dreams for the HTC One M10.

HTC One M10 Design

The HTC One M9 looks fantastic - no one's trying to take credit away from it there. With that said, each successive 'One' redesign since the One M7 has been less noticeable than that of its predecessor. The One M7 blew us all away, and paved the way for aluminum to be a key feature in flagship phones. The One M8 impressed us with its added curviness. And the One M9? It just didn't really surprise is in any way. Apart from a nice brushed metal effect, there was a sense that we'd seen it all before, depriving it of that 'wow' factor of its predecessors.

HTC probably knows that it'll need to be a bit more radical when designing the One M10. For all its talk of the One series being the unchanging 'Porsche' of smartphones, the public seeks a refresh every now and then. The need for a rethink isn't as urgent as, say, Samsung's was building up to the Galaxy S6, but by next it will be high time HTC wows us again. Many also see the area below the bezel containing the HTC logo as a waste of space, so perhaps that could be used more productively?

What would you like to see in the HTC One M10 design? Should HTC infuse its chassis with a bit of Samsung-style glass, get rid of unused bezel space? Or maybe a radical change isn't really needed after all. There is a strong case to be made that the HTC One M9 is still the best-looking phone around, so perhaps HTC will take an 'as we were' approach (fingers crossed they don't).

HTC One M10 camera

The Achilles heel of recent HTC flagships has undoubtedly been the rear camera. Moving the 4MP (sorry, 'UltraPixel') camera from the back of the HTC One M8 to the front of the One M9 was a great move, but the 20.7MP camera on the back of the M9 proves that high MP count doesn't automatically equate to a great camera.

We'd like to - and expect to - see better autofocus technology, so you can take pictures quicker than with the One M9 camera (HTC could learn a few tricks from LG's Laser AutoFocus technology here). The One M8 actually had a wider aperture than the One M9 (f/2.0 vs f/2.2), meaning it was capable of letting in more light when taking pictures. We expect the One M10 camera to have an aperture of at least f/2.0, as well as Optical Image Stabilisation, if HTC is to finally become a contender in the camera department.

HTC One M10 display

The feature of the One M9 that will most certainly need an upgrade come M10 time is the screen, which is the same 5-inch Full HD IPS as the HTC One M8. Even upon release, the HTC One M9 display already lagged behind rival phone displays like those on the Samsung Galaxy S6 and the older LG G3, both of which have QHD resolutions. 

HTC's reasoning behind sticking with a Full HD display was to preserve battery power, but the strong lifespan in both the Galaxy S6 and LG G3 batteries suggests that QHD displays aren't necessarily the battery drains HTC thinks they are. We imagine HTC will have learned its lesson by next year, when QHD will very much be the norm.

Size-wise, flagship smartphones appear to have settled on the 5.0-5.2-inch sweet spot, so we're not expecting the One M10 display to be bigger than that (that job will likely be left to variants equivalent to this year's HTC One M9+ and HTC One E9)

HTC One M10 - Virtual Reality?

Could HTC Vive have a role to play in the HTC One M10? / © ANDROIDPIT

One of the biggest surprises to have emerged from MWC 2015 was the announcement of the HTC Vive, a virtual reality headset designed in collaboration with PC gaming platform Steam.

From what we know so far, the Vive will be aimed at PC gamers, and early tests suggest it has huge potential to lead the virtual reality revolution. With HTC's main focus still being the mobile market, we're wondering whether the powerful VR headset will have some part to play on the HTC One M10. This will to some extent depend on the graphical firepower that the One M10 will be capable of, because utilizing such a technology on below-par visuals would waste its potential.

HTC has not indicated that the Vive will be used with its mobile devices, but we're hoping that HTC doesn't forget the mobile medium on which it built its reputation.

USB-C

Turning from the mind-blowing to the mundane but extremely useful, we think that the USB-C cable is the most exciting cable since HDMI. It's just about ready for mass production, so we should be seeing it packed with devices soon.

What's so exciting about it? Reversible ends, faster charging, faster data transfers, and compatibility with larger devices like laptops. That not enough for you? Read our piece on why USB-C is the all-in-one cable you've been waiting for.

 

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Smart Keyboard - Emoji & Color APK

Emoji keyboard with free 500+ cute Emoji and smiley faces explpsion to customize your keyboard.

• .emoji keyboard
• .smiley faces explpsion
• .keyboard customization

Smart Keyboard - Emoji & Color Description from Publisher:
Smart Keyboard - Emoji & Color is a free and personalized keyboard that help you to fast input over 500 emoji, emoticons on android. With colorful emoji, emoticons and themes. This is the Keyboard to input Emoji icons in everywhere such as email, sms......
A varity of colorful themes for you to customize and personalize your keyboard any way you like. Together with the normal English keyboard which make input Emoji more convenience.
Features:

Download Smart Keyboard - Emoji & Color 1.0 APK ( 11M)

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Camera HDR Studio for android phone

Camera HDR Studio App for Android

• .photo editing
• .hdr app
• .photo effects
• .color splash
• .photo enhancing
• .get photos
• .taking pictures
• .make pictures
• .get fit
• .sharing pics

Camera HDR Studio Description from Publisher:
Introducing Camera HDR Studio, the best Camera application for taking a real HDR photo. Using our own enhanced and optimized HDR algorithm, you can now take a full resolution HDR picture with incredible results in no time.
- Our HDR algorithm idea works by taking two photos with different exposures, fuse them and apply tone-mapping to them to produce the final result.
- Process at full resolution in the background, so nothing will get between you and taking pictures, because you don’t have to wait for saving to complete
- Our automatic image alignment algorithm aligns the images perfectly, so you don’t have to worry about being too precise when taking the two photos.
- Multiple HDR variations that ranges from normal, to artistic to cartoonish.
- Save or share your beautiful HDR images.
- If you have an already saved image, then you can use our excellent Fake HDR algorithm that produce a result that are close to our true HDR algorithm, but better than any other Fake HDR out there.
- Unleash your creativity by adding extra effects like color enhancement filters, or add frames or texture to your HDR image.
- You can have the option between choosing a Real or fake HDR
Camera HDR Studio is a great replacement to your default camera. It contains a large amount of features and customization options that makes taking picture more fun than ever.
Here is what you will get with our app:
[Top features]
- HDR support (Fake or Real).
- Fastest Camera ever! Shoots up to 30 photos per second using Burst mode option, (up to 10 on low end devices). You can shoot up to 150 photos in 5 seconds
- Process images at full resolution (8 or 13 MP).
- Geo Tagging.
- Works perfectly on Tablet.
- Incredibly fast processing, all effects are processed instantly. Saving is processed in background, so you don’t have to wait at all.
- Over 70 effects, frames and textures are available at your disposal (some of them are customizable), combine them in a non-destructive way to produce the perfect image.
- Customize all phone buttons, (volume to zoom or take photos, trackball to change white balance…etc). [Main Features]
- Shoot by touch.
- Zoom support.
- Mute shutter sound (if supported).
- Different image sizes.
- Last photo taken preview.
- Blind shot, take pictures without sound or display, instead a vibration will be the indicator, help exposing corruption. Please use it wisely.
- Import images and apply various effects on it including HDR.
- Different saving options, including: saving quality, saving location, auto-save, save-original, store GPS, and save file name.
[Shooting methods]
- Normal shooting mode.
- Steady shot, say goodbye to blurry pictures.
- Timer, shoot a picture after a set amount of time that you can specify.
- Time Lapse, shoot a picture every set amount of time that you can specify.
- Burst mode, shoot a large amount of photos per second, you can also specify the speed ratio.
[Filters]
- Combine the effects together to produce the perfect result.
- Process all effect at full resolution.
- 9 HDR modes.
- 50 color effects, including: LOMO, Retro…etc.
- 12 artistic effects.
- 9 Mirrors effects.
- 8 vignette effects.
- 5 texture effects
- 14 frames.
- Save the filtered image along with the original.
- Share your image through our share button.
- A ready mode that allows you to preselect your effect before taking the photo.
Any bugs? please help us improve our app. Any feature request? you are more than welcome, please let us know through the feedback menu button.
Keywords:
HDR, HDR fx, HDR effects, High Dynamic range, pro HDR, real HDR, true HDR, Camera, front, self, Camera360, 360, filters, LOMO, mono, retro, frame. Artistic, Polaroid, pencil, sketch, processing, cartoon, burst, steady, blind, spy, mute, zoom, fake, resolution, auto-save, dreamy, frames, import, customization, shortcuts, timer, timelapse, fast burst, Geo, shooting modes, effects, camera zoom, thumbnail. Line camera, camera fun.

download in play store

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Google Maps Easter Egg : Play yesteryears favourite arcade game Pacman on Google Maps

Google Maps Easter Egg : Play yesteryears favourite arcade game Pacman on Google Maps

Google has let out a Easter Egg for all fools day tomorrow so head over to Google Maps and click on that little Pac Man icon bottom right of the screen and play the old favourite Pacman game on the mean streets.
And while you are at it watch mini-roundabout because the enemies are lurking near buy.
The game is available with the original rules of Pacman with 5 lives per game. The game even comes with the original music and the fatal ‘wooo wooo’ sound when you die.
Be careful to choose a nice city with spaces on the streets or you will get this message

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Facebook tracks all users, including ones who have logged-out or not registered for FB in violation of European Union law

New study reveals that Facebook tracks logged-out users in ‘violation’ of European Union law

TL;DR : New Study reveals that Facebook tracks people without Facebook accounts, logged out users, and EU users who have explicitly opted out of tracking.

It is already known that Facebook tracks its users for providing them with contextual ads but a new study reveals that Facebook is tracking users who have logged-out of FB and even those who have opted out of FB tracking feature.
A study commissioned by the Belgian data protection agency and conducted by members of the Interdisciplinary Centre for Law and ICT/Centre for Intellectual Property Rights (ICRI/CIR) of KU Leuven, the department of Studies on Media, Information and Telecommunication (SMIT) of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) and the department of Computer Security and Industrial Cryptography (COSIC) of KU Leuven has revealed.
The researchers from the joint probe claim that Facebook tracks computers of users without their explicit consent and even if they are logged out.  The report also says that FB tracks even those users who have not at all registered for Facebook and who opted out of the FB tracking feature in Europe.
Under European Union laws all websites have to take users explicit permission before placing any kind of tracking cookies on their browsers and computer.  The study found out that Facebook was bypassing this requirement by using a workaround. Its social plugins such as the ‘Like’ button which are present on approximately 13 million websites act as tracking cookies  placing them these websites.
Facebook places tracking cookies on users’ computers if they visit any page on the facebook.com domain, including fan pages or other pages that do not require a Facebook account to visit. When a user visits a third-party site that has any Facebook social plug-in placed on it, it detects and sends the tracking cookies back to Facebook. The study reveals that the tracking cookies are used even if the user does not interact with the Like button, Facebook Login or other extensions of the social media site.
Facebook flately disagrees with the above report and has Facebook spokesperson issued the following statement :

This report contains factual inaccuracies. The authors have never contacted us, nor sought to clarify any assumptions upon which their report is based. Neither did they invite our comment on the report before making it public. We have explained in detail the inaccuracies in the earlier draft report (after it was published) directly to the Belgian DPA, who we understand commissioned it, and have offered to meet with them to explain why it is incorrect, but they have declined to meet or engage with us. However, we remain willing to engage with them and hope they will be prepared to update their work in due course.

It remains to be seen whether the European Union holds this report as valid and acts against FB. European Union has already warned users to opt out of Facebook if they want to preserve their privacy.

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April Fool Easter Egg Google gives reverse Google

Google has decided to celebrate the All Fools Day with a inverted Google search. Google today flipped its most popular product, Google Search around with the release of com.google a.k.a. the Bizarro version of google.com.
Luckily the inverted engine gives you the exact same results as you would normally find — except everything is written backwards.
This is the third Google Easter Egg for 1st April 2015 (April Fool Day) along with the Pacman and #ChromeSelfie and is visible in the timezones as they enter into 1st April.
Searched “test”, here is what we got

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Thailand man gets 25 years in prison for upsetting the King over Facebook Post

A Thailand military court yesterday jailed a man for 25 years for posting pictures on his Facebook page that were deemed insulting to the Thai royalty.
This is believed to be one of the toughest sentence for such cases in recent years.  Tiensutham Suttijitseranee, a 58-year-old businessman, was found guilty of posting defamatory content in a closed-door court hearing of the military court.
Suttijitseranee was found guilty under Thailand’s lese-majeste law which is held to one of the world’s harshest laws and makes it a crime to defame, insult or threaten the king, queen or heir to the throne or regent.

“The court decided that because he posted five pictures with captions last year that the court deemed defamatory, he would be sentenced to a total of 50 years; 10 years for each picture posted, reduced by half to 25 years,” lawyer Sasinan Thamnithinan said.

The prison term for insulting the royalty is 50 years but Suttijitseranee got 25 years because he pleaded guilty, his lawyer said, adding the court did not allow his relatives and reporters to attend the verdict.
Since the May 2014 coup, all lese majeste cases have been tried by military tribunals and it is reported that 20 such cases have been tried since the coup

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How to replace your Android or iOS keyboard

Simple and easy ways to replace your Android or iOS keyboard.

Android handsets are much competent however if user still needs to replace their keyboards both Android as well as iOS users have the option to opt for the third party replacement. We have divided the article into 3 segments which will help users to understand the procedure better:

1. First we will check the easy methods to change the Keyboard settings of the phone and prepare for installing a third-party keyboard:
   •  Android Phone: These settings are for the Android version 4.4.4. i.e. Kitkat version.
     • Users need to go to ‘Settings’ then click ‘Personal Section’ then click ‘Language & Input’ then to ‘Keyboards & Input Methods’. This category will show a list of keyboards which has been installed in the device. The active keyboard have a check mark on the left hand side.
     • Now to change the active keyboard user needs to first tap on the ‘Default Settings’ and then choose from the various keyboard options given to them from the ones which have already been installed in handset.
     • Alternatively user can also click the button on the right of the installed keyboard and change its settings.
   • iOS Phone:  
     • Users need to go to ‘Settings’ then click ‘General’ then click ‘Keyboard’ with these steps users will reach the main screen that has the iOS Keyboard details. Now click on the ‘Keyboard’ option and it will give a list of active keyboards on the iPhone or iPad, usually there is only one keyboard set as default which is based on the language selected by user.
     • Now to add more keyboards user will need to go to the keyboards in different language. Then tap on the option of ‘Add New Keyboard’ which allows users to select any keyboard from the list of keyboards in different language, user can check any option that they want from the list.
     • Further users can click on the arrow on the right hand side of the keyboard to get more layouts from which they can select. For example: English keyboard user would get an option of QWERTY, AZERTY, and QWERTZ layouts.
     • In case user does not want any keyboard then they simply need to go to the ‘Keyboard’ screen and just tap delete and get rid of the keyboard. Other method is to tap ‘Edit’ and drag the right hand side button of the keyboard and thus rearrange the keyboards in the list.
2. Now that users know how to reset their keyboard settings in Android and iOS phones so the next thing which we need to understand is how to install the third party keyboards in Android and iOS phones. This procedure is much easy user would need to follow some basic instructions given below:
   • Android Phone: Go to the Google Play Store and choose the Keyboard which you like then install the app as is done for any normal app. Now, a new third-party keyboard appears in the ‘Keyboards & Input Methods’ list. User needs to check the check-box of the newly installed keyboard and then select it by clicking on the ‘Default keyboard’ setting.
   • iOS Phone: Go to the Apple App Store and choose the Keyboard which you like then install the app as is done for any normal app. User will be able to see the downloaded keyboard when they click ‘Add New Keyboard’ on the Keyboards setting screen, under the Third-party Keyboards heading. User would need to tap the new keyboard and it gets added to the list of active keypads.
3. This section we will see some Third Party Keyboards that are available and can be used for Android as well as iOS phones:
   •  SwiftKey: The SwiftKey keyboard is free with the in-app purchases for Android and iOS phones. This keyboard has 2 basic features for both the phones: It enables the “Swipe” typing which helps on faster typing accompanied with the auto correction features with the EMOJI features (emotional characters). The other major feature is that the keyboard scans the social networking posts of the user and based on that it can predict the word which user would want to use. Also it has a feature that it can take up word and phrase from the Cloud. In addition to these features in Android phones there is a variety of customization options with an array of free themes options and the additional feature to change the size of the keypad. The Android version has also won awards for its beautiful features. Android users can click https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.touchtype.swiftkey&hl=en to download this keyboard. iOS phones user can download the keyboard from https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/swiftkey-keyboard/id911813648?mt=8
   • Fleksy: The Fleksy keyboard is available as free in-app purchase as well as paid for Android and for iOS it is a paid version. This keyboard is one of the fastest and most customized keyboards. The keyboard is barely of only 3 rows and has minimum alphabets. With some practice one can easily use this keyboard. The free version can re size the keyboard and paid versions provide a variety of themes with the keyboard to make it more customized. Both the Android and iOS users need to log in to http://fleksy.com/ and download the required keyboards.
   • GO Keyboard: The GO Keyboard is again a free in-app purchase for Android as well as iOS with an array of colorful themes some of the themes may fall under premium versions. This gives users a personalized keyboard accompanied with the EMOJI and also auto correction  feature. It also has the feature of typing out whatever user speaks which means accepts voice inputs. It provides a variety of layouts like QWERTY, QWERTZ and AZERTY keyboard and optional plug in for tablets. Android users can check this site to download the GO keyboard: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.jb.gokeyboard&hl=en. For iOS users they need to click on this link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/go-keyboard-colorful-theme/id916226412?mt=8
   • Swype: Both the Android and iOS users need to avail a premium version of the Swype keyboard. Swype was the first one to introduce the swiping idea to the smartphone instead of typing. All other keyboards have now taken up this feature wherein user just need to swipe to type the words. Other keyboards which we saw earlier have additional customization color themes which is not there in Swype. It has the feature of proving layouts like QWERTY, QWERTZ and AZERTY keyboard. Users can download this keyboard from the following link: http://www.swype.com/product-features/android/features.html.

With the help of the instructions given above users can try out to replace their keyboards and enjoy the different features provided by the third party keyboards instead of using the boring keyboards of the smartphone.
Just a word of caution for users is that some of the third party keyboards may ask for “Full access” to users keystrokes and this it does so as to smartly put up the words when user is typing out something however user should never give full access as it may also read some sensitive data like passwords and account numbers

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Easy step guide to installing dual boot on your Samsung Galaxy S IV GT-I9500 Samsung Google Nexus 10 Manta Sony Xperia Z Yuga Sony Xperia ZL Odin

Everybody would like to have a dual booting system on their smart phones.  Right now you get a lot of custom ROM which you can install on your smart phones but the problem is that you lose the stock ROM in the process.  Dual booting is a process which lets you use two ROMs on your devices and lets you run the one you fancy at any given moment.  This way you are using the custom ROM as well as the stock ROM so you can get official updates also.  Isn't that good news.  Team MoDaCo is working on a similar kind of procedure which is called MoDaCo Switch.  

However a XDA Forum member Garak has successfully created a mod that allows you to dual boot ROMs on the Samsung Galaxy S IV without having to make backups or wipe your devices. Just remember, the main ROM has to be the stock TouchWiz ROM which Samsung provides but the second one can be any ROM that is based on the AOSP (Android Open Source Project) which has nearly 100s of ROMS for the taking.

Garak has warned that the Mod is experimental and only seasoned modders may use it.  If you are sure about it than you can go right ahead but be aware of this warning 

It's only for advanced users and I am not responsible if your S4 get bricked or transform into a monster and eat up your cat

- CyanogenMod

First thing you have to remember is that your first ROM will be the Samsung stock TouchWiz ROM and the second one will be of your choice.  This Mod switches between two kernels, TouchWiz can use any kernel but for ASOP you have to use Garaks modified CM Kernel.  The GraSwitcher App will download the all needed files for you. They will be in /sdcard/romswitcher.  The default kernel for TouchWiz is Perseus Kernel but if you want to change it to something else replace first.img in /sdcard/romswitcher/ with your favourite kernel.

Now download your favourite AOSP ROM and extract it.  Open META-INF/com/google/android/updater-script and look for this line

Replace mmcblk0p20 with mmcblk0p19 as in image below

Now find this lines and delete them both

After doing the above go here and download Gapps.  Extract it and open updater-script and locate the following code

And replace it with

After replacing the above code ZIP your ROM first and then ZIP Gapps.  After zipping them both Flash both of them in recovery MOD (first ROM then Gapps).  Do not repeat do not wipe out anything.  

Reboot your phone and if you did all correct. You should boot into your TouchWiz ROM.  Now download and install Garak's APK from here.  Once you have installed it open GraSwitcher and follow the instructions and you can see this screen

Thats it, now you have a dual booting system on your smart phone. If you face any problems you can post your query on this thread of the XDA Forums

Supported Devices
Samsung Galaxy S4 GT-I9500
Samsung Google Nexus 10 Manta
Sony Xperia Z Yuga
Sony Xperia ZL Odin

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All devices running on Android 4.3 and below vulnerable to serious code execution flaw in 'Keystore'

Most probably if you not using a top flagship Android smart phone or tablet for a top company like Google Motorola, Samsung, HTC or LG then you are using a smart phone with Android 4.3 Jelly Bean version running aboard.  And if you are using the Android 4.3 Jelly Bean or earlier version run smart phone or tablet, you, or rather your smart phone/tablet is vulnerable to a serious code-execution vulnerability. This vulnerability was discovered by the Application Security Team of IBM, nine months ago.   This vulnerability has been patched in the latest Android version from Google, the 4.4 KitKat version but Android 4.3 and older Android versions remain highly vulnerable.

 As per the latest data available, only 13.6 % of total Android users have Kitkat on their smart phone or tablet.  The total distribution of of Android community is divided as follows according to Android Developers site is as follows

Version	Codename	API	Distribution
2.2	Froyo	8	0.8%
2.3.3 - 2.3.7	Gingerbread	10	14.9%
4.0.3 - 4.0.4	Ice Cream Sandwich	15	12.3%
4.1.x	Jelly Bean	16	29.0%
4.2.x		17	19.1%
4.3		18	10.3%
4.4	KitKat	19	13.6%

From this data it can be inferred that 86.4 percent of the total Android smart phones and tablets users are at risk from this vulnerability.  The vulnerability discovered by Application Security team at IBM confirmed the presence of a critical code-execution vulnerability that affects all devices using the versions 4.3 and earlier and lets an attacker/potential hacker exploit it to steal sensitive data from the vulnerable devices. 

The IBM security researchers discovered that the stack buffer overflow vulnerability resides in the Android’s KeyStore storage service, which is responsible for storing and securing device’s cryptographic keys.

“A stack buffer is created by the ‘KeyStore::getKeyForName’ method” “This function has several callers, which are accessible by external applications using the Binder interface (e.g., ‘android::KeyStoreProxy::get’). Therefore, the ‘keyName’ variable can be controllable with an arbitrary size by a malicious application,” Hay said. “The ‘encode_key’ routine that is called by ‘encode_key_for_uid’ can overflow the ‘filename’ buffer, since bounds checking is absent.” explained the experts 

Anybody with knowledge of Android API programming can successfully exploit this vulnerability.  Once exploited the hacker can execute a  malicious code  under the keystore process. Once executed, such code can lead to serious leaking of the device’s lock credentials. Since the master key is derived by the lock credentials, whenever the device is unlocked, ‘Android::KeyStoreProxy::password’ is called with the credentials.

It can also leak decrypted master keys, data and hardware-backed key identifiers from the memory and  encrypted master keys, data and hardware-backed key identifiers from the disk for an offline attack. The hackers can also remotely interact with the hardware-backed storage and perform crypto operations (e.g., arbitrary data signing) on behalf of the user.

An potential wannabe hacker can theoretically exploit the above vulnerability that exists in all the Android devices prior to the Android 4.4 Kitkat but experts believe that exploit is pretty hard to execute  due to the presence of numerous difficulties likes the need to to bypass memory-based protections native to the operating system, including Data Execution Prevention (DEP) and Address Space Layout Randomization (ASLR). The Data Execution Prevention is an exploit mitigation that is used to prevent execution of malicious code, but the attackers have had success to bypass it using the Return Oriented Programming (ROP) attacks. The ASLR is used to mitigate buffer overflow attacks randomizing the memory locations used by system files and other programs, implementing this technique it is hard to guess the location of a given process.

“However, the Android KeyStore is respawned every time it terminates. This behaviour enables a probabilistic approach; moreover, the attacker may even theoretically abuse ASLR to defeat the encoding” states the post.

The experts confirmed that they haven’t seen the flaw being exploited in the wild yet.  The Google is currently upgrading the Android devices to the Android KitKat 4.4.4 with build number KTU84P (branch kitkat.-mr21-release), the new update was mainly issued to fix the CCS Injection Vulnerability (CVE-2014-0224). You can read about it here.  Sadly only Nexus range of devices and Motorola devices would be giving out upgrades as of now.  Other manufacturers have been pretty slow with the upgrades with Samsung releasing 4.4 upgrade for its flagships only last week across US and Indian subcontinent.

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samsung launches its latest premiums Alpha A3 and Alpha A5 Android smartphones

Samsung launches Alpha A3 and Alpha A5 Android smartphones

Samsung recently announced the launch of two new premium devices, the Alpha A3 and A5 joining the Alpha device already on sale globally. With reports flying everywhere about a decline in profits, pressure has been mounting on Samsung to deliver. Have they ? Let's review the handsets

Hardware

The devices join a range which already includes a 4.7 inch device, so these devices aim at different size ranges. The A3 supports a 4.5 inch screen and the A7 a 5 inch one. The A3 has a qHD resolution while the A5 goes 720p HD. Both the devices have a quad-core 1.2 GHz processors chugging at their hearts paired with 1GB and 2GB of RAM respectively.

Design

Design is the most important aspect of the Alpha range, with both the devices coming with a unibody design made completely of metal. The look is similar to the one made the norm after the S3 but with much sharper looks. The aluminium build proves that Samsung is ready to venture into other areas than sticking to plastic body phones. Although, with the recent bendgate scandal of the iPhone 6, many people were seen lauding plastic build of Samsung phones which have never had that problem.

Camera

The Alpha range is being targeted at the youth and have duly well defined front cameras for selfies. Both come with a 5MP front camera offering. A3 supports 8MP on the back while the A5 goes bigger with 13MP. Needless to say, both devices are loaded with features by Samsung.

Storage And Battery

The other major difference, in comparison to the original Alpha device, is that they seem to have the expandable storage option, which is really needed by one and all. Both devices have 16 GB of in built storage and are expandable upto 64 BG There's a 1900 mAh and 2300 mAh battery booted up the on the A3 and A5, respectively.


So are these the devices that will get the Samsung its mojo back? We'll let the users decide.

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Blockchain Releases New Android Wallet App To make bitcoin available for every Android user

Bitcoins have been a game changer for some, mystery for others and simply profits for hoarders.  Bitcoin wallets are a way to keep your Bitcoins safe in your account.  By intending to make the bitcoins more popular and more easier for users to handle, the popular bitcoin wallet provider Blockchain.info has released a new version of its Bitcoin Wallet App for Android devices.  The new App promises to allow you to store, receive and send bitcoins directly from your Android phone. Blockchain says that the App has been developed thinking of making bitcoin more accessible to users. This App hides the complexity of the protocol in order to encourage adoption of bitcoins by common Android users.

“Our Android app has to do with making bitcoin so easy to use that people don’t even have to think about addresses for example,” co-founder and CEO Nicolas Cary told TechCrunch “That stuff exists in bitcoin, but just like there are complicated things happening in email, they are hidden.” “When you explain why bitcoin is valuable, 99 percent of people understand that it’s useful. But it gets a little intimidating when they actually start using bitcoin”

Keeping is simple is the Blockchain.info's USP for this App.   If you want to send bitcoins to someone, you can just browse your address book and tap on someone’s name. After that, there are two possibilities. If this person is already a bitcoin user with an associated bitcoin address, it will simply send the bitcoins. If it’s someone new, it will send an email with a redemption code so that they can get their bitcoins.

The App also provides a  map view of with merchants who accept bitcoins so the users can find out the sellers and buyers of Bitcoins at a touch of a button. “It’s a world’s first,” Cary said. “We verified every single one of these merchants and we’re bringing new ones every week.”

The App will also help you understand how to manage your bitcoins. It will tell you to set a very strong password and two-factor authentication, it will suggests backup solutions, and it will show you tutorial videos.

“When you explain why bitcoin is valuable, 99 percent of people understand that it’s useful. But it gets a little intimidating when they actually start using bitcoin,” Cary said.

If you are into bitcoins then this is a must have App for your Android device.  If you are not into bitcoins, you may download it to learn about the worlds most famous cryptocurrency.  You can download the App from Google Play here.

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Microsoft Releases Windows 10 Technical Preview Build 10049 with New Spartan Browser

Windows 10 Technical preview Build 10049 Released with new fixes,  better performance and project Spartan browser available for Download

Microsoft engineers have been working overtime to improve the windows 10 experience. Today with the release of Windows 10 Build 10049 it has once again improved the existing windows 10 technical preview version with faster performance and many bug fixes from its previous build 10041.
Microsoft has also integrated project Spartan with this new build. In this preview, Microsoft said

“You will see a bold new design for Project Spartan – one that is streamlined and puts the focus on the page, not the browser. This is part of our vision for a browser that doesn’t visually interfere with your life on the Web, but supports it. You will also see some of the features that we demo’ed back in January and we hope you’ll love them.”

Issues that are fixed in this new build:

• The issue from Build 10041 for when the Photos app on your PC crashes when you tap on the circular icon at the top left to view the photo you just took has been fixed now.
• You no longer will have issues where windows open on your desktop are accidentally visible behind the Start Screen, Task View, Snap Assist, and when rearranging windows in Tablet Mode.
• No longer getting stuck when you manually lock your PC (Windows Key + L) during the initial out-of-box experience.

Some issues which users will continue to face in this build:

• After logging in, you may see a blue screen instead of your desktop. To work around this issue, lock your PC (with the hardware button or by pressing the Windows Key + L) and try logging in again.
• You can also try Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager.
• Indexing of new email in Outlook is not working, so search results will be limited to when the last index was built.
• If you have Virtual Machines hosted in Hyper-V on your PC running Windows 10, you will want to move to the Slow ring and wait for the next build as this build breaks the ability to run VMs.
• There are 2 issues using Visual Studio 2015 preview on this build:The emulators will not boot and you won’t be able to deploy a Windows Universal app to the Mobile emulator.
• The XAML designer in VS and Blend will crash when opened.If you are a developer using these tools today to develop Windows Universal apps and need this functionality to work – Microsoft recommends switching to the Slow ring until they release a patch to fix these issues.

Download Windows 10 Technical Preview ISO from here
Note: Windows 10 Technical Preview Build 10049 is in its beta program. You will have to signup and agree to Windows Insider Program before downloading.

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Microsoft’s Spartan browser now available on Windows 10 build 10049

Microsoft releases Windows 10 Build with its Project Spartan Browser

After almost 2 months since the announcement of a brand new browser called Spartan, Microsoft finally included the new browser bundle with the latest Windows 10 build 10049.
The latest Windows 10 build includes a preview version of the new browser. This means that the browser will be a stripped down version. Microsoft said that the browser was an internal testing version and it may contain bugs and issues.
The all new Spartan browser will give users the following features :

• Cortana is built-in and ready to assist: Cortana in Project Spartan is a personal assistant that helps make Web browsing easier for you, with whatever you’re trying to get done. Cortana offers help at just the right moment, based on what she knows about the Web, about you and what you might be trying to do. She remains in the background but provides additional information when you need it, making browsing easier and more efficient. Cortana in Spartan will be available in the US versions of this build, and available more broadly later.
• Inking and sharing so you can capture and communicate your thoughts: Everyone uses the Web routinely to share questions, thoughts, info and comments with friends and colleagues. Now with new inking capabilities, Project Spartan enables you to write or type directly on the page, comment on what’s interesting or clip what you want – then easily share this “Web Note” via mail, or a social network. Researching and collecting information from the Web is just as easy, as you can save your notes directly to OneNote.
• Distraction-free reading with Reading List and Reading View: Keeping up with information overload on the Web is one of the challenges that we all have to manage. Project Spartan helps with a beautiful new Reading List to collect everything you want to read, including the ability to save any webpage or PDF for convenient access later, and an integrated, distraction-free Reading View that keeps you focused on the content.
  A new engine for the modern Web: Project Spartan’s new rendering engine is built around the idea that the Web “just works,” while being fast, more secure and more reliable.

If you have signed up for Windows 10 Technical Preview and the fast update option, you can get the Build 10049 with the Spartan browser right away.
Microsoft has promised that Spartan will be updated at regular intervals to bring users latest features.

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Cheaper 4 inch iPhone 6c coming soon?

Leaked iPhone images suggest a cheaper 4 inch iPhone 6c! it is going to happen?

Leaked images by Future Supplier suggest Apple is planning to release a 4 inch version of iPhone 6. The leaked images point towards the fact that Apple may be making an attempt to woo budget buyers with a iPhone 5c type of model for iPhone 6.
Though the leaks dont reveal much of whats going to be inside the 4 inch iPhone 6, the images give a fair idea of what the iPhone 6c will look like on the outside.

From this image it is clear that the new iPhone, if it does come will be very much similar to the iPhone 5c. One of the noticeable features is the camera housing given in the image above.

The second noticeable change is at the bottom. The ‘iPhone 6C’ shows a pair of matching six hole speaker grills whereas the iPhone 5C had just a single side of four speaker holes and a couple of holes on the other side for the phone’s dual mics.

Forbes points out that unless Apple has a similar plan to launch iPhone 6s in coming months, the whole idea of iPhone 6c looks flawed. Given that there were thousands of leaks about iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus before its release which were in no way nearer to the original product, it looks like the Future Suppliers leaks may just be a concept smartphone which was leaked.

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