Guest Robert Nazarian Posted April 6, 2014 Posted April 6, 2014 This week’s biggest news wasn’t about a phone or tablet, it was about the TV. Specifically, Amazon’s brand new Fire TV set-top box. Will it be compelling enough to sway fans from the Chromecast, Roku or Apple TV? We are also hearing that Google is readying their next generation set-top box, dubbed Android TV. Can both Android TV and the Chromecast coexist? The Samsung Galaxy S 5 will finally launch globally this week. Will it live up to the hype or will the HTC One (M8) keep it in check? It’s time to get caught up and get ready for what is sure to be another exciting week in the world of Android. Guides Everything you need to know about Sense 6 on the HTC One (M8) How to setup and use BlinkFeed on the HTC One (M8) Sense 6 Camera and Gallery walkthrough on the HTC One (M8) How to apply Duo Camera effects on the HTC One (M8) April Fools’ Day Jokes Google April Fools’ Day jokes for 2014 Breaking: Google buys Samsung Electronics for $200 billion in cash and stock Samsung Fingers gets announced, the first entrant into the smartglove game HTC unveils the revolutionary new wearable HTC Gluuv Moto X and Moto G get new April Fools’ Day boot animation SwiftKey brings their Flow gesture-input to the desktop with ‘Flow Hard’ Accessories Google giving away cases for Nexus 5, Nexus 7 and HP Chromebook 11 at 25% off Android TV Google may be returning to your living room with Android TV Apps – New HTC Sense 6 apps now unofficially available for non-HTC devices Outlook Web App (OWA) for Android to arrive soon FireChat is a bold new take on messaging as it does not require any internet connection KISSIFY your photos with the new KISS Photobomb app featuring the legendary rock band KISS Apps – Updates Crackle app now supports Google’s Chromecast Rdio app updated with support for Chromecast Themer will now let you switch icon packs Google’s Improved camera app will focus on portrait shots and effects Google Keep updated with interface tweaks, image search functionality, and a trash menu Google Play Movies & TV gets updated with Info Cards and a minor facelift Google Play Newsstand updated to version 3.2.0 with updated layout and new My Library tab Spotify launching a brand new look and new features with update Facebook Messenger gets free calling over WiFi and more in latest update Share Vines and chat away with the new Vine messaging feature Samsung’s ChatOn gets updated with larger file transfers, message deletion, and location sharing Amazon tablet app updated with Fresh grocery delivery service and several other features Rhapsody and Napster both get updated to bring Chromecast support Latest Flixster update adds Chromecast support Developer takes just two hours to make AllCast work with Amazon Fire TV Carriers Moto Maker finally available for Republic Wireless customers LG G2 Mini (LS885) gets tabbed for Sprint Sprint pushes out KitKat update for the LG G2 Sprint sweetens the Framily Plan with offer to cover ETFs T-Mobile cutting off employee discounts, will now offer $25 reward card for each device upgrade instead T-Mobile (partially) changes stance on employee discounts, letting customers keep grandfathered discounts Verizon cuts $25 off the price of line service for More Everything plans with 10 GB or more data Verizon variant of the Galaxy Tab 4 arrives at the FCC Verizon’s HTC One M8 and last year’s HTC One rooted with WeakSauce Verizon now offering 1GB of extra data for tablet customers on More Everything Pre-order the Galaxy S 5 at Verizon Wireless now and get another phone for free Chromebooks New study says 2.1 million Chromebooks were shipped last year, 89% in the U.S. Chromecast Crackle app now supports Google’s Chromecast Rdio app updated with support for Chromecast AutoCast Android app allows you to multitask with your Chromecast Rhapsody and Napster both get updated to bring Chromecast support Latest Flixster update adds Chromecast support Contests Sony holding contest with a trip to New York City and a bunch of its products at stake Deals HTC One (M8) and One (M7) get discounted at Best Buy Gaming Microsoft releases Xbox One Smartglass app into Google Play Store Amazon Game Studios shows what is coming and the first Fire TV exclusive “Sev Zero” Gameloft optimizing games for Amazon’s Fire TV Google The TalkAndroid app, plus 23 other Android apps, can now be accessed worldwide through Google Search Google may be returning to your living room with Android TV Google’s Improved camera app will focus on portrait shots and effects Play Store shares ‘My Play activity’ as an activity feed for everyone Android distribution numbers for April proudly display KitKat breaking 5% Privacy concerns regarding Google’s Street View headed to Supreme Court Here are the new features Google is working on for Gmail Gmail introduces custom theme sharing option Chrome Remote Desktop hits invite-only beta Google takes us behind the scenes to peek at Project Ara development [Rumor] Google toying with the idea of an Android Silver program Is Google ready to become a mobile phone carrier? Big changes in store for Google’s native and web apps due to wearables Google Play Store’s new ‘People’ option gives you recommendations based on your friends Google removed the SMS feature from Gmail Chat YouTube’s subscription music service has been delayed…. again Google+ Google+ adds view counts to user profiles Google Glass Google is struggling with the trademark for the word “Glass” Hardware Qualcomm Snapdragon 805 developer tablet will be available later this month Samsung discovers a new method to commercialize graphene Home Automation Samsung announces the global launch of its Samsung Smart Home service Nest launches the Learning Thermostat in the UK for £179 Nest halts sales, disables feature on Nest Protect alarm units Phones – HTC The HTC One (M8) has a thick bottom bezel for a reason Verizon’s HTC One M8 and last year’s HTC One rooted with WeakSauce HTC One (M8) available in all colors in the UK, shipping tomorrow HTC One M8 Mini may launch in May HTC Butterfly Android 4.4 KitKat update gets the “coming soon” label HTC Butterfly successor pops up in AnTuTu benchmark HTC One (M8) and One (M7) get discounted at Best Buy Phones – Huawei Upcoming Huawei flagship smartphone leaks, metal body and Kirin 920 processor included Huawei Ascend Mate2 4G may make it to U.S. market Phones – LG LG G2 Mini (LS885) gets tabbed for Sprint Development of the LG G Flex 2 and the Samsung Galaxy Round 2 diverging Sprint pushes out KitKat update for the LG G2 Phones – Motorola Motorola ‘Moto X + 1′ name surfaces, the world ponders what it could be Moto Maker finally available for Republic Wireless customers Moto G Forte quietly launches in Mexico Phones – OnePlus OnePlus One screens reveal a little bit of the interface OnePlus One will cost no more than 350 euros in Europe Phones – Polaroid PolaSma by Polaroid is the newest smartphone for teenagers Phones – Samsung Samsung smartphone with QHD (2560 x 1440) display is definitely in the pipeline Galaxy S 5 sports the ‘best performing smartphone display’ ever tested Here’s why Samsung thinks the Galaxy S 5 is more superior than the HTC One (M8) Manual for Samsung Galaxy S 5 ready for download Samsung Galaxy S 5 makes payment using fingerprint a reality [Video] Galaxy S 5 trumps S 4 in drop test Pre-order the Galaxy S 5 at Verizon Wireless now and get another phone for free Samsung Galaxy S 5 Zoom benchmarks leak, a 20.2MP camera is ready for showtime Leaked image claims to be the Samsung Galaxy S 5 Zoom Samsung Galaxy S 5 Mini specs leak Development of the LG G Flex 2 and the Samsung Galaxy Round 2 diverging Phones – VIVO VIVO’s newest device will have a Snapdragon 801 processor, 3 GB of RAM, and a powerful camera ROMs Cyanogen Inc. reveals new branding Set-top boxes Amazon finally announces Fire TV set-top box and gaming controller Gary Busey is the star of Amazon Fire TV’s first commercial Amazon Fire TV gets its innards exposed by iFixit Developer takes just two hours to make AllCast work with Amazon Fire TV Smartwatches Music Boss now supports control of Chromecast volume and playback from your Pebble smartwatch Pebble smartwatch takes aim at Target shoppers Tablets Lenovo releasing four new A-series tablets Nexus 10 listed as “coming soon” on Google Play Qualcomm Snapdragon 805 developer tablet will be available later this month Samsung Galaxy Tab4 series is official Verizon variant of the Galaxy Tab 4 arrives at the FCC Updates Sprint pushes out KitKat update for the LG G2 HTC Butterfly Android 4.4 KitKat update gets the “coming soon” label Miscellaneous HTC admits to boosting benchmarks on the M8 Motorola’s Moto G, LG’s G2 keep manufacturers in play Google likely to play key role in latest Apple patent trial with Samsung Samsung’s opening arguments say Apple has “an attack on Android” Trial reveals Apple’s marketing chief riled up over Samsung ads Samsung gets another hit with Ortiz selfie with Obama Motorola gives behind the scenes look at April Fools’ animation Samsung big mover, Android maintains lead in latest comScore report Internal document shows just how worried Apple is about everyone else Come comment on this article: TalkAndroid Weekly Recap for March 31 – April 6, 2014 Visit TalkAndroid for Android news, Android guides, and much more! 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