Android - News, Features, and Slideshows

Features

• Perspective: The fate of Nokia's Android phone depends on Microsoft

  Analysts are pondering just what Microsoft might do with the Android-variant smartphone Nokia has under development: Keep it or kill it.

• Top tech stories of 2013: Big Brother, wearables, and the struggles of aging tech giants

  Politics collided with the world of technology this year as stories about U.S. government spying stirred angst both among the country's citizens and foreign governments, and the flawed HeathCare.gov site got American health-care reform off to a rocky start. Meanwhile, the post-PC era put aging tech giants under pressure to reinvent themselves. Here in no particular order are IDG News Service's picks for the top 10 tech stories of the year.

• Is Samsung poised to push Android past iOS in the enterprise?

  The mobile world changes fast. Case in point: A year ago thinking that Android devices could be on par with -- and perhaps even overtake -- Apple in the enterprise would have been considered crazy. But the today the race is neck and neck.

• Google escalates offensive against Office with Android KitKat

  Google last week again turned the screws on Microsoft and its Office franchise, this time by including Quickoffice with its newest Android mobile operating system, version 4.4 and dubbed "KitKat."

• Hands-on with the Samsung Galaxy Round: few new features, but posh design

  What different advantages can a curved screen bring to a smartphone? Well, not a whole lot. But Samsung's newest smartphone, the Galaxy Round, comes off as a posh device that may be the company's best looking handset yet.

• What kind of crazy scheme is Motorola hatching?

  Motorola and Google say in a new ad their upcoming Moto X phone will be designed by users. How will you design your own smartphone? And why would Google let you do this?

• How to prepare for Windows 8 even though it's not coming to enterprises

  Windows 8 won't be adopted as a standard at your business anytime soon, according to a new Forrester report. But that doesn't mean IT shouldn't prepare for it to sneak through the BYOD side door. Here are five ways to be ready for Windows 8.

• Google woos developers as software becomes more important

  Google did its best to court developers at this year's I/O conference with a much-needed integrated developer environment, API for better games and the ability to more easily translate apps. Their allegiance will become increasingly important as smartphone and tablet hardware sees fewer dramatic improvements.

• Samsung offers barely a mention of Android amid Galaxy S4 hoopla

  Samsung unveiled its Galaxy S4 smartphone using the theme of a Broadway musical, but almost completely avoided any mention of the Android OS inside.

• Why Samsung Won't Beat Blackberry in the Mobile Enterprise

  Samsung Safe aims to make Android phones better for the enterprise, but using the least secure mobile OS out there and ignoring the IT-ready BlackBerry might not be a good move.

• The lazy geek's guide to building a home media center

  Anything less than a DIY digital home entertainment project means making the most of Apple TV

• New camera war brewing in the smartphone market

  HTC and Nokia are preparing to go head-to-head with new cameras on upcoming smartphones, as they hope to steal market share from Apple and Samsung Electronics.

• Opinion: Will Apple, Google and Samsung lose the smartphone market?

  Mobile phone competition intensifies. Linux-based platforms are gunning for iOS and Android, and Chinese companies want to price the iPhone and the Galaxy S line out of the market.

• Windows 8, Surface tablets to lead Microsoft's fight for relevance in 2013

  Microsoft made big bets on Windows 8, Windows Phone and Surface tablets in 2012, and now it needs to make those bets to pay off. As more consumers and businesses go mobile, 2013 will be Microsoft's most challenging year yet.

• 2012: The year Android truly challenged iOS

  Android 'Jelly Bean,' Samsung's Notes, and Google's Nexuses finally delivered compelling capabilities as Apple stalled