So you've got yourself Kindle Fire and a house full of young, impressionable children. What to do? Have no fear, update 6.3.1 is on its way, bringing with it parental controls like password protection for purchases, content disabling in the library and the ability to block access to the device's Silk browser. The world will be a safer place once the update starts rolling out over the air in the next few days.

Amazon tablet update brings parental controls, lets kids play with Fire originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 03 May 2012 16:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

In general, people seem to love their Galaxy Nexuses (or is that Nexii?), but every model has suffered from some form of connectivity problem. The HSPA+ plus model already scored its antidote, now its time for Sprint's LTE model to get some love. Over the next couple of days a software update (FD02) will be rolling out to the ICS flagships that should solve a rather bothersome bug that kept the devices from connecting to Sprint's data network after activation... at all. Obviously, you'll need to connect to a WiFi network to download the update if you're one of the afflicted, but you get a nice Google Wallet update for your troubles. Now lets get our Big Red Nexii patched up too and we'll all be happy campers.

Sprint Galaxy Nexus updated, kiss your connectivity woes goodbye originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 01 May 2012 16:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging for an update. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it's easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don't escape without notice, we've gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery we could find during the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!

Continue reading Refresh Roundup: week of April 23rd, 2012

Refresh Roundup: week of April 23rd, 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 29 Apr 2012 21:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

While there are already vague Android update plans for Verizon-connected Samsung devices, a leaked screen from somewhere within the Big Red bunker has offered up some more details. It looks like the Rezound, Droid RAZR and RAZR Maxx are closest to the upgrade finish-line with testing likely to finish by May 7th for the HTC model and May 17th for the Motorola duo. According to Droid Life, Verizon's Motorola Xoom (you know, the Android tablet) is getting its update direct from Google, but it hasn't been deigned worthy of a concrete release date. A handful of software updates are also pegged for the likes of the Bionic, Thunderbolt, Revolution, Galaxy Tab 10.1 and Xperia Play, but they look likely to be more incremental than outright OS upgrades. For those interested in some new firmware numbers, we've included those update details after the break.

Continue reading Verizon ICS update schedule leaks: Rezound, RAZR and Xoom being tested now

Verizon ICS update schedule leaks: Rezound, RAZR and Xoom being tested now originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 27 Apr 2012 07:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Last week, Acer announced that Ice Cream Sandwich would make its way to Iconia Tabs A100 and A500 in Canada and the US starting April 27th, but Phone Arena reports that some owners of the 10.1-inch A500 are getting the option to update a day ahead of schedule. If you're one of the lucky few to be in on the early upgrade, you should be ready to rock with Android 4.0.3 after a 30-minute install. The one potential downside to getting ICS ahead of time? You'll have to wait for the Acer Ring hub, which didn't make the cut for this update.

Some Iconia Tab A500s getting Ice Cream Sandwich early, Acer Ring is MIA originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 26 Apr 2012 18:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

We're not gonna act all surprised, or anything -- Sony's been talking up Android 4.0's arrival on its Tablet S for some time now. For those who have been waiting with bated breath for the Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade on their oddly-shaped tablet, however, that time is now. Connect your device to WiFi and a system upgrade should prompt you to join the wild world of 4.0. Video of the two in action after the break.

Continue reading Sony Tablet S gets a wedge of Ice Cream Sandwich

Sony Tablet S gets a wedge of Ice Cream Sandwich originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 26 Apr 2012 13:05:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Facebook app for Windows Phone is certainly serviceable, but it's never really been anything to get excited about. In fact, it wasn't really something you looked forward to using and it's been slow to add the features considered standard on competing mobile platforms. Well, with the soon to land version 2.5, that capability gap will get quite a bit smaller. It hasn't hit the Marketplace yet, but when it does it'll bring support for group chats, threaded messaging, tagging in posts and the ability to like or delete not only posts but comments as well. The photo pages have also gotten a visual refresh and you can now tap on links in posts to go straight to the relevant content. For a few more details hit up the source, and keep checking the Marketplace for updates -- Facebook promises it won't be long now.

Facebook for Windows Phone getting a major refresh originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 24 Apr 2012 09:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

A promised upgrade to Ice Cream Sandwich this is not, but who are we to scoff at fresh software that improves battery life? Per Droid-Life that's exactly what Motorola has in store for the Droid 4 with its first official update -- née 6.13.219. Hitting the airwaves in the coming week, there's more than just longevity tweaks, with a new MotoCast widget, improved WiFi connectivity and fixes pertaining to "sluggishness and blank screen lockups." Time will tell if that'll tide you over until Motorola unleashes Google's latest, but until then, placate yourself by reading more at the source link below.

Droid 4 gets first official update, better battery life and sluggishness fixes in tow originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 19 Apr 2012 01:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Mama had it right -- procrastination is bad -- but mama never knew Apple. For Leopard users still clinging tightly to their MobileMe account, it looks like the path to iCloud just got a wee bit cheaper. Qualifying MobileMe holdouts are reportedly receiving email notifications that point them to a special portal; behind a registration form, folks are finding a free copy of OS X 10.6 (on DVD, no less). The goal here is to get customers to make yet another jump to Lion (an extra $29), but the idea of keeping most of that cloud functionality via iCloud is certainly enticing. As MacNN so accurately points out, it's odd that Apple's not including the $69 USB drive version of Lion, which contains the ability to boost even Leopard users to OS X 10.7. If you're one that generally skips out on reading those automated Apple emails, you might want to make an exception for this one.

Apple offering free Snow Leopard update to MobileMe holdouts originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Apr 2012 23:49:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

HTC One X owners, remember this number: 1.28.401.9. All right, you don't actually have to memorize the thing, you just have to go into the Software Updates section of your phone's settings to grab the decimal-happy upgrade for your beloved new smartphone. According to Android Central, the Android 4.0.3-based upgrade brings some "minor changes" to the smartphone, addressing some menu key and brightness issues among others. A battery life fix is also supposedly on-board for the upgrade. Let us know what other fixes you're seeing, should you take the upgrade plunge.

HTC One X gets software update, minor fixes reported originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Apr 2012 10:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.