LATEST SMARTPHONE, TABLET AND APP REVIEWS ANDROID sé ADVISOR The best of ae e r ey ~ Android L « Android TV « Android Auto * Android Wear Meet Samsung’s |:. Why the Fire f best ever tablets Phone will fail *:'=ROID DVISOR Welcome... ell hasn't June been a bangin’ month for Android. Google I/O was ending as we went to press and, although we got very little in the way of new hardware, we're more excited than ever about what's to come from the platform. In the same week we also learned how Google was bringing its Glass smartglasses to the UK (expect our full review in the next issue), and we were treated to a surprise (yes, an actual surprise) Android Wear-hased smartwatch launch in the farm of the Samsung Gear Live. We must be slipping. We round up the best of Google I/O over the next few pages, and later go into more detail on Android's biggest ever OS update, for now known only as ‘L’ (page 11), Android Auto (page 13), Android TV (page 17) and Android Wear (page 21). The Google I/O and Glass announcements came on the back of the launch of one of the worst-kept secrets in tech: Amazon’s Fire Phone. It's not ‘technically’ available in the UK (since when does thal stop us?) bul, actually, that’s probably for the best. On page 38 we'll tell you why not only will the Fire Phone fail, but how it proves the whole Kindle Fire model was a mistake for Amazon. Let's not forget Samsung's Galaxy Premiere event. Turn to page 71 to see Samsung's latest declaration of war on Apple with its new Tab S tablets. If you've liked this issue (or even if you haven't), get in touch via facebook.com/AndroidAdvisorUK or email [email protected],Best of Google I/O 2014 Google’s annual I/O developer conference kicked off on 25 June. We round up the best bits of I/O 2014 his year’s Google /O wasn't as dramatic as the /Os of yesteryear. Nobody jumped from a blimp with a radical new face computer strapped to his face, and Larry Page neglected to step foot on stage, much less wax poetic about the infinite sadness in the world. But despite the lack of theatrics, this year’s I/O was still pretty exciting, thanks to the glimpse Google offered us into its future. The tech giant unleashed a slew of updates, synergies, and even whole new platforms designed to weave computing into our everyday lives in — Google hopesVISOR — a seamless way. Here’s a look back at everything announced at Google I/O. Upgrades for Android First up was Android L, the successor to Android KitKat. The most blatant thing about Android L hits you square in the face right away: it looks awful pretty. Google’s introducing a new aesthetic dubbed Material Design in Android L, with a focus on object depth and animation. The beauty is more than skin deep, though: Android L’s bringing handy-looking improvements to the way the system handles notifications, along with an intriguing ‘personal unlock’ feature that does away with the lackscreen if you’re already carrying another device that can provide authentication wirelessly. Android L also boosts the OS's graphical and battery performance, ditches the stodgy old Dalvik runtime powering Android for the new and improved ART (Android Run Time), and adds more than 5,000 APIs for developers. While the launch is still months away, a developer preview is available now. Android LSundar Pichai, the boss of Android, Apps, and Chrome for Google, also revealed a new initiative dubbed Android for Work, which aims to bolster Android's security and business chops. As part of that, Pichai announced native Microsoft Office integration for Google Drive in Android. Previously, ediling lraditional Office files in Google Drive required a messy conversion process that was far from seamless. Android L will let you open spreadsheets, documents, and presentations files without all the muss and fuss. Proper mobile support. for Google Slides is also incoming. (It’s about time.) Pichai also announced an endeavour called Android One, designed to bring low-end phones to emerging markets such as India — and boost Android’s share of the market in the process.Android's bursting beyond smartphones these days, though — a fact clearly evident during the Google V/O keynote, where specialised versions of Android for wrists, cars and TVs all made appearances. Google spent abundant stage time showing off Android Wear’s capabilities, especially its contextual awareness and integration with Android phones. David Singleton, Google’s director of engineering for Android, previewed the watch OS's Google Now-style cards and the gestures and voice commands used to control them, including a much-needed Do Not Disturb mode that tells your wrist to shut up and stop spitting out notifications. Third-party apps from Eat 24 and Allthecooks were also preened about, but the most newsworthy part of the Android Wear announcements had to do with hardware: the Wear-powered Samsung Gear Live was announced, with both it and the LG G Watchavailable for preordering now. (The Moto 360 will follow later in the summer.) The newly unveiled Android Auto, meanwhile, aims to integrate your ‘Droid with your drive in a way that’s road-responsible. Android Auto connects your phone to your car (via a cable In the onstage demo) and brings your personal apps — such as Google Calendar, Play Music and Maps — to your car’s central dashboard, clad in a familiar Android UI but optimised for the car with larger onscreen buttons and voice commands. Google's also trying to resuscitate the corpse of Google TV with Android TV, yet another stab at establishing a beachhead in your living room. Android TV in essence treats your TV as a bigger screen for Android itself, rather than a whole new platform, While the interface certainly looks slick, the real secret sauce could be Android TV's search features, which draw on Google’s deep knowledgerepository to provide YouTube clips and information about shows. Android TV even provided accurate results to a search for ‘Oscar nominated movies from 2002’ and a vocal query about who played Katniss in The Hunger Games. (Jennifer Lawrence, if you're wondering.) Razer announced a new pint-sized gaming console to match Google’s Android TV announcement, which will feature all of Android TV's streaming and lelevision navigation capabilities, but focus on Android gaming — kind of like a more TV-friendly Quya. It wasn’t all Android, however. Various iterations of Chrome also stepped into the spotlight. The nifty little Chromecast streaming media dongle is being updated with some helpful little extras, Most notably, you'll be able to enable anoption to allow nearby entertainment junkies to cast to the device even if they aren't on the same Wi-Fi network as the Chromecast itself — a handy addition for visiting friends. Chromecast is also gaining the ability to mirror Android devices on your TV, as well as a ‘Backdrop’ feature that lets you customise the imagery shown during downtime. The Chrome OS operating system is also receiving some fresh new features, thanks to deeper integration with Android. Like Android L devices, Chromebook users will soon be able to bypass passwords by using a Bluetooth-enabled Android phone for automatic authentication — merely opening the lid will log you in to both the operating system and your Google account. While paired, notifications for incoming calls and texts will appear on your Chromebook, along with low-power warnings for your phone. Google’s also working to allow top Android apps to work on Chromebooks, complete with hardware-level access.Don't let all the fancy announcements and hardware talk fool you: Google I/O is a primarily a show for developers, and Google revealed some intriguing under-the-hood announcements sure to make devs just as happy as end users. The Play Games service underpinning Google's gaming endeavours is giving players richer profiles and cloud-based ‘bookmarks’, which save your in- game progress alongside a screenshot — though it’s not clear how it differs from the cloud saves already available to players (and underused by developers). Developers will also be able to create daily Quests, complete with potential in-game rewards. Shifting gears, health is the buzzword of the day, and Google’s jumping on the bandwagon while playing to the potential strengths of Android Wear devices with the launch of Google Fit, a new platform designed to allow your disparate fitness apps and devices play nice together. In essence, Google Fit lets fitness gear and software share data with each other, and Google's already signed up a small army of partners for the platform.Introducing Android L, Google’s next mobile OS For now known only as ‘L, the next version of Android is Google’s biggest Android update yet oogle unveiled the next version of Android, for now known only as Android L, at /O 2014. Although a developer preview is available now, Android L won't be available to consumers until the autumn. Material design Google has revealed a new design language for Android L called ‘Material’. It’s a lot cleaner, and developers can make use of it in apps. The Roboto font can also be used anywhere.ROID DVISOR Elements can be given depth, so shadows and light sources affect user interface elements in real time. App interfaces will feature touches of colour automatically generated based on the content, and there are new animations and touch feedback, Enhanced notifications Android L will make notifications even better than ever. For starters, you can get notifications on the lock screen — and they will be automatically ordered in priority. You will be able to swipe them away like normal or double-tap to open the relevant app. Security Google said security is a key element for Android and its users. A new feature will enable users to unlock their smartphone when physically near enough a device such as an Android Wear smartwatch. It's a bit like cars with keyless entry. Battery life Better battery life is something we always want and Google promises that Android L will bring it via a new power-saving mode. Project Volta will allow developers lo identify how their apps are using battery so they make improvements. Google said that the new battery saving mode will give a Nexus 5 an extra 90 minutes of power. Performance As we expected, Android L will support 64-bit processors and it will also support the ART software library, which Google says will be twice as fast as Dalvik.Extending Android to the car with Android Auto Google Android is everywhere, and now it’s even in your car. Meet Android Auto ollowing the announcement of its Open Automotive Alliance in January, Google has used its annual I/O conference to unveil plans for its next step in world dominance: Android Auto. Like Apple’s CarPlay, Android Auto relies on you bringing your own smartphone (an Android handset, naturally) and the bigger screen built into the dashboard relays information such as maps andguidance, plus your music library and information from Google Now and other apps. As well as having much larger buttons for easy operation, Android Auto is also voice-controlled. That's hardly a new development for car tech, but it means you'll be able to keep your hands on the wheel while choosing a new album or track; enter a destination for the satnay, reply to text messages and emails (which can be read aloud as they arrive) or make a phone call to a contact in your address book. Basically all the stuff you would want to do while driving. Android Auto runs on your smartphone; indeed it is deeply rooted in the upcoming version of Android (the as-yet unnamed version of the OS, it could be Lollipop) which will be released in the autumn. Cars which support Android Auto are slated to go on sale “before the year end”,When shown on the in-car display, a simplified interface is used to make it less distracting, since one of Google’s primary aims is to make it much safer to use tech in cars, reducing the number of accidents caused by distracted drivers. Auto is rather like Google Now, being ‘contextually aware’ of whether or not you're in the car and giving you the information you want when you need it via ‘cards’ — just as you get with Google Now. Cards will be based on a variety of factors, including what Google Now already knows about you, the time, your location and more. So, if you always leave for work at 8am, Android Auto will automatically show a shortcut to navigate to your workplace and provide any other information such as delays caused by heavy traffic. No need to even bring up the list of recent or favourite destinations. Just tap the card and go. Open ~ Automotive AllianceROID DVISOR Since navigation is based on Google Maps, you can tell Android Auto to find, say, your nearest Halfords and it will direct you there. There are no limitations on POls as with a traditional offline satnav. A taskbar along the bottom has icons so you can switch between navigation, phone calls, music and other tasks. Google says 40 car manufacturers are signed up to the OAA, with new members including Bentley, Nissan, Renault, Volkswagen and Volvo. That doesn’t mean all will launch Android Auto cars, however. Google also said that the SDK for Android Auto, along with a full set of APIs for audio and messaging 66 As with CarPlay, members of the OAA may well be offering Android Auto versions that you'll be able to install in your current car apps, will be available to developers soon. This means that when Android L is released later this year you should have a decent choice of apps to use alongside the standard Google ones. Will you have to go out and buy a brand-new car, though? Fortunately not. As with CarPlay, aftermarket infotainment makers including Alpine, Clarion, JVC, Kenwood, LG, Pioneer and Panasonic are members of the OAA and may well be offering Android Auto versions that you'll be able to install in your current car. Google's director of engineering, Patrick Brady, said: “It looks and feels like it’s part of the car, but all of the apps are running on the phone.”Google’s coming to the big screen with Android TV Google TV is dead. Long live Android TV. Here’s everything you need to know about it ndroid TV isn’t a new platform, and that’s kind of the point, said Google’s Dave Burke, speaking to developers. “We're simply giving TV the same level of attention as phones and tablets have traditionally enjoyed. We want you to leverage your existing skills and investment in Android and extend them to TV.”Android TV is simply a means of bringing to your TV set all of the apps and features of your Android smartphone or tablet. It will allow you to play Android games on your TV set, for instance. Android TV replaces Google TV. Google launched Google TV to great fanfare in 2010. Google TV was focused on simply porting the best TV content on the web into your TV. It wasn’t a success, in part because of the paucity of content. In the UK at least, there wasn’t much of high quality to watch on your expensive Google TV device. Android TVs will be like other smart TVs, but instead of relying on proprietary app stores from the likes of Samsung and Sony, you will be able to access Google Play apps and content. Android TV requires just a directional D-pad as well as voice input, which could appear inatraditional remote, a virtual keypad on a smartphone or even a gamepad. Burke showed off the TV input framework, which allows Android TVs to handle both HDMI and streaming video. All smart TVs made by Sony in 2014 as well as all smart TVs made by Sharp, Philips and TPVision in 2015 will run on Android TV, Burke said. He also announced that LG will create Android smart TVs. Expect more to follow. Burke also said that dedicated Android TV set-top boxes from Asus, Razr and others will launch this Autumn. Key to the new features in Android TV is search {typically enough for Google). Search is powered by voice. Burke used his phone to search for content, but the remote could be used. When hesearched for Breaking Bad, he gota list of actors and YouTube clips, as well as the show itself. Thus Android TV adds the second screen experience to your one screen. Other features included the use of your TV when you are not watching shows. Google demonstrated using your TV set as the biggest picture frame in the house, rotating images you choose. Android TV supports Google Cast support, so you can use it just like a Google Chromecast. Google will offer a dedicated Google Play apps store for TV. Another feature: when you press the home button on your remote (or smartphone or -watch), you see an averlay of shows and movies. There’s a set of recommended movies at the top, with the most frequently-used applications tucked in below. Semantic, contextual search allows you to search for content by genre or actor. And you can ask trivia questions, too. Android TV will also recommend content based on your watching habits. Android TV also makes your TV set a gaming device. You can download and install games from Google Play. And with the games platform you can share achievements and even play multiplayer games.ROID R Android Wear — three new smartwatches The LG G Watch and Samsung Gear Live are on sale now, with the Motorola Moto 360 coming very soon oogle’s Android Wear was announced in G March as a version of Android for wearable technology such as smartwatches. Then, during Google I/O on 25 June, Google gave us a further insight into Android Wear, and announced thal smartwatches running the new software will be available to preorder from today. Here, we explain what is Android Wear and bring you a list of companies making Android Wear watches. What is Android Wear? Android Wear is a new version of Google’s mobile OS that extends Android to wearables, starting with smartwatches. If you keep up to date with technology you'll know that some smartwatches onthe market already run on Android, namely the Sony Smartwatch 2 and Samsung Galaxy Gear, | lowever, those use adapted versions of the operating system, while Android Wear is Google’s mobile operating system specially redesigned for wearables. “Most of us are rarely without our smartphones in hand. These powerful supercomputers keep us connected to the world and the people we love. But we're only at the beginning; we've barely scratched the surface of what's possible with mobile technology. That’s why we're so excited about wearables — they understand the context of the world around you, and you can interact with them simply and efficiently, with just a glance or a spoken word,” said Google in a blog post. Google says that smartwatches with Android Wear (which can be either square or round, as Android Wear supports both shapes) is all about providing information when you need it (the average user atoapparently looks at their smartphone a whopping 125 times a day), and allowing you to use voice control to get things done hands-free. It will be able to give users useful information when they need it most. This includes emails and text messages, but also the latest posts and updates from your favourite social apps, chats from your preferred messaging apps, notifications and more. When you don't need it, you'll be able to swipe down on the display to activate a do-not-disturb mode. Itll also give straight answers to spoken questions, using the now familiar “Ok Google” trigger. You can ask how many calories are in an avocado, what time your flight leaves, the score of the latest World Cup match, You can also say “Ok Google” to get things done, such as call a taxi, send a text, write a note, make a reservation at a restaurant or set an alarm.You'll be able to monitor your health and fitness using an Android Wear smartwatch, too, as some models will include heart-rate monitors and pedometers. You'll be encouraged to hit your exercise goals through reminders and fitness summaries, and you'll be able to use your favourite fitness apps to get real-time speed, distance and time information on your wrist, whether you're running, cycling or walking. When you install an app on your Android phone from the Google Play Store, it'll be automatically stored on your Android Wear smartwatch. Google has also said that you'll be able to access and control other devices using an Android Wear device. “Just say “Ok Google” to fire up a music playlist on your phone, or cast your favourite movie to your TV; says Google. “There are a lot of possibilities here so we're eager to see what developers build.” You'll be able to use an Android Wear smartwatch to control the music you're listening to on yourAndroid phone as well. “The watch will act as your key in a multiscreen world,” says Google. Google also used its |/O keynote to announce Android TV, which you'll be able to control using an Android Wear remote, When is Android Wear coming out? Android Wear devices are available to preorder now through Google Play. The first two Android Wear smartwatches will be the LG G Watch and Samsung Gear Live, costing £159 and £169 respectively, Motorola’s Android Wear smartwatch will be on sale ‘this summer, and there are bound to be more to come this year. Developers can download the full Android Wear SDK from Google, then start tailoring existing app notifications and creating custom apps. During the Google I/O keynote, Google demoed the Eat24 app for Android Wear, which lets users. order their favourite pizza from a takeaway restaurant within 20 seconds, requiring just a couple of taps on the watch. The first two smartwatches with Android Wear will come from LG and Samsung, closely followed by the Motorola Moto 360 in the summer. However, Google ve ulis also working with other partners, including HTC, Asus and fashion brand Fossil. LG has confirmed that it is one of Google's ‘lead partners’ for Android Wear and the LG G Watch is ‘one of the first Android Wear devices to launch. It's available to preorder now for £159. “The opportunity to work with Google on LG G Watch was the perfect chance for LG to really pullNDROID ADVISOR out all stops in both design and engineering,” said Dr Jong-seok Park, president and CEO of LG Mobile. “With the LG G Watch, LG is continuing the milestones we've set in wearables following in the footsteps of the world's first 36 Touch Watch Phone in 2009 and the Prada Link in 2008. We're confident that a well-designed device has the potential to take the smart wearable market by storm.” Samsung Gear Live The Samsung Android Wear watch was confirmed during Google's VO keynote on 25 June, and is available to preorder for £169. The news wasn’t surprising, though, as just hours before the keynote an internal source leaked the Gear Live specification to a Spanish site. The new smartwatch adds to Samsung's three other wrist-worn devices, the Gear 2, Gear 2 Neo and Gear Fit, but those run Samsung's own Tizen OS rather than Android. Motorola Moto 360 The Moto 360 is Motorola’s Android Wear smartwatch. “It’s time for a watch that looks and feels great and gives you the information you need, when you need it.” said Motorola. After announcing that both the LG G Watch and Samsung Gear Livesmartwatches are available to preorder now, it was disappointing to hear from Google that the Moto 360 release date is still “some time this summer”. As you can see from the image, the Moto 360 looks like a regular wristwatch with its circular design and display. Motorola said that alerts and notifications will be subtle and users can check email, who's calling, what time is your next meeting or social posts with “just a twist of the wrist”. “From mechanical to electronic movements, analogue to digital faces, the wristwatch has been reinvented several times over, but the basic design has endured for a century because of its elegance and usefulness ‘al a glance’. Our vision for Moto 360 was to celebrate that history as we reimagined the wristwatch for the future,” said Motorola. Rumours suggest HTC is planning to release a smartwatch called the One Wear in August or September. Apparently this smartwatch will have a round design similar to the Moto 360, and will be available in polycarbonate and metal models.NDROID ADVISOR Google Glass Explorer programme comes to UK The beta version of Google Glass is finally available to buy in the UK. So, what is that exactly? rior to Google’s late-June announcement it Drs allowed early adopters only in the US to buy the specs while engineers continued to work on the hardware and software and third parties added to the ecosystem of apps. Although the prototype product remains in beta, anyone can now buy a Google Glass headset in the UK. So long as you're over 18, you've got £1,000 burning a hole in your pocket and Google has stock, that is. Glass is expected to come out of beta and be officially available for sale some time this year, andGoogle is sure to open up the Explorer Programme to other countries. What is Google Glass? Google's Project Glass is the next step in wearable technology from smartwatches. In simple terms, Google Glass is the technology behind a smart pair of glasses. Right now only Google makes Google Glass hardware, but in the future it expects. spectacles manufacturers to make the hardware using Google’s own software and third party apps. The current, Google-made glasses don't have lenses, but instead has a battery powered heads-up display (HUD) which sits just above the right eye. You simply glance upward to view what's on the display. It's a bit like having your smartphone built into a pair of glasses, and in the future prescription glasses wearers will be able to add Google Glass tech to their bins. Google’s Project Glass was announced in 2012 as a concept many pigeon holed as ‘vapourware’. It was given the unofficial name of ‘Google Goggles’. However, Google has continued development and is well on the way to launching Glass to the public. “We think technology should work for you—to. be there when you need it and get out of your way when you don’t,” said Google. “A group of us from Google[x] started Project Glass to build this kind ofNDROID ADVISOR technology, one that helps you explore and share your world, putting you back in the moment.” Beyond the Explorer models, Google looks like it will be launching Google Glass to the public later this year. In it's FAQ about prescription Google Glass the firm said: “This marks the next phase in the evolution of Glass as we move toward a wider consumer launch later in 2014.” Although Google charges developers and testers £1,000 for Google Glass, the consumer model will supposedly be sold for less than this — how much less, we don’t know. What can Google Glass do? With the combination of the HUD, a camera, microphone and GPS, Google Glass can carry out various tasks — much like a smartphone. To get a list of options you say “Ok glass”.From here on you can use your voice to operated Google Glass. For example, it can take a picture if you say “take a picture” or send a message which you dictate. It can also record video, provide info via a Google search, give directions, translate your voice and perform a Google Hangout video call. With Google Now, Google Glass can provide information before you even attempt to search for it. For example, it can provide details of a flight. Developers are also creating apps for Google Glass so there’s plenty of potential for other functions. The Explorer edition of Google Glass isn’t compatible with regular glasses. However, Google has launched ils range of prescription frames which includes two ‘twist-on’ sunglasses. It’s called the Titanium Collection and consists of four different ‘feather-light’ styles — thin, bold, curve and split. Google has launched an app called MyGlass to go with Google Glass. It requires Android 4.0.3 Ice Cream Sandwich or later, and can be used to configure and manage Google Glass. Google Glass will be available in five colours; Charcoal, Tangerine, Shale, Cotton and Sky.Amazon unveils its first smartphone Want a Fire Phone? Tough. It’s available only in the US, and it’s probably best that it stays that way mazon has announced its first smartphone. At Amazon Fire Phone has a quad-core chip and 2GB RAM, and runs Amazon's own operating system, and allows users to scan products in the physical world and then buy them direct from Amazon. There’s Dynamic Perspective, in which four front-facing cameras allow the user to interact with the phone via facial recognition. This allows for auto-scrolling, tilting and navigating menus — all without needing to touch the screen. Amazon has added support for the technology to the built-in apps including maps and games. For example, you can ‘peek’ in maps to see Yelp ratings, or move your head around in Lili to look around corners or objects. There’s also Firefly, with which you point your camera at physical world posters, notes and even TV shows in order to save new contacts, make phone calls, send emails and visit websites without having to type in any details. It can even perform OCR in magazines,DVISOR or on posters to identify text. It’s probably best thought of as a ‘universal Shazam’, recognising movies and TV episodes and even live TV, then using information from IMDb to show information on actors and related details so you can add titles to your watchlist. Critically Firefly also works for music, letting you get information on the song that’s playing and offering a link to buy it. From Amazon, of course. Sound good? Well you can’t have it. Why Brits can’t buy it Here’s why. The Fire Phone is a relatively mediocre device. What makes it interesting is the way it integrates into Amazon's world, Walk down the street, see something you like, scan it and Amazon will deliver it next day. Hear a song a TV show, Firefly it and you can buy and download it to your handset. This is both what makes the Fire Phone interesting to consumers, and how Amazon expects it to generale revenue and profil. Bul for the experience to be good it requires seamless integration with a huge number of third- party sites, services and stores. You need local licensing deals with music, movie, books and TV makers. FireFly needs to understand barcodes and local language.When the Kindle Fire launched in the US, it took around 18 months to get to the UK. And this was principally because of the requirement to get all the content owners to sign up to deals that worked in the UK. The Fire Phone adds a whole other layer of complexity to this, and for it to work for Amazon users need to be able to spend, spend, spend from day one. Unless it is a huge failure we will get a Fire Phone, but probably generation two, probably in a year or so. However, you can buy a Fire Phone, even if you live in the UK. The question is: why? How to buy the Fire Phone in the UK Buying the hardware is easy. Ideally you needa friend who lives in the US, because the easiest and cheapest method is to get someone over there to buy your Fire Phone, and then ship it to you. If you don’t have a US contact (and expect them to start appearing on eBay at inflated prices soon),the alternative is to hop on a plane with a credit card, have a short trip to the States and combine it with a spot of tech shopping. The challenge here is that to buy a smartphone you may need a US street address. Your Amazon account certainly will. Either way, you should also be aware that you may be required to pay duty to import your Fire Phone into the UK. If it is posted to you the package will likely be opened, and you will get a letter requiring additional payment. If you carry it through customs you will likely get away with it, but we couldn't possibly recommend that. Even in the US the Fire Phone is locked to AT&T, so in order to use your phone as a phone in the UK you will need to get it unlocked (or use it with Wi-Fi only). Elsewhere on these pages I’ve written a detailed feature on how to unlock a phone, but suffice to sayNDROID ADVISOR there are two methods and neither is guaranteed to work, You can source and use an unlock code, or use a cable to connect to an unlock server. The former will likely be tricky for a phone that is not available in the UK, but is worth a try. You are more likely to have success with a cable, if you can find one. And a third-party phone unlock store may be your friend here. But buyer beware: this a phone that is locked down in the US, so there is no guarantee that you will be able to unlock it to use with UK SIMs. The: good news is that a failed unlock attempt is unlikely to damage your Fire Phone. But in order to use it properly you need a US Amazon account — and you need to pretend you are in the US to use it. So, you can use the US account you had to set up when you bought the phone, and give someone in the US your account details, and then let them know what you want. Or you can spoof a US IP address on your PC, set up an account and make purchases there. Let’s face it: it's not ideal. So the question is not *can* you buy a Fire Phone in the UK, but why would you?The Fire Phone shows the Kindle Fire failed (and that it will also fail) The pile ‘em high, sell ‘em cheap philosophy may be failing, so what now for Amazon hardware? he Fire Phone launch tells us that technology's most disruptive company is caught in too minds. The Kindle Fire must be failing, and the Fire Phone starts out on shaky ground. Amazon in late-June confirmed the world’s worst- kept secret in launching its first smartphone. And when Amazon does anything, we watch very closely.NDROID ADVISOR 66 This is, after all, the little book store that did big things. A company that went from book reseller to retail giant, to tech hardware maker to publisher and media company. All without turning much of a profit to speak of. All of which leads to a market valuation of around $150bn. People buy more stuff when it is easier to buy than it is not to buy 99 Amazon's founder and CEO Jeff Bezos is, simply, a visionary. He worked out how to sell books online. He then understood that Amazon wasn't a book company, it was a brilliant logistics organisation that could get you stuff the next day. And he also grasped two key truths: 1. People buy more stuff when it is easier to buy than it is not to buy 2. US lech investors don't need big profils to invest in disruptive businesses Hence, Bezos is a rich man and you should pay attention when Amazon launches a new product. Amazon: disrupting markets since 1994 The Amazon Kindle popularised e-books and changed the way millions of people bought- and consumed reading material. In doing so it took achainsaw to the business of traditional book sellers such as Waterstones and Borders. And then came the Kindle Fire. The Kindle Fire reversed the business model for tablets. Acconsumption device of similar physical calibre to the iPad, the Kindle Fire is a tablet that costs very little to buy upfront. The catch, such as itis, is thal you are locked to Amazon's marketplace for books, music, movies and apps. The idea being that in your lifetime of ownership you will generate more profits for Amazon than it cost it to build you your Kindle Fire. What was most interesting about the Fire Phone announcement was the way it make clear that the model has now changed.ADVISOR To recap: Kindle Fire is cheap to buy, and Amazon makes its money from the apps and media you buy. The idea is that the cheapness leads to volume, which is where a low-margin business such as Amazon makes its money. But the Amazon Fire Phone is actually expensive for a handset with mediocre specs. It’s a 47in smartphone with what is now a middle-of-the-pack display. The processor and RAM are what you would expect for a high-end smartphone, as are the onboard storage options. There is no expansion slot. In and of itself the Amazon Fire is not spectacular — but we didn’t expect that. We did, however, expect that it would be cheap. But at more than $600 SIM- free, the Amazon Fire Phone is a Galaxy S5/HTC One M&/iPhone 5s-type purchase. This is a mid-range phone priced at the top end of the market. If you don’t believe me, take this analysis from IDC’s Francisco Jeronimo: “The device brings nothing disruptive or particularly innovative to end-users to justify such pricing. This will be a tough sell when compared lo devices from the likes of Samsung, Apple or Sony.” And that could be a problem. If the Fire Phone is not cheap enough to attract casual users, it has to be awesome enough to convert iPhone or Android users. And at first blush it looks like it is neither.DVISOR Here’s what Geoff Blaber of CCS Insight has to say: “Amazon is a low-margin business entering an intensely competitive and cost-sensitive business in smartphones, To justify that investment and to drive Prime adoption Amazon has to differentiate through disruption rather than joining the status quo.” So obviously the device itself is not the point. Not the whole point, at least. Caught between two business models? With the Fire Phone Amazon is selling not just a phone, but a portable access device to alll of Amazon. The ability to purchase what you see in the physical world with a single click. And for that to work Amazon needs lots of manufacturers and vendors to jump on board. And to get them you need a lot of consumers to buy the Amazon Fire Phone — which makes. the high-end price seem odd. At last night’s event spent Amazon loads of time talking about how much its customers love its services. It repeatedly stressed that although not many people use Amazon Prime, those that do use it absolutely love it, It was noticeable that in a hall that held only 300 people Amazon made sure a Proportion of the audience were Amazon fans, and developers. They devoted a lot of the evening to getting those invited users and developers to talk about how great Amazon is. It felt a little forced. | think Amazon is slightly confused as to its aims with the Fire, That in turnNDROID ADVISOR 66 makes me think it isn’t making any money on the Kindle Fire model, and now they are trying to make sure that however many people buy Fire Phone they make a profit from each one. A profit from every, customer, regardless of the margins it makes once the hardware is in action. The price of the Fire Phone suggests the business model Amazon tried with tablets may not be working as expected Francisco Jeronimo puts it better: “The price of the Fire Phone may also suggest that the business model that Amazon tried on tablets with the Kindle Fire may not be working as expected. By making no money on hardware Amazon was expecting to attract users to their Kindle Fire tablet and profit from selling the content. If that was a success there would be no reason for Amazon not to pursue the same business model today. In fact, it is much more likely that consumers will shop more on Amazon with a smartphone than wilh a tablet” All well and good. Make an expensive phone, sell it for an expensive price. It doesn't need to be the most popular. And as Amazon said last night: it doesn’t matter if few people use a product, as long as you make a good profit from each one. But at the same time Amazon seems desperate to get developers onboard, because all of these sexy paralax and UI features will work only if developers create content for them. And the shopping functionROID DVISOR requires vendors and manufacturers. This requires Fire Phones to become mass market products with an audience that is attractive to developers and stores. And this itself seems unlikely when the Fire Phone is available from one network, in one country. But without support from app makers and product vendors you have to wonder just how interested will 66 There seems to be a lack of clear vision as to what and who the Fire Phone is for 99 be the majority of phone users in trading up to a phone that is locked to Amazon. Flaming star or flipping burn out? | don’t know if the Fire Phone will fail, but | think its announcement tells me that Kindle Fire is failing. And there seems to be a lack of clear vision as to what and who the Fire Phone is for. I'll give the final word to CCS Insight’s Geoff Blaber: “Amazon has been at the forefront of disruption in the hardware business but this announcement fails to repeat the impact of the Kindle or Kindle Fire tablet. This is contrary to the strategy of pricing hardware at cost to drive retail sales and service adoption — Amazon seems uncharacteristically caught between two business models.”NDROID ADVISOR Inside the HTC One M8& It looks great from the outside, but interior chaos makes repairing a broken HTC One M8 difficult TC’s One MB is probably the most stylish H smartphone you can buy right now, but what lies beneath that brushed-metal frame? Let's find out what's inside the HTC One M8. Digging into the innards of a smartphone with a 90 percent metal unibody case is not a job for the fainthearted. Luckily, then, iFixit.com has got all the right tools for the job. Of course, the HTC One M8 has been around some time now, so there's plenty of stuff we already know. We know this 146.36x70.6x9.35mm, 160g chassis hides a 2.3GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 801|