The Drunken Tech Blog

Yesterday, the communications rep at my place of work advised me she had a few pre-release Verizon Nexus 6 units on hand. You see, for the past 6 years or so, I have been the go-to for putting new Android devices through the paces before opening the floodgates for every Jo and Jane Schmo to request one for themselves. This is, however, the first time I've done so with a phone that wasn't "officially released" yet. A couple of things I can confirm: The Verizon Nexus 6 has got Android 5.1 Lollipop.  Our rep stated all she did was put in the sim cards and power these on; she did not perform any type of system updates. There is none of the usual Verizon bloatware/crapware pre-installed on this device! No Verizon/VZW Apps No Softcard (which is technically about to be put to pasture anyway) Not even that damned NFL Mobile App! Spoiler Alert: The above two points, I imagine, are really the only Verizon-specific aspects of this mini-review. The remaining t...

To update my previous post ( here ), I have done a little more work on the Tablet mounting. I purchased a nice hard snap-on cover for the tablet: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00903HAL0/ref=oh_details_o02_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Then I glued it into place using a large L-bracket and some high-quality adhesive. Here's how it looks from the Front: Note: I did have to grind back some more plastic in the mounting bracket to allow the tablet cover to sit as close to flush as possible. Then, I just put it back in the dash like it was before. Here's a shot of it holding the tablet nice a snug in the car. Now I'm just waiting for the Double-Din Bezel I ordered from Germany. (I broke down and ordered it since I wasn't happy with the way my homemade one turned out.) Cheers!

Last week I posted about the newly announced Ubuntu Touch edition designed for phones and tablets. I promised an update with my first impressions. Unfortunately there isn't a whole lot to say just yet. Only a handful of the apps are actually functional (gallery, phone, camera, browser, media player, and notepad) and even fewer of those actual function properly on the Nexus 7. What I CAN say, though, is that Ubuntu Touch has A LOT of potential. It certainly is a beautiful OS and the layout of the interface and the way you interact with it is quite intuitive. It makes use of all four edges of the screen, allowing you to swiped between running apps, access app-specific settings, system settings, and a quick-list of favorite apps (think the Unity Launcher, on your Ubuntu Desktop). The install image includes some sample content, including People, Pictures, Messages, etc, so you can see what using each of those apps looks and feels like. All-in-all I would like to spend some time wit...

Ok, let me start out by saying I am possibly more excited about this than any other mobile-related news to com out lately. Just watching this video full of impressive-looking features and design is enough to make me re-think using my Nexus 7 to replace the head unit in my car. Now I'm thinking of keeping it as a usable, portable tablet for a bit more. Go ahead and watch the video below. The Developer Preview should be available tomorrow so I'll get it installed on my Nexus 7 and report back with my experience.