Project Fi is Rumored to Integrate with Google Voice Soon

To kick off last week with a bang, Google finally started rolling out a big update to an application they've been ignoring for the longest time – Google Voice. This seems to be the latest step in Google's overarching goal of moving regular users away from their Hangouts application. With Hangouts shifting towards becoming an enterprise-first service, the millions of people who use Hangouts will need an alternative. For most, they can move over to applications like Allo and Duo, but this leaves many Project Fi users in the dark.

As of right now, Google doesn't pre-install Hangouts on the Pixel or the Pixel XL unless you buy either through Project Fi. Many Project Fi customers are currently using Hangouts for certain day to day features, such as synchronized messaging on multiple platforms. When Google completes the shift of Hangouts to the enterprise market, they will need a solution for current Project Fi users. A new rumor from 9to5Google claims that Project Fi may be integrated into Google Voice in the near future.

While Google has yet to confirm this integration, they do seem to hint at some sort of solution. They know that a lot of Project Fi customers rely on Hangouts and have told 9to5Google that they should  "continue to use Hangouts" while Google is actively "working on a solution." They don't mention Google Voice being the solution, but sources close to 9to5Google are telling them that Project Fi integration will be a "keystone" feature with the new Google Voice update.

9to5Google trust this source as they have been correct with rumors in the past. Their source is the same person who previously told 9to5Google that VoIP integration would be coming to Google Voice in the future (which Google then confirmed). Still, as with most rumors, we should take this one with a grain of salt, but we could see things unfold this way since the information does come from what is said to be a reliable source.

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Source: 9to5Google

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ZTE Admits Kickstarter isn’t the Place to Sell Project CSX/Hawkeye

Late last year, ZTE decided they wanted to sell a smartphone with ideas which were crowdsourced from the community. This device was given the name Project CSX and with it they wanted the community to decide everything that went into the phone.

The main rules when launching this project were it needing to be a mobile product, it needed to be affordable, and it need to be technically possible for a launch in 2017. Naturally, this turned into a project for a smartphone and the community was given 5 different features to vote on.

As fans of stock Android, many of us here at XDA wanted this option to win out when we wrote about it in October of last year. The other choices here were eye-tracking and self-adhesion, a glove accessory that would be powered by Android, intelligent cases for phones like a gamepad, stylus or e-ink flip cover and lastly a VR-interactive diving mask. Many of these were way out of the left field and would obviously take years for a company to perfect before bringing it to market.

So the idea of a phone with eye-tracking and self-adhesion eventually won out (don't ask us how) and this is how we ended up with the phone that would soon be named Hawkeye. It was less than two weeks ago when they launched their Kickstarter campaign for they ZTE Hawkeye, and we learned what type of hardware they chose for the device. Many were upset that after such a long buildup, they ended up choosing the Snapdragon 625 SoC for the device.

In a new interview with Android Central, ZTE's Vice President of Technology Partnerships and Planning for ZTE North America admits they should have approached this idea differently. Jeff Yee believes they would have been more granular with the idea and asked the community if they wanted the Snapdragon 835 or the 625, then asked if they wanted the fingerprint scanner on the front or the back. The Kickstarter campaign has raised less than $40,000 (out of the $500,000 they asked for), and tells us they are considering cancelling the project altogether.

Mr Yee says if they do end up cancelling it, we could see the eye-tracking and self-adhesion feature appear in a future ZTE flagship (please, please don't ruin the Axon line with this).

Source: Android Central

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Updated LineageOS 13.0 for the NVIDIA SHIELD Tablet

If you have a NVIDIA SHIELD Tablet, check out this LineageOS build based on Android 6.0 with the latest Lineage OS commits! Head on over to the forum post for the download link!

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Google Announces Android Nougat 7.1.2, Public Beta Starts Rolling Out For Pixel and Nexus Devices

In an official blog post earlier, Google has announced the beta version of the upcoming Android Maintenance Release: Android Nougat 7.1.2. The public beta update will start rolling out starting today for supported devices. As always, the update will only be rolled out to devices which are enrolled in Android Beta Program.

The supported devices include the Google Pixel, Pixel XL, Nexus 5X, Nexus Player, and the Pixel C. Unfortunately, the Nexus 6 and Nexus 9 won't be receiving the Android Nougat 7.1.2 as confirmed by Google earlier. This shouldn't be a surprise at all since both the devices have already passed the 2-year software support period a while back. Although, both will continue to receive the monthly security patches for one more year.

Google says the update is focused on refinements and it includes a lot of bugfixes as well as many under-the-hood optimizations. In case you have previously enrolled your device in the program, you don't require to do anything at all; the update will automatically be rolled out to your device in next few days. If not, enroll your eligible device in Android Beta Program here. Alternatively, you can also update your device manually by grabbing the factory images for your device from here.

The update changelog has not yet been disclosed by Google, though a release note posted on the Android Developers site for the Android 7.1.2 update outlines some of the known bugs in the beta update. That include Quick Settings issue on the Pixel C, occasional UI hangs, WiFi stability issues, screen turning black during the transition from boot animation to setup wizard and more.

As for when we will see the final release, Google says they're expecting to release final build of Android 7.1.2 in "next couple of months."

Source: Android Developers Blog

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Nextbit has Officially been Acquired by Razer

You may know of Razer as the company who sells high-end PCs and PC accessories, but they got into the Android business in 2015 and even relaunched the OUYA store as Cortex for the Razer Forge TV. They haven't been very active in the community since then, but it seems they aren't done with the Android ecosystem either. Yesterday, it was announced that Razer had acquired both the assets and the entire 30-person team behind the Nextbit Robin.

So, many are asking what this means for Nextbit's flagship smartphone. Nextbit has confirmed they are no longer selling the Robin and its accessories through their official channels (although you can still buy it from Amazon as I write this up). Any remaining units being sold right now are part of the company's last batch of devices and there will not be any additional ones manufactured. Nextbit has also announced what this means for customers who currently own the Robin.

Nextbit CEO Tom Moss says they will continue to offer hardware support for the Nextbit Robin for 6 more months (for warranties and such). On top of that, current customers can expect to receive software updates (both new Android OS updates and security patches) for the next 12 months. After that though, Nextbit will no longer be working on the Robin. Instead, they are said to be working as an "independent division inside Razer," and will be focused on "unique mobile design and experiences."

While this is definitely bad news for those who wanted to see Nextbit succeed, it's certainly a better outcome than other technology companies faced when they had to sell their assets. We'll have to wait and see if the team continues to work on mobile hardware, or if they will be focused on integrating their cloud technology into current and future Razer products.

Source: Nextbit

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App Fixes the Quick Settings Flashlight Tile for the Redmi Note 3 Pro (Kenzo)

Some people with the Redmi Note 3 Pro have been having trouble with their Flashlight tile within the Quick Settings panel. XDA Recognized Themer Umang96 has recently released a root app with the help of XDA Junior Member shayanism and XDA Member hichaam.

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XDA-Developers Invites Your Ideas for the Google Summer of Code Program!

XDA-Developers was founded on the need to work with closed source software, often in an effort to fix what the manufacturer broke or intentionally disabled on their smart devices. Since then, we have evolved to place more and more emphasis on open source projects. Open sourced software is much easier for developers to work with and is a great starting place for beginning developers to learn how to code.

With that in mind, we are proud to announce that XDA-Developers is applying to become a Mentor Organization for Google Summer of Code (GSoC).

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What is Google Summer of Code?

Google Summer of Code is a global program focused on introducing student developers to open source software. Students apply and work on a 3 month open source project with a mentor organization during their (summer) break from U.S.-based university schedule. Student participants (minimum of 18 years old and who have completed secondary school) are paired with a mentor from participating organizations, which allows them to gain exposure to real world software development.

What's more, the incentive for students participating in this program is not just hands-on experience working on a project – you also get paid to contribute to open source projects!

You can learn more about Google Summer of Code over on its official page here. Additionally, you can view previous GSoC projects over here to get an idea of what kinds of projects other students have worked on in the past. Finally, you can also refer to the 2016 GSoC Archive and FLOSS Manuals.

XDA-Developers as a Mentor Organization

For the 2017 Google Summer of Code, XDA-Developers is applying to be a Mentor Organization for the very first time. We believe that open source code is the future of mobile software development. Our participation in the Google Summer of Code program is a small way of promoting the advantages of open source projects and implanting a love of open source development in the next generation of developers.

The first step in our application process is to invite project ideas from you as a community. These are ideas for projects that can be completed in about 12 weeks of coding. Anyone can submit a feasible idea, but we would really recommend taking a look at previous projects to get a good grasp on what the GSoC typically expects.

Here is the requirement set for the ideas:

1. A project title/description
2. More detailed description of the project (2-5 sentences)
3. Expected outcomes
4. Skills required/preferred
5. Possible mentors at XDA (can be the idea submittor but not a student)
6. If possible, an easy, medium or hard rating for the project
7. Your name and/or XDA username

All ideas are to be submitted over at our GitHub page.

The next step in our process is to build a team of Mentors. If you are able and willing, you can also apply to become a Mentor for your idea. The position requires committal to being a guidance to a budding student and building one-one-one rapport, so any developers interested in fostering a love of open source projects may apply for this position.

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So, does the idea of being a mentor or working with one strike your fancy? Make sure you apply in that case. Also, let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

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