Hot hardware

The Transformer Prime with 32 GB of storage is the second iteration of Asus’ popular 10.1-inch tablet which debuted last year. And the reason for the “Transformer” name is due to the optional $150 keyboard dock, but more on that in a minute. The slate itself uses a high-quality IPS display at 1280 x 800 resolution. It’s clear and bright from all angles. There’s also a handy option to bump up the brightness for outdoor use: The screen jumps to 600 nits vs. the iPad 2′s 380 to 400 nits, so it’s nearly 50 percent brighter with this setting.

At 8.6 millimeters thick and 586 grams, the Prime is easy to tote and hold, especially with the large bezel around the display; roughly one inch.There’s a 1.2 megapixel front camera which worked fine in my video chat tests. However, the camera is offset, so I had to tilt the tablet to appear centered in my calls. The rear camera is 8 megapixels (with LED flash) and takes adequate, but not stellar images. Video capture is supported up to 1080p and video looks soft around the edges but still good.

Other ports and buttons include a 3.5 millimeter headphone jack, a single speaker, two microphone ports, up and down volume rocker, microSD card slot and micro HDMI port to connect the device to an HDTV or digital monitor. This last port works well and the tablet is more than capable for displaying high resolution videos or games on a second screen. The power button is very small and can be hard to find; a problem when waking the Prime up from sleep mode. GPS, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth are all standard; there is no version available with mobile broadband.

About that dock: With it, the thin slate connects to a full keyboard and trackpad, morphing the device into an Android-powered notebook of sorts. In addition to the easier input method, the dock adds a full-sized USB port and SD memory card slot. There’s also dedicated Home and Back buttons that support Android. Plus the dock has its own battery, which adds another 6 or so hours of runtime to the Transformer Prime. On its own, the Prime can easily power through a day. I’ve been able to use it as a primary device for a solid 11 hours with juice to spare. So with the dock, this becomes an 18 hour configuration.

On the downside, the dock weighs less than the slate, so the Prime can tip over if not careful. The keyboard isn’t backlit and the trackpad needs improving as well. It often became frustrating to use when not responding the way I had swiped. You can use two fingers to swipe up or down for browsing or navigating home screens, which is handy.

Much improved software

Google’s new Android 4.0 software, or Ice Cream Sandwich, is similar to the prior iteration, but much improved. The user interface is cleaner more consistent than before, but not radically changed in terms of general navigation.

Android widgets are more interactive and Asus even added some of its own to help with battery monitoring, email and task management. Also customized by Asus is the one-touch Settings display, making it easy to enable or turn off radios or use one of three tablet modes: Power Saving, Balanced and Performance mode; each of which throttle the CPU up or down for optimal use.

As mentioned, the CPU is Nvidia’s 1.3 GHz quad-core Tegra 3, which also has a fifth, low-power computing core as well as 12 graphics cores. Overall performance shines with Tegra 3, especially when playing games optimized for the Tegra 3. Here’s a video look at how the Prime handles console quality games along with an Xbox 360 controller, which is supported by the dock’s USB port.

For nearly every task the Prime keeps Android apps moving quickly. But don’t set your expectations too high simply because of the multiple processing cores. The tablet is fast, but not all apps are optimized to tap the full power of a quad-core chip. Given that developers haven’t yet optimized many of their apps for Android tablets in the past year, this could take time. Still, even with today’s apps, the Prime offers the best software experience available today on a Google-powered tablet.

In addition to the core Android 4.0 apps and those in the Android Market, Asus has added some of its own. SuperNote is a simple simple way to capture and ink notes with a finger. MyCloud offers access to cloud storage for media or documents or can be used to remotely connect to a PC or Mac. And Asus partnered with Infraware to include Polaris Office; a productivity suite that really shines with the keyboard dock.

Verdict: A winning combo

If you’re in the market for a large Android tablet, the Transformer Prime is a must-see. At this price, it clearly competes with Apple’s iPad 2, but offers 32 GB of internal storage plus the ability to expand. While the trackpad is lacking on the optional dock, it’s worth the extra cost for both the extra battery life, keyboard input and USB port if you need these features. Essentially, you end up with a netbook-style form factor that runs all day on a charge and can be used as a standalone tablet.

But even on its own, the Transformer Prime is a powerhouse with an experience exceeding its peers thanks to Android 4.0 and the Tegra 3 processor. If I were in the market for a large Android tablet, this device would be atop my list.

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Rebtel made a smart decision early on to bring its communication service to multiple mobile and desktop platforms. The company has apps for iOS, Android, BlackBerry and Microsoft Windows. Similar to Skype, calls can be placed to other Rebtel users for free, while calls or messages to landlines and mobiles around the world are priced as low as $0.01.

Building up an audience of 15 million users with such products shows that consumers are looking for less-expensive ways to stay in touch with one another by leveraging the Internet as a conduit. Obviously, calling a mobile or landline with Rebtel isn’t a full VoIP solution, as the call is routed on a carrier voice network or an old telephone line.

But support for Wi-Fi and 3G calling lessens the need to use traditional cellular voice minutes. Sadly, there are few ways to have a data-only service plan on a phone in the U.S. I am doing just that with VoIP and SIP support on my Galaxy Nexus with a data-only SIM, but I am certainly in the minority.

Most people will still pay for a voice service these days, but with services such as Rebtel, folks can cut back to the lowest voice plan with their carrier, using Rebtel as a cheaper substitute. That is apparently happening, as Rebtel has now delivered 500 million connected calls and 2 billion minutes of international calls while boosting revenues in 2011 by 55 percent.

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While I’m impressed by most of the hardware, Samsung skimped a little on the cameras. They’re adequate for basic shots or video and video chatting, but won’t replace a modern smartphone. The software is where I find the new Galaxy Tab 7.7 lacking. Oh, it’s obviously usable, or I wouldn’t be using it as my daily device.

But Android 3.2, or Honeycomb, still doesn’t impress me. I prefer Android 4.0 on phones and tablets, so I’m looking forward to the update that Samsung has promised. In the meantime, Samsung’s TouchWiz user interface makes up for some of Honeycomb’s issues. And my hope is that third-party developers will update their apps to take advantage of the high-resolution, but relatively small, tablet display; often icons and text are small because of this. Even with these challenges, this is the fastest small tablet I’ve used yet for browsing, and it’s great for watching video, playing games and social networking.

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What can SpeakToIt Assistant do?

I spent some time with SpeakToIt on both an old iPhone 3GS and my iPad 2 earlier today, and while it’s somewhat limited compared to Siri — more on that later — the $1.99 app can assist with certain tasks. Using the software, I was able to compose and send text messages and emails from my iPhone and my iPad; note that on the iPad, SpeakToIt appears as an iPhone app with support for pixel doubling.

SpeakToIt Assistant can also search the web for various information. I asked it to search Amazon for a product and the results were spot on. A small window with results opens in the top half of the display, but with one tap, these can be expanded to a full screen. Other searchable items include images, maps, news, stock information, the IMDB site and weather nearby or around the world.

Search results take place quickly; in some cases faster than Siri. That could be due to more people using Apple’s software and servers versus those using SpeakToIt. You can customize the look of the assistant and turn conversation mode on or off.

Multiple skills, but not hooks into iOS

Also in the list of skills are features to organize events or your agenda, tasks, translate words or phrases from English and a calculator for basic math or conversion of currency or measures. I rely on Siri’s “what’s my day look like?” function on a daily basis, and a “what’s on my calendar?” query worked just fine. I first had to give the OK for SpeakToIt to see my Google Calendar; the app isn’t hooked into the native iOS Calendar software.

And if you allow SpeakToIt to access your Twitter or Facebook accounts, you can send tweets or update your status by voice. You can also check in to FourSquare, although I didn’t try that function yet. Tweets and status updates worked out really well in my tests; better than the email dictations I tried.

Limitations and voice input

Here’s where the limitations come in. Although SpeakToIs Assistant is powered by Nuance, the same as Siri, I found message dictation to be marginal at best for some reason. With Siri, I can speak multiple sentences, along with punctuation, and the text is perfect nearly every time. With SpeakToIt, even when trying to add punctuation, my dictations became giant run-on sentences without punctuation.

And although the app has a coversation mode, so that you don’t have to hit the microphone button for every command, it’s not quite as conversational as Siri. If you want to talk about weather in several places, that’s fine. But the process of creating a message ends with the message dictation. You have to manually send it by tapping the Send button.

Siri also has better native app integration as well. I tried to create a reminder with SpeakToIt assistant, but it could only do so with Evernote. No such luck setting an alarm with the native Clock app, either. This is where Siri shines: It’s integrated at a lower level with iOS than any third-party option likely ever will be.

Worth a try if you temper expectations

Still, SpeakToIt assistant shows promise as a $1.99 app, as I’d expect it to keep maturing and improving. Folks that don’t want to pay for the app just yet can take a free chance on Valentine’s Day: the software will be free to the first 100,000 people who download it, and $0.99 after that for the remainder of the day.

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HTC has been working hard to get its Ice Cream Sandwich upgrades ready, and we’re excited to announce that our first round of ICS upgrades will roll out by the end of March for the HTC Sensation, HTC Sensation 4G and HTC Sensation XE, followed soon there after by the HTC Sensation XL.

In addition, we can confirm Ice Cream Sandwich upgrades will be coming later this year to the HTC Rezound, HTC Vivid, HTC Amaze 4G, HTC EVO 3D, HTC EVO Design 4G, HTC Incredible S, HTC Desire S and HTC Desire HD. Stay tuned for more updates on Ice Cream Sandwich releases in the coming weeks.

This is fantastic news for owners of an HTC Sensation, a model of which I previewed on video last June. I’ve used Android 4.0.2 on my Galaxy Nexus for the past two months and in my opinion, it’s leaps and bounds better than any prior version of Android for smartphones.

Many will argue that Android updates take too long — a very valid complaint — and part of the issue is the software customizations that HTC and others add to the phones. Instead of simply providing the Android update, these company’s have to re-integrate, and possibly re-write, their own additions. In HTC’s case, that’s HTC Sense; a software overlay with custom apps and features.

Given my own Android 4.0 experiences, I think this upgrade will be well worth the wait. And it shows that the loose partnership announced last May between carriers, Google and handset makers to get software updates out quicker hasn’t been forgotten.

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Like its predecessor, the new SmartWatch connects wirelessly to an Android phone for message notifications on the wrist. The wearable device can also be used for checking Facebook and Twitter or monitoring exercise activities.

After watching the video and checking out the device description — Sony says images are illustrative, so the final product could appear differently — it sounds great. But I bought the Sony Ericsson LiveView watch last year based on similar expectations, and for me, it was a dud. The watch wouldn’t keep a steady connection to my handset once I moved about a meter away. Even with phone in my pocket and the LiveView on my wrist, the connection was never stable.

Hopefully, Sony has addressed that problem with its upcoming SmartWatch. Bluetooth 3.0 is used in this version and Sony claims a range of 10 meters, so I’m a bit leery. By comparison, I reviewed several other smartwatches in the last year and the MetaWatch gave me a range of of 30+ meters; even if I put my phone down and walked away several rooms in my house, the connection never dropped.

The other factor with these devices is the user interface. A touchscreen is often used — and the Sony SmartWatch continues that tradition — but with such a little display, the interface must be effective and intuitive. You don’t want to fumble around through pages of menus on a screen that’s 36 millimeters square.

As far as I know, Sony hasn’t officially announced the SmartWatch with pricing and availability details; if I’m correct, expect news at the Mobile World Congress in a few weeks; we’ll be on-site covering the event live. Thanks to John Biggs’ tweet pointing out the new watch over on WristWatchReview.

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Rather than just read my experiences with the app, the DoubleTwist folks kindly offered 25 unlock codes for GigaOm readers, so if you hurry, you can get them right here. I happened to be in conversation with the DoubleTwist team about one of our reader’s suggestions for the app. Not only did we get a public response to the suggestion, but the unlock codes as well!

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This is one of the appeals of Android that people often overlook: total customization of an Android phone for the user interface, software functions, notifications and more. If you’re an iPhone user, the concept is similar to jailbreaking your handset and getting the iPhone to work the way you want it to. Tonight, I’ll be flashing my Galaxy Nexus with the latest custom ROM from Modaco; an enthusiast community run by Paul O’Brien.

I’ve used Paul’s ROMs on my Nexus One and Galaxy Nexus Tab 7 tablet dozens of times and while there’s no guarantee that everything works smoothly, Paul is always amenable to making fixes and improvements. So why would I want to do this to my Galaxy Nexus? There’s a number of examples of what I’ll be gaining on my smartphone:

• The leaked update of Android 4.0.4 which hasn’t been pushed out yet to devices from Google but is reported to bring faster booting and an overall speed increase.
• Improvements to the device’s auto-brightness function.
• Faster device auto-rotation; good because it’s not as fast as I’d expect, given the hardware inside the Galaxy Nexus
• Facebook contact sync support; a feature that Google from Android pulled in early 2011.
• Eight different custom configurations for the Android button bar, which removed the Search button from phones with Android 4.0

These are just a few of the customized options or additions I’ll be gaining. Obviously, I like the phone as is; it’s the best Android handset I’ve used yet and Android 4.0 alone made it worth the purchase price. But I can make it better and more importantly, I can make it work the way I want to. And after a custom ROM, my personalized handset often runs faster and longer on a single charge.

It’s a win-win situation from my standpoint. And if it doesn’t work out, Google has the stock images handy for a quick way to revert back.

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DoubleTwist, a popular free media play application for Android, has improved its software to include over-the-air podcast subscriptions. The new feature is available as part of the DoubleTwist Pro in-app upgrade, a $4.99 fee that also adds AirPlay support, wireless media synchronization from a PC or Mac, and other functions.

I’ve long used DoubleTwist on my Android phones and tablets for a number of reasons. The software easily syncs media from an iTunes or other media library, although it will play DRM-free content. As a media player, it has all of the functions most users are looking for and it even imports song ratings from iTunes, as well as playlists and play counts. About the only thing missing was support for podcast subscriptions, which are now in the new release.

The Podcast section is clean and offers a wide variety of content, all categorized by channel. As in past updates for other media types, DoubleTwist cuts the computer cord with its new Podcast support. You can directly subscribe to a show on your handset and the app will pull down the latest episodes using the handset’s connection. There’s a settings option to only download new podcast episodes over Wi-Fi so you don’t have to worry about using up your cellular data plan.

Some may feel that a $4.99 upgrade to get podcast support is steep. I’d agree if that’s all the in-app purchase added. But it brings more features into the mix as well: a multi-band equalizer, high-resolution album art downloads for any missing images, Wi-Fi media synchronization and, perhaps my favorite feature; AirPlay.

I’ve demonstrated AirPlay in the past, which alone was a $4.99 purchase in the DoubleTwist AirSync app. Using it, you can wirelessly send audio or video to an AppleTV, a Sony PlayStation 3 or an Xbox 360. Here’s a look at content streaming from a Samsung Galaxy Tab to my HDTV using the app:

DoubleTwist is available in the Android Market for devices running Android 2.2 and up; Android 4.0 users will gain the ability to control media directly from the lock screen in this version. If you don’t already have DoubleTwist installed, I highly recommend trying the free version. More than 49,000 of the 73,823 people rating the app in the Android Market gave it five stars for a reason.

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The price is certainly right to try OneNote if you’re an Android user: 500 notes will tell you for sure if the app meets your needs. And for many users, it likely will. I say that as a long-time user of OneNote when I used my first Microsoft Tablet PC in 2004. I found OneNote to be a powerful organization tool as I could create different notebooks for different contexts, such as work, personal, blogging ideas, and more.

The full software paired well with my tablet because it supported ink notes, which it would then index for search by using optical character recognition. Such support isn’t available in OneNote for Android, unfortunately, but the mobile app is still quite capable. You can still have different notebooks, each of which can hold text, images, and bulleted lists. Missing however, is a OneNote widget, drawing notes and support for voice notes.

Still, current OneNote users on the PC that also have an Android handset will be happy with the new app. And they should be, because it extends the use of a tool that’s already part of their toolkit. But I don’t see Microsoft gaining many new OneNote customers out of this development. Evernote is widely considered the dominant player here; ironic because eight years ago, it was an up-and-comer against OneNote on tablet PCs.

Instead of embracing one of the fastest growing mobile platforms early on, Microsoft waited until now for Android support. In the company’s defense, it did deliver OneNote for iOS in January of last year. Evernote, and several other similar apps, brought wide-spread support for multiple mobile platforms far quicker and unless a specific app has a killer feature, I’ll opt for cross-platform support every time.

Maybe it’s just me though, since I use multiple devices on various platforms including iOS, Windows Phone (which already has OneNote) and Android. Let me know if you’re ready to move from Evernote on Android, or a similar tool of choice, over to Microsoft OneNote for Android.

As I always say, use the right tool for your tasks; clearly there’s no “right” answer here that applies to everyone. I simply wish Microsoft would have delivered OneNote for Android sooner rather than later as my notes are generally locked up on another platform at this point.

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Google’s online store has a Chrome Watch Set that includes one timepiece and two straps. Feeling blue? There’s a watchband to match your mood. Gray skies above? Pop the Chrome watch face in the matching band. Instead of numbers, you’ll see a dozen small Chrome logos; with the largest being at 3, 6, 9 and 12. And while the Chrome watch – like the new Android browser –doesn’t support Flash, it could be described as flashy.

I like the concept, but I’m a little disappointed. Having grown up when everyone was wearing Mickey Mouse watches, wouldn’t it be great if there was an option to have Vic Gundotra’s arms pointing out the time?

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In this short video overview, you can get a sense for the new browser. I’ve already made it the default browser on my Galaxy Nexus because it renders text much better and also because of the web page syncronization feature. Note that Chrome for Android is in beta for Android 4.0 devices only; this won’t work on smartphones or tablets without Ice Cream Sandwich.

Note: In the video I said that the Galaxy Nexus stock browser has benchmarked faster. That was an inadvertent mistake as I confused the Nexus results with my Galaxy Tab 7.7 here.

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Before you think, “say what?” have a gander at this 400x video scan of a tubular adenoma of the colon, taken with an iPhone 4S and the Skylight, a smartphone adapter for microscopes that’s now a Kickstarter project.

The SkyLight actually works with nearly any other smartphone as well, but it should excel with an iPhone 4S, if not some of the high-end Nokia models that use superb optics. Most focusing is done on the microscope itself, but the SkyLight relies upon a smartphone’s auto-focus feature for fine focusing.

This Kickstarter project already raised more than $22,000, which is greater than the $15,000 goal originally set. CSI types can still get in on the action with a pledge of $60 or more for a SkyLight. The microscope? You’ll have to supply that yourself.

I especially like how you can record video through the microscope with a SkyLight. Kids telling parents about what they saw in biology class is one thing; to share an actual video is quite a different experience.

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Much of Belle is meant to make the user experience more intuitive, simpler and effective. Here’s how the Nokia Conversations blog describes Belle in part:

“Nokia Belle delivers more personalisation options than before. You can have up to six home screens that are easy to personalize, leaving all your favourite applications and services only a few taps away. New larger live widgets display what’s really important to you right onto the homescreen, so you’ll always be kept up-to-date. Want to place a shortcut from one screen onto another? That’s simple. A long press and a drag to the side of the screen moves it to that screen.”

You can see a mix of desirable features already found in iOS and Android in Belle, perhaps the most prominent being the new notification method. It’s very much like the mechanism Android has always used, and that Apple adopted with its most recent version of iOS. Missed calls, emails and messages all appear on the notification window and there are one-touch keys to control key handset components, as well.

Had Nokia been able to advance its Symbian operating system to this level two years ago, the company might not have adopted Microsoft’s Windows Phone platform last February. As they say, timing is everything.

The Belle update is widely available for the following handsets: Nokia N8, Nokia E7, Nokia E6, Nokia X7, Nokia C6-01, Nokia C7 and Nokia Oro. The Nokia 500 will see Belle within the coming weeks.

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1. The early Android handset makers are free-falling. In April of last year I noted that Android was a boost to hardware makers that embraced the platform early. Specifically, I saw that an Android strategy helped Motorola trim losses while HTC was growing faster than a field of bamboo. Fast-forward to today and Google is attempting to snap up Motorola Mobility even as Moto has faltered. And HTC? Monday confirmed what we reported late last year: The rising star has fallen and isn’t meeting expectations.
2. Apple is grabbing a huge share of mobile revenues and profits. We often talk about smartphone sales market share, which is important to a point, but money keeps a business afloat. And Apple is sucking most of it out of the mobile market. According to the excellent Asymco blog, Apple has been the top handset maker in terms of operating profits for the past 13 quarters running. It has 75 percent of the market’s profit share and 39 percent of its revenue. With the exception of Samsung, Android competitors are beginning to fade away; you can’t grow a business when your product sales are in decline and you are earning less money on such products.
   
3. The top three smartphones are all iPhones. This data point comes from NPD on Monday: Of the top five smartphones sold in the U.S. in the last quarter of 2011, the top three are all iPhones. Samsung’s Galaxy S II and Galaxy S 4G took the fourth and fifth spots. Why is this a problem for Android handset makers? Because consumers are more willing to buy the reduced-priced iPhone 4 or 3GS — handsets that are more than a year or two old — than some of the newer Android handsets. There are plenty of low-cost Android models that compete well on price, but consumers don’t think they compete well on the experience. If they did, they would bypass Apple’s older phones.
4. First-time buyers are picking Android, but . . . NPD did note that first-time smartphone buyers favor Android over iOS (54 percent versus 34 percent), and I suspect that is mainly due to price. But these folks will be second-time smartphone buyers in the future and may be willing to spend more for an iPhone unless Android handset makers can give them a reason to stick with the platform. And now that the U.S. has over 50 percent smartphone penetration, the pool of first-time buyers will be shrinking, not growing.
5. Even now, there are still few apps hitting Android before iOS. One of the reasons I pay attention to smartphone sales by platform is because of developers. Not every software shop can support every operating system, so common sense dictates that most devs will aim their apps at the largest audience possible. But even with Android sales growing fast over the past two years, very few developers bypass iOS as the first platform to develop for. They are simply making more money with iOS, so that is where the top-tier apps start out, which in turn helps boost handset sales. I don’t see any signs of this changing either. Even for apps on both platforms, it often takes time for the Android version to see parity with its iOS counterpart. Monday’s Android update of Rdio is a perfect example; until Monday, I have used the app on my iPhone instead of my Galaxy Nexus because it was simply better.
6. Android no longer has a killer app. Originally Android offered the best support for Gmail services by far, but over time Google has brought the iOS version to near parity. I still think the best Gmail experience is on an Android phone and the free, exclusive Google Navigation is great on Android, but it is not a killer app. Even worse: Google can’t cease development on iOS at this point, else users will leave its services altogether. Google can’t afford for that to happen, because it gets data from these users, which feeds its primary revenue stream: personalized advertising. Even as an Android user, I can easily make do using Gmail, Google Voice, Google+ and other Google services on iOS. I suspect many mainstream consumers can too.
7. There is less of a lock-in cost to keep people on Android. I looked into lock-in costs back in 2010 as I saw how these could sway consumers to stick with a platform. I still believe there is a smartphone lock-in cost: Moving to another platform could cost $100, $200 or more to replace apps. But I am starting to believe there is less of a lock-in to keep people on Android. Why? Most of the heavily downloaded apps are free. Not all of them, of course, but far more of the top Android apps are free versus those in the iTunes App Store. Without this financial barrier, it is easier to switch from Android to iOS. Likewise, it is more of a deterrent to move in the opposite direction.

None of my points here are intended to suggest that one platform is better or worse than the other. As long as I have been covering mobile technology online — it will be 10 years in 2013 — I have always stood by one mantra: Use the best mobile device for your own needs. And I will continue to practice what I preach. Although I have an iPhone 4S, on 9 days out of 10, I carry my Galaxy Nexus handset. I have an iPad 2, but that’s relegated for specific use cases; my Galaxy Tab 7.7 is the tablet I take everywhere.

Independent of my own Android use, there are many reasons to suspect that Android’s growth will continue along the upward path it has seen for the past few years. But Apple’s iOS platform simply has strong momentum that is going to slow Android down as it forces some handset makers to scramble. These will likely gravitate toward the alternative of Windows Phone. Companies are likely to see growth there, but given the history of Android, as well as what I expect from its future, will the story remain the same?

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I switched away from buying digital albums to Rdio’s $9.99 a month subscription several months ago and find it to be a great way to enjoy music. Before you ask why I chose Rdio over Spotify and others: Rdio offers a discounted family plan that its peers don’t. As good as Rdio may sound, however, its previous Android client reminded me of Android 1.6: Mostly functional but not pretty to look at.

The new client, however, looks stellar and adds features that bring it up to par with Rdio’s app for Apple iOS. The navigation interface is much improved, with one-click access to most functions. Support for browsing new releases, the top charts and Rdio’s recommendations — based on your listening history — are now part of the software, as are the social components. You can now see what other friends using Rdio are listening to and it’s easier to see which tunes you have stored for offline use.

While the app is improved for all supported Android platforms, I especially like the support for remote control clients, which was added to Android 4.0, or Ice Cream Sandwich. That means the album art and music controls are available on the lock screen of an Android 4.0 device; handy when I’m running with my Galaxy Nexus.

All in all, this is a must-have upgrade for Rdio users on Android. The only issue I’ve had so far is more of a nuisance than anything else. Once I upgraded to the new version, Rdio had to re-sync, or download, all of my offline music tracks again.

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