Indian smartphone maker Spice has confirmed it will launch its first Android One smartphone by the end of October. The device is expected to deliver a dual-core processor, two SIM card slots, and a built-in FM radio — and in line with the Android One program, it should cost under $100.
While the Android L developer preview gives us a taste of what’s coming this fall, many of the features and improvements that were showcased at Google I/O last month are missing. So are some classic Android functions, including the ability to clear all alerts from the notification pane by tapping just one button.
Fortunately for those already running the Android L preview, there is a third-party workaround that will save you a lot of time and frustration.
The quick settings pane is one of the most useful features in more recent versions of Android, giving users fast and easy to access to a whole bunch of shortcuts and toggles for different settings and functions. The only problem is, we all want quick access to different things — depending on how we use our phones — and Google’s stock options aren’t ideal for all.
Third-parties like Samsung and HTC have addressed this complaint by giving users the option to customize their quick settings pane, and a request in the official Android issue tracker suggests may finally do the same for Android L.
If you want a little taste of Android L without the bugs and instability that come with Google’s preview releases, you can start by checking out its awesome new keyboard, which is now available on almost any Android-powered device running Ice Cream Sandwich or later.
A third-party developer has extracted the keyboard APK from an official Android L preview build and made it available to download from Google Play. It’s free, has no ads, and does not require root. Having used it a lot over the past few days, I can confirm it’s surprisingly stable.
Possibly the best and most-functional Twitter client, Talon, acquired a rather unexpected update earlier today bringing it in line with the latest design and aesthetic guidelines introduced at Google I/O alongside Android L last week.
