Throughout the years, numerous companies have made the decision to lock the bootloader on a smartphone or tablet, making it impossible for savvy users to run custom kernels and have complete control of the device. The Android community is perhaps one of the most vocal user bases in the world when it comes to the practice of locking bootloaders. When HTC and ASUS began to lock their bootloaders, thousands of users took to social networks and had the decisions overturned. Motorola began locking the bootloader w...

Hulu announced on Thursday that its Hulu Plus application is now available on select Android smartphones. The service costs $7.99 per month and allows users to browse and play Hulu Plus content directly on their smartphones. It’s currently only available for the Motorola Atrix, Motorola DROID X, Motorola DROID 2, HTC Inspire 4G, Nexus S, and Nexus One, but Hulu says it will add more devices throughout the year. New users can sign up for a free 1-week trial to give the service a whirl, and the app is ava...

A new series of emails were made public on Monday as a result of Skyhook Wireless’ lawsuit claiming Google interfered with a contract the LBS company had in place with cell phone maker Motorola Mobility. The emails, which were sent to and from numerous top executives at Google including CEO Larry Page and SVP of Mobile Andy Rubin, detail the company’s shock at losing out to Skyhook. The internal emails also reveal Google’s admission that Skyhook’s location product is better and more ac...

Canaccord Genuity analyst Michael Walkley suggests that not only does Apple have the most popular smartphone and tablet in the U.S., but even its previous-generation gear is outselling the competition. In a note to investors on Monday, Walkley writes that Apple’s iPhone 4 is far and away the top-selling smartphone for both AT&T and Verizon Wireless. The iPad 2 is also the most popular tablet in the country right now, of course. The real bad news for Apple’s competition, however, is that acco...

Despite its success with Android, Motorola Mobility has reportedly hired a number of engineers, some from Adobe and Apple, to work on a brand new web-based operating system. “I know they’re working on it,” Jonathan Goldberg, an analyst with Deutsche Bank told Information Week. “I think the company recognizes that they need to differentiate and they need options, just in case. Nobody wants to rely on a single supplier.” Sources speaking to Goldberg and Information Week suggested t...

Verizon Wireless on Monday announced a revamped version of its V CAST Music app for Android smartphones. The carrier’s new V CAST Music app combines all of its music-related VCAST services, allowing users to purchase full tracks, ringtones and ringback tones from a single application. Song downloads range in price from $0.69 to $1.29 per track, but Verizon will also offer reduced-cost bundles that combine multiple formats into a single download. “Verizon Wireless is taking a leap forward with V CAST M...

Motorola won’t be pulling any punches during the Super Bowl this year as it prepares to run a spot that calls out Apple’s iconic 1984 Macintosh television advertisement. The reborn cell phone maker uploaded its Super Bowl commercial to YouTube today in an effort to generate some buzz — and generate some buzz it will. Motorola’s “Goodbye 1984″ ad references one of the most famous Apple commercials of all time, which compared Microsoft’s stranglehold on the PC market to Orw...

According to a report by Droid-Life, a software update for the DROID 2 Global handset it on the way. The update, which weighs in at around 16MB, fixes several international calling bugs, including: device resets when switching from GSM/UMTS mode, errant “No Service” signals, and a blank screen when activating call forwarding. The report also boasts of “improved audio during voice calls” and “reduced user interface lock-ups,” which are always a good thing. No word on when th...

Here’s a head scratcher. Several of our Best Buy ninjas have come forward to let us know that Best Buy Mobile is informing employees that it will no longer be selling the Verizon Wireless’ DROID 2 Global and DROID Pro. Explanations run the gamut, several sources have referenced that exploding (probably not exploding) handset we reported about last week, while others are blaming a handset pricing disputed between the big box retailer and America’s largest cellular carrier. Whatever the ...

Last week, reports emerged of a Texas man whose Motorola DROID 2 injured him when it allegedly exploded next to his ear during a call. Today, PCMag reports that a source within Motorola told the publication that the man’s claims are likely false. While PCMag’s source is not involved with the investigation and has not inspected the device personally, he claims that the DROID 2 in question “was a phone that got dropped. [T]he guy didn’t notice the glass had cracked [...] so when he put i...

A study conducted recently by network technology firm Arieso showed that Android users move more data over cellular networks than any other group of smartphone users. The study mentions high-resolution cameras along with video recording and sharing capabilities as being among Android’s biggest bandwidth hogging features. Due to Android’s rapid growth, carriers find themselves struggling to keep up with the ever-increasing congestion on their networks. “Smartphone subscriptions are rising and...

According to a report from a local Dallas-Forth Worth Fox affiliate, a man was injured Thursday morning when his Motorola DROID 2 allegedly exploded next to his head. Aron Embry was reportedly trying to make a call when he heard a popping sound come from his phone. He felt no pain initially, but immediately felt blood dripping on his neck. Upon further investigation, Embry realized that the display on his DROID 2 “had appeared to burst outward.” He then drove to his wife’s job to have her ta...

According to a well connected Android enthusiast with a solid track record, Motorola’s DROID 2 is on the verge of a software update that will bring with it some solid new functionality. While no information is currently available along the lines of a release date for the new OS build, two attractive new features have been revealed. The first is the presence of DROID Pro-like device profiles, allowing the user to easily switch between multiple home screen configurations. The second major change is the pr...

Apple blog Patently Apple is reporting that Cupertino’s fruit company has filed two separate lawsuits against Motorola for patent infringement, specifically around multi-touch IP. The infringing products? The Motorola DROID, DROID 2, DROID X, CLIQ, CLIQ XT, BackFlip, Devour, Devour i5, and Charm 1. That is just about every Android Motorola handset in the United States. Apple’s lawsuits cover six specific patent infringements, and we have them listed out after the break. Someone needs to tell all t...