Google Music gets a major UI update

Google Music has received a pretty major UI overhaul, which brings the interface on previous phones and tablets up to par with the version that ships with the Nexus 7. In short -- it's a great update. The Music app now has the same feeling that the Google+ app has, with plenty of big images and the trademark Google app look. The change log:

• Now Playing queue that allows for queuing and reordering of currently playing music.


• New UI for navigation with transport controls on the action bar.


• New large album art view on Recent.


• Playlist art is now constructed from album art of songs in the playlist.


• Now Playing widget has album art and support for thumbs up.


• Harder, better, faster, stronger.

The changes are great, and the app now has a polish it lacked before. It's great to see the various teams at Google pushing out great updates for their Android apps. If you're a Google Music user (and you should be) this is one you won't want to miss. It's rolling out, including an update for the Nexus 7, via Google Play for devices running Android 2.2 or higher. Grab it at the link below.

Download Google Music from Google Play

Major Mayhem explodes into Google Play

Adult Swim has kicked off a new run-and-gun game for Android that's ripe with action. Major Mayhem puts you into the weathered boots of a military superman, who's on a mission to save the world and his girlfriend.  The only sensible solution to this problem is guns, and boy-howdy does Major Mayhem have a few of those. Here's a quick run-down of the features.

• 45 levels of non-stop action
• 4 game modes
• 100 achievements
• 150 mini mission objectives
• 5 power ups
• Battle your way past hordes of enemies in three picturesque environments: Tropics, Metropolis and Desert
• 20 unique weapons in your arsenal to deal out MAJOR MAYHEM, like:
  • Automatic Shotgun
  • Minigun
  • Quadzooka (like a Bazooka only more massive-er!)
  • And more!
• 42 costumes and hats to make your Major's fashion conscience which dealing massive devastation!
• Save the world, and your girlfriend

Adult Swim has been focusing more and more on mobile games, though their focus tends to be on iOS first (Major Mayhem has been available for iPhone and iPad for awhile now). It would be great to see a lot of other iOS titles make the leap to Android, like Velocirapture, Extinction Squad, and Amateur Surgeon, but I'm sure they're all coming in good time. So far, Google Play hosts the classic Robot Unicorn Attack, Monsters Ate My Condo, and their video app.
Major Mayhem is totally free, though the wealth of unlockables can be acquired through in-app purchases. I've only played a little bit, but so far the graphics are great, and the action is a ton of fun. Get shootin' at the download link below.
Download: Major Mayhem

Samsung Galaxy S III coming to five major US carriers in June

Tonight Samsung announced the Galaxy S III will be coming to five major US carriers including AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless and U.S. Cellular. The device will arrive in June and retail pricing will start at $199 with contract. Exact pricing and retail availability will be announced by each of the five carriers in the coming weeks.

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O2 UK reportedly rolling out DC-HSPA in 'major cities'

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AppId is over the quota

British mobile operator O2 has begun rolling out a new, faster mobile network standard across major British cities, according to reports. Crave? is reporting that O2 has started switching on DC-HSPA. The "DC" part stands for dual cell, and this new standard doubles the bandwidth available over traditional HSPA+, enabling maximum theoretical download speeds of up to 42Mbps. For the less technically minded, it just means faster 3G data, assuming your phone's hardware supports it.

And that's the big sticking point at this stage. Right now there are only three leading devices that support DC-HSPA -- the HTC One X, the new iPad and the Nokia Lumia 900. In any case, if you're rocking a One X on O2 in a major British city (no word on which ones), then you'll likely be treated to faster data speeds from now on.

Rival UK networks are looking to roll out DC-HSPA later this year, ahead of the expected UK LTE switch-on in 2013 and beyond. Three says it'll start upgrading its network with the new standard "this summer," while T-Mobile and Orange (under the "Everything Everywhere" banner) are reportedly aiming for the end of the year. Vodafone tells ?Crave it already uses DC-HSPA on its network, albeit at slower speeds of up to 28Mbps.

Source: Crave

Every major UK network will carry the Samsung Galaxy S III

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota

Following yesterday's Galaxy S III announcement in London, we some initial announcements from UK retailers and mobile networks, indicating broad availability for Samsung's new flagship phone when it arrives in late May. And today we have confirmation that the Galaxy S III will indeed ship on every major mobile network in the country, just like the HTC One S and One X before it. T-Mobile, Orange, Three, Vodafone and O2 have all done their official announcements, and many plan to stock it from May 30 (which leads us to believe that availability on the 29th may be limited to be select few stores.)

As we reported yesterday, Vodafone will exclusively offer the 32GB version in the UK for a limited time. Everyone else will get the 16GB variant.

O2 and Carphone Warehouse even have the first details of on-contract pricing. Carphone's offering the S III for free on £36-per-month plans from Vodafone and Orange, both of which offer 600 minutes, unlimited texts and 1GB. Cheaper monthly plans are also available, if you're willing to pay an up-front fee. And for those wanting to order through O2, on-contract prices range from free to £299.99. If you want the handset without any up-front fee, you'll have to stump up £46 per month, which'll get you unlimited minutes, umlimited texts and 1GB.

SIM-free prices, it seems, will float around the £500-550 mark -- according to Clove Technology and Carphone Warehouse -- which comes close to matching the November launch price of the Galaxy Nexus. However, this price point also makes the Galaxy S III a little more expensive than its main competitor, the HTC One X.

Are you thinking about dropping some cash on a shiny new Galaxy S III when it lands on May 29? Be sure to let us know in the comments!

Source: O2, Clove Technology, Carphone Warehouse