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28 March 2011

Amazon.com lets you play with an Android virtual machine, try apps before you buy them

Amazon.com lets you play with an Android virtual machine, try apps before you buy them

Amazon.com lets you play with an Android virtual machine, try apps before you buy them

Posted: 27 Mar 2011 03:41 PM PDT

When Amazon's Appstore rolled out last week, we glossed over one detail that merely seemed neat. Today, we're inclined to saythat Amazon's Test Drive may be the most significant piece of the whole thing. Basically, Test Drive allows US customers to take apps for a spin at Amazon.com, with all the comfort that their tried-and-true desktop web browser brings -- but rather than sit you down with a Flash-based mockup of the app, Amazon is giving you a taste of bona fide cloud computing with an Android virtual machine.

In other words, what you're looking at in the screenshot above isn't just a single program, but an entire virtual Android smartphone with working mouse controls, where you can not only try out Paper Toss, but also delete it, browse through the device's photo gallery, listen to a few tunes, or even surf the web from the working Android browser -- as difficult as that may be without keyboard input. Amazon explains:
Clicking the "Test drive now" button launches a copy of this app on Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2), a web service that provides on-demand compute capacity in the cloud for developers. When you click on the simulated phone using your mouse, we send those inputs over the Internet to the app running on Amazon EC2 - just like your mobile device would send a finger tap to the app. Our servers then send the video and audio output from the app back to your computer. All this happens in real time, allowing you to explore the features of the app as if it were running on your mobile device.
Today, Amazon's Test Drive is basically just Gaikai for mobile phones -- its purpose is simply to sell apps, nothing more. But imagine this for a sec: what if you were accessing your own smartphone data, instead of the mostly blank slate of an Android emulator that Amazon provides here?

Gallery: Amazon Appstore Test Drive hands-on



[Thanks, Ryan]

Amazon.com lets you play with an Android virtual machine, try apps before you buy them originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 27 Mar 2011 18:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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3D and Short Play for Madden NFL Football [Impressions]

Posted: 27 Mar 2011 03:37 PM PDT

Madden NFL has had a largely tractionless history on Nintendo's platforms since the Wii supplanted the GameCube. It's a version that simply lacks identity, floating from cartoon characters attempting to play simulation quality football, to real world strategy that has to account for gameplay gimmicks. More »

How To Get Hired By Amazon [Jobs]

Posted: 27 Mar 2011 03:00 PM PDT

With business booming, Amazon's looking to bolster its workforce and there are global openings in both tech and non-tech positions. Learn how to get a job at Amazon with these tips and resources from Amazon's recruiters. More »


MySql.com Hacked With Sql Injection

Posted: 27 Mar 2011 02:36 PM PDT

iceco2 writes "MySql.com and associated sites, were hacked today. Among other items some simple passwords were recovered and private emails were revealed. Ironically the attack was performed using a blind sql injection attack."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Sonos Controller for Android delayed until April, heartbreak available now

Posted: 27 Mar 2011 02:31 PM PDT

Is it really the end of March? That's debatable, but if you've been wondering where Sonos' Controller for Android app is, well... wonder no more. Rather than cutting it loose within the next week (as promised earlier in the year), the outfit's vice president of quality has informed the world that it won't be available until next month. The exact quote?
"We know you're anxiously awaiting the Sonos Controller for Android. Unfortunately, testing the app is taking a bit longer than we anticipated. The latest addition to our free controller line-up won't arrive until April, but when it does, it is going to rock."
But will it rock as much as the image above? Time will tell, friends.

Sonos Controller for Android delayed until April, heartbreak available now originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 27 Mar 2011 17:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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MAKE Flickr Pool Weekly Roundup

Posted: 27 Mar 2011 02:00 PM PDT

Ask the Commenters Roundup [Hive Mind]

Posted: 27 Mar 2011 02:00 PM PDT

Legends in Your Living Room [Coming Attractions]

Posted: 27 Mar 2011 02:00 PM PDT

Hype for Augusta National Golf Course's appearance in Tiger Woods: PGA Tour 12 has reached near saturation limits. Did you know another legendary figure also ends a long absence from video games? If golf is too sedate for you, Randy "Macho Man" Savage returns to the ring in WWE All-Stars, his first appearance under the WWE/WWF banner since 1994. More »

Stand Down: Fukushima Radiation Level Not 10 Million Times Above Normal [Japan]

Posted: 27 Mar 2011 02:00 PM PDT

While situation remains dire at the Fukushima nuclear plant, a previous report that stated radiation levels were "10 million times" above acceptable levels was incorrect, the Guardian reported today. More »


How Viewing a "Virtual You" Can Help You Save

Posted: 27 Mar 2011 01:18 PM PDT

Hugh Pickens writes "The WSJ reports that computer scientists, economists, neuroscientists and psychologists are teaming up to find innovative ways of turning impulsive spenders into patient savers. One way to shock Americans into saving more for their retirement is software that lets users stare into a camera in a virtual-reality laboratory and see an image staring back of how they will look in the year 2057. By enabling the young to see themselves as they will be when they are old, virtual-reality technology can transform their urge to spend for today into a willingness to save for tomorrow because to the extent that people can more vividly imagine how badly they will feel in the future with little to no retirement savings, they can be motivated to save more money now. In one test experimental subjects who saw a persuasive visual analog of a 70-year old version of themselves by morphing the shape and texture of his avatar to simulate the aging process reported they would save twice as much as those who didn't (PDF). 'An employee's ID photo could be age-morphed and placed on the benefits section of the company's website,' says Dan Goldstein of London Business School. 'From there, we're just a few clicks and a few minutes away from someone making a lasting decision that can be worth thousands [of dollars].'"

Read more of this story at Slashdot.
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