AndroidNZ's Week in Android News for 30th October 2011

It's roundup time again on the AndroidNZ range and the last week delivered some really excellent new tidbits for our collective consumption - hardware, software, industry news and views - from the usual suspects. Since there's a fair bit to re-cap, best we get started.

Ice Cream Flavoured Transformer?
Neets was first out of the chute with her how-to on getting Ice Cream Sandwich bar buttons onto the Asus eeePad Transformer. 
It's a straightforward 13-step process (nope, nothing sinister there...) which should be a doddle. Check it out here. 

The World Before Android...
Your's truly posted part one of a brief history of Android, looking into the pre-Android past of the principal actors on the smartphone stage. 
It's a torrid tale of General Magic, lawsuits, Danger Inc, secret stuff and the 'plex. 
Pop in for a squiz right here.

Apps Of The Week. So er... Last Week?
The Apps Of The Week summary was handled with aplomb by Editor-In-Chief NZTechFreak. 
Several very tasty apps featured, some quite capable of changing the way you do stuff. 
Slip on over to get an introduction to a useful file download manager, calendar, some engaging game apps and more, as recommended by AndroidNZ's editors – it starts here.

Upcoming Test Fest - Have Your say
At AndroidNZ, we're about to do a whole lot of in-depth testing on the Motorola Razr, Samsung Galaxy Note and of course the Samsung Galaxy Nexus. 
More than that though, Murray has posted a standing invitation to add your voice to a list of questions that our readers really want answers to, questions like “Ooh, here's a thought - do they all support 64GB MicroSD cards?”, or “battery life - please give lots of detail here. Both high and low usage scenarios would be nice”... and much, much more. 
Murray's post can be found here.

The PowerAMP Beta Update
Onslaught86 delivered an informative piece detailing updates to PowerAMP media app beta 2.0, with its improvements and feature set well documented.
There are also links to the betas and the previous app review, plus a bonus video walk-through. 
It's all here.

Phabled Phablet Phails To Phire?
Murray has the word on the rumour that Samsung's highly anticipated 'phablet' launch has been delayed, including the likely time frame for its expected announcement. Meantime, he's posted a teaser video to tide you over. 
Get the goss on the Galaxy Note here.

The Rise Of The Robot?
Part two of my mini-opus on the history of Android follows the early trials facing the little green robot; its competition, a look at the various versions and some numbers detailing the OS's rise to success. 
So if you're curious about Android's rise from zero-to-hero, take a look right here.

Who's Top Of The Handset Heap?
News broke late in the week about the changing fortunes of handset manufacturers, with some surprising developments. 
You'll find that here.

Shadowgun Running On My SGS2? Serious?
Murray delivers a neat how-to on fixing Chainfire 3D, a guide that'll have you playing Shadowgun on your non-Tegra handset in no time at all. 
So get ready for a frag-fest with the help of the Ed-In-Chief's cunning hack. 
Check it out here.

Put Your PS3 Controller To Better Use...
And coming as a total shock, I'm sure, Murray has also posted a how-to for enabling your PS3 controller to work with a Galaxy SII. 
Well, less of a shock than predictable really, Murray being the games freak and dog-with-a-bone that he is. 
The magic happens here.

If that weren't enough, he's put up a video demo of the fruits of his labours, in his trademark laid-back style. 
Plus, there's a bonus how-to for Bluetooth mode – how can you resist that? Scope it out here.