CyanogenMod v9 User Experience Needs Your Input

CyanogenMod is #1 in the custom Android ROM community. The skillful team of developers recently celebrated surpassing ONE MILLION unique installs across the broad range of devices they support.
While a majority of those installs are of the CyanogenMod v7 variety, nearly everyone is focusing on the next big thing, CM9. Now that ICS (Android v4.0) source has dropped, they have to figure out their approach to future development regarding CMSettings and user experience. Markus Guidry posted a message on his Google+ page asking for users to share their thoughts and ideas. At this point he believes 3 viable options have emerged:

    1. Spread DeviceParts features to appropriate existing Settings categories (Agreed to be the most ideal solution, but has huge technical issues behind it.)
    2. Remove DeviceParts to a standalone app
    3. Lump DeviceParts as one category in Settings

If you have any great ideas or thoughts you'd like to share with the CyanogenMod development team, there are a couple ways you can help. First you can comment on Markus Guidry's Google+ Page or head over to the CyanogenMod Wiki TalkPages. The CM9 proposed layout can be found on the CyanogenMod Wiki at this LINK.

Motorola's Xoom Update Is Ice Cream Sandwich – Rolling Out To "Some Thousands Of Xoom Wi-Fi Owners" Now

Well, it's official - the "project" Xoom owners have been waiting for is an update to Ice Cream Sandwich, meant as a soak test, expected to last through the weekend. Moto has begun pushing the new software as of 9pm PST. An anonymous tipster has provided us with shots of a private section of Motorola's official XOOM support forum, which confirm that the update is going live to those lucky enough to join the test group.
As you can see, Moto has indicated that they do in fact plan on releasing this software very soon, unless "there is some extremely serious issue."
While Xoom Wi-Fi owners lucky enough to participate in Motorola's project test out Ice Cream Sandwich for the tablet that launched Honeycomb, other users can look forward to an update to Android's latest and greatest iteration any time now.

Samsung Galaxy Note headed to Verizon as the Galaxy Journal

Last week AT&T and Samsung finally unveiled the much rumored and anticipated Samsung Galaxy Note on AT&T’s 4G LTE network. After the announcement early last week our comments started to fill up with questions and speculation of the Galaxy Note heading to other US carriers like Sprint and Verizon, since Verizon already has LTE and Sprint will be launching LTE in four markets by mid-2012. This 5.3-inch phone-tablet hybrid device is not for everyone, but for those of us who love bigger screens it is for us, I know I want it.

With no official announcement from Samsung or any other carriers other than AT&T we don’t have any clear details as to if we’ll see this device land elsewhere. We have however seen a few similar models appear in some Bluetooth and WiFi certification documents suggesting more models are incoming to the states. Today the Examiner is reporting a highly trusted industry analyst has confirmed that Verizon will definetaly be getting the Note, most likely called the Samsung Galaxy Journal.

According to these statements the 3 major carriers that are, or will be offering 4G LTE in the USA this year will all get a variant of the 5.3? Super AMOLED HD packing Galaxy Note device. So basically everyone but the magenta T-Mobile according to this analyst, but anything is possible. Not only is the device incoming, but it should be here within the first half of the year.

The Galaxy Journal actually seems a bit more fitting for this device since it does come with a stylus, and it would be ideal for bloggers like the Android Authority team when we are at events like CES and don’t have time or the room to pull out our laptops.