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1,032 'Google' stories August 2010 - February 2015

Camera-equipped minivan leased to Apple spotted in Bay Area may point to Street View-style mapping system

Mike Beasley Feb 3 2015 - 9:15 pm PT

Apple may be preparing a big update to its Maps application for iOS and OS X. San Francisco’s KPIX reported earlier today that a Dodge Caravan sporting an impressive array of cameras has been spotted roaming the area. The California DMV confirmed that the vehicle (seen in the photos above and below, via Claycord) was leased to Apple.

The CBS affiliate reached out to technology analyst Rob Enderle for his thoughts on what this might be. Enderle said that this van simply has too many cameras (a whopping twelve of them) to be a mapping car—though he failed to note that Google uses even more cameras on its own Street View cars.

Video and more photos after the break…

Android won the download race last year, but iOS made the money, app analytics show

Ben Lovejoy Jan 28 2015 - 7:25 am PT

9 Comments

The difference between Android and iOS hardware–Android having the market share, Apple making most of the profits–was mirrored in last year’s app downloads, reports mobile analytics firm App Annie. Its 2014 retrospective revealed that the Google Play Store saw 60% more downloads than the iOS App Store, but iOS apps made around 70% more money.

Re/code notes that this reflects data recently shared by Ustwogames for its best-selling Monument Valley game, which showed that of the $5.8M revenue generated by the game, 81.7% of it came from the iOS app.

App Annie’s data, which is generated by analytics from more than 700,000 apps, showed that just three countries generated more app revenue than the rest of the world combined–the USA, Japan and Korea–while the so-called BRIC nations (Brazil, Russia, China and India) were not surprisingly the fastest-growing regions.

Apple recently announced that developers last year earned over $10B from the App Store, with a further $500M spent in the first week of this year. The company recently increased European app prices to reflect recent currency movements.

Pandora for iPhone redesigned, adds mini-player and notifications

Mark Gurman Jan 26 2015 - 3:15 pm PT

4 Comments

The Pandora iPhone and iPod touch app today received a thorough redesign that is slightly more starker and in line with the iOS 7/iOS 8 design style. The update formats the app for iPhone 6/iPhone 6 Plus’s higher-resolution display and adds various new mini-player and notifications features:

• With the new Personalization Icon, the Thumb History for your favorite stations is at your fingertips.
• Accidentally thumbed a song up or down – now you can un-thumb simply by re-tapping the Thumb Icon.
• We’ve included a new Mini-Player so you can control your music while you browse your track history.
• Stay in the loop when new music is added to your favorite stations and much more with our redesigned Notification & Activity Feed.

Pandora is free on iTunes.

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Apple’s purchase of AuthenTec cost the Nexus 6 its fingerprint reader, reveals former Motorola CEO

Ben Lovejoy Jan 26 2015 - 5:35 am PT

14 Comments

The recessed Motorola logo was originally slated to be a fingerprint sensor

When Apple bought AuthenTec back in 2012, it did more than grab the best fingerprint technology available for itself – it also stopped Google including a fingerprint sensor in the Nexus 6, revealed former Motorola CEO Dennis Woodside. Speaking to the Telegraph, Woodside said that the dimple on the back of the handset was originally intended to be a fingerprint reader.

Indeed, the 6-inch Nexus 6, he can now admit, was stymied by just one of those big players. A dimple on the back that helps users hold the device should, in fact, have been rather more sophisticated. “The secret behind that is that it was supposed to be fingerprint recognition, and Apple bought the best supplier. So the second best supplier was the only one available to everyone else in the industry and they weren’t there yet,” says Woodside.

A fingerprint scanner had been widely rumored prior to the launch of the Android smartphone originally code-named Shamu, and it’s believed one was included in internal prototypes, before it was abandoned. Woodside’s comments provide the explanation, Motorola originally intending to buy or license the sensor from AuthenTec.

You can now unlock Google Docs, Slides and Sheets for iOS with Touch ID

Zac Hall Jan 21 2015 - 11:23 am PT

6 Comments

Google is on a roll this week with updating its iOS apps. Yesterday we saw Chrome for iPhone and iPad pick up a big update bringing Material Design to the browser and adopting Handoff support with OS X Yosemite. Following Chrome’s release, Google today shared new versions of its Docs, Slides, and Sheets apps for iPhone and iPad taking advantage of another Apple technology: Touch ID.

Beginning with Docs version 1.2.6448, Slides version 1.0.5754, and Sheets version 1.1.7297, iPhone and iPad users can now lock and unlock each app using the Touch ID fingerprint scanner as an alternative to the passcode lock screen.
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Chrome for iOS gets Material redesign, OS X Handoff support, iOS 8/iPhone 6 optimizations

Jordan Kahn Jan 20 2015 - 10:02 am PT

36 Comments

Google is today rolling out Chrome 40 for iOS and with it introducing a redesigned UI, OS X Handoff support, and optimizations for iOS 8 and the new iPhone 6 and 6 Plus.
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Screenshots show Google’s upcoming Calendar iPhone app w/ Gmail, Photos, & Maps integration

9to5 Staff Jan 19 2015 - 9:18 am PT

21 Comments

It appears that Google could soon release its promised redesigned Calendar app for iPhone after first making the announcement and releasing the app for Android last November. The Next Web this morning shared a handful of leaked screenshots that provide a first look at Google Calendar for iOS, including info cards that indicate Gmail, Photos and Maps integration will be key features of the app.
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Samsung brings in new design chief from Apple designer Jony Ive’s former firm

Chance Miller Jan 15 2015 - 6:59 pm PT

13 Comments

Samsung announced last year that, after negative reviews of the design of its Galaxy S5, its head of mobile design Change Dong-hoon was being replaced by then VP of mobile design Lee Min-hyouck. Today, however, it was revealed that the company is bringing in an outside designer to help refresh its product lineup. A report from the Korea Herald states that Samsung has hired Lee Don-tae to be its new head of design. Don-tae would lead design of all Samsung gadgets, including smartphones.

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Former iPodFather Tony Fadell now in charge of Google Glass

Zac Hall Jan 15 2015 - 10:54 am PT

5 Comments

From 9to5Google.com:

It looks like Google may finally be preparing Glass for primetime as a number of changes around the company’s heads-up display product were revealed today. Most notably, the Glass project will be moving from the experimental Google X group to its own unit under the leadership of Tony Fadell, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Next of note, Google will end the current run of its Glass Explorers program on January 19th, removing the current version of Glass from sale to individuals; however, the WSJ includes that businesses and developers interested in purchasing Glass can still do so through an application process. The Glass at Work program, which has continued to grow, will live on beyond the Explorer Program’s imminent demise.
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Google rolling out updated Drive app for Mac w/ new status menu & bandwidth control

Stephen Hall Jan 14 2015 - 1:47 pm PT

5 Comments

Google is rolling out an updated version of its Google Drive app for Mac and PC this week with a few handy new features. First, you’ll find (as you can see above) that Google has updated the status menu to show much more information than before. Now, you can see the files that are being synced up to the cloud as well as a check mark next to them that will appear as they do so. The app will also make it clear which files are currently syncing and which files are yet to be synced. Additionally, hovering over an item will let you share it straight from the menu.

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Google releases Classroom mobile app for iPhone and iPad

Jordan Kahn Jan 14 2015 - 9:31 am PT

1 Comment

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2fC7yrj984]

Google announced today that it’s releasing mobile apps for its Google Classroom service for both Android and iOS devices. The company officially launched Classroom to its Apps for Education customers in the US during the summer offering them a web-based platform for planning lessons, handing out assignments, and working alongside students. Teachers and students will now be able to access those features from mobile devices through the new apps and Google is also adding a could of new features to the platform.

In addition to a new teacher assignments page and archiving functions for Classroom, Google notes that the mobile apps will let users snap a photo to share or attach to assignments, share content from other apps, and access content cached for offline viewing.

Snap a photo: Right from the assignment page in the mobile app, students can snap a photo and attach it to their assignment — whether it’s the experiment they just did for a science class, or a drawing they made of their family tree. And if they’ve forgotten their homework, they can ask someone at home to snap a photo, text it and then turn it in with the app. Of course, if the dog has actually eaten it, Classroom can’t help you.

The new Google Classroom apps are available on Google Play and the App Store now as well as on the Google Play for Education store.

Google Hangouts iOS app updated with intelligent location sharing, status messages and more

Ben Lovejoy Jan 6 2015 - 3:54 am PT

8 Comments

Google has updated its text, video and voice messaging app Hangouts, adding all the new features added to the Android version last month – including intelligent, one-tap location sharing.

Google promised that it would be building more intelligence into the app, and the new location-sharing feature is the first step along that path. The app automatically detects when a contact in a text chat asks where you are, and allows you to share your location with a single tap …
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Google Cast for audio is an AirPlay competitor for music streaming from Android, iOS & web

Jordan Kahn Jan 5 2015 - 8:19 am PT

5 Comments

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8q0yZomXuSw

Google today announced Google Cast for audio, which the company says takes advantage of Chromecast tech to send audio to third-party hardware like speakers, A/V receivers, and sound bars. The feature will allow users to tap a “cast” button from within music and radio apps on Android, iOS and the web to stream audio to Google Cast enabled speakers.
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Just like its phones, tablets and set top boxes, ‘leaked’ Xiaomi laptop looks exactly like an Apple MacBook Air (Updated)

Stephen Hall Dec 29 2014 - 1:43 pm PT

36 Comments

Xiaomi has definitely been growing fast in emerging markets, but until now the company has focused mostly on stealing as much of Samsung’s Chinese smartphone market share as it can. According to Gartner’s most recent numbers, the company rose in Q3 to take a spot in the world’s top 5 smartphone manufacturers. But the company has other products beyond just smartphones, and now it has apparently begun working on a new Mi-branded laptop—and, to no one’s surprise, it looks just like a MacBook Air.

Update: a Mi spokeperson has refuted that the image in question is a Xiaomi laptop. This appears to be the original.

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Google+ iOS app adds higher resolution experience for iPhone 6/6 Plus Retina screens, more

Jordan Kahn Dec 22 2014 - 8:01 am PT

0 Comments

Google today updated its Google+ app for iPhone and iPad adding support for the higher resolution screens on the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus.

In addition to the Retina imagery for the new iPhones, the app gains a few new features for both iPhone and iPad users in addition to the usual performance improvements and bug fixes.

Other features in version 4.8.0 include the ability to “vote on polls from people and brands” and an option to share to Google+ through an iOS 8 extension (pictured right).

The updated Google+ app for iPhone and iPad is available on the App Store now.

A full changelog is below:

What’s New in Version 4.8.0

What’s New
• Retina HD resolution on iPhone 6 and 6+
• Vote on polls from people and brands
• Easily share to Google+ from your device
• Performance improvements and bug fixes

Google’s Photo Sphere Camera app adds library privacy tabs, improved image capture for iPhone 6/6 Plus, more

Zac Hall Dec 16 2014 - 9:54 am PT

0 Comments

Google released its Photo Sphere Camera app for iPhone users a few months back with the ability to capture 360º images right from your device and share them over social media or even Google Maps.

Photo Sphere Camera can also be used without ever publishing images anywhere or sharing photo spheres with anyone, so today Google added tabs to the app’s library separating public and private photos.
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Google Wallet iOS app now supports Touch ID and lets you split the bill between friends

Ben Lovejoy Dec 16 2014 - 5:44 am PT

4 Comments

Apple Pay may be leaving Google Wallet in the dust when it comes to adoption, but Google hasn’t given up yet. It’s just updated its iOS app to support Touch ID, add optimization for the iPhone 6/Plus and enable you to split bills between friends …
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Google introduces Route 85 web series geared towards iOS developers

9to5 Staff Dec 12 2014 - 6:09 pm PT

4 Comments

Google may own the world’s most popular mobile operating system in Android, but it wants iPhone and iPad developers to recognize that the company has a lot to offer for them as well. Enter a new web series called Route 85, which will consist of a set of videos uploaded to the Google Developers channel on YouTube to showcase everything from SDKs to code libraries that iOS developers can take advantage of.
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Google iOS app updated w/ Material Design, Street View integration, more

Zac Hall Dec 11 2014 - 9:21 am PT

15 Comments

Google is rolling out a completely redesigned version of its iPhone and iPad app with its Material Design look and feel right down to the app icon.

The latest version of the search app now presents a bottom navigation bar (which can slide out of view) that presents a persistent Google button for searching for new information. The navigation bar also offers a button for quickly accessing recent search pages, something that feels similar to multitasking between apps on Android.

Also notable as part of the redesign is the optimization searching for photos has received. In the latest version of Google’s iOS app, image results now take on a full-screen, mosaic look for presenting larger results. The update also packs in deep Google Maps integration for location searches including support for Google Street View right in the app for iPhone users. You can read the full change log below:
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Did Apple drop Google Maps for good? Apple Maps now rolling out on iCloud.com

Jordan Kahn Dec 9 2014 - 9:47 am PT

21 Comments

Apple appears to have finally dropped Google Maps from iCloud.com, replacing it with its own in-house maps almost two years after removing Google Maps from iOS and most of its other products. Apple started slowly rolling out the feature to its iCloud beta site for select users earlier this year before pulling it, but it now seems to have replaced Google for all users of iCloud.com’s Find My iPhone feature (pictured above).
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Dashlane password manager can now automatically change your password on 50 top US websites

Ben Lovejoy Dec 9 2014 - 6:50 am PT

4 Comments

Password managers are a great way to have strong, unique passwords for each website you access – but vital as it is these days, there’s no denying that it’s a chore to change them. Dashlane, a Mac and Windows password manager app, aims to take away the pain by doing it for you automatically across 50 top US websites like Apple, Amazon, Dropbox, Facebook, PayPal, WordPress and Twitter.

Importantly, the app can even cope with sites that employ two-factor authentication to login or change a password, prompting you for the code when required …
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Apple and Amazon refuse to make full federal workforce diversity data public

Ben Lovejoy Dec 9 2014 - 5:32 am PT

8 Comments

From Apple’s diversity microsite

Although Apple published its own employee diversity report back in August, USA Today reports that the company has refused to make public the full data from its federal diversity filing. While companies are required to file this information annually in a form known as EEO-1, they are not legally obliged to make the data public.

Facebook, eBay, Google, Yahoo and LinkedIn are among the technology companies that have made public their EEO-1s […]

Chief among the companies that decided not to disclose their EEO-1s were Microsoft, Twitter, Apple and Amazon.

When USA Today pressed the matter, Twitter released its filing and Microsoft agreed to do so by the end of the month, but Apple and Amazon did not respond …
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Google Docs, Sheets, & Slides for iOS add new editing features, enhanced iPhone 6/6 Plus support

Jordan Kahn Dec 8 2014 - 1:07 pm PT

0 Comments

Google announced today that it’s rolling out updates to its Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides iOS apps that add a few new editing features and enhanced iPhone 6 and 6 Plus support.

Support for viewing and editing text in tables in the Docs app
Ability to insert, move, resize and rotate text boxes, shapes and lines in the Slides app
Enhanced support for iPhone 6/6+ (all apps)
General fixes and performance improvements (all apps)

All of the updates are available from the App Store now for the iOS versions of Docs, Slides, and Sheets (links below). In addition to support for vieing and editing text in tables, the Docs app also adds several new accessibility features.

A full list of new features for each app below:

Google Docs version 1.1.6:

* Support for viewing and editing text in tables
* Revamped accessibility support to use system standard text editing controls.
* Enhanced support for reading and editing when using Braille displays.
* Enhanced VoiceOver support when using Bluetooth keyboards.
* Enhanced support for iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus
* Bug fixes and performance improvements

Google Slides version 1.0.5:

* Insert, move, resize and rotate textboxes, shapes and lines
* Enhanced support for iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus
* Bug fixes and performance improvements

Google Sheets version 1.1.5:

* Enhanced support for iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus
* Bug fixes and performance improvementss

What Steve Jobs got right and wrong about the web back in 1996 [Video]

Ben Lovejoy Dec 8 2014 - 5:17 am PT

2 Comments

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Z8O9MfqjpI]

Even a man as visionary as Steve Jobs is going to have his hits and misses. In a bunch of interviews given around 1995 and 1996, Jobs was already predicting the importance of ecommerce.

About 15% of goods and services in the US are sold from catalogues or via television. All that’s going to go on the web and more. Billions and billions, soon tens of billions of dollars worth of goods and services are going to be sold on the web.

But as Business Insider noted from a 1996 Wired interview, he didn’t get everything right. It’s hard to even remember a time when Google wasn’t the first place we started when researching anything from a new gadget to traffic conditions, yet Jobs didn’t see us using the web as a source of information.

We live in an information economy, but I don’t believe we live in an information society. People are thinking less than they used to. It’s primarily because of television. People are reading less and they’re certainly thinking less. So, I don’t see most people using the Web to get more information. We’re already in information overload. No matter how much information the Web can dish out, most people get far more information than they can assimilate anyway.

He was right about the information overload part, but didn’t predict how using the web as an information source could enable us to cut through to the precise information we need.

Steve Jobs has of course been featuring in video form in the ongoing antitrust lawsuit regarding the iPod, and is still having patents awarded in his name long after his passing.