Chance currently writes for both NewGeekGuide and 9to5Mac, in addition to 9to5Toys. He has previously written for several other online publications. He uses a Nexus 5, iPhone 5s, iPad Air, Hackintosh, and Macbook Air.
Speaking at the Money20/20 conference today in Las Vegas, Google’s SVP or Ads and Commerce Sridhar Ramaswamy talked of the company’s mobile payments solution and gave updates on future features and adoption so far.
Ahead of the device’s release, BlackBerry today has released the Priv’s stock Android apps to the Google Play Store. The apps mostly all feature tweaks on BlackBerry’s end to give the Priv the feeling of a true BlackBerry device, but just running Android.
BlackBerry today has pushed the BlackBerry Camera, BlackBerry Launcher, BlackBerry Keyboard, and BlackBerry Services apps to the Play Store, as well as MicrosoftexFAT and DTEK. The keyboard app, for instance, includes the classic floating word suggestions that BlackBerry introduced with BB10. As you’d expect, most of these apps aren’t compatible with non-BlackBerry Priv devices, so they’re not incredibly useful at this point in time.
BlackBerry pushing its apps to the Play Store means that it will be able to quickly provide updates to its individual apps rather than having to push an entire over-the-air software update to the device to update one app. Other Android manufacturers like HTC and Motorola have also taken a similar approach.
You can view all of BlackBerry’s apps that are available on the Play Store via this link.
UPDATE: BlackBerry has pulled the US pre-order page from its online store, suggesting someone pushed the ‘go’ button a little too soon.
After launching a pre-registration page for its Android slider and subsequently starting UK pre-orders, BlackBerry today has started accepting pre-orders for the Priv in the United States. First noted by Droid-Life, the pre-orders will begin shipping on November 16th, 10 days later than pre-orders in the UK will ship.
Samsung’s massive tablet, the Galaxy View, has been rumored several times in the past, but now SamMobile has shared the first clear images of the rumored device. The images appear to be taken from a promo video for the Galaxy View, showing the device in its full, 18.4-inch display glory…
Verizon has already teased its rumored DROID Turbo 2, sharing an image that clearly shows off the design of the phone and suggesting that it could have a more rugged-feel to it. Now, a post on the Chinese social network Weibo claims to show the colors in which back of the device will be available via Moto Maker…
HP today has taken the wraps off a refreshed lineup of Chromebooks. In a press release, the company revealed a new Chromebook 14 lineup with hardware and cosmetic improvements. In addition to a 14-inch model with a 1366×768 display, HP is also offering a model with a full 1080p HD display.
Google, as we’ve reported several times, has been redirecting its Glass efforts to have more of a focus on the enterprise market and a large part of that comes in the health field. TechCrunch today reports that researchers at Stanford University are using Google Glass to aid children with autism. Specifically, they are using the platform to help them recognize and classify the emotions they feel and see around them.
Googler Kirill Grouchnikov has today shared a handful of images that show a redesigned interface that is soon coming to Google Play. In the images, you can see that almost every aspect of the app’s interface has been redesigned, as has the main way of navigating.
Google today has updated Chrome for Android to version 46 with a handful of under-the-hood bug fixes. These changes were originally introduced in the beta build of Chrome 46 but have now made their way to the stable version a little over a month later.
Google says that performance throughout the app has been greatly improved thanks to new optimized image loading and service worker instrumentation:
Tools like srcset allow developers to serve an optimized image variant in a responsive way, but it can be cumbersome and inefficient to use in practice. Developers can now negotiate with the server to download the best image variant for a device using straightforward HTTP request headers. These headers communicate DPR, Viewport-Width, and the intended display width of the resource being fetched to the server.
For developers, they can now animate any graphical object along an arbitrary path declaratively as a CSS property:
Previously, animating objects along an author-specified path required complex javascript code that could block important events like rendering and input. Developers can now animate any graphical object along an arbitrary path declaratively as a CSS property, allowing simpler code that doesn’t block rendering or input.
For the end user, this means that performance should be greatly improved with Chrome 46 on Android, as should stability. It’s available now on the Play Store.
BlackBerry this evening has launched a pre-registration page for its oft-rumored Android slider the Priv. The registration page is merely an effort on the company’s part to gauge interest in the device before officially revealing it, but the webpage does offer up some confirmation when it comes to the specs we can expect the device to feature.
Google today has made several of the features it originally previewed back at I/O for developers available today. Google says that these new features will help developers further grow their business and improve decision making on developer insights on Google Play.
First up is AdWords Campaigns:
With just a few simple steps, universal app campaigns lets you easily set up ad campaigns from within the Google Play Developer Console and promote your app across Google Play, Google Search, YouTube and the Google Display Network. You will now be able to more effectively find and grow your install base with the help of Google’s unparalleled reach.
Google also today has made a new performance report feature available to developers:
When you’re growing an audience for your app, you’ll want to understand where your most valuable users are coming from. The new performance report on the User Acquisition tab in the Developer Console lets you see how people are finding your Play Store listing, how many install your app, and how many go on to make purchases.
These new features are accessible for developers via the developer console. More can be found in the video seen below:
HTC’s upcoming One A9 mid-ranger has potentially won the award as the worst kept secret of 2015. The iPhone-esque device has already been leaked numerous times and now Orange France has given us yet another look at the phone.
The recently announced Huawei Watch was discovered to have an unused and unannounced speaker inside, which we showcased in a video last month. Now, Google+ user David Sears has tinkered with the ASUS ZenWatch 2 and found that it too contains an untapped speaker inside.
You can now purchase a replacement charging cradle for the Huawei Watch on the Google Store for $39.99. The accessory is listed as stock and will leave the warehouse within 1-2 business days. Shipping for the product is free, as well.
The charging cradle is the first accessory for the Huawei Watch to become available via the Google Store. The watch itself went up for pre-order on the Google Store at the beginning of last month and began shipping not too far after.
The Huawei Watch features a 1.4-inch screen with a 400 x 400 resolution, coming out to 286 pixels per inch. It sports 512 MB of RAM, 4 GB of on-board storage, a gyroscope, barometer, and accelerometer, all packed inside a 42mm case and powered by a 300mAh battery.
Huawei Watch owners can purchase the standalone charging cradle on the Google Store now. You can read our review of the watch itself here, in which we heavily praised the design of the device.
Android Police this evening has spotted a minor change to the Google Play support page for Play gift cards. The webpage has been changed to include a reference to something called “music gifts,” although it’s entirely unclear what they are at this point.
As Android Police suggests, it’s possible that this could be a way to gift people albums and songs on Play Music. It’s also possible that it will be a way to gift an actual Play Music All Access subscription for ‘x’ amount of months to other users. Whatever music gifts are, they will be available in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
All of this is pure speculation at this point, however. Nevertheless, it seems likely that Google is preparing something to announce soon, given the change to its support page today.
Google today has acquired the app-hosting service Divshot and will fold it into its cloud services provider Firebase, Divshot cofounder Michael Bleigh accounted in a blog post. Divshot is a platform that allows developers to build mobile and web applications easily. Divshot itself will be shut down on December 14th, although the company has already instituted a migration plan.
Earlier today went hands on with the variety of back StyleSwap covers for the OnePlus 2 and now images have emerged of the company’s rumored next smartphone. Images have been shared to the Chinese social networking site Weibo that purportedly show the OnePlus Mini in all its glory, or perhaps lack thereof (via G for Games).
Sundar Pichai was given the title of Google CEO as part of the company’s Alphabet restructure and now Pichai has made his first changes according to Re/code. In a company wide email sent out recently, the Google CEO appointed three executives to new roles…
Google today has started a sale on the Play Store that offers a variety of popular games for just $0.10. Google is notorious for offering sales on apps at steep discounts and this time is no different. The company is offering games such as Monopoly, Need for Speed Most Wanted, and more for the small price of $.10.
13 popular games are included in the sale. The full list can be seen below:
You can view all of the above games on Google’s dedicated page for its $0.10 game sale here.
Update: The following games also appear to be getting the $0.10 treatment, although they aren’t listed on the dedicated page:
Earlier today we broke down the top 10 best new features in Android 6.0 Marshmallow, but as with any operating system change, a few things have changed that are a little harder to find. First noted by Android Authority, Android 6.0 Marshmallow includes the ability to display a battery percentage in the status bar or in the Quick Settings panel via a UI Tuner menu.
Google today has updated its Play Movies & TV app to version 3.9 with a couple of new features and bug fixes. The standout new feature of the app with this update is a new feature called binge watch. Binge watch is a capability that will automatically plays the next episode in the season of a show a user is watching.
Once the credits of the show start to play at the end, a small thumbnail will appear in the lower right corer of the display with the number and title of the next episode, as well as a timer. Once the timer hits zero, the next episode will automatically begin to play. Users can also tap on the thumbnail to immediately jump to the next episode, or swipe right to stop autoplay (via Android Police).
Next up, the update improves the process of setting up a Roku device through the app. Users can now setup a Roke through a new “Connect a device” option in the Settings menu. Google also notes that the update adds support for Android 6.0 Marshmallow and includes a variety of bug fixes and under-the-hood improvements.
- Android Marshmallow support
- Bug fixes and stability improvements
- Easier setup for Roku devices
- Binge watch for TV episodes
The latest version of the Play Movies & TV app is available now on the Play Store.
On the same day that Google released the factory images for Android 6.0 Marshmallow, T-Mobile has updated its Software Updates support page with details on its plans for the rollout. T-Mobile has listed the 17 devices that it plans to update to the latest version of the Android operating system.
T-Mobile says there are three main stages to its update process. The first is “Manufacturer Development,” which means T-Mobile and the manufacturer have agreed to support a software update. The second stage is “T-Mobile Testing,” during which the carrier itself tests the latest build of the operating system. Finally, the final stage is “Completed” and is when the update starts to rollout to users.
You can view T-Mobile’s Software Updates page here and track the progress of an update to your device. Below are the 17 devices on T-Mobile that will receive Android 6.0 Marshmallow:
The same day as its ZenWatch 2 became available via the Google Store, Asus has this evening launched a new app that allows users to design custom watchfaces. The app, cleverly called the ZenWatch FaceDesigner, is compatible with both the ZenWatch and ZenWatch 2.
ZenWatch FaceDesigner allows users to easily design their own watchfaces. Users can choose from a variety of pre-designed backgrounds and add layers of texts, clocks, and widgets to the background. Widgets include things like weather info, battery life, and app shortcuts. As far as backgrounds go, you can also add your own image to the app and design a watchface based on it.
ZenWatch FaceDesigner is an ASUS wearable application that’s fully-compatible with Android Wear. It lets you create exclusive watch faces for your ZenWatch in three easy steps:
1. Choose your watch face.
2. Choose your clock type.
3. Finish it up by choosing your information widget.Aside from its simplicity, the ZenWatch FaceDesigner also offers a variety of options for you to choose from such as background image and color, tick, icon, text color, date info, weather info, battery info, missed call info, time zone info, tep count, burned calories, plus more. You can even pick your own favorite image as your watch’s background or icon for a more personalized touch.
The new ZenWatch FaceDesigner app is available now on the Play Store for free and is compatible with the ZenWatch and ZenWatch 2.
Google’s recent reorganization under its parent company Alphabet Inc. will bring about several changes for its smaller startup companies, the Wall Street Journal reports. Those smaller companies, such as Nest, are known as “bets” in Alphabet and will have a significantly higher amount of freedom than before.
