Seth Weintraub

Google just posted the I/O 2013 schedule and some surprises right off the bat. It looks like there is only 1 keynote this year but it will be a mind boggling 3 hours long according to the schedule (with break) from 9am-12 PT on May 15th.  There will also be satellite events happening around the world. We’re not seeing any Glass specific tracks scheduled but oops a commenter found a few:

There are a bunch of Glass specific sections. Just click the button
at the bottom of each day that says “Show other Tracks”. There is
even a session specifically on how to hack and get root on Glass.
Should be a fun IO.

The Google I/O 13 agenda is live: 120+ talks from Android, Chrome & more! Build your personal schedule. http://t.co/tQcH3Yz3Xh #io13

— Google for Developers (@googledevs) May 1, 2013

Robert Scoble isn’t mincing words on Google Glass. He thinks it will be big, big, big. His review after having Google Glass for two weeks reads like he’s had an epiphany and the only thing preventing these from ruling the universe is Larry Page’s inability to price these things as low as $200. His 6 points:

1. I will never live a day of my life from now on without it (or a competitor). It’s that significant.
2. The success of this totally depends on price. Each audience I asked at the end of my presentations “who would buy this?” As the price got down to $200 literally every hand went up. At $500 a few hands went up. This was consistent, whether talking with students, or more mainstream, older audiences.
3. Nearly everyone had an emotional outburst of “wow” or “amazing” or “that’s crazy” or “stunning.”
4. At NextWeb 50 people surrounded me and wouldn’t let me leave until they had a chance at trying them. I haven’t seen that kind of product angst at a conference for a while. This happened to me all week long, it is just crazy.
5. Most of the privacy concerns I had before coming to Germany just didn’t show up. I was shocked by how few negative reactions I got (only one, where an audience member said he wouldn’t talk to me with them on). Funny, someone asked me to try them in a bathroom (I had them aimed up at that time and refused).
6. There is a total generational gap that I found. The older people said they would use them, probably, but were far more skeptical, or, at minimum, less passionate about the fact that these are the future, than the 13-21-year-olds I met.

It is important to keep in mind the context of his perspective. He’s a uber-geek who spends his life immersed in technology. Some people will find the idea of wearing a computer on your face unsettling and there undoubtedly will be backlash. The wow factor will wear off and they will have to produce some value. Right now image and video taking are the key apps. As Scoble mentioned, other apps are coming fast and furious.

And, no, I don’t believe they won’t be $200 (unless there is a subsidy like phones). If Google is charging developers $1500/pop, there is no way Google can make them for $200, at least in the near future.

All of those disclaimers aside, I really do see a lot of opportunity for Google here. They’ve thought forward and this bet on the future of technology is going to change things.
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As we discussed in February,  HP is re-entering the Android tablet game after a little 4-year WebOS hiatus. Their first effort, the HP Slate 7 goes on sale today for a very reasonable $169.  On the plus side, HP offers SD Card espansion, built-in printing and Beats Audio to the package when compared to the $199 Nexus 7. Like the Nexus 7, the Slate is almost entirely Stock Android (Here Here!). Unlike the Nexus 7, however, the screen is the same 1024×600 resolution as the two year old base model Kindle which currently sells for $159.

The real news here for Android is that HP’s expansive network of international customers now have easy access to an inexpensive tablet.  I expect this to be a big deal.
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That’s the S4 sandwiched between the HTC One and the iPhone 5

I’ve been playing with Samsung’s Galaxy S4 (no, I won’t write S 4) for the better part of a week and, not to spoil the whole review: I love it.  It is better in every way than the S3 hardware-wise, and Samsung even has some good software on this phone, particularly in the camera field. I’ve never been a fan of Samsung’s software.

It is what is on the inside that counts, right?

This phone will do extremely well in the market and will keep up the fight against the almighty iPhone 5 and HTC One (which we reviewed earlier this month and loved). In the Apple world, this S4 is called an ‘S update’ – where the outward design is mostly the same but a lot of changes have taken place under the hood.

Below I’ll drill down exactly what that means.
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As you can see, Samsung’s flagship phone is already available, unlocked on eBay for $739 for the unlocked variety. I wonder when that embargo on reviews lifts?
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It appears that LG’s answer to the Galaxy Note 2, the Optimus G Pro and its seperphone internals and 5.5-inch 1080P display will be making its N. American debut on May 1st. We’ll be there with bells. Specs for the Korean/Japanese version follow:
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Google is heading toward 1 Billion Android users and two million in the next few years. Imagine if Google could harness a few tenths of a percent of that to give to charity. That’s the idea behind the One Today project. It’s a social giving project which is invite only at the moment but one ramped would seem to have a powerful affect on giving, if Google can get people involved.
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https://twitter.com/VZWnews/status/324990966232645632

Spint and T-Mobile showed their hand earlier this week. Verizon’s isn’t looking good but they do have more LTE than everyone else combined so good things come to those who wait.

More Babel stuff comes to us from the Google OS Blog today. Hidden inside Gmail HTML code (above) is the following:

“Some of the new features:

* A new, conversation-based UI
* Advanced group conversations
* Send pictures
* Improved notifications across devices.”

That sounds a lot like Hipchat, our group messaging platform of choice around the office here. There is also some code that indicates that you can switch between the new Babel interface and the current one but that might be a temporary measure to let people transfer at their own pace.

With Babel already starting to show itself, is it possible that Google expects to hold on this one for another month until I/O or will we see it sooner?
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This morning, Sprint announced Samsung Galaxy S will be available beginning on Saturday, April 27 for $249.99 with a new line or eligible upgrade and two-year service agreement. New customers who switch their phone number to Sprint from another carrier will receive an additional $100 instant credit which yields a $150 superphone. Sprint Pre-order for Galaxy S 4 will open on tomorrow (Thursday, April 18), at www.sprint.com/galaxys4, while supplies last.

T-Mobile also announced a $149.99 down plan with their new device payment offers of $20/month on top of their simple service plans. T-Mobile will have the device a few days earlier on April 24th and offers HD voice options on top of their great pricing plans.

Full specs and press release follows:

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We brought you the best quotes here:

Google Chairman Eric Schmidt talks Android activations, Chinese government, social change, and privacy

Check out the full video via AllthingsD
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From 9to5Toys.com:

Tiger Direct slashes the price of the original 1080P smartphone, the Droid DNA. We reviewed the DNA and loved loved loved its amazing 5-inch 1080P display.

Google just released the mother-load of information on Google Glass including an API, hardware specs (yuk yuk) and FAQs and much more.  Developers, Dive in.

Along with today’s Glass API release, Google now officially announced specs for the Glass Explorer editions. Notable is the camera which will take 5 Megapixel images or 720P video. The 16GB of storage (12GB usable) is a lot for such a small object (same as a base model iPad) but not a huge feat noting that Micro-SDcards now go to 64GB and beyond.

Glass will only use slower 802.11B/G wifi likely to save energy and chip size by eliminating 802.11N (or ac). Perhaps most importantly, Google says the display will be the equivalent of a 25-inch HD screen about 8 feet away. That’s a good way to imagine the Glass experience.

All of this and a full day of battery use is suggested. We’ll see.

The rest of the tech specs follow:
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Wow Google Glass is finally shipping?! Like imminently based on this email? http://t.co/jTmhpuvtRs

— Brian Klug (@nerdtalker) April 15, 2013

It appears that Google Glass Explorers should soon be getting their Glass units. AnandTech’s Brian Klug got the following announcement.

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This is probably not the AnDroid update you are looking for.
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A veteran of Japan’s Tsunami/Earthquake, Philippine Floods, and other events, Google today deployed its person finder tool for people who may be looking for loved ones in Boston or who want to tell loved ones their situation. Links:

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Canadians wondering where your Galaxy S 4 luving is, rejoice! Telus, Bell, Virgin, and Videotron all announced plans to carry the Galaxy S4 today which almost seems like a coordinated effort on Sammy’s part.  Android Police note that each carrier has slightly differing bits of info but expect to drop $200 and be in a contract for at least 2 years.
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Some new stuff from Canary build this morning above on left (compared to stable on right). Notice the Apps shortcut  icon which can be removed by unchecking the “Show Apps shortcut” icon (below) in the dropdown menu.

This is interesting especially as Google appears to be ready to push an Apps button to its iconic search page. Will Chrome apps finally get their day in the sun?
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Eric Schmidt and Google Ideas’ Jared Cohen (author of Children of Jihad) have penned a book about how technology will profoundly affect the lives of everyone in the coming years. It gets some pretty impressive reviews from some pretty impressive people, below. You can pre-order it for shipping now April 23rd from Amazon for $18
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