Google

Mar

Android 4.0 Update For The Nexus S To Resume 'In The Next Few Weeks'?

Posted by Cameron Summerson in News, Nexus S (Crespo/Soju), Nexus S 4G (Crespo4g)

I know what all you non-Nexus S owners are thinking: wait, didn't the ICS update roll out to the NS back in December? In fact, it did. But there was some sort of battery drain issue, so Google had to stop the update. And that's the last semi-official thing we heard about it.

Needless to say, Nexus S owners are pissed.

Today, however, Engadget has received "confirmation" from a "trusted source" that the ICS update is set to begin rolling out to the NS (again) and the NS4G "in the next few weeks." While it shouldn't take this long for El Goog to push an update to a Nexus-branded device, it's nice to hear some movement is finally being made on this front.

Mar

[Weekend Poll] Is "Google Play" A Smart Rebranding Or Bad Miscalculation?

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Polls

Last Updated: March 18th, 2012

This is the latest in our Weekend Poll series. For last week's, see How Much Built In Storage Do You Need In A Tablet?

Earlier this week, Google revealed a sweeping revamp to their content offerings when they rebranded them as, collectively, Google Play. Though David argued that the rebranding was as a whole a good thing, the general consensus from those who have an opinion (and are voicing it via social media and public forums) is pretty negative. "Play" makes a lot more sense from a general marketing and sales standpoint (it removes "Android" from the equation, which makes it easier for people to understand that the services are not exclusive to the OS).

Mar

Chrome For Android Beta Updated To 0.16.4301.233, Works With Custom ROMs Once Again

Posted by Liam Spradlin in Android OS, News

Google announced today on its Chrome Releases blog that Chrome for Android Beta has been updated to version 0.16.4301.233 (that's Chrome 16.0.912.77 for anyone counting).

The update primarily brings bug fixes, specifically addressing "issues in the compatibility check which prevented Chrome from starting up on some versions of Android 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich." In other words, whatever it is that broke compatibility with custom ROMs in Chrome's previous update seems to have been eliminated this time around.

While there's no official change log available for the update just yet, Google does list remaining known bugs:

112923 : No way to toggle between mobile/desktop UA
113140 : Youtube links do not prompt for which application to use
113132 : Chrome for Android beta doesn't support configured proxy in wi-fi settings
Other notable issues listed here

Google also urges users to report new issues by filing a bug report.

Mar

Big News For Big Apps: Android App Size Limit Bumped Up From 50MB To 4GB

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in Google, News

In the past, Android apps have been limited to a 50MB file size. App developers who needed to add extra data, as is the case with most big games, would have to have a secondary, self-hosted download after the user first launched the game. Today, that changes with Google introducing support for up to 4GB of "expansion files". While APKs must still be under 50MB, Google will host two 2GB files that include extra data for developers' apps. Nice!

This will solve a lot of problems for a lot of people, not the least of whom are developers. Since Google is doing the hosting, it's no longer necessary for a game developer to host hundreds of megabytes, or even gigabytes of data on their own servers.

Feb

[MWC 2012 Fun] This Robot Will Make You A Custom Galaxy Nexus Case While You Eat Your Ice Cream Sandwich [Video]

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in Off-Topic, Videos

Out of all the fun things going on today at the big Android booth Google set up at MWC, one cute little guy stood out from the pack. Want a custom-made Galaxy Nexus battery door while you ogle suspicious-looking jelly beans and scarf down free ice cream sandwiches and delicious smoothies? No problem - just walk up to a conveniently located tablet, order up a design, and watch it make one for you live with utmost precision of a true Android. You know you want this bad boy cooking you breakfast every morning:

Sure, they're sparkly and possibly girly, but how cool is this?

Feb

Google Teases MWC Attendees With Bowl Of Jellybeans, Coyly Asks, "Oh, Is That Not What You Wanted?"

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in Google, Rumors

Oh, Google. You know just how to get our attention. If you're not planting giant statues on your front lawn, you're giving your guests tasty treats with a wink. At Google's ~~theme park~~ MWC booth, the company has set up bowls of jelly beans that are, according to sources close to the matter, "delicious." What we're really after, though, is details on Google's next OS version of the same name. Could this mean we're going to hear about it?

As far as rumors go, a bowl of candy is pretty low on the list of sources we tend to get our stories from.

Feb

Google: There Are More Than 850,000 Android Devices Activated Daily, 300 Million Activated To Date - 450,000 Apps On The Market

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in Google, News

Call it momentum, a robot invasion, or a force of nature, the one thing you can't say about Android's proliferation is that it's insignificant. Andy Rubin took the opportunity during MWC to let slip some new Android activation figures. Chief among them, Android is now activating more than 850,000 devices daily, and Google has activated a lifetime total of 300 million devices.

This number is absolutely astonishing. To put that in perspective, at the current rate of activation, roughly every ten days Google activates more devices than there are people in New York City. By mid-march, there will be more Android devices in the world than there are people in the entire United States.

Feb

LG "Heavily In Discussions" With Google To Manufacture A Nexus Device

Posted by Liam Spradlin in LG, News

Bringing a taste of truth to age-old rumblings of an LG Nexus device, the head of LG's Smartphone division, Ramchan Woo, has stated (in an interview with Cnet) that the manufacturer is "heavily in discussions" over a possible Nexus device, adding "we're working on it." While this quote is compelling, Cnet rightly highlights a few sticking points in the deal.

On one hand, while there is no evidence that Google will give Motorola preferential treatment following its acquisition, concerns have manifested, and partnering with any manufacturer (why not LG?) would quash any rumblings.

On the other hand, LG is decidedly pro-customization when it comes to Android's interface.

Feb

Unofficial Music API Close To Completion, Could Soon Allow Apps To Integrate With Google Music

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Applications, Apps/Games, Dev, News

A few days ago, we heard unofficial reports that Google was disappointed with the performance of Music thus far. While it's barely been out for a full quarter to date, there have been a few major factors holding the service back. In my opinion, one of the biggest factors holding it back thus far is the lack of an API - or, in English: third-party app support for the service. Luckily, a developer by the name of Simon Weber read the post about Google Music and got in touch a few days ago to let me know that he had a solution to the problem: an unofficial API he's been working on.

Feb

Google Reportedly Disappointed By Music's Performance, But Still Confident In Long-Term Outlook (And Why I'm Not Surprised)

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Editorials, News

Google Music launched just 3 months ago, but CNET is already hearing from Google managers and record labels that the company is disappointed by the service's performance so far. In a nutshell: when Google Music launched, there were 200 million Android users, and that number was growing extremely quickly. The expectation was that it would be fairly easy to convert some of those users to Music customers. Unfortunately, that just isn't what's happened, with adoption lower than expected.

According to CNET, those involved with Google Music "aren't panicking"; it's only been 3 months, after all. But more importantly, Google has yet to go full-force with its major music push.