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May

YouTube For Google TV Gets A Big Update, Simplified Interface And Support For Paid Channels Included

Posted by Kyle Wiggers in Google TV, News

Let it be not be said that Google neglected the Google TV platform today at I/O. Though it wasn't mentioned during this morning's 3 hour-plus keynote, the company rolled out a new version of the YouTube app for TV during the presentation.

Specifically, the updated application brings a simplified UI, enhanced video playback controls, and support for paid channels. The video discovery and subscription tabs now show playlists with blown-up video thumbnails and bolded titles for easier browsing. When playing a video, it's easier to subscribe to the content creator's respective channel, +1 the video on Google Plus, and see related videos.

May

Google Finally Completely Redesigns The AOSP Site To Look About A Googol Times Better

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in Development, Google, News

While the Google Developers site received its massive redesign quite a while ago, its sibling AOSP one at source.android.com has remained an ugly duckling. Until about an hour ago.

The difference is huge - it's like it went from Cupcake days to Jelly Bean in the blink of an eye. It would be nice if you could update Android the same way, wouldn't it?

Here are some images of the old (visible at archive.org) and new sites side-by-side (can you guess which one is which?):

Source: AOSP

May

WeatherBug App Gets Complete UI Overhaul – No Longer Looks Like A Hot Mess

Posted by Ryan Whitwam in Applications, Apps/Games, News

WeatherBug has been a big name in online weather forecasting for a number of years, and it was one of the first full-featured weather apps on Android. The problem, however, is that the app looked like it was designed by inebriated orangutans. Well, no more. The WeatherBug app has been updated with new features and a streamlined (not ugly) UI.

The new app has Holo-style tabs up top along with a drop-down for your locations. It also uses the left side slide-out menu system many apps are implementing these days. It still does all the usual weather app things like updating the current conditions, multi-day forecasts, and animated radar maps.

Apr

Google Confirms The New Play Store UI, Rollout To Phones And Tablet On 2.2+ Starts Today

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in Google, News

We've been seeing leaks about a new Google Play Store UI, that we all thought was going to be released at I/O this year. Nope! The rollout starts today, chaps! According to a post over on the official Android blog, the fancy card-based UI is coming to Android phones and tablets running Froyo (v2.2) and up. Worldwide, the new version will be available "over the next few weeks.

Oh, and you should be happy to know that the ugly pattern across the Action Bar is, in fact, not part of the final release. Additionally, the blog post touts a continuous scrolling interface that will show you more recommendations as you move down the page.

Mar

Editorial Prediction: Android's Next Iteration May Emphasize Hybrid Card Layouts, Other Subtle Design Shifts

Posted by Liam Spradlin in Android OS, Editorials

Yesterday, we finally decided to get to the bottom of Google Keep's new font, Roboto Slab. Shortly before that, however, we had an internal discussion about Keep's strange UI/UX. The app is beautiful – there's no denying that – but weird when considered alongside Google's other in-house apps. What's more, I'm of the opinion that the app isn't just a one-off in terms of design – I think that Keep, along with a few other hints, could give us some insight into what we'll see in the next version of Android (which we might see in May at Google I/O).

Mar

Google+ Profiles Got A Huge Holo-Esque Update Today And It's Actually Kind Of Amazing

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in Google, News

Tomorrow, Facebook is expected to announce some major changes to its News Feed. This has been a long time in coming and many people agree that, compared to the growing competition amongst modern social networks, the News Feed is one of the oldest, stalest, and ugliest presentations of information around. Okay, maybe it's not that bad, but it could use a refresher, so we're all eagerly awaiting the chang-Oh hey look new Google+ features!

Without warning, Google launched a massive change to profiles today that beautifies the heck out of personal and business pages alike. The most noticeable change is users now have a gargantuan cover photo.

Feb

AccuWeather Gets Holo-ified, Automatically Looks Beautiful Because Holo

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in Applications, News

AccuWeather is one of the leading apps for getting more information than you could ever possibly need about the position of the sun, clouds, and the statistical likelihood that precipitation will fall from the sky. It has not, however, been the leader in Holo interfaces among weather apps (the Weather Channel beat it to the punch last week). Today, it catches up, though, with a brand spanking new UI.

It's not just menu bars and Roboto that are being added for this interface overhaul. The company has also improved the widgets, allowing them to be resizable. Which, you know, all widgets should be.

Feb

Official Weather Channel App Receives Major UI Update, Forecast Includes 100% Chance Of Holo

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Applications, News

If you've given up on the official app of The Weather Channel in lieu of other, better-looking solutions, it may be time to give it another shot. The app has received a major update today that finally modernizes its previously-dated UI, bringing it up spec with the Android design guidelines. You know what that means – it's Holo, baby!

Not only is the app 4.0+ optimized, but it also brings a new tablet-friendly interface, as well as a killer new feature that will tell you the exact time rain (or other less-than-ideal weather conditions) are going to hit your area. That's slick.

Feb

Quick Tip: Long Press Google Search Suggestions To Pop Them Into The Search Bar

Posted by Liam Spradlin in Android OS, Applications, Tips & Tutorials

Remember that little diagonal arrow that used to appear next to suggestions in the Google Search box as you typed? The arrows could be used to insert suggestions into the search bar, while you kept typing away. For a while now, though, the arrows have been missing from Google Search. Those that want that feature back are in luck, however – astute Redditor Foxsbiscuits notes that a simple long-press will fling search suggestions into the search bar, providing essentially the same functionality with a slightly more discreet UI.

^{Before and After}

Keeping this handy tip in mind, your searches can be as quick and efficient as ever.

Jan

HTC-Made Au Infobar A02 Set To Hit Japan In Mid-February, Marrying A Highly Stylized Android UI With Playful Hardware Design

Posted by Liam Spradlin in HTC, Jelly Bean 4.1, News

Au's Infobar phone line has been around since 2001, always featuring plenty of color and hoping to bring innovative ideas to the smartphone world through eye-popping, unique design. Bringing another stylized entry to the lineup, Au has posted a brief dossier on the new Infobar A02, designed by Naoto Fukasawa and manufactured by HTC.

One of the device's main claims to fame is its apparent use of HTC's ImageSense chip, allowing for smooth burst capture. It's also waterproof and dustproof, and has plenty of specs to ogle. Among them are its 1.5GHz quad-core processor, 4.7" 720p display, 8MP camera, LTE support, and microSD slot.