Category: Google

Google Adds ‘Find my Phone’ Support to Help Locate Your Missing Android Device

Google has volunteered to lend a hand in searching for our missing devices. The search giant has added a new super-useful feature called ‘Find My Phone’ that helps Android users google their smartphone.

Google hasn’t gone for a tangled tracing process and has kept it straight and simple. Just log in to your Gmail account fro your computer’s browser and type ‘Find my phone’ on a Google omnibox. Make sure that you are logged in to the same account as on the device. You will be directed to a page with a map view, depicting the location of your phone. While the map appears on the screen, and it may ask you to log in again. Once logged in, call your device with the ‘Ring’ option provided below.

Google will call your handset within a few seconds and user can track the location of the handset. The loud ringing bell can be turned off by pressing the power button on the handset.

Though it’s a hassle-free approach to find your phone, one should have the latest version of Google app installed to access the benefits. The latest feature shows the location of your phone on the map, but to erase the content of your phone, one needs to have Android Device Manager installed.

April 16, 2015
Google is Reportedly Working on a Mysterious Battery Project

Google has joined forces to develop a more productive battery technology for its line of consumer devices and other hardware projects. The search behemoth reportedly has a small team of researchers who are working on future batteries and is devising measures to advance present batteries for better outcomes.

The report by Wall Street Journal suggests that the team working on future battery technology is headed by Apple’s former battery expert Dr. Ramesh Bhardwaj. The four-member team is a part of Google X research lab, a facility dedicated to making major technological advancements like Project Loon and driver-less cars. Meanwhile, the battery research wing is working on enhancing lithium-ion and the advanced solid-state batteries for a range of consumer products like Google Glass and the contact lens that helps measure glucose level in blood.

Google is not a confined body limiting to consumer manufacturing electronics and offers its services to various industries like transportation, robotics, healthcare, and communications. Being in the hardware business, Google needs efficient batteries that can power their devices for a longer span of time.

Dr. Bhardwaj disclosed ideas in a February presentation of a new-age battery technology that can be equipped to wearables, and smartphones and can also be implanted in the human body. The internet supreme requires such a revolutionary technology that can give new life to its projects that got overshadowed because of shorter battery life, e.g. Google Glass.

The report said that other research teams are working in conjunction with the Chicago-based technology firm that can bring more potent batteries for four bigger projects including Project Loon. The internet-broadcasting plan to beam Internet down the earth is presently using traditional batteries and has to suffer high-temperature issues. The latest innovation is likely to resolve the current complexities along with being cost effective.

Several companies are coming with battery prototypes that can charge mobile devices within half a minute, but there is no certainty if they will be inexpensive if produced in large numbers. If the report turns out to be true and Google succeeds in developing a super slim battery for flexible displays, it will be a landmark of the threshold of a new era. The batteries will make room for a new line of products that will be more compact and powerful.

April 11, 2015
Sick of Spoilers on Social Media? Google Patents Tech to Protect You From Them

Spoilers are one of the most dreaded words for the makers of any new product, may it be a movie or a popular new consumer electronics launch. Companies take every precaution to prevent any information from leaking. But in the age of proactive snoopers on the internet, stopping a leak has become a futile task. Google seems to have taken up the challenge and has just received a patent that might put the brakes on leaks and spoilers on the web.

A patent titled “system and method for processing content spoilers” has been granted to Google. This new filter will let you block spoilers for content like TV shows, books and movies on social media. You can choose to turn off the filter when you have caught up with the content.

The system digs in deeper than just blocking spoiler posts related to the content. Using Google’s intrusive technology, the filter keeps a track of everything that the user has already seen and filters out content that you are yet to see. This will help you prevent getting bombarded with the spoilers for Game of Thrones (GoT) or House of Cards episodes that you are yet to watch.

A sample figure in the patent application.

There is no timeframe yet as to when this new technology will be inducted. Google has said that it holds many patents, and there are no immediate plans as of yet to introduce the technology. To be successful, Google will have to tie-up with social media companies that would require a lot of negotiations. They might also want to expand the field to include products like smartphones, which are one of the biggest victims of leaks. It is apparent that there are some creases that need to be ironed out before the spoiler-filter comes online.

The technology in itself looks interesting and is a kind of censorship that will be appreciated by all GoT fans who try to stay off social media after the telecast. Also, now that the cats out of the bag on the Google patent, we might see some copycat services who’ll offer similar features. Well only if this story about the leak filter could have used a leak filter.

April 10, 2015
Google Might Offer Free International Roaming on Its Mobile Network

Mobile phones have given a boost to communication like no other technology before it. Instead of looking for a telephone in every country you go to, the pocket-sized device is always handy to connect you with your loved ones. But the aspect of international calling that dissuades people from using their mobiles more often while traveling abroad is the high roaming charges, Google is set to challenge these exorbitant charges by introducing free international roaming.

The Silicon Valley giant is working on creating its own mobile phone service and is in talks with operators like Hutchison Whampoa to allow free roaming to its customers. Google will collaborate with other network operators to use their existing infrastructures to offer its services. The company has said that it will be a small scale network but considering Google’s massive resources, the company might aim for bigger scales in the future.

A tie-up with Hutchison will give Google access to countries like UK, Ireland, Italy, and several other countries. It is said that with this move, the company will force the American telecom companies to offer similar services to their US customers. The telecom firms of US like Verizon and AT&T make a lot of profits but are also known for their dismal services.

The recent advancements in the field of communication which includes voice and video calling through apps, free roaming and other features might be troublesome for the telecom companies. Sooner or later the telecom companies will have to shut down their prime service of voice call and text messaging as internet based apps take over their markets. It will be interesting to see how they manage to stay relevant in the coming future.

April 6, 2015
Now Run Android Apps on Windows and Mac Using Google Chrome

Back in September, Google released a beta project ARC (App Runtime for Chrome) that allowed Android apps to run on Chrome OS. Now the news has surfaced that speaks of its compatibility on every desktop version of Chrome. This means any user running the latest Chrome browser can download and run the Android apps on different platforms like Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux.

As aforementioned, the project is in beta stage and is officially designed for developers only. But one can download the .apk file of any Android app and install it on their desktops. All you need to download is the ARC Welder tool where you can find the official .apk files of all the Android applications from Play Store.

The ARC project is a double benefit initiative targeted at customers and developers alike. Customers can port any Android-powered app to the desktops, developers can test any app by submitting it on ARC. The application to run softwares is based on Android 4.4 KitKat, giving users access to a range of standalone apps like Twitter, Facebook, Facebook Messenger and a wide variety games.

It’s a nice push by Google to make every laptop or Macbook running Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux its platform. Through the project, the internet giant has given folks an easy way to peek into the gigantic Android world and experience it.

April 3, 2015
Google Announces New Low-Cost Chromebooks To Take On Microsoft

Microsoft had recently announced its plans for taking on one of its biggest business rivals, Google. The Redmond-based technology giant had announced that they would be bringing low-cost laptops to target the market of Chromebooks. Google decided to reply back in kind and has now unveiled a series of low-cost Chromebooks to capture the space before Microsoft arrives with its offerings.

The first in the series of new launches is the Asus Chromebook Flip, which comes with a touch screen. It has a 10.1 inch display with a resolution of 1280×800 pixels which can be folded backwards so that you can use it as a tablet. This 2-in-1 notebook will be powered by a Rockchip 3288 processor with four ARM Cortex A17 cores. It offers 16 GB of internal storage and promises 10 hours of battery life.

Asus Chromebook-Flip

Along with the Asus Chromebook Flip, Haier and Hisense have also introduced their Chromebook options which have a dirt cheap price tag. Both the offerings feature 11.6-inch displays with a resolution of 1366×768-pixel. They are powered by ARM Cortex-A17 based processors along with 2 GB RAM. They offer 16 GB of storage space and feature two USB 2.0 ports, HDMI output, and a microSD card slot. They differ only in terms of battery life; the Haier model offer 10 hours while the Hisense model offers 8.5 hours of runtime on a single charge.

Asus Chromebook Flip is priced at $249 (approx Rs. 15,525) while the Haier and Hisense versions will be available for $149 (approx Rs. 9,300). They will be available in the US and may find their way to the Indian shores in the future. With such tempting prices, we can only hope they arrive here sooner than later.

April 1, 2015
Google’s Chromebit is a $100 Portable Dongle That Converts Any Display Into a PC

Recently Google supplemented a new product to its range of devices that is a compressed form of Chromebook. Labelled as Chromebit, the gadget is a tiny HDMI dongle of a size smaller than a candy bar that can turn any connected display to a full-fledged computer.

The internet search major spoke about Chromebit –

The Chromebit is a full computer that will be available for less than $100. It’s the perfect upgrade for an existing desktop and will be really useful for schools and businesses.

The tiny little package is a powerhouse that runs on Google’s Chrome operating system. It features a Rockchip 3288 SoC, an ARM Mali 760 quad-core GPU, along with 2GB of RAM. A 16GB of internal storage space is provided with Chromebit to store important stuff. The quintessential features are also equipped with the fresh product, Bluetooth 4.0 and Wi-Fi 802.11 ac, together with a Smart Ready controller.

The Chromebit supports connectivity through two ports. One is HDMI that allows you to connect the device to a TV or other external display, and the other is USB port that offers it to be plugged into peripherals like keyboard, mouse or any other mobile devices.

The handy PC is under testing as of now, but the company stated that it will come with an ASUS trademark. The product will retail for less than $100, and will be available later this summer in three colour choices – silver, blue and orange.

Google’s Chromebit reminds us of Intel’s Compute Stick that was designed to perform the similar task; except that it was a straight piece with no bends. Chromebit, on the other hand, is slightly curved at the end that gives it a smooth finish.

Besides Chromebit, the tech firm also disclosed two new laptops – The Hisense Chromebook and Haier 11 Chromebook. Each of them are priced at $149 and are available for pre-orders. The notebooks will be available later this year.

April 1, 2015
Google Makes the Gmail App an Integrated Inbox for All Your Email Accounts

Google understands the need of users to maintain several accounts at a time, and has found out a hassle-free solution to help bring them all in one place. Google has announced a Gmail update for Android users that makes Inbox a unified place to access emails from your multiple accounts. Which simply means, whether you have a Yahoo account or an Outlook ID, you can add them all to send and receive messages through the consolidated Gmail app.

The Gmail update holds a new option called ‘All Inboxes’. This option comprises of a list of all your added accounts and one can continue the conversation from different handles through ‘All Inboxes’. This upgrade relieves users from the inconvenience of hopping from one tab to another.

Along with providing a combined Inbox, the internet giant has added a slew of other features too. Like Gmail, Google has added a threaded conversation support to other accounts as well, which keeps the emails in an organized manner. The messages remain stacked at a place as one conversation. Also, the upgrade opts for a smarter search tool. Users can find better results with the improved auto-complete feature which makes their search quicker.

Followed by them are a few other inclusions like more responsive animations and larger attachment previews. A button of ‘Save to Drive’ can be spotted in the update where users can save the files with a single tap.

The official blogpost of Gmail states that the upgrade was made available from yesterday onwards, and Android users can update Gmail to find the changes. Meanwhile, the company hasn’t notified about its roll out for iOS users as of now, but it is expected to arrive soon.

March 31, 2015
Google and Johnson & Johnson Come Together to Build Surgery Assistance Robots

Google is leaving no stone unturned to take humankind into the future. From ruling the internet industry to creating self-driving cars, Google has left its imprints everywhere. Now, the search giant wants to use its technological expertise to advance medical science. Pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson announced its partnership with Google and said that both companies would develop advanced robots to assist surgeons with operation.

For this deal, Google’s Life Science division will be working closely with Ethicon, a medical device making company in Johnson & Johnson family. Google threw light on the collaboration and what can be expected from it with the following comment:

[quote text_size=”small”]

It will help explore how the latest innovations in computer science and advanced imaging and sensors could be integrated into tools that help surgeons as they operate.

[/quote]
Both companies hinted that Ethicon will be responsible for surgical instruments development and Google will deal with data. They will bring together their capabilities, intellectual property and expertise to make an innovative robotic-assisted surgical platform possible.

The advanced technology will help operating room experts to get a better picture of the interior body parts and assist in carrying out a successful operation. A software platform will also be developed that can figure out abnormalities in crucial features like blood vessels, nerves, and other silent diseases that thrive in the body. It will help people in detection of diseases at the primary stage and minimize trauma and scarring and accelerate post-surgical healing.

Google has been actively participating in biotechnology since past few years, and its Life Science division is dedicated to devising measures to benefit the world. A while back, it invested a contact lens that can measure the glucose level in the wearer’s blood. The Silicon Valley giant is becoming a bigger part of our life with each passing day.

March 28, 2015
Google Fibre Service Will Feature Internet-like Tailored Commercial on TV

Television advertisement have remained the same for year. The network control the content as well as the advertisement that go with it and everyone watching the content gets the same ads. Google aims to bring a change to this long followed practice and is planning to make ads more personal and identity focused like they are on the internet. The search giant has launched a new local advertising service for Google Fibre that will bring Internet-like tailored commercials on TV.

The data collected from the set-top boxes informs Google, as well as advertisers about the viewership of a particular ad. Through Google Fiber, advertisers can have a close watch at how many times a particular classified ad has been watched in a particular home. Also, Google will follow its online pricing scheme and will only charge for the number of views an ad receives.

Not only that, Google Fiber feature will gauge at what shows you watch and will throw ads depending on the viewing habits of the individual. This means that while watching the same cricket match your neighbour will receive different advertisements than those on your TV set. The advertisers can also ask Google to stop a particular ad for an individual and shift to another commercial.

The new service will cut down the monopoly of cable operators and network operators who have had the last say in what the consumers would watch and how much the advertisers have to pay for promotions.. You can now say farewell to the annoying promotions of your nearby grocery store or car cleaner and can watch advertisements of your choice like of an upcoming movie trailer or a daily soap. It is a flexible approach and is expected to benefit customers and advertisers alike.

Google hasn’t specifically mentioned the technical bits of the program, but it is expected to function on the same algorithms that govern Google AdWords, Google’s online advertising service. Meanwhile, it is also learnt that Google can sense what you wish to absorb at a definite time. Google Fiber can target ads depending upon the time of the day so as to get maximum effect.

The American multinational firm had launched then service in the Kansas City of Missouri for trial. Google Fiber is touted to provide high speed, gigabit internet connectivity to subscribers. Google is in the process of expanding the service to new cities in the United States.

March 23, 2015
Google Builds a Specialized Tablet to Help Doctors Fight Ebola

Ebola is a lethal disease that has claimed thousands of lives in the African nations. The doctors treating Ebola infected patients are also highly at risk. The doctors attending the Ebola victims have to wear protective gears like a moon suit, along with gloves and masks because of the contagiousness of the disease. Google has also involved itself into the battle against the virus and is doing its bit to help fight the fatal disease. The tech giant has built a tablet that could replace the present medical record keeping system.

Until now, the record-keeping method adopted by the doctors was exhausting. The Ebola fighters have to note down the information on paper and then move to the edge of the medical enclosure with the writing. The medical representative would then shout out the information to the person outside the high-risk zone so that the companion doctor can take down the notes. The paper is then destroyed to limit the virus to the contaminated enclosure itself.

The new tablet designed by Google will help in a major way to record and share information on Ebola. The tablet has a polycarbonate coating and hence, can be dipped in chlorine. The gadget has to be dipped in chlorine for about 10 minutes, which makes it suitable to be used outside the infected area without the moon suit. The specialised Google tablet works on Android and lets doctors send the data wirelessly across the globe right from the high-risk zone.

This tablet technology is extremely significant and can serve as a detector to sense the progression of Ebola virus. Meanwhile, medical experts are planning to modify the technology to fight the upcoming epidemics. Scientist Dr. Eric D. Perakslis from the Department of Biomedical Informatics, Harvard Medical School, said that he is working with MSF to make the technology “open source”. It would help with free sharing of software and hardware designs at large. “You can think of other highly toxic environments, even laboratory environments, where this could really be helpful,” said Perakslis.

The top tech leader has done many contributions to serve the mankind; it also has a charitable arm called Google.org, which is a crisis response team to help the disaster struck people. The new tablet will mark another milestone for the company in terms of innovations that help make lives of people better.

March 21, 2015
TAG Heuer Collaborates with Google, Plots its Way Through the World of Smartwatches

Tag Heuer, the world renowned high-end watch making company, will soon be announcing that it is working on building its own smartwatch. Chief Executive Office, Jean-Claude Biver told Bloomsberg in an interview that the company will be officially making a statement tomorrow about its partnership with Google and Intel. As Switzerland lacks the necessary resources in technology, the partnership with Silicon Valley giants will only benefit the company.

Intel has been signed to supply the processor, while there is no official word on how Google will be of help. It’s an easy assumption to make that the company would be incharge of providing a seamless OS experience, with Android Wear. Tag Heuer has taken us the mammoth responsibility of designing the watch-case and crown. Biver is also suggesting a Tag Heuer smart watch may come with dials, such as an analog watch.

[quote text_size=”small” author=”Stéphane Linder” author_title=”CEO, TAG Heuer”]

I don’t see us taking a big risk unless we find a way to make luxury watches looking like real luxury watches that provide very easy-to-use, smart information that isn’t complicated—and don’t just replicate the mobile phone.

[/quote]

Tag Heuer stated that the craftsmanship of making this particular model will be very different than its traditional watches. Hence, the Research and the Development Business department has been split up into two.

In this age of Smartwatches, traditional Swiss Watch industries might be heading towards extinction. Swatch co-inventor Elmar Mock has said that the Apple Watch might put a lot of pressure on traditional watchmakers in Switzerland, and he anticipates an ice age for the industry.

We could be looking at a luxury Android Wear smart watch. Its availability and price have not been revealed. We will have to wait till tomorrow to find out the answers of these questions.

March 19, 2015
Latest Google Chromecast Update Adds a Super Useful New Feature

The Google Chromecast has given a new meaning to entertainment by allowing us to stream content onto our television sets with minimum difficulty. The only minute problem with this had been, that you could only control the content using your smartphone or laptop, by opening the app you are running on Chromecast and put in the commands like play/pause. But now, for the first time, Google’s Chromecast allows you to pause and play videos using your television’s infrared signals, thanks to the device’s 27946 firmware update. So basically, you can now control Google Chromecast using your TV’s remote.

The device works on HDMI-CEC, the same modus operandi which allows the Chromecast to turn on the Smart TV. This feature was tested with selected applications like WatchESPN, HBO Go, YouTube, Google Play Music.

For this to work, you can check whether your television has HDMI-CEC enabled from the manual, and a remote with a dedicated play/pause button. The HDMI-CEC enabled device, the Chromecast or the TV, can then be controlled using the one remote without any further setting up.

Chromecast already supported HDMI-CEC from day one, but the feature was limited only to switching on/off the television set or switch inputs to cast media. Also the fact that there was no surety whether it would work on all the television sets since not all sets are HDMI-CEC enabled.

March 17, 2015
Google to Help Brands Create Effective Promotional Campaigns On YouTube

Google is the most prominent advertising platform of the internet. With its broad range of offerings, Google provides multiple advertising venues for companies. Google will be debuting its ‘Behind the Scene’ series to showcase the power of branded video content on its YouTube platform. The series will be launched today, with Clean&Clear’s ‘See the Real Me’ campaign, which debuted last year on YouTube. The central idea of ‘Behind the Scene’ series is to showcase the brands and agencies on how to create more gripping video content.

[quote text_size=”small” author=”David Mogensen” author_title=”Head of YouTube Ads Marketing”]

Increasingly we’re hearing from brands that they want to become better content creators on YouTube, but they’re not exactly sure how to do it. We thought instead of telling them how to be better content creators we can show them by highlighting a brand that’s going on the same journey.

[/quote]

This move is targeted at attracting more marketing personal who are focusing on creating branded online content to reach the masses. YouTube is keenly interested to be a beneficiary of the branded content push. The ‘Behind the Scene’ series will be the first of its kind for YouTube. Mogensen said that more of such series could help in educating brands on creating exciting content that strikes a chord with the audience.

Clean&Clear is a Johnson & Johnson skincare owned brand. It launched its ‘See the Real Me’ series on YouTube last year to showcase how real girls, social media influencers and celebrities tackle personal challenges. Clean&Clear produced more than 120 videos and was viewed by almost 30 million viewers.

The ‘Behind the Series’ will include videos on ‘how to create content strategy’, ‘how to spark a conversation with the audience using content’ and ‘how to operationalize content creation’. It will also feature interviews with the executives of Johnson & Johnson and the story of the conceptualization, production and launching of the campaign. This series will also help marketing and advertising students to understand the nitty-gritties of online marketing using the power of YouTube and other social media services.

March 16, 2015
Google Launches a One Stop Online Store For All Its Products

Google, which began as a search engine has over the years, transformed itself into a technology powerhouse with a wide variety of products in its portfolio. On the consumer side, the company offers smartphones, smartwatches, tablets, thermostats and a lot more. To make it easier for the customers to buy their products, the company has launched a new online store called the Google Store.

Google Store will replace Play Store as the address for buying Google products. This new store is dedicated to all hardware offering from Google including accessories for the device. The site is live and active in India, and the products are priced in Indian Rupees.. Just type in store.google.com and keep your cash ready to buy your favourite Google devices.

On the Indian website, you get to buy the Nexus 6 32 GB for Rs.44,000 whereas the 64 GB variant can be bought for Rs. 49,000. The Nexus 9 tablet is available for Rs. 28,900. In the smartphone section, you have the option of buying the LG G Watch for Rs. 14,999 or the Samsung Gear Live for Rs.15,900. Google’s media streaming device, Chromecast is available on the website for Rs. 2,999.

Google might also bring the recently launched Chromebook Pixel to the store in the near future. The present website simply redirects the user to the other online retailers. There are no accessories available on the website right now but Google might add them later.

From the price point of view, there isn’t a lot of difference between the Google Store and the other online stores but you do get the convenience of browsing through all the offerings from Google at once.

March 12, 2015