Google released some Plus numbers today for the first time in a while. While Facebook has surpassed 1 billion active users, Google said its users number about half that and that is only for activations. Meanwhile, less than half of those people (235 million) are actually using the service (+1′ing apps in Google Play, hanging out in Gmail, writing reviews in Maps, etc.). Who is using the stream? Just 135 million— or 27 percent of the people Google has activated.

More than 500 million people have upgraded, 235 million are active across Google (+1′ing apps in Google Play, hanging out in Gmail, writing reviews in Maps…), and 135 million are active in just the stream.

I have to say from a personal standpoint that there was a lot of excitement and new features surrounding the launch of Google Plus, but it feels like the excitement is stagnating somewhat as Google struggles to bring itself up to feature parity with Facebook. Of particular interest is getting websites integrated into Google Plus like Facebook and Twitter with automatic feeds.

Still, 135 million users is a pretty high number for such a young service. Read more

Google just updated the Google Search app for Android today, and the most notable new feature is very Passbook-eque, as it can now pull up boarding passes via email and use QR codes for checking into airport terminals.

The check-in feature will apparently launch shortly for United Airlines, with more to come soon. Meanwhile, the updated app also includes more recommendations for things nearby, as well as weather data, summaries for walking and biking activity, etc. It even features new voice actions for posting to Google+, finding music, or scanning barcodes.

According to Google on the official Android blog, the update is especially useful when traveling during the holiday season:

Before you even leave your house, Google Now will tell you what the weather will be like at your destination (just in time to make sure you remember to pack those mittens). At the airport, your boarding pass is automatically pulled up, helping you breeze through to the gate (launching shortly for United Airlines, with more to come). And once you’ve arrived at your destination, Google Now can help you uncover some great activities, by showing you events happening around you, suggesting websites for you to explore as you research things to do, or allowing you to learn more about specific pieces while you’re at a museum (using Google Goggles).

The update is available now for devices running Android 4.1 Jelly Bean or up. Check out the full changelog from Google Play below:

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Visible Measures: The Top 10 Most Viral Tech Ads of 2012

Google and Samsung grabbed six out of 10 spots in a new top 10 list by video analytics firm Visible Measures that named the most viral tech ads of 2012.

Visible Measures compiled the list using its “True Reach methodology,” which appears to simply count views. Samsung debuted at No. 1 with over 71 million views for “Galaxy S III”. Visible Measures called the video “a satirical campaign mocking Apple and its fans.” Meanwhile, Google scored roughly 21 million views at No. 5 for its “Project Glass” teaser ad.

According Visible Measures, Samsung generated over 240 million views from campaign launches in 2012:

[For Samsung—] A 580% increase over 2011, and averaged 9.2 million views per campaign, a jump of nearly 400%. Google and Microsoft also saw triple digit increases in overall brand performance in video in 2012.

Apple, LG, Microsoft, Intel/Toshiba also made the cut. The entire list is above, and the Google and Samsung videos are embedded below.

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Google is now allowing customers of the Google Apps service to distribute internal applications via a new channel in the Google Play store to employees. Google says that this new feature makes it easier than ever to distribute apps to employees. Employees are said to simply have to login to the Play channel with their Google Apps login information and the company apps will be ready to download.

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