Chance currently writes for both 9to5Google and 9to5Mac, in addition to 9to5Toys. He has previously written for several other online publications. He uses a Nexus 5, iPhone 5s, iPad Air, Hackintosh, and Macbook Air.
Google’s Francois Beaufort has revealed in a post on Google+ that Chrome OS users can now run Linux on their machines in a desktop window. This means that developers don’t have to switch back and forth between operating systems, but rather can run them side by side. This capability is made possible by the Crouton Chrome extension, which is available on the Chrome Web Store for free.
Update: Sony and Google have officially announced that “The Interview” will be available on YouTube, Google Play, and Xbox Video today, December 24th, at 1PM Eastern. The film will cost $5.99 to rent or $14.99 to own.
Google had the following to say in a statement:
Last Wednesday Sony began contacting a number of companies, including Google, to ask if we’d be able to make their movie, “The Interview,” available online. We’d had a similar thought and were eager to help—though given everything that’s happened, the security implications were very much at the front of our minds.
Of course it was tempting to hope that something else would happen to ensure this movie saw the light of day. But after discussing all the issues, Sony and Google agreed that we could not sit on the sidelines and allow a handful of people to determine the limits of free speech in another country (however silly the content might be).
So starting at 10 a.m. PST in the U.S., you can rent or buy “The Interview” on Google Play and YouTube Movies. It will also be available to Xbox Video customers and via www.seetheinterview.com.
Original report below:
Google today has updated its Play Store guidelines with yet another restriction on what developers can put in the descriptions of their apps. With today’s update, developers are now forbidden to include user testimonials in their app’s description. Any developer who breaks this rule could see the app in question pulled (via Android Police).
Back in November, we saw a handful of screenshots from an HTC One M8 leak, showing what was believed to be Android 5.0 Lollipop and HTC Sense 6.0 running on the device. This weekend, notorious HTC leaker LlabTooFeR has revealed even more images of the Android 5.0 + Sense 6.0 combination.
To celebrate the holiday season, Lionsgate is offering users of select Samsung devices free downloads of two popular movies. Users of the Galaxy Tab S, Galaxy Note Pro, Galaxy Tab Pro, Galaxy S4, Galaxy S5, and Galaxy Note 3 can download The Hunger Games movie and its sequel Catching Fire for totally free via the Lionsgate Android app.
Google, as part of its Update Wednesday regiment, has started rolling out a new version of its Inbox app on Android. Inbox is Google’s latest attempt at making it easier to manage email. The app initially launched back in October and is still accessible by invite-only. Today’s update to Inbox adds a handful of notable features:
Google this evening has announced that Play Store gift cards are now available in six new European countries. Previously these countries were listed as coming soon, but Google has since updated its support page for Play Store gift cards to announce that they are now available.
One area in which Google Play Music has continually been lacking is its support for listeners outside of the United States. International use with Google Play Music got a little better tonight, however, as Google has revealed that it is bringing its Songza-powered automated playlist generation feature to listeners in the UK (via TechCrunch).
Netflix announced in a blog post this evening that it is pushing out an update to its Android app with a handful of new features. First off, the update introduces a new “Social Recommendation” capability, which has been available on iOS for some time now. This feature allows users to easily and privately recommend shows that they love to friends and family, right from an Android device.
Google today announced that it is sunsetting the Google Earth API. The company says its reasoning for shutting the API is that both Firefox and its own Chrome browser are removing support for Netscape Plugin Application Programming Interface plugins due to security reasons. A lack of cross-platform support, specifically on mobile devices, also contributed to the decision to shutter the Earth API.
With the Nexus 6 now on the market, Google today has stopped offering the Nexus 5 in red and white, leaving only a black variant on the Play Store. Google is obviously looking to cut down its production of the Nexus 5 and this is one of the easiest ways to do so while continuing to offer the device for those who don’t want the monstrosity that is the Nexus 6 (via Android Police).
Google, without any sort of announcement or waning, has released a new app to the Play Store this evening called “Live Channels for Android TV.” The app isn’t compatible with any current phone or tablet running Android, but rather with Android TV powered devices. The app is meant to offer an interface with which users can navigate live TV channels. It is currently only compatible with the Nexus Player.
Google last week released Android 5.0.1 to AOSP (Android Open Source Project) and published factory images for WiFi-only Nexus devices, including the Nexus 7, Nexus 9, and Nexus 10. Today, however, Google has posted the factory images for Android 5.0.1 on the Nexus 6 and Nexus 4. The factory images are labeled as build LRX22C.
Amazon this evening has released a relatively major update to its Kindle app on Android. The update bumps the app to version 4.8 and packs a handful of notable new features, some of which have been available on the iOS side of things for over two years now.
TorrentFreak is reporting that Google has removed several Pirate Bay apps from the Play Store today after strong pressure from copyright holders. Google sent an email to a handful of developers, informing them that their apps were being removed from the Play Store. The email explains why the apps were removed, citing violation of the intellectual property portion of the Google Play Store Content Policy.
“REASON FOR REMOVAL: Violation of the intellectual property and impersonation or deceptive behavior provisions of the Content Policy. Please refer to the IP infringement and impersonation policy help article for more information.”
The apps removed include The Pirate Bay Proxy, The Pirate Bay Premium, The Pirate Bay Mirror, and PirateApp…
Update: Versi has also now confirmed that the One M7 Google Play Edition’s update will begin to rollout, as well.
After a few weeks of delays and last-minute issues with Google, HTC this evening has announced that it will begin rolling out Android 5.0 Lollipop to the Google Play Edition HTC One M8 tomorrow. In a post on Twitter, HTC’s VP of Product Management Mo Versi confirmed that the update will begin to rollout tomorrow, December 5th at 12PM PT/3PM ET.
Earlier this week, Motorola unveiled a pair of new ads for its Moto 360 featuring burittos, a pianist, and a dude named Chad. The ads mocked the luxury watch industry and its traditional commercial format. Today, Motorola continued its Moto 360 advertising with two more new videos. One is titled “Golf,” and the other “Holiday.”
A day after rolling out updates to nearly every app it makes, Google this afternoon has announced an update to the Play Store itself. In a post on Google+, Google employee Krill Grouchnikov announced the update, saying that it’s coming soon to Android devices everywhere. The update makes several user interface tweaks for both pre-Lollipop devices and ones on Lollipop. It bumps the app to version 5.1.
When Google released its Android distribution numbers for December earlier this week, Lollipop was notably missing from the chart as it had not gained enough of the market to appear. In a move that will slowly start to get Lollipop onto more devices, however, Samsung this evening has started to rollout its Lollipop update to the Galaxy S5. At this point, though, the update is only rolling out to the Poland Galaxy S5 variant (via SamMobile).
While Google+ may not always get the attention it deserves, Google this evening has announced a useful new feature for its users. In a post on the social network, Google employee Dennis Troper announced that users can now pin posts to the top of their profiles and pages.
Google’s Update Wednesday regiment is in full effect this afternoon as the company has rolled out updates to a handful of its Android apps. While many of the updates contain merely bug fixes, several are somewhat notable.
Earlier this year, a report emerged claiming that Google was hard at work making its services more appropriate and accessible for children. The report noted that the company wanted to overhaul its online products to allow children to legally use them. USA Today has now published a new report, confirming the rumors earlier this year regarding specific services catered to young kids. Google VP of Engineering Pavni Diwanji told the news outlet that Google is currently working on versions of its most popular products, such as Search and YouTube, for kids aged 12 and under.
Google this evening has pushed out an updated build of Android Lollipop to the Android Open Source Project. Albeit a minor version number increase, Android 5.0.1 is now showing up in AOSP, carrying the build number LRX22C. While it’s unclear exactly what has changed in this build from the initial Android 5.0 release, we don’t expect too many noticeable additions, with most of the improvements likely coming in the form of under-the-hood bug fixes.
Motorola today revealed a pair of new commercials for its Moto 360. The first commercial, entitled “Businessman” starts out with close-up shots of the Moto 360, highlighting the device’s “craftsmanship” and “style.” It then, however, cuts to a notification for a takeout order of burritos being on its way from Eat24.