The latest beta of the Google app adds a share icon to Now On Tap that doubles as a quick way to take and share screenshots of your current screen. While Now on Tap hasn’t been the most useful feature yet, most people will find this to be a very practical and nifty trick.
With Mailbox now decommissioned, the third party Android email app scene is a little more bleak than it was before. One company hoping to bring us a little joy is Yahoo. It recently updated its Yahoo Mail app to version 5.1.0 which (among other things) now includes support for Gmail. With it being an Android app, you’d assume that it should have Gmail compatibility from the outset. But apparently, Yahoo didn’t see it that way.
Gmail support is added to the pre-existing list of providers, including Outlook, AOL and Yahoo mail accounts. What’s more, you can search your inbox and archive messages just as you would with any good Google-supporting email client. Along with the ability to connect with Gmail accounts, version 5.1.0 also brings the option to select all messages in any individual folder for mass-deleting and moving. They’ve also made it easier to access different accounts and settings.
Here’s the change log posted to the Yahoo Mail Play Store page:
5.1.0:– Connect Gmail mailboxes to read, organize, search and respond to your Gmail messages within the Yahoo Mail app– Select all messages in a specific folder on your device – just tap on the select all icon in the upper-left corner when moving or deleting multiple messagesInterface improvements for account switching, settings, touch targets, and message list readability– TalkBack accessibility improvements– Performance enhancements
Google today has updated the Android Wear companion app to version 1.4.0.2470307.gms and while it’s a minor update, it brings back one feature that many have been missing since version 1.4 was released last month…
Google today has pushed a beefy update to its Play Movies & TV app on iOS that bumps it to version 2.0.7910 and brings several new features. The update gives the app a refreshed interface, AirPlay support, recommendations, and more.
While Google has shifted its focus to Android Pay for contactless payments, Google Wallet has needed to reinvent itself somewhat as a peer-to-peer payment system. With the latest update, it’s become a whole lot easier to send money to your friends, family and contacts.
From today, the updated app on both iOS and Android will let you send money to anyone on your contact list, even if you don’t have their email address. You can send money to them using their phone number, and it’s secure and fast.
Yahoo today released a new “Yahoo Video Guide” app for mobile devices that acts as one central location for users to find content from across a long list of competitive video services and networks.
The app allows users to search from one place and then offers links to buy or start streaming the content in other apps like Amazon, Netflix, HBO GO, and many others. So you’ll still need to be a subscriber, have the app downloaded, and or purchase the content once the Yahoo Video Guide app redirects you.
And while you can just search for something you’re looking for, the app also has a Mood Picker feature that lets users pick a from GIFs to search through curated lists.
Yahoo of course has its own Yahoo Screen app for mobile devices, but it also links to content on iTunes, Amazon Video, Hulu, Netflix, HBO GO, ABC, FOX, CBS, NBC, Xfinity, YouTube, A&E, BET, Cartoon Network, Cinemax, Comedy Central, Disney, Food Network, and others. In total it says it’s promoting over 30 video services through the new Video Guide app.
The Yahoo Video Guide Android app is available to download for free in the US.
Back at Google’s big event in September, the company announced a new feature destined for Google Photos later this year: Shared Albums. This lets you invite friends and family to view albums that you create and add photos to, and you can optionally allow them to also add photos to these shared albums. As promised, Google will begin rolling out its new Shared Albums feature for Google Photos starting today.
Google has highlighted new features for Google Drive apps today that it says make it easier to search for files on Android, iOS, and web.
Among the improvements to search in the app, you’ll now be able to narrow your search by file type and open advanced search from the search box. For iOS specifically, users can now get quick access to recent files and search from the Home screen icon using 3D Touch and the ability to search from iOS’s Spotlight feature.
Here’s a full list of improvements courtesy of Google:
Google says the improvements for Drive will roll out to the Android and iOS apps over the coming weeks.
Having announced its intention to do so earlier this year, Google is now rolling out its up-t0-6 person family plan for its popular music streaming service. Starting today, you can sign up to the Google Play Music family plan for $14.99 per month and you and your family can listen to as much music as you like without ads. Over the next few days, Android devices in the US, Canada, UK, Australia, France and Germany should see the option to sign up become available in the Play Music app.
Microsoft has been offering the Android version of its intelligent assistant Cortana as a small-scale beta since last month, and it’s now ready to go live. Engadget notes that it just hit Google Play.
Don’t expect it to match Google Now for functionality, however – with Google’s own assistant deeply embedded into Android and Cortana a mere app, it will have limited capabilities, but you can at least see how it compares when it comes to answering questions …
Just when you thought Pushbullet couldn’t get more useful, the company has updated its popular cross-platform app to include remote file browsing. With the new update you’ll be able to access files on your phone from your computer, or vice-versa, even if you don’t have one of the devices with you. It’s a pretty great feature if you’re known to accidentally leave your phone at home, or leave a file on your work computer that you need at home…
Update: Just like the multiple account support that disappeared mere hours after it appeared, this awesome 3D Touch feature is now gone.
Instagram for iOS has had 3D Touch features for quite a while, but it looks like the Instagram team wanted to experiment with bringing some of these to Android as well. While the latest version for Android obviously doesn’t take advantage of force sensitive hardware (which doesn’t really exist of this side of the mobile space anyway), it does add a nifty new pop up for quickly liking, commenting, and sharing posts…
Today Google Calendar for both Android and iOS gains a handy new Reminders feature that works alongside the app’s to-dos feature.
With the Reminders feature, users will be able to keep track of to-do lists across Google platforms including Inbox, Google Keep, Google Now, and Calendar.
Here’s how the new reminders work:
You might already create calendar entries to remind you to call the doctor or pick up groceries on the way home. But while those entries come and go, Reminders stick with you over time so you can track them until they are actually done. If a Reminder isn’t completed, it will appear at the top of your Calendar the next day. And the next. When you do finally call the doctor or pick up those necessities, just swipe the Reminder away … and you’re onto the next to-do.
And since the reminders work across Google apps, you can create them from Inbox, Google Keep, Calendar, and even using Google Now voice commands: “Ok Google, remind me to buy birthday candles.”
The new Reminders feature for Calendar on Android and iOS is rolling out this week. Google says it will come to the web apps in the near future. The updated Google Calendar app for iOS also adds 3D Touch to create events or reminders.
In past years, Google just highlighted the best apps in their end of the year list. But to demonstrate the content store’s shift into more than just apps, other forms of entertainment like music and movies are getting their own section in the Play Store’s Best of 2015 this year.
Google is out today with an interesting new app for VR fans called Cardboard Camera for Android. The new camera app lets users shoot their very own virtual reality photos right from a smartphone. Simply launch the app, start shooting a photo and pan in a circular motion like you’re shooting a panorama image, and you’re set.
Then throw your phone in a Google Cardboard virtual reality viewer and you can experience the immersive shot as if you were back in the moment, adding a new dimension to still images.
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Android Police spotted that WhatsApp is testing a new version of the app containing scores of new emojis in line with the web version and iPhone app.
There are new facial expressions for hugs, upside down smiles, dollar signs, rolling eyes, nerds, and extreme sadness, among others. There is a new sign of the horns gesture that joins the previously added vulcan (Spock) salute and raised middle finger. Family emojis have been extended with the addition of plenty of LGBT choices. Among other novelties, the nature tab sees a turkey, shamrock, spider, unicorn; the food tab has a popcorn box, popped champagne bottle, taco, burrito, hot dog; and sports/activities get their separate tab and now include racing cars, medals, ice skating, volleyball, weightlifting, and a quirky levitating man in a business suit.
The emojis have also been reorganized – so if you can no longer find the hearts, that’s because they’ve moved from faces to symbols.
If you’re too impatient to wait for the new version to hit the Play Store, you can download it today …
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Update 2: And they’re back!
Update: Uh oh. Looks like they have disappeared from the Play Store.
Google has slowly been moving many of its in-house built stock apps to the Play Store for quite some time now, and today two more apps were added to that list. Starting now, you’ll be able to download and update both the stock Dialer app and the Google Contacts app via their Play Store listings…
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Google today has updated its Google Admin mobile app with a handful of enhancements that admins will greatly appreciate. The update makes it much easier to manage users and groups, further reducing the necessity for admins to always be near a full-fledged computer.
The first new feature is the ability to import a contact from their contact list and have all of that user’s information be auto-filled into the “Add user” form in the Admin mobile application. The information can then be edited if needed, but it makes it much easier to quickly add new users to your team.
The second major new feature is the ability to quickly change a user’s role in a group and to more easily remove them all together. Now when you tap on the member of a group, you’ll see to new options to quickly “Change Role” of a member or “Remove Member” with just a few taps.
The update to the Google Admin app on Android is rolling out now to users. The latest version is available on the Play Store now.
• Integration with your Contacts App – Create new users by importing your existing contacts directly from the App.• Better Group membership management – Quickly change a member’s role or remove them from the group.• Bug fixes – Resolved issues related to app crashes and minor UI elements.
According to one Reddit user, Google is now seemingly beginning to allow users to part-pay for items using their Google Play Store credit. Previously, if you didn’t have enough credit to cover the entire cost of a download, you couldn’t use it. It’s particularly frustrating if an app or download is only a few cents more than what’s in your balance. If you don’t have enough, it usually defaults to your registered credit card to pay the full amount, leaving your Google Play balance untouched.
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A few weeks ago we noticed that Google has started testing pre-release versions of Chrome through Apple’s TestFlight beta distribution service, and today the version in testing then has been released to everyone through the App Store. The latest version of Chrome for iOS takes advantage of Apple’s new pressure sensitive iPhone 6s displays and offers even more hardware keyboard shortcuts that will benefit iPad users.
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Google has today released a new app called “Arts & Culture,” but it’s pretty much the most disappointing app to come from the Mountain View company in quite some time. Actually, I don’t really know why it exists. It’s just a Chrome shortcut.
Yes, really. If you don’t want to download this app from Google Play, you can simply head over to the Google Cultural Institute website on your Android phone and add a shortcut to your home screen.
As you can see for yourself on the Play Store listing, the new app comes in at just 52KB. Once you open the app and navigate around, you quickly find out that it’s not a native app — the hamburger menu, for instance, is a laggy mess. Moving around the content found within the app (which is exactly the same content you can find at the Cultural Institute website) is not really enjoyable at all.
Ranting aside, you can grab the app for free on the Play Store.
Google today has updated its Drive app on iOS with a handful of notable new features and enhancements. First off, today’s update to Drive, which bumps the app to version 4.4, adds 3D Touch support for iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus users. Now, pushing with more pressure on the Drive app icon will bring up two options, one to quickly upload photos and another to quickly search the contents of your Drive.
Google announced today that it’s adding “guest access” to Hangouts, allowing users without Google accounts to join a Hangouts video call.
Google notes that the feature is something that has been highly requested by businesses, giving them an option to easily invite clients and others that may not already be hooked into Google’s ecosystem.
Previously inviting users without Google accounts to a video call would prompt them to create one before joining. With today’s changes, non-Google account holders can join a chat straight from a Google Calendar invite by only entering their name:
Say you’re a business about to talk through new product plans with your supplier, and you decide it’d be great to also get the thoughts of a key customer. No problem. Invite your external guests with Google Calendar… They click a link in the event description and fill in their name
With the update, Google notes joining video calls are now one click away and won’t require filling out forms or creating accounts. The feature is available now for users joining Hangouts through a web browser.
Google today is rolling out an update to its iOS app that brings the app to version 10.0 and includes a handful of visual changes. With today’s update, the voice search feature has been redesigned to be more inline with Google’s Material Design aesthetic, while the Google Now cards in the app are now organized in a much more straightforward way.