Messaging apps are among the most important — and indeed most used — by millions and millions of users every day, so it is only logical for them to implement new features as they evolve.
WhatsApp, despite being used by over a billion users, has remained a fairly simplistic chat app over the years, but things seem to be changing…
The Play Store is adding a few features for both developers and users. Betas are now easier to find and join from the Play Store with Google even highlighting beta apps in a new Early Access section. The store also has new smart collections for tasks that require a combination of apps.
After first planning to launch the app during Google I/O 2015 and changing its mind at the last minute, Google has finally launched Voice Access in beta, a new accessibility app that allows users to control their phone using their voice. With Voice Access, you can use a wide variety of voice commands like “open Chrome” to bring up the browser or “go home” to go to the home screen…
Nova Launcher is easily one of the best launchers available for Android right now. That’s mostly thanks to the fact that you can change virtually any part of the Android user interface. Whether you want to download custom icon packs, change their size, change the home screen, folder or app drawer layout, it can do virtually anything. And the latest beta version adds a couple of new, welcome additions.
Google is today showing off redesigned apps for its AdWords advertising service that it says bring a completely reimagined experience based on user feedback.
After announcing a deal in September to produce a Pokémon Go games with Nintendo and Alphabet-owned Niantic, the Pokémon people are today showing a little more about how gameplay will work and giving us a first look at the title coming to both Android and iOS devices.
The game uses augmented reality features to blend real world objects and locations with the gameplay, and the company today gave the run down and a look at how exactly that will work:
Update: f.lux is now available in the Play Store.
There are many apps that change the color temperature of a screen throughout the day. Many of these apps claim to help users sleep by limiting exposure to blue light at night that can distort the natural circadian rhythm. One of the first and most well-known entrants to this market is f.lux. They have finally released a beta for Android and it is available for testing.
The first Android N dev preview just dropped earlier today, and to say that Google’s launch timing surprised us is something of an understatement. Still, we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to get it installed on our devices and see what’s what in the next version of Android.
Today marked the release of the first Android N developer preview, and factory images are now available if you want to install the update on your device. If you’re anything like me, though, you would rather not completely wipe your daily driver (Nexus 6P, in my case), just to get some hands-on time with some buggy software. That’s why we’ve compiled this huge list of new features and a gallery of Android N screenshots for your perusal…
Update: The beta version of Remix OS 2.0 is now available to download from their site.
Remix OS 2.0 is a full desktop operating system that runs Android apps and is easy to install on Macs and PCs. Remix OS will be graduating into beta on March 1st and with it adds support for older computers with 32-bit processors, dual-booting, and OTA updates.
Chrome on Mac, Window, and Linux is being updated this week to version 48. The latest update contains the usual bug fixes and improvements for the desktop browser, but mobile devices will see the bulk of the improvements. Future updates to Chrome, we’ve learned, will bring a new compression algorithm that will help the browser load faster pages and use less power on all platforms.
If you’re a developer and you use Android Studio in any capacity, you might be happy to hear that Google has today launched Android Studio 1.5 in beta. Google says that the beta release isn’t that much different than Preview 2 (except a few bug fixes, of course), and it’s worth mentioning that Preview 2 wasn’t all that different than Preview 1.
You can update your current 1.4 installation to 1.5 beta by using the built-in patch mechanism, Google says, but you may not want to do that as it will completely replace your stable installation with a potentially less-reliable beta version. If you download from the Preview 2 page, you can keep 1.4 and 1.5 installed side by side — which might be best option regardless.
Google is releasing the beta of Chrome 47 today that introduces as number of new features across platforms including new splash screens for Android web apps, improved management for push notifications on the desktop, enhanced multitasking and more.
For the new splash screens, developers will be able to take advantage of splash screens when their web apps are launched from an icon saved on the homescreen. Google points out that “apps can take a few seconds to load” and presenting a nice looking splash screen will “allow apps to show something meaningful to users as the app loads, improving perceived performance” for users.
In addition, Chrome 47 beta brings an improved push notification experience for desktop users on Mac, Linux, Chrome OS and Windows by introducing auto dismissing notifications:
“Sites such as social media or email can generate a large number of push notifications that take up screen space and aren’t particularly relevant unless viewed soon after posting. The new version of Chrome now allows developers to configure automatic dismissal of desktop notifications, improving the experience for these kinds of notifications. Sites can set NotificationOptions.requireInteraction to indicate the notification should remain onscreen until the user dismisses it.”
And lastly, the 47 beta release brings what Google refers to as “Cooperative multitasking with requestIdleCallback()”, something developers can take advantage of to improve performance by allowing apps to run during “idle time” when resources aren’t being used by other tasks.
Google has more info on the release here.
In case you’re uninitiated in third party launchers (which you shouldn’t be, considering Cam’s recent deep dive), Nova Launcher is definitely one of the most popular. The latest version of Nova Launcher beta is now available, and of the many new features that this version brings, the most notable is a new tweak allowing the normalization of icon sizes…
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Chrome Beta version 45 for Android is rolling out today (Play Store link) and includes some nice interface tweaks as well as one addition that was previously announced at Google’s I/O developer conference back in May. Chrome Beta is a build of the Chrome browser which includes features and changes that are almost, but not quite, ready for use by the masses. Showing up in the Beta build of the browser is a good indicator that a feature or adjustment will soon reach those masses, so it’s always interesting to see what’s been added.
Up until today, testing out an Android app that’s in beta has required going through a non-intuitive process that includes joining a group on Google+ (or Google Groups) and then clicking a special Play Store link which typically doesn’t even work until a few minutes after you join the associated group (which can lead people to thinking that something isn’t working). It’s weird and inelegant, so Google has just announced two new (easier) ways through which developers can grant users access to their betas.
Sony has invited Xperia Z3 owners in Sweden to test a new Android concept software. The company plans to run the group testing between July 27th and September 13th, but doesn’t reveal any specifics about the particular software, what it’s going to look like or whether or not it’ll eventually become publicly available.
It would seem Sony is working on a fresh, new look for its own bespoke Android UI, and wants to get real-life feedback and usage/crash statistics from real people. Those signing up are warned that the process will require a complete wipe of their phones’ personal settings, data and content. The trial itself is limited. Only Xperia Z3 owners with Windows PCs in Sweden can sign up. No other device will work, and customers from other countries won’t be able to join in either.
“‘Sony’s Android™ concept’ is a new initiative for Sony users that have a passion for innovation and the latest technology. As a Sony user you have the opportunity to trial a new concept Android™ software build for Xperia Z3. The initiative is all about letting you – our users – evaluate the software, so we can acquire feedback to improve the experience based on what you like and what you don’t.”
If you fit all the criteria, you can apply to join the program here.
VLC pushed a major cross-platform release in February, and at that point the company’s Android app finally left beta for the first time. VLC for Android has definitely been getting a lot of attention since then, though, and version 1.5 — which packs some notable improvements — was released today.
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With Google having released the second version of its developer preview for Android M, we thought it would be useful to take you through a visual tour of some of the changes …
After first announcing a handful of new features and redesigned apps last month for iOS users, today most of those features are arriving for the Spotify beta for Android ahead of a public release. The highlight changes include Spotify’s new Running feature that automatically detects an ideal tempo to creates playlist based on your running pace, more content, and a redesigned Now start page.
The update, version 3.1, also brings audio and video shows that were first introduced to web and iOS users last month in addition to other new content and UI tweaks throughout the app. The new content includes videos and podcasts from ABC, BBC, Comedy Central, Condé Nast Entertainment, ESPN, Fusion, Maker Studios, NBC, TED, Vice News, and more.
The new features are currently only available to users in the US, UK, Sweden and Germany, and will likely roll out to all users beyond Spotify’s beta channel in the near future.
(via AndroidPolice)
Google has been working with Adobe to improve battery life drain caused by Flash and today flipped the switch on a new Chrome feature that does exactly that. The new feature aims to detect Flash on a webpage that is actually important to the main content and “intelligently pause content” that isn’t as important. The result is to hopefully make the web experience with Flash more power efficient to improve battery life on your laptop. Here’s how it works:
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We told you back in March when the first Material-redesigned beta of Nova Launcher came out, but now Kevin Barry, the app launcher’s creator, has officially released the new Nova Launcher on its stable channel…
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Today Google released a new Chrome Dev app, a way for developers to access the latest Chrome builds and experimental features before they’re ready for beta and public releases.
Google has always had a developer release channel for Chrome, allowing devs to get access to the latest builds and features even before regular users are encouraged to start testing through its beta and public release channels. Previously the dev channel was only for Windows, Mac, Linux, and Chrome OS, but today the company is bringing it to Android.
