As promised yesterday, Google has begun rolling out a Google Play services update to users that should fix the reported Wi-Fi slowdowns and outages cause by Chromecast built-in devices (Google Homes, Android TVs, Chromecasts, etc.). In case it hasn’t reached your device yet, you can download the update below…
Earlier this week, Google announced that it was merging Android Pay and Google Wallet. The new Google Pay brand is simpler and centralizes the company’s payment services for consumers. At the time, the company noted a rollout in the “coming weeks,” with the first signs of it now going live.
Back in September, a Googler noted that the “Check for update” button on Pixel and Nexus devices would work to offer any available OTAs for download. This has clearly not been the case in recent months, but it will finally work again in 2018.
One of the main reasons I love Google’s Pixel 2 and specifically the Pixel 2 XL is the battery life. These phones have some serious endurance, but a recent update seems to have messed that up a bit.
A couple of months ago it was discovered that an update broke the ability to power a Chromecast with a smartphone’s hotspot. While that seems like a minor thing, it annoyed quite a few customers. Recently, an update to Google Play Services finally fixed this problem, restoring the ability to use Google’s streaming device on a hotspot.
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At I/O 2017, Google announced an upcoming revamp to its Nearby API that powers the Bluetooth beacons that are increasingly found in stores to serve deals and other notifications. Version 2.0 of the Nearby Connections API is now available to provide a “fully offline, high bandwidth peer to peer device communication.”
Ever since the release of the HTC Dream back in 2008, Android has been growing steadily. Over the weekend, the platform achieved a pretty major milestone when Google Play Services crossed 5 billion downloads on the Google Play Store.
Announced at I/O 2017, Google Play Protect is essentially a rebrand of the company’s existing suite of security services for Android devices. In a statement, Google notes that it is beginning to rollout today in the Play Services app and coming soon to the Play Store.
With Developer Preview 4, Android Things added support for the Google Assistant SDK on all certified boards. Today, the preview is getting a minor update to 4.1, which brings an Internet of Things variant of Google Play Services.
CAPTCHAs are a particular nuisance on the web, and even more so on mobile devices with smaller displays to read and type. However, they are a necessary annoyance, with Google now bringing it to Android as part of Play Services.
Tethering your various devices to your phone to get connected to the internet is a common use case for many people these days, but the experience in getting it set up definitely has room for improvement. Now, there’s a new feature rolling out through a Google Play Services update (it seems to be version 10.2 in this case) that will let you tether your devices to a hotspot hosted on your phone with just a single tap…
If you’re using Google’s latest software, Android 7.1, you may have noticed that Google removed the button to check for new system updates. However, that button is coming back with the latest update to Google Play Services.
Allo’s launch very much came and went, but not before introducing a very nifty — or depending on how you look at it, annoying — feature. App Preview Messaging allows those who don’t use Allo to send replies when messaged by someone from the app. Google is now opening up the Google Play Services feature and letting other messaging apps implement it.
With the way security currently works, Google alerts users of new sign-ins to their account via email. The measure is a means of keeping users secure by informing them of what’s happening with their accounts in real-time. Starting today, users will be alerted of new sign-ins through notifications sent directly to their Android device.
Announced last August, the Mobile Vision API allows app developers to detect faces in images and video. The API was briefly removed, however, and today it makes a return as part of Google Play Services 9.2. A new Text API has also been added and will give developers access to optical character recognition.
One of Google’s approaches to the Internet of Things involves placing low-energy Bluetooth beacons that can communicate with devices. Google is announcing new partners today who have updated Android apps that can talk to beacons placed in stores, museums, and airports.
According to a report by Tech.Sina, Google will finally bring its services in to China. Lenovo chief, Chen Xudong claims Google is on track to bring its Play Services to the nation at some point in 2016, and that its desire to do so isn’t a secret. Google wants its services back in China, but has faced strong opposition from the government in the past, heavily restricting its presence there.
While Android has long been the dominant smartphone platform in China, Google’s presence there is still very limited. In fact, Google Play Services are practically non-existent. Before the Nexus 6P was built, it was rumored by a reliable publication that Google had chosen Huawei specifically because of its influence in China. With Huawei being a Chinese brand, and the biggest seller of smartphones in the country, its influence is huge. What’s more, Google also recently partnered with (and took a minor stake in) Mobvoi, one of the most widely-used and advanced Chinese AI and voice recognition companies.
Clearly, with Android being the most widely-used smartphone OS in China, Play Services aren’t required or critical to the platform’s success. Bringing Play Services in to China would mostly be an effort to help end fragmentation in a country where multiple app stores exist for Android.
No specific timeframe was given in terms of when we might see Google Play back in China. One can only assume getting the service approved takes multiple jumps over political hurdles and cutting through endless miles of red tape. We’ll keep you updated when/if there’s any more to share on the issue.
With the latest version of Google Play services rolled out, the Android Developers blog is detailing what new features this update brings. Version 8.4 introduces an easier way for users to share their favorite apps, a more accurate way to determine location, and new APIs for fitness data.
Google has updated its Play Services to allow developers to make use of some very useful new enhancements to the overall experience of using Android. Google Play Services 8.3 includes updates to the way users sign in to apps, as well as new functionality for app invites, wearable data layer APIs and improvements to location services…
If you’ve been waiting patiently to get your grubby hands on Android Pay, it looks like your time is coming. While it’s not exactly functional quite yet, the latest version of Google Play Services — version 8.1 — includes most of the Android Pay infrastructure baked in. You can launch a lot of the functionality, but as of this writing, setting up your credit cards is going to fail before you get a chance to use them…
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Speaking to Chinese media, He Gang, the head of Huawei’s mobile division, has said that the launch of the company’s first smartwatch, called Huawei Watch, has been delayed until at least September or October, pushing its launch to the latter half of the year. The Huawei Watch was unveiled back at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona with the company having said at the time that they were planning for a launch sometime “around the middle of the year.”
The delay can largely be attributed to “incompatibility issues with Android Wear,” according to the reports. In other words, Google Play services being unavailable in China due to strains between the Mountain View company and the People’s Republic of China has meant that Huawei has to build its own smartwatch services to match those built and offered by Google.
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Google’s Update Wednesday routine is in full swing today with a variety of updates rolling out to the company’s apps. Earlier today, Chrome 42 for Android made its was to the Play Store. Now, several other Google apps have been updated. Google has pushed updates to its Docs, Slides, Sheets, and Google My Business apps. The company also today released Android for Work app to the Play Store.
Google has started rolling out an updated version of its Play Services package for Android devices. The update includes several new features for developers to take advantage of in their applications. The first of these is the new Places API, which provides access to point-of-interest information:
The latest version of Google Play Services for Android is now available to developers through Android SDK Manager. Google Play Services 6.5 features several new developer features for its Maps, Fit, and other APIs. Moreover, there is a new “lite mode” that allows developers to include a static map image in locations that would normally make it impractical or impossible to manipulate the map.
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