Google Play Store

Hot on the heels of adding an activity feed to the web version of the Play Store, Google is now quietly rolling out a new “People” section to the Play Store app on Android. While the activity feed on the mobile app simply shows you what you’ve recently reviewed, rated, and purchased, the People section shows you what other users have recently been into.

The People feed is integrated heavily with Google+ and allows you to quickly follow users and view the their full profile. The feed shows what others have reviewed, +1’d, or shared. It includes apps, music, movies, and anything else available on the Play Store.

The People feed is rolling out now to the Play Store app. The interface is accessible via the sidebar and should appear on its own.

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Back in December, Google updated the Play Store app on Android with a new activity feed that was a stream of Play Store activity, connected via your Google+ profile. This afternoon, Android Police has discovered that the activity feed is now live on the web version of the Play Store, as well.

The My Play Activity page is accessible via the navigation sidebar on the online Play Store. The feature is still rolling out at the moment, so the page only loads sporadically. It could take a little while to hit your profile. Once you load it, you will be able to see a stream of all your recent Play Store activity, including +1’s, rates, and more. As the feature continues to rollout, you will be able to access other people’s Activity Page via Google+, which will be great for discovering new apps and content.

The My Play Activity page is rolling out slowly and is accessible at the link below. You should be able to refresh it a few times and get it to load. The link in the sidebar should propagate to everyone soon, as well.

Link: My Play Activity

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We already mentioned that Google’s Chromecast is landing in 11 new countries across North America and Europe, and Google’s transcontinental roll out doesn’t stop there.

As noted by Android Police, both Google’sNexus 5 and Nexus 7 phone and tablet can now be bought on the Google Play Store in several European markets: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Netherlands, Portugal, and Sweden.
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Want to stay on the dangerously cutting edge of social software on Android? Boy, does Facebook have an offer for you.

Announced today, Facebook is opening its Messenger app to beta testers on Android and looking for feedback on its user experience. The program aims to cast a wider net on catching bugs before they ship to general public. While testers will likely have a bumpier experience than users with the general release version, there’s potential to test unreleased features that might never make the public edition.

1. Join the Facebook Messenger for Android Beta Testers Google group: https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/messenger-for-android-beta-testers
2. Allow beta downloads by clicking “Become a Tester” in the Play Store (you need to join the Google Group before becoming a tester)
3. Download Facebook Messenger from the Play Store to update your app
4. Turn on automatic updates, as the beta version of Facebook Messenger for Android will be updated multiple times per week

Facebook launched a similar program for its main Android app last summer.
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When Android first hit smartphones, it shipped with the Android Market, a storefront for downloading apps. Two years ago, however, Google decided to replace the Market with the new, revamped Google Play Store. The new store would house all of Google’s offerings, from music and videos to books and Android apps. You can even buy a new phone through the store these days.

Now, to celebrate the two-year anniversary of the launch, Google is giving users discounts and sales on movies, music, apps, and more store-wide. A special page has been setup that will list the various discounts you’ll be able to take advantage of during the sale.

The promotion isn’t yet running in the United States, but should be available soon.

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From 9to5toys.com

For a limited time only, Google is offering 25% off of select Nexus 5 and Nexus 7 accessories on the Play Store. Unfortunately not every accessory qualifies for the deal, but many of the most popular ones do. The Nexus 7 sleeve, case, and folio are all available for 25% percent off, while the Nexus 5 bumper and QuickCover qualify for the offer.

• Nexus 7 Sleeve – $22.49
• Nexus 7 Case – $37.49
• Nexus 7 Folio – $37.49
• LG QuickCover for Nexus 5 – $37.49
• Nexus 5 Bumper Case – $26.24

Of course, even with the 25% discount, all of these accessories are still considerably more expensive than they should be. You can find much better cases and folios, for both the Nexus 5 and Nexus 7, a lot cheaper on Amazon. If you want official, Google/LG made products, however, than this deal is certainly nothing to complain about.

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Of the most notable things Motorola has accomplished over the past year is arguably its contextually aware services, found on devices like the Moto X. Today, the company’s Assist app on the Play Store has been updated with a few new features. For those unaware, Assist can determine your actions, such as driving and sleeping, and perform a pre-specificed command.

Up until today, the app could only read you the text messages you got while driving. With this newest update, however, you can now reply to texts while driving by speaking to the phone. So once the text is read to you, you will have the ability to read a response to the app. In addition to that, Assist can also now launch your music player of choice when it notices you are driving.

The update is available on the Play Store, although Motorola Assist is only compatible with the most recent Droid line of devices, as well as the Moto X.

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In a surprising weekend announcement, Bitspin has announced that it has been acquired by Google (via Android Police). Bitspin is the company behind the Timely alarm clock app, which has become one of the most popular and well designed apps on the Play Store. It has received between 1 million and 5 million downloads since it’s release and has an overall rating of 4.4 stars out of 5. The developers are also the minds behind the Tasks to-do app, although it’s published under a different name on the Play Store.

We’re thrilled to announce that Bitspin is joining Google, where we’ll continue to do what we love: building great products that are delightful to use.

For new and existing users, Timely will continue to work as it always has. Thanks to everyone who has downloaded our app and provided feedback along the way; we truly appreciate all your support.

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With the acquisition of the company in September, Bump and Flock CEO and co-founder David Lieb quietly announced last night that both apps were shutting down effective January 31st. According to a brief blog post on the Bump site, Lieb says his team is “deeply focused on our new projects within Google” and given that the acquisition appears to be talent-driven, the shutdown comes as little surprise.

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For the second time this year, Google’s Android Developers Blog is highlighting some of the best designed apps for the Android platform. We all know that app design guidelines can be used to ensure a great user experience so it’s no surprise Google chose 11 apps this time around that “go above and beyond the [design] guidelines.”

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Christmas is just two days away and with plenty of unsuspecting kids (and parents) awaiting new smartphones and tablets Disney is taking the opportunity to knock down app prices. For a limited time, numerous Disney apps within the Play Store are on sale for $0.49 and below.

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Residents of New Zealand, Hong Kong, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago take note as Google Play Movies are now at your disposal. In total, Google added an additional thirteen countries bringing the total available market count to 27. This is the right time for residents of those countries to grab a Chromecast, kick their legs up on the sofa and watch a movie. Unfortunately, TV shows are still only available through the US, UK and Japan with no timetable for additional countries.

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As Samsung works to capture more of the Android gaming market with the release of a new controller, a new analytics study shows Android gaming is on the rise. Apple may be considered the dominant leader in the mobile gaming category and it remains steadily in the driver’s seat, but 2013 indicated the Play Store is moving up fast.

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[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=chUtv1kWIg8]

Cover, a brand new Android lockscreen first showed itself to the world at the tail end of October. The context-aware lockscreen notes which apps you want to use in specific locations and will present them on your lockscreen.

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Play Store gamers take note as Google plans to introduce a whole slew of new game categories to the Play Store in February of next year. The new categories began appearing for developers yesterday, however changes will not take place until the new categories go live for the public next year.

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On the heels of our editorial yesterday asking what is your favorite app of 2013, Google is adding their own selection of the “Best Apps of 2013.” The selection itself is filled with some usual suspects like Wunderlist, theScore or Photo Editor by Aviary. Thankfully, the best apps list also includes my own favorites with Circa and Duolingo.

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