Google

Re/code has a roundup of what analysts are expecting from Google this afternoon, when the company announces its Q1 earnings and provides at least a little guidance on the future.

Consensus estimates are for net revenue of $14.12 billion, a 16 percent uptick year over year. Currency winds could drag down the numbers.

Google isn’t expected to reveal much information about its future plans, but analysts expect at least some degree of clarity in three areas, says the piece …
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Google pushes mobile web apps forward, launches new ‘Spotlight’ page to feature them

Chance Miller Apr 22 2015 - 6:55 pm PT

Earlier this week, Google began rolling out Chrome 42 with support for website notifications and an improved “add to home screen” function. With those two new features, Google is clearly making a big push towards web apps on both the desktop and mobile. Now, Google has launched a new Spotlight page to highlight some of the best mobile web apps.

Chrome Live stream now archived, here’s what was announced (Video)

Stephen Hall Apr 22 2015 - 1:42 pm PT

Google for Work’s Chrome Live event happened today, and the Mountain View company took this opportunity to announce many new Chrome-related products for the workplace…
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Jonathan Rosenberg temporarily leading Google’s robotics division

Zac Hall Apr 22 2015 - 12:37 pm PT

<a href="http://9to5google.com/tag/how-google-works/" target="_blank">Rosenberg & Schmidt promoting their book “How Google Works”</a>

Jonathan Rosenberg has been tapped to temporarily lead Google’s robotics division replacing James Kuffner, according to The Information.

The report cites sourcing claiming Kuffner’s appointment to replace Andy Rubin last year was never intended to be permanent with Rosenberg being the division’s next boss. CEO Larry Page is expected to continue searching for a permanent head of the robotics division in the meantime.

Android’s co-founder Rubin led the robotics division from late 2013 to late 2014. Rosenberg’s appointment now makes the third head of Google’s robotics team in less than two years. Subscribers can read the full report here.

Google officially announces its mobile network service: Project Fi

Stephen Hall Apr 22 2015 - 10:43 am PT

5 Comments

Google has just announced Project Fi, its much-rumored MVNO and the company’s attempt at bringing a new way for customers to get better cellular service at a better price…

Google Glass 2.0: New patent gives us the most likely depiction we’ve seen yet

Stephen Hall Apr 22 2015 - 8:54 am PT

2 Comments

Google is hard at work designing the next hardware iteration of Glass, but not many details have surfaced regarding what the next generation be capable of nor what it will look like. Patents are definitely not the most reliable source of “leaks,” but sometimes they can give us a good overarching idea of the direction a company might be headed. A new patent published recently gives us yet another peek at what the next Google Glass might look like, and this looks more believable than anything we’ve seen up to this point…
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Google’s Mr. Jingles dresses up to celebrate Earth Day

Stephen Hall Apr 22 2015 - 6:58 am PT

Apple may be making its leaves green, but Google is celebrating Earth Day too. They’ve of course changed the homepage logo into a Google Doodle, but Mr. Jingles—the Google+ notifications mascot—is also dressing up to celebrate.

As we told you yesterday, clicking today’s new Google Doodle will take you to an “Earth Day Quiz” that… tells you which animal you’re most like. It’s a “totally scientific and 1,000% accurate personality quiz,” Google says.

Google shares Earth Day 2015 quiz that asks, “Which animal are you?”

Chance Miller Apr 21 2015 - 8:08 pm PT

3 Comments

To celebrate Earth Day 2015, Google has added a quiz to its search engine for visitors. By clicking the Earth Day themed Google Doodle, users are directed to a search results page with a quiz at the top. The quiz claims to answer the question, “Which animal are you?”

Google writes on its Doodle explanation page:

You can search Google for answers to all kinds of animal questions: What does an aye-aye eat?Where do narwhals live?How long is a toco toucan’s beak? And this Earth Day, you can turn to Google for the answer to something that you’ve always needed to know: which animal are you???

Clicking on this year’s Earth Day logo (or searching for “Earth Day quiz”) presents one of the Internet’s favorite pastimes: a totally scientific and 1,000% accurate personality quiz. Take the time to answer a few questions to determine and share your Earth Day animal. And, of course, you’re only a search away from learning more about nature’s precious pals and interesting inhabitants (fyi: kakapo is the heaviest parrot).

Happy Earth Day to you today and everyday,

The Earth Day Doodle Crew

The quiz consists of 5 questions and allows you to share your results to social media at the end. Take it here and tell us what animal you are when you’re done. Apparently, I am a honey badger….

WSJ: Google to launch wireless network as soon as Wednesday with pay-by usage model

Chance Miller Apr 21 2015 - 5:04 pm PT

Google’s oft-rumored U.S wireless service could be unveiled as early as Wednesday, according to a new report from The Wall Street Journal. The report corroborates earlier rumors that the key selling point of Google’s network will be that users will only pay for the amount of data they actually use each month.

Google Classroom gets multiple teacher support, announcement/assignment drafts, more

Stephen Hall Apr 21 2015 - 1:30 pm PT

Google has today announced several updates to Google Classroom, including the ability to add more than one teacher to a Classroom class, and new automatically-saving drafts for class announcements and assignments…
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9to5Toys Last Call: 11.6-inch Acer & Dell Chromebooks from $140, HooToo travel router $15, more

Stephen Hall Apr 21 2015 - 12:23 pm PT

Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.

Today’s can’t miss deals:

Refurbished 11.6-inch Chromebook (model CB3-111-C670): $140 shipped (Reg. $200)

Dell (CRM3120-1667BLK) 11.6-Inch Chromebook: $190 shipped (Reg. $250)

HooToo TripMate Wireless N Travel Router w/ USB port $15 Prime shipped (Reg. $20)

Portable USB 3.0 Hard Drives: Toshiba 1TB $50 (Orig. $75), 3-Pack Seagate 1.5TB $150 ($210 value), more

Seagate Expansion 5TB USB 3.0 Desktop External Hard Drive $120 shipped (Orig. $250)

Battery-saving Bluetooth 4.0 earbuds starting at $14 shipped for your Android Wear device!

Review: Moleskine’s new myCloud Smallpack offers plentiful storage in a tidy design, $150 giveaway

More new gear from today:

XYZprinting daVinci 1.0 3D Printer $350 shipped (Orig. $500)

New! Games/Apps: PowerA PS4 Controller Charger $17 Prime shipped, iOS freebies, more
New! One-yr Sam’s Club Plus Membership w/ a $20 GC & more: $45 ($120+ value)
New! Multi-magazine subs from $4/yr: Wired, ESPN, Dwell, GQ, many more
New! Daily Deals: RCA 200W 5.1-Ch. DVD Home Theater System $80, BenQ 1080p projector refurb $575, more

More deals still alive:

Headphones: Audio-Technica QuietPoint over-ears $100 (Reg. $150+), Sennheiser HD 202 on-ears $15 (Reg. $24), more

Canon EOS Rebel T3i DSLR (refurb) w/ 18-55mm Lens Kit $336 shipped (Orig. $599), more

Huge Innori 22400mAh 3 Port USB Battery Pack $35 Shipped (Orig. $70)
Printers: Brother Wireless laser (refurb) $120, Canon imageCLASS w/ AirPrint $130, more
USB power: 50W 5-Port Charger $12, 3200mAh battery pack w/ dual-port car charger $13
Lumsing wallet design magnetic leather cover for iPad 2/3/4 bundle $7 shipped (Orig. $25)
Tailgate-ready Cuisinart Compact Gas Grill for $120 shipped (Reg. $200)
Yamaha RX-V377 5.1-Channel 4K A/V Receiver w/USB: $180 Shipped (Orig. $300)
Apple AirPort Express w/ AirPlay & Wireless Printing $79 or refurb $65 (Reg. $99)
Spigen iPhone 6/Plus cases from $4 Prime shipped, multiple colors/styles available
Refurbished Apple laptops: MacBooks from $259, Pros starting at $459
Headphones: Sony over-ears (refurb) $50, 2 pairs Able Planet $20, more
Garmin nüvi 7-Inch GPS w/ Lifetime Maps (Cert Refurbished) $110 (Reg. $130)
Intocircuit Power Castle 11200mAh Dual-USB Power Bank: $18 Prime shipped (Reg. $30)
Free 1-month unlimited access to over 15,000 digital Marvel comics
Satechi’s Premium Aluminum 4-Port USB Clamp Hub: $20 Shipped
Lowe’s coupon: save $10 on purchases of $50 or more in-store or online
Two free months of Audible audiobooks for new accounts
Toys: UDI Quadcopter RC Drone $53, Star Wars figure play sets bundle $29, more
Dr. Seuss The Lorax interactive book app $2 (Reg. $5) + Free giveaway codes
Asus (C300MA-DH02) 13.3-inch HD 16GB Storage $229 (Orig. $249)
Toshiba (CB35-B3340) 13.3-inch Chromebook 2 $299 (Orig. $329.99)

New products & more:

Sony’s new 43-75″ 4K UHDTVs bring an incredibly thin design, pre-orders start today

Sony’s new soundbars and A/V receivers include Google Cast and up to ten HDMI inputs
Blizzard’s latest multiplayer brawler Heroes of the Storm heads to beta & gets release date
IKEA details its new wireless charging furniture, add-ons and iPhone cases
Are Verizon’s new FiOS bundle plans the answer to ala carte programming?
OWC put a 480GB SSD in a pocket-size USB 3.0 Flash Drive
Carbonate your booze from an iPhone app with SodaStream Mix
Design your own pair of headphones with AiAiAi’s new TMA-2 modulars

Sony unveils new ultra-thin 4k TVs w/ Google Cast & Android TV support, new sound bars & receivers w/ Cast

Chance Miller Apr 20 2015 - 7:47 pm PT

Sony today has taken the wraps off of a handful of new products that will play nicely with Android devices. First off, the company has announced that its 4k Ultra HD televisions with support for Android TV and Google Cast will begin shipping in May. The TVs feature Sony’s X1 processor which lends itself to improved color, brightness, and upscaling. The TVs also feature the X-Reality PRO Picture Engine, which also contributes to improving those factors.

Google now lets you download your search history, not just view it

Ben Lovejoy Apr 20 2015 - 5:33 am PT

As part of its commitment to being transparent about the data Google holds on you, the company has long allowed you to view your search history. It’s now gone one better, letting you download that history.

You can download all of your saved search history to see a list of the terms you’ve searched for. This gives you access to your data when and where you want.

I’m not quite sure why anyone would want to do this, but given the company’s numerous run-ins with various governments over data privacy, it probably wants to play safe.

Via Google Operating System and TNW

Report: Funds stored in Google Wallet are now FDIC insured

Stephen Hall Apr 18 2015 - 8:08 am PT

Most of the money transfer services that have popped up in Silicon Valley over the last several years don’t directly offer any federal-level insurance, and Google Wallet—until today—was a pretty good example. But now, according to a report from Yahoo Finance, Google is adding FDIC insurance to the money you keep in your Wallet Balance by storing your funds in various FDIC-insured banking institutions…
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Google acquired Athena Wireless in February, likely to bolster Fiber and MVNO ambitions

Stephen Hall Apr 17 2015 - 1:51 pm PT

Google finalized a deal to acquire Surprise, Arizona startup Athena Wireless Communications in February of this year, according to reports. The company has been around for several years and has spent much of that time building wireless LTE and small cell technologies that can move data at gigabit Fiber-like speeds. The acquisition is an obvious one for a company such as Google that is continuing to build out its Google Fiber infrastructure and has plans to announce its own MVNO…
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9to5Toys Last Call: Ooma VoIP Phone w/ Bluetooth $90, Galaxy Tab 3 $90, Moto X Dev. Edition $150, more

Stephen Hall Apr 17 2015 - 11:48 am PT

Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.

Today’s can’t miss deals:

amazon-gold-box-ooma-telo-air-voip-phone-with-wireless-plus-bluetooth-adapter

Amazon Gold Box – Ooma Telo Air VoIP Phone w/ Bluetooth Adapter $90 shipped (Orig. $180)

Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 7.0″ Lite w/ Android 4.2, 8 GB: $90 shipped (Reg. $120)

Moto X Developer Edition (unlocked) 32 GB: $150 shipped (Reg. $350)

Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 10.1″ 16GB Android tablet: $200 shipped (Reg. $299)

Up to $105 in paid Android apps for free: Amazing Alex, Plants vs. Zombies, many more

Acer 13.3-inch Chromebook (CB5-311-T9B0): $160 shipped (Reg. $229)

Acer 11.6-inch Chromebook (C710-2856): $150 shipped (Reg. $249)

Google Chromecast HDMI streaming media player (refurb): $20 shipped (Reg. $35)

Acer 11.6″ Chromebook Touchscreen (C720P-2661): $190 shipped (Reg. $245)

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 32 GB factory unlocked: $280 shipped (Reg. $500)

Samsung Galaxy S6 smartphone 32GB (unlocked) GSM: $699 shipped (Reg. $899)

Best Buy offers additional $100 off Moto 360 with Android phone purchase

More new gear from today:

Intocircuit Power Castle 11200mAh Dual-USB Power Bank: $18 Prime shipped (Reg. $30)

New! Garmin nüvi 7-Inch GPS w/ Lifetime Maps (Cert Refurbished) $110 (Reg. $130)
New! Headphones: Sony over-ears (refurb) $50, 2 pairs Able Planet $20, more
New! Daily Deals: Insignia 28″ LED HDTV $180, Logi Wireless Keyboard $22, more
New! Games/Apps: FF Type-0 $40, LEGO Dimensions preorder $10 off, freebies, more
New! Samsung Galaxy Android Cam w/ WiFi (refurb) $210 shipped (Orig. $350)

More deals still alive:

LAST CHANCE! Review: SOL REPUBLIC’s Shadow wireless headphones w/ Bluetooth 4.0 offer an upgraded audio experience, $100 giveaway

Free 1-month unlimited access to over 15,000 digital Marvel comics
Satechi’s Premium Aluminum 4-Port USB Clamp Hub: $20 Shipped
Up to $105 in Android apps for free: Amazing Alex, Plants vs. Zombies, many more
Magazine subs from $4.50/yr: Rolling Stone, Maxim, GQ, Dwell, Runner’s World, more
Lowe’s coupon: save $10 on purchases of $50 or more in-store or online
Two free months of Audible audiobooks for new accounts
Toys: UDI Quadcopter RC Drone $53, Star Wars figure play sets bundle $29, more
Dr. Seuss The Lorax interactive book app $2 (Reg. $5) + Free giveaway codes
Audio-Technica ATH-M50X Over-Ear Headphones w/ Hard Case $135 shipped ($200 value)
Stream the first season of Orphan Black for free without a Prime membership
Choice of 2 rugged, highly-rated Bluetooth speakers from Lumsing: $19 Prime Shipped
Fleksy customizable keyboard app w/ GIF support goes free for iOS (Reg. $1)
ZyXEL AV500 Powerline kit with N300 Wireless Range Extender $30 shipped (Orig. $60)
Aukey Aluminum 7x USB 3 portable 30W powered hub: $30 Prime shipped
Buy 10400mAh power bank for $20 Prime shipped, get dual-USB car charger free
Refurbished Acer Chromebooks: 11.6” C7 $150, 13.3” CB5 $180, 11.6″ Touchscreen $190
Stealth Snowflake 6 axis Micro Drone w/LED lighting: $40 shipped
Rules! is now available for free inside the Apple Store iPhone app (Reg. $3)
TDK Bluetooth/NFC Portable Weatherized Speaker $25 Prime shipped (Orig. $60)
JLab JBuds EPIC in-ear headphones w/ mic & remote $23 Prime shipped (Reg. $50), more
Best Buy takes another $100 off when you buy a discounted Moto 360 w/ an Android phone
Wireless Bluetooth Cloud Buds: $30 shipped (orig. $109)
Motorola’s Moto 360 Smartwatch is on sale for $179 or $155 w/ .edu (Reg. $250)
Logitech K480 Multi-Device Bluetooth Keyboard & iPad/iPhone stand $40 (19% savings)
Linksys Powerline HomePlug AV500 Powerline Ethernet Kit $45 (Reg. $90+)

New products & more:

owc-envoy-pro-mini-ssd-mac

OWC put a 480GB SSD in a pocket-size USB 3.0 Flash Drive

Carbonate your booze from an iPhone app with SodaStream Mix
Design your own pair of headphones with AiAiAi’s new TMA-2 modulars
Guitar Hero returns w/ new gameplay modes and a refreshed controller, pre-order today
LG brings Google Cast to its line of Music Flow speakers for wireless music streaming
VIZIO introduces new 4K UHDTVs starting at $600, expands its audio lineup
Here’s a look at the new Lara Croft: Relic Run title for iOS and Android
Garmin and Panasonic announce new action cameras with hit or miss feature lists
On The Go stuffs nearly every must-have iPhone/Android add-on into one tiny cube
Moleskine puts Batman on the cover with its new limited edition Gotham inspired notebooks
LEGO’s new Dimensions video game brings Batman, Marty McFly and Gandalf to life
DJI’s Phantom 3 drone shoots 4K video, uses new sensors to navigate indoor airspace

Latest update to Google+ for Android brings redesigned communities

Stephen Hall Apr 17 2015 - 8:27 am PT

The latest version of Google+ for Android—which started rolling out earlier today—gives G+ communities a pretty nifty new redesign. First shared on Google+ by Googler Danielle Buckley, the update makes the community screens a bit more unique with a UI that’s a notable change compared to the rest of the app. One of the annoyances of the Google+ app has long been that it can be hard to tell what you’re looking at because it’s so uniformly designed, and this update seems to make it a bit easier for you to instinctively know that you’re viewing a community.

Announcing: Improved look & feel for Communities

Check out your favorite community on Android to see the new and improved look in this week’s app update (currently rolling out). We hope you’ll love it!

Google+ isn’t the most popular social network, but it does have many loyal users—who, unsurprisingly, are commonly loyal fanboys of Google as a whole. I personally can attest to the fact that Google+ isn’t necessarily the ghost town that it’s claimed to be, though, as I’m the owner of the largest Android Wear community (with more than 40,000 members). It makes me glad to see that this community is now going to look just a bit better on mobile. This visual redesign can be found in version 5.3 of the Google+ app, which is rolling out on the Google Play Store today.

Microsoft’s search engine market share passes 20% for the first time

Stephen Hall Apr 17 2015 - 7:27 am PT

2 Comments

Microsoft’s Bing isn’t the most popular search engine around, but—at least according to the latest from comScore—it’s gaining ground slowly but surely. For the first time, Microsoft sites have surpassed the 20% milestone, meaning more than one fifth of overall search traffic is now owned by the Redmond, Washington company…
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Dodocase offering its Google-certified VR viewer for free

Chance Miller Apr 16 2015 - 7:21 pm PT

5 Comments

Earlier today, Google announced a new program called “Works with Google Cardboard” that highlights all of the third-party Cardboard-compatiable viewers. The program is Google’s attempt at unifying the various variants of Cardboard, which was first shown at I/O 2014, and making sure they are all compatible with the variety of Cardboard apps that are available.

To celebrate the launch of Works with Google Cardboard, Dodocase is briefly offering its Google-certified virtual reality viewer for free…
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Chrome 43 Beta launches, Chrome OS updated w/ redesigned Files interface, updated calculator app, more

Chance Miller Apr 16 2015 - 7:06 pm PT

Chrome 43 Beta is making its official debut today on a variety of platforms (including Chrome for Android, Windows, Mac, Linux and Chrome OS), and with it comes several new features—with MIDI for Web being perhaps the most notable.

Google has also this evening announced an update to Chrome OS that bumps it to version 42.0.2311.87. The update, which comes on the heels of Chrome 42, adds a handful of new features and visual changes. First off, the Files app has been refreshed to feature a Material Design interface…

Google announces ‘Works with Google Cardboard’ program to unify third-party viewers

Stephen Hall Apr 16 2015 - 11:28 am PT

Google Cardboard is getting pretty popular, and Google has today announced a new program called “Works with Google Cardboard” that unifies all the third-party viewers that have cropped up with a cute little orange badge. But beyond the visual representation of the program, it’s an attempt by Google to bring together the various variants of Cardboard and make sure they’ll all work with the many available Cardboard apps (and app developers can play along, too)…

Lost your Android phone? No problem, just Google it

Ben Lovejoy Apr 16 2015 - 9:03 am PT

You’ve long been able to use Android Device Manager to locate a lost smartphone, but Google just made it a whole lot easier. Next time you can’t remember where you left it, simply Google find my phone. Provided you’re logged-in, Google will display the phone’s location on a map and give you the option to call it.

You’ll still need to use Device Manager to lock or erase the phone if someone has walked off with it, but this is a quick and convenient method when you’ve just forgotten where in your home you put it down.

Google also recently added Android Wear support to Device Manager, enabling you to locate your phone from your smartwatch.

(via VentureBeat)

Google updates Google Docs Android apps with improved editing features, faster loading

Ben Lovejoy Apr 16 2015 - 5:40 am PT

Google has updated its Android apps for editing Google documents on the move. Google Docs now allows you to accept, reject or comment on suggestions, as well as track changes and comments in Word files; Google Sheets lets you move, resize and delete spreadsheets; and Google Slides now offers you the ability to reorder objects on slides.

Google said that PowerPoint presentations will also be faster to load and scroll.

The company previously updated Google Docs with improvements to its Office Compatibility Mode. All three apps are a free download from the Google play store.

Google’s new ‘Handwriting Input’ keyboard lets you manually draw text (and emoji) in any Android app

Stephen Hall Apr 15 2015 - 12:33 pm PT