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Yesterday, we reported on a rumor from a Korean website claiming that the up-and-coming LG G Watch will include an embedded, unremovable SIM card. While nothing is conclusive, a dig through the FCC website has unearthed some documents making up a filing for what we believe is the upcoming LG G Watch, and—unsurprisingly—there isn’t any mention of Wi-Fi or cellular radios.
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While on stage at the Code Conference, Google co-founder Sergey Brin talked Google Glass with Re/Code editors Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher. When asked about the commercial availability of the product, Brin said that he hopes it will be available to all consumers by the end of the year. He remarked that “Google Glass will be a commercial product this year…plus or minus.” The timeline for Glass has been a bit cloudy since its announcement, but hopefully Google finally follows through this time around.

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We’re live on the scene at the Code Conference, and now that Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has finished up his interview and demonstration, Google co-founder and Google[X] leader Sergey Brin has entered the hot seat. Re/code’s Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher are interviewing Brin, and you can find our live updates from the interview below:

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Google this afternoon released a small update to its Text-To-Speech app on Android. The update bumps the app to version 3.1, and while it may not be the biggest update, it certainly packs some useful changes for a handful of users. The update adds support for selecting and speaking text in Polish, Dutch, and Russian. It also improves its already existing support for some English dialects spoken in India.

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Earlier this year Google acquired smart-thermostat company Nest, and according to a new report out of The Information, the company is not planning on stopping its quest to enter the home automation and security market. The report claims that Google has “considered” acquiring Dropcam, the makers of a system that streams live footage directly to phones and computers.

The report goes on to say that the status of talks and negotiations between the two companies is unclear at this point and that spokespeople for both companies did not reply to requests for comment.

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Samsung unveiled a handful of new wearable devices earlier this year, but according to some recently discovered patent filings, the company still has some more ideas in the pipeline. First discovered by SammyToday, Samsung has recently filed for a plethora of patents relating to a new wearable device that strongly resembles the Moto 360 and its circular design. The patents detail a plethora of features about the device, as well as some basic mockups of its design.

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A ruling by Europe’s top court that individuals have a right to require Google to remove sensitive information from search results is unlikely to apply in the USA, according to a number of commentators quoted in an Associated Press piece.

But across the Atlantic, the idea that users should be able to edit Google search results in the name of privacy is being slammed as weird and difficult to enforce at best and a crackdown on free speech at worst …

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We’ve been hearing rumors of a YouTube streaming music service for what feels like forever, but according to a report out of the New York Times, the service has hit yet another snag. A report last month claimed that the service was delayed because YouTube and Google were approaching it with a “get it right” attitude and wanted to make the first version of the product as good as its competitors like Spotify and Rdio. This report, however, claims that YouTube has run into licensing troubles with independent music labels.

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At the beginning of this year, Google and Nvidia teamed up with car manufacturers to form the Open Automotive Alliance. The two companies partnered with GM, Honda, Audi, and Hyundai and agreed to work together to form an interface in-car entertainment systems. Ever since that announcement in January, we have heard absolutely nothing about the progression of the alliance, aside from a couple of vague rumors.

Android Police, however, has now obtained quite a bit of information about the system, including tentative interface designs and functionality. The report claims that Android in the Car’s basic interface will center around four “distinct spaces.” Those spaces are navigation, music, telephony, and search.

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Over the past couple of months, rumors of major changes to Gmail on Android have been circulating. Geek.com leaked screenshots of a redesigned interface that was very colorful compared to the current app. We reported on some new features coming to the app, as well, including a snooze functionality. Now, Google+ user Yoel Kaseb has posted some images of what he claims is a redesigned Gmail app for Android. Kaseb also leaked images of a Google+ update that ended up being almost entirely true.

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L’Oréal’s lead marketing executive is heading to Google. After little over three years with the cosmetics maker, Marc Speichert is taking his talents to Mountain View to help the company court new advertising partners. He’ll report to former Procter & Gamble exec, Kirk Perry who joined the search giant last fall.

 
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Earlier this week, Google rolled out Panda 4.0 and Pay Day 2.0. These updates to the search algorithm were touted as being designed to further reduce the ranking of low-quality and spammy content. According to analysis by Searchmetrics, Panda and Pay Day did just this, with websites that offer undifferentiated content suffering in terms of overall ranking.

However, Panda did not just punish websites: various major websites actually increased their rank in Google Search as a result of the change in algorithm. From the study:
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Google may acquire Skybox Imaging, a company with experience in taking incredibly detailed, high-resolution aerial satellite photos, according to TechCrunch. The purchase may cost Google in excess of $1 billion, though that number is fairly common anymore.
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[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RE1YHlI1XHo#t=56]

Google’s Project Tango 3D interior mapping technology, which will shortly be appearing in a tablet, is also taking to the air. A team from University of Pennsylvania led by Professor Vijay Kumar are using a Tango-equipped smartphone to enable a quadrocopter to navigate the interior of a building … 
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Following yesterday’s report that Google intends to launch a WiFi network aimed at small businesses, new information (via Gigaom) has surfaced suggesting that wireless equipment maker Ruckus Wireless will be partnering with the Mountain View corporation to make it happen.

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According to a new report out of the Wall Street Journal, Google is currently developing a new tablet that features “advanced vision capabilities.” The report claims that the company plans to produce 4,000 prototypes of the device as early as next month and release it shortly thereafter, before Google I/O at the end of June. Although, we’ll most likely hear a lot about it at I/O, with it perhaps even being the free giveaway to developers.

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TechRadar reports that Samsung is closing its Samsung Music Hub service on 1st July, with the company advising users to download all purchased content and use any vouchers before that date. Music Hub was based on a cloud-based system the company acquired when it purchased the Californian company mSpot.

The service was part of Samsung’s attempt to get into content sales, with the company having similar hubs for books, videos and apps. It’s not known whether those will also close. Samsung issued a somewhat confusing statement reading … 
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Nest is recalling 440,000 smoke detectors due to a glitch that causes the internet-connected alarm to fail when users wave their hands at system. The Nest Protect Smoke + CO system is equipped with a silencing feature that mutes its alarm when users wave their hands near its vent, however a bug could possibly prevent the system from sounding off in a timely manner. To remedy this issue, the company is sending out a firmware update to disable the gesture control feature and notes that the smoke alarm needs to be connected to the internet in order to receive the software fix.

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Google has made two notable changes to its search algorithm in the past 24 hours, both of which continue Google’s crusade to keep its search results relevant. The 4.0 release of the Google Panda algorithm is intended to make it more difficult for websites with poor quality to rank highly in search results (via SearchEngineLand).

Payday Loan Algorithm 2.0 was also released yesterday, and it targets “very spammy queries,” and is unrelated to Panda’s rollout:
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Those who expressed concern about Google’s acquisition of Nest may have have been right: the company has told the Securities and Exchange Commission that it may choose to serve ads on “refrigerators, car dashboards, thermostats, glasses, and watches, to name just a few possibilities.”

The WSJ reports that Google made the statement in support of its contention that it shouldn’t have to break out ad revenue from mobile devices … 
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