Changelogs – they’re an important step for any developer who pushes out an update to an application. Today, Google announced changes to the What’s New section for developers, as creators can now configure the section to show changes for different versions of their applications. (more…)
Android
Developer Takes Our “Mark as Read” Gmail Idea, Makes MarkAsRead App
Back in January, we wrote up a “Gmail Feature Request” that focused on the need for a third button in Gmail notifications, specially a “Mark as read” button. That post gave one developer in particular the motivation to make it happen, since there is no telling if Google will ever even consider the idea. And with that, MarkAsRead was born and is now available on Google Play. (more…)
Drizly, the Alcohol Delivery App, Makes Its Android Debut
An app that lets you order a bottle of alcohol and then track it as it is delivered within an hour (often within 20-40 minutes) to your front door? Why this has not already become the next global phenomenon, I do not know, but it has finally arrived on Android. It’s called Drizly, and if you live in New York City or Boston, you can fill up your NCAA opening round weekend with driver-delivered booze at what the company describes as prices you pay in-person at the liquor store. (more…)
Google Keyboard 3.0 Released, Adds Personalized Suggestions From Other Google Apps
Google just pushed an update to Google Keyboard this morning, jumping the version up to 3.0.19373 from version 2.0. The update introduces a couple of tweaks, like an “ABC” button to get back to the keyboard from the emoji tab and a new Settings icon when long-pressing the mic button.
The big update here, though, is new Personalized Suggestions. Upon first loading the keyboard, I was prompted with a line that read “Personalization is on. Touch for info.” Once touched, a pop-up explained that the Google Keyboard uses data from other Google apps and services to improve suggestions and corrections. It also made it clear that this info is only stored on the device. (more…)
Qualcomm Acknowledges That Snapdragon Processors Will Power New Android Wear Products
Earlier this morning, Google announced that it had already been working with a handful of OEMs and chip makers on its new Android Wear platform. The list featured names like Motorola and LG, both of which have already announced products that will be available later this year. There were other big names included as well, though, like HTC, Samsung, Broadcom, Imagination, Intel, Mediatek, and Qualcomm.
We have yet to hear from all of these other players individually, but Qualcomm did drop a quick note this afternoon to confirm that “a number” of new Android Wear-based devices will run their Snapdragon processors. As you can imagine, they didn’t specify the names of the OEM customers, but you can probably guess after looking at the original list of names again. (more…)
Video: Android Wear Hands-on and Tour
Today, has been 100% about Android Wear, Google’s new wearables platform. We saw an announcement from Google, then LG and Motorola both make watches official, and then a developer preview go live. We spent the better part of the afternoon getting the preview up and running and are ready to show it to you now. After all, isn’t that what we care about – how Android Wear will look and function on your wrist?
So in the video below, you’ll see how to interact with notifications, how to maneuver through the UI, how actionable buttons will look, ways to dismiss or manipulate an item, and more.
Keep in mind that this is a developer preview, so it’s pretty bare bones. You won’t see “OK, Google” working or flashy clock faces. Those will come later.
If you have any questions, let us know! (more…)
Motorola Hosting Google Hangout Tomorrow at 11AM Pacific to Talk Moto 360
Tomorrow morning, Motorola will host a Google Hangout at 11am PST featuring Jim Wicks, the company’s lead designer of the Moto 360 smartwatch. During the Hangout, preselected questions will be answered specifically regarding the smartwatch’s design/style, and not actual operation of the device. (more…)
Moto 360 in 360 Degrees [GIFs]
Motorola just announced what can only be described as the most gorgeous smartwatch to date, the Moto 360. If you ask me, the rest can all be thrown out – Moto has won me over. They gave us a watch that looks like a classic timepiece, yet is smart and runs Android. It’s not some completely off-track take on the future. It’s not trying to be edgy or trendy or a reinvention. It reminds me of a timepiece I would actually purchase, smart features aside.
Now, there are still plenty of things that could ruin it, like lousy battery life or a crazy steep price tag. For now, though, I’m on-board.
And with that, I’ve found myself staring at the 360-degree images that Motorola posted, plus the official press renders. This thing really is beautiful. So, because I’d imagine a few of you might like to watch these watches go round-and-round, we have included them in GIF formats below.
Enjoy. (more…)