If you had any doubt about the existence or the availability of Google Play Store gift cards, then the company themselves have dropped one of the biggest hints yet that their arrival is extremely imminent. We've been hearing about the gift cards for quite some time now, with various logs showing up in certain retail databases, but Google has updated one of their own support pages with extensive information about the cards and the balance of individual Play accounts.
With Android frequently making the news with regards to malware outbreaks, you may be forgiven for thinking apps on the the open-source platform were more likely to leak your private info than, say, the much more watertight iOS. Apparently, this is not the case, and as per a study by Appthority, which plies its trade in assessing mobile apps for numerous companies, free apps over at the App Store present a greater privacy risk to users than the free offerings over at the Play Store.
It feels like Google Glass is on the tip of everyone's tongues right now, even more so since developers got their hands on a unit recently. We're sure you're more than aware of Google Glass already, but for those that haven't been paying attention or somehow managed to miss the next big thing in technology, then here's the skinny; Google Glass is a computer. On your Head. With a camera.
Thus far, it has been a pretty winning formula. Devices created by Samsung, but running Google's Android software, account for 40% of total Android smartphone sales, and have helped Android become the number one ecosystem in terms of reach. With this in mind, you may think Google would be happy that its key manufacturing ally is doing so well, but while the search giant is grateful its partner is shifting such vast quantities, the Mountain View-based outfit is also a little worried the Korean company's dominance is getting a little too big, and wants other vendors to step up their games and offer some competition.
There's been a marked surge of interest lately in Google's Project Glass, and with the Mountain View company having offered something of a progress report to interested parties earlier this week, further details have today emerged concerning the release, compatibility, and cost. According to reports, the wearable, augmented reality spectacles will be compatible not only with Android, but also iOS, and with the consumer-ready version said to be arriving before the end of the year, prices are being touted at just below the $1,500 mark.
The Chromebook was initially touted as an affordable, efficient product catering to the very basic computing needs, but today, in announcing the Chromebook Pixel, a premium notebook offering a 12.85-inch, 2560 x 1700 touchscreen-equipped panel, it's clear Google's ideas evolved way beyond that original manifesto. The notebook is a direct competitor to Apple's MacBook Pro with Retina display, and as well as the sharp display covered in solid Gorilla Glass, there is an LTE model (as well as Wi-Fi only), and it will begin shipping from next week.
Google is, quite literally, looking to change the way we view our digital world with the innovation Project Glass, and although we've seen a few glimpses of life through the company's digitized lens, the Mountain View-based search giant has today released a video outlining how users may one day interact with the UI. Following on from the news of prototypes being issued to select individuals, the video shows how the wearer uses the phrase "OK Glass" to kick the spectacles into action, prompting them to record video, take photos, send messages, start Google+ Hangouts, and more. It's arguably the most exciting insight we have been given into Glass thus far, and we have the full two-minute clip of the prototype in action after the break.
What would you do if you had Glass? This is the question that Google is putting to every tech enthusiast who is hoping to get their hands on pre-production editions of Google Glass, as the company is looking to ship some prototypes to creative individuals.
Apple's owning its own retail stores is often pointed to as the key differentiator over the competition. It's this end-to-end retail relationship with its customers that has seen Apple being propelled from a position to the market leader that it is today. It's a relationship that has seen that competition only dream of having the same relationship with its customers, with Microsoft seeking to emulate it with little success.
If you are a user of a Galaxy Nexus, Nexus 7 or Nexus 10 with a GSM chip, you might be happy to learn that a software update should be arriving on your phone soon. According to multiple users, Android 4.2.2, a minor update to Android Jelly Bean, is being rolled out to all users.
