Google just added a handy feature for Android users: now, when you Google musicians or bands, you can hear their music in your favorite player app with just one click. [Google Blog]
Intel’s Pocket Avatars makes chatting even crazier
Seems that just the ordinary way of chatting with people through your mobile phone has become boring for a lot of people. You now have your emoticons, your stickers, your snapchats and all other things to make your chats more exciting. Intel is joining the fray with their Pocket Avatars, guaranteed to make talking to your loved ones even crazier.
The new mobile messaging app from the chipmaker contains the standard messaging stuff just like with others like it (Viber, Line, WeChat. etc). But they have added the concept of Pocket Avatars that will create your very own animated messages for the people you chat with. Using your phone’s camera and microphone, you can record a message that will capture your facial expressions, mannerisms, and even your voice to create a 3D message using any of the avatar characters in the app. The message can then be shared through the messaging app itself or through other forms of social media.
It uses a proprietary facial gesture software to be able to do this “magic” and it has taken them years of research at the Intel Labs to come up with this. They currently have 40 avatars in their in-app library, including several pop culture “celebrities” like the Annoying Orange (from the MTV show), Gumby, Care Bears, Lego characters, and other animals and people. They will be adding even more characters regularly, especially those themed with certain occasions and holidays. So if words are not enough but you need to hide behind a cute or annoying or funny avatar, then this newest app is right up your alley.
Most of the Pocket Avatars are free, but some also cost $.99. The app however is completely free and is available for download at the Google Play Store.
SOURCE: Intel
Google Search now plays artist in music app of choice
It used to be that when we searched for something on Google, it would take us a few clicks to get to either the book you wanted to read, the movie you wanted to watch or the music you wanted to listen to. But it seems that now they know that people’s attention spans have gotten even shorter so now everything has to be easy access or can be played right then and there. Google Search is the latest to do so, at least for US residents for now.
Under the updated Google Search, when you look for a musical artist, you not just get the usual results showing their official website, social networks and Wikipedia page. Now you also see a “Listen on your apps” option that will link you to any of your installed music player apps like Google Play Music, TuneIn radio or even YouTube. Just tap your player of choice and the wrist’s songs and page will open and you can play them from there.
The only thing is that it is only available in the US region for now. But given how digital music has blown up in the other regions of the world, it’s only a matter of time until they expand this option to other areas. They only have to make sure that there are certain security measures in play, as the illegal sharing of media, particularly music, is a huge concern in the industry.
There is no need to download or update Google Search to have this new feature working. You just need to use Google to search for a particular artist and if you live in the US, then that option is now available for you. Non-US residents will have to settle for a few more clicks before hey will be able tp listen to their favourite musical artists.
SOURCE: Google
Nokia wants you to be Green with Envy for the X2
Nokia is teasing something, and with an unmistakable green bent, we can only presume it is related to Android. But will it be the rumored Nokia X2 or does Nokia, under Microsoft's guidance, have something else in store for its new Android users? We have until June 24 to find out.
Immediately after the launch of the Nokia X and Nokia XL, there was already talk of a Nokia X2, born perhaps out of disappointment at the company's first two Android smartphones or perhaps out of hope that Microsoft will not kill off the line immediately. There have been already rumors and leaks about the device. One held that the next smartphone will finally have a home button instead of the back button that has left many old Android users quite confused. There was even whispers about dual booting with Windows Phone, though that is more likely wishful thinking. What is supposedly the Nokia X2 did appear in AnTuTu and the specs it revealed are not exactly encouraging.
Nokia's latest teaser talks about how summer brings out the inner glow. Nokia's teasers, however, have very little in terms of comprehensibility or associativity. Remember the ducks before the Nokia X? Yes, strange things they were. In any case, Nokia has kindly left us a timer to count down the seconds before it finally reveals what it is really talking about. As of this writing, 3 days and 20 hours.
The Nokia X, and its larger Nokia XL brother, has been met with mixed reception, some praising its extremely affordable price while others panning the devices' hardware. That said, in terms of software, Nokia did put an interesting spin on Android with its own custom launcher and app store. Of course, that didn't escape controversy either. With Microsoft holding the mobile division's reins, all mobile eyes will be on Nokia to see if it will still come out with another Android phone and if it will be able to make something substantially better.
SOURCE: Nokia
Kick With Chrome lets you be a soccer star on your browser
With the whole world still in the midst of World Cup fever, every child (and some adults too, for sure) is now dreaming of becoming the next football superstar for their country. But if you’re sitting in front of the computer, you can still take the first step towards that with the newest Chrome Experiment called Kick With Chrome.
With just Google Chrome open on your desktop or laptop, whether Windows or Mac, you can play three different kinds of football games: Infinite Dribble, Space Kick, and Shootout. You can use the chrome app on your phone or tablet to control the games. Infinite Dribble lets you become a tiki-taka master just by tilting your device so you can dribble past roadblocks and defenders. While some famous footballers like Wayne Rooney and Sergio Ramos have kicked balls to outer space during important games, Space Kick lets you do exactly that, only this time you win if you kick it as high as you can. The Shootout game would be good practice for your penalty kicks or blocking those shots from going inside the net.
While the game is meant to be played on a desktop with your phone or tablet as a controller, it can also be played just directly on your device. This game experiment was made possible with the use of several technologies, like the HTML5 Fullscreen,Accelerometer and Vibration APIs which are responsible for the rich mobile experience, while WebRTC DataChannel and WebSockets lets your mobile device and desktop connect with each other in real time.
All you need to do is open this on your desktop and then the mobile version on your phone or tablet. Who knows, next World Cup you just might win the Best Kick With Chrome player award or something.
SOURCE: Chrome
Google Play Movies adds support for 21 more countries
Google Play Movies, which is the mothership’s semi-ubiquitous movie streaming service, is adding supported countries to its already considerable list. In March this year, Google added over 40 countries to the places where Google Play Movies can be used, and today it is adding 21 more.
The newly added countries list from Google is as follows: Albania, Argentina, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Poland, Slovakia, Tajikistan, Thailand, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.
International copyright law will make sure that the availability list for rentals and downloads will be variable and convoluted from country to country. But this new list – which is bringing support to predominantly European countries – will make sure that the service is now available to a wider audience, provided of course that they update their Play Movies app. The way the app works is that movie and television content are made available – they can either be rented or purchased – through the app.
A recent innovation to the app is that with a new update in June, movies and TV episodes can now be watched offline via an extension in Chrome, Google’s browser – but this update is specifically for Chromebook users. This gives the ability to Play Movies users to pre-download their favorite shows and watch them at a later date. That specific Chrome extension is available in the Chrome Web Store.
SOURCE: Google
Verizon Galaxy S III, S4 Mini now getting Android 4.4
Samsung and its carrier partners are continuing the much-welcomed onslaught of Android 4.4 updates this week. Living up to "better late than never", Verizon is rolling out the latest version, though only Android 4.4.2 in this case, to the Samsung Galaxy S III and the Galaxy S4 Mini.
The update for the Galaxy S III on Verizon's network follows that of AT&T's release yesterday. Outside of the US, the 2012 flagship also enjoyed an update coming from Canadian carriers such as Bell and TELUS. This practically covers most of the Galaxy S III devices found on this side of the globe. However, this is once again only for the LTE version of the device, as the fate of the update for the international GT-I9300 remains unkown.
On the other hand, this is the first reported update for the Galaxy S4 Mini. The update arrives on time, at least based on the leaked Samsung schedule which puts the update for the device around June. This makes the 2013 device even more interesting¸that is if AT&T pushes the same Android 4.4 update to its own devices. The Galaxy S4 Mini has been chosen as AT&T's first VoLTE-enabled device.
As for new features, most of you will probably be quite familiar with the new things that Android 4.4 itself brings, including cloud printing, improved performance, immersive mode, and redesigned navigation and notification bars. Samsung and Verizon are, of course, throwing in their own changes along with this firmware upgrade, like the latest KNOX 2.0 security framework and new pre-installed apps like ISIS Wallet, Verizon Cloud, and Emergency Alerts.
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