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Google Play unites all Google services under one umbrella
Posted by Andrey Malskiy Categories: Corporate News, Google, Handhelds, Home Entertainment, Movies
These days, many people have multiple cloud-connected devices. A smartphone, a tablet, a computer or two...the list goes on. The trouble is getting all these items to sync and communicate with each other. Apple's been trying to solve that for its own devices with iCloud, and now Google die-hards are in luck as well. Google has combined all of its various online stores and marketplaces (Google Music, Android Market, Google eBookstore, etc.) into one service called Google Play.
To kick off Google Play, Google is offering select full albums at 25 cents each, movie rentals at 99 cents, popular apps at 49 cents, and many books for $2.99 in its “7 Days to Play” sale. Apart from the sale, Google Play offers Google users to store up to 20,000 songs for free and allows them to access their music remotely from the cloud. For those that just can’t wait to get to the nearest RedBox, you’re also able to download new releases via Google Play. You also have the option to rent thousands of moives and HD titles at your leisure. And don’t forget that you can browse the largest selection of eBooks. The video above explains it all.
Read More 
| Google
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How to delete your Google Web History before tomorrow’s privacy policy change
Posted by Andrey Malskiy Categories: Features, Google, Internet
On March 1st (that's tomorrow!), Google will be changing its privacy settings. The changes will unify all Google services under one umbrella, as far as privacy is concerned. In other words, what you search for on YouTube will be accessible by Google Search, and all other Google services. As of today, all your site and search history stayed sandboxed within the specific services that you used. Tomorrow, that'll be a different story.
Your search and activity history can obviously reveal a lot of personal data that you may not want Google to know. Things like medical conditions, location, personal habits, and more. That said, there are a few easy steps you can take to keep your search history private and outta Google’s reach. Taking these steps does not prevent Google from gathering and storing this information internally, and doesn't change the fact that this information can be requested and possibly turned over to law enforcement for legal matters. However, what it does do is make it so that Google anonymizes the information after 18 months, and that Google doesn't use your web history to offer you customized search results. With Web History enabled, Google will keep your records indefinitely. Keep on reading for a walkthrough!
HTC One S: Dual core, unibody enclosure, awesome camera
Posted by Andrey Malskiy Categories: Cell Phones, Corporate News, Google, Handhelds
The HTC One S, looks just like any other average phone on the market at first glance. It doesn’t feature the screen real estate that would make your plasma blush, or screaming specs to that blow your computer outta the water. Instead, what HTC has accomplished is that they've created a phone that meets anyone’s mobile needs. The phone features a 4.3-inch Super AMOLED display with a new 1.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 (MSM8260A.) The HTC One S will be running Ice Cream Sandwich paired with the newest version of Sense UI, making it one of the still few smartphones to run Android 4.0. Alongside the new processor, HTC has also beefed up its camera and software; the phone sports an 8 megapixel f/2.0 autofocus lens and HTC’s ImageChip. With the new improvements you’ll be able to shoot your videos in 1080p and simultaneously take snap shots. Lastly, and this is a cool one, the body is actually made by a plasma-heated micro arc oxidation process that results in a unidoby aluminum frame with a nice ceramic finish and helps this phone achieve its 7.9mm thinness. Throw in Beats Audio, and you've got hat amounts to a very capable smartphones in the One S. Expect this one to hit T-Mobile soon.
Check out a video that HTC put together of the One S after the break.
Click to continue reading HTC One S: Dual core, unibody enclosure, awesome camera
Google Fiber applies for permission to provide television packages
Posted by John Ball Categories: Broadband, Google, Home Entertainment, Internet, Rumors
Some might remember the announcement from Google a while back that they were hooking up the good citizens of Kansas City Missouri with a fiber optic gigabit network. Google has since named its fiber optic network “Google Fiber” and has continued building out the network and is making further plans for the service. From the looks of things, Google is looking into providing more than just super-fast Internet speeds. According to The Wall Street Journal, the search giant has entered an application to the Missouri Public Service to gain permission to offer television service later this year, and its expected that Google would make a similar request in Kansas. According to sources the ability to watch TV through Google Fiber will not be free, but no official price point (or announcement, for that matter) has been set as of yet.
Read More | WSJ
Google+, the slow to start but quickly growing social media site is now allowing any user 13 and older to create a Google+ account and join their ranks in this social networking system. Now teens can stay connected with friends and family even easier thanks to this new policy.
Along with the policy change that allows teens to join in on the fun come new safety features to keep kids protected. Before posting a public update, for example, minors will get a warning displayed on-screen. By default, only the people that appear in the teens' circles will be able to contact them, and if an unknown person joins a hangout that a teen happens to be in, the teen will be removed, notified of the changed, and asked if they'd like to re-join the video chat.
You can find and circle Gear Live on Google+.
Motorola announced on Wednesday that its Xoom tablets are going to finally receive the Ice Cream Sandwich update that so many have been waiting for. For those of you who do not know, Ice Cream Sandwich is the latest version of Android (currently Android 4.0.3). The update will be applied over the air, assuming you are connected to a Wi-Fi network, immediately. The update will give Xoom tablet users more functionality, including voice capabilities and faster browser rendering. This update will also make the Xoom one of the first tablets to adopt the Ice Cream Sandwich update.
ASUS set to start Android 4.0 rollout for Transformer Prime on January 12
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Google, Handhelds, Software
We've gotta hand it to ASUS for being quick about updating the Transformer Prime to the latest release of Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. The company has said on its Facebook page that it will begin the Android 4.0 rollout to Transformer Prime owners on January 12, just over a week from now. When compared to how some of the other companies out there are being all slow about the Ice Cream Sandwich update on their devices, ASUS is looking like one of the few Android device makers that cares enough about its userbase to put Android 4.0 on the fast track.
Read More | Facebook
Top 10 Gear Live stories of 2011
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Cell Phones, Editorial, Features, Google, Handhelds, Mods / Hacks, Software, Videos
We've come to the end of another year, and as we wave goodbye to 2011, we figured it was only fitting that we share the most popular stories published on Gear Live this year, as determined by our readers (we've also got the top ten most read stories regardless of publish date, as well as the ten most popular Gear Live videos of 2011!) These are the ten stories that were read the most, and when you consider that fact, it's pretty surprising to see what made the list. Let's kick it off with our most read story of the year:
Giveaway: Apple iPad 2 32 GB!:
The iPad 2 certainly got a lot of attention this year, and our iPad 2 giveaway served as our most popular post out of them all for 2011.
Click to continue reading Top 10 Gear Live stories of 2011
Kindle Fire Hack: Run Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Google, Handhelds, Mods / Hacks, Software
If you've got a Kindle Fire and have been waiting for the opportunity to to install a full-on version of Android, you may want to look into the newest hack that's just been released that allows you to install Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich on the Amazon tablet. Yep, you read that right - thanks to an early Ice Cream Sandwich port based on CyanogenMod 9 that was put together by JackpotClavin, you can turn your Kindle Fire into a real Android tablet, with some caveats, as you'd probably expect.
Click to continue reading Kindle Fire Hack: Run Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich
Samsung Galaxy Nexus review
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Cell Phones, Google, Handhelds, Product Reviews
How much does Android 4.0 mean to you? How much do you need to have it right now? Because that's the dilemma with the Samsung Galaxy Nexus smartphone ($299-$649). Overall it's not quite as good a phone as the Motorola Droid RAZR ($299). But right now, it's the only phone running Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS), and that's the future.
In many ways, this is the ultimate early adopter phone. The phone itself isn't perfect; typically, Nexus phones aren't the best hardware on the market. But the software takes a major leap forward, with everything from a better Gmail experience to a faster browser and the ability to put folders on your home screens. Do you need that right now? Then yes, you need the Nexus. Why else might you want to jump on board the latest flagship Google device? Hit the link and follow us through our full Galaxy Nexus review for the answers.
Click to continue reading Samsung Galaxy Nexus review
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