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Latest Gear Live Videos
Google Calendar picks up new Google+ inspired minimalist design
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Design, Google, Internet,
Looks like Google Calendar is also getting a new redesign to put it in line with Google+, similar to the redesign that Gmail is getting. You should be seeing the new design live in Google Calendar now, but know that there aren't any new features to go along with it. It's purely cosmetic. Do you like it?
Gallery: Google Calendar picks up new Google+ inspired minimalist design
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Get a preview of the new Gmail design right now
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Google, Internet,
Gmail is set to get a redesign that brings it in line with the the visual UI of Google+. While the final redesign hasn't been pushed out yet, you can still apply it to your current Gmail setup using a theme that Google has made available. Simply log in to Gmail and go into your theme settings and choose either "Preview" or "Preview (Dense)" to apply the new hotness. What do you think of the new layout?
Oh, and it looks like Google Calendar picks up the redesign as well.
Gallery: Get a preview of the new Gmail design right now
Hands-on with Google’s Google+ social network
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Google, Internet, Product Reviews,
Google's new Google+ social network, currently in a "field trial," can't quite avoid the stereotype that the company's products sacrifice usability for new features. Put simply, Google+ is a social network for geeks.
Unfortunately, Google can't help exposing numerous options to share, hide, protect, and discover photos, friends, videos, posts, and all of the other minutiae that make up today's online social interactions.
Underneath, however, there are some rather elegant features, including a lovely "Circles" interface to add friends, and a "Hangout" group video chat feature that holds promise.
But users used to Facebook's minimalist interface may find Google+ jarring. And, sad to say, Google's "field trial" suffered from overcapacity, an issue which may or may not have rippled into our evaluation on Tuesday afternoon. I and other staffers experienced numerous annoyances, which resulted from either poor design decisions, alpha glitches, or the overcapacity issue - I don't know which. Read on for our full hands-on with Google+.
Click to continue reading Hands-on with Google’s Google+ social network
Gallery: Hands-on with Google’s Google+ social network
Google looking to bring simplicity to Android with Nexus Prime
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Smartphones, Google, Rumors, Software,
Following up on a report from last week, Boy Genius Report has added some key new details about Google's next Nexus phone, codenamed "Nexus Prime."
On Tuesday BGR editor Jonathan Geller said Samsung will once again manufacture the next pure Android cell phone, as it did with the recent Nexus S 4G.
"Nexus Prime" will be a flagship device for Android 4.0, aka Ice Cream Sandwich. Furthermore, the screen will use Samsung's "Super AMOLED HD" glass and come with a 1.5-GHz, dual-core OMAP4460 chip from Texas Instruments.
Notably, Geller also said "Nexus Prime" will lack carrier bloatware or manufacturer customization, much like Google's first Nexus phone, the Nexus One.
Click to continue reading Google looking to bring simplicity to Android with Nexus Prime
Gallery: Google looking to bring simplicity to Android with Nexus Prime
Apple could be ditching Google Maps in favor of its own navigation software in iOS 5.
MacRumors uncovered a new section in the legal disclaimers section of iOS 5 called "Map Data" that references several different third-party mapping and naviation companies such as CoreLogic, Getchee, Localeze, and TomTom, among others.
It wouldn't be much of a shock if Apple ditched Google Maps and launched its own mapping service. In recent years, Apple has snapped up a couple of mapping companies, Placebase and Poly9. Apple has also been hiring engineers with mapping and navigation experience to join the iOS team. On top of that, when Apple responded to the outpouring of media scrutiny about iPhone location tracking in April, the company revealed it was creating its own traffic database.
Click to continue reading Will Apple replace Google Maps in iOS 5?
Gallery: Will Apple replace Google Maps in iOS 5?
What does the Samsung Chromebook cost to produce?
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Google, PC / Laptop,
How much does that Samsung Chromebook really cost? According to an iSuppli teardown, the device's bill of materials comes to $322.12.
With the manufacturing cost throw in, the Chromebook costs $334.32 to produce. Despite Google's emphasis on the software, meanwhile, iSuppli finds that it's the hardware that really makes the Chromebook sing.
"As much as Google would like to de-emphasize the role of user hardware, it is the hardware, in fact, that defines the Chromebook and will determine the success of the platform," Wayne Lam, a senior analyst at IHS, said in a statement.
The Chromebook includes "some advanced hardware features not typically found in low-cost notebooks," iSuppli said.
The motherboard is the most expensive part of Samsung's Chromebook, at $86.37, or 26 percent of the total bill of materials. The motherboard includes a 2GB Double Data Rate 3 (DDR) SDRAM, as well as a dual-core Intel Atom N570 processor and a Trusted Platform Module (TPM) for computing security from Infineon Technologies, which is most commonly found on enterprise-level computers, iSuppli said.
Click to continue reading What does the Samsung Chromebook cost to produce?
Gallery: What does the Samsung Chromebook cost to produce?
Google Nexus 4G: 720p display, 4G LTE, Android 4.0, 1080p recording
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Smartphones, Google, Handhelds, Rumors,
Whenever there's a major release of Android, Google likes to partner with a manufacturer on the release of a reference device for the platform, and it looks like the Nexus 4G may be that device for Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich when it ships later this year. We aren't totally sure that Nexus 4G will be the name of the device, but it will be the fourth-generation Nexus phone that Google fills to the brim with all sorts of goodness. What can we expect from this one? Well, how about a 720p display for starters, with a dual-core 1.2 GHz or 1.5 GHz Snapdragon processor? 4G LTE support point to this one being a Verizon Wireless device (althought it may also launch as the first AT&T 4G LTE device,) and things are rounded out by 1 GB RAM, 1080p video recording, 5 megapixel rear camera, 1 megapixel front camera, and Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich goodness, all in an ultra-thin package.
Yeah, we know how good this sounds. Just remember, it's a rumor for now, and if it comes to fruition, don't expect to see it until around the September timeframe, right in line with the iPhone 5.
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| BGR
Gallery: Google Nexus 4G: 720p display, 4G LTE, Android 4.0, 1080p recording
Google Doodle lets you play guitar, honors Les Paul 96th birthday
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Google, Internet, Music,
Google's Thursday homepage doodle is celebrating what would have been the 96th birthday of musician Les Paul with a playable guitar logo.
For the next 24 hours, the logo on Google.com will be replaced with the strings of a guitar that will play a tune as you strum them with your mouse. In the U.S., users can click the black "compose" button and record a 30-second track. Clicking the button again will display a link to share the song you've just created.
Google said it was inspired to include the record button because Paul, in addition to his guitar work, also "experimented in his garage with innovative recording techniques like multitracking and tape delay," Alexander Chen, a designer (and musician) with Google's Creative Lab, wrote in a blog post.
The doodle, meanwhile, was created by Google engineers Kristopher Hom and Joey Hurst as well as doodle team lead Ryan Germick. They used a combination of JavaScript, HTML5 Canvas (used in modern browsers to draw the guitar strings), CSS, Flash (for sound), and tools like the Google Font API, goo.gl and App Engine, Chen said.
Click to continue reading Google Doodle lets you play guitar, honors Les Paul 96th birthday
Gallery: Google Doodle lets you play guitar, honors Les Paul 96th birthday
Feature Breakdown: Apple iCloud, Amazon Cloud Player, Google Music Beta
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Features, Google, Music,
The biggest player in digital music has finally vaporized its content. Starting this fall, you'll be able to store your digital music library on Apple's internet servers. We've already seen Amazon and Google's attempts at a Web-based music service, with the former's Cloud Player and the latter's Google Music Beta, but with iTunes' dominance in digital music, Apple's iCloud could eclipse both of them. Apple's offering differs from those of Amazon and Google in some big ways, though. Here's a rundown of the three services' differences and similarities.
A central difference of Apple's iCloud versus the others is that it's not just for music: It takes over all the former MobileMe's functions—email, contacts, calendar—along with backing up and syncing iOS device photos, app data, and iWork documents. Thus ends the stormy story of the MobileMe service, which even Steve Jobs noted at WWDC was "not our finest hour." This comparison, though will concern itself primarily with the music aspect of iCloud, iTunes in the Cloud. This piece is available as a beta by downloading iTunes 10.3.
A huge difference of iCloud's music capabilities is that you can't play songs from within a Web browser (at least as far as we have seen so far) as you can with both Amazon and Google's offerings. You'll either need an iOS device or iTunes running on a computer. True, this does include Windows PCs running iTunes, but forget any non-Apple tablets or phones. This lack of Web access is just less flexible. Nor can you stream music from its online storage—the music must be fully downloaded to play.
Click to continue reading Feature Breakdown: Apple iCloud, Amazon Cloud Player, Google Music Beta
Gallery: Feature Breakdown: Apple iCloud, Amazon Cloud Player, Google Music Beta
T-Mobile announces inexpensive Samsung Exhibit 4G, Gravity SMART phones
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Smartphones, Google, Handhelds,
On the heels of yesterday's heady HTC Sensation 4G announcement, T-Mobile announced Thursday that it is coming out with its second Android 2.3, aka Gingerbread, device this month, the Samsung Exhibit 4G.
Not only does it cost half the price of the HTC Sensation, it actually runs on 4G speed, which T-Mobile defines as HSPA+ 21. The Sensation, meanwhile, is stuck on HSPA+ 14.4.
For a modest $79.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate and two-year contract, the Samsung Exhibit 4G comes with a 1-GHz processor, touch screen keyboard, 3-megapixel rear-facing camera, front-facing photo camera with pre-installed video chat, Flash-supported Web browsing, microSD slot, and best of all, theoretical speeds of 21 Mbps. Or perhaps this is the best part: the phone also comes pre-loaded with Bejeweled 2, Hasbro's Scrabble, and Doodle Jump.
The Exhibit comes in black or violet, and is expected to hit stores sometime in June, T-Mobile said.
Click to continue reading T-Mobile announces inexpensive Samsung Exhibit 4G, Gravity SMART phones
