Tag: Google

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Google Play Music Now Allows Music Uploads Through Your Browser

google play music updateIt’s a simple update, but a helpful one.

If you manage your music collection online through Google Play Music, you now have a little more control over how you upload tracks to your cloud storage. You originally had to upload tracks through a program which lived on a desktop, but now Google has updated the service to allow for browser uploads.

It’s a handy little update for those moments you might want to manage your music collection while on the go. It’s also a great way to showcase Chrome apps, as the service ties into a new mini-player available through the Chrome browser.

Now I’m hoping they’ll build some of that functionality into the Play Music apps on phones and tablets.

More info on Google’s Play Music site.

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Experts Roundtable: Android Wear, Moto 360, and the future of Smartwatches!

A pair of exciting announcements dropped today for wearable computing fans. Google took the wraps off of Android Wear, the OS and UI that will be gracing many a wrist in the future. Motorola quickly followed (or maybe preempted) with the reveal of the Moto 360.

Now that Google has officially joined the smartwatch wars, let’s talk about the future!


I’m joined by a terrific panel of bloggers, so make sure to give them all a follow!

Enobong Etteh – @BooredAtWork – http://booredatwork.com
Andrew Kameka – @AndrewKam – http://MobileBurn.com
Tori Dorsey – @GlassesnGlitter – http://www.glassesandglitter.com/

motorola moto 360 smartwatch teaser announced (1)

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Android Wear Teaser Videos Show Off Google Now on Your Wrist

Android WearIn a pair of videos showing off their new wearable OS, Google finally took the wraps off their long rumored smartwatch UI.

Dubbed Android Wear, it’s a system designed to feed notifications, small pieces of contextual information, and voice controlled services to your wrist. Modular enough for a variety of square and circular form factors (like that sexy Moto 360), it features a Google Now card style interface to feed you small pieces of relevant info. Backed up by voice actions, users should be able to stay informed as to what’s happening in their digital world, while still being able to interact with messages. A handy little trick in providing us tools to actually use our phones less while still consuming data services.

LG and Moto are already announcing hardware to use the new Wear software, and traditional watch manufacturers like Fossil are expressing interest as well. This might be the mainstream push required to get “old world” makers on board.

Also announced is a preview SDK releasing this week, so developers can already start work on migrating apps and services to these smaller screens.

Hit the videos below for the full scoop, and a demo of the Android Wear UI in action!


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Android Reads You The Classics: Audiobook Test of the Updated Google Text to Speech Engine

google tts high quality female voiceWhy “The Classics”? Because they’re public domain and I don’t have to shell out cash for them!

Google recently updated their text to speech app, and many android users wont realize that not only is this engine now a standalone app on Google Play, but digging into the accessibility settings, there’s now a “High Quality” mode, where you can download parts of the voice to live on your phone.

Seeing as how I come from a background of voice over production, do audiobook narrators and voice actors have anything to worry about? Let’s take a listen…

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Google Play Turns 2 – Offers you some birthday goodies

google play second birthdayIt’s funny to think that Google’s online Android store, dubbed Play, is only two years old. Tech moves so quickly that it feels like this branding has been around a lot longer.

Anywho, with birthdays comes presents, and Google has a few goodies on tap for you with app offers, free songs, and sales on albums and movies.

Hit up the Play store for more info, and wish them a happy second trip around the sun!

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Google and IBM want to make the internet a LOT faster, but will consumers ever get the upgrades?

server rack rear cablingWithin a day of each other, complimentary stories about Google and IBM hit the net.

Google is working on plans to improve their fiber offerings from 1Gbps to 10Gbps, meaning their uploads and downloads would be 200 and 2000 times faster than what I currently have access to in Los Angeles. We can also easily estimate that the service would be cheaper than the top tier broadband in So-Cal. Originally their plan was to roll out 10Gbps connections over the next decade, but in light of 4K video services popping up to supply people native resolution content for their new TV’s, they’ve shortened that window to three years. The internet is going to need bigger pipes to handle future services.

And if you think Google’s data sounds audacious, IBM has even bigger goals in their sites.  Continue reading “Google and IBM want to make the internet a LOT faster, but will consumers ever get the upgrades?”

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Samsung Intros Galaxy Tab Built for Education

375_Galaxy-Tab-for-Education_Front_Horz_1-27Google and Samsung really are working on their relationship.

Featured at FETC 2014, Samsung is showing off a Galaxy Tab 10.1 which focuses on Education markets, and they say it’ll be ready for the 2014-2015 school year.

Starting off with a fairly normal Galaxy Tab 10.1, it’s software and services which separate it from the herd. Piggybacking on their recent gains getting Android devices ready for corporate IT, these new tablets will feature simple set up and device management for teachers to utilize tablets in the classroom.

This also highlights Google’s push into the education market by working with Google Play for Education. This division of play focuses on teacher approved apps and media, gives teachers the ability to filter content by grade level and topic, and allows schools to order content via PO. Once content is purchased, it can be quickly pushed to students tablets.

Hopefully the controls are more robust than what we experienced here in LA using iPads last year…

Full press release below.

Continue reading “Samsung Intros Galaxy Tab Built for Education”

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Updated: Lenovo to buy Motorola from Google for $3 Billion!

lenovo-logo-1Well now that the dust has settled a bit, we can actually take a closer look at some of the details of this proposed deal. Though it was kind of funny how many corporate experts came flocking out of various corners of the internet following the freakish suddenness of this announcement.

The Motorola that Lenovo will acquire will be a very different animal than the one that Google purchased for $12.5 Billion. Firstly, there’s no set-top division. That was sold to Arris Group for $2.35 Billion.

We also know that the experimental division of Motorola responsible for the modular Project Ara will be staying with Google. As will most of the patents they acquired in buying Moto. Lenovo will receive all of the Motorola branding and trademarks. Not too shabby as they’ll instantly become the number three Android manufacturer.

Lenovo will also receive a patent licensing deal. The timing on this makes perfect sense when placed next to the deal Samsung and Google hammered out recently. Google is making a tremendous amount of patent material available to the top Android manufacturer, and the number one PC manufacturer (who also happens to be making a play for more of the mobile market). Lenovo and Samsung get more IP weapons, and Google gets a Samsung less focused on altering Android and a new home for Moto for them to keep stave off any perception of impropriety. Lenovo gets a great brand with a lot of history, and like IBM’s Thinkpads, Lenovo is proving itself very capable of reviving old brands. My histrionic speculation below doesn’t feel like it was TOO far off the mark…

So why aren’t I happier about this? Rationally I know this is probably the best possible move for all parties involved. I think I’m somewhat disappointed on Motorola’s behalf. It takes a long time to incorporate a company following a buy out. We were just starting to see the fruits of a newer, leaner, meaner Moto. The Moto X was a terrific handset, and Moto G was the best possible Android answer to the onslaught of low cost Windows Phones like the Lumia 520.

Now little Moto has to move to a new home. I’m very confident Lenovo will be a solid keeper for the beleaguered brand, but I’m bummed seeing anything which might interrupt the little bit of momentum that we’ve started to see.

And while this makes fantastic business sense for Google, both from a revenue standpoint and to maintain good relationships with other manufacturers, it makes me feel like this entire procedure really was a cynical grab for a patent portfolio. The very accusations I defended Google from back in 2012. I don’t like being wrong like that.

More details on the Motorola Blog and Lenovo’s Press Release. My original article below. Continue reading “Updated: Lenovo to buy Motorola from Google for $3 Billion!”

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