April Fools’ Day 2014: Google Style

Ah, yes. It’s that time of year again. Google is taking to the web to mislead it’s faithful followers by pulling some pretty elaborate stunts. Last year they tricked users into thinking Google Nose, Google Treasure Maps, and the Closure of YouTube “Submissions” were real. Can they beat the progress they made last year? Let’s find out!

Here’s a list of all official Google April Fools’ Day jokes, and one unofficial entry.

The Magic Hand

The Magic Hand comes all the way from Google Japan, offering an innovative input method for your smartphone. It’s basically a hand attached to a few levers, controlled by the user.

Once you have set in front of this device a smartphone on hand, just hold the lever afterward. Instead of you, magic hand takes care of operating the smartphone. Problem of the touch panel of the past, I can solve all. Operability of comfortable buttons and levers, will make for some of the space further, the mobile life of you.

The entire announcement can be seen through Google Translate, so it’s a bit difficult to read. Check out the official announcement here.

Gmail Shelfie

Here to celebrate it’s 10th birthday, a new feature is rolling out to Gmail called “Gmail Shelfie”. It’s an option in Gmail to send your selfie to others so they can set it as their Gmail theme. The idea of Shelfie (SHareable sELFIE) is based on this perfectly-drawn graph:

With just a few clicks, your mom, your aunt, or that girl you have a crush on can set your Shelfie as their Gmail theme so they can enjoy checking, reading, and writing emails while seeing your friendly face in the background.

Gmail announcement

Google Maps: Pokémon Challenge

The Pokémon Challenge is quite possibly the most cruel thing to happen on April Fools’ Day. Want proof?

Google outed a “challenge” in Google Maps today, urging users to find Pokémon around the world. Tap into your inner Pokémon Master by leaving no stone left unturned. Pokémon of all types are hidden everywhere, and it’s your job to catch them all.

Dozens of wild Pokémon have taken up residence on streets, amidst forests and atop mountains throughout Google Maps.

To catch ‘em all, grab your Poké Ball and the newest version of Google Maps for iPhone or Android. Then tap the search bar, “press start,” and begin your quest.

To further their joke, they created an awesome video explaining why people should bother catching Pokémon – for a chance to be hired at Google as a Pokémon Master. If you aren’t sad enough that this doesn’t actually exist, check out the announcement here.

Total Temperature Control

Virgin America and Nest team up to create a temperature control system for airplanes. Each plane passenger will get to control their own personal Nest thermostat to create the most comfortable plane ride to date. Tony Fadell and Sir Richard Branson explain the new features in Total Temperature Control:

Honorable Mention: Google Naps

This one wasn’t outed by Google themselves, but it’s still worth checking out. The site is called Google Naps – a Google Maps parody for mapping nap locations. It was created by Kakhiel and Venour, both based in Netherlands. Easily add your favorite nearby napping location and describe what it is – either a bench, park, bridge, field, or more.

Google has absolutely out done themselves so far, and it’s not even officially April Fools’ Day yet (at least for the US). Which joke is your favorite? Let us know in the comments!

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