Google posts latest Q4 and full year 2014 earnings
Google has just posted their most recent Q4 and full year 2014 financial reports, following the likes of Samsung, LG and LG Display. The search giant managed to pull in $66 billion in 2014, up 19% year over year. In Q4 alone, the company made $18.1 billion, which is a 15% increase from Q4 2013. Net income for Q4 2014 is up $4.76 billion from $3.38 billion the year prior.
Sites owned by Google generated $12.43 billion in Q4, which is 69% of the company’s total revenue. Site revenue from Q4 2013 only came out to $10.54 billion, which makes is an 18% increase year over year. Google’s partner sites generated $3.72 billion, which is 20% of the company’s revenue in Q4. The vague ‘other revenues’ section made $1.95 billion in Q4, making up 11% of the company’s revenue. While the earnings report doesn’t give much information on the ‘other revenues’ section, this is the part that includes Google Play. This section saw a 19% increase year over year, and a 6% increase from Q4 2013. Last but not least, the company’s revenue from outside of the US brought in $10.23 billion, which represents 56% of their Q4 2014 earnings.
Google closed the sale of Motorola to Lenovo on October 29th, 2014. Not including taxes, that sale resulted in a gain of $740 million. Android is a huge part of what Google makes from year to year, and while we don’t have any financial statistics on that, we do have a report from earlier today explaining just how many Android phones we sold in 2014. Over one billion Android smartphones shipped last year, making up a massive 81% of all smartphone shipments. Also during the conference call, Google CFO Patrick Pichette admitted to the company not being able to keep up with stock for the Nexus 6.
Rolling Stone archives hit Google Play Newsstand this week
Have you ever felt the need to dive into the history of music, movies and other pop culture? Well, you’ll soon be able to do so with the help of Rolling Stone and Google Play Newsstand. The magazine is set to add its archive of decade-spanning content to the digital repository tomorrow, and some of it will be available free of charge. Three to four articles from each of the back issues can be read inside the app or on the Rolling Stone site at no cost. Later on, the plan is to bolster relevant content with the addition of sound and video. The magazine claims its archived issues do quite well, especially during certain events, and this gives readers another way to access it. For Google, the partnership shows off its reading platform with material from a popular weekly publication, which sounds like a win-win to me.
Filed under: Internet, Software
Via: 9to5Google
Source: Fast Company
Saygus V2 pre-ordering opens February 2 at 11:59pm MST
At CES 2015, the Saygus V2 was introduced to the world with impressive components on the inside and out. Saygus announced at the event that the V2 would be released during the first quarter of 2015. We are getting closer to that release as Saygus will take pre-orders beginning February 2 at 11:59pm MST. The introductory price will be $549 before increasing to $599. To get the introductory price, though, customers will need a coupon code received only after pre-registering. That can still be done and ends on Monday afternoon.
Click here to view the embedded video.
SALT LAKE CITY—Jan. 29, 2015— Saygus, the progressive American smartphone manufacturer, today announced that the Saygus V2 (pronounced V-Squared) will be available at a limited introductory price of US $549 for a $50 savings off the standard pricing of US $599. Saygus has extended the pre-order registration deadline to noon MST on Monday, Feb. 2. Pre-orders at saygus.com will then officially commence at 11:59 p.m. MST Monday, Feb. 2.Those who pre-register will receive an additional battery and a customized, replaceable glass screen protector through the company’s website, saygus.com. Those who pre-register will receive a coupon code for the introductory package. There is a limit of 10 units per customer. Carrier or reseller inquiries regarding volume orders can be made at reseller@saygus.com.
“The V2 was created from the ground up to be one of the most feature-rich smartphones ever made,” said Chad Sayers, Founder of Saygus. “We are pleased to offer the introductory price of $549 for a limited time to those who have pre-registered.”
The Saygus V2 is housed in a hardened Kevlar protective edge with durable anodized brushed aluminum sides and is less than 10mm thick. With access to CDMA and GSM wireless technologies, the V2 is a world phone designed to be used around the globe. The V2 has a 5-inch edge-to-edge borderless screen offering a resolution of 1080 x 1920 (FHD). It comes with an industry first optical image stabilization (OIS) in both the rear (21MP) and front (13MP) cameras, waterproofed IPX7 “swimmable” capability, sunlight viewable screen, 3100 mAh battery with 50% battery savings chip boosting the battery to approx. 4600 mAh, and a compact, side-facing fingerprint scanner for personal security.
The V² comes with 64GB of onboard storage and includes dual MicroSDXC Slots which provide an additional 256GB of expandable storage capacity. Industry-first wireless HD gaming and movie beaming technology, as well as state-of-the-art 3D sound with front-facing Harman Kardon speakers make the V² the ultimate media smartphone.
About Saygus
Saygus is a U.S.-based mobile device designer and manufacturer located in Salt Lake City. Saygus is focused on delivering leading-edge cellular devices that introduce new, innovative features to the mobile marketplace. For more information on Saygus, please visit: http://www.saygus.com.
Come comment on this article: Saygus V2 pre-ordering opens February 2 at 11:59pm MST
Apple Launches ‘Get Productive’ Promotion for iOS and Mac With Discounted Productivity Apps [iOS Blog]
Apple’s iOS and Mac App Stores were today updated with new “Get Productive” sections, offering discounted prices on many popular productivity apps for iOS devices and Macs.
In the iOS App Store, the 19 discounted apps include Fantastical 2 for iPhone and iPad, Workflow, Clear, Duet Display, Calendars 5, and more. Apps are available for up to 60 percent off their regular prices.
In the Mac App Store, there are 20 apps available at discounted prices up to 75 percent off, including popular offerings like Day One, Byword, iA Writer Pro, iTranslate, mSecure, iStudiez Pro, Notability, and more.
Apple has also named ProCam 2 as its App of the Week, and as a result, the camera and photo editing app is available at no cost, instead of at its regular $1.99 price. [Direct Link]
The iPad version of the app, ProCam XL 2 is also free. [Direct Link]
Android customization – Send SMS through your PC or WiFi tablet, app shootout
Last week in our Android customization series we took a look at how to push Android notifications to your computer screen using one of our favorite productivity apps, Pushbullet. As an extra, we tossed in that Pushbullet will let you handle your SMS right from your PC, so we wanted to take a look at a few other apps that can do the same for you.
In this mini app shootout, we will look at how to use Airdroid, DeskSMS, MightyText, MySMS and PushBullet to send and receive SMS through your computer and even from your WiFi only Tablet.
Before we get started
Today’s collection of apps vary in function and price. More importantly, some are made specifically to sync SMS between your PC and your Android phone, while others are designed for other purposes, but happen to be able to also tackle SMS.
Having installed all 5 on my device at the same time, I promise you, you are going to want to only try one or two at a time yourself. Things got a little crazy around here. Check out below what the apps have to offer, then I recommend grabbing the one that looks best to you.
Fair warning folks, we are skipping our usual in-depth step-by-step instructions today, instead, we’re cramming more apps in and looking at things from a general overview. But don’t worry, each of the apps has its own instructions that are easy enough to follow for these relatively easy to configure tools.
Airdroid
Airdroid is free in the Google Play Store. It offers a premium service for a monthly fee that provides access across networks and a few extras. But we don’t think you’ll need them.
Airdroid is an impressive productivity app, it allows you to do so much more than just send and receive SMS through your PC, allowing you to access files from your Android device and even take remote control of a few aspects of your Android gear. Airdroid has been mentioned a few times before here on the sight, most recently as a tool to remotely clear your microSD card before using Android Device Manager to factory reset your device.
To use Airdroid for your SMS, follow Airdroid’s fairly simple and bulletproof instructions on your phone to connect your PC to your Android device. From there, click into the Messages section of Airdroid on your PC and enjoy.
DeskSMS
DeskSMS is free in the Google Play Store. While the app may be free, the service will run a small fee to go beyond a short trial period.
DeskSMS is brought to you by Koushik Dutta, a popular Android app developer responsible for a number of unique and powerfully productive apps, such as Helium backup, Clockword Mod ROM manager and AllCast. DeskSMS is one of those apps specifically built to handle your SMS through the computer.
DeskSMS takes the approach of piggybacking on top of your other communication tools. In short, you send a chat or email message from your PC and it will translate into an SMS message through your Android device.
MightyText
MightyText is free in the Google Play Store, with no additional service fees. They’ve got a Chrome extension too.
MightyText is another popular app that is focus built for SMS management through your computer. MightyText focuses on handling your messages through a web browser, providing a web page for you to visit, from which all of your messages are synced between PC and Android device. Simply follow the setup instruction in the Android app and you’ll be up and running in a few clicks.
MySMS
MySMS is free in the Google Play Store. A premium option is available that brings sync across devices, backup into cloud services, export to a text file and more.
MySMS is another option that utilizes a web page to access and control your SMS off your Android phone. Startup the app and log in on your Android device, follow the instructions through and it will provide the local URL that you’ll need to access on your PC.
Pushbullet
PushBullet is free in the Google Play Store. Not only is there no extra fees to worry about, but Pushbullet offers APIs that allow you to build your own apps and programs to operate on their service.
Pushbullet, as we discussed last week, was originally designed to push files, URLs and more between your Android device and PC. As Pushbullet grew, and Android itself became more versatile, Pushbullet took on the ability to push your Android notifications to your PC and handle your SMS.
If you followed along last week, you’ve already got Pushbullet installed on device and the browser extension setup and rolling. There is nothing more to do here, Pushbullet on your PC will automatically handle SMS notifications in a way that allows you to respond to sender.
What’s next
Google Hangouts. The keen observer noticed that I did not include Hangouts in this list today. This was a tough decision, but ultimately it came down to the fact that Hangouts does not handle messages the same way as the others today. Hangouts is Google’s messaging service that melds together chat and SMS in one interface.
While Hangouts does bring SMS to your PC, for free, this is merely an available way to access the Hangouts tool. In contrast, each of the other apps today take your incoming SMS from your phone and have to convert them to a usable form for your PC. Bottom line, Hangouts works even when your Android phone is turned off, the others require your phone to be turned on and connected. Perhaps this makes Hangouts the best app for your needs, I just figured it was unfair to have it compete head on with the others today.
These are all great and popular apps in their own way. Some are built for SMS, some are not, but do a good job anyway. Either way, you are in good hands no matter which app you choose to run with.
Next week
We hope you find the SMS to PC app that suits your needs in this week’s Android customization post. Next week, we would like to revisit using voice commands to control your device, we’ll use Tasker to control the camera on your device, and throw in an Android Wear app to give you even more flexibility. That’s right, get both arms into your selfies, or be a part of that group photo without having to run for it.
The most important part of an app shootout like this is deciding which is the best. I am only a moderate user of SMS on a daily basis, and there is only one app on this list that I already use for other things – for me, Pushbullet will be my tool of choice (in addition to Hangouts, of course.) However, because the options all take a different approach to the task, we will need you to be the voice of reason here:
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Microsoft reportedly invests in Cyanogen Inc., world predictably freaks out
The Wall Street Journal today on its Digits blog dropped word that Microsoft is “putting money into Cyanogen.” No dollar amount figures were listed by the Journal’s anonymous sources, thought it is noted that Microsoft “would be a minority investor in a roughly $70 million round of equity financing.”
This, of course, means that Google is doomed and Android as we know it is over. The Internet said so shortly after the rumor broke.
Except that’s not what it means at all.
Tesla Model S is getting even quicker through a software update
If you didn’t think that Tesla’s Model S P85D was bonkers enough, you’re in for a treat. Elon Musk has revealed that the already speedy electric sedan is getting a software update that will improve its 0-60MPH acceleration time by a tenth of a second, to 3.1 seconds. That may not sound like much, but that makes the Model S as quick off the mark as McLaren’s MP4-12C supercar. The ‘regular’ P85 will also get a boost, Musk says, although it won’t be “quite as much.” No, this won’t be news to aftermarket tuners used to wringing out more performance through code, but it’s fun to think that a factory firmware upgrade could be the key to winning a drag race.
[Image credit: Free Photos, Flickr]
Tesla P85D 0 to 60mph acceleration will improve by ~0.1 sec soon via over-the-air software update to inverter algorithm
– Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 29, 2015
Filed under: Transportation
Source: Elon Musk (Twitter 1), (2)
Chromecast dominates U.S. streaming, users have hit Cast 1 billion times
Google’s Chromecast costs only $35. At that price, people may assume the dongle is inferior to its competition. In reality, Chromecast is on the same level as other streaming devices. And today Google chief business officer Omid Kordestani pointed to a report from NPD Group that named Chromecast as the top selling streaming device in the United States. Holding the top spot in the United States should not be any surprise because of how low the price is to bring Chromecast home.
Kordestani announced a very impressive Chromecast statistic, too. In the near two years the device has been available, users have hit Cast one billion times. The milestone came last week. Also, Chromecast use has improved by 60% since launching in July 2013.
Come comment on this article: Chromecast dominates U.S. streaming, users have hit Cast 1 billion times
Elgato Recalls Some Smart Power Battery Packs Due to Overheating [iOS Blog]
Elgato recently announced that it is recalling some of its Smart Power 6000 mAh battery packs, as they can overheat while recharging. The company sent out notices to app users today, letting them know about the recall.
For those unfamiliar, the $99 Elgato Smart Power battery pack is a compact 6000 mAh external battery that integrated with an iOS app, a neat feature that allowed users to wireless monitor the charge level of the device and receive notifications when the battery was low or needed recharging. MacRumors went hands-on with the Smart Power back in December and found it’s app integration to be highly useful.
According to the company, affected Smart Power battery packs were sold between September 2014 and January 2015 and “fall within a limited serial number range.” Affected customers can check if their product is affected by entering their serial number on Elgato’s website.
Elgato has ceased selling the Smart Power until it can release an updated version, and all current owners of affected products will receive a full refund. The company recommends that users cease using their battery packs until they’re able to check whether they have a product with overheating issues, and Elgato also encourages all customers to return affected products “as soon as possible.”
Milk Music from Samsung comes to Galaxy Tab 4 and Note tablets
Milk Music was released last year as Samsung’s answer to music streaming, but it was only available on certain smartphones. Samsung today has announced that Milk Music is not available on the Galaxy Tab 4 and Galaxy Note tablet lineups.
The list of compatible Samsung devices is as follows (per the Milk Music Play Store listing):
Galaxy S® III
Galaxy Note® II
Galaxy S® 4
Galaxy Note® 3
Galaxy Mega™
Galaxy S® 4 mini
Galaxy S® 5
Galaxy S® III mini
Galaxy Note® 4
Galaxy Note® Edge
Galaxy Tab S®, Tab S Pro®, Note Pro® 12.2
Galaxy Note® 8.0
Galaxy Note® 10.1, Note® 10.1 (2014 Edition)
Galaxy Tab® 4 family
Galaxy Tab® 3 8.0, Tab® 3 10.1
Gear S Smartwatch
So as you can see, the Note tablets this is available on are the Note Pro 12.2, Note 8.0, Note 10.1, and the Note 10.1 (2014 Edition).
Milk Music was initially released as free to owners of various Samsung devices, but it now costs $3.99 per month along with the prerequisite of needing the aforementioned Samsung devices.
via Talk Android
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