Apple’s $99 ‘One to One’ Tutoring Program May Be Coming to an End
Apple may soon end its $99 “One to One” tutoring program for Mac and iOS users, according to a source that has provided MacRumors with reliable information in the past. Our source says Apple is stopping the program to allow retail employees to focus on hosting a greater number of free workshops, which multiple people are able to attend at once.
One to One is a long-running Apple program that allows customers who purchase a Mac to pay an additional $99 for one year of Mac, iPhone, and iPad instruction from Apple retail employees. One to One sessions include 30 or 60 minute Personal Training sessions, 90-minute Group Training sessions, and 90-minute group-based Open Training sessions.
One to One members can get help with a wide variety of topics, like getting started with an iPhone, iPad, or Mac and using Apple services like iCloud, and iTunes. Training sessions on Apple apps, including Photos, Mail, iMovie, Final Cut Pro, and more, are also included.
One to One will help you do more than you ever thought possible with your Mac. First, we’ll set up your email, transfer your photos, music, and other files, and show you how to keep everything in sync with iCloud. Then, we’ll work with you to create a curriculum tailored to your goals, learning style, and experience level.
Apple is planning to fold its One to One service into free open workshops, amid some larger changes being made to Apple’s teaching methods. In the near future, workshops will be restructured around themes like “Discover” and “Create,” and will be more accessible on Apple’s main website.
Apple plans to honor existing One to One memberships until they expire, but will not sell new memberships to the program going forward. Customers who need assistance will still be able to sign up for dozens of free, open workshops.
Samsung Pay rolling out to Sprint Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge owners
Sprint is pushing a new update to Samsung Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge owners, bringing with it the much-anticipated Samsung Pay and more.
The new software update will update your software version to G920PVPU2BOH1. Not everyone will get the update right away, as these do take a couple of weeks to get to everyone.
In addition to Samsung Pay, there’s been a myriad of bug fixes, some UI updates, live broadcasting through Yahoo!, and some higher quality audio with compatible Samsung headsets.
Updates will start rolling out today. And it shouldn’t be long before the same devices on other carriers begin to see the new additions.
Come comment on this article: Samsung Pay rolling out to Sprint Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge owners
AT&T, DirecTV deal to set the trend according to analyst
This summer’s deal that brought DirecTV into the AT&T fold is a sign of coming mergers or acquisitions involving wireless carriers and pay TV companies is going to be the wave of the future according to Oppenheimer analyst Tim Horan. In particular, Horan thinks the next one on the block will involve either Comcast or Charter buying T-Mobile.
Horan thinks it is highly likely that Comcast and T-Mobile will strike a deal despite claims by sources close to Comcast saying reports of talks were not accurate. If that combination does not come to pass, Horan thinks Charter is the next most likely company to acquire T-Mobile even as they are in the process of trying to acquire Time Warner Cable. Horan thinks a deal between T-Mobile and DISH is unlikely.
According to Horan, “regardless of the timing, we expect all four wireless carriers to align with a paid TV provider in some form.” This would put all of the carriers in a position to offer bundles like AT&T is now doing with their wireless plans and satellite service from DirecTV.
source: FierceCable
Come comment on this article: AT&T, DirecTV deal to set the trend according to analyst
LiveBoard real time business white board Review.
With today’s fast-paced lifestyle business’ are constantly on the hunt for professional productivity tools. The tools need to be feature driven, easy to use, and bottom line enable employees to work more efficiently.
LiveBoard now available for download on The Google Playstore created an application tool to visualize and explain any concept in real-time and share across the globe.
Setup
The setup is simple. Download LiveBoard from the Google Playstore once the download is complete you are greeted by a tutorial splash screen. After looking over the tutorial, you are free to begin creating shareable content.
Function
Upon the first usage to create a new whiteboard you will have a few options.
Broadcast- broadcast allows you in real time to create content on a whiteboard where other users can view the content.
Invite- you are able to invite other users to view the whiteboard content that you are creating.
There are a few other sharing features, but I will let you check them out for yourself.
Once I made my selection on how I wanted to share my whiteboard, the application turned white with a small hovering menu with tools to use at the bottom of my screen. The available tools are a pen, shape tool, eraser, text tool, color changer text, and undo tool. While using LiveBoard, I couldn’t help but think this is a bootleg version of Microsoft Paint with fewer features and resized to an Android screen.
When I created my first document I quickly discovered that you can change the default pen size bigger or smaller, add photos to whiteboard from camera or gallery which is useful.
The first few attempts to share my documents with friends was unsuccessful. When my friends received the email it was an error message that displayed content unavailable. Not to be defeated I tried and tried numerous times to figure out what I was doing wrong. What I discovered is that you first have to invite the users on to view the broadcast and then once the broadcast is complete you can then email the users to view the content. That made no sense to me, but that was the only way I was able to make it work.
LiveBoard has a good concept that is not feature rich enough or able to keep up with the other productivity tools that really benefit a company available in The Google Playstore.
Target Audience
With sharing content real time and broadcasting the whiteboard, LiveBoard was attempting to reach business professionals that need to correspond and get information to one another quickly. Secondly LiveBoard targeted teachers, and students that they could visually correspond with one another on questions about homework problems or clarification on something that might not be quite clear.
What We Liked
- ability to share drawings and notes
- Start a session without having to create an account
What We Didn’t Like
- basic design
- lack of features and clear direction
- ability to add photos but can not edit them.
Summary
The longer I used LiveBoard I understood exactly what the developers were attempting to do, but the execution was just not there. The design like I stated previously is just a bootleg version of Microsoft Paint. There are some really useful productivity tools that a company can use such as Slack, Google Keep, and Evernote. LiveBoard feels like a beta app or a first attempt at Android Development.
The post LiveBoard real time business white board Review. appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Best wireless chargers – how they work and perform
Wireless charging is one of those technologies which should really be built into every mid-range and high-end phone, because it frees us, in part at least, from those cable bird nests we all have. However, sadly it isn’t built into many phones. The reasons why it isn’t, are many, some to do with the tech itself, some to do with costs, and some to do with the politics of competing standards.
If you have a phone that supports Qi wireless charging then you probably didn’t get a wireless charger in the box. So, what wireless charger should you buy? Does it make a difference? Are they all the same? Well let’s find out.
How does it work?
Coils of wire create magnetic fields, which can be used to generate a current flow in a separate, insulated coil. This is the basis of transformer technology.
Back in 1831 Michael Faraday discovered electromagnetic induction, where electricity is made by passing a magnet through a coil of wire. Today we use this phenomenon for a wide range of applications including transformers, electrical motors, generators, solenoids and wireless charging.
Essentially Qi wireless charging uses two coils of wire. The charging station contains one coil which produces an oscillating magnetic field, which in turn induces electricity in the receiving coil in your smartphone.
The standard Qi specification allows for a transfer of around 5W of power, however the Wireless Power Consortium (WPC) has released a new version of the Qi standard called “Qi fast charging” which allows for charging devices wirelessly at 15 watts. The Samsung Galaxy Note 5 and the S6+ Edge both support this new higher power rating.
Because of the nature of electromagnetic induction and the Qi wireless standard, the charger and the phone must be very close to each other. The close nature of this connection ensures a good level of transferable power, but it does have its drawbacks, mainly that the charger and the smartphone need to be lined up fairly accurately in order to achieve a good connection.
For a more in-depth look at the current state of wireless charging then you should read Rob Trigg’s wireless charging technology in 2015: what you need to know.
Best chargers
For my testing I chose three popular wireless chargers: Samsung’s official Wireless Qi Charging Station, the Anker Ultra-Slim Wireless Charging Pad, and the RAVPower Wireless Qi Charging Pad.
Samsung Wireless Qi Charging Station
This wireless charger from Samsung is an official accessory of the Galaxy S6, and is very easy to use. This round charger has a small footprint and requires minimal space. It has a built-in LED indicator light to alert you if your device is not properly aligned and when a good charge alignment is acquired (LED lights up blue). If you are using it with the Galaxy S6, it will also alert you when your device is fully charged (LED lights up green). The charger also comes with over-charging protection. Since this is a Qi charger it is compatible with any other smartphone that comes with Qi wireless charging capabilities.
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At the time of writing the Samsung Wireless Charger is available on Amazon for just $29.99, with color options including black sapphire and white pearl.
Anker Ultra-Slim Wireless Charging Pad
The Anker Ultra-Slim Wireless Charging Pad holds true to its name and is about the same size and thickness of a coffee cup coaster. Proper alignment is required, and a LED light indicates charging status. This charger also comes with a power efficient idle mode to prevent overcharging your device. Charging devices with a case on is possible, but like most other chargers, will see a reduction in performance if the case is thicker than 5 mm. The Anker Ultra-Slim Wireless Charging Pad is available for $19.99.
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RAVPower Wireless Qi Charging Pad
With its anti-slip silicon pad that helps keep your phone secure in its place, this Qi compatibile wireless works with many popular Android devices including the Samsung Galaxy S6, the Galaxy S5, the Galaxy S4, the Nexus 7 (2013), the Nexus 6, the Nexus 5, and the Nexus 4. The pad also has an LED to show you when you phone is charging.
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You can pickup a RAVPower Wireless Charging Pad for just $24.99 from Amazon.
How did they perform?
To test these charging pads I defined several different criteria. First, how easy is it to align and place the phone on the charger. Second, what feedback do I get that the phone is charging. Third, how quickly does the phone charge and what power is being drawn by the charger. I used a Galaxy S6 Edge for all the tests and started with the battery at zero.
So that we have some context about charging times, the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge has a 2600mAh battery which will charge from zero to 100% in around 1 hour and 20 minutes using Samsung’s wired quick charger that comes with the phone.
Two more things to mention. First, the charging cycle for a Li-ion battery is performed in two stages. This is true for standard wired charging, for quick charging and for wireless charging. During the first stage a constant current is applied to the battery. Then when the battery is around 80% to 90% full (depending on the exact battery design) the current will be lowered but the voltage will remain the same.
The second thing is that to measure the voltage and current being used by the charger I used an inline USB volt and amp meter (pictured below). However this will only tell me the current and voltage being used by the charger itself, it can’t reveal what is happening in the coils. Since the non-fast version of Qi standard specifies a maximum power limit of 5W, we can see that at least 1W is being lost in conversion.
Samsung Wireless Qi Charging Station
The Samsung is the first of our circular pads which we are testing. Whereas the Anker wants to be “ultra-slim” the Samsung pad bring some shape and design. The lower half of the charger is smaller and it curves up to the full pad. The top of the pad is ringed by an LED strip which allows the notification light to be easily seen (more about that in a moment), and on top of the pad is a silicon circle to help keep your phone in place. Aligning the phone on the pad is easy enough, you just need to put the center of the phone on the center of the pad. You can place the phone in any orientation.
When you place the phone on the pad you get a nice reassuring blue glow from the ring around the top of the charger. If you are using a Galaxy S6 or S6 Edge (and I guess a Note 5 or S6+ Edge) then the LED goes green when the phone is charged.
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Charging time was just over 2 hours and 40 minute from zero to 100%. The charger draws 6 watts of power fairly consistently until the battery reaches around 90% charge, then it starts to tail off. At the end of the charge cycle it is drawing around 2.5 watts.
Anker Ultra-Slim Wireless Charging Pad
Aligning the phone on the Anker is simple enough, you basically just need to put the center of the phone on the center of the pad. Since the pad is circular you can actually place the phone in any direction and you don’t necessarily need it to be straight up-down or horizontal. There is no rubber or silicon on the pad, so it is the most slippery of the three. Having said that, I didn’t have any trouble getting the phone to stay on the pad, however the phone might be prone to moving off-center if you dump into your desk accidentally.
The pad doesn’t come with any kind of beeper/buzzer and the only indication from the pad that you are charging the phone comes from a small LED. Unfortunately the LED can be easily obscured by your phone if you place it with the end overhanging the LED position. However, your phone should also give an indication that it is charging correctly, or alternatively it isn’t hard to form the habit of avoid certain orientations of your phone on the pad.
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In terms of charging performance, the Anker performed just as well as the Samsung and the RAVPower. It charged from zero to 100% in around 2 hours and 40 minutes. The pad was using just over 6 watts of power for the first couple of hours until the battery reached around 80% and then it started to decrease, slowly at first until about 90% and then more sharply as the battery reached its full charge.
RAVPower Wireless Qi Charging Pad
Unlike the other two charging pads the RAVPower is a rectangle rather than a circle. Personally I prefer this design as it defines very clearly where the phone should be placed. However like the other pads you don’t actually need to place the phone long ways to match the pad’s design, you can actually place it at any angle, as long as the center of the phone is in the center of the pad. It is also worth mentioning the white circle around the power symbol in the middle of the pad is an anti-slip silicon, which helps minimize slipping or movement due to knocks.
As well as an LED that shows that the phone has been placed correctly on the pad, the RAVPower also has a built-in beeper which sounds when a good connection has been made. This gives you a reassurance that everything is working as expected.
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The performance of the pad is very similar to that of the other two. It takes around two hours and forty minutes to charge the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge from zero to 100%. The charger draws just over 6 watts of power for just over two hours until the battery gets close to 90% full. Then it starts to decline, eventually dipping to under 3 watts as the battery reaches its full charge.
So what does that all mean?
There are a few lessons to be learnt from these tests:
- Although this might be obvious to some, it is worth pointing out: Wireless chargers take longer to charge a phone than a wired charger, especially if the wired charger has any kind of quick charge functionality. However, wireless charging is faster than plugging your phone into standard 0.5A USB 2.0 port. The Galaxy S6 takes around 6 hours to charge using a normal USB port.
- The charging times are identical for each charger. This is because each charger implements the Qi standard and the Qi standard dictates how much power can be delivered and at what rate the phone is charged. It doesn’t seem that one implementation is better than another. For all I know they could be all using the same standard charging circuit and components.
- Your buying decision will be based on what the pad offers other than a wireless charging circuit. Do you want silicon grips, a beeper or buzzer, or a nice glowing LED band? Do you want it round or square? Black or white? And so on.
Honorable mentions
For this test I concentrated on three particular chargers, however if these don’t fit your needs then you might also find these chargers of interest:
TYLT Vu
The TYLT Vu may be one of the more expensive options available, but could be well worth the price for some, with it serving a dual purpose of being a wireless charger as well as a desktop cradle. The cradle sits at an angle that makes it comfortable for media consumption while the device is charging. It’s made with a soft touch rubber at the top, with a sturdy plastic frame for support. It boasts a minimalistic design, but does come with an LED light to show whether the phone is charging or not. It uses a proprietary power cable, that tucks into the bottom of the charger, and remains out of sight when the cradle is kept on your desk, adding to its sleek look. The TYLT Vu is available in multiple color choices, including black, green, red, and blue, with a price point starting at $53.99.
Qifull Wireless Car Charging Dock
The Qifull Wireless Car Charging Dock comes with both a suction cup mount and an air vent bracket, and works in both portrait and landscape orientation. It comes with a button on the back to adjust the width of the charger holder dock. 3 transmitting coils works together to fully cover the wireless charger for full direction transmission. Built-in strong automatic protective IC gives high efficiency and safety while charging, and a LED light to shows the charging condition, with the color changing from blue to green to show when the device is fully charged. The Qifull Wireless Car Charging Dock is available for $28.99.
Be sure to also check out these overviews: The best wireless chargers for Samsung Galaxy S6 and the 5 best wireless chargers.
Wrap up
If you are in the market for a wireless charger then there are lots of products available. In terms of charging times, it doesn’t seem to matter which one you get. Does that surprise you? I must admit it did surprise me, I was expecting at least some variance! So it looks like it all comes down to aesthetics and function.
Do you use wireless charging? If so, what charger do you have? Did any of the chargers I tested peak your interest in wireless charging?
Android 6.0 Marshmallow – 8 features Google needs to improve
Google aims to improve Android with each major release, however it doesn’t always manage to pack in the features and improvements that users and developers are asking for. The release of Android M is upon us, and here are eight things Google still needs to improve.
Customization
While Android M offers features such as arranging quick toggles and having a possible dark theme, it is still no match compared to custom ROMs. Theming and changes to the core look of the OS are nothing new to the rooting community and it is time Google allows this deep customization in stock Android.
Tablet UI
Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich had a dedicated tablet UI which made the tablet and phone experience very different. Jelly Bean unified the tablet and phone UI to look and act very similar while keeping them separate and Lollipop basically made them indistinguishable. This is a good and a bad thing. While the experience is now the same, no matter what (stock Android) device you are using, there aren’t any special software features that make having a tablet worth while. Which leads into our next section.
Multitasking and RAM management
Multi-window multitasking is nothing new for owners of smartphones that come with customized versions of Android like those from Samsung or LG. But until now it has not been included in stock Android. While still in the experimental stage, this feature is now in the Android M dev preview. It enables apps to be opened simultaneously in all four corners, or two side-by-side. The only problem is that it doesn’t necessarily look pretty, and closing apps in this view may reveal others that are behind it. This can lead to a confusing experience, which I am hoping will be addressed in coming updates.
Also the RAM management issues that should have been addressed in KitKat, still exist today. When I have a lot of apps open I see multiple launcher redraws and quite a bit of lag, which have hindered the experience on my Nexus 6. The Nexus 9 with only 2 GBs of RAM is even worse and without these issues being fixed multi-window apps and heavy multitasking do not seem possible on stock Android yet.
Gestures
There are no universal gestures in Android, the only major one is double tap to wake and stock Android only supports that on the Nexus 9, so the other Nexus devices are not able to take advantage of this. Custom launchers support some gestures but they only work on the home screen. There are apps that enable universal custom gestures if you are rooted and they enable you to do anything with just a swipe. This could be very useful and could even replace the navigation bar all together by having gestures that act as the back, home and recent apps controls.
Better Lockscreen/Widgets
Google introduced lockscreen widgets in Android 4.2 and sort of removed them in Lollipop. Swiping left or right now opens the camera or phone. There is no option to add widgets and swipe between them like you could in Jelly Bean and KitKat, however the notifications are actionable, so there is still the ability to change songs and do anything that you can do in the notification shade. This method works but it is not as pretty or as useful as it used to be. Having the ability to add widgets like Jelly Bean and KitKat, with actionable notifications would be a very nice upgrade.
Privacy and permission settings
App Ops made a slight appearance in Android 4.3 Jelly Bean. It let you control which apps can take advantage of what permissions. If you didn’t want Facebook being able to see your location, you could block the app from being able to do so. Unfortunately this feature was removed in Android 4.4.2 KitKat. Being able to control app permissions is a must have and it would be a welcome addition to Android M or any future Android release.
Full system backup and restore
This is nothing new in the root community, one of the best things about being unlocked and rooted is the ability to install a custom recovery. CWM Recovery and TWRP both offer ways to make Android backups which backup the whole system in case something goes wrong. This only takes a few clicks and the options provided are very customizable. Restoring is also a breeze with just a few steps. Google is getting closer with the ability to backup app data in Android M and the ability to add accounts and the home screen layout using Tap & Go. This is relatively convenient compared to older versions of Android but it doesn’t compare to a full system restore or a dedicated app like Titanium Backup.
The ability to remove bloatware
Carrier branded devices are known to come with a lot of bloatware. AT&T installs apps in the double digits on branded devices and even on the Nexus 6 when it came out. AT&T is not the only one at fault however, most of the carriers have some form of bloatware that you can’t get rid of no matter how hard you try, unless you are rooted. Disabling the apps in settings will get rid of them in the app drawer and prevent them from doing anything, but they still take up space on your device. Even the American Nexus 6 has Verizon bloat built in no matter what carrier you use it on.
Wrap-Up
Google has improved Android immensely since its first release in 2008, but there are always things to improve on. New Android releases bring a lot to the table while leaving a few things behind. Android M is no different, however with some options that should have been added long ago, along with better battery life, greater performance and other improvements, it is a worthwhile upgrade.
What is the BlackBerry Venice all about? Should anyone care?
If you like to read up on the latest smartphones then you’ll know about the rumors concerning a new Android device from BlackBerry. We’ve seen a few BlackBerry Venice image and video leaks posted on Twitter by Evan Blass (@evleaks). The device is supposedly slated for release in November on all four big U.S. carriers. So far, BlackBerry has neither denied nor confirmed the phone will run Android. Is it for real? And if so, what is BlackBerry thinking?
The BlackBerry Venice
If you’ve managed to miss the details, the BlackBerry Venice appears to be a large smartphone with a 5.4-inch, 2560 x 1440 pixel, curved AMOLED display. Slide it up and you reveal a full physical keyboard. It will have a 1.8GHz 64-bit, hexa-core Snapdragon 808 inside with 3GB of RAM. There’s also talk of an 18MP camera with OIS and a 5MP front-facing camera.
We know the phone is real, because BlackBerry showed it off very briefly at MWC back in March, but we don’t know the specs for sure, and back then it appeared to be running BB10. What has really gotten people talking about it is the idea it will run Android 5.0 Lollipop out of the gate. This is based on a bunch of further leaks showing Google services and Android apps on the phone alongside BlackBerry services and apps.
Is it credible?
There are plenty of reasons to believe the Venice could be BlackBerry’s first official Android smartphone, but we won’t know for sure until the company actually says so.
The rumor definitely gathered pace in June after the BlackBerry CEO, John Chen, told CNBC, “We only build secure phones and BlackBerry is the most secure phone so, if I can find a way to secure the Android phone, I will also build that.”
The BlackBerry Venice also looks like it could be the fruit of a closer partnership with Samsung. At the start of the year we looked at the rumors about Samsung and BlackBerry. Samsung CEO, J.K. Shin, told WSJ, “We want to work with BlackBerry and develop this partnership, not acquire the company.” Could Samsung be involved with the BlackBerry Venice? It’s possible, especially if those curved edges are more than just cosmetic.
As for BlackBerry moving its services and apps onto Android, we know that’s happening regardless of this phone. Take a look at BlackBerry’s Play Store wares already. Chen was pretty clear at MWC about the change of strategy to push BlackBerry’s suite of solutions onto new hardware, “We are going to make sure our software addresses everybody’s phone — wearables, vending machines, a rice cooker in your house — anything that has an IP address.”
A BlackBerry Venice that runs Android 5.0 Lollipop, but with a unique BlackBerry veneer on top, delivering greater security and more BB services, is a definite possibility.
Wait a minute…
As much as this is all possible, would BlackBerry abandon the BlackBerry 10 platform? It seems a shame because the company finally got a lot right with BB10 and you can install Android apps on BB10 devices, though the experience isn’t always ideal. But regardless of the merits of BB10, it definitely came too late. According to IDC BlackBerry OS had a 0.3% share of the worldwide smartphone OS market in the first quarter of the year, down from 0.5% in 2014.
Some have suggested that the Venice will come in Android or BB10 versions. That seems like it would just confuse potential buyers. Dual boot isn’t really a viable solution either, it’s not exactly user-friendly and there’s little incentive for Google to agree. If BlackBerry wants success with this handset, then it needs to have some mass market appeal, but adopting Android could definitely be interpreted as throwing in the towel for BB10.
What’s the purpose?
Maybe the Venice is like a reference device that BlackBerry can use to show off a fuller integration of its services with Android and try and drum up more interest in software licensing. It can’t seriously be betting that it will sell enough handsets to get back in the game — that would go against what Chen has been saying about spreading BB’s software onto every device.
There’s a bit of a line to tread. If BlackBerry wants a major hit with the BlackBerry Venice then it will have to have some major USPs, but if it wants more customers using BlackBerry software it will have to roll it out on more Android devices. The latter looks more likely.
A few reports have mentioned BlackBerry’s acquisition of AndroidSecured domains. Try typing androidsecured.com into your browser and take a look. It’s clearly about bringing BlackBerry Enterprise Security to the Android platform, which could definitely be mutually beneficial. Android has security issues, BlackBerry wants on to more devices.
Why buy the Venice?
We took a look at 4 ways BlackBerry could be unique on Android a while back, but BES and BBM are already available on Android devices and maybe the BlackBerry Hub will join them soon. In terms of standing out from the Android OEM crowd that would leave the Venice with BlackBerry’s traditional crown jewel – the physical keyboard.
That could actually still be reason enough for a lot of people to buy it. There aren’t a lot of great options if you want a physical keyboard, though the size of the market for them is debatable. Samsung’s inclusion of the keyboard case for the Note 5 and Edge Plus suggests it thinks that there is some demand, and it also neatly displays how most BB keyboard alternatives are not up to scratch.
The BlackBerry Venice could well be the first official Android smartphone from BlackBerry ushering in closer integration of BlackBerry services and Android, but we’d surprised if that was retained as an exclusive for the Venice handset. If BlackBerry is going to secure a sizeable slice of the Android pie it will need to do it with software not hardware.
Are you excited by the prospect of a Blackberry running Android? If so, what about it appeals most to you?
Cortana for Android now available for download as a public beta in the US
Cortana, Microsoft’s personal voice assistant, is now available for all residents of the United States to download in public beta form. Microsoft launched a closed beta of the app on Android back in July, but now the voice assistant can be downloaded by anyone who opts in to the beta testing program.
Similar to the functionality Google Now or Siri provides, Cortana is able to perform a number of tasks like setting alarms, scheduling appointments and even performing simple Bing searches. The app just saw a big update recently that would allow Cortana to be launched via the home button shortcut on Android, instead of Google Now.
Don’t miss: Cortana for Android Beta hands on (and vs Google Now)
Microsoft notes that there are a few differences between Cortana on Windows and Cortana on Android. For example, Android users aren’t yet able to toggle settings, open specific apps or launch the voice assistant by saying “Hey Cortana”. These features are only available on Windows for now, though we wouldn’t be surprised to see them come to the Android version in the future.
If you’re interested in downloading the beta version of Cortana for Android, follow the link below and select “Become a beta tester”. After you’re signed up, simply follow the Play Store link to start your download.
Sundar Pichai and Google Now: how Google’s mobile assistant has changed over the years
It wasn’t too long ago that Larry Page, now CEO of Google’s parent company Alphabet, announced that Sundar Pichai would follow in his footsteps and take over as the new CEO of Google. Before the big announcement, if you asked almost anyone who they thought would be a worthy successor to Page, most folks out there would tell you Sundar Pichai is the obvious answer – and that’s for good reason. Sundar Pichai has been the Senior Vice President of Android, Chrome and apps at Google for some time, and was just appointed as “czar” of all Google’s major products, including ads, Search, research, Google+, Maps, commerce and infrastructure last year. He’s done some amazing work with Android over the years, which is why his new position as top dog makes perfect sense.
One of the biggest developments Android has seen since the start is the addition of Google Now, the company’s big initiative to feed users relevant information at the right time. Now launched way back at Google I/O 2012 alongside Jelly Bean, which was largely backed by Page at the time. In fact many Googlers have said Now fits in closely with Page’s vision of a future with more intelligent, seamless computing. According to a former Now engineer, “[Page] would open up every single all-hands [meeting] with Google Now.”
Page began stepping away, though, when he began to really focus on the bigger picture. Around this time, according to multiple sources, SVP of search Amit Singhal requested that Google Now should be moved into his division and out of the Android division. But according to multiple sources from Re/code, several Google engineers objected because the service makes much more sense living inside Android as opposed to search. After all, Now is a mobile assistant tailored to particular users, so it makes sense to keep the product inside the Android division.
Pichai ended up approving Singhal’s request to move Now into a new division. Around this time, search began producing less and less revenue as mobile application usage increased, so the company began integrating app indexing into Now to help bring back some revenue. With the move from Android into search, some Now engineers raised their concerns to Pichai. In response to these concerns, Pichai reportedly explained:
Look, I’ve got a lot on my plate. Chrome and Android are my top priorities. Google Now is not on that. I can’t fight that battle for you.
See also: Google is trying to get inside apps – how and why
The newest addition to Google Now is a feature called Now on Tap, which was just announced at I/O 2015 back in May. Now on Tap will be available when Android 6.0 Marshmallow launches to the public, and will be able to give you information when you need it without having to exit what you’re doing. With a simple long press of the home button, Google will scan what’s currently on your screen and pull up relevant information about what it thinks you’re looking for. This will make for easier Google searches, which is, after all, what the company wants most from users.
Don’t miss: Google Now on Tap Demo at Google I/O 2015
It’s no secret that Now on Tap will be huge for Android. But even though the feature is almost ready to roll out to Android devices around the world, Google isn’t the first to come up with this breakthrough software experience. Just four days ago, Microsoft announced that its Bing app for Android was receiving a big update, which would bring a similar feature to Android devices. The new feature, dubbed Snapshots, works exactly like Now on Tap – a long press of the home button pulls up a page that aims to bring you relevant information without making you exit your current application.
Microsoft isn’t the only company jumping on this train. Recently, Apple announced a new feature of iOS 9 called Proactive Assistant that aims to give users relevant information when they want it.
Competition isn’t the only major hurdle the company is facing with Google Now
Competition isn’t the only major hurdle Google is facing on the Now front, though. With the Now shift into search and more competition arising, according to multiple sources from Re/code, “most” of the original team that built Now has departed. Some employees supposedly grew frustrated with the product, and many felt that Pichai did not prioritize the product as much as Page. Additionally, according to more sources, two of the original Now creators left the company in March and several other engineers left at around the same time, which means there’s only one Now founder left at the company. The sources also said “the experience of seeing their product steered in an unwanted direction was too dispiriting.” They went on to say, “Google is a big company. This is how big companies work.”
Whether the general public shares the same opinions as the now-former Now engineers remains unclear, but what’s obvious is the fact that Google is changing, and it always will. These big changes won’t come without their major hurdles, but that’s par for the course for any new CEO taking over a big company like Google. It’s clear that these next few years will be crucial for Pichai and Google as a whole, and the Google that exists today will probably be widely different from the company we see five years down the road.
With all of that said, are you a fan of Google Now in its current form? Or would you rather see the product as more of a personal voice assistant, similar to Siri or Cortana?
Micromax is developing its own Android-based OS for future smartphones and devices
India’s Micromax is currently developing its own forked version of Android for future smartphones and devices. The operating system will reportedly work across platforms such as wearables, televisions and tablets. Micromax co-founder, Vikas Jain, told The Economic Times that the first smartphones with the new operating system will be available by the end of this financial year and will be affordably priced.
International Android smartphone manufacturers seem to be finding that consumers want something different other than Google’s pure version of Android. Manufactures such as Xiaomi, Samsung and Microsoft have already developed their own operating systems to differentiate themselves from the competition, and Mircomax plans to follow the same path.
“We’re excellent with partnerships and we don’t want to reinvent the wheel,” Jain said, while specifying that the company was not breaking away from Android but was working with the globally dominant Android OS to bring a differentiated experience to consumers across all platforms, including wearables.
“Our (Indian) use cases are much different from a US or Chinese customer,” he said. As hardware is becoming a commodity, Micromax wants to start investing in software to differentiate itself. However, the company did not want to alienate its set of consumers and developers, majority of who are on Android, by building an operating system from the ground up.
Micromax feels it is closer to the Indian consumer and has a better understanding of the local market. The company wants to stay in the Android ecosystem to prevent itself from alienating its set of customers and developers. The operating system is currently being developed by the company’ s software team in Bengaluru. According to the report, about 75 people from Nokia’s R&D have been acquired to support this project.
Source: The Economic Times
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