Google will teach you to write Android apps
Learning to make your own Android apps isn’t easy, especially if it’s your first time programming anything. Do you find a tutorial and hope for the best? Sign up for classes at the local college? Google might have a better way. It’s introducing a free Android Basics nanodegree at Udacity that has Google experts teaching you how to write simple Android apps, even if you don’t know a lick of code. The online course guides you far enough through Android Studio that you’ll have an “entire portfolio” of programs by the time you’re done — you may not write the next Instagram, but you should be comfortable.
You can pay for coaching, career counseling and other help if you like, and Google is encouraging you to to move on to the Career-track Android nanodegree if you see development as your calling in life. It’ll even give you a scholarship for that mini-degree if you’re one of the first 50 people to complete the Basics course. No, Google isn’t giving things away out of sheer generosity (it wants to foster the next big Android hit). However, this is still an important gesture. While many operating system creators will gladly give you the tools to get started, it’s rare that they show you how to use those tools when you’re an absolute rookie.
Source: Udacity
Barclays launches its answer to Android Pay
Ever since Barclays publicly shunned Android Pay in favour of its own NFC payment platform, the bank has kept pretty quiet over when you can use its Contactless Mobile service. But today, and without much fanfare, Barclays announced that Android users with a supported phone can now make NFC payments with the Barclays Mobile Banking app. It supports payments up to £100 and works everywhere a standard contactless card can be used.
Setting it up is pretty straightforward: select the Contactless Mobile option in the app, choose the relevant card and then follow the steps to make the Barclays app your default payment source. Once this has been done, the device only needs to be woken up (so the lock screen shows) and then tapped against a contactless terminal. If a payment is under £30 (the current contactless limit), the payment will be taken instantly, but if it’s between £30 – £100, you must enter a PIN before tapping again.
One drawback is that once payments are set up, Barclays’ Contactless Mobile service will display a permanent notification on the lock screen that reads: “You can make contactless mobile payments.” Barclays says this is to remind you that the payment service is enabled but the only way to remove it is to hide lock screen notifications, which means hiding every notification on your Android device.
If you can put up with that, it should mean you can go out without a wallet or travel without your Oyster card — something that iOS device owners can already do thanks to Apple Pay.
Source: Barclays Contactless Mobile
Android Pay will tell you where it works nearby
One of the ways that Google is making Android more useful is by harnessing your location data for context-aware services. For instance, Nearby uses GPS and Bluetooth to monitor where you are, launching a relevant app should one be particularly useful. Now, XDA-Developers has uncovered code inside Android Pay that suggests that it’ll bring a similar level of location-aware smarts. If true, then it’s possible that a future update will show you retail outlets in your nearby area that take Google’s mobile payments platform. Keen-eyed investigators have even found the location-pin style icon that you’ll use to activate the feature. Of course, this is all a rumor until it isn’t anymore, but it’s perfectly in keeping with Google’s location-savvy future.
Source: XDA-Developers
Bang & Olufsen embraces Google Cast, you can now Cast music to your B&O systems
Over the years, high-end audio brand Bang & Olufsen has been making strides to standardise its systems, with many of them now able to stream music through Apple Airplay, DLNA, Bluetooth and its own Beolink Multiroom technology.
Now you can add Google Cast to the list. The Danish company has partnered with Google to add support for its wireless streaming technology to the BeoSound 35 soundbar and BeoSound Essence one-touch music controller.
Google Cast offers the ability to stream tracks through allied music services, such as Spotify, Deezer and TuneIn, by just tapping the dedicated icon from within their mobile apps. It works on Android, naturally, but also iPhone and iPad.
READ: Bang & Olufsen BeoSound 35 preview: Pentagonal powerhouse
Google Cast is different from many other streaming features because it streams the audio (or video, for supported devices and TVs) directly, rather than through your phone or tablet. That way you can continue to use your mobile device independently while music still plays.
While the BeoSound 35 has built-in wireless connectivity, the BeoSound Essence turns all audio devices into Wi-Fi music players. It comprises a wall-mounted controller and separate hub that you can use to feed non-wireless audio kit.
READ: Bang & Olufsen BeoSound Essence: Hands-on with the one-touch, wall-mounted control music system
It means that you can stream music tracks through Google Cast and the other streaming technologies available to any speaker system, no matter how old.
Google Cast will arrive as part of a software upgrade for your systems later this month.
BBM Video for Android and iPhone is now out in Asia-Pacific
Most BBM users finally have access to the app’s video calling capability. BlackBerry has released the feature for Android and iOS in Asia-Pacific, which is apparently home to its biggest userbase. The company said it made cross-platform video calls available in the US and Canada first, because it wanted to be able to fix bugs before it reaches more people. Since video calling is now stable, the phonemaker can roll it out to the rest of world.
While BBM isn’t as popular as its newer, shinier rivals like Messenger or WhatsApp anymore, BlackBerry is still developing new features for it. In fact, this release is but a small part of a bigger rollout. Later this summer, the company will launch the capability to register for an account using a phone number, among other things. Android users will be able to share larger videos, as well, while those on iOS will be able to mute group notifications.
Source: BlackBerry
VLC for Android now plays videos from your local network
VLC for Android just became much, much more useful if you like full control over how and where you play your videos. The newly released VLC 2.0 rolls in a few big features that you may well have missed, most notably network browsing. Yes, you can find that elusive movie on your home media server. The upgrade also brings a pop-up video window that’s helpful for tablet owners eager to multitask.
Other big improvements? The Android TV version has a fresh interface (and has merged with the regular mobile app). You can create video playlists, and it doesn’t need as many permissions to play nicely with your device. All told, VLC has matured enough that it’s worth considering if your existing Android media app just isn’t cutting it.
Via: VideoLAN (Twitter)
Source: Google Play, JB Kempf
PlayStation Vue comes to your Roku player
Come next week, you’ll be able to watch your PlayStation Vue programming from pretty much anywhere. Sony announced on Tuesday that the streaming platform is available on Roku devices and will roll out to the Android OS next week.
The Vue is meant to replace (or at least heavily supplement) your existing cable subscription. By tying it to the Roku, Sony’s giving its subscribers the option to potentially ditch the set-top box entirely. And with the Vue coming to Android 4.4 next week (it’s already available on iOS and works with Chromecast) users will be able to watch live television streams anywhere they’ve got an internet connection.
Vue comes in three package options: Access, which offers 55 channels for $30 a month; 70-channel Core for $35 and the 100-plus channel Elite package for $50. If you live in a major live local broadcast area, like the Bay Area or the NYC metro, those prices rise by $10. You can see what channels are available where at the Vue website.
Source: Sony
Facebook Messenger’s SMS push might break Android app rules
Did you think Facebook was a little too eager to have you using Messenger for SMS on your Android phone? You’re not alone. Concerns are mounting that Facebook’s SMS prompt might violate Google Play’s policies prohibiting deceptive device settings changes. You see, the prompt offering to switch SMS to Messenger offers only a big “OK” button and a tiny “settings” button — there’s no obvious way to decline the change. You can, of course, but it’s buried.
We’ve asked both Facebook and Google for their stances on the app and will let you know what they say. Whatever their reactions, though, it’s not surprising why Facebook would push so hard. The more you use Messenger for your chats, the more likely it is that you’ll use Messenger for purchases and other services that might help Facebook’s bottom line. It’s just a question of whether or not the social network is being completely honest with users who don’t realize that SMS integration is strictly optional.
VERY aggressive prompt by Facebook to add SMS to @messenger. Ain’t no “No” button. A violation of Google Play rules? pic.twitter.com/7tZzAE5MGh
— Amir Efrati (@amir) June 20, 2016
Source: Amir Efrati (Twitter), Google Play
Microsoft helps you create links to your phone apps
You know the problem — you want to go back to something you saw in a mobile app, but you either forgot to save your place or couldn’t save it at all. What to do? If Microsoft Research has its way, you’ll never be left scrambling again. Its uLink experiment creates links to mobile app pages on the fly, helping you find that hotel listing without having to re-do all the steps you took to see it. It’s a bit like Google’s deep app linking without the need to go online.
Don’t expect to see uLink everywhere in the near future. Microsoft has only shown it running in Android so far, and the current implementation is fairly basic (you shake your phone to add bookmarks and visit a simple app to see them). Regardless, it’s easy to see a future where you can always revisit specific spots in your favorite apps.
Source: Microsoft Research, YouTube
Add-on brings Game Boy cartridges to your Android phone
Hyperkin toyed with gamers last year when it teased a peripheral that would play real Game Boy cartridges on your phone, but it wasn’t just kidding around — it’s making good on its word. The company is now taking pre-orders for a Smart Boy Development Kit that lets your Android smartphone play Game Boy and Game Boy Color cartridges. The $60 peripheral isn’t meant for everyday use — Hyperkin is hoping you’ll improve the open source code yourself. Nonetheless, it’s likely the closest you’ll get to reviving your childhood short of dragging the original hardware out of storage. Just be ready to wait until December 1st to get yours… and while Hyperkin originally talked about an iPhone version, Apple handset users are out of luck so far.
Via: SlashGear, Neowin, Gizmodo
Source: Hyperkin
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