Facebook pushes users to download its Moments app
Facebook is urging people to download yet another one of its apps after shoving users towards Messenger. This time, the social network has begun sending out warnings that their synced photos will be deleted by July 7th if they don’t install the Moments app. Facebook gave users the capability to auto-sync their photos on mobile with a private album within its app back in 2012. Three years later, it introduced the standalone Moments app for iOS and Android to house those photos, but it clearly decided to wait a while before phasing the old feature out completely.
According to TechCrunch, users can see more info within the private album that will be affected by the move if they haven’t received an email and a notification yet. If they switched Synced photos on by accident and would like to get rid of the feature, though, then they can take it easy. Just let the deadline pass, and Facebook will do the heavy lifting.
dang i didnt even know facebook privately synced TWELVE THOUSAND of my photos now they tryna delete them wow pic.twitter.com/Ii1fupbHQ7
— a.m. ☆.。.:* (@aurevoiralexis) June 9, 2016
Source: TechCrunch
What is Google Allo, how does it work, and why would you use it?
Whether you like to admit it or not, communication apps are important.
You might use your default SMS app to text your husband or wife about whether you should pick up more milk at the store after work. You might use Facebook Messenger chat with your daughter who is away at university. You might start a group chat in WhatsApp to keep in touch with your team at a work event. There are several communication apps available and many reasons why we use them.
But that in itself creates a problem. We’re using so many apps to talk to so many people in a single day, and in between all that talk, we’re opening up other apps to maybe search the web, find interesting GIFs to share, order stuff online, and book reservations. It can get a bit messy and stressful. Wouldn’t it be great if one communications app could do it all?
Well, that’s what Google had in mind when it created its new communications app called Allo. Here’s everything you need to know about it, including how it works and why you would use it over anything else.
What is Google Allo?
Google actually described Allo as a messaging up for Android and iPhone users. But it does a lot more than just allow you to send messages to other people. It’s a smart messaging app in that it has the power of Google built-in and can apparently learn over time.
How does Google Allo work?
Similar to WhatsApp, Allo is based on your phone number, so you can use it to send text messages to anyone in your phonebook – not just other Allo users. Apart from that, Google highlighted three aspects of Allo that make it unique: Expression, Google Assistant, and Security.
Expression
During a demo at Google I/O, Google showed how you can use Allo to keep in touch with people. It looked like any other messaging app; chats appeared as bubbles, with one person’s chat bubbles appearing on one side in a certain colour, and another person’s chat bubbles appearing on the opposite side, and you could scroll up and down to see the entire threaded conversation.
We also saw that – like Facebook Messenger – you could send stickers, which Google said were sourced from artists around the world. You could also send emoji. But one of the hottest features is something called Whisper or shout. This will let you slide up or down on the send button to change the size of your reply, meaning there’s no need to write in caps all the time when you’re angry.
Continuing with this theme of giving you more ways to express yourself, Allo offers a feature called Ink that lets you get creative with photos. You can doodle on them, for instance. Allo also took the Smart Reply feature from Google’s Inbox app, so now you can quickly respond while on the go. If someone asks if you want to grab dinner, Allo might serve up responses like “I’m in” or “I’m busy”.
Allo uses machine-learning and natural language processing in order to suggest replies on the fly, meaning it can anticipate what you want to say next and how you might say it. The more you use Allo, the better your suggestions become. And they will always be unique to you. However, because messaging isn’t just about texts, replies also contain stickers and emoji.
You’ll even see smart reply options when someone send you a photo. Allo can understand the content and context of photos, thanks to Google’s computer vision capabilities. If someone sends you a photo of pasta, you will see smart replies that include mentions of pasta, yummy, or whatever. The idea here is that assistive technology can help you communicate with little to no effort.
Google Assistant
Speaking of assistive technology, Google Allo has Assistant.
Google Assistant is Google’s latest iteration of a virtual assistant. It’s considered an upgrade or an extension of Google Now. During the main keynote at Google I/O 2016, Google’s CEO, Sundar Pichai, demoed Google Assistant and said he wanted people to experience “an ongoing two-way dialog” with the virtual assistant. Keep in mind this virtual assistant trend kicked off in 2011, when Apple introduced Siri.
You can read all about how Google Assistant works from here, but we’ll still discuss for a bit how it lives inside Google Allo to help you keep your conversations going without interruption. For instance, let’s say you are chatting with a friend who wants to eat French food for dinner. Google Assistant will then proactively suggest French restaurants nearby at the bottom of the app’s messaging window.
You can tap that suggestion to bring up restaurant cards that everyone in the chat can see. If you choose a place, you’ll see options to contact the restaurant, see Yelp reviews, find it on a map, etc. You can even make an OpenTable reservation in Allo. Google Assistant will prompt in at this point to confirm number of diners, what time you want to eat, and book the table.
That means you no longer have to leave your messaging app to do a Google search for restaurants, copy and paste results, switch back again to share the options, go out again to call the restaurant and book a table, and so on. In Allo, and with Google Assistant’s help, you can get everything done in one app. OpenTable is just one partner, too (more are signed up and coming).
Google Assistant also has access to Google’s Knowledge Graph, so it can help you with all sorts of situations. You can call on Google Assistant at any time just by typing “@google” in Allo. You can chat directly with it and ask anything your heart desires, including “funny cat pics”, to which Google Assistant will respond with a lineup of cat pics pulled from Google Image Search.
Google Assistant can remember things too, including your name, address, and favourite sports team. Remember — it uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to determine stuff, such as the context of your questions. For instance, when you ask “What’s playing tonight?”, Google Assistant can show films at your local cinema. If you then follow up with “We’re planning on bringing the kids”, Google Assistant will know to serve up showtimes for kid-friendly films. You can even say “Let’s seeJungle Book” to purchase tickets.
You could also ask “Is Jungle Book any good”, and then the assistant will display reviews, ratings, and even trailer on YouTube. Notice Google Assistant is able to string your questions together to determine context and serve up the right information. It can also do basic stuff like retrieve your travel itinerary, commute time to work, package delivery information, and more.
You can therefore now use Google in your chats with friends, or you can use it to get things done, and it’s all made possible with just one app.
Security
All messages in Allo are encrypted. Also, Allo offers an Incognito Mode, just like Chrome browser does, meaning you get access to not only end-to-end encrypted messages but features like expiring chats and private notifications. You can therefore keep message safe from prying eyes, control how long they stick around, and permanently delete them from your device.
You basically have additional controls over the privacy of your chats.
When will Google Allo be available?
Although Google introduced Allo in May at its annual Google I/O developer conference, the free app won’t officially launch for Android and iPhone users until this summer. An exact release date is not yet known.
Why would you use Google Allo?
You might want to use Allo as your main messaging app for all the reasons we described above. Allo is tied to your phone number so you can text anyone in your phonebook. You can doodle on photos, book reservations, ask Google Assistant questions, search for information, and enter an Incognito Mode, etc. And the best part is… all of that can get done within this one, free app.
Allo also works with Google Duo.
What is Google Duo?
Alongside Allo, Google introduced a a simple video calling app for iOS and Android. It’s called Duo and is designed to take on Apple’s FaceTime and Microsoft’s Skype by making the system as easy as possible.
As well as featuring end-to-end encryption, Duo will work on even slow, low bandwidth internet connections. It also sports an innovative new feature Google is calling Knock Knock. This enables Duo to show live previews before a call has even been answered. That way users can see what the caller is up to before they pick up. Google has ensured that the technology is super quick.
Like Allo, Google Duo will be available on Android and iOS “this summer”.
Apple Rumored to Be Debuting iMessage for Android at WWDC
Apple is planning to announce an iMessage app for Android users at WWDC, according to a report from MacDailyNews citing sources “familiar with the company’s thinking.”
Apple will announce that iMessage encrypted text messaging is coming to Android users at WWDC next Monday at WWDC 2016, according to a source familiar with the company’s thinking. […]
Apple is increasingly focused on services which means opening up certain avenues beyond its own iOS and OS X platforms, the source says. The company release Apple Music for Android last November.
Google recently announced a new messaging app called “Allo,” which will be available on both Android and iOS devices. Allo integrates with a user’s phone number and includes features like a built-in Google assistant that offers up proactive suggestions, resizable message bubbles, emoji, stickers, smart replies, mini games, an Incognito mode with end-to-end encryption, and more.
With Google set to release a chat app on iOS, bringing iMessage to Android could potentially be Apple’s response. Apple has previously released three apps on Android, including Apple Music, Move to iOS for transitioning from an Android device to an iPhone, and Beats Pill*, for controlling the Beats Pill speaker. Apple CEO Tim Cook has said Apple Music is Apple’s way of testing the water ahead of bringing additional Apple services to other platforms.
The simplicity, convenience, and security of iMessage is one of the major perks of the iPhone, however, so it is unclear if Apple would want to expand such a key feature beyond its own devices.
MacDailyNews doesn’t have a solid track record when it comes to accurately predicting Apple’s plans, so today’s report should be viewed with some skepticism. The site’s source also suggests “plans are constantly in flux” ahead of keynotes so the release could be delayed, but iMessage is “definitely” coming to Android in 2016.
Related Roundup: WWDC 2016
Tags: macdailynews.com, Android, iMessage
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Android can launch apps based on where you are
Google really wants the apps you use to take the context of where you are into account. Thus Nearby, a feature that uses Bluetooth and your device’s GPS to deliver you apps based on where you are. The post on Google’s official Android blog gives a few examples of how this might work: printing photos directly from your phone when you’re in a CVS Pharmacy or using the Mobile Passport app to duck the customs line at certain airports.
The feature is baked into an update to Google Play Services that’s rolling out now and works on devices running KitKat and up; all you really need to do here to use Nearby is have Bluetooth and GPS activated. Much like physical web beacons, you’ll receive a notification when you’re in proximity to one of the Nearby apps and if you’d rather not check it out, you don’t have to.
Source: Official Android Blog
Lenovo’s low-cost Phab2 phones are big on augmented reality
The centerpiece of Lenovo’s self-branded US phones may be the higher-end, Tango-packing Phab2 Pro, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t something available for the budget crowd. Lenovo is unveiling two lower-cost models, the Phab2 and Phab2 Plus, that deliver some of the experience for a much lower price. Both pack gigantic 6.4-inch screens (the same size as the Pro) and 13-megapixel rear cameras that deliver augmented reality “special effects” such as virtual backgrounds — while they won’t make you forget that Tango exists, you won’t have to give up AR entirely. They also share immersive Dolby Atmos audio and a whopping 4,050mAh battery that can last for over two weeks on standby.
After that, though, they couldn’t be more different. The base Phab2 carries a low-res 720p display, a modest quad-core MediaTek processor and 16GB of expandable storage. Jump to the Plus and you not only get a 1080p curved glass screen, an eight-core MediaTek chip, 32GB of space and a fingerprint reader, but also a dual rear camera array that promises better low-light shots, more detail in the shadows and after-the-shot refocusing.
The big deal for both phones may simply be the price. Both will be available worldwide in September, with prices starting at $199 for the Phab2 and $299 for the Phab2 Plus. These could be solid bargains if you want a huge display without spending an equally huge amount of cash.
Get all the news from today’s Lenovo and Motorola event right here!
Source: Lenovo
The Moto Z and Z Force are as controversial as they are ambitious
Oh, you thought Lenovo and its Project Tango device were going to hog the spotlight today? Not quite. Motorola just revealed its new flagship phones, the Moto Z and Moto Z Force, and we’ve already had a chance to spend a little time with them. Spoiler: There’s a lot to love here, tinged with a few things that might drive you up a wall.
The Moto Z is both incredibly fast and insanely thin. Under the hood, the Z uses a Snapdragon 820 chipset, 4GB of RAM and an Adreno 530 GPU, all of which helped to make the performance feel smooth as I leapt in and out of apps and generally tried to throw the phone for a loop. No dice. Motorola’s hands-off approach to Android usually helps its phones feel fast too, but the version of Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow we’ve got here isn’t as clean as what you’ll find on, say, the Moto X Pure. The build I played with was the Verizon-exclusive version (the so-called “Droid Edition”), which comes loaded with the same tweaked interface and Big Red bloatware we saw on the Droid Turbo 2. Ick. Hopefully, the unlocked Moto Z shipping later this year runs stock Marshmallow.
When the first leaked images of the Moto Z made the rounds, I was admittedly concerned. There’s a very real risk that thin phones will actually be uncomfortable to hold since your hand just grips the edges. Thankfully, the Moto Z easily dodges that problem: The stainless steel-and-aluminum body has comfortable sides that fit neatly into my palm without digging in. I spent so much time idly rubbing the phone’s edges, in fact, that I sometimes forgot about the otherwise lovely 5.5-inch Quad HD AMOLED screen.
Still, that trim waistline comes at a cost. The 13-megapixel rear camera (which took solid photos during our brief time with it) sticks out of the back in a circular pod, which might rub some design purists the wrong way. More importantly, there is no 3.5mm headphone jack; you’ll have to use an included USB Type-C adapter to connect your existing headphones to the Z. Since the Moto Z Force is a physically thicker device (and something of a “Pro” version of the Z), Motorola probably wouldn’t have had trouble fitting that headphone jack there, but it just wasn’t meant to be. They’re embracing the future, but I seriously wonder how bad the blowback from this decision will be.
While we’re on the subject of the Moto Z Force, this is probably the version of the phone most people will want. Think of it as a very slightly beefier version of the Z with a better battery (3,500mAh, compared to the normal model’s 2,600), an improved 21-megapixel camera with phase detection and laser autofocusing and Motorola’s ShatterShield display. In case you already forgot, ShatterShield essentially guarantees that your Z Force’s screen won’t crack when you drop it. And unlike the Droid Turbo 2 (which, by the way, survived being run over by my car), the ShatterShield setup here doesn’t seem to require a thick plastic screen protector anymore.
And of course, there are those MotoMods. In case you hadn’t heard, Motorola built a clever system involving magnets and a 16-pin interface for power and data transfer. Some Mods are purely for aesthetics, like the handsome Motorola Style shells that just snap onto the back of the Z and Z Force. Still others are more utilitarian. A battery Mod from Incipio can give the Z phones an extra 2,200mAh of power with the added benefit of feeling way, way better than a traditional battery case. The whole point is to build accessories that blend into a unified whole, and Motorola’s early partners have done a really impressive job. Oh, and it’s nearly impossible to knock those Mods off by accident — those magnets are no joke.
In case you feel like blasting tunes, JBL’s speaker Mod gives the Z line some added battery and some much louder sound. The most curious of the bunch is Motorola’s tiny projector, which more or less blows the Moto Z screen up to about 70 inches on a wall. It’s surprisingly bright and produces a steadier image than you might expect, but I wonder who really wants to tote one of these things around. (Vacationing families, maybe?) At the very least, I’m told that these Mods are meant to be “intergenerational,” and will work with next year’s Z phones, too.
There’s a lot to like about the Moto Z line, but there’s no denying it adds still more wrinkles to a smartphone lineup that was already getting a little unwieldy. At this point, Motorola is selling the low-end Moto E, three new versions of the Moto G in different markets, three versions of the Moto X, and now the flagship Moto Z slots in at the top with a launch set for this summer. And prepare to scratch your heads even harder: The far-more-fascinating Moto Z Force will be a U.S. exclusive on Verizon for, well, who knows how long. We eventually saw the Droid Turbo 2 trickle into far-flung markets as the Moto X Force so it’s likely the Z Force will eventually do the same, but still — it sucks for Moto fans in other countries that the best version of the Z isn’t coming their way anytime soon.
Get all the news from today’s Lenovo and Motorola event right here!
Up close and personal with the first Tango phone
For years now, we’ve watched Google build gadgets that sense the world around us, and for years we’ve wondered when the non-coding public could actually use them. That time is, well, not now but soon. Lenovo unveiled the Phab2 Pro earlier today, a smartphone whose name completely fails to illustrate its potential importance: the very first phone using Google’s Tango 3D mapping technology that a regular person can actually buy. It doesn’t arrive until later this summer, but after spending a little time with the device, I’m already cautiously optimistic about its potential.
By now, you probably know the broad strokes about Tango: It’s a suite of technologies that combines computer vision, motion tracking and depth perception to help a device figure out exactly where it is and how it’s moving through space. So far, the Tango foundation has been used, among other things, to give us turn-by-turn directions inside a museum and let us play with virtual puppies. In short, it’s a big deal. But what’s the first Tango phone actually like?
For one, it’s enormous. The Pro features a 6.4-inch Quad HD IPS screen that will stretch pockets and hands alike. In fact, the phone is so big that the thought of using it as my daily driver is just absurd. We’ve seen huge phones before — here’s looking at you, Xperia Z Ultra — but the Phab2 Pro is less of a big handset than it is a small tablet. That shouldn’t come as a surprise, either. Google’s Tango developer unit is a 7-inch tablet, so for now there seems to be a limit to how small a Tango device can be. That’s partly thanks to the 16-megapixel camera, depth sensor and motion-tracking sensor Lenovo had to squeeze into the Phab2 Pro to make it as spatially aware as it is.
So yes, it’s big. It’s surprisingly well built too. Its metal body, slim profile and 2.5D curved-glass face make it feel an awful lot like Huawei’s Mate 8. The surprises continue when you peer inside the phone. While most of the Android devices making headlines lately have high-end Snapdragon 820 chips, the Phab2 Pro has a quad-core Snapdragon 652 processor augmented with some special Tango hardware. Also onboard are 4GB of RAM, 64GB of storage and a 4,050mAh battery for good measure. Beyond its sheer size, the Phab2 Pro’s physical package doesn’t leave much to be desired — proof that Lenovo can build a handsome flagship without Motorola’s help.
For all the hardware needed to make augmented reality work, the future of Tango depends almost entirely on software. The Phab2 Pro will ship this year with a mostly clean version of Android 6.0 (a trick it picked up from Motorola), but that’s not what I’m talking about. Developers, from inside Google and elsewhere, will decide Tango’s fate. Unfortunately, most of the Tango app demos I got to play with were ones I’d seen in the past. Blaster, for example, lets you take on oncoming alien hordes while Woorld acts as a sandbox where you can build cutesy, absurd realms. Still others aim for practicality, like an app from Lowe’s that lets you virtually place a full-sized fridge into your kitchen to see if anything clashes. And, of course, apps can turn the Phab2 Pro into a mean museum-navigating machine as I demonstrated earlier this year.
Make no mistake: The device I spent time with was far from perfect. Lenovo’s physical design and production processes are on point, but the software I handled was “not final” — PR parlance for “it’s going to crash a lot.” And it did. As such, I couldn’t get a great sense of how fast the phone actually is. It seemed quite snappy — when apps decided not to suddenly force-close, that is. Even so, that pesky technicality couldn’t wipe the grin off my face as I placed a Tyrannosaurus Rex into a small room and toppled two-legged mechs while my colleagues laughed at me. When Lenovo’s hardware and software worked as they should, I got a glimpse of a future for phones, and the future excited me.
Questions about Lenovo’s chances for smartphone success in the U.S. and Tango’s long-term viability can and will persist. (Side note: Lenovo says it has about a six-month head start on any other phone makers who want to build a Tango device.) What’s exciting — intoxicating, even — is the idea that this $500 phone could completely change what we expect from our smartphones, and indeed, change how we use them to perceive the world around us.
Get all the news from today’s Lenovo and Motorola event right here!
Google will give app developers a bigger cut of the revenue
It’s not just Apple that’s looking to the deal sweeter for app developers. According to Recode, Google is also introducing a new revenue-sharing model that will give them a bigger cut. Just like Cupertino, the big G plans to increase the amount Android developers take home from 70 percent to 85 percent of all revenue from subscriptions. Google’s offer sounds even better than the iPhone-maker’s, because the company will reportedly give publishers 85 percent of the revenue from every subscriber, not just from those who sign up and pay for 12 full months.
Sources also told the publication that Mountain View started testing the new sharing model with entertainment companies, particularly video services, over a year ago. It sounds like Google used it to entice the services to add Chromecast compatibility. Recode doesn’t have info on when the new scheme will be more widely available. But at least you now know that a bigger portion of your hard-earned money could go straight to developers’ pockets.
Source: Recode
Chrome 51 on Android brings tabs back
Now that Google has officially released Chrome 51 on Android, it’s reversed a change that came with Lollipop in 2014. That release of Android brought in the option to “Merge tabs and apps” which put open tabs in the app switcher instead of all in one process and was on by default. The only problem was that we disliked it from the start, and so did many others, who quickly disabled it. Now the option is gone altogether, and the old tab selecting option is back by default. As we noted in our Lollipop review, it’s just an easier way to keep track of tabs, and also makes it easier to scroll through any recently opened apps. If you don’t have the new version already, check Google Play for an update.
Source: Google Chrome Releases, Google Play
Run Android on an iPhone – with some heavy engineering and caveats
Familiar with cramming one operating system into somewhere it doesn’t belong, developers at Tendigi have just created a homemade iPhone case that lets you run Android on your iOS smartphone. (Well, kind of). Fortunately, because of the Android Open Source Project, it gave Nick Lee the freedom to clone the mobile OS and build his own local hardware. Before he went that far, Lee decided to test the concept — streaming Android across to an iPhone through a cable — with a Nexus 5. He needed tools that could communicate with iOS, as well as services that let USB cables play nice with an iPhone. Lee also crafted software that transmitted what was happening on the Android devices’ screen to the iPhone, while also send touch-input back. The next challenge: cramming it all into an iPhone “case”. See it working after the break.
He then made his own tiny Android development board (all the technical specifics are here), linking it to the soon-to-be franken-iPhone and its own power supply, prototyping and 3D-printing an enclosure to house it all and attach to the iPhone. It’s not the prettiest case, and really you’re ‘streaming’ Android to your iPhone screen, but it’s the man-hours thought that counts, right?
Source: Tendigi
AIVAnet 