New Chromecast said to be coming this month, looking rounder than before
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For the longest time it seemed like Google was content with its media-streaming Chromecast just the way it was, but a new report suggests that a new Chromecast is just around the corner, and it looks… different. Spotted in what appear to be internal images from Google, the new Chromecast appears to be more bulbous than the current dongle, which kind of looks a bit weird, but no doubt allows for better Wi-Fi connectivity, which is something I think we can all get excited for.
Other interesting tidbits from this report include the possibility that the new Chromecast will have the ability to plug into a sound system via a cord, which can be useful in certain situations. The report also says that this new dongle will be announced at the Google event rumoured to be happening on September 29th – while we still have no official word on whether this event is happening, the announcement of two Nexus smartphones, a Nexus Player, and now a Chromecast will need to come at some point and a big event would seem like the logical forum for this. We’ll have to see if this ends up going down, but all we’re hoping is that Google keep the cost of the new Chromecast down like its predecessor’s.
What do you think about the new Chromecast? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Source: 9to5google via engadget
The post New Chromecast said to be coming this month, looking rounder than before appeared first on AndroidSPIN.
Android One is coming to Europe, starting in Spain and Portugal
One year after its launch in Asia, the Android One program is expanding to Europe.
The first European countries where Android One devices will be sold are Spain and Portugal, where local phone maker BQ will offer the Aquaris A4.5 for €169.9 and €179.9 respectively.
As a second generation Android One smartphone, the Aquaris A4.5 is a notch above the barebones devices the program was initially known for. Don’t expect anything spectacular though, this is still a budget phone through and through. Features include a 4.5-inch 540 x 960 display (245 ppi), a quad-core MT6735M processor from MediaTek, 16 GB of internal storage (10.5 GB free), 1GB of RAM, a 2470 mAh battery, a 8MP rear camera, a 5MP front camera, and LTE.
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The Aquaris A4.5 runs Lollipop 5.1 and Google offers two years of guaranteed updates. In addition, BQ promises a very generous 5-year warranty for the hardware, as well as dedicated support.
Check out the BQ Aquaris A4.5 in the Spanish and Portuguese BQ stores.
At roughly $200, the Aquaris A4.5 is significantly more expensive than Google’s initial promise to offer a quality Android experience for under $100. To be fair, the price is still very good for the European market, and still cheaper than the $260 price tag of the Turkish Android One smartphone (higher tariffs in Turkey may explain that). That said, if you don’t need a pure vanilla Android experience and guaranteed updates, the 3rd generation Moto G offers better specs at a comparable price.
Android One is now available in Southeast Asia, Turkey, and several African countries. With the program’s arrival to Europe, Google seems open to experimenting with Android One in mature markets that are less sensitive to price. For now there is no indication that Android One phones will launch in other European countries (or even North America), but this first step is definitely a positive sign.
As for India, Google admitted that the first batch of Android One phones hasn’t lived up to expectations, and suggested the next generation could be even cheaper, with a “sweet spot” in the Rs. 2,000-3,000 ($30-$47)range.
2nd gen Chromecast details leaked
A rather major Chromecast update is in the works, according to leaked documents seen by 9to5Google. The refresh looks set bring some improved hardware and all new features to Google’s miniature streaming platform.
Starting with the second generation Chromecast hardware, the biggest change looks to be improved WiFi, which should result in a stronger, faster connection for streaming. Google may be planning to support faster 802.11ac, which would be an upgrade from the current Chromecast’s 802.11b/g/n.
The upcoming hardware appears to have taken on a more circular form factor, ditching the old slim dongle look. Perhaps the extra size will be accommodating some additional hardware too. There are at least three colors options to choose from, yellow, red and black. You can see a sample in the images below.
In terms of new features, there’s something called ‘Fast Play’. Exact details about this feature aren’t known, but it sounds like it will allow for faster connections or more instantaneous content playback when casting, which would fix one major complaint about Google’s current gen product. There is also expected to be support for content feeds directly on the Chromecast home screen this time around, which presumably displays information from social media accounts and other feeds.
“Chromecast Audio” is another new feature listed in the documentation, which is said to enable the Chromecast to plug into speakers and other bits of audio hardware via an auxiliary port. This feature will apparently support multi-rooms, be able mirror Chrome or Android audio, and also adds in a “high-quality” option.
The new Chromecast is expected to be announced on September 29th, the same day as the new Nexus devices from Huawei and LG. Launch price and regions are still unknown, but we imagine that it will be a similar situation as the first gen hardware. Any thoughts?
New circular Chromecast rumored for later this month
The second-generation Chromecast will come with quite a list of new features and won’t even look the same anymore, according to 9to5google. The website has published what it says are a couple of internal images, and as you can see below, the streaming stick might take on a balloon-like appearance (in three different colors!) in its next iteration. 9to5google also found that the next Chromecast might have better WiFi connection, which could mean that it supports the 802.11ac band. Another possible upcoming feature called “Fast Play” will apparently enable the device to connect more quickly to a TV, since the current version sometimes takes a while to establish a stable link.
In addition, Google’s reportedly planning to give the device the power to plug directly into a speaker using a cord, to support a multi-room speaker set-up and to mirror the audio playing on a Chrome browser or an Android device. Finally, the internal documents indicate that Mountain View will be formally launching the second-gen Chromecast on September 29th, along with new Nexus devices, so check back that day if you want to know its final specs and details.
[Image credit: @iannnnn/Flickr]
Source: 9to5google
Google slashes $50 off the price of the LG G Watch R
Believe it or not, the LG G Watch R is almost a year old and sadly its age is beginning to show as it’s considered to be one of the more chunky devices on the market, but that doesn’t stop it from being one of the best.
If you’re planning on picking one up any time soon, we have some great news for you. Google has dropped the price of the wearable by $50 on the Play Store — so you can now pick one up for $299.
Don’t be fooled into thinking that the G Watch R is old hat, though. It’s not by a long shot. It sports beefy hardware, runs the latest build of Android Wear and is scheduled to receive any future updates for the operating system.
If you like the sound of the LG G Watch R and would like to find out more about picking one up for the reduced price — hit the source link below.
Source: Google
Come comment on this article: Google slashes $50 off the price of the LG G Watch R
Gapless playback finally arrives for Play Music on Chromecast
Even with how convenient beaming tunes from Google Play Music to a Chromecast connected to your living room’s audio system is, there’ve been some hard to overlook flaws since launch. Mountain View’s fixed a handful of them with the latest update to its in-house music app. The biggest of the bunch? Gapless playback. It’s something that existed within the application before, but didn’t carry over to Cast sessions. Finally you can listen to Nine Inch Nails’ The Fragile without any annoying pauses between “The Wretched” and “We’re in This Together” — the way Trent Reznor intended. What’s more, the patch notes say that even if you leave the house or if your phone turns off, music will keep playing on Android. Here’s to hoping that music keeps playing if you take a phone call during a cast session now and that iOS snags this functionality sooner rather than later.
More of a Spotify fan? You’re covered there too from the sounds of a report by 9to5Google. The outlet has it on good authority that at Google’s media event later this month, the Swedish music streaming service (a longtime Chromecast hold-out) will make the announcement that it’s coming to Mountain View’s HDMI dongle. How about that!
[Image credit: Bloomberg via Getty Images]
Source: Google Play, 9to5Google
Google may launch the second-generation Chromecast this month
According a report published by 9to5Google, Google is all set to launch a second-generation Chromecast later this month. The device is expected to boast both superior hardware and software when compared to the original, and should sport Wi-Fi ac connectivity for super-speedy streaming.
It appears Google has taken an Apple TV approach with regards to the design of the Chromecast 2’s operating system as it’s believed to feature a “feeds option”, which will give users the ability to select content directly from the home screen.
There may also be a shiny new Fast Play mode on board too, which will enable the Chromecast to establish a connection and play content from paired devices up to two-times faster than before.
Another software inclusion maybe Chromecast Audio. This attribute will permit users to connect the device to a standalone speaker via an auxiliary cable, allowing them to stream audio content — just like Sonos. There’s even expected to be support for multi-room playback.
Judging from the images above, it looks like Google has veered away from the dongle form factor in favour of a more circular design that come in black, red and yellow.
Unfortunately, that’s all we have for now on the second-generation Chromecast, but it shouldn’t be too much longer before we find out more as Google is believed to be unveiling the device at the Nexus event it’s holding on Tuesday, September 29.
Come comment on this article: Google may launch the second-generation Chromecast this month
Google updates Play Music with improved Chromecast integration
Google is currently in the process of rolling out an update for its official Play Music application via the Play Store. This upgrade carries a bunch of stability improvements for Chromecast playback, including the removal of the 3-second buffer period between songs, gapless playlist compatibility and the facility to keep streaming music even if your phone turns off.
Hit the break for the full changelog.
- No more stoppage of playback in between songs
- Gapless playback support now enabled over Cast
- Music will continue playing even if your phone turns off or if you need to leave your amazing house party (brought to you by Unexpected Best Night Ever Radio†) to pick up additional supplies
Chances are that you already have the Play Music application downloaded on your smartphone or slate, so if you’d like to install the update, simply open up the Play Store, toggle the hamburger menu by swiping in from the left-hand side of the screen, select ‘My Apps’ and click on ‘Play Music’, then hit the update button.
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Google Project Fi review – can Google make it as a carrier?
Google has been known to break whatever market they step into, offering great products and services while undercutting competing prices. An example is their Google Fiber initiative, which brings Gigabit speeds to select markets for insanely affordable prices. Before that, they took on the cloud storage commerce with Google Drive. The list goes on, but today we are focusing on their latest major side gig – Project Fi.
Google’s Project Fi is the Search Giant’s attempt at testing the carrier waters. They have become an MVNO to a couple carriers and also harness the power of WiFi networks to offer a very unique type of cellphone service. It’s pricing system is also very distinctive, but we will jump into all those details later in the review.
When project Fi launched, we were a bit hesitant about certain aspects of this new wireless service provider. But we won’t simply discard it! I took it upon myself to request an invite, buy a Nexus 6 and sign up for the service. I have been using it for a couple months now and am ready to give you the full rundown. Is Project Fi all Google hyped it out to be? Let’s find out!
A bit about Project Fi
As already stated above, Project Fi is not really its own carrier – it’s an MVNO (mobile virtual network operator). This simply means that it doesn’t operate on its own towers. The interesting part is that Google’s wireless services are special in multiple other ways.
Project Fi piggybacks off both T-Mobile and Sprint networks. The device will simply choose whichever is stronger and faster at the time. Likely the most interesting aspect is that Project Fi also harnesses the power of WiFi networks in order to bring you a more affordable price point. When connected to WiFi, calls, messages and data (of course) are routed through the internet, instead of using the network towers, which would cost Google extra cash.
In order to further entice users to stick to WiFi networks, Google can determine which public WiFi hot spots are reliable and require no action to connect to them. Your device will do this automatically. But don’t freak out just yet – you can definitely turn off WiFi if you prefer.
By the way, running this type of hybrid network is no easy task, and Google needs full control over the devices that operate under this MVNO. The best way to do this is by using Nexus devices, which means only the Nexus 6 is compatible with the service right now. The good news is that support for upcoming Nexus smartphones is more than likely in the works.
Pricing
While I usually wait until the end of a post to talk about pricing, I feel this time around we should make an exception. Pricing is especially an important part of Project Fi’s offerings. Thanks to the way the service can offload some of the weight to WiFi networks, Google can often save a lot of money by not using actual cellular towers and paying fees to the carriers.
Thanks to this system, Google is able to charge $20 for the base services, which include unlimited texting and calling within the USA (affordable rates for calling other countries). Moving beyond the basic needs, the user has to pay for the data he uses, which is priced at $10 per gigabyte. And Google means it when they say this is the price; data is always this price, and customers will be charged only for what they use.
You can choose an approximate amount of data, and Google will charge you accordingly, but they won’t take any money they don’t deserve. Let’s say you usually go through about 2 GB, but one month you took it easy and ended up using only 500 MB. Google will only charge you $5 for data and return the rest of the money (except for the base $20, of course) as credit towards your next bill. They don’t return the cash, which is why you should always calculate your data usage as closely as possible.
The only discrepancy with pricing is that $10 for a single gigabyte can definitely get expensive if you are a heavier user, which is why I will stress that Project Fi may not necessarily be for everyone. This service is great for those who spend a lot of time using WiFi. If you are a data hog, try looking elsewhere.
International services
To be honest, this is the sole reason why I personally decided to switch to Project Fi. I happen to travel very often, especially since I live near the Mexican border. But this is not only good for those who are close to a neighboring country. In fact, all Project Fi users get international data roaming in over 120 countries at no extra charges!
All Google charges for is the data you used while in these countries, which happens to be priced equally to domestic internet usage – $10 per GB. International texting is included and calls cost 20 cents a minute while using cellular networks. Fees are reduced while on WiFi.
I can’t tell you how great it feels not having to worry about data roaming fees outside the USA. Data roaming can get very expensive with other carriers, and I have heard of plenty of horror stories about people paying hundreds just for sharing selfies on social networks.
This could be the answer to many a traveler’s prayer. In fact, I would consider getting a Project Fi SIM card only for when traveling. After all, you could just pause or cancel service whenever you want.
My personal experience with Project Fi
Switching to Project Fi definitely has its learning curve. This is because this unconventional MVNO is designed to be a powerful cloud tool. Those who already had a Google Voice account can continue using their same number. In addition, using Hangouts will allow you to synchronize all calls and SMS messages.
You can call and text people through data using Hangouts on your smartphones, tablets, computers and other smart devices. This is convenient, but it can be quite confusing for those of us who like keeping our communication tools separate. Not to mention, regular text messaging apps have more features, which is why Google currently recommends you use their Messenger app, instead.
Get past the software technicalities and you will find the service is pretty darn good for the price. Remember you are pretty much using two of the best four carriers in the USA, which warrants a pretty stable signal most of the time. I rarely step out of 4G LTE coverage in San Diego. Sure, the network is not at the same level as my daily driver (Verizon), but I can totally live off this coverage without making any remarkable sacrifices. Also keep in mind that Project Fi only costs a fraction of the premium price I pay for Verizon’s network.
Calls, messages and data worked very well over Project Fi, and I never encountered any issues or distorted calls, even while switching in and out of WiFi and carrier networks. Coverage in Mexico was also flawless, and I do happen to use my phone there about 30% of the time.
Billing is simple and I have honestly never paid so little for wireless services before. My monthly bill averages at about $20 to $30! Of course, I am a special type of user, though. I spend most of my time at home, where I am always using WiFi. It’s obvious I am not a heavy data user, and so this pay-for-what-you-use model works perfectly for me.
Google did a good job making the transition between networks seamless. I never got cut off when switching from WiFi to cellular towers. The service is solid, guys. And if you have good T-Mobile and/or Sprint reception, you will be doing just fine with your data speeds.
The Project Fi app
The Project Fi application is available straight from the Google Play Store. It is pretty straight forward, really. There are three tabs that let you manage your service in every way. These are labeled as “Account”, “Billing” and “Support”.
The Account tab is where you will be looking for things most of the time. It tells you how much data you have used, as well as your available allotment. Scroll down and you can also manage your plan. It’s possible to add more GBs, limit service & calls outside the USA, cancel your plan or pause the service.
The Account tab also has shortcuts for updating your payment method, accessing your voice mail, setting up call forwarding editing alerts and more.
The Billing tab offers details on scheduled payments and past statements. It’s pretty straight forward and only serves as your book keeping tool. And of course, the Support tab can help you get in touch with Google, as well as the Project Fi community on Google+.
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Overall, I think the app is great. Google is known for its online service and this is something that shows in this application. They are offering you everything they can right off the bat, so you can avoid having to call them as often. It’s all in there, in a very well-organized and sleek manner.
I rarely ever use it, but that is actually a good thing. And when I do get to play around with it I am in and out in a jiffy.
Conclusion
I know I have said this already, but I must stress that Project Fi is not for everyone! It can get pricey if you use a lot of data and are not within WiFi range all the time. And even if you figure you will end up spending the very same amount of money with another carrier, it might still be smarter to go elsewhere, as there are many benefits to going with a traditional service provider.
For starters, smartphone selection is abysmal at this point. Going with Project Fi entails having to live with the Nexus 6 (at least until more devices are added to the list, and they will more than likely also have to be Nexus phones). Don’t get me wrong, the 5.96-inch device is awesome, but it is definitely not for everyone. Its size can certainly intimidate many a small-handed user.
Furthermore, there are a bunch of other phones you may want to take a look at! I am personally loving the LG G4 right now, and really wish I could take it over to Project Fi, but alas.
But the benefit is not only more smartphone availability; certain carriers can offer deals and add-ons that you won’t find on Project Fi. Let’s take T-Mobile as an example, as I believe it is the closest competitor to Project Fi, at least among the largest 4 carriers in the USA.
Magenta’s lowest plan costs $50. Sure, it may be only 1 GB of 4G LTE, but data continues to be unlimited after that. T-Mobile also has all the Uncarrier offerings, which include free music streaming (depending on the app), international texting and 2G data roaming with no fees, full service in Mexico and Canada (also with no roaming fees), data rollover, device installment plans and even an early upgrade program (JUMP).
Project Fi is, for all intents and purposes, mostly for the casual user… or for those who spend most of their time on a WiFi network. For these customers, it will do more than a fine job. I can honestly say it’s possible for me to currently drop my Verizon plan altogether, and that is saying a lot.
Interested? Go over to Project Fi’s website and ask for an invite! And don’t forget to hit the comments and tell us what you think of Project Fi. Are any of you using it? Are you considering switching to Google’s wireless services? And more importantly, can you live
Google app v5.3 brings Now On Tap support to M Dev Preview 3
Google Now On Tap is one of the most anticipated features of Marshmallow. Recently, Google rolled out update v5.3 to its Google Search application. This will bring Now On Tap support to those running the M Dev Preview 3.
Now On Tap has gotten many really excited for the next iteration of Android. We’re expecting Marshmallow to release publicly at the end of the month when Google announces its 2015 lineup of Nexus devices. Users can access Now On Tap by holding down on the home button. The feature will allow users to obtain information of what’s on the screen at that given moment. Therefore, making research and visibility to quick facts and answers really easy. Google showed us some examples of this at this years I/O conference. The feature displays details such as recommended apps, people details, location details and even the time of the next movie showing at a nearby theater. 
According to Android Police, Now On Tap is a little buggy and often causes crashes; however we should see improvement to performance when it comes time for the final release. September 29 can’t come soon enough.
Via: Android Police
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AIVAnet 