Vulkan API promises significant graphical improvements for Android gaming and 3D graphics
3D graphics have been moving very quickly in the mobile space, getting increasingly competitive with traditional home video game consoles and the like. That trend will continue now that Vulkan, a 3D rendering API, is coming to Android to improve the graphics experience on mobile devices.
Vulkan is a much more efficient API than Open GL ES that Android currently uses, offering a significantly lower CPU overhead and better tools for developers. A video showcasing a horde of gnomes was created to really show off the difference between the two APIs, and it’s incredibly apparent how much better Vulkan should be for mobile gaming.
The video shows tons and tons of gnomes on screen, and while both video stay pretty close in FPS at first, once the camera starts panning around and scrolling, Open GL fails to keep a decent framerate. On top of that, not only does Vulkan offer a drastically smoother experience, but CPU usage is much lower, too. That gives more room for game developers to squeeze some extra processing power out of an app, but it also means that energy consumption should be vastly improved.
The Vulkan API isn’t publicly available just yet, but once it is we should start to see some pretty quick improvements on gaming on Android devices, including things like Android TV consoles. Something like Razer’s Forge TV and NVIDIA’s Shield TV stand to gain the most from a more efficient API, since they’re competing more directly with home consoles like the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.
source: Android Developers Blog
Click here to view the embedded video.
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Internet giants team up to fight child porn through shared lists
The world’s larger online companies have already been doing quite a lot to combat child porn on their own, but they’re now teaming up to fight that sexual abuse across the internet. Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Twitter and Yahoo are partnering with the UK’s Internet Watch Foundation to share hash lists (aka digital fingerprints) of blocked indecent images. In theory, the move makes sure that a photo pulled on one site doesn’t simply pop up elsewhere. All of the IWF’s members will eventually use the list, so you could soon see this collective blocking in use at Amazon, Apple, Dropbox and PayPal, among others.
This isn’t a magic bullet. The screening only works when offending images are on the list in the first place, and it won’t function on the Dark Web and other places where peddlers can trade content in relative secrecy. Still, this could do a lot to prevent child porn distributors from operating on publicly operated sites, even through private sharing — they’d have to retreat to those darker corners just to operate at all.
[Image credit: Microsoft]
Filed under:
Internet, Google, Facebook
Via:
BBC
Source:
Internet Watch Foundation
Tags: ChildPornography, facebook, google, hashlist, internet, internetwatchfoundation, iwf, sexualabuse, twitter
‘Faster, sleeker and simpler’ Hangouts arrives on Android
Google released its Hangouts 4.0 for the Android platform on Monday. First and foremost, the app now has been reskinned with material design. It also features a simplified compose button as well as a streamlined contacts list and file attachment function. What’s more, the company has reportedly has even gotten the app to consume less power thanks to improved messaging speeds and “obsessively fixing bugs.” They’re basically the same set of UI and performance tweaks that we saw at the end of June when the iOS version updated to the new material design version.
[Image Credit: Bloomberg via Getty Images]
Filed under:
Internet, Apple, Google
Tags: Apple, google, hangouts, ios, materialdesign
Your Android games are getting a software speed boost
iPhone users have low-level Metal code to speed up games and other visually intensive apps, but what if you’re an Android fan? Don’t worry, you’ll get your boost soon. Google has announced that Android will soon support Vulkan, an open graphics standard that cuts a lot of the computing overhead and gives apps more direct control over video hardware. It’s not as easy to work with as OpenGL, but it should let developers wring more performance out of your phone’s processor. That could prove very important when you’d otherwise struggle to run a game on a lower-end phone, or want to get pretty, high-detail graphics on a shiny new flagship. It’ll be a while before Vulkan for Android is ready — the standard itself isn’t available, let alone Google’s implementation of it — but it should be worth the wait if your Android devices double as game consoles.
Filed under:
Cellphones, Gaming, Tablets, Mobile, Google
Source:
Android Developers Blog, Imagination Technologies
Tags: android, gaming, google, graphics, khronosgroup, mobilepostcross, opengl, smartphone, video, vulkan
Huawei’s Back to School promotion is here, get $25 off any smartphone or tablet
Huawei is running a Back to School program, offering students $25 off of one of its smartphones in addition a package full of goodies. Google and Apple have also recently launched their own annual Back to School programs too.
Keep in mind that Huawei’s Back to School promo only lasts until August 15. The $25 the company is offering off a smartphone isn’t much, however, if you purchase one by August 15, Huawei will throw in a free Bluetooth speaker, a Net 10 SIM card, and a $50 time card, which gives you 30 days of free calls, text, and data.
Keep in mind that the unlimited data is only high-speed up 3GB. It throttles to 64KBp/s thereafter.
Between the discount on the Huawei device, the Bluetooth Speaker, and the free month of cell service, you get a total of $175 in savings. Just head on over to Huawei’s own online store, and enter the promo code BACK2SCHOOLHW for your savings and free goodies.
source: Huawei
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Google Hangouts 4.0 launches today
Google has announced the launch of the latest version of Google Hangouts for Android devices taking the app up to version 4.0 and bringing with it a simpler, faster interface with some new features. The Google development team says they are striving to make Hangouts easy to use so that conversations “just flow” without the technology getting in the way of communication.
With this update, Google brings their material design concepts to Hangouts which means the app is now “sleeker.” Google says items on the screen now respond in a more intuitive way and transitions are more fluid than they have been in the past. As part of the design update, Google added a new Compose button that can be used to launch a new conversation or start a new group message. The contacts list has been streamlined to help you find contacts more quickly. Google says the app now supports the sharing of multiple photos at once along with emoji, GIFs, and your location.
Google also indicates they have made several bug fixes and performance improvements. These were designed to make message delivery quicker and more reliable. Another benefit of this work is that the app should consume less battery power when running.
In a related update, Google also made some improvements to the Hangouts Dialer used for making calls. This includes being able to set the Outbound Caller ID now. Users can also receive and reply to group MMS messages using Google Voice.
Hangouts also has support for Android Wear so users can just use the command, “OK Google, send a Hangouts message” to get started. The team also added back custom status messages for those times when you are unavailable and the stock messages just don’t cut it.
The update has started rolling out to Android users today, but it may take a few days to show up as available for your account.
source: Google
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Android users can fire Google Now and replace it with Cortana
Microsoft recently unveiled plans to launch its Cortana digital voice assistant on arch-rival Google’s Android OS, but until now, you could only use it as a standalone app. However, the latest beta (1.0.0.204) lets you activate Cortana instead of Google Now by pressing and holding your Android home button. That’s a new way for Android users to test the app’s friendly ways and be tempted away from the businesslike Google Now. Since Cortana relies on Bing, it’s also a sneaky way for Microsoft to do an end-run around Google search.
It won’t displace Google Now completely, however. For instance, you’ll never be able to shout “Hey, Cortana” instead of “OK Google” due to always-on listening limitations for third-party Android apps. In addition, the feature is only available on beta to Microsoft Insiders, so you won’t find it on Google Play. Neverthless, it’s another step in Microsoft’s plan to get Cortana on more platforms and do to Google what Google’s done to it for years.
Filed under:
Internet, Microsoft, Google
Via:
Slashgear
Source:
Microsoft News (unofficial)
Tags: Android, Cortana for Android, Cortona, digital assistant, google, Google Now, microsoft, voice search
Xiaomi thinks its next big opportunity lies in India
China’s smartphone market isn’t the hotbed of new customers that it once was, which means that companies now need to look elsewhere for fresh profits. Plenty believe that India is the next big thing and Xiaomi is putting money where its mouth is by setting up a manufacturing facility in the country. The firm has teamed up with Foxconn to produce devices from a base in Sri City in Andhra Pradesh, India’s hotbed of science, engineering and technology talent. The first piece of hardware to roll off the production line is the Redmi 2 Prime, a localized version of the company’s Redmi 2, which is available today for 6,999 Rupees ($110).
India’s probably going to become the buzzword of 2016, with lots of companies directing efforts to produce cheap phones for its booming market. That process will be helped by Google, which is revamping its Android One program in an attempt to produce high quality devices that cost as little as $50. Unfortunately, Google’s efforts are likely to be stymied due to the country’s weak mobile infrastructure, at least for right now.
As for the Redmi 2 Prime, it’s certainly got a respectable spec-list, with the 4.7-inch device packing a Snapdragon 410 and dual-SIM card support. Rounding out the vital statistics you’ll find 2GB RAM and 16GB storage, which will delight anyone who’s spent more than half an hour with the Aakash 2.
[Image Credit: Hugo Barra/Twitter]
Filed under:
Cellphones, Google
Source:
Xiaomi (Facebook)
Tags: Android, AndroidOne, google, India, Xiaomi
The future of Android One may be in sub Rs. 3,000 handsets, says Google
It would probably be fair to say that the Android One program hasn’t quite had the impact that Google was hoping for. Despite offering some rather good hardware at a reasonable price, the low-cost local competition ended up offering better value for money, updates seemed delayed and the second wave of phones never really materialized. According to a recent interview with Rajan Anandan, Google’s managing director for India and Southwest Asia, the initiative is scheduled for some necessarly changes, including the possibility of even cheaper handsets.
Anandan admitted that the program had “not delivered to expectations” so far, amid supply chain issues and phone import shortages from China. Importantly though, he wants to retarget Android One and the Android operating system at the “sweet spot” of India’s cost-conscious market, with smartphones preferably priced between just Rs. 2,000 and 3,000 ($30 – $47), rather than around $100 or greater.
The Lava Pixel V1 launched in India recently at a price of Rs. 11,349 ($175), while the new i-mobile iQ II costs 4,444 THB ($126 USD) in Thailand. However, there are a lot of smartphones at this price point already.
Even lower cost smartphones packed with an up to date Android OS are likely to be a tempting prospect. However, cost is just a small part of Google’s plans to win over more customers in India. The company is facing tough competition from companies designing software that is compatible with some of the slower data connections in the country and Google is still yet to properly cater for locals who don’t speak English as their first language.
“There are several battlegrounds where we are not winning [and] local search is clearly the one where it’s most apparent,” – Rajan Anandan
To combat these issues, Google is looking to invest in a program to bring small local businesses online and develop more products that work with slower data connections. Google recently launched offline versions of YouTube and Maps in India, along with a slimmed down version of its search engine. These ideas may help the company compete with the growing local start-ups, which is important for Google if it wants to be influential when the next billion Indian consumers enter the mobile market.
“10 years from now a billion Indians will be online and when we have a billion Indians online we think that’s going to make a huge difference to the global internet economy.”
This is all part of a long-term plan for Google, which will see the company working with manufacturers to help bring even more affordable and high-quality devices to market over the next few years. Android One could probably use a jump-start to put the project back on track, does this plan sound like a smart idea to you?
Google plans to launch under $50 Android One phones
Google is set to take its low-cost smartphone initiative Android One to yet another level with its plans to launch sub $50 smartphones for the emerging markets.
While not giving way too many details, the search engine giant’s Southeast Asia managing director, Rajan Anandan, revealed that the new wave of Android One smartphones will cost as low as USD50, and a new plan in this direction will be unveiled in the next few weeks.
Launched last year, Android One is a platform that was meant to standardize the low cost smartphone market by bringing decent hardware and latest software to the average user of the developing world. However, the initiative has only met with lukewarm response. So far, less than a million Android One devices have been sold in India by local players such as Micromax, Karbonn and Spice collectively. The project has faced similar disappointment in the other six countries it was launched in.
But Anandan reiterated Google’s commitment to the initiate despite it having “not delivered to expectations.” In addition to significantly reduce the prices of Android One handsets, Google is also working on new apps and services designed to specifically cater to the Indian market. Google has been working on making its services like Google Search, YouTube and Google Maps friendlier for low-bandwidth environments like India for some time now.
Source: Financial Times
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