Google

When Apple Music first launched in 2015, playing it on anything other than an Apple device was impossible. Thankfully though, over the years Apple has made its streaming service available to access through third-party devices and speakers, including Amazon Echo and Google-owned speakers. This article focuses on Google devices. If you have a Google Home mini or a newer Nest-branded smart...

Google includes a Live Captions transcription feature in version 89 of its Chrome browser for desktop. Live Captions uses machine learning to create a real-time transcription for videos or audio played through the browser, which can make online media more accessible for members of the Deaf community and other people with hearing loss. Once enabled, Live Captions appear in a box in the bottom ...

If you buy a new iPhone to replace your existing one and you use the Google Authenticator app to access online accounts protected by two-factor authentication (2FA), you should transfer those accounts to your new phone as soon as possible, because without the 2FA codes close at hand, you could find yourself locked out of your online accounts. 2FA adds an extra layer of security to your...

Google Lens can now recognize over a billion items in the world around us, the search engine giant announced this week. That's four times as many things that the AI-powered feature could identify when it was first launched last year, thanks partly to a huge number of Google Shopping products which have been added to its knowledge base. While its optical character recognition engine has...

In Chrome 66, rolling out now for Mac and iOS, Google has added a password export option to the web browser so that you can easily migrate your login details to another browser via a third-party password manager app. In this article, we'll show you how to export your passwords from Chrome on Mac and iOS. At the end of the process, you'll be left with a CSV file containing all your login...

Fitbit owner Google this week came a step closer to rivaling the health features of Apple Watch after the FDA approved its new algorithm for continuously monitoring users' heart rate rhythms. Like Apple Watch, Fitbit devices with a heart-rate monitoring capability include an ECG app that must be manually run by the user to check for irregular rhythms, which can be a sign of atrial...

Google today announced it is partnering with iFixit to make do-it-yourself repairs available for Pixel smartphones in select regions. Starting later this year, genuine Pixel parts will be available for purchase on iFixit's website for the Pixel 2 through Pixel 6 Pro, as well as future Pixel models, in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and European Union countries where...

Google today released Chrome 100, the latest version of its browser that's available on Macs, PCs, iPhones and iPads, Android devices, and more. Chrome 100 is notable because it features the first major icon update for Chrome since 2014. The updated design was first previewed in February, and it features a simplified icon with brighter colors and no shadows. Chrome designer Elvin Hu said...

Google today announced that its annual Google I/O developers conference is set to take place on Wednesday, May 11, and Thursday, May 12, about a month ahead of when we're expecting Apple to hold the annual Worldwide Developers Conference. Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai shared the news this afternoon, and he said the event will be "live from Shoreline Amphitheatre," with the content available...

Google today announced that updates made to the Chrome browser have improved performance on Apple's Macs, with Google Chrome earning a score over 300 on the Speedometer benchmark that evaluates the responsiveness of a browser. In a post on the Chromium blog, Google explains the technological improvements that have been introduced over the past months to make Chrome the "fastest possible...

Google today told employees that they will need to return to their physical offices starting on Monday, April 4, reports CNBC. This will apply to employees located in the Bay Area, which is where Google has a Mountain View-based main campus, along with employees in other locations around the United States. Santa Clara County,t where Google and Apple are located, has been lifting...

Google has announced plans to strengthen user privacy on Android with a new initiative that will put an end to cross-app tracking on Android over the next two years, making it more difficult for advertisers to track users across other apps. In a blog post, Google announced a multi-year project named "Privacy Sandbox" that introduces "more private advertising solutions" for mobile apps. The...

Google has announced early access to Chrome OS Flex, a method of replacing the operating system on older PCs and Macs "within minutes" to essentially turn them into Chromebooks. The company is encouraging individuals, schools, and businesses to download Chrome OS Flex so they can "easily try modern computing with cloud-based management" while extending the lifespan of older devices, thereby ...

Google today announced that its Google One VPN is available to iPhone and iPad users, one and a half years after promising to bring it to iOS devices. The service, which has on Android smartphones and tablets since October 2020, is available for Google One members who have the 2TB Premium plan. Google One Premium is priced at $9.99 per month or $99.99 per year, and in addition to VPN...

Google has internally kickstarted the development of an augmented reality headset that will "blend computer graphics with a video feed of the real world" to deliver an immersive AR experience, with a launch tentatively set for 2024, according to a report from The Verge. The report describes the headset, codenamed Project Iris, as a "tightly kept secret" at Google with around 300 employees...

Google today announced its 2022 product plans for the Android operating system, and several of the upcoming additions clearly mirror existing Apple features. The new functionality will allow Android smartphones and Google products to match capabilities already available with the Apple devices. Fast Pair, a Google feature that enables Bluetooth accessories to instantly pair to an Android...

Apple has an agreement with Google that it won't develop its own internet search engine so long as Google pays it to remain the default option in Safari, a new class action alleges. Filed in a California court earlier this week against Apple, Google, and their respective CEOs, the lawsuit alleges the two companies have a non-compete agreement in the internet search business that violates US...

If you have been good this year, you may be interested to know that Google today launched its annual Santa tracking feature, allowing Santa to be tracked in real time on his mythical journey to the North Pole as he prepares to deliver presents to kids around the world. Google's Santa Tracker continues an 18-year tradition for the company, allowing excited children (and parents!) to keep up...

Google is planning to launch its first smartwatch next year, according to a new report from Business Insider, signaling Google's expansion into creating smartwatch hardware rather than just software. Google has so far only developed wearOS, an operating system that the company has partnered with Samsung and others to implement into smartwatch offerings. Next year, however, Google is planning ...

Last Friday, code suggested Google would soon roll out an update for Google Messages that would display iMessage Reactions from iPhone users as emoji on Android devices, and now that update has started rolling out. Screenshots from 9to5Google reader Jvolkman According to 9to5Google, some Android users are beginning to see iMessage reactions in Google Messages as emoji that are linked to the...

The Google Messages app on Android devices may soon start showing iMessage reactions as emoji characters instead of text, according to some digging done by 9to5Google. In the Messages app on iOS and Mac devices, users can add a reaction like a heart, thumbs up, thumbs down, a laugh, a question mark, or an exclamation, all of which show up as annotations to an iMessage. These reactions can...

The United Kingdom's Supreme Court today sided with Google in restoring its appeal against a lawsuit that accused it of wrongly tracking users within the iPhone's Safari browser without their consent. According to the ruling, the judge believed that the lawsuit, which sought to ask for compensation from Google for millions of users allegedly affected by its tracking practices, is "officious" ...

The South Korean government recently passed a law that bans Apple and Google from requiring developers to use their in-app purchase systems in the App Store and Google Play respectively, and Google has now announced changes to comply with the law. In a blog post, Google said it will be giving developers the option to add an alternative in-app billing system alongside the Play Store's billing ...

Shortly after the launch of the new iPhone 13 models in September, Google came out with the Pixel 6 and the Pixel 6 Pro, its latest flagship devices, which are feature rich and priced at $599 and $899 respectively. We picked up the Pixel 6 Pro, which has the most advanced lens system, and thought we'd compare it to the ‌iPhone 13‌ Pro Max to see the similarities and differences between the two...

After lowering its Play Store commission from 30 percent to 15 percent in March, Google today announced that it is making the same change to subscription fees, an update applicable to all app developers, reports The Verge. At the current time, Google's subscription policy works like Apple's. Google collects 30 percent from a subscription during the first year, and then drops that to 15...