Google Rumored To Be Working On Read It Later Service Called "Stars"

Looks like Google is working on its own read-it-later service, and it may be very similar to the bookmarking feature that’s built into Chrome right now. It’s said to be called “Stars” and currently being distributed to Google employees for testing (aka dogfooding). 

Stars allows a user to star links and will also automatically sort those links into smart lists and categories. It’s basically a smart read-it-later service. This service is being said to include its own Chrome extension to help users more easily save links.

Since Stars already being tested by Google employees, this service sounds like it’s already far along in development, and it may debut at Google I/O in just a few months. 

What do you think of this Stars service, will you give it a shot and ditch Pocket or similar services? Leave your comments below!

Asus Chromebox Preorders Now Available For $179

Asus today started accepting preorders for the device through a number of online retailers. Amazon is currently accepting orders and listing an expected release date of March 17th for the new Chromebox.

The new Chromebox from Asus will actually arrive in three CPU configurations. Preorders today start for the dual-core 1.4GHz Celeron 2955U model, while an Intel Core i3 will also arrive March 14 as will an i7 model for outside of North America. Other specs include 2GB RAM, a 16GB SSD, 4 USB 3.0 ports, SD card reader, HDMI, DisplayPort, Bluetooth 4.0, and dual-band 802.11 a/b/g/n. That’s all inside a case that measures 4.88″ x 4.88″ x 1.65” and comes in at 2.2 pounds. 

You can preorder the Asus Chromebox from Amazon now. 

HP Announces New Chromebox: Chrome Simplicity, Tiny Desktop

HP unveil today in Smoke Silver, Ocean Turquoise, Snow White and Twinkle Black, the HP Chromebox is powered by a Haswell processor. The HP Chromebox has HDMI, DisplayPort, Bluetooth and 4 USB 3.0 ports.

The HP Chromebox will be priced at $179. HP says that it will be offering an Intel Core i7 model and it will presumably be offered in a Chromebox for Meetings package in the near future. Expect this Chromebox to arrive in the United States this spring.

Source: HP

‘Google Now’ Cards Added To Chrome OS Dev Channel

Last week’s update to Chrome Canary enabled Google Now notifications for those using Canary builds, but the recent update to the Chrome OS Dev channel brings the feature to users not quite adventurous enough to use Chrome OS’ hidden Canary channel.

Just like in the Canary version, Google Now notifications get added to Chrome OS’ Notification Centre, making full use of rich notifications to provide actions like tracking dispatched packages or viewing the latest weather for your area.

Using Google Now on Chrome OS Dev

You’ll need to be on the Chrome OS Dev channel and have Google Now configured on Android or iOS with the same Google account you’re using for your Chromebook.

To enable the feature, head over to chrome://flags/#enable-google-now, change the setting from ‘Default’ to ‘Enabled’, and click ‘Relaunch Now’ at the bottom of the page.

Once relaunched, your Notification Centre will have a number of notifications from your Android or iOS device synced. Google says that Chrome will only show a subset of cards from your mobile devices for now. Google Now will also use your mobile devices for location data though with the feature coming to your laptops and Chromebooks, this could very well change in the future.

Source: Google

Pushbullet, View Notifications From Your Android Device To Computer Desktop

Before you start using Pushbullet, you have to do a little setting up first. The process is pretty straightforward and will take just a couple of minutes. A requirement you have to be aware of is that the service needs a computer running the Chrome internet browser. If you're using Google Chrome follow the instructions outlined below.

1. Download the Pushbullet app from the Play Store.
2. Once you open the app, you'll be asked to log in using your Google account.
3. After that, you'll be asked whether you want your phone or tablet's notifications to be displayed on your computer. Go ahead and enable the Notification Mirroring Service on the following page. 
4. The next step is to download the Pushbullet Chrome extension. 

Your phone or tablet's notifications should soon start appearing on your desktop. If the service doesn't start working immediately, give it a few minutes... Some users have reported the app taking a few minutes before kicking in. You should have noticed that Pushbullet can do a lot more than just forward your notifications. 

There's an option to send links and files directly from your browser to your mobile device, an option to shoot messages to your fellow friends who also use the app is available as well. Give Pushbullet a try, let us know what your thoughts are in the comment section below.

Google Announces ‘Chrome Apps’ For Windows

Chrome has offered ‘Apps’ bookmarks to web pages for Mac and PC users for a awhile. There is even a Chrome App store.  Today Chrome is getting serious about desktop apps.  In a post on the company’s blog, Google says that improved access to the computer, including USB/Bluetooth, full screen mode, desktop notifications, less ‘chrome’ (Tabs, bookmarks, browser bar, etc) and power off features will make the Chrome apps act more like real apps. So real, in fact, that most people won’t be able to tell the difference.

Today Google is unveiling a new kind of Chrome App, which brings together the speed, security and flexibility of the modern web with the powerful functionality previously only available with software installed on your devices. (Think apps designed for your desktop or laptop, just like the ones for your phone and tablet.) These apps are more powerful than before, and can help you get work done, play games in full-screen and create cool content all from the web. If you’re using Windows or a Chromebook, you can check them out in the “For your desktop” collection in the Chrome Web Store (Mac & Linux coming soon).

Google Sending Invites To July 24 Event

Google has just sent out invites to an event next Wednesday, July 24th. The invite says that it is a “breakfast with Sundar Pichai,” which means that the focus of the event will probably be on Android and/or Chrome, which are the two departments that Pichai oversees. For those that can’t make the breakfast or were not invited, it will be live streamed on YouTube, as well.

Hangouts For Android And Chrome Goes Live

Google Hangouts, the new unified and cross-platform messaging service announced by Google at I/O, is now live on all platforms. For most of us, we care about Chrome and Android, but if you are an iOS user, you can find it in the App Store as well. Go grab it!

To install to your phone, you’ll need to install through the web Play store for the time being. This replaces Google Talk.

Source:  Hangouts Google Play Link, Chrome Link

Google Announces Hangouts, New Cross-Platform Messaging Service

Google has announced Hangouts, their new messaging service. It works across platforms, meaning it works on Chrome, Android, and iOS.

During today’s Google I/O keynote, Google and Vic Gundotra announced Hangouts, their new messaging service (previously codenamed Babel). It works across platforms, meaning it works on Chrome, Android, and iOS. It also utilizes cross-device notifications, which allows you to check one device and have the notifications on others clear away. This is the unified chat that has been rumored for weeks now.



I will post the download link when we get our hands on it...

Google’s Unified Chat Actually Named Babel

Google is on the verge of releasing a unified chat service called “Babble.” This new service was rumored to have merged services  like Voice, Talk, and Google+ Messenger into a cross-platform chat solution, hopefully ending the siloed and independent chat experiences that we all currently experience. While most of those reports were on the right track, we believe that the actual name of the new Google messenger service is called “Babel” rather than “Babble,” at least internally. 

According to sources of ours, with Babel, you’ll get a seamless messenger experience across Android, iOS, Chrome, Google+ and Gmail. From what we have seen, there is no mention of Google Voice or other services outside of the five we just mentioned, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they won’t be there at some point. As of now, this is being tested internally as a cross-platform service through those five platforms (Android, iOS, Chrome, Google+ and Gmail).

Google is selling the service as having these features:

• Access the same conversation list from anywhere
• A new, conversation-based UI
• Advanced group conversations
• Ability to send pictures
• Improved notifications across devices

So what does “Babel” mean? It has a variety of meanings, that all make sense in some round-about way. The semi-hilarious thing about the name, is the fact that the definition of the word by itself has to do with a confused mixture of sounds, voices, or languages. But if you think about the movie Babel, with Brad Pitt, the name tends to make more sense. The movie itself focuses on four interrelated situations and conversations that all eventually come together in the end through a single phone call that is played from two different perspectives from the beginning and then the final scene. When you think of a unified messenger client, this idea of merging conversations from different perspectives or places seems to make a lot of sense. Then of course, there is the biblical meaning.

Another interesting item of note there is already a chat service on Android called Babel (Play link), however, it appears to have a small international user base.

Would Google really name a service after a Brad Pitt movie? Great question. Babel could be an internal codename for all we know. Obviously, we’ll keep this as a rumor until further details surface.

Google Now Is Coming To Chrome

We've seen hints before of Google Now-like functionality in the code for the desktop version of Google’s Chrome browser, but the feature appears almost set to launch with the most recent release. Code hound Francois Beaufort found a more or less fully-fledged implementation of the predictive digital assistant software. The only thing missing was the necessary server-side code to get it running.

It will be interesting to see how Google handles the release of such a feature. Will they time its launch with Google I/O and announce the feature to much fanfare? Or will they quietly roll out the feature to users?

The code can be seen in the latest Chromium Beta release, which is available for download if checking out code is the sort of thing that interests you. It won’t serve much use to the average Chrome user just yet.

Source: Engadget

Netflix Support Officially Arrives On Samsung ARM Chromebook

Netflix subscribers who also own a new Samsung Chromebook on ARM can now enjoy Netflix on there Chromebook. The streaming movie giant is now officially supported on this Chromebook, around five months after the device was released.

Up until today, users who attempted to stream Netflix from the ARM-powered Chromebook were greeted with a message that Netflix was working with Google to provide access to the service “soon.” But “soon” has turned into “now,” which honestly doesn't come as much of a surprise: Google included a brand new Netflix plugin for the Samsung Chromebook in a dev release last month. Still, it was a frustrating waiting game – one that many people are now glad is over.

The hold up was due to the need for Google and Netflix to work out some DRM issues – issues that are solved by Silverlight on Windows and OS X, and by NaCl technology on Intel-powered Chromebooks. For the ARM Chromebook, DRM will be handled by that new Netflix plugin and some HTML5 magic.

Source: OMG!CHROME!

Chrome For Android Updated To V.18.0.1025308

Google Chrome for Android has been updated over Google Play, the first such update since Google's mobile browser exited beta at Google I/O back in June. There are no major feature additions in the new version 18.0.1025308, but there is a selection of fixes for "medium"-rated security issues, as well as stability fixes.

The new Chrome also seems a tad speedier on image-heavy sites like Android Central -- let us know in the comments if you're noticing the same effect.

If you're already running Chrome, head to the "My Apps" menu in the Google Play Store to grab the new update. If you're not, you can use the Google Play link above to jump straight to the latest version. Note that you still need to be on Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich or 4.1 Jelly Bean to install Chrome.

Google Posts Q1 Results, Announces 2-for-1 Stock Split

Google on Thursday reported its results for the first quarter, topping Wall Street’s estimates. The Internet giant managed earnings of $10.08 per share on $10.65 billion in revenue, beating analysts EPS estimates of $9.64 and $8.1 billion in sales. Net revenue came in at $8.14 billion after $2.51 billion in traffic acquisition costs, in line with estimates. In the same quarter a year earlier, Google posted an adjusted profit of $8.08 per share $6.5 billion in sales. The company also plans to create a new class of non-voting capital stock that effectively creates a 2-for-1 stock split. The new class C shares will be traded under a separate ticker. “Google had another great quarter with revenues up 24% year on year,” Google CEO Larry Page said in a statement. “We also saw tremendous momentum from the big bets we’ve made in products like Android, Chrome and YouTube. We are still at the very early stages of what technology can do to improve people’s lives and we have enormous opportunities ahead. It is a very exciting time to be at Google.” A letter from Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin explaining the decision to split the company’s stock follows below along with the Google’s earnings release.