Category: Google
De-Googling the iPhone
iLounge, however, also noted that in iPhone 4’s Safari application, Apple has removed the “Google” branding from the search button and simply replaced it with “Search”. While seemingly a minor detail, Apple has been said to be in discussions with Microsoft to replace Google as the default search engine on the iPhone. If this were to happen, Google would likely still be a user enable-able option.
This, coupled with Steve Jobs’ bit about search not being “where it’s at” on mobile devices can’t be rubbing Google the right way.
Google Sync and the iPad
If you’re like me, you spent way too much time trying to figure out why only your primary Google Calendar would get pushed to your fancy new iPad. It seems to be a bug with Google Sync, but one crafty user discovered a work-around:
On your desktop Mac enable the safari debug menu, set the user agent to iPhone, go to m.google.com/sync
While in preferences, turn off Javascript - this is what is preventing us from selecting multiple calendars!
Google to Serve Custom iPad Webpages
While surfing the web on your iPad, we expect many of you will want to check your Gmail. If you go to gmail.com in your browser, you’ll see something different than what you’re used to on the desktop. We’re releasing an experimental user interface for the iPad built on the Gmail for mobile HTML5 web app that we launched last year for the iPhone and Android devices. Those devices have large screens compared to other phones, and tablets like the iPad give us even more room to innovate. To take advantage of the iPad’s large display, we’ve created a two-pane view with your list of conversations on the left and messages to the right.
Google Re-directs Chinese Traffic
So earlier today we stopped censoring our search services—Google Search, Google News, and Google Images—on Google.cn. Users visiting Google.cn are now being redirected to Google.com.hk, where we are offering uncensored search in simplified Chinese, specifically designed for users in mainland China and delivered via our servers in Hong Kong. Users in Hong Kong will continue to receive their existing uncensored, traditional Chinese service, also from Google.com.hk. Due to the increased load on our Hong Kong servers and the complicated nature of these changes, users may see some slowdown in service or find some products temporarily inaccessible as we switch everything over.
Why I Switched to Android
Background
I am no stranger to the iPhone. I was working as a Mac Genius In-Training when the original iPhone was released. I got my first iPhone 6 weeks after they were released. A year later, I upgraded to the 3G when it was released, and then again to the 3GS last summer. I’ve spent more money than I care to think about in third-party apps. So why did I give it up? Well…
Google’s ‘Open Manifesto’
On Syncing Android and the Mac
Mac|Life has put together a nice little guide to syncing Android-powered phones with built-in Mac apps like iTunes and iPhoto.
Google Testing Android Hardware
We recently came up with the concept of a mobile lab, which is a device that combines innovative hardware from a partner with software that runs on Android to experiment with new mobile features and capabilities, and we shared this device with Google employees across the globe. This means they get to test out a new technology and help improve it.
‘Just Good Enough’
Overall, I like the Droid. The hardware design is merely par for the course; it’s well-made but has some rough edges. The hardware specs, however, combined with Android 2.0, makes this a good enough device to be a solid competitor to the iPhone 3GS. This is the hardware that Android should have shipped with. In some areas it is better, in some areas on par, and some areas slightly worse than the iPhone or other high end smartphones. But all of it is “just good enough.” It all depends on your preferences in phone features. If multitasking matters, the Pre and the Droid are your only choices. Droid lets you play music on Pandora, navigate, and check Twitter all at the same time, with no lag and no delays. If you’re looking for a media player phone or a camera phone, on the other hand, you might check elsewhere. It just comes down to the feature set you’re looking for.
Things Apple Can Learn From Android: Notifications That Don’t Suck
The Need for Notifications
Back in the day, cell phones did one thing — make calls. Since they were so simple, the only time they needed to alert their owners was with a ringtone.
Obviously, phones do a few more things these days. They can send and receive emails, SMS and MMS messages, surf the Internet, give turn-by-turn directions and much, much more. One of the core problems with smart phones is how to handle all of this incoming information and present it to the user in bite-sized chunks.
‘I Have to Get Rid of It’
Stewart Alsop on the Droid:
The hardware (which is Motorola’s) mostly works. The keyboard is horrible and I’ve never used it, which means that it is a real design flaw given how much weight and mechanical operation it adds to the device. (The software keyboard works well enough that I’ve found it adequate but the other problems with the software make it barely useable.) The camera button on my Droid doesn’t work and never has, so I call up the camera from the home screen. The on-off button is poorly placed for one-handed operation and requires real force to actuate. But this is just version 1.0 issues that Motorola will likely fix next time out.