Author Archive: Gareth

Some love for Google TV

Google has been mentioned at Google I/O this year. Although not specificly in the keynote, they announced some cool new things for the service. First, Google is now sending out the latest Android 4.2.2/Jelly Bean to Google TV. This is a welcome upgrade and should get GTV users excited. Additionally, they are also sending out the latest version of Chrome as well. Now browsing on your Google TV should be even faster than before.
That’s not all. Google also announced they plan to bring updates to Google TV on a much more timely basis, specifically stating “weeks rather than months.” Here’s a quote below from the Google TV developer’s blog G+ account with all the details,

Quote:

Over the past few months Google TV has gathered momentum by launching powerful features for our users such as the highest quality voice search of any TV product and strong manufacturer adoption of the platform. At Google I/O, it’s time to talk about developers and enabling them to bring more great experiences to TV.
Today, Google TV is moving to the latest version of Android (Jelly Bean, 4.2.2), and we’ve refactored Google TV so that our TV OEM partners can update to future versions of Android in a matter of weeks rather than months. For developers, this means you can build TV experiences using the latest Android APIs, including the NDK.
Today Google TV is also moving to the latest version of Chrome, and from now on Google TV benefits from Chrome updates on the same six week cycle that you’ve come to expect from Chrome. In Chrome on Google TV, we’ve added support for hardware-based content protection, enabling developers to provide premium TV content in HD within their web apps.
Google TV-powered devices in market will start to receive updates in the coming months, and we expect to see new devices launched later this year. If you are attending Google IO, please check out the “Android: As seen on TV!” session and stop by the Google TV Developer Sandbox area.
https://developers.google.com/tv/

LG has already updated some of their new Google TV equipped LG HDTVs with the newest Android 4.2.2 version. Above is a video of the TV with the new update.

Posted by: Gareth

What’s inside Google Glass?

Previously, we shared Google’s release of the basic features & specs of Google Glass. The info they shared was a bit limited because it didn’t share some of the specifics of the internal hardware. Today, the full hardware specs of the current generation of Google Glass have been shared by one of the developers who has the device already. Here’s a quote followed by a full breakdown,

Quote:

I’m a geek and it’s still awesome to nerd out on the guts. +Liam McLoughlin (Hexxeh) also found the USB debugging setting and got ADB working (looks like it was broken on my primary machine). Once I got it working I pulled up some details about Glass. Key points are:
* It’s running Android 4.0.4 – Ice Cream Sandwich – just as Larry Page said
* It’s an OMAP 4430 CPU – Dual Core? – Having trouble finding exact mhz
* There’s 682mb of RAM (678052kb reported in /proc/meminfo). Kernel messages lead me to believe it’s actually 1gb but some is being used for other hardware purposes(?)

Glass App pops up

Google has launched a ton of new and relevant stuff for Project Glass. First up, the beta explorer units are rolling out of the factories and will be shipped to early adopters very soon. Second, they already put their MyGlass app on the Google Play Store along with a setup page. Next, they revealed the full specs of the device. Here’s a bullet-point breakdown for you:

• 640 x 360 display – however, because of its location close to your eye, it simulates a 25-inch hi-def monitor from a distance of eight feet
• 5MP camera
• 16GB of internal storage supported by “Google cloud storage”
• Audio via bone conduction
• Battery life = “one full day of typical use” and will charge with a standard microUSB cable
• WiFi and Bluetooth

Google also released the Mirror API which will be handy for developers wanting to whet their appetite on the new platform. Just remember to take them off in the bathroom.

Posted by: Gareth

Google Glass illustrated

A gentlemen by the name of Martin Missfeldt has created a useful infographic on the full concept and functionality of Google’s Project Glass. His hard work helps illuminate some of the interesting details of the upcoming tech. After seeing some of the videos in action and checking out this infographic, Google Glass is much more exciting. Using Wii style avatars it seems reminiscent of the augmented reality seen in the PC and console game Deus Ex: Human Revolution (or even the original Deus Ex PC game). If Google Glass can create just a portion of the usefulness of the in-game concept, then it really could be the next big revolutionary technology to change the way we do things.

Posted by: Gareth

Mobile Tech stealing PC thunder

Industry analysts have been remarking on turn if the tides for the PC industry for quite some time now. Yesterdays market numbers (from two different studies) paint a stark picture revealing why people are making these predictions. The first quarter of this year saw the worst PC sales decline in history, as PC sales dipped down a whopping -14% (as you can see in the chart). Here’s a quote with more of the details:

Asus Fonepad gets date and price

The final release date and pricing for the Asus Fonepad has been revealed. The smartphone/tablet hybrid will launch for £179.99 ($275 USD) and will be available for pre-order at retailers like Carphone Warehouse, Amazon and Sainsbury’s April 12. The final ship date will be April 26.

Posted by: Gareth