06/03, 2:13pm
iPod touch teardown
Following last week's release of a stripped-down iPod touch, iFixit has posted a complete teardown that shows the internal modifications. The 16GB iPod touch lacks the internal post that is used for the Loop on the 32GB and 64GB variants, however features the same curved speaker that was designed to avoid the post in the first place. With the exception of the flash memory, it appears that the other components on the logic board are identical to those found in the 32GB and 64GB models. iFixit also notes that Apple has moved the microphone from the back of the device to the top.
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05/23, 7:30pm
Main, Gmail searches pull results from other Google apps
Google has released a beta version of Chrome 28 for Windows, Mac, Linux, and Android. The most significant change is in the Windows release, where a native notification center for apps and extensions has been turned on. These can include not only text and images, but optional actions such as making a phone call or sending email. Notifications can appear even when Chrome is closed. Google is promising Mac notifications "soon."
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05/22, 4:46pm
May eliminate need to jump to separate Google Search app
A voice search option is being added to the iOS version of Chrome in "the coming days," according to Google. Users will just have to tap a microphone icon and ask the same sort of queries Google supports in Android and the iOS Google Search app. The change should in fact reduce the need to use Search, although that app is still iOS' gateway to Now and various other Google services.
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05/22, 1:54pm
Google adds voice search to home page in Chrome update
Google has updated Chrome to enable voice search, among other additions. Chrome version 27 enables conversational search through the Google homepage, providing a clickable microphone to start it off, and then switching to a larger Google Now-style mic logo. The update, spotted by Searchengineland, also provides a new API for Chrome Store developers, 14 security fixes, and a 5-percent speed boost to page loads.
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05/20, 6:29pm
Should simplify sharing from Facebook-connected apps
Facebook has brought a native Share Dialog for iOS out of beta via an updated SDK, v3.5.1. The change means that third-party iOS 6 apps will be able to share activity to Facebook without always requiring a login first. People should also be able to tag friends from within those apps.
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05/15, 3:11pm
Reminder cards, suggestions for media part of Google Now additions
Google Now, the predictive information service, has received a number of updates, in how it works and what it shows. The Google I/O attendees saw Google Now showing options for new cards, including ones for dedicated reminders, as well as activating voice recognition without pressing a button, and adding it to the Chrome browser.
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05/08, 11:01am
Weak security resulted in DRM-free MP3 file downloads
A vulnerability found in Spotify's web player has been exploited, allowing users to download permanent copies of songs from the service. A Chrome extension by the name of Downloadify used the exploit to download MP3 files that were free of DRM, rather than just stream them, something which Spotify has been quick to rectify.
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05/07, 4:00pm
Should pave way for Google Now on OS X
The Chrome OS notification center -- already in the Windows releases of Chromium and Chrome Canary -- is in the process of being ported to the Mac version of Chromium, says Google's François Beaufort. The Chromium evangelist points to a logged Chromium issue titled "[Mac][MC] Implement notification updates and relayouts." He comments that the Mac version of the notification center is still "under heavy development," but that it can already be toggled on by running Chrome with an "--enable-rich-notifications" switch.
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04/25, 3:27pm
Sandboxes files to prevent malware
Google has released a beta Office Viewer extension for the Mac and Windows editions of Chrome. The add-on requires either the Chrome 27 beta or the latest Canary release, but enables viewing Word, Excel, or PowerPoint files within Chrome instead of separately. To protect against trojan attacks the extension is sandboxed, limiting the reach of any malicious code hackers might insert into a document.
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04/09, 4:36pm
Exports pages as PDFs
Google has updated Chrome for iOS with a handful of new features. iPhone and iPod touch users now have access to a fullscreen view, which hides the toolbar after a brief scroll. Scrolling back down again should cause the bar to reappear.
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04/04, 4:15pm
Other fixes implemented, including developer improvements
Google has released a new beta of its Chrome browser for the desktop and mobile. New in this release is a revamped user interface for HTML5 date and time input forms, DevTools updates, the ability for Chrome Packaged Apps to use the Sync FileSystem API for offline storage, support for live audio input with the Web Audio API, and up to five percent faster content loading.
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04/04, 8:15am
Google Now adds real-time package tracking, improved settings menu
An update to the Google Search app on Android has added package tracking to Google Now. New cards will show updates to shipped online orders from retailers in real-time, including an estimated arrival date, according to Droid-Life. Individual cards also have an info button, providing quick settings for the card's contents, while the overall settings menu for Google Now has been reorganized with each section having their own toggle options, and a separate "My Stuff" section for quicker alterations to sports teams and stock choices.
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04/03, 6:27pm
Move aims to streamline innovation
Google has introduced its own browser rendering engine, Blink, that will serve as Chrome's alternative to the WebKit2 engine used by competing browsers such as Safari. The search giant suggests its WebKit-based engine will enable developers to streamline innovation, eliminating approximately 4.5 million lines of code and thousands of files that only serve to support WebKit2's features, according to an Ars Technica report.
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03/26, 3:06pm
Evernote 5 for Android adds new camera modes, shortcuts
Evernote has updated its Android app to include a new camera interface, as well as a number of UI improvements. The new Multi-shot Camera mode can take multiple photographs and combine them into one single note, while Page Camera can take a shot of a notebook, line up the edges, remove shadows and improve the contrast of the image for easier reading. Shortcuts that appeared in the Mac release in October make the transition to Android, allowing for quicker navigation between notes, and premium users will be able to use a more powerful document search facility.
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03/21, 9:54am
Modular malware
A new Mac trojan is inserting ads into Safari, Chrome, and Firefox, says a Russian security firm, Doctor Web. Nicknamed "Trojan.Yontoo.1," the malware is so far being distributed through movie trailer pages, which prompt people to download a browser plugin, a media player, a video enhancer, or a download accelerator. When launched, the malware asks to be installed under a name such as "Free Twit Tube."
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03/12, 11:03am
Addition of flags suggest close to browser-based Google Now release
Google appears to be edging closer to including Google Now into Chrome itself. Flags associated with the service have been spotted in chrome://flags in the latest Chromium build, suggesting that the search giant may bring Google Now to Chrome OS computers and desktops carrying the Chrome browser in the near future.
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03/04, 3:16pm
Search upgrades coming, Google says
Google has updated the iOS version of Chrome to v25.0.1364.86. The primary change is that the browser now provides quicker access to a tab's history by holding down the Back button. For sharing webpages, though, links can now be sent through iOS' built-in Messages service.
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03/04, 7:28am
Proxy-based browsing claimed to improve connection speeds
Google may be introducing a proxy-based connection enhancement to Chrome for Android, in order to improve Internet speeds for mobile devices. Flags listed in the Chromium Git commit mention about SPDY proxy authentication, calling it a way to "Reduce data consumption by loading optimized web pages via Google proxy servers."
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01/31, 11:11am
Google Now notification integration into Chrome now closer
Google may be adding Google Now integration into its Chrome browser in the near future. A notification center has been added to the company's latest build of Windows Chromium, giving developers a chance to add Chrome notifications to their applications, as well as being an ideal platform for the Google Now cards that were hinted at in December.
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01/14, 7:50pm
Voice commands, dictation coming to Chrome
Google announced today the addition of a new Web Speech API for its Chrome web browser. The new API will bring the ability to control the browser, interact with web apps, and dictate text through built-in speech recognition. The API allows developers to integrate speech recognition into their apps, and it is available on the Chrome Beta Channel.
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01/11, 5:55am
Google brings Chrome betas to wider Android community
Google has introduced a new Chrome Beta channel for Android smartphones and tablets. The new portal for Android will sit alongside similar channels for the desktop versions of its Chrome browser on other platforms. It will allow developers and early adopters the opportunity to shakedown the browser between major releases, while also permitting early access to new features.
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01/09, 10:59pm
Ubuntu's mobile OS impresses in our brief look at it in action
We got a chance to check out a demonstration of Ubuntu's mobile operating system that was announced at the start of the year. It was running on a GSM-version of the Galaxy Nexus, and was certainly impressive when viewed from a close distance. The graphics look clean and smooth, without any hiccups on what is an older, though one-time flagship device.
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12/08, 3:12pm
Code posting shows Google Now coming to Chrome
Google is preparing to bring its Google Now predictive search service from the Android platform to its Chrome browser. This according to a posting on the Chromium developer site. The Google Now code is currently non-functional, but its addition indicates that Google is looking to expand the reach of its digital assistant-like service beyond mobile devices.
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11/30, 5:14pm
TigerDirect, NewEgg, Staples.com get Acer Chromebooks
Acer made a move today to expand the availability of its recently announced Chromebook, bringing the $199 notebook to three new online outlets. Starting today, TigerDirect, NewEgg, and Staples.com will carry Acer's C7 Chromebook, joining Google Play, BestBuy.com, and Best Buy stores. The Chrome OS-powered notebook will still sell for $199, though some outlets are packaging it with other accessories.
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11/28, 4:16pm
Chrome gains new PDF, Passbook hooks
Google has posted updates to two of its flagship iOS apps, Chrome and Drive. Chrome 23.0.1271.91 supports opening PDFs in other apps, and can save tickets and boarding passes to Passbook in iOS 6. To cope with garbled text on webpages, a text encoding detection option has been added under Settings.
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11/06, 5:27pm
Update also brings Do Not Track
Google today released the latest stable version of its Chrome browser, which improves on the browser's performance when rendering GPU-accelerated video. According to Google, the improvements in this version bring 25 percent better battery performance when GPU-accelerated video decoding is enabled. The update also gives users greater control over website permissions involving geolocation, pop-ups, and camera/microphone access.
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10/11, 7:24am
Malware plugin installed on over 80K computers through Chrome
Over 80,000 Google Chrome browser users have been hit by a fake, malware infected, version of Rovio’s Bad Piggies that is attracting users because it is free. The malware was detected by Barracuda Labs who warned users about a free web-based version of the game found on the official Google Chrome web store that carries the title Angry Birds Bad Piggies. According to Barracuda Labs, the app installs an ad injector that replaces original ads on sites including Yahoo, MSN and others, instead promoting other products.
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10/10, 4:06pm
Basic font, theme options added
Twitter has released simultaneous updates for the Mac, Windows, Chrome, and web versions of TweetDeck, its more advanced client software. The main change is the addition of a new theme which casts black text on a white background, instead of the standard white text on gray. A simple toggle control flips the theme back and forth at will.
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10/10, 3:22pm
Security contest rewards hacker with cash, Chromebook
Google has patched an exploit in Chrome less than 24 hours after it was disclosed at a hacker conference. The Pwnium 2 competition at Hack in the Box 2012 saw a single security flaw being discovered, which earned a hacker going by the name “Pinkie Pie” a free Chromebook and $60,000, the highest reward level in the contest.
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09/26, 1:08pm
Release available for Windows and Mac
Google has released a new Chrome build for Windows and Mac platforms. The stable Chrome 22 build brings several new features, including a pointer-lock Javascript API that will enable mouse control in 3D first-person shooters. Rather than interrupting control when the mouse moves outside of a window or hits the screen edge, the cursor is hidden and input is locked until the user hits the Escape key.
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09/20, 8:13am
Site uses webcam, face detection to spot leaning
Google's latest Chrome Experiment combines Cirque du Soleil with webcam controls. Movi.Kanti.Revo. lets users navigate through the site by speaking into a microphone or leaning left and right, in a demonstration of how a mixture of CSS with 3D transitions. HTML5 APIs, and the getUserMedia feature of WebRTC could be used in the future.
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09/04, 6:59pm
Fixes for various issues, user feedback, more
Google's own Chrome browser celebrates its fourth birthday, and the company has chosen to observe the milestone with an interactive timeline of Chrome development that allows users to scroll backward or forward through Chrome's history. In addition, the company released an updated version of Chrome for iOS that addresses numerous bug fixes -- including an issue with Yahoo Mail, blank "Most Visited" pages and other improvements based on user feedback.
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08/22, 8:39pm
Update brings range of bug fixes
Google has released an update for its mobile Chrome browser for iOS devices (free, App Store). The latest version focuses on social networking, enabling users to share pages via e-mail, Google+, Facebook or Twitter. A dedicated Share menu can be accessed from the primary menu bar for quick access.
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08/22, 12:16am
New tests designed to better meter JavaScript performance
Google's Chrome team has developed and released a new set of JavaScript benchmarks. Titled Octane, the new suite "aims to measure a browser’s performance when running the complex and demanding web applications that users interact with daily." The new test group keeps the previous eight tests in the V8 suite, and adds five more, allowing for a better translation of real-world JavaScript performance to metered testing data.
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08/16, 2:50pm
Security contest in Malaysia rewards browser bugs, exploits
Google is putting $2 million up for grabs if hackers can exploit the Chrome web browser. The Pwnium 2 contest, to be held on October 10 at the 10th anniversary Hack In The Box security conference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, following two successful hacks being demonstrated at the CanSecWest conference earlier this year. The $2 million is divided down into four prize levels.
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07/17, 1:48pm
Mac update promised 'shortly'
Twitter has released TweetDeck 1.5, an update of its optional desktop client. Web, Windows, Chrome, and Mac versions of the client are available. The new code is meant to speed up navigation, for instance by arranging columns in a single row for quick scrolling using the scrollbar. Clicking a new Columns button displays a full list of open columns, and arrows to either side let users scroll several columns at a time.
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07/10, 12:44pm
Google gives developers access to user cameras, microphones
The version of the Chrome Beta released yesterday included new APIs that allow developers access to a device's camera and microphone, with user permission. The new features were announced in a post on The Chromium Blog. The new permissions are aimed at increasing the quality of video and audio communication on Google's browser.
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06/29, 3:29am
Problem may also involve Flash, reported to Apple
A member of the Apple Support forums posted yesterday that an employee of the company had told him that "the specific combination" of Google's Chrome browser, it's built-in version of Flash and the Intel HD 4000 chip found in the latest MacBook Airs was causing a problem that Apple was working to fix, with some owners reporting frequent crashes and even kernel panics as a result of the issue.
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06/29, 12:40am
Webkit-based browser released at Google IO
Less than 12 hours after initial release, Google Chrome is the number one free application on the iOS App Store. The new Webkit-based browser app supports the iPad, iPhone, and iPod Touch, and requires iOS 4.3 or greater. The iOS version shares its features with the desktop versions, which are available for Mac, Windows and Linux.
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06/28, 2:49pm
Chrome apps show complex gesture interactivity
Google showed off motion-based interactivity for apps in its Chrome web browser today at its developer conference. The demo showed off a Cirque du Soleil Chrome app that featured complex gesture interactivity but was said to have been written using relatively simple coding. The new capability could open a range of interaction possibilities across multiple devices running Chrome..
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06/28, 1:44pm
iOS gets quick tab switching, syncing
The iPad and iPhone will be getting their own versions of Google's popular Chrome web browser, the search giant revealed today at its I/O developer conference. The iOS version (free, App Store) of the browser will duplicate the features currently seen in its desktop and Android counterparts.
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06/14, 7:33am
Google working on HDPi support for Chrome
The next version of Google's Chrome browser, codenamed 'Canary,' will support Apple's new MacBook Pro with Retina Display. Anandtech has tested the developer version of the browser on Apple's latest notebook and found that it marks a significant improvement over how Chrome currently renders to the display. As can be seen from the images (below), the new browser takes full advantage of the Retina Display and renders text and images much more sharply.
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05/15, 3:25pm
Desktop browser connects with Android Chrome beta
Google has announced that Chrome 19 is now available as a stable build, enabling users to try out the new features that were announced early last month. The latest overhaul to the company's browser broadens sync capabilities between devices and platforms. Users can open multiple tabs on the desktop browser, then pick up their Android 4.0 phone and access the same content from the mobile Chrome beta.
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05/15, 12:07pm
Macquarie sees new browser wars imminent
Google is likely to launch a version of its Chrome browser for Apple's iOS line of devices in the coming months, according to analysts at Macquarie Capital. Macquarie sees the iOS Chrome launch as the opening salvo in a new round of Browser Wars, the likes of which the Internet hasn't seen since the late 1990s.
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05/01, 2:42pm
Google enhances Gmail experience with auto translate, more
Google has just detailed its Automatic Message Translation feature for its Gmail service, having graduated it from the beta Gmail Labs. The feature was around in the Labs section since 2009, and now gives users the option to automatically translate e-mails into their native language. The feature is similar to that of Google Chrome when visiting a page that's written in a foreign language.
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04/24, 7:40pm
Chrome for Android nearing final release
Google’s Chrome browser for Android is tipped to come out of beta ‘in weeks,’ reports CNET. Google’s senior VP of Chrome and Apps, Sundar Pichai, revealed as much in an interview following the recent release of an update for the version currently still in beta. According to Pichai, his team of software engineers is addressing outstanding issues following the beta 2 release.
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04/19, 4:50pm
Yandex co-founder critizes Google's products
The co-founder of Russia's top search engine Yandex has gone on record to criticize Google's Android and Chrome products, UK paper The Guardian reported. Ilya Segalovich called the Android OS a "strange combination of openness and not openness," while the Chrome browser was said to be anti-competitive. Segalovich's comments, in turn, were prompted by Google co-founder Sergey Brin's opinions on the threats to the open Internet.
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04/18, 2:35pm
Google Cloud Print can now print to offices
Google has expanded Cloud Print both for device support and, in a rare step, commercial printing. Those using a mobile app or Chrome can now push a print project to a FedEx office in the US with Print & Go self-service as an option. The gesture helps reduce the need for a home or work printer, particularly for phone or tablet owners who might be traveling and need to print a hard copy.
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04/17, 2:50pm
Chrome for Android gets significant extras
Google gave the Chrome for Android beta a major update (Google Play) Tuesday that filled in key gaps in the otherwise advanced browser. Like the stock Android 4.0 browser, Chrome can now ask for the desktop version of a page if the mobile version is either undesirable or doesn't work. Address a feature that's been on iOS devices for years, Google now lets users add bookmarks as shortcuts on the Android home screen.
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04/16, 5:05pm
Google Drive tip narrows launch
The often-rumored Google Drive might have at last settled on a more definitive launch plan that would include true cross-platform access. A draft press release sliped to The Next Web had the service more closely following the Dropbox formula, where files were stored in a syncing folder or folders on a Mac or Windows PC. Although widely suspected, it's now believed to have an iOS app to match the Android and desktop components.
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