Early September Moto 360 availability hinted at by Google I/O follow-ups

Posted on by Stephen Schenck

With those invitations Motorola just started distributing for a September 4 event, the ones that pretty unambiguously feature an image of a watch among their highlighted products, it’s safe to say that we’re just about to learn of the start of retail sales for the Moto 360. But even if that announcement comes at the event, when might the smartwatch actually go up for sale? After all, a couple of the other products we’re hoping to see announced – the Moto X+1 and G2 – have been rumored ...

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Android L vs Android KitKat (Video)

Posted on by Joe Levi

Google recently released a Developer Preview of its latest version of Android: Android L. Though it’s not final code by any stretch of the imagination, we wanted to see how it compares to Android 4.4.4 KitKat – the latest official release of the operating system.We headed over to Google’s “L Developer Preview” page, downloaded, and installed Android L build LPV79 to our Nexus 5 (there is also a build for the 2013 Nexus 7, though only ...

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Android L in pictures: Google’s newest OS poses for the screenshot-cam

Posted on by Rithvik Rao

If you don’t have a Nexus 5 or Nexus 7 2013 to test it out on, you may be itching to see how well it performs. If a hands-on video isn’t your thing, and you simply want to take a good look at the next version of Google’s mobile OS, look no further than the compilation of ...

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What’s new in Android L: a walkthrough of Google’s latest OS (Video)

Posted on by Joe Levi

Google introduced us to the next version of Android at Google I/O 2014 yesterday: Android L. Unfortunately, we won’t have an official release of until “later this Fall”, but we were promised a Developer Preview.This morning that preview landed, and we decided to go hands-on. We loaded it up on our Nexus 5, booted up, and took it for a spin. Click play to see what we found, and what you can expect from Android L.Make sure you watch all ...

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Project Tango commercial release set to arrive next year

Posted on by Stephen Schenck

A few months back Google revealed one of the latest ambitious projects from its Advanced Technology and Project group, the sensor-packed Project Tango. Tango’s designed to let a device accurately scan its surroundings and determine its location in 3D space, allowing it to form a complete 3D map of its environment. First Google made available an experimental Tango handset to interested developers, and we just saw it follow that up with a very high-end (not to mention expensive)

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Did Google show off an HTC Nexus 9 render?

Posted on by Rithvik Rao

A recent massive leak suggested that Google and HTC were at work on a beastly followup tablet to last year’s Nexus 7, and that set the wheels in motion for what will likely be a near-endless stream of leaks from now until the announcement of the alleged device. We’re now learning that in a promotional image for Android L featured by Google, the company may have just shown off an HTC Nexus 9 render. Let’s take a look.There are a ...

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Is Android L the death of OEM Skins?

Posted on by Joe Levi

As we’ve had the opportunity to review devices manufactured by various OEMs, an interesting trend has begun to surface: OEM skins are getting lighter-weight, and a distinctive and bold color scheme has been evolving.We’ve reviewed the HTC One M8, the One mini 2, and the Desire 816. All of them run modern versions of HTC’s Sense UI, and all feature very ...

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Google’s Android L – What we love and hate

Posted on by Jaime Rivera

Google I/O 2014 is happening right this moment, and even though we had a ton of expectations for this event, it’s hard to say that Google disappointed anyone. Surely there was little hardware announced, but we can’t say that what we did get, which is the LG G Watch and the Samsung Gear ...

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Google I/O 2014: everything you need to know (roundup)

Posted on by Stephen Schenck

Feeling a little overwhelmed by today’s flood of Android news out of Google I/O 2014? You’ve got our sympathies, as even without the rumored big-ticket announcement of a new Nexus tablet, there was still a heck of a lot to take in. We’ve been bringing you coverage of all the important developments all day long, but just in case you missed a few bits, we’re recapping everything you need to know:Android One is Google’s ...

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Google Play Services 5.0 delivering beefed-up security, payments, sync, wearable goodness

Posted on by Stephen Schenck

Nestled somewhere between the details on the Android L developer preview and all the great stuff to look forward to from Android Wear, Google announced the latest changes to Google Play Services at I/O this afternoon. The new update, version 5.0, is already headed out to users now, so let’s take a quick look at the features that arrive with it.Those improvements to Play Games we just told you about, including Quests and that much-needed ...

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Google Cardboard is like a DIY Oculus Rift

Posted on by Stephen Schenck

Google I/O didn’t bring us the big Glass retail news that some of us have been hoping for, but it still managed to address wearables in its own way – mostly through all the Android Wear news we got to hear. “But I’m more interested in head-mounted displays,” you insist. Well, even if the absence of Glass news, Google still has some progress to share along that line, introducing Google Cardboard.Cardboard is basically a DIY virtual reality headset that uses your smartphone for ...

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LG confirms specifics about start of G Watch sales

Posted on by Stephen Schenck

Watching the Play Store like a hawk for the first sign of those initial Android Wear smartwatches arriving? You’re not alone, after Google announced earlier today that both the LG G Watch and brand new Samsung Gear Live would be going up for order. It looks like we could be seeing those sales get underway in just another hour or so, at 4pm Pacific (7p Eastern, 11p GMT), but before that happens, we’ve already picked up a few important details about how the G Watch will be sold.LG confirms that pre-orders of the G Watch will begin today, but we’ve heard that shipments ...

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Google builds upon Play Games with addition of Quests, saved game improvements

Posted on by Stephen Schenck

Gaming has never been Android’s claim to fame (despite a wide variety of quality titles), but today’s Google I/O very much saw the company giving gaming some needed attention. As part of the next release of Google Play Services, we’ll be seeing some new features come to Play Games.First up is the arrival of the new Game Profiles, which will show what you’ve been playing lately and keep track of your achievements, all placed out there publicly for your friends to see.

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LG G Watch vs Samsung Gear Live: spec-to-spec comparison

Posted on by Anton D. Nagy

The LG G Watch and Samsung Gear Live are both set to begin sales (or pre-sales) later today, so if you’re interested in purchasing an Android Wear watch that’s not the Moto 360, you’re probably debating between the two. To make the question of LG G Watch vs Samsung Gear ...

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Samsung Gear Live Specs: a first stab at Android Wear

Posted on by Rithvik Rao

Just a few weeks ago, if you told us Samsung was going to launch an Android Wear-powered smartwatch at Google I/O, we’d have thought you’re crazy. But a report earlier this week suggested otherwise, and it turns out said report was correct. Samsung launched its Gear Live today at I/O, and it’ll be available for order later today, so you’re probably wondering — what are the Samsung ...

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