"'Allo, guvna!" Google's new messaging app is obviously British. Photo: Google
Watch out Facebook Messenger, Google is taking another stab at messaging with its newly revealed app called Allo.
Does the world really need another messaging app? Probably not. But Google is hoping that it has finally created the perfect mix of features that will make you ditch Snapchat and Facebook.
Google Home is coming later this year, and it looks amazing. Photo: Google
Google is already helping you with everyday tasks on your smartphone, and now it’s coming to your home. With the new Google Home speaker, you get an intelligent digital assistant that’s there for you whenever you need it — and you’ll be amazed at what it can do.
Will Google I/O give Apple anything to worry about? Photo: Google
Google is kicking off its I/O developer conference at 10 a.m. PT today, and it’s going to give us a great look at some of the things Apple will be competing with over the next 12 months.
If you’re interested in keeping up, you can watch the whole thing live right here.
The Apple TV had a surge of sales last year. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
The fourth generation Apple TV experienced the largest increase in unit sales last year among streaming media players but it hasn’t been good enough to supplant Roku as the top streamer in the U.S.
Apple TV’s biggest weakness appears to be its price point. New research shows that smaller stick streamers made up half of last year’s sales and Apple’s competition reaped the rewards.
YouTube goes all in on VR. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac
It’s time to dust off that virtual reality headset you bought for your iPhone. Thanks to a new YouTube update that’s rolling out now, it’s finally possible to watch any video in glorious VR.
Spaces is coming to Android, iOS, and the web today. Photo: Google
Google isn’t waiting until its I/O conference next week to put its latest app in your hands. The company today launched Spaces for Android, iOS, and the web, making it easy to share just about anything with your favorite groups of friends.
Google is finally stepping up its bid to kill Flash content. Later this year, its Chrome browser will default to HTML5 wherever possible, using Flash only as a last resort.
The move should make Chrome speedier and more stable — and better on battery life when used on a MacBook.
If you’re an iPhone user who loves Google, or you just like to keep up with the competition, then you’ll be pleased to know there’s now an official iPhone app for next week’s Google I/O conference.
You can use it to keep track of events, navigate your way around if you’re going to be there, and to watch the keynote and sessions live if you’ve been following from home.
You can get your hands on Gboard today if you live in the U.S. Photo: Google
Google just launched its very first keyboard for iPhone and iPad — and it’s awesome.
Called Gboard, and designed to look a lot like the default iOS keyboard at first glance, it’s jam-packed with useful features, including the ability to type with glide gestures, send GIFs, and search Google from almost anywhere.
Google Translate goes offline. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac
When you’re lost in a foreign country without a data connection, Google Translate can now help you get directions from a local. Its latest update for iPhone and iPad adds the ability to get offline translation in 52 different languages.
Amazon is already battling Netflix and Spotify and plenty of other content providers, but it wants an even bigger challenge. The retail giant today unveiled Amazon Video Direct, a sharing platform that’s taking the fight to YouTube.
We're pretty sure the Apple Car won't look like this. Not a chamfer in sight. Photo: devastatormonstertruck.com
We haven’t even gotten an official announcement of the Apple Car yet, but it looks like the company is still working its way into the automotive industry.
That’s according to the staff at car news site The Drive, which placed Apple’s chief design officer Jony Ive and CEO Tim Cook on its list of “The 10 Most Influential People in Automotive Technology.” They didn’t top the list, however; that would be crazy. But they did place higher than some people who are actually in charge of real vehicles that people are driving around right now.
Apple Music’s existing interface is quaking in its boots. In just one month, it could be given its marching orders as Apple looks to make way for a fancy new design that hopes to attract even more subscribers to its streaming service.
But does Apple Music really need a major revamp?
Some say its user interface is already familiar if you’re a long time iOS user — and even if you’re not, it’s arguably still prettier than those offered by rival streaming services. But others say it’s just not friendly enough, and too tricky to learn.
Join us in this week’s Friday Night Fight between Cult of Android and Cult of Mac as we battle it out over Apple Music’s rumored redesign!
Apple CEO Tim Cook is set to make another major public appearance in the lead up to WWDC next month.
Startup Fest Europe revealed that Cook will be the opening speaker at the conference on Tuesday May 24th. It’s unknown what Cook’s keynote will focus on, though his remarks may touch on his mastery of streamlining processes for business and possibly enterprise, which has become a bigger focus for the company recently.
Beware the Google car! Photo: Pizzaforbreakfast/YouTubeBeware the Google car! Photo: Pizzaforbreakfast/YouTube
As the technology around us gets smarter, many fear it will turn against us. That nightmare comes true in this parody ad for Google’s self-driving car, which mows down poor pedestrians as it tears down the streets of Los Santos.
Yep. This is a form that exists now. Photo: Department of Motor Vehicles
Google’s autonomous cars have taken to the road with the rest of us normals in our comparatively Flintstones-esque, human-directed rides. And the very small brush-ups are starting to come in.
In fact, the California DMV has created a form just for reporting accidents involving at least one self-driving vehicle, and it publishes these reports on its website. And while the doomsayers and doubters have wrung their hands about cars plowing into trucks filled with baby penguins, the truth is that the dozen or so accidents on the list are so hilariously small that they hardly seem worth the paperwork at all.
They should definitely file the reports; don’t get us wrong. But we imagine an eye-roll or two while it happens.
Apple's latest hire specialized at building robotic hands. Photo: University of Washington/Flickr
Apple has added yet another wicked smart talent to its ranks recently by hiring famed robotics expert Yoky Matsuoka.
Yoky was working as the head of technology at Nest before joining Apple. She was also one of the co-founders of Google’s X Lab and is a MacArthur genius award winner.
But how long will it last? Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
Having to bid farewell to iMessage is one of the reasons why many iPhone users won’t jump ship to Android. But thanks to a new app called PieMessage, you can now enjoy Apple’s insanely popular messaging platform on a Google-powered smartphone.
The Chrysler Pacifica could soon drive itself. Photo: Fiat ChryslerThe Chrysler Pacifica could soon drive itself. Photo: Fiat Chrysler
Google is on the verge of signing a new deal with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles to build “several dozen” self-driving minivans, according to a new report.
The first models could be on the road sometime this year for the first phase of the self-driving vehicle partnership, but it’s not yet clear what the main objective is.
You won’t find a lot of Trump yard signs in the valley. Source: CrowdPAC
Silicon Valley campaign donations have poured way more money into the presidential bids of Democrats than Republicans, surprising nobody, ever.
This shocking revelation comes from a report from CrowdPAC, a non-partisan, political crowdfunding organization that has discovered that the companies most likely to donate to campaigns are Google, Apple, Microsoft, and Amazon. And while the findings don’t include fine-grain data like individual amounts or the actual numbers of employees, they do make one overwhelming conclusion:
YouTube wants to takeover your TV. Photo: YouTubeLook out for bumper ads! Image: Killian Bell/Cult of Android.
When you’re excited to watch the latest videos from your favorite YouTube channels, the last thing you want to see before them is ads you can’t skip. Normally, they don’t appear on every video you watch, but Google is planning to change that.
The company today announced that is introducing 6-second “bumper ads” that will play before all videos watched on mobile devices, and you have no choice but to sit through them.
The looming shutdown of Revolv has some home-automation fans questioning the Internet of Things. Photo: Andrew Stawarz/Flickr CC
Revolv smart hubs will no longer be supported as of May 15. Even though subscribers have known this was coming since February, there wasn’t a lot of attention until an author’s highly critical piece was published on Medium.
That story has spurred conversations questioning investment in the Internet of Things, or IoT, and prompted Nest to consider compensating users who were early investors in the Revolv hub.
Tech companies want to protect encryption. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of MacTech companies want to protect encryption. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
Apple and Google have leant their names to an open letter taking aim at a controversial new anti-encryption bill, which demands that tech companies make their devices breakable at will.
“We write to express our deep concerns about well-intentioned but ultimately unworkable policies around encryption that would weaken the very defenses we need to protect us from people who want to cause economic and physical harm,” the letter opens.
In addition to Apple and Google, other tech giants which signed the missive include Amazon, eBay, Facebook, Netflix, and more.