Google I/O 2018 kicks off in less than an hour.
There’s loads to look forward to this year, including an update on Android P, and previews of what’s to come for Chrome, the Google Assistant, Android Auto, and more. The recently-rebranded Wear OS may also get some much-needed attention.
Google is live-streaming its big keynote, which kicks off at 10 a.m. Pacific. If you can’t tune in, follow our live blog below to stay up to date with everything that’s happening in Mountain View.
Fortnite, arguably the most anticipated iOS game of 2018, is just one of our selections for “Awesome Apps of the Week.”
In addition, we’ve got Google’s AI assistant newly landed on iPad, a neat update to one of the most popular third-party keyboards around, and a great basic text-editing app for iOS. Check out our picks below.
Anyone wanting to try out Google’s rival to Siri can now do so on their iPad: A version of the Google Assistant optimized for iOS tablets just debuted.
With the press of a button, the application will answer questions and retrieve information from the internet, but that’s just the start.
Siri is now “actively” used on more than half a billion devices, Apple has revealed. The virtual assistant, which will be used to control HomePod, has been attracting users at a rapid rate despite falling behind its competitors in features and accuracy.
Apple suppliers have begun shipping the first HomePod units ahead of the smart speaker’s much-anticipated launch. Just 1 million devices are on the way initially. However, Apple is expected to receive as many as 12 million by the end of this year.
Want a smoke detector that can double as a premium HomeKit-enabled smart speaker? Of course you do, and smoke detector company First Alert is here to help.
Debuting at CES 2018, First Alert’s Onelink Safe & Sound smoke and carbon monoxide alarm is an in-ceiling device that could save your life. But it also can be utilized as an entertainment system, with support for Apple’s Siri, Amazon’s Alexa and Google’s Google Assistant AI voice assistants.
2017 was a great year for Apple as a whole, and the App Store was no different.
From messaging apps to music-generating tools to a smart AI assistant, Apple and various third-party developers unleashed an impressive array of new software designed to get us tapping, swiping and — most importantly — downloading.
AirPods can be paired with any smartphone, just like other Bluetooth headphones. But you don’t get full functionality on third-party platforms. On Android, however, they just became a lot more useful.
You can now use AirPods to activate the Google Assistant — thanks to one simple app.
The most impressive feature of Google’s new Pixel Buds might not be their audio quality. As demonstrated during the Pixel 2 event today, they work as a real-time translation tool when combined with one of Google’s new phones.
“With Pixel Buds, I can use real-time Google Translate to have a natural conversation in 40 languages,” Google hardware product manager Juston Payne said during the event. “We’re letting you connect with the world around you in a more natural way, by rethinking how a headphone should work, connecting it to cloud-based machine learning and giving you access with the touch of a finger.”
Google’s newest smartphone lineup just got its official unveiling. The Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL are a decent upgrade over their predecessors, with improved designs and better internals.
But they certainly don’t give Apple or the iPhone anything to worry about.
Apple’s AirPods and Beats headphones are getting some fresh competition from one of the biggest audio companies in the game. And they’re getting a little help from Apple’s rival, Google.
Bose unveiled two new products today. One is its first ever foray into the world of truly wireless earbuds. The other is a pair of brand new noise-canceling headphones that are also designed to work with Google Assistant.
The smart speaker market is suddenly starting to look a lot more crowded.
Sonos has been making some of our favorite wireless speakers for years but it appears that the company is planning to challenge Apple, Amazon, Google and Samsung with its own smart speaker that will also be powered via voice.
Google has expanded the reach of the Google Assistant on iOS.
Until today, the feature was only available to iPhone and iPad users in the U.S. — but now you can access it in a number of new countries throughout Europe, including the U.K.
Bixby, Samsung’s latest competitor to Siri, will finally find its voice in the U.S. next month.
A leaked internal email reveals Bixby Voice will make its official debut before the end of August. Until now, the feature has only been available in Samsung’s home country of South Korea.
Emorio Armani is the latest designer fashion brand that fancies its chances against the Apple Watch.
The Italian company unveiled its first smartwatch collection, powered by Google’s Android Wear platform, at Milan Fashion Week over the weekend — but neglected to mention any prices.
Using Siri in public places can be a drag. Either it’s too noisy for Apple’s AI assistant to understand your query, or it’s too quiet and it’s embarrassing (or even risky) to ask Siri for help.
Luckily, iOS 11 brings a Siri upgrade that changes all that: The new Type to Siri feature lets you silently send all your questions and commands. This feature comes disabled by default, but enabling it shouldn’t take more than a few seconds.
With WWDC 2017 right around the corner, it’s that time of the year when Apple can fix all the annoyances of iOS 10 and unveil something truly revolutionary for the next generation of iPhones and iPads.
Apple is expected to show off all the major features of iOS 11 at the WWDC in a couple of weeks. Surprisingly, the rumor mill has been quiet on what to expect, but that hasn’t stopped a flurry of speculation. We’ve got some ideas of our own too that we really want to see come to iOS 11.
This is what we want in Apple’s next big update:
In this week’s Cult of Mac Magazine, we give you our wish list for macOS 10.13, which will be introduced by Apple in two weeks at the WWDC.
Take advantage of our massive Memorial Day weekend sale at Watch Store, where we offer 20 percent off a large selection of Apple Watch bands an chargers from top name brands: JUUK, Clessant, Form Function Form, Just Mobile, Jack Foster and more. Sale starts today, so get shopping!
Here are this week’s top stories.
Google Assistant for iOS was released at Google’s latest I/O event. Having never tried it (being an Apple fanboy and all) I thought it was only fair to put the two virtual assistants head to head.
There’s still a lot Google needs to fix such as being able to open apps other than it’s own. But check out the head to head battle in my video below.
A gorgeously illustrated, story-driven game with an utterly unique gameplay mechanic is just one of the titles we’ve picked out for this week’s “Awesome Apps” roundup.
We’ve also got Google’s AI assistant, a classic Capcom game finally landed in the App Store after almost 30 years, and a third party keyboard that’s gotten even better. Check out our picks below.
The number of AI assistants by 2021 will outnumber the current world population, according to market research group Ovum’s new Digital Assistant and Voice AI–Capable Device Forecast.
The report highlights the growing popularity of Siri-style smart assistants, and also offers some intriguing predictions as to which AI assistants will become big, and which will be also-rans.
Google Assistant may have just made its way to iPhone, but it’s not even close to the most exciting thing to come out of Google I/O today.
That would be all of the incredible new features coming to Google Photos, including new sharing options, stunning Photo Books you can build in just a few taps, intelligent photo editing, and Google Lens integration.
Google Assistant is ready to do battle with Siri on its home turf.
iPhone users can now get their hands on the dedicated Google Assistant app for iOS, but don’t expect it to offer everything you get on Android.
Google is planning to bring its fancy new Assistant to iOS, according to a new report.
The virtual assistant will be available inside a standalone app, and a “trusted source” claims it will arrive soon.
The first reviews of the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ have dropped a day ahead of their official launch in many markets, and there’s one thing to take away from them: Samsung just knocked it out of the park with its best smartphones to date.
Despite the problems the company encountered with the Galaxy Note 7 last fall, it has managed to produce two new devices that don’t disappoint. From gorgeous design and impressive cameras to the best display on the market, the Galaxy S8 series has it all.
It might not perfect, but the changes and improvements Samsung has made show Apple what a smartphone should be in 2017, and make it even more difficult for the iPhone to catch up.
Here’s our review roundup.
