Author: Clinton

As expected, the flow of Google apps updated today after the new company logo was revealed has been pretty constant. The first one I saw was Google Maps but now many of the other apps have been updated. A key one is Google Search and the new Google Now that comes along with it if you are using the Google Launcher.  Google Now is a much cleaner, more refined design now and it significantly more organized.  I personally live in and love using Google Now and this upgrade is just fantastic in my view.

Google has released an update to the Google Play Music app for Android that brings several fixes to the streaming music app as well as support for Android Wear.  The update is build 6.0.1984S.2219729 for those keeping score at home and like playing Google Version Bingo and it is rolling out to the Google Play Store now.  The update will benefit everyone, especially if you like to stream radio from the app so it is worth taking the time to pick up the update.

Google Play Music – Free (In-App Purchases) – Download Now

Arguably one of the best mobile racing simulators available today is Real Racing 3. It has outstanding graphics and game controls and the FireMonkey team over at EA Sports are continually adding to the game, bringing more tracks and more cars. Now, finally, it has NASCAR.

The mega update to Real Racing 3 that is available now in the Google Play Store brings the National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) to your Android phone or tablet. In brings you the ability to race as a top driver including the likes of Dale Earnhardt Jr. amongst them as you go for oval racing glory.

Real Racing 3 for Android – Free (In-App Purchases) – Download Now

For the 6th time in the company’s history, Google is launching a refined new logo and icon for the company.

Today we’re introducing a new logo and identity family that reflects this reality and shows you when the Google magic is working for you, even on the tiniest screens. As you’ll see, we’ve taken the Google logo and branding, which were originally built for a single desktop browser page, and updated them for a world of seamless computing across an endless number of devices and different kinds of inputs (such as tap, type and talk).

Today’s Doodle

The new logo has a more “thick” look to the branding and the single G icon that was blue has now been replaced with a four color version to go more in line with the company’s look.

Over the course of the past few weeks it seems every team within Google has been pushing out updates to their respective apps. Google Maps is no exception. Last week we saw a minor update roll out, version 9.13 for those keeping score at home, and it looks like version 9.14 is just around the digital corner.

The updates to Google Maps 9.14 really focus on the navigation user experience when you first look for a location and the inclusion of Popular Times. Popular times provides you a chart of when a business tends to be the most busy. It is something Google has been working on for a while now and it is slowly rolling out across their services.

Google Maps for Android – Free – Download Now

The new Navigation UI is certainly something you will notice and I think likely will appreciate.

Google has officially launched Android Wear for iOS, bringing the option of Android based smartwatches to iPhone users.  The release was announced on the official Google Blog and for those who have an iPhone running iOS 8.2 or higher, you now can sync your LG Watch Urbane with your iPhone and get all the features and functionality that you can on an Android phone.  It’s a big move for Google and it gives iOS users an alternative to the AppleWatch.

Interestingly, the integration of Android Wear and iOS is currently only available on the LG Watch Urbane which means that users of other devices won’t be able to sync up with an iPhone.  Google states in the post that further watches will support iOS.