Tag: Google

Having had a Google Home in my house for most of this week, there are some things that need improvement (I’ll cover that in more detail in my review coming up next week).  One of those areas is app integration.  There are just a handful of apps that work with the help of Google Assistant and Google Home.  For it to be successful, this has to change and it likely will starting next month.  Google has announced that the Google Assistant Actions API will be opening up to developers starting next month.  That means developers will be able to enhance their apps to work with Assistant and, in turn, Home, through three different action models.  First, there is the Direct Actions.  This is designed for straightforward requests for things like home automation, etc.  As the name suggests, it is something you direct your app to do as it interacts with Assistant.

Read on for more details

Google has officially started selling the Chromecast Ultra.  The speedier and 4K-supporting casting device just went live in the Google Store for $69.  Back in the October Google event, where the Pixel lineup and Google Home were announced, this new update to the Chromecast was also presented.  The biggest improvement is the support for 4K video.  With so many 4K televisions out there now, support for UltraHD is somewhat necessary at this point and it is good to see it come to the Chromecast which, to this point, has been limited to 1080P.

Chromecast Ultra in the Google Store

As expected, the Android team has released the November set of Android Security Update patches to manufactures and Nexus devices.  This month, as has become the norm, there are three patches available, one of which is a supplemental update to one of the primary updates.  The first patch is dated November 1st and it contains many fixes around elevation of privileges, denial of service, and other security risks.  In this patch, there are two critical updates and 11 high importance updates.  This update, as has been in the past, will be for all devices running Android Nougat and Marshmallow.

[Note:  While comments on this post are welcome, any post regarding one political party or another will be deleted.]

Regardless of where you stand politically, Google Search has you covered tomorrow.  With Americans going to the polls to decide not only the presidential election but multiple Senate, House or Representatives and other local elections, November 4th every four years is an seemingly endless flow of information.  Google is trying to give you a one-stop-shop for all that information.  On your Android Phone you can type in “Election Results” in Google Search and you will be taken to a comprehensive overview of all the election results for the country and your particular state.

Starting when the polls close on Election Day, you will be able to find U.S. election results integrated right into your Google searches in over 30 languages around the world. You’ll also be able to see detailed updates and results of the Presidential, Senatorial, Congressional, Gubernatorial races as well as state-level referenda and ballot propositions.

But, if you want live streaming of information, Google has an answer for you there too.  YouTube.

It appears that shipments for the new Google Home device have started for readers.  Multiple readers have either emailed or commented on Google+ of receiving shipment notifications of the $129 Google Assistant-powered device.  I too have received a shipment notification with it expected to arrive at the end of the week.

Aimed at competing with the Amazon Echo, Google Home brings the power of Google Artificial Intelligence to give you detailed information about your day, upcoming events, search information, travel information and the like.   While it is for everyone in the family, it tied to a single primary Google account.  Like Google OnHub, Home is aimed at sitting out in the open and doesn’t look like a piece of techno-kit sitting on a shelf.

If you thought that Android Pay had killed off Google Wallet, think again.  Google has just rolled out an update web portal for the person-to-person payment service along with a refreshed Android app.  The update brings a completely refreshed website for Wallet that is Material Design in nature and intuitive on sending or receiving funds from others.  The app update mirrors this new look of the portal and it, as before, is simple to use.  The app is certainly faster than the website and has some added security features like requiring a PIN to get into it.  However, if you don’t have your phone handy, you now have an easy way to send or receive funds using the service.