Author: Clinton

In a somewhat unexpected move, Google has released the first Developer Preview of Android P, the next major version of the platform.  While it was expected to be released this month, perhaps even on 3/14 (Pi… get it?), it seems that the wait for this alpha build was much shorter than expected.

Before going into the details of what is new in this build, let me first be very clear.  This build is alpha.  It is not going to be stable and, in fact, is not even supported in the Android beta program.  In order to get it, you have to side-load it so it is really intended for app developers only.  If you really, really, really want to download it, you can do so here but brace yourself.  It is not going to be a smooth experience.  Also, keep in mind that this alpha build is only available for the Pixel, Pixel XL, Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL.

Huawei’s sub-brand, Honor, has announced on Twitter that a beta program has opened up for Honor 7X owners to test the company’s Android Oreo build.  The new build is EMUI 8, Huawei’s variant of Oreo.

Interested in beta testing EMUI 8.0 based on @Android Oreo for the #Honor7x ? US residents sign up belowhttps://t.co/1IFAY2WFBG pic.twitter.com/ir1eYTBg84

— Honor USA (@Honor_USA) March 2, 2018

In order to apply to the beta program, you have to fill out this Google Form with your information.

A small, minor update is currently rolling out to the Chrome OS Stable Channel this morning.  The update is build 64.0.3282.190 or 64.0.3282.192 (Platform version: 10176.76.0 or 10176.77.0 or 10176.80.0).  Which build you will  get depends on your device.

The update, as you can tell by that build number, keeps the platform in Chrome 64.  The Chrome 65 build is next expected until next week on March 13th.  This rather is a midstream bug fix and security update build.  This is also the third Chrome 64 release for the platform.

A new update of Chrome for Android has been released to the Play Store, bringing the mobile browser up to Chrome 65 along with a few new features.  The new version is build 65.0.3325.109 for those keeping score at home.  It will take several weeks to reach everyone.

This Chrome 65-based build has been through four beta builds in that version of the browser, with the last one coming just last week.  That build from last week is the exact same build that has now been promoted to the stable version for everyone.

Google Lens, the AI-driven feature that allows for objects to be identified, has now begun broadly rolling out to Google Assistant on Android.  The feature, once available for your phone, can be accessed by opening up Google Assistant (long press the Home button) then tap the Lens icon in the lower right.

Using Google’s Artificial Intelligence, Google Lens allows you to tap an object on your display while it is active and that object will be identified.  It works on everyday things but increasingly can identify plants, trees and soon flowers too.

A new update to Google Gboard is rolling out over the next few days that will bring support for 20 new languages to the keyboard.  Those language additions include two of the most requested of Google:  Korean and Chinese, both traditional and simplified.  The addition of the languages brings the total languages supported by the app to over 300, covering 74% of all of the world’s languages according to Google.

Google has a comprehensive list of all of the languages supported by Gboard.  You will note in the list that there a few that do not have an available dictionary to download.