Tag: Google

Chrome 51 Released for Windows and Mac

The Chromium team has released Chrome build 51 for Windows and Mac, updating the browser with a significant number of bug fixes and security improvements.  The updated build is version 51.0.2704.63 and it is available now for those of you who have the browser installed.  To force the update, go to Menu>Settings>About and the browser will go and look for the update, download it and after you restart your the browser, will apply it.  Do note Linux users, this update is not available to you just yet.  The release notice from the Chromium team indicates that the Linux build will be coming out shortly.

Google May Shame Manufactures and Carriers to Update Devices

One of the biggest challenges facing Android as a platform but mobile devices in general is security.  For their part, Google has been working hard to get security updates out to devices on a monthly basis.  The problem, however, is not Nexus devices.  It is the countless other manufactures and carriers out there who are painfully slow or simply refuse to update devices with the latest security updates in a timely manner.  It leaves consumers vulnerable unnecessarily.  It would seem that Google has had enough and may be about to use a tactic to get manufactures and carriers to update devices.

Public shaming.

Google Photos for Web Adds Bulk Date Editing and Easy Photo Removal from Albums

Google Photos on the web has received a great update this morning that brings two highly requested features to the photo service.  The first is the ability to bulk change the date and time on photos that you have imported.  This is great for those of you who have scanned in old photos (think pre-smartphone) and want to have them with the correct date (like your 17th birthday back in the 70s or 80s).  Once you have scanned the photos into Google Photos, you can select them and use the overflow menu in the upper right corner to change the date.  Once they are changed, the photos get reorganized in Photos according to that date.

Google Street View Adds A Virtual Walk Through The Ferrari Museum

Today, Google Street View has released a curated walk through the Ferrari museum in Maranello, Italy.  The collection of views allows you to walk through the famous road car and Formula One team’s museums and see many parts of the Ferrari campus as well.  For any fan of the Scuderia, this is a great edition and even if you are not a big F1 or Ferrari fan, this walk through is pretty sweet.  To find them, just search for Ferrari in the app and you’ll be taken to the new collection.

Security Update Comes to The Galaxy S7 Lineup on T-Mobile

If you are on the T-Mobile network and have a Samsung Galaxy S7 or S7 Edge, you will want to check for a small but important security update that has been released by the carrier.  The update brings a security fix to the device although the details of exactly what was fixed is not explicitly laid out in the release notes.  It isn’t the May Android Security update as that came earlier in the month so this is a separate fix from that release.  On the Galaxy S7, you are looking for build G930TUVS3APD8 while on the S7 Edge, you will want to look for build G935TUVU3APD8.

Fingerprint Sensors Dramatically Improves Android Device Security

During Google I/O last week, Googler Stephan Somogyi presented the 3rd Annual Google Security Update.  The update covered a lot of ground for a 37 minute presentation but one of the key messages around Android was how device fingerprint scanners have dramatically improved device security.  How?  Simply by having people setup the lock screen and use their fingerprint as the key to getting into their device.  With the introduction of these scanners on the Nexus 6P and Nexus 5X, Stephan reported that now 90% of Nexus owners have enabled the lock screen.  That is up from just 50% the previous year.

HTC Commits To Android N on The HTC 10, One M9 and One A9

Great news from HTC for those of you have a One M9, One A9 or are considering a HTC 10 as your next device.  All three of these will be seeing the Android N update when it is released by Google.  The information came from HTC’s main Twitter account and it makes HTC, outside of Google, one of the first manufactures to commit to the new version of Android.

The tricky bit, of course, is when exactly it will be available.  HTC did not make that clear in their Tweet nor did they in replies to it.

Google Photos Now Has 200 Million Monthly Active Users

One of the tidbits of news that came out of the Google I/O keynote yesterday was around Google Photos.  The app and service were launched last year at I/O and the growth has been nothing short of impressive.  In his keynote, Google CEO Sundar Pichai announced that the service is now seeing an impressive 200 million active users per month.  Perhaps even more impressive, users of the service had created 2 trillion labels.  Those labels help users find things faster in their photos.

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