Tag: Google

After weeks of rumors and speculation, Google announced this morning at I/O that the Google Play Store, and subsequently millions of Android apps, are coming to Chrome OS.  The announcement means that later this year, all Chrome OS users will be able to download, install and use their favorite Android apps on their Chromebooks without compromising performance or security.  This, folks, is a big deal.  It means that the OS will have honest-to-goodness apps, not web apps, which means you can get the same user experience on your Chromebook as you do your tablet or phone.

A new update to Google Docs, Google Sheets and Google Slides is hitting the Google Play Store that brings a more effortless way to get to your files while you are offline.  In the update, recent files you have been working on are automatically downloaded to your device so you will have them when you are offline.  Right now, if you want to work on a file while you are offline, you have to flag that file to download to your device.  If you forget, you are out of luck until you get back online.  This new feature removes this manual step.

As expected, Google announced yesterday at I/O that the 3rd Developer Preview of Android N is now available for those registered in the beta program.  What is more interesting is that the company was quite clear that they believe this build is stable enough for general consumption on your every day devices.  It is a significant difference from the language used in the first two previews which was very clear in their “developer only” messaging.  While I would still caution those who don’t want to put up with odd behaviors or diminished battery life from download it, if you have an eligible device, you can get it through the Android Beta program site.

There were a huge number of announcements yesterday at Google I/O but two of them that are sparking a lot of interest are Google Allo and Duo.  Allo is the new messaging app from the company that brings a significant amount of personalization and leverages Google’s machine learning on the back end to allow you to get quick replies that are more personal to you.  Duo is the company’s new one-on-one video app that allows you to make video calls seamlessly with other people, even if they are on iOS.  While both apps aren’t expected for a few months, you can add both of them to your wishlist in the Google Play Store today.

After months of speculation and rumor, Google has announced that Android Pay is now available in the United Kingdom.  The tap-and-pay service rolled out with support from eight nationwide banks and is supported by dozens of retailers across the country.  That support includes the Transport for London network.  Now users in the UK will be able to use their phones to make purchases without having to pull a card out of their wallet, making purchases faster and more conveniently.

I don’t post a lot of news around Google’s webmaster tools because, frankly, it will appeal to a small percentage of you who come to the site.  However, this one was important and those of you who have sites big and small will want to make a note of this new feature.  Google has launched a revamped mobile testing tool for webmasters that not only points out if your site is mobile friendly but will highlight specific areas where you need to improve your site.  It also gives you a link to your site’s usability report with more details on what can be improved.

So why is this important?  Mobile traffic to websites continues to grow and that is certainly true for tech oriented sites.  Looking at the traffic here at ClintonFitch.com, well over 1/2 of you come to the site via a mobile device or the ClintonFitch.com app.  This site is not unique and why much of my design efforts over the course of the past six months have been focused on making sure that readers can visit the site on their mobiles without issues.