Wednesday, October 21, 2015
Friday, October 16, 2015
Wednesday, October 14, 2015
AT&T's NumberSync Uses Same Number Across Devices [feedly]
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AT&T's NumberSync Uses Same Number Across Devices
// Phone Scoop - Latest News
AT&T today announced NumberSync, a tool that will allow multiple devices (phone, tablet, smartwatch) to rely on a single phone number. The idea is to allow customers to make/receive phone calls and send/receive messages from the account holder's primary phone number, rather than several different numbers like those often assigned to SIM-enabled devices even if they aren't generally used for calls. AT&T says the service can work across operating systems and hardware makers, and will function even if the primary device isn't powered on. The service can consolidate voicemails into a single inbox, as well. NumberSync relies on AT&T network technology, not proximity-based tools like Bluetooth. The carrier is working with handset vendors to ensure device compatibility. AT&T said the first device to support NumberSync will be available later this month, and more devices will become compatible over time. AT&T is offering NumberSync for free.
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Sunday, October 11, 2015
Android Devices Will Soon Be Able To Run Windows Apps [feedly]
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Android Devices Will Soon Be Able To Run Windows Apps
// I4U News
Despite of the fact that Android Operating system has a really gigantic fan following and a wide range of applications on it, there still are some of the famous applications just accessible to...
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Wednesday, October 7, 2015
Verizon to Share Customer Browsing Data with AOL [feedly]
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Verizon to Share Customer Browsing Data with AOL
// Phone Scoop - Latest News
Verizon recently indicated it plans to let AOL track its customers' mobile browsing activity through the use of a supercookie. The supercookie is a controversial tool used by Verizon to help it build user profiles via the browser. Beginning in November, that data will be accessible to AOL's advertising network so the company can more effectively target ads based users' browsing habits. Verizon bought AOL earlier this year. Supercookies can be deleted from Verizon phones, but they are activated by default and most consumers likely don't know how to get rid of them. AT&T stopped using supercookies last year, but Verizon has continued the practice. Verizon claims the move protects user privacy because Verizon owns AOL and "it's all within one company." Verizon subscribers can expect to see more personalized ads once AOL has access to the supercookie data.
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Monday, October 5, 2015
T-Mobile’s Software Updates page now tracking Android 6.0 Marshmallow updates for popular flagships [feedly]
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T-Mobile's Software Updates page now tracking Android 6.0 Marshmallow updates for popular flagships
// Android Phone Fans
Because nobody likes scratching their head and wondering when their device will get updated to Google's latest, T-Mobile's Software Updates page lets regular 'ol users like you and I follow along as our beloved devices go about the usual carrier approval process. Earlier this year when the page first went live it was a valuable resource in tracking Lollipop updates and now it's back, refreshed with a list of devices they've agreed to update to Android 6.0 Marshmallow.
There's 3 main categories:
Manufacturer DevelopmentT-Mobile TestingCompleted
Simply click on a device to see where it currently is during this process. We'll save you the trouble of clicking through for now as only Nexus devices are marked as "completed." All the rest are still in the manufacturer development phase. Keep in mind that isn't a comprehensive list and even though only big name flagships are listed, there's still a possibility your mid-to-low end device will see an update, T-Mobile's just not committing to anything.
As it stands, we can start taking bets which Android device — aside from the Nexi — will be the first to receive Android 6.0 Marshmallow. Any guesses?
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What if Google announces Play Store and Android apps support for Windows 10 Mobile devices? [feedly]
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What if Google announces Play Store and Android apps support for Windows 10 Mobile devices?
// Betanews
Chatter on Twitter suggests that Google will be present at Microsoft's grand "Windows 10 Devices" event tomorrow, and it would announce Android apps support for Windows 10 Mobile devices. Bolstering the theory is the two company's seemingly improving relationship, the biggest testament of which was up on display when the two recently agreed to drop 20 patent lawsuits they had filed against each other. If it indeed true, what does it mean for Microsoft's mobile operating system? Revival.
It's no secret that Android and iOS are the two dominant mobile operating systems out there -- whether you like it or not. Windows Phone has been playing catch up ever since its inception -- quite literally as Microsoft was late to arrive in the mobile operating system party. Perhaps it didn't get the memo. This race left the company's mobile operating system non-beneficial for mobile developers to make apps for it. And how can you blame them? Windows Phone had less than 5 percent of market share. So a majority of these developers never made apps for Windows Phone.
The company, on its part, did plenty of things to get these apps. We also saw developers like Rudy Huyn who took it upon themselves to make Windows Phone versions of several popular apps. This too, to a large extent, didn't yield any positive result.
But Microsoft was long from quitting. The company announced several ways for developers to port their Android and iOS apps to Windows Phone. The company also announced universal apps to make it easier for developers to quickly make mobile app versions of their desktop applications. But that too largely seems like a missed opportunity.
Act 2: Run Android apps on Windows 10 Mobile.
It's not a new idea, per se. The possibility of running Android apps on Windows Phone handsets has been talked about for years. We also saw developers forcibly run port of Android apps on Windows Phone handsets and manage to do it on several occasions. But Microsoft never hinted its interest to announce support for Android apps on its handsets, and Google's terse relationship with Microsoft -- just one Google app on Windows Phone Store (also remember the Google-Microsoft-YouTube fiasco?), made it pretty clear that Google wasn't going to help Microsoft in saving Windows Phone.
But things are changing. "Google and Microsoft have agreed to collaborate on certain patent matters and anticipate working together in other areas in the future to benefit our customers", Google had said after the two companies recently decided to resolve several of their patents issues.
But that hasn't stopped the rumor mill from offering yet another claim of such a possibility. If Google does step on the stage at Microsoft's event tomorrow, the company will be able to tap on more devices, whereas Windows Phone handset users will be able to use many of the apps they need to stick to the platform. We will know for sure tomorrow.
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Google Now on Tap might just be the killer feature of Android Marshmallow [feedly]
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Google Now on Tap might just be the killer feature of Android Marshmallow
// The Verge
Smartphones keep getting better. That's a fact. They get nicer displays, cameras that put point-and-shoots to shame and, hopefully, better battery life.
But what about smartphones getting smarter? On the software side, companies like Apple and Google have been trying to make the smartphone experience much more intuitive — Apple with proactive Siri suggestions in iOS 9, and now Google with something called "Now on Tap" in Android Marshmallow.
We've seen Now on Tap before. Google first showed it off at its annual developers conference this past May, and we did a deep dive into Google's plans for Marshmallow then (codenamed "M" at the time). But since the spring, Google has made impressive strides in actually bringing Now on Tap to life.
Now on Tap officially launches today
It officially launches today as part of the release of Android Marshmallow. It's rolling out to Nexus phones and tablets first, and will become available to other Android devices in the coming weeks.
The Now on Tap feature is part of Google Now, something that Google launched a few years ago as a kind of intelligent assistant to Android phone users. Have a bunch of meetings lined up, or a long drive ahead of you? Google Now will automatically tell you what time you need to leave in order to beat traffic, where your next meeting is, how to get there, and so on. It's an opt-in feature — some people are, understandably, a little freaked out at the notion of Google having access to so much of their personal data — but in my experience, it does make the Android experience more powerful.
Now on Tap takes that further. The idea is that you can get more information and take action from directly within an application. You no longer have to leave one app to run a search in another, or to use a mobile web browser. The most interesting part of Now on Tap might be that Google is actually giving you a way to eschew organic search; other options are right there for you.
In the hour-long demo I had with Now on Tap last week, I was able to go from someone's Instagram page to their Twitter page, and from a Viber message about going to see a band to that band's music, without having to "leave" the app or run a new search.
Here's another example: During the demo I opened a message in Facebook Messenger suggesting an outing to see The Martian. When I pressed and held down the home button, Now on Tap showed me a myriad of information options. Did I want to go to the IMDb page? Watch the trailer on YouTube? Or just go to Chrome and read more about it? What was more impressive (or creepy, depending on how you view it) is that Now on Tap knew that I was looking for information about the movie — not the book. But, in case I did want to know more about the book, I could run a Google voice search from within the app and ask who wrote The Martian.
Now on Tap knew that I was looking for information about the movie — not the book
Aparna Chennapragada, who leads up Google Now, says stuff like that is due to improved natural language processing in Google Now. Google sees the word "see" and knows the context of the query — in this case, that it's referring to a movie. It's also what enables Now on Tap to make calendar appointment suggestions directly, too.
But it's not a totally seamless experience yet, by any means. Certain apps, like Twitter, keep you trapped in the app after using Now on Tap to get there, so when you hit the back button you stay within the app rather than going back to your original Now on Tap query. And in some cases, the app page you're on might not have enough information to lead to robust Now on Tap results. For example, I googled myself (who doesn't) using Chrome, went to a Verge story I recently wrote and from there pressed Now on Tap. The result? An option to search for Chromecast (the story was about Chromecast, ironically enough), but no options to, say, watch a Verge video on YouTube.
After using it briefly, it's easy to see the potential for other use cases, like commerce. If someone can go from a restaurant page directly to an Open Table booking right now using Now on Tap, or from a movie trailer to the Fandango app, it doesn't seem unfeasible that Now on Tap would eventually take you to more purchasing options.
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