Google has submitted a new version of its Google Mobile App for the iPhone platform (iTunes link), and the fresh app now finally boasts built-in support for Voice Search on iPod touch devices (2G or newer).
Version 0.4.5.3281 also brings improved stability when using Voice Search on ‘restrictive networks’ and is also said to make Search by Voice completion detection function a bit better. Other than that, the update brings a number of bug fixes, one that fixes pasting into the search box and one that should prevent the app from crashing when you do a search for ‘@’. → Read More
What if every store had a bar-code sticker on its window so that you could pull out your iPhone, wave it in front of the bar code and get all sorts of information about that business—the telephone number, photos, customer reviews? Starting on Monday, you’ll be able to do that at up to 190,000 local businesses throughout the U.S.
Google has mailed out window stickers with two-dimensional bar codes (aka, QR codes) to the most-searched for or clicked-on businesses in its local business directory. Anyone with a QR code reader in their phone can scan it to call up a Google Mobile local directory page for one of these “Favorite Places,” which generally includes a map, phone number, directions, address, reviews, and a link to the store’s website. (It’s a mobile version of Google Places). → Read More
Google has launched a new Gmail mobile web app for the iPhone and Android-powered devices. The app has been revamped to have the same look and feel as your desktop Gmail. The app also has a new floaty bar (more on that below) and offers basic offline support.
Google says that the app is faster in performing actions like opening an email, navigating, or searching, and let’s you access your Gmail messages even if your network connection is flaky. All of these new features are enabled through leveraging Google’s browser technologies, especially HTML5 and Google Gears. Google has recently demoed the app at industry conferences, but Google engineer Joanne McKinley writes on the Google Mobile blog: → Read More
YouTube can now be widely accessedthrough an application on most Window Mobile and Nokia S60 devices. You can visit m.youtube.com from your phone to download the app. YouTube says that the devices will have a faster application start-up, searching capabilities, and video loading and will allows users to easily access YouTube via an icon on the device’s screen. YouTube has also improved the quality of the videos on mobile devices by providing the highest available stream quality and improved buffering (which will help videos play in weak coverage areas). Once the app is installed on the mobile device, no configuration is required outside of the application.
A year ago, Google Mobile started offering all YouTube videos on m.youtube.com, so any mobile device could access an assortment of YouTube videos via their devices’ browser. Google Mobile also added a YouTube application for some Sony and Nokia cell phones. And there’s been a custom app for the iPhone and Android for a while now. → Read More
High Tech Computer (HTC) is developing a mobile phone that will use the open-source Android software created by Google for its operating system. The phone will be called Dream and have a large touchscreen and full QWERTY keypad. The handset is over 5 inches long and 3 inches wide and has a keypad that swivels out from underneath the screen. HTC is not the only company that is developing a mobile phone around the Android operating system. Samsung has joined the hunt to create a device that utilizes Android. HTC was the first company to announce it was building a phone around Android. Other members of the Open Handset Alliance, a group dedicated to promoting Android, are also believed to be developing handsets designed around the operating system. Over 30 companies have joined the Open handset Alliance. Samsung and Motorola are two manufactures who belong to the alliance and may be developing Android phones of their own. → Read More
In recent months, Google has seen an acceleration of activity among mobile phone users. The company said this is evidence that the era of mobile Internet is at hand. Google has seen sharp increases in mobile Internet usage spurred by services Google has offered on BlackBerry, Nokia and iPhone devices. “We have very much hit a watershed moment in terms of mobile Internet usage,” Matt Waddell, a product manager for Google Mobile, said in an interview. “We are seeing that mobile Internet use is in fact accelerating. Waddell believes the availability of flat-rate data plans from carriers encourages consumers to connect with the Internet over their phones. The per-minute charges of the past discouraged mobile Web browsing. Waddell also remarked that improved Web browsers and better designed services from companies like Google are fueling growth. Recent Google software has allowed mobile users to increase Web search speeds by up to 40%. The software shortcuts the time it takes for people to perform Web searches of Google by eliminating initial search steps of finding a Web browser on the phone, opening the browser, waiting for network access and getting to Google.com. The company said the increased convenience has increased the number of searches. “We are actually seeing a 20 percent increase in the number of searches by people,” Waddell said. “Faster is better than slow, especially on a mobile device, where fast is much better than slow,” Waddell said. “Not only are we are seeing increased user satisfaction but also greater usage.” Users of phones based on software from Research in Motion, Nokia’s Symbian-based phones and now Microsoft Windows Mobile can download the software at http://mobile.google.com/. → Read More
Yahoo revealed its new bookmarking tool today. OnePlace is an application that lets users keep track of their favorite Web topics on their cell phones. OnePlace, which is scheduled to launch in the second quarter of this year, allows users to mark links, news feeds or search results that lead them to fresh information on favorite topics when clicked. While bookmarks are not new, Yahoo says mobile phones require a different approach and far greater emphasis on sharing. Yahoo is competing with search giant Google. Yahoo hopes to overcome Google by building services for cell phone users and forming alliances with telecommunications carriers. OnePlace builds on Yahoo’s OneSearch and OneConnect mobile services. The content behind the bookmarks match the location of users and the preferences of friends and contacts who use the service. “We’re not reinventing forms of mobile content or getting into the content business but there are places where you have stuff that you care about, that you’re passionate about, that you follow,” said Marco Boerries, head of Yahoo’s mobile drive. “Whether it’s in Facebook, in YouTube… it’s all over the place and it’s locked up on your PC.” Users will be able to gather their favorite Web places either by choosing them on their PC and then synchronizing with their cell phone, or directly on the mobile phone itself. Customers will be able to access the service either through telecommunication carriers who have deals with Yahoo such as Deutsche Telekom, Telefonica or Vodafone or directly download it from Yahoo. → Read More
T-Mobile announced that it will be dropping Google and picking up Yahoo as its preferred mobile search provider in Europe. This is a minor victory for Yahoo, which is in direct competition with Google and Microsoft to put its search engine on mobile phones that can access the Internet. When T-Mobile partnered with Google, it was heralded as one of the first partnerships between a mobile operator and a search provider. “Well done Yahoo for knocking Google off the Web n Walk home page,” wrote John Delaney, an analyst for Ovum, commenting on the announcement. Web n Walk is T-Mobile’s mobile Internet offering. Starting this March, T-Mobile customers in 11 European countries will see Yahoo’s mobile oneSearch become the default on their phones. OneSearch is crafted to make it easy for mobile users to get relevant search results and navigate through different categories within search results. Other Yahoo services are also planned, including Flickr, Messenger, Mail, Weather and Finance. Yahoo has 29 mobile operators as oneSearch customers. The market for mobile branded search services is still young, with no clear leaders. Search providers like Yahoo and Google are betting that there will be strong growth in mobile Internet usage and are willing to spend money trying to become the number one provider. → Read More
The world’s largest handset maker, Nokia, announced today that it will integrate the Google search engine with the Nokia Search application. This plan was released at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain. Google search will be available in more than 100 countries on a variety of handsets. The first Nokia products to be loaded with Google will be the Nokia N96, N78, 6210 Navigator and 6330 classic. The combination of Nokia applications and Google search can “provide an excellent overall experience,” said Google Vice President Vic Gundotra. He added that the “fast, relevant and comprehensive search experience” will be familiar to people who use Google to search the Web from their desktop. The deal doesn’t make Google the exclusive search engine on the Nokia phones. An analyst with the research firm IDC noted that the on-device search is controlled by Nokia. When a user wants to search the Net, Google appears along with Yahoo and Microsoft Live Search. But those who are used to using Google on their PCs may be more likely to use Google on their Nokia phones. “Nokia is only allowing all of these search engines to compete on a Nokia device, said Chris Hazelton, IDC analysis. “Nokia still maintains the platform ownership.” This is where Nokia wants to be, Hazelton said. It is the world’s leading mobile-device manufacturer, he added, “but they want to transform themselves into a software and services company, because that’s where they see the future going.” This move makes it easier for both companies to utilize Google’s open-source platform, Android. Google wants to get its platform on as many mobile devices as it can and Nokia wants to be able to provide its customers with software applications without investing money in a competing platform. → Read More
It was announced today that Japan’s largest mobile carrier, NTT DoCoMo, is partnering with Google to provide customers Internet searches and other services from the search engine giant. NTT DoCoMo currently uses its own i-mode to provide mobile Internet services. By spring of this year, Google will be set as the default search portal page. Keyword-based advertisements will appear on search result pages through Google’s AsWords advertising platform. DoCoMo also plans to develop cell phones that can use Google’s Android mobile software. Android is expected to be available in Japan in the last half of this year. NTT DoCoMo has nearly 53 million subscribers which represents more than half of Japan’s mobile phone market. In recent months it has struggled to sign-up new subscribers because of competition from KDDI and Softbank. These competitors have cut rates and conducted aggressive sales promotions. Japanese cell phone subscriptions exceed 100 million, with 70 million users accessing the internet with their mobile phones. Yahoo Japan is currently the mobile search engine leader in Japan. This partnership will give Google better access to the Japanese search engine market. → Read More
Clearwire, a wireless service provider, announced today that it will offer subscribers Google applications in the first half of this year. Clearwire customers who have wireless Internet will be able to access Google applications like e-mail, calendar and Google Talk instant message service. Clearwire was founded by Craig McCaw. McCaw said the company also plans to provide Google’s Web search services on future Clearwire Web portal applications but no tentative date was given. Clearwire stock has fallen from $18 since November of last year after Sprint Nextel announced it was ending a previously announced collaboration with Clearwire. The two companies had planed to let their customers roam on each other’s networks. Clearwire shares were up $0.25, or 1.8 percent, and sold for $14.24 this morning on the NASDAQ. → Read More
ZDNet has an article about how, because of the iPhone, “rivals have to generate some kind of cool factor.” And the uncoolest of them all? Verizon. The article’s author, Larry Dignan, gives three examples of Verizon’s recent shift in strategy. → Read More
The publication of a recent Google patent has industry insiders speculating that Google is working on a mobile phone-based payment service. The service is being called GPay until Google announces or denounces this rumor. In tandem with GPay, there is growing speculation that Google will sell a low-cost internet enabled handset dubbed the GPhone. The GPay system differs from other payment services as far as the user is concerned. The patent suggests that a user wouldn’t have to keep an account with GPay. GPay takes money from the user’s bank account and transfer it to the payee. It is unknown what type of fee would be incurred. And nothing goes better with GPay than a GPhone, or so the rumors say. There has been a lot of chatter about a Google phone that is internet enabled and could sell for as little as $100. And in keeping with Google’s corporate culture, I doubt the GPhone will be locked to one carrier like the iPhone. Caveat: this is all speculative. Just because a company files for a patent doesn’t mean the patented item will come to market. The Patent Office is full of designs for perpetual motion machines that no one bothered to produce. [Via: TimesOnline] Google → Read More
Traditionally, Google mobile and non-mobile web surfing declines in the summer months as people go on vacation. (At least in North America). This year traffic on mobile devices utilizing Google has increased 35%. Mobile devices looking at Google Maps has increased as much as 50%. This appears to point to a trend, in which people use their mobile devices for information while taking time off from work. This shows how attached people are to such devices, when they are willing to take them along on vacation. “I think this is sort of a sign that people are becoming savvier with their mobile devices, and that there are better devices” available for the Web, while away from computers, Mayer told reporters after a presentation to marketers at the Search Engine Strategies Conference in San Jose. “The technology curve is catching up,” she told reporters after the presentation. “The phones are just better.” The number of Google searches done on mobile devices are tiny compared to those done on PCs, but the summer increase in North America shows that people are realizing the usefulness of mobile search engines. Maps and other information can enhance the vacation experience. Getting lost or visiting uninteresting places may become a thing of the past. Google says mobile usage has surged this summer [Reuters] → Read More
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