American technology behemoth Google announced earlier this week that the latest version of its Android operating system will be officially called Android 10. By this decision, the company has also broken on the long going tradition of naming the versions after sweet treats or desserts. The latest release also marks the tenth version of the platform, as is evident from the name. The operating system may have had a rocky start back in the year 2008, it has significantly evolved over the years. So to mark the landmark release of Android 10, we look at the extensive history of the software over the years.
Android 1.0 and 1.1
The one that started it all. The first [...]
With the advent of newer technology, lives have become easier. For example, unlike in the past where you had to ask for directions or use an unyieldingly large map, online mapping services have existed to make lives easier. Currently, Google dominates such a service with its extremely popular Google Maps. Many companies have tried to obtain a footing in the market like Apple and Blackberry, the latter miserably failing in this regard. According to a new report, Huawei is now also seeking to develop its own mapping service which will compete with Google Maps.
Who Is It For?A fresh report originating from Huawei’s home country, China, has stated that the tech [...]
Google Maps is one of the most popular apps for navigation. The search giants map application helps millions of users every day find their way around the town. It even helps businesses like Uber and Ola in finding customers as well. Now, Google is seeking to finally integrate its AR capabilities to the maps for real-time directions. The new feature was announced earlier this year and is finally rolling out for Android and iOS.
Google Maps Live ViewGoogle has already shown its prowess with augmented reality being integrated into smartphone cameras. It first appeared on Pixel phones and showcased real-time navigation in Google Maps through the lenses of handsets. The [...]
Luxury watchmaker, Fossil has launched its Gen 5 smartwatch series which succeeds Gen 4 wearables from the year 2018. The newly launched lineup runs on Google developed Wear OS and they are compatible with devices running both Android or iOS.
Fossil Gen 5 FeaturesThe front of the Fossil Gen 5 smartwatch sports a 1.28-inch circular touch screen display. Housed in a 44 mm case, the device has a thickness of 12 mm. The right side of the wearable features two push buttons and one circular crown.
The combination of the touchscreen and the physical button allows the smartwatch in a convenient manner. The device is offered in multiple strap and case finishes which include [...]
CloudMosa is an American company which is recognised for its web browser “Puffin”. In comparison to conventional browsers, Puffin browser’s strengths lie in speed and security. Acquiring these two elements from its web browser, CloudMosa has developed a mobile operating system which is called Puffin OS.
The new mobile OS is chiefly targeted towards handsets that cost US $ 100 or less. According to CloudMosa, Puffin OS bridges the gap that exists between feature phones that run on KaiOS and economical Android smartphones. The company collected data from a couple of independent research organisations and uncovered key limitations in existing sub-US $ 100 [...]
Google has finally taken a stance on its upcoming RCS chat (Rich Communication Service) functionality for Android devices. The feature was announced back in 2018, although its implementation has been rather slow. The blame is partly on various carriers as the next-gen texting format usually depends on networks adding support. This usually occurs one at a time inducing great delay. Hence, compatibility so far has been grey in nature. The tech giant, however, has now announced that it will take the lead on the projects roll out.
RCS is said to be a new-gen replacement for SMS texting and will be initially made available for users in the UK and France in June. Users can [...]
Mobile gaming has blown up in the past few years. It’s a huge market that holds a ton of potential for game developers, since mobile games are widely accessible. For instance, Pokémon Go, the mobile game based on popular anime series “Pokemon” was released in the year 2016. The game was a location-based RPG that required players to commute around the actual places (in real-time) to capture Pokémon. The game became globally viral in a short span of time. The Netflix Stranger things-based game will be built along the same lines, and will be unveiled next year.
Finnish developer Next Games is teaming up with streaming service Netflix to design the new [...]
Microsoft has always had its gaming console companion app pre-installed on every Windows 10 supported device. This was done in order to bridge the social gap between its PC and console gaming fans. In the latest Windows update, the company renamed its Xbox App to Xbox Console Companion. This update is a refresh right before the upcoming ‘new desktop experience’ by the company. Apart from the name, no functional changes have been made to the Windows application.
However, Microsoft has planned updates in the future that will lead to the revamp of the dashboard setup in the app. Furthermore, these changes will be made for an unannounced Xbox console settings [...]
In a modern day world where time is money, information regarding an individual’s commute is extremely important. In Indian states like Mumbai where trains are the most common form of transportation for the masses, details regarding the status of various trains is quite crucial. In a new announcement, Google has unveiled its plans for adding practical (and much needed) features to Google Maps for its Indian user base.
With the new update, Google Maps can provide the user with real-time information on bus travel times derived from live traffic conditions. Furthermore, users will now also be able to track live statuses of Indian Railway trains. The update is set to be [...]
Concepts easily understood by humans are not as simple to machines. Variables always arise and questions that machines can’t answer make complete autonomy difficult. Alphabet, Google’s parent company had its DeepMind’s technological studio train its AI to learn how to play a game of capture the flag on a level greater than that of a human.
One of the most basic games in terms of principle, capture the flag has two teams go against each other with the primary objective of the game being to capture a flag (any marker). The marker is located at each teams respective base and has to be captured by an enemy team after which they have to safely return with it to [...]
Google’s latest blog post had focused on how depth perception works in videos where both the subject and the camera are in motion. A huge amount of data and footage was required for the study that aimed at training an AI. The foundation for the AI’s training was to detect scenes where the camera was in motion but the subject remained stationary.
Remarkable resourcefulness was shown as Google used its own source that was perfect for the job. YouTube (Google’s video sharing platform) had a vast amount of footage that fit the study’s required parameters. The Mannequin Challenge had a person and more often a group of people which stays perfectly [...]
Since writing the story, Huawei has issued a statement to clarify its stance on US ban which is as follows:
Huawei has made substantial contributions to the development and growth of Android around the world. As one of Android’s key global partners, we have worked closely with their open-source platform to develop an ecosystem that has benefitted both users and the industry.
Huawei will continue to provide security updates and after-sales services to all existing Huawei and Honor smartphone and tablet products, covering those that have been sold and that are still in stock globally. We will continue to build a safe and sustainable software ecosystem, in order [...]
Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei has time and again faced backlash for its ties with the Chinese government. It has been accused of stealing its user’s data and sending it back to the home country for spying purposes. In what could be a major blowback to the company’s imperative business, American technology giant Google has suspended the majority of its business with the company. This insinuates that going forward, Huawei and it’s subsidiary Honor’s devices will not receive Android security updates. They will also lose access to the search engine giant’s popular services such as Maps and YouTube.
What Does This Mean?Apple is set to kickstart its developer’s conference, called WWDC on the 3rd of June this year. Like previous years, the company will announce the latest version of iOS, the operating system used in the iPhones and iPads. Likely to be called iOS 13, it is supposed to bring about a ton of changes to the software. A freshly shared report by Bloomberg, details what alterations and additions to expect from the new OS.
iOS 13: Expectations?The upcoming iOS 13 as previously mentioned, will include a variety of changes in the operating system. One predominant change that the update will introduce is support for dark mode. However, this mode will be called ‘Black and [...]
