Google’s vision for a network of accessories connected to one another and running on Android as their operating system is what they call Android@Home. This system was first presented at Google I/O 2011 at their Day One Keynote and stood to extend the Android OS to include new services and apps to discover, connect, and communicate with appliances and devices in the home. The following is a basic guide of what this project, Android@Home or the Android at Home Framework, entails as of today.
A new set of tips have come through WSJ's author Amir Efrati on what Google will soon be presenting for families across the earth: a Google Home Entertainment System. We've previously heard about this system and hypothesized that it could be the Android@Home we heard about at Google I/O 2011. What we saw back then and what's being tipped today seems to line up fairly well: a home-based system of devices that connect with your media to bring you one immersive experience, based on Android as an operating system that makes it all run.
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The game that's still got iOS fans having heart attacks over how awesome it is, Temple Run, was originally scheduled to be dropped for Android today, but its developers have let us know that a bit of postponing is in order. Though we and the developers at Image Studios are hoping to get in on the game for a full release by the end of the month, it's likely not going to happen this week. Those of you on the iPhone version of this game can continue swinging in glee as your Android compatriots wait for some awesome temple running pleasure for just a few more days or weeks or forever more.
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The folks at HTC have just updated their schedule for updates to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich on a handful of their devices, and it's no small batch, I can tell you that! For the end of March HTC has the Sensation, Sensation 4G, and Sensation XE getting updated with the Sensation XL ready to go soon afterward. After that there's so many HTC devices getting set up with Ice Cream Sandwich that you're going to get a sugar high!
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When the cloud gets tough, Google gets going, and inside sources are letting the world know that the big G is preparing a service called Google Drive to bring the fury. In the hacked up world of information releases, Apple's been hit through Foxconn and order data has been spilled. In the quad-core world, the Tegra 3 from NVIDIA may well be the head gun at Mobile World Congress 2012 for HTC - can't wait for the HTC edge to take the crown back for mobile dominance for HTC!
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Rumors are flying that Google may be set to open its first stand-alone retail store near its European headquarters in Dublin, Ireland. The store was tipped in a filing made by Google on a local planning application. The shop would be about 1323 square feet and would apparently have a mezzanine floor extension. Google already has a shop selling branded items in the US on its California campus.
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Google intends to continue Motorola Mobility's demands for 2.25-percent of Apple's iPhone sales in royalties, the search giant has revealed, once its acquisition of the smartphone manufacturer goes through. Although Google's letter to the IEE standards agency this week ostensibly called for fair patent licensing deals, it also reiterates commitment to maximum 2.25-percent per-unit royalty that Motorola was roundly criticized for, FOSS Patents spotted.
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Apparently, the end is near for the deal that will see Google acquiring Motorola Mobility and get its own hand in the smartphone hardware business. The Department of Justice said to be ready to approve the acquisition with the final word to be handed down on February 13. The Department of Justice is ready to give the purchase its approval, but there are still some in the US and Europe that worry Google might use its acquisition to force licensing of the patents Motorola Mobility holds to other companies on unfair terms.
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Google is preparing to launch a cloud storage service, Google Drive, sources claim, taking on iCloud and Dropbox with free and paid accounts. Set to open for uploads "in the coming weeks or months" the WSJ's insiders say, Google Drive will supposedly undercut Dropbox's paid subscription pricing, which begins at $10 per month for 50GB. A free plan, meanwhile, will offer both individual and business users some cloud-based space without cost, likely ad-supported like free Gmail.
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If you're into cars, you'll like the new additions YouTube just rolled out to its ever-expanding list of sponsored video channels. The first is a series of original Web shows from industry veteran MotorTrend. The second is a channel known only as Drive and will focus more on in-depth car reviews and automotive culture. This is the latest effort from YouTube as it seeks to increase its scope from the place where you watch cats dancing, to the place where you come for new and exciting original content.
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If you're willing to let Google track you like a hawk over an extended period, the online search giant is willing to pay you $25. That is, $5 for signing up and then $5 in monthly installments if you continue to feel like you don't deserve any privacy on the Internet. Oh, and that's not in cash either. It's paid in a series of Amazon.com gift cards. It's not exactly break-the-bank kind of money, but it is probably incentive enough to draw in a pretty significant user base.
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Zdravstvuj everyone! Especially our Russian friends. Yes, that weird word at the beginning of this post is "hello" in Russian, and is the perfect segue into our first story on today's evening wrap-up: Siri may get Mandarin Chinese, Japanese, and Russian language support in March. As we all know, Siri won't rest until she's taken over the entire world. That's something to worry about, but luckily the privacy issues people had with the iPhone's Path won't be. A Path update went live today to try to resolve the problem.
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