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OnStar reveals mystery partner: Google
Google I/O's shaping up to be a hell of an event this year. We just received word that OnStar will give a sneak peek at new functionalities it's developing for its version 2.0 Chevy Volt app with the help of Google. A major new addition -- to be demonstrated on Android, of course -- will be a navigation tab on the app's home screen that can identify your position relative to your Volt's location in Google Maps. Something that should prove handy in tracking down your car in the airport parking lot. Owners can then use their smartphone to enter their destination before even entering the vehicle. When it's time to drive, your Volt will already be setup and ready to guide you to the spot using OnStar's turn-by-turn navigation. Alternatively, users can follow the voice guidance provided by Google Maps Navigation if they prefer. Unfortunately, these 2.0 addition won't be in the app at launch this fall. Full press release after the break.
Google, Sony, Intel & Logitech's TV project to be unveiled next month as Dragonpoint?
The conclusion to the sudden flurry of rumors around Sony HDTVs featuring Android, Intel Atom processors and Logitech-designed QWERTY remotes may be near, as Bloomberg Businessweek reports the project will be revealed during Google I/O next month. The latest wrinkle for the supposed product is a name, "Dragonpoint," for the new flavor of Android destined to operate on displays, Blu-ray players and set-top boxes. It's obvious that Google wants search in the living room, Sony needs something to overcome the app (Samsung is back on the list of possible partners) and widget powered competition, and Intel needs a home for its CE4100 chips to show off their power outside of a demonstration for once, but we'll have to wait and see what they've cooked up to know if we need any of that in our next HDTV.
Android 2.2 spotted in analytics data, running on Magic?
Hero owners, look away now. Google's Froyo appears to be almost ready to exit the freezer and enter handsets on an official basis. Since April 7, Android and Me have noticed visits from devices identifying themselves as having Android version 2.2 on board, while German site MobiFlip.de has come across pictures of a T-Mobile myTouch 3G (aka HTC Magic) that is supposedly running the latest software. The images are certainly easy to spoof (including a wonky looking .2), but their timing and our eternal optimism invite some attention. They indicate a new option for automatically pulling down app updates from the ether, which would be kinda neat, while Android and Me have also compiled a list of other rumored new features for Android 2.2 and confirmed with "sources familiar with the matter" that the new OS is indeed being tested right now. Their tip is to gaze expectantly toward the Google I/O conference starting on May 19 when we're sure to learn at least a little bit more. Considering Android 2.0 got a full features demo at that meetup last year, chances are good that Froyo will be on show in just under a month's time.
Google Wave unveiled, new live chat medium for browsers, iPhone and Android
Google's big reveal at I/O? Meet Wave, the Next Big Thing from the Lars and Yen Rasmussen, makers of Google Maps. It's a very early build, meaning we won't see it anytime soon, but here's the gist: a "wave" is a chat session that enables you to send messages live, with each word being transmitted live -- no more "person X is typing" messages (don't worry, that can be deactivated momentarily / permanently with a "draft" button). You can also add others to the wave, drag and drop images for instant transfers, and share documents for on-the-fly edits (with all the participants working simultaneously, mind you), and get this... it does real time translation. So hot, and the crowd is in an uproar over this. The "waves" can be played back to see the conversation evolve / documents edited dynamically. We just got confirmation that it'll be coming to Android and iPhone, also, but they have yet to get the mobile platform to do the live updating. As they keep telling us, this HTML5-based platform is still in a very early stage, but all attendees will be getting an invite to a sandbox build later today. It's an open protocol, so expect other devs to add their own toys to the mix. Hit up the gallery for more pics.
Google's altruistic Ion giveaway instantly rewarded with blind greed
Call it a sign of the times, call it a Google I/O attendee who just didn't really like the Ion, call it an overabundance of Western-style capitalism, call it man's almost instinctive need to generate profit -- whatever the case, one of the 4,000 specially-branded Ions given away at the conference this week is now available to the highest bidder. Never mind the fact that it's an I/O special edition, though -- outside of this particular device, we're not sure where you can find a 1700MHz 3G HTC Magic at any price, so we're sure this is going to be worth plenty of cold, hard cash to plenty of people who aren't in San Francisco at the moment. Oh, and don't worry if you miss out on this one; we'd be shocked if there weren't others in the pipeline. [Via TmoToday]
Google Ion hands-on and unboxing
Looks like Chris' hatred wasn't totally unfounded. We just got our hands on a Google Ion -- which as you can tell is a spitting image of the HTC Magic -- complete with 30 days' worth of T-Mobile service on an included SIM card. It's not a public release model, but seems fully capable. Yes, it's got Cupcake, and while the portrait keyboard seems more cramped than the iPhone's, we found it very comfortable to type in landscape mode. Form factor wise, this thing is as sexy as hardware gets -- light, sleek, and thin. The only thing that exceeds our love for it right now is its own love for fingerprints -- seriously, the entire body and screen attract them like flies to honey. Colorful similes aside, hit up the gallery below for all the pics you could ask for.
Google I/O attendees getting free unlocked HTC Magic with T-Mobile 3G
In case you needed yet another reason to nerd out with Android developers for a couple days in scenic San Francisco, here's a doozy: every attendee is getting hooked up with an unlocked HTC Magic in black plus 30 days of voice and 3G data service. While the carrier isn't specified, we certainly wouldn't be surprised if it ended up being T-Mobile, which would make this an AWS version of the phone -- and a probable precursor to the presumed myTouch 3G release (or whatever they end up calling it) later this year. In the meantime, I/O attendees -- and yes, that includes you, Ross Miller -- we hate you out of sheer, raging envy.Update: Confirmed -- it's a T-Mobile SIM, hence AWS 3G!Update 2: It seems Google is calling this phone the "Ion," but make no mistake, it's an HTC Magic.
Android 2.0 "Donut" features demoed at Google I/O
We're still trying to get used to the overwhelming joy of having Cupcake installed on our G1s, but it's full steam ahead over at Google where engineers are already slaving away on the Donut branch that'll eventually come to be known as Android 2.0. Demoed today at the first I/O keynote were Donut's universal search (known simply as "Android Search"), which will let you search both online and locally on the phone through contacts, calendars, music, and any app with the proper code, and a text-to-speech API, which should allow developers to integrate Google Voice Search-style awesomeness into the apps of their choice. We also got a brief glimpse of handwriting gestures used for searching through list -- the live example was drawing the letter 'e' and going to that specific point in a list of songs. Nothing wildly different interface-wise -- yet -- but we know from the initial 1.0 release that the UI's very much subject to change, not to mention the fact that HTC and others look poised to do some serious customization of their own. Check out the gallery for shots live from the I/O keynote!
"Surprises" in store for Android at Google I/O?
Android 1.5's already been detailed and its accompanying SDK fully released, but does Google still have a few aces up its sleeves for this release? As you might recall, Google's I/O conference last year was an unexpectedly blockbuster event where a mostly-finished Android 1.0 got detailed in depth for the first time, and a new blog post on the official Android Developers Blog alludes to "a few surprises we've lined up" that we're hoping will make the event worthwhile for non-dev types -- people just looking to see the platform advance. The event goes down on the 27th and 28th of May out at Moscone in San Francisco, so we'll know soon enough.
Video: Google demos the HTC Dream at I/O conference
Word on the street is that Google just busted out a live demo of the oft-rumored HTC Dream doing its Android-flavored thing at the company's I/O conference in San Francisco. Reports tell us that the device is a roughly 3-inch by 5-inch touchscreen phone with a slider keyboard. Not a lot is known right now, though apparently the device packs an accelerometer which allows you to tilt the unit to scroll across Google Maps or Street View. A video is on the way, so stay tuned for more information (and images) as we get them.Update: Video after the break!Read - Android demoed at Google IO Read - Screenshots: Google's Android comes to life
