Posts

Showing posts from September, 2016

Walk the Ryder Cup at Hazeltine like the pros with Street View

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Explore the images on  Google Maps , or walk the course like the pros using the Hazeltine Explorer , an interactive tour developed by Turner and Ubilabs. Along with 360-degree views, the site, built with Google Maps APIs, features custom elevation graphs for every hole, integrated video highlights and course-specific historical moments. Fans attending the event can also make use of the Ryder Cup app’s Wayfinding feature, available on  Android  and  iOS . Built using Google Maps APIs, the feature includes a detailed view of the course with routing instructions that account for walking paths and crosswalks. The map also displays information about on-course amenities and facilities.

The latest updates and improvements for the Google app for iOS

Image
More control with incognito mode Your searches are your business. That’s why we’ve added the ability to search privately with incognito mode in the Google app for iOS. When you have incognito mode turned on in your settings, your search and browsing history will not be saved. And for added security, you can enable Touch ID for incognito mode, ensuring that only you can re-enter your existing incognito session if you exit the app.

Google Science Fair 2016: a look back, and a giant leap ahead

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Back at Google today, I witnessed more than 500 students from local Bay Area schools — a majority that qualified for Title I funding — as they asked questions, found inspiration, and saw science and engineering in new, unexpected ways. Those students had a chance to talk to the finalists, from 9 countries, who are working on things like better diagnosing cancer, fighting drought with fruit, training robotic hands, developing compostable feminine sanitary products and so much more. (I also have to point out, this is the first year a majority of the finalists are female, which makes me especially proud!)

Introducing Google News Lite mode — faster news for slower networks

Image
There are many parts of the world, like India, where slow 2G and 3G mobile networks are the norm. In places like this, when news breaks you’ll likely wait, and wait, and wait for articles to load on your smartphone. That’s why, starting this week, Google News and Weather for Android is introducing a new feature called Lite mode to help many of India’s 200 million smartphone users stay connected with news from around the world and in their local communities. We’ll be rolling this out to other countries in emerging markets in the coming months. In the full (normal) mode of Google News, as seen below, we aggregate headlines, images and related content, making it fast and easy for people to find articles they care about. In the new Lite mode things look a little different — we keep the headlines and trim the rest of the components down to their essentials so that the app loads more quickly (and uses less than one-third of the data). When people read an article in Lite mode, they’ll al

Google for India: Making our products work better for everyone

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YouTube Go will be India-only at first. If you want to an early chance to try it out, sign up at youtubego.com/signup to find out when the app is available. Google Station: More Wi-Fi in more places Last September, we announced our partnership with Indian Railways and RailTel to provide Wi-Fi at 400 railway stations in India. Right now, more than 50 stations provide high-quality Internet to 3.5 million people each month. In our research together with IPSOS, we estimate that 15,000 Indians come online each day through these stations. With these kinds of results, why not expand beyond railway stations, and even beyond India? By getting great Wi-Fi into the world’s malls, bus stops, city centers, and cafes all around the world, millions more people will be able to learn, play, chat, work, and find the information they need. So today we’re announcing Google Station , which gives partners an easy set of tools to roll-out Wi-Fi hotspots in public places. Google Station will provide

Chrome on Android: Do more on every phone and network

Image
The web is amazing. You can find the world’s information, stay connected to friends and family, do your shopping, or be entertained all by simply tapping on a link on your phone. But challenges like high data cost and slow, 2G-like connections often prevent our users from getting the most out of the web. We want to make Chrome a better place for all our users to enjoy the mobile web. Chrome’s new features on Data Saver, downloads, and content discovery were designed to help you do more on the web, no matter what phone or network you may have. Save more data, even on videos We launched Data Saver to help you enjoy more content on the web while using less data. With Data Saver enabled, Chrome compresses the images and text you load, saving up to 60% of your data without changing the content you enjoy. Now, we have brought the same technology to videos, which allows you to save up to 67% of your data when viewing MP4 format videos through Chrome. In India alone, this new technology

Preserving a free and open internet (why the IANA transition must move forward)

Image
The Internet community is about to take an important step to protect the Internet for generations to come. Over the past several years, an ecosystem of users, civil society experts, academics, governments, and companies has worked to protect the free and open Internet.  These efforts have produced a detailed proposal that will enable the U.S. government to relinquish its contract with a California non-profit called the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) to perform certain technical functions called IANA, short for the Internet Assigned Names Authority.  IANA essentially maintains the Internet’s address book, which lets you browse the web and communicate with friends without worrying about remembering long strings of numbers or other technical information. When this proposal takes effect at the end of this month, you won’t notice anything different when you go online, but we are transitioning the IANA functions into good hands. Why?  Although this is a c

#IRegistered to vote. Have you?

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We’re doing our part to encourage American voters to get registered for the 2016 election.

Introducing YouTube Creators for Change

Image
Video affects us like no other medium. It can heighten our passions, stoke our fears, awaken us to new experiences and make our hearts ache. It can educate, build understanding and even change the way we see our world. In fact, over half of our millennial subscribers have said a YouTube creator has changed their life. At a time when the internet is criticized for fueling division and distrust, we want to help demonstrate the incredible power YouTube has to generate a positive social impact. That’s why today, we’re introducing a new global program called YouTube Creators for Change, as well as new resources and grants dedicated to social change work. YouTube Creators for Change is a new initiative dedicated to amplifying the voices of role models who are tackling difficult social issues with their channels. From combating hate speech, to countering xenophobia and extremism, to simply making the case for greater tolerance and empathy toward others, these creators are helping genera

Change is Made with Code

Image
What would the world look like if only 20 percent of women knew how to write? How many fewer great books would there be? How many important stories would go unreported? How many innovations would we lose? How many brilliant women would be unable to fulfill their potential? That’s not just a theoretical question. Today, only a small minority of women know how to write code. That limits their ability to participate in a growing part of our global economy. It limits their ability to affect change as entire industries are transformed by technology. And it limits their potential to impact millions of lives through the power of code. To change this trajectory, we need to do all we can to inspire women and girls that learning to code is critical to creating a brighter future for everyone. That’s why I’m excited to share that, today, Google’s Made with Code, together with YouTube, is teaming up with the  Global Citizen Festival  and millions of teen girls to ignite a movement for young

Say hello to Google Allo: a smarter messaging app

Image
Whether it’s planning a night out or just catching up, we all rely on messaging to stay in touch with friends and loved ones. But too often we have to hit pause on our conversations — whether it’s to check the status of a flight or look up that new restaurant. So we created a messaging app that helps you keep your conversation going, by providing assistance when you need it. Today, we’re releasing  Google Allo , a new smart messaging app for Android and iOS that helps you say more and do more right in your chats. Google Allo can help you make plans, find information, and express yourself more easily in chat. And the more you use it, the more it improves over time. Respond quickly with Smart Reply Google Allo makes it easier for you to respond quickly and keep the conversation going, even when you’re on the go. With Smart Reply, you can respond to messages with just a tap, so you can send a quick “yup” in response to a friend asking “Are you on your way?” Smart Reply will also s

Always know which way you’re headed with this Google Maps update

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The beam also tells you how accurate your phone’s direction is at any given time. The narrower the beam, the more accurate the direction. The wider the beam, the more likely it is that your your phone’s compass is temporarily uncalibrated, which means that its sensors aren’t working as they should be. This can happen by doing something as simple as charging your phone or walking by a metal pole, which most of us do everyday. Thankfully, there’s a really easy fix. Any time you want to get back on track — not just when you see a prompt or notification — simply move your phone in a figure 8 motion a few times. This should immediately result in a more accurate direction.

Announcing a Google.org grant for XperiBIRD.be, a project from the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences

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This is  XperiBIRD.be , an initiative of the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences. It will provide small modular computers to schoolchildren between the ages of 10 and 14 throughout Belgium. Pupils will learn to build and install simple  Raspberry Pi  computers and infrared cameras in birdcages, then use them to collect information and actively contribute to scientific research. Along the way, XperiBIRD.be will be giving the children an introduction to computer science and other STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) fields.

The Keyword: Is this thing on?

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You’ve made it to blog.google, our new central source for news and stories about Google. So let us officially say: Welcome to the Keyword. The first post on the Official Google Blog was written more than 12 years ago, before Chrome, before Android, before YouTube. Mobile phones looked like this . Since then we’ve published thousands of posts across a large number of blogs, spanning dozens of countries and languages. But we wanted to make it easier for people to find news from Google about what we’re up to. With that in mind, today we’re launching the Keyword — a new destination for the latest news from inside Google, from Android to Translate. The Keyword is all the stuff we had across 19 blogs, in one place — so you don’t have to hop from one blog to another to find the latest update. If you’re looking for something from Google from now on, chances are it’s here:    The Keyword is designed to grow and change as we do, so as we introduce new products and technologies they can fi

Save time with smart scheduling in Google Calendar

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Some topics are best discussed in face-to-face meetings, but setting them up takes too much time. Whether you’re coordinating across time zones, hunting for a room, or just trying to find a time that works for more than a couple of people — it really adds up. If you’re using G Suite, “Find a time” already lets you set up meetings much faster in Calendar on Android . Today it’s coming to iOS and by the end of the year, the web. We’re also adding smart room booking, so you can easily find a place to meet as well. Powered by Google’s machine intelligence, “Find a time” suggests meeting times and available rooms based on your preferences, which saves you lots of time and gets everyone together faster. Time and room suggestions are smart, too: They don’t just identify the first free slot in a grid, they also locate the next best slots as a back-up. For example, when Calendar doesn’t find availability for your preferred time, it then looks for conflicts across the group that are easier

Save time with Quick Access in Drive

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Quick Access predictions are based on an understanding of your Drive activity, as well as your interaction with colleagues and your workday patterns such as recurring team meetings or regular reviews of forecasting spreadsheets. Starting today, Quick Access will be available globally for G Suite customers on Android. Give it a try, and file away the time you save for more productive activities.

Explore in Docs, Sheets and Slides makes work a breeze — and makes you look good, too

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We built Google Docs to help you create your best work — from work, school or home, and everywhere in between. We know crafting presentations, projects and reports takes time and energy. That’s why today we’re introducing Explore in  Docs ,  Sheets  and  Slides  to bring you insights, design tools and research recommendations so you can create better work, faster. Explore uses Google smarts to help you create amazing presentations, spreadsheets and documents in a fraction of the time they used to take… so you can get on with what’s most important in your life. It’s like having a researcher, analyst and designer by your side. Insights, instantly  Today’s updates to Explore in  Sheets  help you decipher your data easily, whether you’re new to spreadsheets or a formula pro. Just ask Explore — with words, not formulas — to get  answers  about your data. You can ask questions like “how many units were sold on Black Friday?,” “what are the top three items by sales price?,” or

Try these new Google Maps voice commands on your next road trip

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As we approach the end of the year, many travelers will set out on holiday road trips to visit family and friends, near and far. Whether you’re driving solo, or don’t want to assign navigator duties to your passengers, it just got easier to get around while keeping your eyes on the road, with new voice commands that are simpler than ever to use. For the ultimate hands-free and eyes-free experience, first make sure you’ve got the latest versions of the Google Maps app and Google app for Android. Then, the next time you enter navigation mode or driving mode , you can simply say “Ok Google” followed by a voice command, without needing to tap or even look at the screen. You’ll always know when voice commands can be used in Google Maps by looking for a white microphone icon in the top right corner.

About the Keyword

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Welcome to the Keyword — our new, central destination for the latest news updates and stories from inside Google. Google first began blogging back in 2004 — when mobile phones looked like this and before anyone had dreamed up Chrome, Android, or YouTube. Since then the company has changed a lot, and we’ve published thousands of posts across a large number of blogs. We wanted to make it easier for you to find Google’s official word on any given topic. That’s why we created the Keyword. The Keyword consolidates and replaces 19 of our existing official blogs, in English. Over time we plan to expand to include other languages, countries and more. And we’ll be retaining a bunch of our existing blogs for more specific audiences (such as our advertising and developer-facing blogs). The Keyword is designed to grow and change as we do, so as we introduce new products and technologies they can find a home here. It will guide you to the big news of the week while leaving room for smaller,

Strengthening the security of your Google account

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Our users trust Google with some of their most precious data — family photos, emails, work documents, and more. It's our responsibility to keep your information safe and secure, and provide simple, useful ways for you to manage it. We also have additional tools you can use to give your account extra protection. More than five years ago, we introduced two-step verification , a tool which offers an added layer of security to your account. With two-step verification, you need something more than just your password—a simple prompt on your phone, a code generated by an app, or a security key— in order to access your account. This makes it much tougher for the bad guys to get into your account, even if they’ve somehow gotten your password. Today, the White House, in partnership with the National Cyber Security Alliance, launched the Lock Down Your Login campaign to educate Americans about better ways to keep their online accounts secure. It’s a great opportunity to remind everyone

Walk the Ryder Cup at Hazeltine like the pros with Street View

Image
Explore the images on  Google Maps , or walk the course like the pros using the Hazeltine Explorer , an interactive tour developed by Turner and Ubilabs. Along with 360-degree views, the site, built with Google Maps APIs, features custom elevation graphs for every hole, integrated video highlights and course-specific historical moments. Fans attending the event can also make use of the Ryder Cup app’s Wayfinding feature, available on  Android  and  iOS . Built using Google Maps APIs, the feature includes a detailed view of the course with routing instructions that account for walking paths and crosswalks. The map also displays information about on-course amenities and facilities.

The latest updates and improvements for the Google app for iOS

Image
More control with incognito mode Your searches are your business. That’s why we’ve added the ability to search privately with incognito mode in the Google app for iOS. When you have incognito mode turned on in your settings, your search and browsing history will not be saved. And for added security, you can enable Touch ID for incognito mode, ensuring that only you can re-enter your existing incognito session if you exit the app.

Google Science Fair 2016: a look back, and a giant leap ahead

Image
Back at Google today, I witnessed more than 500 students from local Bay Area schools — a majority that qualified for Title I funding — as they asked questions, found inspiration, and saw science and engineering in new, unexpected ways. Those students had a chance to talk to the finalists, from 9 countries, who are working on things like better diagnosing cancer, fighting drought with fruit, training robotic hands, developing compostable feminine sanitary products and so much more. (I also have to point out, this is the first year a majority of the finalists are female, which makes me especially proud!)

Introducing Google News Lite mode — faster news for slower networks

Image
There are many parts of the world, like India, where slow 2G and 3G mobile networks are the norm. In places like this, when news breaks you’ll likely wait, and wait, and wait for articles to load on your smartphone. That’s why, starting this week, Google News and Weather for Android is introducing a new feature called Lite mode to help many of India’s 200 million smartphone users stay connected with news from around the world and in their local communities. We’ll be rolling this out to other countries in emerging markets in the coming months. In the full (normal) mode of Google News, as seen below, we aggregate headlines, images and related content, making it fast and easy for people to find articles they care about. In the new Lite mode things look a little different — we keep the headlines and trim the rest of the components down to their essentials so that the app loads more quickly (and uses less than one-third of the data). When people read an article in Lite mode, they’ll al

Google for India: Making our products work better for everyone

Image
YouTube Go will be India-only at first. If you want to an early chance to try it out, sign up at youtubego.com/signup to find out when the app is available. Google Station: More Wi-Fi in more places Last September, we announced our partnership with Indian Railways and RailTel to provide Wi-Fi at 400 railway stations in India. Right now, more than 50 stations provide high-quality Internet to 3.5 million people each month. In our research together with IPSOS, we estimate that 15,000 Indians come online each day through these stations. With these kinds of results, why not expand beyond railway stations, and even beyond India? By getting great Wi-Fi into the world’s malls, bus stops, city centers, and cafes all around the world, millions more people will be able to learn, play, chat, work, and find the information they need. So today we’re announcing Google Station , which gives partners an easy set of tools to roll-out Wi-Fi hotspots in public places. Google Station will provide

Chrome on Android: Do more on every phone and network

Image
The web is amazing. You can find the world’s information, stay connected to friends and family, do your shopping, or be entertained all by simply tapping on a link on your phone. But challenges like high data cost and slow, 2G-like connections often prevent our users from getting the most out of the web. We want to make Chrome a better place for all our users to enjoy the mobile web. Chrome’s new features on Data Saver, downloads, and content discovery were designed to help you do more on the web, no matter what phone or network you may have. Save more data, even on videos We launched Data Saver to help you enjoy more content on the web while using less data. With Data Saver enabled, Chrome compresses the images and text you load, saving up to 60% of your data without changing the content you enjoy. Now, we have brought the same technology to videos, which allows you to save up to 67% of your data when viewing MP4 format videos through Chrome. In India alone, this new technology

Preserving a free and open internet (why the IANA transition must move forward)

Image
The Internet community is about to take an important step to protect the Internet for generations to come. Over the past several years, an ecosystem of users, civil society experts, academics, governments, and companies has worked to protect the free and open Internet.  These efforts have produced a detailed proposal that will enable the U.S. government to relinquish its contract with a California non-profit called the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) to perform certain technical functions called IANA, short for the Internet Assigned Names Authority.  IANA essentially maintains the Internet’s address book, which lets you browse the web and communicate with friends without worrying about remembering long strings of numbers or other technical information. When this proposal takes effect at the end of this month, you won’t notice anything different when you go online, but we are transitioning the IANA functions into good hands. Why?  Although this is a c

#IRegistered to vote. Have you?

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En la víspera del Día Nacional de Registro de Votantes, estamos haciendo nuestra parte para animar a los votantes estadounidenses para registrarse para las elecciones del 2016. Ya hemos añadido información detallada en búsqueda de como  registrarte  y cómo votar , y ahora estamos añadiendo esa misma información en  español . Ahora, tanto los hablantes de español e inglés podrán obtener información personalizada, estado por estado sobre las fechas clave de registro, horarios para llegar a las urnas, e incluso los pasos necesarios para votar temprano o por correo. Esperamos que esta función ayude a simplificar el proceso de registro para más votantes estadounidenses.

Introducing YouTube Creators for Change

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Video affects us like no other medium. It can heighten our passions, stoke our fears, awaken us to new experiences and make our hearts ache. It can educate, build understanding and even change the way we see our world. In fact, over half of our millennial subscribers have said a YouTube creator has changed their life. At a time when the internet is criticized for fueling division and distrust, we want to help demonstrate the incredible power YouTube has to generate a positive social impact. That’s why today, we’re introducing a new global program called YouTube Creators for Change, as well as new resources and grants dedicated to social change work. YouTube Creators for Change is a new initiative dedicated to amplifying the voices of role models who are tackling difficult social issues with their channels. From combating hate speech, to countering xenophobia and extremism, to simply making the case for greater tolerance and empathy toward others, these creators are helping genera

Change is Made with Code

Image
What would the world look like if only 20 percent of women knew how to write? How many fewer great books would there be? How many important stories would go unreported? How many innovations would we lose? How many brilliant women would be unable to fulfill their potential? That’s not just a theoretical question. Today, only a small minority of women know how to write code. That limits their ability to participate in a growing part of our global economy. It limits their ability to affect change as entire industries are transformed by technology. And it limits their potential to impact millions of lives through the power of code. To change this trajectory, we need to do all we can to inspire women and girls that learning to code is critical to creating a brighter future for everyone. That’s why I’m excited to share that, today, Google’s Made with Code, together with YouTube, is teaming up with the  Global Citizen Festival  and millions of teen girls to ignite a movement for young

Say hello to Google Allo: a smarter messaging app

Image
Whether it’s planning a night out or just catching up, we all rely on messaging to stay in touch with friends and loved ones. But too often we have to hit pause on our conversations — whether it’s to check the status of a flight or look up that new restaurant. So we created a messaging app that helps you keep your conversation going, by providing assistance when you need it. Today, we’re releasing  Google Allo , a new smart messaging app for Android and iOS that helps you say more and do more right in your chats. Google Allo can help you make plans, find information, and express yourself more easily in chat. And the more you use it, the more it improves over time. Respond quickly with Smart Reply Google Allo makes it easier for you to respond quickly and keep the conversation going, even when you’re on the go. With Smart Reply, you can respond to messages with just a tap, so you can send a quick “yup” in response to a friend asking “Are you on your way?” Smart Reply will also s

Always know which way you’re headed with this Google Maps update

Image
The beam also tells you how accurate your phone’s direction is at any given time. The narrower the beam, the more accurate the direction. The wider the beam, the more likely it is that your your phone’s compass is temporarily uncalibrated, which means that its sensors aren’t working as they should be. This can happen by doing something as simple as charging your phone or walking by a metal pole, which most of us do everyday. Thankfully, there’s a really easy fix. Any time you want to get back on track — not just when you see a prompt or notification — simply move your phone in a figure 8 motion a few times. This should immediately result in a more accurate direction.

Announcing a Google.org grant for XperiBIRD.be, a project from the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences

Image
This is  XperiBIRD.be , an initiative of the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences. It will provide small modular computers to schoolchildren between the ages of 10 and 14 throughout Belgium. Pupils will learn to build and install simple  Raspberry Pi  computers and infrared cameras in birdcages, then use them to collect information and actively contribute to scientific research. Along the way, XperiBIRD.be will be giving the children an introduction to computer science and other STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) fields.

Better emails, tailored to all your devices

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Have you ever opened an email on your phone and something about the formatting just looks … off? Maybe the text is hard to read, or the buttons and links too small to tap. That’s because many emails are still formatted for computers' larger screens, which means reading them on mobile can be a hassle. Starting later this month, Gmail and Inbox by Gmail will support emails created with responsive design, meaning their content adapts to fit screens of all sizes. Text, links, and even buttons will enlarge to make reading and tapping easier on a smaller screen. If you’re on desktop, you’ll also see improvements, since emails designed for mobile can also adapt to fit larger screens.

Galaxy Note 7 remains popular with customers in South Korea

Samsung resumed Galaxy Note 7 sales for pre-order customers in South Korea yesterday and despite all of the bad press it has received over the battery defect the Galaxy Note 7 still remains popular in the company’s home market. The handset has been shipped by the country’s three largest carriers – SK Telecom, KT, and LG Uplus – to those who placed a pre-order for it in August. South Korea was the very first market where the Galaxy Note 7 replacement program was launched. There has been some concern that existing customers are not in any hurry to replace their faulty units which is probably why Samsung not only extended the refund deadline but also delayed the relaunch of the Galaxy Note 7 in its home market. According to local media reports, nearly 16,000 new units of the Galaxy Note 7 were activated in South Korea on the day sales resumed for pre-order customers. Local smartphone dealers say that customers don’t appear to have any special antipathy toward the Galaxy Note 7 despi

Samsung completes $10 billion share buyback program

Last year Samsung announced that it was launching a $10 billion program to buyback its own shares . The program was going to be implemented in stages and Samsung said that it would be completed in one year. Samsung embarked on the fourth and final phase of this buyback program two months ago in which it was to purchase and cancel 990,000 common and 230,000 preferred shares. It has already repurchased 5.63 million common and 2.09 million preferred shares and canceled them in the previous stages. Samsung has confirmed that its $10 billion share buyback program has now been completed, adding that the program has contributed to an increase of almost 20 percent in its stock price over the past year, the company’s stock price has been setting new record highs this year . We’ve already discussed Samsung’s $10 billion share buyback program in detail in a separate post . A buyback program is just one of the ways a publicly listed company can return money to its shareholders. It basically pays

Galaxy Note 7 sales in India may resume before Diwali

The Galaxy Note 7 was supposed to be launched in India on September 2 but it was never launched in the country as Samsung confirmed the handset’s battery cell defect and immediately suspended sales. Those who had pre-ordered a Note 7 in the country were told that their shipments would be delayed . Shipments are still awaited and Samsung is yet to confirm when the Galaxy Note 7 will be relaunched in India. A recent report claimed that the Note 7 will be relaunched in the country on October 7 but it’s now being claimed that sales will be resumed prior to the festival of Diwali. Mashable India reports that Samsung is going to resume sales of the Galaxy Note 7 in India before the festival of Diwali. It’s normal to see a significant sales spike around the time of this festival as it’s much like Christmas in the West. Diwali is going to be celebrated on October 30 this year so if this report is correct customers in India should expect to get their hands on the flagship towards the end of

Samsung reportedly increases sales target for the Gear S3

Samsung is yet to release the Gear S3 smartwatch that it unveiled about a month ago but the company is apparently optimistic about its performance. News reports out of South Korea suggest that Samsung has increased its yearly sales target for the Gear S3 by as much as 60 percent more than the overall number of smartwatches and fitness bands it shipped in the previous year. The company is yet to confirm the release date of the Gear S3 in most markets across the globe. Industry sources cited in the report claim that Samsung has ramped up the sourcing of components for this smartwatch from its suppliers and aims to start mass production of the Gear S3 next month. This is why it’s claimed that the Gear S3 will go on sale in most markets by the end of October. Samsung is reportedly expecting to ship five million units of the Gear S3. Market research organization IDC reports that Samsung shipped 3.1 wearable devices combined in the previous year which suggests that it’s quite bullish on th

Xperia XZ and X Compact priced in Hong Kong

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Sony Mobile has priced up the Xperia XZ Dual and X Compact in Hong Kong and confirmed that the handsets will launch on 7 October 2016. The Xperia XZ Dual will cost HK$ 5,698, with the Xperia X Compact costing HK$ 4,198. If you pre-order the handset you will get a few freebies including an Xperia branded rucksack and water bottle. We’ll bring news as the handsets launch into other regions too, including any pre-order offers.

View deleted files with the latest Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides Android apps

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The newest versions of the Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides apps for Android make it possible to retrieve trashed files you unexpectedly need or accidentally delete. Simply select Trash from the navigation menu in your Docs, Sheets, or Slides app, and you’ll be given the option to restore or permanently delete any files that you’ve trashed. Visit the Google Play Store to download the latest Docs, Sheets, and Slides apps for Android and check out the new functionality. Launch Details Release track: Launching to both Rapid release and Scheduled release Rollout pace: Gradual rollout (potentially longer than 3 days for feature visibility) Impact: All end users Action: Change management suggested/FYI More Information Help Center: Delete a document, spreadsheet, or presentation Note: all launches are applicable to all Google Apps editions unless otherwise noted Launch release calendar Launch detail categories Get these product update alerts by email Subscribe to th

Galaxy Apps update brings a cleaner UI, dedicated categories for watch faces

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Samsung has updated its Galaxy Apps application. Unfortunately, the upgrade — Version 4.2.01-7 — doesn’t bring much to the table in terms of added functionality. However, it does transport a cleaner user interface, together with the facility to receive push notifications for upcoming promotions held by the South Korean company. Aside from the sharper visuals, Version 4.2.01-7 finally introduces a dedicated category section for watch faces for Gear-branded devices, making it easier than ever for users to find options that will tickle their fancy without having to scroll through an endless list of tiresome offerings. You can grab the update by heading into the Galaxy Apps Store.

Samsung pushes out September security patch for the Galaxy S6 edge+

Samsung has been awfully busy today. Not only has it distributed the Marshmallow update for the Galaxy A7 and Galaxy Tab S 10.5 (Wi-Fi) , but it’s also now pushing out this month’s security patch for the International variant of the Galaxy S6 edge+ . The upgrade is around 160MB in size and, just like the version that made its way to the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge earlier this week, carries a truckload of much-needed patches for both the Android OS and the device to make it more stable and secure. As we’ve come to expect from all major and minor firmware updates, the OTA is being pushed out in stages. However, if you’d like to see if it’s ready for your device simply follow these steps: Settings » About Device » Software Update » Update Now .

Stable Channel Update for Desktop

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The stable channel has been updated to 53.0.2785.143 for Windows, Mac, and Linux. This will roll out over the coming days/weeks. Security Fixes and Rewards Many of our security bugs are detected using AddressSanitizer , MemorySanitizer , Control Flow Integrity or LibFuzzer . Note: Access to bug details and links may be kept restricted until a majority of users are updated with a fix. We will also retain restrictions if the bug exists in a third party library that other projects similarly depend on, but haven’t yet fixed. This update includes 3 security fixes. Below, we highlight fixes that were contributed by external researchers. Please see the Chrome Security Page for more information [$5000][ 642496 ] High CVE-2016-5177: Use after free in V8. Credit to Anonymous We would also like to thank all security researchers that worked with us during the development cycle to prevent security bugs from ever reaching the stable channel. As usual, our ongoing internal sec

New Early Adopter Programs: Team Drives and a new Hangouts video meetings experience

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Along with our new name , today we’re announcing a number of new features to help employees work together as teams on strategic and creative projects to better serve their customers. Two of these features are coming soon as Early Adopter Programs: Drive for teams When Google Drive launched in 2012 , bringing all of your work to all of your devices was a key focus. Today, with Drive installed on more than one billion smartphones, mobility is a given. As businesses have adopted Google Drive, a new focus has emerged: teams. Teams move fast, they grow, they shrink, they’re rebuilt. In order to keep pace, a new capability called Team Drives redefines the model, shifting from a focus on the individual user to a focus on the team. Content ownership and sharing are managed at the team level, and new roles give more granular control over team content. Team Drives help streamline teamwork from end-to-end, from onboarding a new team member (add her to the team and she instantly has access to a

Explore in Docs, Sheets and Slides makes work a breeze — and makes you look good, too

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(Cross-posted from the Google Docs Blog ) We built Google Docs to help you create your best work — from work, school or home, and everywhere in between. We know crafting presentations, projects and reports takes time and energy. That’s why today we’re introducing Explore in Docs , Sheets and Slides to bring you insights, design tools and research recommendations so you can create better work, faster. Explore uses Google smarts to help you create amazing presentations, spreadsheets and documents in a fraction of the time they used to take…so you can get on with what’s most important in your life. It’s like having a researcher, analyst and designer by your side. Insights, instantly Today’s updates to Explore in Sheets help you decipher your data easily, whether you’re new to spreadsheets or a formula pro. Just ask Explore — with words, not formulas — to get answers about your data. You can ask questions like “how many units were sold on Black Friday?,” “what are the top three