Google

When Apple Music first launched in 2015, playing it on anything other than an Apple device was impossible. Thankfully though, over the years Apple has made its streaming service available to access through third-party devices and speakers, including Amazon Echo and Google-owned speakers. This article focuses on Google devices. If you have a Google Home mini or a newer Nest-branded smart...

Google includes a Live Captions transcription feature in version 89 of its Chrome browser for desktop. Live Captions uses machine learning to create a real-time transcription for videos or audio played through the browser, which can make online media more accessible for members of the Deaf community and other people with hearing loss. Once enabled, Live Captions appear in a box in the bottom ...

If you buy a new iPhone to replace your existing one and you use the Google Authenticator app to access online accounts protected by two-factor authentication (2FA), you should transfer those accounts to your new phone as soon as possible, because without the 2FA codes close at hand, you could find yourself locked out of your online accounts. 2FA adds an extra layer of security to your...

Google Lens can now recognize over a billion items in the world around us, the search engine giant announced this week. That's four times as many things that the AI-powered feature could identify when it was first launched last year, thanks partly to a huge number of Google Shopping products which have been added to its knowledge base. While its optical character recognition engine has...

In Chrome 66, rolling out now for Mac and iOS, Google has added a password export option to the web browser so that you can easily migrate your login details to another browser via a third-party password manager app. In this article, we'll show you how to export your passwords from Chrome on Mac and iOS. At the end of the process, you'll be left with a CSV file containing all your login...

Google this morning posted a story on its Keyword Blog that highlights the ongoing growth of its AI helper, Google Assistant. According to the company, the Assistant now works with "every major device brand" in the U.S., meaning that it can connect with more than 5,000 smart home devices, up from 1,500 in January. This growth period saw media and entertainment queries increase by 400 percent,...

Google launched its redesigned Gmail web interface today, introducing several new features including some the company trialed in its Inbox for Gmail app. The launch is a phased rollout, so not all users will have immediate access to all the changes listed below, and those who do will need to opt-in to them. The major visual difference comes in the form of a new right-hand sidebar that...

Google is currently rolling out its Chrome 66 update to users of the web browser on Mac and iOS. The Mac version now mutes autoplaying content by default, while both desktop and mobile versions include a passwords export option, security improvements and new developer features. Mute autoplay was originally slated for Chrome 64, which introduced autoplay settings on a per-site basis, but the...

Google has reportedly been working on a design overhaul of its Gmail interface on the web, and today The Verge obtained a collection of images that show off this redesign. The new look of Gmail is said to currently be in testing within Google and "with trusted partners." Images via The Verge According to the new images, Gmail for the web will update to fall in line with Google's mobile Gmail...

Apple has snapped up John Giannandrea, who today stepped down from his position as the head of Google's search and artificial intelligence unit, reports The New York Times. According to Apple, Giannandrea will run Apple's overall "machine learning and A.I. strategy," reporting directly to Apple CEO Tim Cook. In an email sent out to employees and obtained by The New York Times, Cook had...

Google this week announced that it has acquired popular GIF search platform Tenor for an undisclosed sum. In the announcement post, Google said that web and mobile searches have "evolved" over the years and Google Image searches pertaining to GIFs have seen an increased amount of traffic -- "we see millions of searches for GIFs every day." Following a recent update to the iOS and Android...

On the eve of Apple's education-focused event where the company is expected to debut new low-cost iPads, Google and Acer have debuted the first Chrome OS tablet. The new Acer Chromebook Tab 10 is the first tablet to run Chrome OS, which has previously been available on laptops, desktops, and tablet/PC hybrids. According to Google, the Acer Chromebook Tab 10 is designed to give schools the ...

YouTube will soon place more advertisements in between music videos for some users, in an attempt to "smoke out" anyone who treats YouTube like a free music video playlist service and convince them to pay for its upcoming subscription music service (via Bloomberg). YouTube's unnamed service is described as a "necessary counterweight" to Apple Music and Spotify, and was last rumored to be launching...

Google has announced that its previously Android-only Google Lens feature is now rolling out to iOS users who have the Google Photos app installed. First unveiled last year at the Google I/O 2017 conference, Google Lens uses the company's image recognition and machine learning algorithms to identify the subjects of photos and videos and present additional helpful actions and information to...

Google Duo, Google's cross-platform FaceTime-style video calling app, was today updated with a new video messages feature that's designed to allow users to leave video voicemails whenever someone doesn't pick up a call. Google says that if a person you're calling declines or misses your call, you can record up to 30 seconds of video (or voice) to send to the person. Video messages can be...

Google Maps' Street View technology has been updated today to include virtual tours of 11 Disney parks for parents and children to explore in advance of a coming trip, or to rekindle memories of previous visits. We're all about new fantastic points of view. Today Street View is going the distance, from California to Florida, to make Disney part of your world. Be our guest at 11 Disney Parks, ...

Google today announced the launch of a new Google Search app extension for Messages, which can be accessed through the dedicated Messages App Store available within the Messages app on the iPhone and iPad. When having a conversation with someone in the Messages app, you can tap on the new Google Search icon to bring up an interface that allows you to conduct Google searches without the need to ...

Google this week announced that its workplace chat app for Mac, PC, iOS, and Android, called "Hangouts Chat," has come out of the Early Adopter Program beta and will be available to anyone who pays for a core G Suite service. Hangouts Chat is an expansion of Google's Hangouts platform and the company's answer to services like Slack, HipChat, Workplace by Facebook, and Microsoft Teams (via TechCrun...

Apple's new HomePod is late to the smart speaker market, which is already crowded with speakers from companies like Amazon, Google, and Sonos. The latter two companies, Google and Sonos, have released speakers with high-quality sound and robust voice assistants, giving the HomePod some serious competition. We decided to pit Apple's $349 HomePod against both the $399 Google Home Max, which...

Google has updated its iOS Maps app with three new quick-access options that Android users have had access to for over a year now. The new tabs sit across the bottom of the home screen and are called Explore, Driving, and Transit. Swiping up on the shortcuts reveals further details. For example, in Explore users can find a description of the local area, dining choices, and options to...

Consumer Reports has conducted some early audio testing of the HomePod, and while the full evaluation isn't yet finished, the site believes that both the $400 Google Home Max and the $200 Sonos One sound better than Apple's new $349 smart speaker. The HomePod received a "Very Good" sound quality rating, as did the Sonos One and the Google Home Max, but the latter two speakers also received...

Google's upcoming software update for its Android smartphone operating system will "embrace" an iPhone X notch-like design, according to people familiar with the company's plans speaking to Bloomberg. With the software, referred to as Android P, Google is readying a "new generation" of Android smartphones that will be "mimicking" the iPhone X's front-facing camera cutout design. Just like...

Google's Arts & Culture app rocketed to the top of the free app charts over the weekend after one of its experimental interactive features went viral. Better known for its relatively staid virtual history exhibitions and digitized artworks, the app's sudden popularity is down to the addition of an option near the bottom of its scrolling interface which asks users, "Is your portrait in a...

Google today announced it has merged Android Pay and Google Wallet into one consolidated payments service called Google Pay. Over the coming weeks, Google said users will be able to use Google Pay online, in stores, and across Google products, and Google Wallet's existing peer-to-peer payment functionality will continue to be supported. Google Pay is already available in select...

Back in October, Google released the Google Pixelbook, a portable laptop/tablet hybrid machine that runs Chrome OS. We got our hands on one of the Pixelbooks from Google, and we decided to pit it against the iPad Pro, Apple's tablet that's powerful enough to serve as a PC replacement. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Priced starting at $999, the Pixelbook is more...