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lundi 2 octobre 2017

Google Announces Android Wear Beta Based on Android Oreo, Starting with the LG Watch Sport

Google has announced a new Android Wear beta based on Android 8.0 Oreo, and it launches today starting with the LG Watch Sport. The new update brings the device to API level 26—the API level for Android 8.0— and introduces features such as the new background restrictions and notification channels. With the mess that was the release of Android Wear 2.0, we hope to see a major improvement from Google with respect to this next major version of Android Wear.

The more strict background limitations in Android Oreo may not affect Android smartwatches as much as it does smartphones, but it’s certainly a welcome addition to prevent applications from running amock on your smartwatch. After all, the batteries on smartwatches are fairly small in terms of capacity, so even a single app preventing your smartwatch from entering a deep sleep state can wreak havoc on your battery life. Google tells developers that they should assume their application isn’t running if a notification isn’t being actively shown to the user.

With this update also comes more advanced notification customization called “notification channels.” This allows the user to opt in or out of notifications from certain apps based on what category the notification is in. An example is shown where the user chooses to receive notifications from an application called “MooMessenger” when they receive a new follower, but not when they receive new likes.

As for which Android smartwatch devices that will receive the update, there’s no information available at this time. We don’t know if Google plans on imposing new hardware restrictions on this future Android Wear update, preventing older Wear devices from receiving it. Currently, only the LG Watch Sport can try this new Android Wear version out, so if you own one go here to enroll into the beta or download the factory image on your device. There are some minor known issues, but none of those are really deal breakers currently.

Source: Google

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Google Pixel 2 Software Tidbits: Camera has “Face Retouching” and “Motion Photo” Mode

We’re just 2 days away from the official announcement of the Google Pixel 2 and Google Pixel 2 XL. As we near the announcement, we are hearing and seeing more information about the upcoming devices. New renders today show off the design of the Pixel 2 XL, confirming the presence of dual stereo speakers as we previously reported. Pretty much everything that can be leaked about them has been leaked. While we know about most of the major new software features of the upcoming Google Pixel 2/Pixel 2 XL—such as the always-on ambient display mode and the squeezable frame—there are still a few minor features left to uncover.

Before we dive headfirst into the Pixel 2 official release news cycle, we wanted to share with you perhaps the last bit of information our source shared with us about the software found on the two phones. These two features are fairly minor and only concern the Google Camera app.

First, there is purportedly a “face retouching” feature, which is likely to be an automatic algorithm that cleans up blemishes and other imperfections from your skin before snapping a selfie. This feature sounds a lot like a “beauty mode” that has been a staple of many smartphones sold in Asian markets, so we don’t expect much innovation from this feature.

Second, there is a new “motion photo” feature. From the feature’s description:

When motion is on, each photo you take could include a short video before and after the shot. The video may be included when you share the photo.

Judging by this description, the feature reminds me of iOS Live Photos.

We’re pretty excited about the upcoming Google Pixel 2/Pixel 2 XL announcement. Join us on October 4th for coverage of the Google event. The easiest way to read the latest posts on the XDA Portal is to use the XDA Labs app.

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VLC Media Player v2.5 Adds Picture-in-Picture Mode, 360° Video, Android Auto Integration, and more

VLC Media Player, the popular free and open source media player, has just released version 2.5 of its Android application. As always there are no advertisements, no in-app purchases, and no restrictions. The last official, stable update was released back in August 2016. Over a year later, the update adds a plethora of new features but has the wait been worth it?

Notable new features include 360° video support (meaning you can wave your phone around like a maniac to watch a video in public if you want), Android Auto integration, Picture in Picture mode support on Android Oreo, double tap to seek video, audio boost, built in equalizer, and support for the VP8/9/10 video codecs. Playback related additions and changes include HDMI passthrough support, AVI support, and improved H264, MP4V, and HEVC playback.

With this update comes also an offering of an improved experience for Android enabled smart TVs. The improved TV integration in VLC with picture in picture mode is greatly appreciated.

These changes are designed to open up VLC to a greater diversity of content playability. With VP9 and 360° videos growing in popularity, the ability to play these files becomes more of a necessity than a luxury. VP9 offers greater compression for a low loss of quality.

Note that while it took a long time to update, there are nightly builds which add new features and functionality. You can simply look to those if you want to try the latest and greatest, but be warned that these builds may be unstable and will lack support if you run into a problem.

So was the wait worth it? With the amazing amount of features and changes, it’s hard to say it wasn’t. The added features alone justify giving this media player another try, so we recommend you check it out if you thought it was previously inadequate.

VLC for Android (Free, Google Play) →

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Google Pixel 2 XL Renders Show Stereo Speakers, Redesigned Pixel Launcher, and Slim Bezels

The second generation Google Pixel phones, the Google Pixel 2 and the Google Pixel 2 XL, is set to be announced 2 days from now in a big Google event that will also allegedly see the reveal of a new Google Chromebook called the Pixelbook and a 2017 refresh of the Daydream View headset. Google has done a better job this year of mitigating leaks of their new phones, but as we get closer to the launch date the leaks keep pouring in. Today, we now have a really clear picture of what the front of the Google Pixel 2 XL will look like.

Renowned leaker Evan Blass has published on his Twitter page a new render of the Google Pixel 2 XL. The renders show the Google Pixel 2 XL with and without a case. These renders give us a closer look at the front of the phone, and most importantly give us a pretty good idea about how large the bezels will be. The images also corroborate our previous report that the Google Pixel 2 XL would feature dual front-facing speakers.

Image source: @evleaks

The renders also show off the redesigned Pixel Launcher that our previous article mentioned. This redesign ditches the signature Google pill that hangs to the top left corner of the screen and instead adds the Google search widget to the bottom of the launcher. The top of the launcher now houses an informative widget which will apparently do much more than just delivering the weather: it will also inform the user of upcoming events like dinners.

It’s not clear how it will actually work at the moment or if it will have more features, and we probably won’t know until Wednesday. So, at the moment, we have these two images showing us how will the phone and the included launcher look like. There are only two days left for the event, so it remains to be seen if we’ll get more leaks during the following days.

Source: @evleaks

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Google CEO Recognises Danger of Data Monopoly, Outlines Plan for Expansion into China

Very few companies (in the grand scheme of things) have access to your data, and even fewer have the same amount of access to all of your data. Google probably has the most data on its users out of all companies, tracking page usage through its adverts program of users and being able to tailor advertisements specifically to them. Google has part of a data monopoly (or, more correctly, data oligopoly, meaning very few firms dominate the market) and they know it. And yet one piece of the puzzle is missing, Google has absolutely zero market share in China.

The CEO of Google, Sundar Pichai, in an interview with Nikkei has spoken out about data monopoly, recognizing the concerns about it. He claims that Google is aware of the privacy concerns and that they strive to retain user anonymity and provide a great user experience. With Google owning 80% of the search industry and having over one billion users the privacy concerns surrounding the Alphabet Inc. owned firm are genuine. Meeting scrutiny from both consumers and antitrust regulators from the European Commission, Google is under fire from all directions.

And still, Google is under investigation for other violations, not just abuse of its search engine monopolization. Allegedly abusing its position in the phone market with Android, Google may face yet another fine in the near future.

And as regards the future of Google in China, Pichai stated that Google is playing for “the long term”. In 2010 Google exited the Chinese market (giving up a massive market of potentially twice the amount of residents of the US) after an attack targeted its services from within China, after they had already conformed to the censorship laws of mainland China.

Pichai also stated that Google has helped Chinese companies expand globally, that the expansion back into China will come eventually, and that Google “will figure out a thoughtful way to engage [the Chinese market], at the right time.”

Source: Nikkei

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Google Publishes Android’s Security Bulletin Details for October 2017

Right on schedule, Google has published their new Android Security Bulletin during the first work week of the new month. Last month’s security patches for Android came with fixes for the Blueborne Bluetooth attack vector and this month comes with a slew of vulnerability patches as well. Just like we’ve seen in other months as well though, these patches are coming in two different phases with the October 1st patch level being partial and then another one coming with the October 5th patch level.

So for the October 1st 2017 patch level, we’re given patches that touch on the Framework, Media Framework and the System. Two high severity patches have been fixed for the Framework and the System (CVE-2017-0806 and CVE-2017-14496), and then we have six different patches ranging from moderate to critical pertains to the Media Framework (CVE-2017-0809, CVE-2017-0810, CVE-2017-0811, CVE-2017-0812, CVE-2017-0815, and CVE-2017-0816).

The October 5th 2017 patch level focuses on the hardware side of things and includes patches for the kernel, MediaTek and Qualcomm components. Two high severity patches included in this security update deal with the kernel and works with the filesystem as well as the network subsystem (CVE-2017-7374 and CVE-2017-9075). The patch for the MediaTek component is also classified as high severity and has to do with the SoC driver (CVE-2017-0827). Lastly, there are three patches for Qualcomm components that touch on the SoC driver (CVE-2017-11053), network subsystem (CVE-2017-9714), and the Linux boot (CVE-2017-9683).

Google has already published the factory images for this update on supported Nexus and Pixel devices. You can find the download links here and Google has also included flashing instructions available there for those who do not want to wait for the OTA update. Along with this month’s security update, Google has also announced a Security Bulletin specifically for Nexus and Pixel devices which you can find here.

Source: Google

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Google is Rumored to Launch a Made for Google Certification Program

For years, Google never really did much in the hardware space but the company hit a grand slam when it came to the Chromecast. They’ve sold tens of millions of units so far and it has helped them form the new hardware division that is inside the company right now. As they’ve grown this division, it’s naturally to see that there will be more accessories as well, but a new rumor shows they will be launching a Made for Google program for certified accessories from 3rd-party companies.

Sure, Google has been selling Nexus devices for years and while the did have some say in the hardware development, they weren’t as hands-on as they had liked to be. Even programs like the Google Play Edition devices ended up being terminated, but with the launch of the Google Pixel, Google Home, and Daydream View, the company has ramped up their interest in the hardware market. They’ve gone around and hired some key talent throughout this process and picked up a ton more with the latest deal with HTC.

This year we’ve been hearing about the Bisto devices from Google and now we know that they are a new product category for smart/connected headphones with Google Assistant built into them. It just makes sense that Google would want to dive into the accessory market and there’s even a rumor that says the new Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL will come with a pair of earbuds. These devices benefit from an extensive accessory ecosystem though so this rumor about a Made for Google certification program fits in perfectly.

While specific details are scarce right now, it’s assumed that it will be similar to Apple’s Made with i program. This will allow for customers to be confident in the quality of the accessory that they’re buying for a specific Google device. Since there is still an issue over USB Type-C accessories being compliant or not, this should make things a lot easier for any customer looking for certified products.

Source: 9to5Google

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