Some new buttons that Google is testing for the Android version of the YouTube app point toward the release of a Material You update for the popular video streamer. According to Google, Material You is “a radical new way to think about design. Material You will transform design for Android, for Google, and for the entire tech industry.”
New look for YouTube buttons currently being tested hints at Material You update for YouTube in the near future
The Google News-Telegram group has posted a photo revealing that Google is testing a new look for the row of buttons found under a YouTube video that appears to have been taken from the Material Design 3 guidelines that Google released in October. The revised Material You look adds pill-shaped buttons under the video. One button shows the combined number of likes and dislikes. Three weeks ago, Google did away with showing the number of dislikes that YouTube videos have garnered in order to protect their creators.
You might notice that the text revealing the title of each button is now placed next to the icon instead of underneath it which forces the bar to be longer. It isn’t known just yet when Android users can expect to receive the new button design which would be the first sign of an impending Material You update for the app.
Truecaller, one of the older messaging apps for mobile has just received major update that significantly enhances the calling experience. Although the app is available on both iOS and Android platforms, this specific update is aimed at those who use smartphones running Google’s operating system.
The highlight of the update is the addition of Video Caller ID, which allows users to set up Truecaller to show a video to their contacts whenever they call them. Additionally, the team behind the app announced that Call Recording is making a comeback. More importantly, the feature is now available for free to everyone using Android devices.
Since users have been asking for it, Truecaller is bringing back separate Calls and Messages tabs in the latest version of the app. Another interesting new feature is reserved to Premium users: the ability to announce your calls. It will allow Truecaller to automatically check whether a call is from a friend or a scammer.
Last but not least, Truecaller Ghost Call is another feature for Premium users, which allows them to schedule a time for a call. Simply open the Premium tab and choose the Ghost call setting option. Then, set a name and number you want to appear on the screen along with the time.
Also, you’ll be able to choose an existing contact in your phonebook using the “pick a contact” option. Finally, tap the “schedule call” and at the set time, your phone will ring and show the usual calling screen on your phone. The feature is meant to get you out from weird situations, or you can use it for fun.
Android’s notification dots allow users to see which of their apps has a notification that they have yet to open. With iOS, the number of unread notifications is placed inside the dots. A tipster named Nick Cipriani has revealed how Google is looking to use notification dots inside Google Messages to highlight the messages that the user has yet to open.
In the latest beta version of Google Messages (version 10.6.240), a bright blue dot can be seen to the right of the time when a message has not been opened. At the same time, the unread message is in bold type similar to how the subject line of unread emails appears in bold print in the Gmail app. The update is apparently being sent out via server-side update so it will be up to you to see if you notice this change when you open the Google Messages app.
It isn’t clear when or even if this will roll out to all Android users. It might not be a very important new feature since you will still see the notification dot on the home page next to the Google Messages icon alerting you to at least one unread message. That alone should give you the motivation to open the app whether or not you know how many messages are unread.
Sometimes if the number of unread notifications in an iOS app is too large, you could get overwhelmed with the number of notifications to read and you might decide to skip opening that app completely. Google is known for running through a number of tests which means that not everyone will end up making it to a future build of Android.
After months of testing and controlled releases, Netflix finally released its mobile games library to Android users worldwide on November 2. Unfortunately, the iOS version of the app is yet to receive this new addition of entertainment choice. At the very least, Netflix did let us know that the feature is also coming to iOS.
In truth, there might be a good reason Netflix games arrived on Android sooner than iOS, and that could very well be the App Store strict rules. With Android, there is a new tab dedicated to the game library. When you choose a game you want to play and tap on it, you are taken to the Play Store to download the app. After a quick sign-in with your Netflix account, you are set to go.
In the iOS version of the Netflix app, however, likely, we will not see a dedicated game library tab since the App Store rules do not allow it.
A developer named Steve Moser told Bloomberg that Netflix is planning to release each of its games individually in the App Store. He got to this conclusion after digging inside the Netflix app code. Each title will have to be downloaded separately from the Netflix app. Then, just like with the Android version, you sign in with your account and start playing.
While this solves the App Store guidelines problem for Netflix, it is not a best-case scenario either. Even though not having a dedicated games tab might seem like a tiny nuisance, it breaks the seamless experience within the ecosystem, which Netflix is trying to build right now. On the other hand, this might not have to continue for too long, as Apple is still getting a lot of pressure regarding the App Store’s guidelines.
When Apple introduced App Tracking Transparency back with iOS 14.5, a feature that allows iPhone users to opt-out of ad-related activity tracking on their phones, Facebook was not happy with it. Back then, Facebook criticized the new privacy feature claiming it would hurt small businesses’ advertising. Now, Mark Zuckerberg is at it again.
On Monday, Facebook reported its third-quarter financial results that showed $29.1 billion in revenue from advertisements. Despite these results though, the company’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg has remained upset about Apple’s privacy changes that prevented ad tracking if the user didn’t want to be tracked. Reportedly, he stated in an investor call that Apple has been hurting not only Facebook but “millions of small businesses” with these changes.
Zuckerberg stated that Facebook experienced “revenue headwinds” because of Apple’s App Tracking transparency and its impact on the advertising business. He criticized the iOS privacy features stating that they affect small businesses that rely on ad platforms in the “difficult times”.
He also said that despite the impact these changes had on the social media platform, the company will learn to navigate the “headwinds” over time with investments Facebook is making today.
Another participant in the investor call was Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg stated that the iOS privacy changes advantaged Apple’s own advertising business. Additionally, Sandberg stated that now it is more difficult to target an ad or measure campaign results when it comes to iPhone and iPad users.
Apple’s App Tracking Transparency, which was introduced back in April with iOS 14.5. The feature presented iPhone users with a prompt to opt-out of advertisement tracking on apps. If people wanted, they could click on a button and thus prevent tracking so they won’t receive targeted apps. Understandably, a large number of iPhone users opted out of tracking.
Companies such as Facebook which rely heavily on advertisements disagreed with the new change ever since it was introduced back in April. Facebook criticized Apple on the move, stating multiple times that this change was hurting small businesses.
It was not only Facebook complaining though. Last week, Snap’s CEO also stated the company’s revenue from Snapchat was affected by the new App Tracking Transparency technology. However, Snap’s CEO stated that these changes might be positive in the long run.
By September of this year, according to data from analysis firm Statista, only 21% of iPhone users have decided to opt-in for app tracking and to allow for their activity to be tracked in order to receive targeted ads. The remaining percentage is, understandably, for iPhone users that have opted out and prevented apps from tracking them for ads.
The App Tracking Transparency feature has now started to change the advertising market across the mobile industry. Right now, many advertisers focus primarily on Android devices, as many iPhone users have decided that they do not wish to be tracked for targeted ads.
Apparently, it’s not only advertisers like Facebook that are affected by this change. A couple of months ago, we reported that the new App Tracking Transparency feature is also changing the mobile game industry and is influencing the way game makers have to go about in order to advertise in games, as they cannot be targeted to specific users.
Recently, we reported on another fact: Apple’s in-house advertisement business has been experienced growth since the change. Apple has an ad service named Search Ads and it has grown since App Tracking Transparency was introduced on iOS devices.
Alibaba Group’s online marketplace Taobao this week rolled out a new version of the shopping app that’s more accessible for senior users.
Piloted ahead of China’s 11.11 Global Shopping Festival, Taobao’s “senior mode” features larger text and icons, simplified navigation and voice-assisted technology, which allows senior citizens to search for products using voice commands.
The homepage highlights games that have been popular among elderly users, including the Baba Farm program where users tend virtual crops to unlock discounts for agricultural produce.
“In the future, we will explore new ways to make online shopping easier for seniors, such as functions that allow their children to help them browse and select products,” said Shao Xi, the project manager overseeing the new service.
China has the world’s largest elderly population. Per China’s latest census published in May this year, the country had more than 264 million people aged 60 or over in 2020 – making up 18.7% of the population.
Alibaba’s digital tools became an integral part of everyday life for seniors during the coronavirus pandemic. Orders made by users over the age of 51 increased by 125% on delivery platform Ele. me last year, while Alipay’s elder-oriented “care version” recorded a 6.6-times jump in visits year-on-year in the first half of 2020.
Covid-19 concerns may now be fading in China, but elderly users remain a priority across the Alibaba ecosystem. Last month, Ele.me introduced an elder-friendly mode within its app featuring a simple homepage with large fonts and buttons to make ordering food and grocery easy.
This isn’t the first time that Alibaba has enhanced its platforms and services for the silver market, which was estimated to be worth RMB3.79 trillion (US$588 billion) in 2020 by the China National Committee on Ageing.
In 2018, Alibaba launched the “Taobao for Elders” channel to make account registration and app navigation more accessible to seniors. It includes a peer-to-peer chat function allowing family members and friends to easily share products and consult each other, as well as a “pay-for-me” option to pay for another’s purchases.
Within the Taobao app, senior users can find how-to guides and training programs for everything from online shopping and payments to ride-hailing and booking online doctor’s appointments, as well as a dedicated customer service hotline.
Improved accessibility features benefit a range of people. In 2018, Taobao debuted an advanced artificial intelligence that reads text written on images, improving the shopping experience for blind and partially sighted users. The shopping platform estimates that roughly 300,000 visually impaired shoppers use the AI tool to browse 2 million products each day
Swedish automaker Volvo has started to deploy an OTA update which also comes with a new app called “Range Assistant” which optimizes the range of its electric cars. It features a smart battery management tool that has a preconditioning timer, and the assistant app itself. This update is also coming to Volvo’s subsidiary Polestar which exclusively makes electric vehicles.
“Through in-house development of software and over-the-air updates, we can constantly improve our cars and make sure that your electric Volvo stays fresh. The Range Assistant app is a great example of how quick development and deployment of new features can improve the Volvo customer experience every day,” said Sanela Ibrovic, the head of connected car experience at Volvo.
The app gives the driver an accurate indication of the estimated range remaining on a trip and offers real-time energy consumption data which helps the driver also understand the factors that impact range. The range optimizer app right now is being launched in a beta stage which can also automatically adjust the climate control system.
Volvo drivers could see increased range improvements from smart battery management and regeneration performance and a smarter timer to precondition the EV battery. Currently, the first car to receive the update is the Volvo XC40 Recharge and this update will also come to the C40 Recharge.
The update will also come to the Polestar branded cars which will also get the Range Assistant app which includes a new eco climate mode that enhances efficiency and reduces demand on the battery from the climate system.
The battery preconditioning system is also now linked to the Google Maps app which is embedded in the car as it is based on Android Automotive enabling the driver to know where public charging stations are, destinations, or waypoints – allowing them to optimize for the fastest possible charge times on the road.
In an unsurprising turn of events, Apple Music is about to make its debut on PlayStation 5, Sony’s hard to come by the gaming console. This would be the second major Apple service provided by Sony via its PlayStation console after the Japanese giant offered PS5 owners six months of free access to Apple TV+.
Although the arrival of the app hasn’t been officialized yet, some Reddit users claim they have received the option to download Apple Music on their PlayStation 5 consoles, but the app wasn’t available.
Eurogamer reports they have tried to download the app from a UK account, but they didn’t find the app. However, they did get the prompt to download Apple Music from a newly created US account.
While PS5 users may not yet be able to download Apple Music on their consoles, the recent reports suggest that Sony is going to make the app available very soon. We’re not sure if this is such a big thing for Apple to announce its October 18 event which focuses on Macs, but at least we know the Apple Music app will sooner or later come to the PS5.
An app that blends the convenience of shopping by phone with in-store experience has been launched in Hong Kong.
KaiKai has teamed with retailers to offer discounts on popular products of up to 50 percent, including Apple AirPods Pro, Dyson Supersonic hairdryers, and the Nintendo Switch gaming system. It bridges the online and offline worlds by allowing users to reserve the products within the app then pay for and collect them in-store, boosting footfalls for participating retailers.
A KaiKai spokesperson says the app plans to add offers on services such as spas and beauty, dining and staycations, as well as luxury fashion retail in the near future. It has signed up popular influencers Sabrina Ng from Pomato YouTube Channel, Ah Gi from Arm Channel TV, and Hailey Chan from ViuTV to promote the app’s Hong Kong expansion.
Within a week of being added to app stores in Hong Kong this month, KaiKai was ranked number one in the shopping category and third overall for downloads.
The app works on the basis of an annual membership fee for users of HKD450 (US$58) which is being waived for the first year for the first 100,000 consumers who sign up. New deals are dropped at 12 noon and 8pm daily with users having 100 seconds to decide if they want to buy what they see before it becomes unavailable to them.
A spokesman for the developer aid the app provides “a unique gamified shopping experience like no other”.
“The thrill of managing to score something in the app continues in-store. KaiKai users enjoy the unique online-to-offline shopping experience: Reserve online, collect in-store later. After reserving the product with the KaiKai app, users have to redeem and pay in-store within seven days,” the spokesperson said.
According to the South China Morning Post, the app was developed by mainland Chinese tech company Cosmose AI, known for tracking shopper locations for online advertising, but the company says KaiKai does not share user location data with Cosmose. It has already been launched in Singapore.
If you don’t own an iPad, you might not know that there is not an Instagram app for Apple’s tablets. But that might not be surprising since stablemate WhatsApp is only now developing an app for the iPad. Instagram chief Adam Mosseri responded to the question “Where’s the Instagram iPad app?” by saying, “I spent a bit of a time on an iPad because I was on a flight, but still no iPad app for Instagram. It would be nice to do, but there’s a lot to do and only so many people, so it hasn’t made the cut.”
This response doesn’t make sense to many iPad owners. And back in June, Instagram started to allow those accessing the site from their computer to post to it from the desktop. Once iPadOS 15 is released (which could happen as soon as this coming week), a change will allow iPhone apps without an iPad counterpart to be viewed in landscape mode. The scaled-up iPhone version of Instagram will be able to switch orientation on the iPad following the release of iPadOS 15.
Back in 2010 when the iPad was brand new, Apple wanted to bring apps to the tablet that were available on the iPhone but not yet developed for the iPad. This way iPhone users could purchase an iPad with the knowledge that their favorite apps would be available.
Currently, Instagram does have a pair of camera apps for the Apple iPad. Hyperlapse creates time-lapse videos using Instagram’s in-house stabilization. This allows users to make time-lapse videos without requiring the use of a tripod or other gear. An entire sunrise can be captured in just a 10-second video and an entire video can be sped up to 12 times normal. Videos can be shared seamlessly over Instagram and Facebook or saved on the camera roll to be shared with any platform.
The other Instagram camera app available for the iPad is Boomerang. With this app, you can record looping videos. As the App Store listing says, “Find something (or someone!) that’s moving, or create a video selfie by switching to the front-facing camera. There’s just one button. Tap it once and Boomerang does the rest: shoots a burst of 10 photos and turns them into a delightful mini video. Share it on Facebook and Instagram right from the app, or save your video to your camera roll to share later.”
As delightful as this sounds, iPad users would prefer to have an Instagram app made specifically for the tablet. While Facebook and Messenger do have iPad versions of their apps, it is the rest of the Facebook app family that acts as though the iPad doesn’t exist. The WhatsApp for iPad native app is supposedly incoming but has yet to surface, and of course, there is the lack of an Instagram app for the tablets.
Facebook purchased WhatsApp in a transaction valued at over $21 billion when it closed in 2014. A couple of years earlier, Facebook purchased Instagram for $1 billion in a deal that has become one of the best investments ever made in the tech space. Bloomberg estimates that Instagram now has a current valuation of $100 billion providing Facebook with a huge paper profit.
Originally a photo filter, Instagram matured to become more of a social media/messaging app. One of the biggest moves it made was to steal away Snapchat’s stories feature which allows pictures and videos to remain posted for 24 hours before they are removed. Ironically, Instagram’s version of stories has been much more successful than Snapchat’s and other apps have joined the club by offering their own stories-like feature.
Tesla has released version 4 of its mobile app which receives a massive overhaul of the user interface and adds a ton of new features. Users can unlock their vehicles using the app and remotely also manage the climate control system of the car apart from many other connected car functions. Version 4 is clearly the most comprehensive update to the app.
Via the app users can also access the after-sales experience and book the car for servicing and repairs. It also lets users know the charge levels of the car remotely which is quite critical.
— Refreshed vehicle and energy homepage
— Streamlined Summon experience
— Enhanced phone key support – vehicle no longer needs to be selected
— Send commands to vehicle immediately upon opening app
— Use Go Off-Grid to seamlessly disconnect your home from the Grid with Powerwall
— Shop the Tesla catalog and view and manage your orders (available in select countries)
— View Supercharging history and ability to pay outstanding Supercharging or service balance (available in select countries)
Tesla is one of the first automotive companies to push over the air updates and has its own app.
Tesla has also added support for widgets on iOS which was introduced in iOS 14 last year. Tesla has also added the supercharger billing experience in the app which comes at a time when the manufacturer is opening up the network to third-party vehicles.
This update comes at a time when Elon Musk has said that it is close to rolling out its full self-driving software to users who opted for the package. Musk estimates after the release of the next beta, in 4 weeks the software update should be rolled out to users.
Last month, the Fakespot Secure Shopping app was launched in the App Store. With the app, users get to experience shopping on Amazon “as it should be, with genuine products and reviews, reliable sellers, great prices and fewer returns,” the app developer said. Earlier today, Apple removed the app from the App Store at the request of Amazon. The latter said that it was concerned that a new update to its iOS app allowed Fakespot to “wrap” the Amazon app without permission which could lead to the collection of data belonging to Amazon customers.
Such data includes email, addresses, credit card info, and the browser histories of Amazon users. However, the online retailer admits that it doesn’t know for sure whether Fakespot is using this information.
Apple never gave fakespot a reason why it removed his company’s app from the App Store. However, a few hours ago Apple disseminated a terse statement in which it said that it regretted the lack of an amicable solution to the issue and that it removed Fakespot from its iOS app storefront. Khalifah, obviously not happy with Apple’s decision, said, “Apple hasn’t even given us the ability to solve this. We just dedicated months of resources and time and money into this app.”
Amazon says that Fakespot violates Apple guideline 5.2.2 which states that “If your app uses, accesses, monetizes access to, or displays content from a third-party service, ensure that you are specifically permitted to do so under the service’s terms of use. Authorization must be provided upon request.” Considering that Fakespot is an overlay that “wraps” around Amazon and that “hell no” is not permission, it would seem that the online retailer has a good case.
In a statement, Amazon said, “The app in question provides customers with misleading information about our sellers and their products, harms our sellers’ businesses, and creates potential security risks. We appreciate Apple’s review of this app against its App Store guidelines.” The Fakespot is still available for Android devices from the Google Play Store.
Google has just released a brand-new version of its Google Drive desktop app, bringing Google Backup and Google Sync together with Google Photos and other features, along with additional improvements. It will be replacing previous home and business versions alike, aiming to make many of the regularly used Google Workspace features easily accessible in a single space.
We know some of the main highlights of what the new Google Drive app will feature:
The download size is rather hefty for the new Google Drive app, coming in at 238 MB and a reportedly fairly long installation time.
For people who are eager to replace their old Sync and Backup app with this upgrade, they will soon start seeing the in-app prompt to download the new, unified version very soon, when they open either of the old apps.
Users of the two apps will be supported by a guided transition to the new Google Drive starting July 19, and in-app push notifications reminding you to upgrade will start appearing as of August 18.
Google recommends that users complete the transition by the end of September in 2021. That’s because on October 1, both the Google Sync and Backup apps will stop working and lose all support from the company. Both business and personal Google Workspace users benefit equally from the simplified workflow made possible in the new, unifying Google Drive app, so it may be better to go ahead and switch sooner than later.
Apple has been in some hot water around the world for a while now, regarding its monopolistic practices in the App Store (not to even mention the whole right-to-repair movement).
The inability for mobile developers to offer iOS apps anywhere outside the official App Store has been a long-standing issue and the cause for many a lawsuit so far. Now, Reuters reports Apple has received a special warning by Margrethe Vestager, who is both Tech Chief and Executive Vice President of the European Commission.
Vestager has accused Apple of “using privacy and security concerns to fend off the competition on its App Store,” which is the driving reason the company cites for forcing all developers to publish through the App Store, where Apple can approve or reject them, and levy the 30% commission fee from one and all (Apple has since loosened up a bit in that regard, to its credit).
Apart from the official warning to Apple last Friday, since 2020, Vestager has also been working on implementing a new Digital Markets Act (DMA), which is a set of rules meant to force Apple into allowing the side-loading of apps from outside Apple’s native App Store onto iOS devices, be that from external app stores or downloaded straight from the web.
While Tim Cook rejected the idea at a public speech in June, saying that this would destroy the privacy and security of the iPhone ecosystem, Vestager agreed about the importance of security but claimed that the argument is not necessarily always relevant.
The important thing here is, of course, that it’s not a shield against competition because I think customers will give up neither security nor privacy if they use another app store or if they sideload… I think privacy and security is of paramount importance to everyone.
Vestager’s proposal is open to change, and would have to go through multiple EU countries and lawmakers in order to be finalized and leave Apple legally bound to allow apps outside the App Store within countries in the European Union.
Twitter has revealed three different design concepts that it is thinking about adding to its regular social media service. One is called “Trusted Friends” and would allow a Twitter subscriber to limit the number of people that can access a particular tweet to a small group of buddies and relatives. “Facets” would allow users to categorize the tweets that they are interested in, and the third feature allows users to choose which phrases they would prefer not to see in their replies.
None of the three features are considered to be inactive development which means that they are not available to Twitter users at the moment. With “Trusted Friends,” users can choose via a toggle switch whether a tweet they send is for public consumption or just for friends and family. Facets will allow a Twitter subscriber to separate tweets into different categories such as “professional” tweets, “personal” tweets, and tweets divided up by hobbies or other interests.
With Facets, Twitter says that you’ll be able to choose to follow tweets from Twitter users only when they are related to a specific topic that you’re following; this way you won’t have to follow every tweet disseminated by someone you’re following. Think about how much time you might save by restricting the tweets you receive to only those of interest to you.
The last feature, as we noted in the first paragraph, allows a Twitter subscriber to block certain phrases. In an example released by Twitter, the author of a tweet has asked Twitter to block profanities from the responses he receives from his tweets including the phrase “asshole.” Twitter says that profanity can be harmful and following the requests of the user, tweets including profanities are moved to the bottom of the conversation, out of view for most people.
Twitter is hoping that by releasing this information about potential new design concepts well before they are being actively considered, feedback from Twitter uses can be generated to help the social media firm determine whether they are on the right track when it comes to improving the app. Note that the images released by Twitter say “Concept only” on the top.