When Google announced the Android Design website aimed at helping developers feel more at home with Holo, the theme used throughout Android 4.0, Matias Duarte made it clear that Android development was headed into the next phase. Google is looking to create a more cohesive experience when it comes to developing for Android for [...]]]>

When Google announced the Android Design website aimed at helping developers feel more at home with Holo, the theme used throughout Android 4.0, Matias Duarte made it clear that Android development was headed into the next phase. Google is looking to create a more cohesive experience when it comes to developing for Android for both manufacturers and third-party app developers alike.

One way Google is looking to do that is with a deep, interconnected community where developers can network and lend each other a helping hand. Today, Google announced that they’ll be using their own Google+ to bolster that community, starting with an official profile page for the Android Developers website.

Google will use the Android Developers Google+ page for “development tips, discussing updates to the SDK and developer tools, highlighting new Android training classes, and posting video and pics from Android developer events around the world.”

Google will also use the page for Google+ hangouts, scheduled to take place at 2pm Pacific Time every Wednesday. More hangouts will be scheduled at different times once things progress, but for now you can watch the hangouts after they’ve been uploaded on YouTube if you can’t watch live.

The Android Developers Google+ profile makes a nice addition to Google’s blossoming developer community. Along with the Design guide and Android training program, developers have a number of places to turn for advice on any problems they face.

While many of our readers have been worried about Facebook sharing too much information, others see that as a great feature. One of the latest ways of sharing your life with your family and friends is a feature called Facebook Timeline. It took a bit of time, but Facebook has just announced that [...]]]>

While many of our readers have been worried about Facebook sharing too much information, others see that as a great feature. One of the latest ways of sharing your life with your family and friends is a feature called Facebook Timeline. It took a bit of time, but Facebook has just announced that Timeline is available for Android as well as on their mobile site.

Facebook Timeline allows you to share your life with others, in a historical, sequential timeline. It collects all of your information since you opened your Facebook account and organizes it by year, showing all of your life quests in an organized way. After signing up for this feature, you can go ahead and edit the timeline as you please, including adding things from before there ever was a Facebook. You can take off posts, add posts, select which groups can see them and change the way things look around your Timeline.

This is all now available from your Android device, and can be accessed via the recently updated Facebook app. Simply update to version 1.8.1, and you will be able to access your Timeline with no problem (if you have signed up for it already).

Here are the other updates that come with version 1.8.1:

• Navigate anywhere, fast: Get to your groups, apps, pages, and settings with a single press
• Search and you will discover: Look through friends, subscribers, apps, and pages
• See your friends tags on pictures and zoom: New photo viewing experience
• Faster notifications: Get alerted in real time with new push notifications
• Games & Apps: Play games and access your favorite apps on the go
• Access to mobile timeline (If you already have a timeline)
• Access to friend lists and subscriptions

Go download the new version of Facebook to enjoy the new timeline feature. What do you guys think? Is Timeline a cool feature, or would you rather keep the course of your life away from the online community?

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They took their sweet time, but Orb has finally released an Android app for us non-iPhone users. As some of you might already know, Orb is a service that streams all kinds of online and offline media from your PC/Mac to your mobile device. Everything from Hulu and Netflix to your local music files [...]]]>

They took their sweet time, but Orb has finally released an Android app for us non-iPhone users. As some of you might already know, Orb is a service that streams all kinds of online and offline media from your PC/Mac to your mobile device. Everything from Hulu and Netflix to your local music files can be accessed via a WiFi or 3G/4G connection on your Android or iOS device. The service even lets you access your computer’s webcam if you ever need to.

Previously, the Orb Live app was only available for our iOS-toting friends. But starting today, the app will be available for Android users as well. (Although, I’m not seeing the app on the Market just yet. UPDATE: It is now.). Once it does appear on the Market, the app will cost $10. But after that, everything is free. Including the ability to watch Hulu on your phone even if you don’t have a Hulu Plus subscription.

I’m quite sure Hulu won’t like that at all. Hulu has been pushing people pretty hard lately to upgrade to their $7.99/month Hulu Plus subscription, which gives you access to Hulu on your Android phone and other devices. However, most people are not comfortable with the idea of paying $8/month for something they’re getting for free on their PCs.

On the other hand, paying a one-time fee of $10 to be able to access all your home media on your phone sounds like a more reasonable idea. Having said that, there are a few concerns if you choose to go the Orb route. Mainly, the video streaming quality. We haven’t been able to test this for ourselves, but GigaOM reports that things don’t work quite as promised on some phones:

The MyTouch had some notable playback issues, with videos looking pretty jerky even when streamed via WiFi.Janko RoettgersGigaOM

I’m sure the Orb team will improve the streaming quality over time, but it’s just something to be aware of. Another issue that might pop up with Orb in the future is the fact that it’s an awesome service. But wait, how is being an awesome service a downside?

Well, Orb is doing a couple of things here that will surely piss off the wrong kind of people. First, they’re taking all the media you consume, (whether it comes from a TV, the Internet or your hard drive) and putting it all on your phone for just $10. That’s unheard of in a world where every single media company is trying to nickel and dime you for every single device that you want to consume their content on. You just have to look at the recent spat between Netflix and Starz as an example.

To top it all off, Orb is giving you access to all this content through a well-designed and easy-to-use Android app. The audacity! Hopefully, Orb will manage to fly under the radar and stay hidden from trigger-happy copyright lawyers.

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Push notifications work just like you’d [...]]]> If you’re a heavy Twitter user (have you heard of Google+?), today’s your lucky day. The company just pushed a new version of its Android app to the Market, and it brings two new features that Twitter addicts will love. Those features are push notifications and account switching.

Push notifications work just like you’d think they would. Set the app’s settings to “automatic refresh” and Twitter will automatically notify you of every Direct Message, @Mention (from the people you follow or anyone) or Tweet that heads your way. Compare this to how notifications worked before, where the Twitter app had to refresh at intervals. We don’t know why it took Twitter this long to implement this or if they used Android’s C2DM API, but maybe one of our readers has the answer to those questions.

The second feature is account switching. If you have more than one Twitter account, this is a godsend. Basically, you’ll be able to easily switch between any Twitter account that you have. So there will be no more of that signing out and signing in nonsense from the past.

Twitter also updated the appearance of the app’s home screen widgets and added a bunch of other improvements and bug fixes. The app is already available on the Market, so check your phone for an update. After that, come back and let us know how you like it.

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Similarly to what Google did with Google Maps a few days ago, [...]]]> Following the release of a new Google Maps for mobile browsers, Google seems to be working on a re-designed version of Google Search as well. According to Google Operating System, some mobile Google users are being shown a brand-new interface for Google Search.

Similarly to what Google did with Google Maps a few days ago, the company is trying to make Google Search a bit more app-like and less web-like. This new version of Google Search replaces text and links with images and buttons. Instead of small links at the top, the new design has a row of finger-sized buttons for switching between Web, Images, News, etc.

Navigating to another Google product is also much easier with this interface. When you tap the “more” button, an app drawer appears that allows you to switch between Google services.  By contrast, in the current UI you have to use your pinky to carefully tap on the “more’ link. Miss the “more” link by a couple of pixels, and all of the sudden you’re posting on Buzz. Speaking of Buzz, the new Google Search interface completely gets rid of the Buzz button. Does this mean that Google is slowly killing the unloved social service? I hope so.

What do you guys think of this new Google Search interface? Do you like it or hate it? Let us know in the comments.

I will cautiously admit to owning an iPod Touch, which I purchased before I ever owned an Android phone. It [...]]]> Facebook for Android today quietly released an update to their native Android application, bringing a much needed UI improvement, in-app support for Facebook events and friend requests, a new notification bar, and in-app video playback.

I will cautiously admit to owning an iPod Touch, which I purchased before I ever owned an Android phone. It has been a bit painful to see the iPhone version of the official Facebook application keep getting better while it’s Android counterpart remained mostly stagnant. This release brings us back up to par with the iPhone application. In fact, the 1.3 update also brings a stream of pictures at the bottom of the main screen, something the iPhone application can’t yet do. This should give us bragging rights for at least a short while.

Overall, though the 1.3 update really is simply catching up to the iPhone counterpart, it is a much-needed and welcomed update in terms of both UI improvement and added features. The final product is slick and is tenfold better than previous versions.

Check out what’s new in the screenshots below, and head over to the market and download/update it for yourself.

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Your Top 10 Android Apps for the week for Monday, August 2nd 2010 are:

10. Advanced Task Killer