Android and Me » google news

News360 launches Honeycomb application, hopes to become your daily news feed

Anthony Domanico — Tue, 24 May 2011 14:00:07 +0000

Good news for you Honeycomb-tablet-toting readers out there. News360 has released an Android application that hopes to become Android users’ one-stop-shop for all their news needs.

Similar to many other news feed applications out there, News360 takes a real-time look at the top stories in a score of different categories, from politics and world news to sports and tech goodness.

Where News360 really shines is the Google-esque related stories incorporation. Say you’re reading a story about the recent tornado outbreak in the Midwest. Along the top of the reading pane, you’ll find a honeycomb-esque menu with the names of different publications where you can read either a different take on the same story, or a very similar story with a slight twist.

News360 can also utilize your tablet’s built in GPS to deliver location-specific stories to your news feed. Simply click on the location icon at the top of the screen and the stories in each of the categories will be tailored to your location. Tapping the location button again will bring you back to regional/national news stories.

Admittedly, I was only able to spend about 15 minutes with the application last night, but my first impressions were very good. If you’re looking for a news application for your Honeycomb device, you may want to head over to the market and give News360 a try for yourself.

News360 is now available for free for all 3.0+ devices on the Android Market.

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News360 for Tablets News360 LLC PLAY QR POWERED BY APPAWARE

Google releases “News Near You,” updating you on location-based topics

Edgar Cervantes — Fri, 13 May 2011 19:07:11 +0000

Google’s location services have been mentioned a lot since last month, mostly due to the hype about the iPhone’s unencrypted location access. The fact is that the device being conscious of its location does bring us many of the benefits we have grown to love so much. Services that take advantage of this feature include Twitter, Geo-tagging, Google Latitude, Foursquare, and the list goes on and on. But let’s not forget the most simple, and commonly used tasks that take advantage of this – browsing. It is commonly known that Google always tries to identify your location, in order to better match the results of your searches, and today, they have taken it a step further and released News Near You on Google News for both Android and iOS.

This new feature is very simple. Upon visiting Google News on your mobile browser, you will find a new section at the bottom of the homepage, called “News Near You.” As you probably know, Google does ask you for permission before using your location for its services. If it is the first time going into Google News, it will ask you if you are willing to give them such permission, or prefer to opt-out of Google’s location services.

If you choose to allow this service to know your whereabouts, the “News Near You” section will give you relevant news to your surroundings. This is possible due to a system in which Google skims through all of the writing in every article, finding words that would identify the article to be relevant to any given place (Isn’t that interesting?).

I personally love the idea. Though I like to stay informed about general matters, I find myself to be more of a community-person. But you may differ in opinion; what do you say? Will you be using this new service? Do you think it is shady? Maybe you don’t like Google knowing where you are… Let us know!

Google News prints Android edition

Taylor Wimberly — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 03:16:32 +0000

We have been questioning if native Android apps from Google were a thing of the past, but it looks like the company is willing to give its services more mobile love now that they will be pushing their own phone. Recent apps like Listen and Goggles came with little warning and were a nice surprise to find in the Android Market.

What is the next Google Service to get the Android treatment? That would be Google News.

Notice the cool 3D effects at the bottom.

I was browsing Twitter tonight when I found the above picture of the Nexus One which someone posted for Reddit. We can see the app drawer and some of the standard apps that came loaded with the phone. At the bottom of the phone we can see some of the new UI tweaks for Android 2.1 being used. Most of the apps we have known about, but I spotted something new on the bottom row.

Click to enlarge.

Right between Music and Pandora we have an icon that looks like a little newspaper. When you zoom in you can see it reads Google News. The apps are displayed in alphabetical order so it fits in line with Music, News, then Pandora.

The mobile site for Google News just got an update so it is a little surprising to see this app already. I’m not sure what extra features they could include in a native app, but I welcome it hoping for a an improved UI and desktop widget.

What features would you like to see in the Google News app?

Update: So I have been told this is the same app as the genie.apk widget that leaked out. Screens upcoming…

[Thank you Jacob for the tip]

Hands on updated Google News for Android

Taylor Wimberly — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 18:00:44 +0000

What is Google’s answer to the ever increasing Android fragmentation? They choose to develop web applications that run in a mobile browser instead of trying to build native apps for every platform. Google first hinted at this strategy during this year’s Google I/O and they have stayed true to their word. Sure we have seen some new creations like Listen and Google Sky Map, but the majority of their services have remained web only and we do not expect that to change.

If you were waiting on Android versions of Reader, Analytics, Adsense, or any other Google service, it is most likely an optimized web version will be available first. We have seen this strategy recently as Google keeps pushing out updates for the mobile Gmail while ignoring the native Android client.

Google News for mobile just got a mini face lift and I spent a couple minutes playing around with it to capture some screens. The service now allows users to create a customizable jump menu which makes news items easier to navigate. To check the service out, point your mobile browser towards http://news.google.com.

From the official Google Mobile Blog:

This new version provides the same richness and personalization on your phone as Google News provides on desktop. Our new homepage displays more stories, sources, and images while keeping a familiar look and feel. Also, you can now reach your favorite sections, discover new ones, find articles and play videos in fewer clicks. If you are an existing Google News reader on desktop, you will find that all of your personalizations are honored in this mobile version too.