Skype for Android 4.0 brings complete redesign, check out the before and after screenshots

Skype has officially announced version 4.0 of its Android app that makes Skype unrecognizable, but in a good way. The app has been completely redesigned and rewritten from the ground up, with Skype combining some of the design language from the “Modern UI” (Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8) version of the application with elements of Android’s Holo.
Every bit of the application has been touched, from the standard home view to chat conversations, from profile pages to the call UI, and everything else that’s sandwiched in between. Your friends list is more lively with avatars being presented in nice, big, bold fashion. The chat view is no longer an endless stream of text — you’ll now see your friends’ icons next to their messages.

Skype before (top), and after (bottom)

You’ll be able to swipe between recent conversations, favorite people and your full contacts list with a swipe-based tab UI. And beyond all that, Skype’s eye-pleasing blue hue is represented quite well here, and doesn’t feel overdone at all. Skype tells us it was very important to make the base chat experience more pleasant to use, as they noticed a great deal of Android users lean on this feature just as heavily as they do voice and video calls.
Skype says the app has been completely rewritten from the ground up, with an entirely new code base. More than just the way things look, things are supposed to feel a lot faster, smoother, and better, as well.
This effectively makes Skype 4.0 the biggest update we’ve seen since the original version 1.0 launch we were treated to a few years back. The greatest thing about the redesign is that the app doesn’t lose any of the features we’ve already been enjoying, including the new video messaging capabilities that just came out of preview status earlier this week.

On the flip side, Skype 4.0 doesn’t add anything, either, but considering the team went into this overhaul with no previous code to lean on we understand why. We’re just happy we didn’t have to compromise the functionality we already had for good looks, and boy does this thing look good. Skype for Android 4.0 is available for download in the Google Play Store as of today, but don’t fret if you’re not seeing the update just yet — it’ll take a bit of time to make its way to everyone around the world.

[Skype on Google Play]

What’s the best Android phone this summer? [July 2013]

I didn’t think much would change since the last time we did our monthly best phones feature, one where a lot of you disagreed (that’s the beauty of opinions), but the landscape has surprisingly changed quite a bit. Sony unveiled a new monster of a phone, some new stock Android options of 2013′s top phones are out, and there are more on the horizon.

We’re officially in the summer months now, and this is typically a time where a lot of folks are looking to upgrade their smartphones. With that, we want to list some of the best smartphones that’ll be sure to get you through the summer months and beyond. Let’s get started!

5- Samsung Galaxy Note 2

The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 came in at number 4 last time, but the phone is steadily being outclassed by newer, bigger and badder offerings. That said, for a device that launched as early as October 2012 it’s still quite an impressive phone. Not lost on us is the Note 2′s quad-core Exynos 4 chipset and 2GB of RAM, as well as the S Pen that makes writing notes and multitasking a breeze.
These features were more impressive before the introduction of the Galaxy S4, but with that device’s ability to detect hovering fingers without the sue of a digitzed stylus the novelty of the S Pen is wearing off just a tad.

4 – LG Optimus G Pro

Like the previous phone, the LG Optimus G Pro slides back just one spot. LG still gets a bevy of props from us, though — this is what the phablet category is all about. With a Snapdragon 600 processor, 2GB of RAM, a 13 megapixel camera and a 1080p display, this knockout could be more than enough to keep LG competitive in the mobile space for the next year.

3 – Samsung Galaxy S4 Active

This rugged take on Samsung’s 2013 flagship has already turned quite a few heads, though not many in the United States are able to get a chance to own one with AT&T’s exclusivity deal. That said, if you’re in position to buy one then this is almost certainly one of the best smartphones money can buy. It’s a Galaxy S4 with metal, that’s waterproof and is dust resistant. It’s one of the most gorgeous rugged phones we’ve ever seen, and it breaks the stereotype of rugged devices being crap for performance.

The Galaxy S4 Active shares much of the same specs with the original, including a 5-inch 1080p display, 2GB of RAM, Qualcomm’s Snapragon 600 processor, and more. The biggest difference comes in the device’s camera sensor — it’s just 8 megapixels compared to the 13 megapixels found on the Galaxy S4. As you all know, though, megapixels aren’t the end all, be all in camera quality.
We’re still not sure if this is an older camera sensor (from the likes of the Galaxy S3 and Note 2) or if it has the same quality as the 13 megapixel shooter Samsung employs, but it should be among the best of the best in micro camera sensors either way.

1-A and 1-B: HTC One and Samsung Galaxy S4 Nexus Experience

It was so tough to choose between these two behemoths for the first spot last month, but with Nexus Experience versions of both devices available in the Google Play Store it’s a lot easier — it’s a toss-up. When it comes to a stock Android device with no user interface customization and updates almost as fast as Nexus devices, I can’t really put one over the other.


The HTC One excels in build quality and those sweet front-facing speakers, but the Samsung Galaxy S4 has that beast-like camera and that 5-inch 1080p Super AMOLED HD display. The Samsung Galaxy S4 has a microSD card slot and a removable battery while the HTC One is a more comfortable experience for those who don’t want very large displays.
See what I mean? When you rip out the stuff that makes these devices unique — the software customization that makes all of the extra bells and whistles perform that much better — it all comes down to sheer hardware and specs. There’s no Zoe, BlinkFeed or programmable Beats profile on the HTC One, while there’s no S Note, AirView or Smart Stay on the Galaxy S4.
The devices are internally similar, with each boasting Snapdragon 600 processors and 2GB of RAM. The HTC One does have 32GB of internal storage compared to the Galaxy S4′s 16GB, but the well-documented storage issues with the Galaxy S4 shouldn’t be an issue now that TouchWiz isn’t hogging up all those gigabytes for itself.

For some, these devices are less tasty without all those custom bits, and we get that. But stock Android is beautiful, fast, sleek and clean, and we just can’t get over the fact that they’ll get updates to the latest versions of Android much sooner than their custom counterparts. Take your pick in the Google Play Store (HTC One | Samsung Galaxy S4).

Runner-ups

Of course, there are a lot more devices which deserve your attention. These are the top five runner-ups that you should have your eye on if you’re in the market for a smartphone at some point within the next few months.

1. HTC One — No surprise here: this would still be our best smartphone if not for the Nexus Experience version.
2. Samsung Galaxy S4 — See above. If you’re on the fence, hop over.
3. Nexus 4 — It’s still quite affordable and powerful, and it’s still a Nexus. Need I say more?
4. Oppo Find 5 – Oppo does it again. If only the smartphone were more widely available.
5. Huawei Ascend P6 — Fresh off the manufacturing presses, this is easily Huawei’s best, most beautiful phone yet, and it was enough to crack our top ten.

Phones to look forward to

These phones aren’t available yet, but we know they’re on their way and we know we’re anticipating them a great deal. Said to be out at some point this summer, let’s take a look at two of  the most exciting devices on the horizon.
Sony Xperia Ultra Z

Sony announced this phone at the Mobile Asia Expo a couple of weeks ago. This 6.3-inch phablet is huge, both in magnitude and physical stature. Sony’s pulling out all of the steps to convince people to go Xperia, with its Snapdragon 800 chipset, 2GB of RAM and full HD display. Perhaps most impressive is that this is the first phablet that is waterproof, so you can take  quick dive with it if you want without having to worry. Another innovative, unique quality is its ability to take stylus input from nearly anything — even a lead pencil. This device will be out at some point in Q3, which engulfs all of July, August and September.
Motorola Moto X

We still don’t know much about the Moto X — all we know, officially, is that it exists. The rumored specs for this device are a bit more underwhelming than we originally anticipated, with the latest suggesting it’ll come with a dual-core Snapdragon S4, 2GB of RAM, a 720p display (probably between 4.7 and 5 inches), 16GB of internal storage, a 10 megapixel camera and will ship with Android 4.2.2.
That said, the device is said to be coming with a very attractive price tag, which would explain the lack of quad-core silicon or a full HD display. With Motorola, “a Google company,” being backed by the very folks who make Android, we imagine its updates will come through the pipe just as fast as they do for Nexus phones. We’re expecting an early August unveiling and a mid-late August or early September release, so hold onto your pocketbooks until then if you want to wait and see what this thing is all about.

Amazon’s Best Sellers

These phones are selling like hot cakes on Amazon. Note that these aren’t necessarily Amazon’s true best-sellers, but best sellers out of the ones we haven’t already mentioned. Take a look and see if some of these other hot phones are worth your time and money:

1. Samsung Galaxy S3 (All)
2. HTC DROID DNA (Verizon)
3. HTC EVO 4G LTE (Sprint)
4. Motorola DROID RAZR HD (Verizon)
5. Motorola DROID RAZR M (Verizon)
6. LG Optimus G (Sprint)
7. Samsung Galaxy Nexus (Sprint
8. LG Mach (Sprint)
9. Samsung Galaxy Rugby Pro (AT&T)
10. Samsung Galaxy Victory (Sprint)

What say you?

And now, it’s time for our favorite part — the open discussion! Let’s take this conversation (or debate) to the comments section below and let us know if you agree or disagree. We also wouldn’t mind hearing your plans for summer smartphone purchases if you’re indeed planning on grabbing something new. Remember, keep it clean, and whatever you think remember that everyone is entitled to their own opinion. Have at it!

Geohot releases quick and easily root app for the Samsung Galaxy S4 Active [DOWNLOAD]

Following up with yesterday’s post where you told you about acclaimed hacker/modder Geohot rooting his Samsung Galaxy S4 Active, well, it looks like he can finally claim that bounty. Mr. Hotz has done more than simply reveal the root method, he’s actually provided a handy app that roots the device for you. No mess, no fuss. Simply sideload the apk, run activeroot, and you’re good to go.
If you’re viewing this on your Samsung Galaxy S4 Active, hit up Geohot’s download page here to sideload the app. Keep in mind that this is only for root access in the stock ROM, and is only a starting point for those that want to install custom recoveries and ROMs onto their S4 Active. Enjoy.

Samsung Galaxy S4 reportedly reaches 20 million units sold

Much has been said about the Samsung Galaxy S4 since it launched. Folks doubted its ability to live up to expectations a half-dozen different ways, from how it’s been more of an iterative release compared to all the devices before it to how Samsung’s marketing has gotten stale, but that doesn’t seem to matter much to the common consumer.
If recent reports out of South Korea are accurate, Samsung has reached a major milestone by selling 20 million Samsung Galaxy S4 units. Samsung reached that milestone in about 100 days with the Samsung Galaxy S3. For the Galaxy S4, it’s been just over two months.
That is a breakneck pace that Samsung has never experienced before, and the company expects to sell 100 million units of the thing by the time it’s all said and done, something that would be a company first. We reviewed the Samsung Galaxy S4 and praised it for building on its predecessor enough to call it a worthy sequel. We mentioned Galaxy S3 or Note 2 owners might not be as inclined to upgrade, but the device would be a fine catch for pretty much anyone looking for an exciting new smartphone.
Indeed, there seems to have been more than enough people who thought it was a big enough upgrade to spend another wad of cash to stay aboard the Samsung train. It’ll be interesting to revisit these numbers once the end of the summer approaches — we could see Samsung well on its way to selling half of 100 million in less than 6 months at this pace, a number that no one would be able to sneeze at.

Man of Steel and Batman Arkham City Lockdown marked down to only $1 [DEALS]

What better way to spend the 4th of July than with your favorite all-American do-gooders, Superman and Batman. To help celebrate our nation’s independence, Warner Bros games has dropped the price of some of their hottest selling titles to just 99 cents.
Making a quick jump onto the Play Store you’ll find both the “Man of Steel” and “Batman: Arkham City Lockdown” dropped from their regular prices of around $6, to just a single dollar. That’s a pretty sweet discount.

Man of Steel on Google Play
Batman: Arkham City Lockdown on Google Play

Not sure how long this sale will last, but you might wanna get the jump if you’ve been eyeballing these titles. Those of you with iOS devices can find the same deal in Apple’s App Store (ducks). ‘Murica.

Moto X customizations revealed: colors, engravings, wallpapers — NOT internal hardware

Yesterday we saw Motorola’s latest print ad teasing the arrival of their upcoming Moto X device as part of their new “Google owned” makeover. In the ad, there wasn’t a picture of said device or even its “must have” features, only that it was being assembled in the US, and the real kicker that got everyone’s undies in a bunch: a device that users would be able to “design” themselves.
What did this mean exactly? Well, no one knew for sure. Many suspected that they’d be able to customize a device with the appropriate specs to meet their needs (and wallets), as well as a few color options. Well, if the latest news coming out of ABC pans out, you may be left disappointed.
According to ABC News, Moto X buyers will be able to hop onto Motorola’s upcoming website where they will be able to choose a variety of color options — one for the back of the device, and another for the “trim.” From there, users can engrave the device with a name or special message, whatever they like. After that, they’ll be able to upload a photo to be used as a wallpaper. And…. well, that’s about it.
Of course, nothing is set in stone but we’d imagine those mid-range specs we’ve been hearing so much about are true, and will be the only model available for the Moto X. Of course, this could leave spec chasers and hardcore Android fans looking elsewhere. Anyone disappointed by this (alleged) news?

Colorful Moto X back covers revealed in leaked images

Just moments after we learned the Moto X may only offer the customizing options in choosing the color palette of the device, a French site by the name of NoWhereElse was able to nab some images of a few of these colorful back plates. The seemingly legit pic shows the Moto X’s battery cover in green, turquoise, pink, and purple, with more colors no doubt coming down the pipeline.

Exactly how many more colors can we expect to be available at launch? According to the tipster who provided the leaked pics, Motorola is planning to have 16 color variations at launch. If you’re wondering which other colors, well, maybe Motorola’s new logo is giving us a clue (you’ll notice these 4 colors are a part of the rainbow circle). Remember, these battery covers can be mixed in match with the device’s trim which ABC News says will give the Moto X a nice 2-tone paint job. Sweet.

And just like that, white Nexus 4 (8GB and 16GB) removed from Google Play

It was only last week the white Nexus 4 8GB was listed as “no longer for sale,” on Google Play and just like that, both versions of the white Nexus 4 have been completely removed from the Google’s device section. Jumping onto Google Play and clicking on Nexus 4 now only shows the black version of the device, still listed as currently “in stock.”
While old links for the 8GB and 16GB versions will still take you to the appropriate listing, both are listed as “no longer available for sale.” This news doesn’t come as much of a surprise. The white version of the device was always listed as a “limited edition.” Those of you that had your hopes set on the white version might wanna start checking out 3rd party methods like Craigslist.

“New” security hole affects 99 percent of Android users

 

A newly discovered security hole could affect as much as 99 percent of the Android userbase. According to security researchers at Bluebox Labs, a bug that has existed since Android 1.6 allows for third-party sources to modify an application without breaking its cryptographic signature. Translated, this means a hacker could theoretically push malware to a device in the form of an update to an app legitimately installed on a handset.
There would still be a few hurdles to clear to make this a reality, such as devising a means to deliver the update to a user’s handset. It would not be possible through the Google Play Store, but could possibly be achieved through a third-party app store or bogus website. If a hacker could trick users into installing the disguised malware, they would have free reign to deploy any number of existing or new Android trojans.
Bluebox has already alerted Google, but it seems there is little being done. The Android maker is leaving it to device manufacturers to address the issue, which is apparently the case with Samsung. Word is they have patched the issue with the Galaxy S4. Google’s Nexus 4, on the other hand, remains vulnerable.

FCC gave the go-ahead for Japan’s SoftBank

On Wednesday the FCC gave the go-ahead for Japan’s SoftBank to complete a deal that will see the company merge with Sprint. Worth $21.6 billion, the deal will bring in new stream of cash for the third-ranked US carrier as the company continues to expand its high-speed cellular network. Unlike other major telecom deals (AT&T’s attempt to buy T-Mobile comes to mind), there was little reason to believe the FCC would block the acquisition.
To round things out, the FCC has also approved the Sprint buyout of Clearwire, which means that company will now fall under SoftBank’s chain of command as well. Dish Network had entered competing bids for both Sprint and Clearwire, but it became clear that they were not forerunners to win either.
SoftBank’s mission is not to simply sit back and put Sprint on autopilot. Rather, the hope is to see a turnaround that will put some heat on the heels of top US carriers AT&T and Verizon. Look for the company to make some aggressive moves early once the ink dries.

Study says Galaxy S4 is the ‘most loved’ handset on the market

If you were to take sum up the sentiments of folks across the internet following the launch of the Samsung Galaxy S4, the consensus would be that individuals far and wide are enamored with the handset. That’s what the findings of We Are Social suggest, anyway. Trawling the depths of social media, the blogosphere, and forums, the group found that only 11 percent registered as complaints, according to The Daily Mail.
Compare that to the iPhone 5, which actually ranked as the “most hated” handset on the market. 20 percent of posts about the phone were complaints. That goes for 18 percent of posts pertaining to the BlackBerry Z10 and 15 percent of those for the Nokia Lumia 920.
We’d say the study is far from conclusive, but it provides a glimpse into popular reaction to the launch of four major smartphones for four major platforms. But the internet has spoken. They love the Galaxy S4.

New Google Now: More of the information you need, at just the right time.

When computers do the hard work, you can get on with the things that matter in life. Google Now helps you do just that, giving you the information you need, before you even have to ask. Like updating you with flight times, pulling up your boarding pass when you arrive at the airport, or showing you the weather at your next travel destination. Today, we’re making Google Now even more useful by integrating new partners and making all your information even easier to access.

Going to the movies? Movie cards now include the latest ratings from Rotten Tomatoes, so you can pick the right movie. Purchase your tickets through Fandango, and Google Now will remind you when you need to leave for the theater, and pull up your tickets once you arrive.

In the market for a new home? Google Now can provide you with nearby real estate listings from Zillow. Plus, when you are checking out that remodeled kitchen at the open house, Now will automatically pull up more information about the listing.

Of course, all of this information is most helpful when it’s front and center and ready when you are. The new Google Now widget brings all your important Now cards to your home or lock screen, so you don’t even have to open the app.

Celebrating Google Play’s first birthday

Accessing digital entertainment should be simple, whether you like to read books on your tablet, listen to music on your phone and computer, or watch movies on all three. That’s why one year ago today we launched Google Play, where you can find and enjoy your favorite music, movies, books and apps on your Android phone and tablet, or on the web.

Google Play has grown rapidly in the last year, bringing you more content in more languages and places around the globe. In addition to offering more than 700,000 apps and games, we’ve partnered with all of the major music companies, movie studios and publishers to bring you the music, movies, TV shows, books and magazines you love. And we’ve added more ways for you to buy them, including paying through your phone bill and gift cards, which we're beginning to roll out in the U.K. this week.

Since no birthday is complete without presents, we’re celebrating with a bunch of special offers across the store on songs, TV shows, movies and books. We’re even offering a collection of games with some fun birthday surprises created by developers.

It’s been a busy year, but we’re just getting started. We look forward to many more years of bringing you the best in entertainment!

Google Keep--Save what’s on your mind

Every day we all see, hear or think of things we need to remember. Usually we grab a pad of sticky-notes, scribble a reminder and put it on the desk, the fridge or the relevant page of a magazine. Unfortunately, if you’re like me you probably often discover that the desk, fridge or magazine wasn’t such a clever place to leave the note after all...it’s rarely where you need it when you need it.

To solve this problem we’ve created Google Keep. With Keep you can quickly jot ideas down when you think of them and even include checklists and photos to keep track of what’s important to you. Your notes are safely stored in Google Drive and synced to all your devices so you can always have them at hand.

If it’s more convenient to speak than to type that’s fine—Keep transcribes voice memos for you automatically. There’s super-fast search to find what you’re looking for and when you’re finished with a note you can archive or delete it.

Changing priorities isn’t a problem: just open Keep on your Android phone or tablet (there’s a widget so you can have Keep front and center all the time) and drag your notes around to reflect what matters. You can choose the color for each note too.

Pro tip: for adding thoughts quickly without unlocking your device there's a lock screen widget (on devices running Android 4.2+).

Google Keep is available on Google Play for devices running Android 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich and above. You can access, edit and create new notes on the web at http://drive.google.com/keep and in the coming weeks you'll be able to do the same directly from Google Drive.

The World’s Languages in Your Pocket (No Internet Required)

Have you ever found yourself in a foreign country, wishing you knew how to say "I'm lost!" or "I'm allergic to peanuts”? The Internet and services like Google Translate can help—but what if you don't have a connection? 

Today we're launching offline language packages for Google Translate on Android (2.3 and above) with support for fifty languages, from French and Spanish to Chinese and Arabic. 

You can select [Offline Languages] in the app menu to see all the offline language packages available for download. To enable offline translation between any two languages, you just need to select them in the offline languages menu. Once the packages are downloaded, you're good to go.

 

While the offline models are less comprehensive than their online equivalents, they are perfect for translating in a pinch when you are traveling abroad with poor reception or without mobile data access.

  

So go out and explore another language or another culture without worrying about Internet access. There’s a whole world offline out there.

Get inside your favorite movies with Google Play

“What’s his name again? Wasn’t he the guy in that movie with the battle of the bands?” Now, while you're watching a movie on Google Play, you can find out that it’s Jack Black (of course!), who was born in Hermosa Beach and is 43 years old. And with one click you can search the web and learn the fun fact that his parents are both rocket scientists.

We’ve added info cards to the Google Play Movies & TV app so you can easily learn more about the actors, related films and even what song is playing in many of your favorite movies. When you’re watching a film on your tablet, simply press pause and cards will pop up with information about actors on screen. You can tap on an actor’s face to learn more about him, like his age, place of birth, his character in the movie, and his recent work, or scroll through the info cards to learn more about the movie or soundtrack. When you resume the movie, the cards will disappear.

This new feature is offered for hundreds of movies in Google Play and we’re adding more every day. If you’re in the U.S. and have a tablet running Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) and higher, download the latest version of the Google Play Movies & TV app to check it out. We hope to bring info cards to more movies in more countries and devices soon.

A fresh new look for Google Play

Whether you’re in the mood to listen to Justin Timberlake’s new album, read Harlan Coben’s latest bestseller or discover a new game to play, you want the experience of finding and making your purchase to be quick and easy. Today we’ve started rolling out a redesigned Google Play store on Android phones and tablets that is simple, clean and — most importantly — helps you find great entertainment, fast.

The new design focuses on bigger images that jump off the page. Similarly themed content is grouped together so you can hone in on a magazine to read or an app to try. As you move down the page, new recommendations continue to appear so there is always more to see and explore. We’ve also simplified purchasing so you can breeze through checkout and get to enjoying your movie rental or other content.

The redesigned Google Play store app starts rolling out today for Android phones and tablets running Android 2.2 (Froyo) and above. People around the world should see it over the next few weeks. Get ready for a simpler Google Play.

Android@I/O: Just press Play

As our developer audience knows, Android is more than simply a phone or tablet. It’s a platform, an ecosystem, and an opportunity for developers around the world to build exciting services and apps that reach millions of people every day. The flexibility and openness of Android provides developers--and Google, through services like Google Now--the opportunity to build simple, beautiful experiences across multiple devices.

Here’s a quick look at what we announced today at Google I/O, our annual developer conference:

Developers, the heart of Google Play 
Just a year after launch, there are now more ways than ever for developers to monetize their apps in Google Play, and for users to discover and enjoy apps and entertainment. We’ve passed 48 billion app downloads, with more than 2.5 billion downloads in the last month alone. Today, we launched a range of new tools, including services for game developers. For users, this means that you’ll be able to challenge your friends on Google+ to real-time multiplayer competitions, or race against them to the top of the leaderboards. (Check out a few of our favorites: World of Goo, Super Stickman Golf 2, Beach Buggy Blitz, Eternity Warriors 2, and Osmos).

Our library is your library: Google Play Music All Access 
Google Play Music All Access is a new monthly music subscription service that lets you listen to millions of songs across your devices. You can create a radio station from any song or artist you love, browse recommendations from our expert music team or explore by genre. And when millions of songs just aren’t enough, Google Play Music lets you combine our collection with your own collection. You can store 20,000 songs for free in the cloud and listen to them alongside the All Access catalog. It’s $9.99 a month, and you can try it free for the first month. Or better yet, start your trial by June 30 and you’ll pay only $7.99 a month.

Google Play for Education: Android goes to school 
Imagine a world in which all classrooms and students are connected to the web. While such a vision will take the efforts of many, Google has contributed to this endeavor through Google Apps and Chromebooks. Today we are excited to expand Google’s education offering by combining the ease and portability of Nexus tablets with highly engaging educational content. Through this new program educators will be able to manage tablets and discover, purchase, and distribute content through Google Play for Education--whether they're in charge of one classroom or one thousand. We’re inviting developers to get started now to create world class educational apps for grades K-12. Schools interested in learning more can sign up here.

Samsung Galaxy S4 on Google Play 
Next month, we are adding a new Android device to the store to join our current lineup of Nexus phones and tablets. We’ve worked closely with Samsung to create a special Samsung Galaxy S4 exclusively for Google Play. It brings together cutting edge hardware from Samsung with Google’s latest software and services -- including the user experience that ships with our popular Nexus devices. Starting June 26, it will be available with no contract for $649, supporting both T-Mobile and AT&T, with LTE.

A smoother Drive app for Android

The process of creating and accessing your stuff shouldn’t be, well...a process. Today, the Drive app for Android is getting several improvements to make creating and accessing your stuff on-the-go even easier.

To help you find the content you care about, Drive files will now be displayed in a clean, simple card-style. You can swipe between files to see large previews that let you quickly review and discover the information you’re looking for. And if you want to keep some Drive files on your Android device, you’ll now be able to “download a copy” from the actions menu inside settings.

The updated Drive for Android app also gives you to a way to keep track of important paper documents like receipts, letters, and billing statements. Simply click “Scan” from the Add New menu, snap a photo of your document, and Drive will turn the document into a PDF that’s stored for safekeeping. And because Drive can recognize text in scanned documents using Optical Character Recognition (OCR) technology, a simple search will retrieve the scanned document later. No more frantic scrambling through drawers looking for a receipt or digging through your pockets to find that business card -- just scan, upload and search in Drive.

The editing experience in Google Sheets has also gotten some improvements: now you can adjust font types and sizes for a spreadsheet and tweak the cell text colors and cell alignment right from the app. Plus, the Drive app comes with Cloud Print support so you can print anything from Drive with a Cloud Ready printer -- perfect if you need to, say, print that extra resume right before a job interview.

Google Calendar Update for Android: Custom Colors and More

One of the most requested features we’ve seen so far for Google Calendar on Android is the ability to customize event and calendar colors directly from your device. Today’s update allows you to do just that. Now you can highlight those super-urgent meetings and important birthdays, or just switch up the color of your calendar whenever your heart desires.

 

Adding events is now easier and more fun with our redesigned date and time pickers, which let you schedule your special dinner date or the start of your well-deserved vacation in a snap.

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For all of you world travelers, our redesigned timezone picker makes it simpler to find the region that you’re looking for, whether you’re in San Francisco, Tokyo or Zurich.

Finally, it’s easier to schedule repeating events. You can now set events to repeat every Tuesday and Thursday, every month, or every 7 weeks, it’s completely up to you.

The latest version of Google Calendar is built for devices running Android 4.0.3 and above (Android 4.1 or higher for custom event colors). Get it on Google Play, rolling out over the course of the day.