Google Photos is more than an exciting -- and hugely transforming -- new product. The app/cloud service is a metaphor for an escalating mobile business model that, with perhaps the exception of Facebook, no competitor has the capacity to match. Users gain tremendous time-saving utility, such as the ability...

Chris Davies Google will hold a dedicated ubiquitous computing event this year, encouraging developers to make software that runs across phones, tablets, smart homes, and wearables. The Google Ubiquitous Computing Summit will take place this fall in...

Google unveiled Android Pay on stage during its Google I/O media event, and it seems the service will largely work like Apple’s own wireless payments service. More interestingly, however, is that Google seems to already have come up with an even cooler idea for a mobile payments service that could...

We told you yesterday that Google’s ATAP team is working on a couple new projects dubbed Soli and Jacquard, and today the group of self-proclaimed “pirates” came out to officially announce (and demo) them both on stage at their much-anticipated Google I/O session. They’re both about reimagining how we...

Yesterday we mentioned that the Pebble Time smartwatch was now at distribution centers. If you backed the Pebble Time via Kickstarter, you should have your tracking number by the middle of June according to Pebble. With the watch now shipping to many of the early backers of the project, the official...

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Microsoft all the things, Periscope released on Android, Playboy has an app! - Android Apps Weekly Sponsored by Anytime Gallery for Wear - https://goo.gl/K2HCTr Join us as we take a look at all the exciting things Microsoft is doing along with other non-Google...

It appears AT&T is hosting a little sale on the G Watch R from LG this week, pricing the Android Wear smartwatch at just $99. Regularly priced at $249, getting one for $99 and free shipping is a complete steal. It might be a mistake, and if so, you better hurry. AT&T Link Cheers Charles!...

When smartwatches and wearables came on the scene, listening to music on your mobile devices became even easier. Not that you'd listen to music directly from something on your wrist, mind you. But controlling the music without touching your smartphone saves you a few minutes and several movements as...

We all know that Google Maps has finally reached Android Wear. It was spotted on an Android Wear smartphone, popping up after a recent phone app update. Even if people usually just glance on a smartwatch for quick information or notification, it can be pretty useful for navigation. It makes sense that...

Google has another reason to celebrate and gather all Android fans at the Google I/O 2015 conference. Why, there are now 4,000 Android Wear apps ready for download from the Google Play Store. This is good news for everyone who owns an Android Wear-powered smartwatch because it means there are more apps...

This week’s tech news included headlines about the Google I/O Keynote and plans for Project Fi, Apple’s AR acquisition and the release of the Mary Meeker Internet Trends report. These were our best stories of the week (5/22-5/28). 1. The Google I/O Keynote took place in San Francisco, where announcements...

Volvo is the latest company with plans to support the Apple Watch, thanks to an update for its Volvo on Call app in late June. If you own a Volvo and an Apple Watch, you will have some good news in late June. That's when the car company will issue an update to its Volvo on Call app for the iPhone...

The funny thing about the annual Google I/O developer conference is this: the news doesn’t stop for it. In fact, the opposite is true; knowing that Google’s about to carpet bomb the mobile tech landscape with two days’ worth of Android developments, rivals and partners alike kick their PR machines into...

Swatch said this week it’s making final preparations to enter the smartwatch market, with CEO Nick Hayek revealing the device will launch in August. Speaking to shareholders at the company’s annual gathering, Hayek said the watch would be released first in Switzerland and “one big country.” Yes, that...

There are a lot of messaging apps out there that sometimes makes text or SMS messaging almost obsolete. But for those who still prefer the "old-school" way of communicating with loved ones, using your phone's default app can sometimes seem too boring. Fortunately, you always have an app to make it more...

Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications. Today’s can’t miss deals: 18W Qualcomm Certified Quick Charge 2.0 Charger: $11 Prime shipped (Reg. $16) w/...

Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications. Today’s can’t miss deals: LG G2 w/ 16 GB flash storage, unlocked for GSM carriers: $140 shipped (Reg. $300) Samsung...

Android Wear 5.1.1 is now rolling out to smartwatches everywhere, but as is the case with Google’s over-the-air updates, it might be days before you actually see the latest version pop up on your device. Rollouts start slowly, but thankfully there’s a way around Google’s careful and incremental rollout:...

ASUS ZenWatch Android Wear 5.1.1 Lollipop update has now officially begun rolling out. For those keeping scores at home, Android Wear 5.1.1 Lollipop update was announced only a few weeks ago and apart from the LG Watch Urbane, ASUS’ ZenWatch is the only smartwatch to be running on the latest OS. Just...

Watch OS 1.0.1 may be seen as a first major update of Apple Watch, as it gives us a lot of valuable improvements, and bug fixes and performance enhancements, such like Siri feature. With the first update, the Apple Wrist Watch can now calculate the amount of calories consumed when you ride at home or...

Today Apple has pushed out the first software update for its first wearable. The Apple Watch is getting Watch OS 1.0.1 through the companion iPhone app for the smartwatch. The download comes in at 51.6MB, and as the version number implies this is all about fixing bugs and improving performance for various...

Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications. Today’s can’t miss deals: Lenovo N21 Chromebook N2840 2.16GHz Celeron: $180 shipped (Reg. $220) Samsung Galaxy...

Smartwatch Buying Advice and LG G4 Upgrade Recommendation On this episode of Ask the Buffalo, Jon tells us why you should upgrade to the LG G4 if you’re using last year’s LG G3 and what are good college major choices for those wanting a career in technology...

Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications. Today’s can’t miss deals: Samsung Gear Live smartwatch SM-R382 Android Wear: $110 shipped (Reg. $200) The...

Apple Watch vs LG G Watch R comparison review The LG G Watch R is one of the more desirable Android Wear smartwatches, and it may surprise you to know that this is no faint praise. We know that the vast majority of Macworld UK readers are iPhone users, so to some extent how good or bad are Android Wear...

All smartwatches owe a debt to Pebble; the startup, in its previous life, was building smartwatches for BlackBerry devices back when people still used those. The Pebble Time is the second-generation Pebble hardware released by the company, and it starts shipping out to early supporters of the Kickstarter...

Chris Davies Splash out $10k+ on an Apple Watch Edition and the gold-plated wearable's box doubles as a charging dock; the rest of us have to look elsewhere. Mophie waded in with its Watch Dock back in April, a $60 stand promising to elevate your wrist...

You never know exactly what will make an appearance at Google’s annual I/O developer conference in San Francisco, but that’s what makes it so interesting. Google I/O 2015 kicks off on Thursday, 28th May, with a two-and-a-half hour keynote that promises to unveil an exciting array of updates and new...

At $349 dollars in the Google Store, it is the most expensive Android Wear device, dethroning its predecessor (or almost twin sibling), the LG G Watch R, which was also the most expensive product, at $299 (and so was the G Watch before that). Even at this price point, at the time of this review, the...

When it comes to wearables, the tech world is trying to find its way. That’s not just manufacturers either; it’s us, the people who buy them. We’re not quite sure what to wear, or even if we want to wear a piece of tech at all, so companies are making a variety of different devices to help tempt us....

Android Wear 5.1.1 Lollipop update marks Google’s 3rd iteration of their wearable version of Android. This update adds things like Gesture Support, WiFi Support and a much cleaner UI but does it improve in the areas that need it most? Let’s take a look at the OS running on the LG Watch Urbane right now. Just...

It was the headline that shook the wearable world: late last month, in just 24 hours of preorders, Apple had sold more of its smartwatches than its competitor Google had managed to sell in an entire year. This is the kind of blitzkrieg we’ve come to expect from Apple, with its talent for transmuting even...

ASUS is not new to the smartphone market. Since the days of Windows Mobile (not the new Windows Mobile) they've been selling smartphones. But when it comes to Android devices they've been primarily focused on tablets. ASUS worked with Google to design and manufacture both generations of the Nexus 7,...

It's always the way with technology that it starts out expensive then tumbles in price as more manufacturers enter the field. With smartwatches that fall in price has come pretty quickly as Chinese manufacturers have jumped on the bandwagon. The last budget smartwatch we looked at proved pretty impressive...