Most smartphones have accelerometers that make automatic screen rotation and other features possible. Now Google has found another user for them: earthquake detection. The company is rolling out a feature for Android smartphones that can allow your mobile device to sense the kind of movements that might indicate an earthquake is happening. Then your phone […]
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7 Comments on Google to stop collecting your phone’s location without permission (related: Google was collecting location without permission)
Google to stop collecting your phone’s location without permission (related: Google was collecting location without permission)
7 Comments on Google to stop collecting your phone’s location without permission (related: Google was collecting location without permission)When location services are enabled on an Android smartphone you can use your device for turn-by-turn navigation, track your location history, get local news and weather specific to your location, and more. But if you don’t like the idea of Google knowing where you are all the time, you can disable location services from the […]
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Google launches Nearby for Android (again), to help you discover things that are… nearby
Comments Off on Google launches Nearby for Android (again), to help you discover things that are… nearbyGoogle is rolling out an update for most phones running Android 4.4 or later which is designed to let your phone display notifications from nearby items. It’s called Nearby, and Google says it could let you know when there are apps or Android features you may want to take advantage of. For example, if you’re near […]
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Facebook Bluetooth Beacons let stores beam info to your phone
Facebook already bridges the divide between the internet and the real world by offering a platform for interacting with your real-life friends online. But that’s not really where the money is, which is why your Facebook feed is probably filled with ads, sponsored posts, or content from websites you follow (like maybe Liliputing?) Now Facebook […]
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Android 5.0 Trusted Places keeps your phone unlocked at home (or work, or wherever)
It’s a good idea to protect your phone with a PIN, pattern or password so that strangers can’t unlock your device and access your personal information. But it can be annoying having to actually enter your PIN, pattern, or password every time you want to use your phone — even when you’re at home or in another […]
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Microsoft launches Android apps including lock screen, OK Google replacements
Microsoft’s bread and butter may be the Windows operating system. But the company has a long history of making software for other platforms such as Office for Mac and OneNote and Bing Search for Android. Now the company is launching 4 a series of new Android apps that come from the Microsoft Garage project. These […]
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Google Field Trip app alerts you when there’s cool stuff nearby
Field Trip is a new smartphone app from Google which monitors your location and lets you know when there’s something interesting nearby. You can configure the app to vibrate your phone, play a ringtone, or even turn on the screen and read headlines to you using text-to-speech. Or you can tell it to be quite […]