This week in search 10/30/09

This is part of a regular series of posts on search experience updates that runs on Fridays. Look for the label “This week in search” and subscribe to the series. – Ed. The week leading up to Halloween has brought a flood of new treats for you. Music Search On Wednesday, we rolled out our new music search feature, fully integrated into Google’s web search. Now, when you search for a band, singer, song name, or album title, Google will recognize it and return a special music result on the top of the page. These new special music results do exactly what you want – they let you listen to the full song. To provide this feature, we have partnered with Lala and MySpace (formerly iLike) to bring you full-song streaming. That’s not all, however. The real “wow” in this new music feature is that you can type in phrases of lyrics, we recognize the song – and bring you the song for full play. You can listen, verify it’s the one you were looking for, and then continue on to buy the song on iMeem, iLike, Lala, Pandora, or Rhapsody. Example searches (singers):? Lady Gaga ,? Taylor Swift ,? Jay-Z ,? Jack Johnson ,? Michael Jackson Example searches (band):? Coldplay ,? TV on the Radio ,? Killers ,? MGMT ,? The Rolling Stones Example searches (song):? Sample in a Jar ,? Waiting for the World to Change ,? When Doves Cry ,? All I Want for Christmas is You ,? Walking on Sunshine Example searches (album):? Dark Side of the Moon ,? Achtung Baby ,? Aqualung ,? Evil Urges Example searches (lyrics):? gonna be a good night tonight ,? can feel the hand of fate ,? lucky we’re in love in every way ,? take away this ball and chain Social Search On Monday, we introduced Social Search on Google Labs and Google Experimental . Social Search finds relevant content that your social circle has published and returns that content with your web search results. What defines your social circle? To use Social Search, you need to be logged in to your Google Account and opted in to the Social Search experiment. We then analyze your Gmail contacts (if you have a Gmail account) and the connections on your social networks (if you have a Google Profile and have listed public social networks like Twitter and FriendFeed). What kind of results do we find? Our Social Search results include blogs, photo albums, web pages, and reviews. This way, you not only seeing the most relevant content on the web globally, but you also see the content most relevant and personal to you. To try Google Social Search, go to Google Experimental and click the “Join the experiment” button pertaining to social search. Then try searching on Google for something your friends may have written about. Example searches like ‘restaurant’ or ‘vacation’ tend to occur in people’s personal writings. Social Search results always occur at the bottom of the page, so scroll to the end of the page to see these results. You can also trigger Social Search results explicitly by opening the Search Options panel and clicking on ‘Social’. This will cause all of your results to be from your social circle. Similar Images on Image Search In addition to our new features on core web search this week, we introduced a new and revolutionary way to refine image searches to our main image search functionality this week. The feature is called “Similar Images”. We’ve had it for a while as a separate site, but it has proved so useful and interesting that we decided to make it part of our core image search. The idea here is to find an image that you like and then click the “Find similar images” link below it. This may seem simple, but think about all the complicated things you can express. For example, if I wanted a picture of a single turtle swimming, and I wanted the turtle to be headed to the left rather than the right, it would be almost impossible to express as a keyword search. Now with “Similar Images” features, I can simply do an image search for turtles , then find an image that meets my requirements, like the seventh image on that results page, and by clicking the “Find similar images” underneath it, I get a page composed of solo turtles actively swimming . Example search: jack-o-lanterns , then click on “Find similar images” under the fifth image to get jack-o-lanterns lit from within in night-time settings Example search: birthday hat , then click on “Find similar images” under the second image to get multi-colored birthday hats Example search: peacock , then select “Find similar images” on the third image to get white peacocks with their feathers displayed Personalized Search on Mobile This week we also introduced personalized search for the mobile phone. Personalized search has been available on our website for some time. Now, when you are logged in on your phone, you get the same personalized search results on your mobile phone as well. Google Suggest now global Internationally, we also rolled out Google Suggest on our search results pages. Now, the helpful suggestions that you see when you begin typing on our homepage and results page are available on 156 country domains and in 52 more languages. And to wish you a Happy Halloween, trick-or-treat us by visiting the homepage ( www.google.com ) today and clicking on the Google logo. Hope you enjoyed this week’s features. Stay tuned for what’s next! Posted by VP, Search Products & User Experience

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This week in search 10/30/09

More images of the HTC droid Eris resurface

So just a couple of days ago we talked about the Eris Android phone. Which, by the way, will be made by HTC, not Motorola, and will have the DROID moniker too. And yes, it will also be sold by the Big Red. So, can you hear me now? If you are one of the few that are not sold into the Motorola DROID, or maybe you just don’t want to shell out two Benjamins for it. Well, there is a solution, in the form of another DROID phone coming from Verizon, the HTC DROID Eris. Not as cool as the Motorola DROID, but hey, you might like the Eris better. Who knows? You also have to remember that the DROID Eris by HTC will arrive with the nice SENSE UI from the Hero, as you can see on the images on this post. The Verizon DROID Eris by HTC will be Verizon’s second Android phone and will be priced at $99.99, after the unforgiving rebates and a two year agreement that is. And is believed to be Big Red’s version of the HTC Hero. [ Via phoneArena]

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More images of the HTC droid Eris resurface

Google: We don’t Make Hardware, so don’t expect a GPhone anytime soon

As we know, or at least most of us anyway, there have been rumors of a Gphone for a long time. And there has been actually no Gphone so far, just phones and other devices running Google’s Android OS. Google has confirmed that they don’t make hardware. According to Tom Krazit from CNET , “Google’s Andy Rubin, head of the company’s Android development, would like to clear something up: Google is not in the phone-making business.” So there you have it folks, apparently, Google will not compete with its customers by releasing its own phone. Which many believe is the right path for the company. Rubin, besides making clear that Google doesn’t make hardware, also said; “We’re enabling other people to build hardware.” The vice president of engineering for Android at Google also joked at why Google should not be making its own hardware. He gave the example of Google advocating for the infamous hinge design on the G1. He said that specific design wasn’t popular with reviewers. Rubin also said that at this moment, the company does not seem prepared to make a shift in Google’s business model.

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Google: We don’t Make Hardware, so don’t expect a GPhone anytime soon

Droid Eris Packaging and “In the Wild” Shots

Here’s some Saturday multimedia to share with you guys.  PhoneArena was able to score a few shots of the HTC Droid Eris in the wild , running Sense.  There’s also a pic of the packaging which might indicate the general direction of Verizon’s “Droid” marketing.  The box for the Eris is eerily similar to that of the Droid.  Perhaps they’ll all look like this, save for the name at the top… This actually brings up a question – What’s your opinion on Verizon’s decision to market all Android phones under the Droid umbrella?  Confusing or clever? We can’t for later in the week when this and the Droid go on sale!  It’s exciting to think about the nation’s largest carrier getting ready to drop some Android goodness. Thanks Dimitar! Popular Posts That You Might Enjoy! October 29, 2009 — More Droid Eris Details Coming to Light (3) October 28, 2009 — BillShrink.com Breaks Down the Total Cost of Droid Ownership (7) October 28, 2009 — Peter Rojas: Droid Eris Will Be $99 (7) October 27, 2009 — A Few Droid Eris Tidbits (6) October 27, 2009 — Verizon Reps Getting Trained on Droid Eris (55)

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Droid Eris Packaging and “In the Wild” Shots

Here Comes the Fox

I have tried some of the other browsers on the Android Market but always come back to the standard built-in one. I liked Silver but it didn’t feel like it gave me enough bang for my buck. I’ve always enjoyed Opera but never took it seriously enough to install on my G1. It seems my default browser is in for a battle though on word that Mozilla Firefox is going mobile. Mozilla CEO John Lilly recently said that “ Mozilla will release Firefox for Windows Mobile and then Android. “ Straight from the fox’s mouth! Lilly went on to explain the reason behind the jump into Android and what we can expect. Google’s release of an Android NDK which uses C/C++, the language Mozilla programs in, was the key that opened up the possibility to develop Firefox for Android.  As far as what to expect does Javascript, CSS, Flash, SVG, add-ons, as well as video and audio excite you? “ We [wanted] to build a browser that [does] everything ,” Lilly said. No word on a release date but it seems that this may officially mark the beginning of the mobile browser wars! If Mozilla can meet each or even most of their outlined goals, there is little doubt they will take the lead as king of the mobile browsers! Popular Posts That You Might Enjoy! November 11, 2008 — No Fennec for Android! (15) October 3, 2009 — 10 Things I Love About You (and Why) (3) October 22, 2008 — Mozilla Ignores Firefox Mobile for Android (7)

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Here Comes the Fox

Sony Ericsson Teases With “What’s Next” On Eve of Announcement [VIDEO]

Sony Ericsson has put together a quick 20-second video to tease us with whatever it is they plan to announce next Tuesday.  ( HINT: It’s Rachael! )  We get to see the handset from various angles as it glides in and over us in a very futuristic setting.  We don’t see anything here that isn’t already in mockups , but it’s still a tease nonetheless. Come November 3rd, we’ll find out what actually happens when you actually turn the phone on.  We’ve seen some demo video before, but we don’t know how much has changed or evolved over the last few months. Popular Posts That You Might Enjoy! September 21, 2009 — First Images of Sony Ericsson X3 (Rachael) in the Wild (18) July 9, 2009 — New Pictures of Sony Ericsson “Rachael” (11) October 26, 2009 — Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10 ‘Infinity’ Inches Closer to Real World [UPDATED - Could Be Next Week] (24) October 24, 2009 — FixIt!: Android Devices (8) October 21, 2009 — GeeksPhone ONE Now Available For PreOrder (4)

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Sony Ericsson Teases With “What’s Next” On Eve of Announcement [VIDEO]

“I Know I Missed the iPhone, but Now I’m Taking my ‘Droid and Going Home!”

“Yeah I know I missed the iPhone, but LOOK, I got the 'Droids you're looking for!” Yesterday I was watching football when I started to see a really good commercial, talking about everything the iPhone ISN’T.  I was sitting there saying, hey, all that stuff sounds like Android!  Then at the end of the commercial, I see droiddoes.com .  I then think about the whole advertisement, and after seeing it is from Verizon wireless, realize the commercial has a desperate feel to it. It is a well known fact that CEO Ivan of Verizon turned down the now famous iPhone device, for reasons that no one seems to be able to pin down. But certainly this decision points to the fact that Verizon’s business model is based on nickel and dime’ing their customers from everything surrounding email to GPS navigation.  Apple wasn’t willing to allow Verizon to have that kind of control. So here we have Verizon launching a campaign that smacks all over of Apple, and frankly I find myself pretty ticked off, and feeling like Verizon is VERY late to the Android party–but acting like they are the best carrier to happen to the platform since it launched.  I see this as a desperate play to patch over their HUGE mistake by passing on the iPhone. More specifically, I feel like CEO Ivan is covering his tail because HE was the one to torpedo the deal. Upfront, I have a real problem with Verizon as a company. As I mentioned above, they literally kill their customers with fees for functionality on their handsets.  I had Verizon as a wireless carrier for a long time, until I finally got wise to what they were doing to limit the things that were built into my Motorola Q device.  The Q was a great business phone for me, but I found myself lost one day when I was going to visit a member of my group.  I knew my phone had GPS so I tried to get turn by turn directions.  When I went to turn the service on, it dialed my phone into Verizon, where a rep said I had to pay an extra $5.99 a month to use navigation and the GPS functionality that was BUILT INTO MY PHONE.  Upon further investigation when I got back to my office, I found that Verizon had disabled the GPS in my phone, and it could only be turned on by paying for their extra service.  This was part of their smartphone tier of pricing, you can get one of their smartphones, and you can get a data plan with it, but if you want the extra features, they make you pay for each.  This turned me off immediately, why are there hidden fees for functions that my phone came with, and why were they not disclosed to me at the time of purchase? Because of the above experience, I am anxious to see what they are going to do with the Android platform that I love. Here they have an open platform with which they can develop for how they want, and I see this as a playground for a company that operates the way Verizon does.  The last thing that I want to see are Verizon users handcuffed where the rest of us can enjoy the platform as it was meant to be: free for all to use and develop and mold into something that the user base can really get excited about. Verizon is looking to make Android their iPhone, but they were only willing to take this risk after they saw that Android is a real player in the market.  I understand that this is good business, but I think it is poor idealism, and a lack of creativity and dedication to making the end-user experience something amazing.  I see it as a market grab to allow them to get back into the smartphone market that has passed them by without looking back. Android is going to thrive with or without Verizon, I know, but what is next for CEO Ivan?  Keynote addresses in a black mock turtleneck talking about how Verizon is an innovator on the Android Platform?  I hope not. Popular Posts That You Might Enjoy! October 14, 2009 — March of the Droids (16) October 20, 2009 — The Last Shall Be First, and all that Jazz (2) October 15, 2009 — My Journey to the Dark Side (15) March 31, 2009 — G1 Tethering App Yanked From Market (25) October 27, 2009 — MOTOROLA CLIQ Ad From T-Mobile (8)

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“I Know I Missed the iPhone, but Now I’m Taking my ‘Droid and Going Home!”

Cyanogen Emerges, Releases New ROM!

The dust has finally settled from the Cyanogen uproar and the world’s most popular Android Software Engineer / MOD maker has skated back on the scene, bringing his followers the rooted goods they so enjoy. Note the word “enjoy” and not “deserve” – props to Cyanogen for hooking up the masses. Of course the most recent CM release comes without the proprietary bits that were the cause for his initial disappearance in the first place… but we’ve discussed that to death. Time to move on. The ROM can be used universally on the HTC Dream/G1 and Magic/MyTouch and provides the following features: Based on Android 1.6, many bugfixes and enhancements from AOSP, XDA, and me Highly optimized kernel with many extra modules Enhanced ramdisk which uses optimal mount options and smart startup Includes E2FSProgs for checking and converting Ext filesystems Apps2SD is automatic! All you need is a second partition (ext). Launcher with 5 screens and auto-orientation and compact drawer layout Clean filesystem shutdown at poweroff/reboot, and fsck at boot (no FS corruption!) Includes T-Mobile IM application, Amazon MP3 store, and Work Email (MS Exchange support) Does not require “DangerSPL” Includes a massive APN list Maximum CPU scaling frequency set to 528MHz with latency tweaks Various enhancements to the Settings app including extra partition space Phone app enhancements by cytown Loccy’s “BetterBrowser” MMS enhancements from rgv151 FLAC audio support thanks to kroot Bluetooth OBEX support from Erin Yueh USB tethering support (kernel code ported by Zinx) Commandline extras: powertop, htop, nano, busybox, openvpn Ability to lock home app in memory (control in Spare Parts app) To get more details and download/install for yourself (we take no responsibility for any negative outcmoes) visit XDA Dev .

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Cyanogen Emerges, Releases New ROM!

Review of the Samsung Moment at Slashgear

If you have been waiting to find out more about the Samsung Moment , than now it’s your opportunity. Our fearless Head Chef BBQ has reviewed the latest of the Android phones on Sprint’s line-up over at SlashGear . And apparently, he does like it. Most of those who read the specs on the Samsung Moment, normally drool about the 800MHz processor, hey, I don’t blame them, here between us, I did that exact thing. But, there are also things that this new Android phone needs, like a reworked UI – a la MOTOBLUR or HTC SENSE, for example – and also a more extensive social network integration. Now the keyboard, that’s the first thing that impressed everyone that handles the Samsung Moment, and Ewdi was no exception. He likes the audible click when each of the large keys are pressed, and believes that the offset layout better replicates that of a regular keyboard. However, not all the keyboard is great, there are certain “annoying” things about it. I don’t want to spoil it for everyone though, so if you want to see more images of the Samsung Moment from Sprint, as well as a small Screen Test video of the beautiful AMOLED capacitive display, well, head on over to SlashGear . Enjoy!

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Review of the Samsung Moment at Slashgear

Android News Roundup: Sans Droid Edition

The Motorola Droid has been taking up so much of my time that we’re a bit bit behind on news . Allow me to catch you up instantly, with ONE post. I know… magical. Samsung Behold 2 Pricing We’re expecting T-Mobile to launch the Samsung Behold 2 Android Phone sometime in the near future and while pricing isn’t official, Brighthand has reported that $250 on a 2-year contract is the leaked/rumored price. This would be the first Android Phone to debut over $200 with a 2-year contract and with the Droid arriving, you have to wonder how it will fare. But that, I suppose, depends on how it performs. [ Read More ] LG GW620 Website Dishes Out Details I saw this a few days ago and dismissed it as a hoax because it looked so… amateur. LG has put up a website for their first Android Phone, the LG GW620 . But the videos along side it are anything BUT amateur and they dish out some cool information on the upcoming LG GW620 including what they call face recognition – but it really isn’t. Overall the phone does look pretty nice, check it out: The site has since been taken down but as of this posting the video itself is still up from the LG GW620 YouTube account .We found another video of the LG GW620 from our friends at AndroidAndMe . Not to mention this phone also just passed the FCC . [Thanks to all who sent this in] Android 2.0 Ported To G1 A YouTuber named EmoGamer has taken Android 2.0 and ported it to his G1. Chug-a-lug, Chug-a-lug… it is SLOW! Looks like Android 2.0 really requires some beefiness. So long 528 MHz processors please! While he disabled embedding, you can still check it out at YouTube . HTC Droid Eris Appears Again If you’re looking for more pictures of the Droid Eris you can check out two pictures looked to be snapped at a BestBuy from BGR. Really interesting that mum is the word on this bad boy but I guess VZW and Motorola want the shiniest, newest droid to take front and center stage. His contact also said the Droid Eris seems faster, thinner and taller than the Sprint HTC Hero… Hmmm…. interesting. [ Read More ] Sync Your Android to iTunes with DoubleTwist A desktop application called DoubleTwist has released a new-and-improved version that will sync your Android Phone with iTunes! Pretty awesome if it works as advertised. We’ve got a few application reviewers chomping at the bit to test out some stuff and report to you all, so many this is something we can report back to you folks on. [ Read More ] ASUS Android Smartbook Coming Early 2010 Gizmodo is reporting on a Smartbook set to run Android launching from ASUS early next year. The company is calling it their “secret weapon” and should be around $180 – totally a great price if they can market this properly. And of course, depending on how successfully the bigger screen integrates Android functionality. Are you the type to pony up for an Android smartbook/netbook or are you staying away from that arena until they’re more proven? [ Read More ] I know I broke my “Sans Droid” promise with this one… sowwy! Engadget’s Motorola Droid Review The first to have a full Motorola Droid Review, Engadget’s Joshual Topulsky concluded, “It’s easily the best Android phone to date, and when you couple the revamped OS, Verizon’s killer network, and an industrial design straight from a gadget enthusiast’s fever-dream, it makes for a powerful concoction. Ultimately, the DROID won’t usurp the iPhone from the public’s collective mindshare or convince casual users that they must switch to Android, but it will make a lot of serious geeks seriously happy — and that’s good enough for us.” [ Read More ]… Oh… the rest of the Engadget team chimed in too [ Read Even More ]

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Android News Roundup: Sans Droid Edition

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