Hasta La Gadget!

Over the next few weeks, we can surely expect iOS developers from all over the globe to start pushing out updates to make their applications better interact with Apple’s iOS 6 and that all-new screen found on the iPhone 5. And, because we know some of you choose Chrome over Cupertino’s built-in Safari browser, we thought we’d single out the fact that Google has outed a new version of the app which makes it friendly with the new iPhone’s larger display as well as the most recent variant of iOS. Aside from the iPhone 5 / iOS 6 compatibility, though, Mountain View also bundled in some undisclosed stability and security improvements in version 21.0.1180.82 (!) of the web browsing application. As is usually the case, you’ll find the updated Chrome goods in the App Store — link for that is just down below.

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Software, Mobile

Google updates Chrome app for iOS 6, makes it friendly with the iPhone 5 originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 24 Sep 2012 16:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  iTunes (App Store), Google Chrome Releases blog  | Email this | Comments

The iPhone 5. It is taller, and has incremental improvements under the hood, and is shiny. (I’m staying away. Typing on glass is wrong.)

Of more import, the smartphone you carry is more than a communication device; it is potentially a government surveillance enabler. To whatever extent that is the case (depending on whose public pronouncements you believe), latent digital snooping was reinforced on the same day as the iPhone event. Two days after that, Google announced its intention to build a “Do Not Track” option into the Chrome browser, giving users some shielding from a different type of rampant surveillance — the type that creepily delivers knowingly targeted ads. The two issues differ in seriousness, but are related as privacy concerns. As our mobile and desktop devices get sexier, we become increasingly naked.

Continue reading Editorial: We, the digitally naked

Editorial: We, the digitally naked originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 Sep 2012 15:20:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

Chrome users on Android might have felt a bit neglected over the last couple of months, during which Google pushed a few updates to its browser on iOS while leaving its own platform untouched after it dropped the beta tag in June. That changes today as the Android version is getting its own update, which the team says automatically brings improved sandboxing technology on Android 4.1 Jelly Bean to keep any potentially malicious websites contained thanks to the operating system’s user ID isolation technology. According to the changelog it also integrates location preferences with system level Google apps settings, brings playback controls to fullscreen YouTube videos and fixes aimed at third-party input method editors (IMEs), which is helpful if you’re typing in another language. There’s also a few other security fixes and bugs squashed, check the Chrome releases blog for cash payout details or hit Google Play to grab the update.

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Mobile

Chrome for Android’s first post-beta update brings better sandboxing, other tweaks originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 12 Sep 2012 17:48:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Chrome Blog, Chrome Releases, Google Play  | Email this | Comments

A Holy Grail of Linux gaming has been an Unreal Engine 3 port. Getting one for the OS would unlock a world of games that has been the province of, well, just about any other mainstream platform. Thanks to Google preserving Flash on Linux through Chrome, that dream is alive in at least a rudimentary form. Experimenters at the Phoronix forums have found that Chrome 21 has support for the Stage 3D hardware acceleration needed to drive Epic Games’ Flash conversion of UE3. Tell Chrome to enable support as well as ignore a graphics chip blacklist, and suddenly you’re running Epic Citadel from your Linux install. When we say “running,” however, we’re taking a slight amount of poetic license. Performance isn’t that hot, and certain configurations might not show the medieval architecture in all its glory. We’ve confirmed with Epic that it works, but it’s still firm on the stance that there’s no plans for official UE3 support on Linux “at this time.” It’s still promising enough that maybe, just maybe, gamers can embrace an open-source platform without having to give up the games they love.

Filed under: Gaming, Software

Epic Games’ Unreal Engine 3 now working on Linux through Google Chrome, more or less originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 25 Aug 2012 01:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Phoronix, Unreal Engine  | Email this | Comments

If you’ve been dutifully checking your mobile app updates (you do check, right?), you may have noticed a Google+ upgrade slip through largely unannounced. That revision might be bigger than you think — although its exact value depends entirely on the platform you’re running. If you’re an iOS user, you now have the choice to open web links in Chrome for iOS instead of Safari; it’s not the same as changing the default browser, but it will keep Google fans firmly ensconced in their preferred ecosystem while they’re using Apple devices. On the Android side, it’s now possible to watch live Hangouts On Air sessions if friends aren’t ready and waiting for a chat. Both versions now let teens join any kind of Hangout, and there’s a raft of tweaks on either side of the fence. If you’ve been waiting for either of the two major features to jump in, the app downloads are waiting at the source links.

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablet PCs, Software

Google+ update lets iOS open links in Chrome, Android join Hangouts on Air originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Aug 2012 12:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Mobile Burn, The Next Web  |  App Store, Google Play  | Email this | Comments