Hasta La Gadget!

The China versus Google spat seems to be drawing to a conciliatory end today, as a senior state official has announced China is “satisfied” with Google’s latest round of changes. This was somewhat predictable given that the country just recently renewed El Goog’s license to host sites within its borders, but it’s always reassuring to get confirmation from an official source. The American search giant had tried to strike a precarious balance, by having its local .cn domain adhere to Chinese laws and dictum while also providing a link out to its uncensored Hong Kong hub, and that seems to have done the trick. Ultimately, even the .hk search results will be subject to China’s firewall — which will render the most sensitive info inaccessible — but at least Google can walk away from this dispute claiming that it’s providing uncensored search in some form, even if its output can’t always be put to good use.

China happy with Google’s latest tweaks, saga appears at an end originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 20 Jul 2010 03:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Whoa, Nelly! Is that a Firefox 4 download button we’re looking at? Why yes… yes it is! We can’t think of a much better way to wrap up one’s workday than by finding out that Mozilla’s own Firefox browser has finally made the official leap to 4.0, with Beta 1 going live for the adoring public today. It’s ready to be sucked down and installed for those with Windows, Linux and OS X-based machines, and the changelog itself is far too lengthy for this space (though it’s linked below for your perusal). You’ll obviously notice an overhauled look hitting you front and center, with a new add-on manager, support for the new WebM format, improved privacy settings and crash protection headlining the “big chart o’ features.” Give ‘er a download and toss your thoughts on the new build down in comments below, cool?

P.S. – Be warned that this may very well not work with your stable of add-ons right away, so we’d keep that stable 3.x.x build installed as a backup!

Firefox 4 Beta 1 now available for download originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 06 Jul 2010 18:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We were promised cloud gaming nirvana on June 17, and OnLive has indeed kept to its self-imposed schedule. The new service that allows you to play resource-hungry games via only your browser window has taken its first steps into the real (non-beta) world with an initial catalog of 23 games. It’ll be free for the first year for those who showed faith early on and pre-registered, or $15 per month for new bandwagon riders. Do let us know your thoughts if you’ve gotten onboard at this nascent stage: does it play fantastically well, is it close to spectacular, or is it just a pedestrian effort aiming to capitalize on geeks’ lust for unbound gaming? We have to know.

[Thanks, Mike]

Update: OnLive’s site doesn’t seem to have been updated to reflect the service going live (you can sign up, but can’t just jump in and play). It might be, therefore, that OnLive is booting itself up in stages, with only the early birds getting the first bite.

OnLive turns sentient, now beaming gaming goodness over the ether (update) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 18 Jun 2010 04:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Web browser Kylo, which claims to improve the experience of watching online video from a PC on the TV, is getting an upgrade with new features that should make couch potatoes and web video enthusiasts happy.

Kylo users can now launch the browser from a plug-in created for Windows Media Center and connect to Hulu through the browser — though how long that feature will stay alive is anyone’s guess.

Kylo’s creator Hillcrest Labs has also halved to $50 the price of its bangle-shaped Wiimote-like Loop pointer mouse that can be used to wirelessly click browser icons on the screen.

Hillcrest introduced the Kylo in March as a free Mozilla-based browser specifically designed to be viewed from a distance in the living room. Kylo works with both PCs and Macs but is not meant to replace Internet Explorer, Safari or Firefox on PCs, says HillCrest. And unlike other media players or Web sites, Kylo is not a walled garden, but a browser that can take users anywhere they want to go on the internet.

Google’s recently announced set-top and streaming web media software Google TV has revived interest in ways users can access web content including video and TV shows on the large screen in their living room. Companies such as Boxee, Roku, Netgear and Apple offer media players that aggregate web videos, photos and meld it with TV shows from broadcasters and serve it up through an easy-to-use interface.

But a big challenge for all these companies has been cracking Hulu. Boxee and other companies have been playing a cat-and-mouse game with Hulu to offer the service through their streaming media players. Boxee, for instance, has been regularly blocked by Hulu though it is available currently through the software.

Hillcrest Labs says it is talking to Hulu to ensure Kylo watchers can have uninterrupted access.

“We know that one feature that is likely to attract attention is the capability for advanced users to configure the Kylo browser to access Hulu,” says Dan Simpkins co-founder of Hillcrest Labs in a statement. “Our hope is that a respectful dialog with Hulu will encourage them to consider changing their policies.”

But even if Hulu blocks Kylo, the browser is counting on a few new features to keep its users hooked. Kylo will have an auto-hide control bar which is useful for video sites that do not offer full screen mode. It lets watchers maximize viewing space.

Kylo now also has a print from TV browser options for computers linked via ethernet or Wi-Fi to a networked printer.

See Also:

• 7 Ways to Watch Web Video Without Google TV
• Google Introduces Google TV, New Android OS
• Hands-On With the Boxee Set-Top Box and Remote

When Computex kicks off next week, don’t expect to see any devices running Chrome OS.

Computex, held every year in Taipei, Taiwan, is one of the largest trade shows for PC makers, and you’d think Google’s upcoming OS for netbooks would be a star attraction this year. But Google is still racing to finish the operating system, and consumers aren’t likely to see the first Chrome OS devices until late fall.

Chrome OS will also be seen only in netbooks, at least at first, since the company isn’t encouraging Chrome OS for tablets. Instead it is steering tablet makers toward Android, the first of which will be the Dell Streak that launches in the U.K. next month.

“For Chrome, we are targeting the netbook form factor,” a Google representative told Wired.com. “The timeline for the first products is towards the end of the year.”

Google introduced Chrome OS in November as a lightweight, browser-based operating system that would boot up in seven seconds or less. The company said at the time that the first Chrome OS netbooks would be available in the “second half of 2010.” 

Google is working with major netbook makers such as Acer, which is hoping to ship a million Chrome OS netbooks this year. Google CEO Eric Schmidt has said Chrome OS netbooks will cost between $300 and $400, coming in line with devices running Microsoft’s Windows operating system.

Earlier this month, a report suggested Acer could show its Chrome OS netbook as early as June, but Acer has denied it. ”We have no short-term plans for such as product at Computex,” said an Acer statement on the company’s website.

“Given Google’s emphasis on Android at its developer conference, it is unlikely that we are going to see much if any Chrome activity at Computex,” said Michael Gartenberg, partner at research and consulting firm The Altimeter Group. “Chrome is probably not ready for prime time.”

If Google doesn’t move forward fast enough, it may lose ground to Microsoft’s Windows operating system, particularly among tablets. While they haven’t abandoned their Android plans, MSI and Asus both recently announced Windows 7-powered tablets.

Chrome is visibly a work in progress. At its I/O developer conference last week, Google announced a web-based app store that will feature free and paid apps. The app store will be a big step forward to making Chrome an attractive OS, according to Michael Cherry, vice-president of research for operating systems at independent research firm Directions on Microsoft.

“The missing piece so far has been apps and with the web-app store announcement Google is a step closer to the finish line,” said Cherry.

Apps are important for Chrome because Google has pitched it as a Linux-based, open source operating system centered on Google’s Chrome browser. Applications will run exclusively inside the browser.

Having easy access to those apps will be the key to the success of Chrome. The newly announced Chrome web store would do just that. When Google Chrome users install a web application from the store, a shortcut to quickly access the program.

Meanwhile, Google has to do a fine balancing act between Chrome and Android.

Chrome OS has been largely designed for netbooks and larger clamshell devices, while Android is aimed at smartphones.

Tablets fall somewhere in the middle, potentially causing confusion about which OS is best suited to the form factor. For its part, Google has been telling partners to adopt the fast-growing Android for mobile devices and reserve Chrome for netbooks and laptops: machines that can actually deliver on the thin client promise.

“Chrome is an open source project so anyone can take the code on any sort of device without telling us,” says the Google spokesman. “But we think Chrome and Android are two different approaches.”

Google wouldn’t comment on if it will ever merge Chrome and Android.

For now, Android is racing ahead, says Gartenberg.

“Android has the resources and momentum, and it is run by Andy Rubin and his team,” Gartenberg says. “Chrome appears to have fewer resources and no clear leader, at least from the outsider’s perception. In the near term, Google’s efforts are going to be Android-based.”

See Also:

• Chrome OS Netbooks For Under $400, Says Google
• Five Things Google’s Chrome OS Will Do for Your Netbook
• Acer’s Google Chrome OS Devices Likely in June
• Acer Plans a Million Chrome OS Netbooks, New E-Reader
• Google Chrome OS: Ditch Your Hard Drives, the Future Is the Web

Photo: (Travelin’ Librarian/Flickr)