We followed the Google I/O and picked up a few titbits of information we think you might find useful.
Android M is where our mobile phone OS is going next. It’s smarter, slicker and more reliable than current iterations according to Google. The main news from the Android M speech was support for fingerprint sensors, improved battery life with Doze mode and support for the new USB-C standard.
Android Pay
The main news about Android Pay was that it is maturing into a very viable platform. More banks are buying into the system and new versions will allow users to configure exactly how they want to use it. It looks like a very flexible payment platform once acceptance increases.
Project Brillo
Project Brillo is Google’s name for Android base code designed specifically to power the Internet of Things. It will allow product developers to build all these magnificent things they have been promising us for years as well as help automate our homes. We’re not holding our breath for this one but it will be interesting to see where it takes us.
Google Photos
Google Photos is good news for both users who love taking pictures and businesses who are image intensive. This is a cloud service that allows you to store, organise, share and categorise images in a huge number of ways. Best of all, it offers free, unlimited online storage of your material.
Project Vault
Surprisingly for a company with a dubious record for data handling, Google announced Project Vault. It’s a MicroSD card that uses a proprietary secure OS that uses two factor authentication to access. If you have ever used a portable Linux OS on a USB key, it’s similar to that. It has real potential for businesses who value their privacy, if Google bring it to market.
There were lots of other reveals at the Google I/O but were mainly for leisure users or developers. It was a packed two days with lots of new things to get excited about, or not. There was also lots of new potential for the operating system and the direction our devices are moving in. Only another year until the next one!
