Software : Google Maps adds offline feature, YouTube app gets Watch Later update |
| Google Maps adds offline feature, YouTube app gets Watch Later update Posted:  Android users can now download an updated version of Google Maps which allows them to download customisable maps to be accessed offline. Google Maps 6.9 is being marketed as a tool for exploring new places when you don't have a data connection, perfect for venturing around foreign lands without accruing giant data costs. Once you've narrowed down the area, you can use the phone's GPS connection to position yourself and navigate around the city without using data. The feature had been announced earlier this month, but is now live. Google Earth and YouTube updatedThe company also announced version 7.0 of Google Earth for Android, which brings improved 3D views of a handful of major US cities and Rome. Beyond that, Google has also rolled-out a new version of its YouTube app for Android, which allows for the pre-loading of clips over Wi-Fi by saving them to a Watch Later list. This will mean users won't have to use mobile data, and won't have to wait for clips to buffer on slow connections. All of the updates, as well as the freshly-out-of-Beta Google Chrome browser (ICS and above only), are available to download now from the Google Play store. |
| Facebook iOS app set for speedy overhaul in July Posted:  The Facebook app for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch would probably finish top of the most-used, least-loved chart, but that could be about to change. The New York Times' tech blog has word that a new official app, built from the ground up, will arrive next month to eliminate the current "painfully slow" user experience. The reason for the present application's sluggish performance, according to the anonymous developers who spoke to the NYT, is the hybrid programming language. The present iteration is built with HTML5 components within an Objective-C (the primary programming language used for iOS apps) shell. That is like "putting the engine of a Smart Car in the body of a Ferrari," points out the NYT's Nick Bilton, who has seen the new app in action. Meeting its ObjectivesThe forthcoming update has been built completely using Objective-C, which will make better use of the zippy hardware in iOS devices and bring a "blazing fast" new app. Facebook has declined to comment on the speculation, but it seems that we'll be getting a new app sooner rather than later, with one goal in mind: Speed. |
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