google play

Music streaming Grooveshark app back in Google Play

Music streaming service Grooveshark, whose app was once booted after its the company became too controversial, said it recently worked with Google to remove illegal apps that were doing something even more alarming -- letting users download music for free.

As a result, the Grooveshark app has been allowed back into the store.

Google unceremoniously pulled Grooveshark from the store more than a year ago. The online service lets users upload songs and then share them with other users, which upset some in the music industry.

After its ejection, Grooveshark noticed that other apps illegally using Groveshark's name were … Read more

Google Play launches app store gift cards

After rumors surfaced earlier this month, Google has officially revealed its new Google Play gift cards.

The cards bear denominations of $10, $25 and $50, and will be sold at RadioShack, Target and GameStop. Their actual release date will vary for each retail chain, according to Google.

The cards, similar to the iTunes gift cards Apple has been selling for years, can be used toward a purchase at Google's former Android app market, now dubbed, well, Google Play.

The cards can be used to buy all the bells and whistles for games -- like extra levels, add-on packs and … Read more

Facebook finally deletes the deleted

The top tech headlines for this photo-fun Friday:

Ustream will soon launch an app that lets you stream live video to your Facebook page. Called BFF (Broadcast for Friends), it'll be available in the coming days on Android and Apple devices.

Facebook has found an answer to the photo deletion issue that Ars Technica uncovered three years ago. The problem: Once you deleted a photo, it could still be found if you had the original URL. But now, Facebook says when you delete a photo it will be gone within 30 days. Ars Technica reported that it saw photos … Read more

Google Play enables smart app updates, conserving batteries

Google has enabled a Google Play feature that promises to save Android app users time and bandwidth.

The Web giant is now offering the ability for app users to download delta updates from its Google Play, the folks over at the Android Police blog have discovered.

Previously, an updated app meant downloading it again in full, which could put a strain on a device's battery if the app was large and the connection slow. The new smart downloads allows users to avoid downloading the app in toto, send only the incremental difference between the old and new versions, thereby … Read more

Apple TV and the quest for cable

Thursday's tech headlines know how to speak your language:

Imaginations are running wild about an Apple TV cable box. The Wall Street Journal reported that Apple is talking to cable providers, but no deals have been made. Earlier this week Apple was granted a patent for its design of a cable box. But Apple is not alone in its hunt for cable deals. Microsoft's Xbox 360 has slowly been adding video from cable providers in its quest to be the one box to rule all home entertainment.

The Sony Reader is back with a new model, selling for $… Read more

Purported Google Play gift cards surface, good for music, movies

Will the Google Play store soon get its own gift cards?

The folks over at Android Central today published photos of what they claim are Google Play gift cards. The Android site, which received the photos from an unidentified source, shows two cards that can be redeemed for $10 or $25 in the marketplace.

The alleged cards themselves are black with the Google Play logo. At the bottom, the card indicates that it can be redeemed for "music, movies, books, apps, and more."

It would only make sense for Google to offer up gift cards that can be … Read more

PlayStation's mobile, multiscreen push

Tuesday's top tech headlines are formatted to fit your second screen:

At the Gamescom conference in Germany, Sony announced several new PlayStation games and new methods for playing. Sony talked more about PlayStation Mobile for Android devices, but we still don't know exactly when it'll hit the market or how many games will launch in the store.

And there are some perks for those that own both a PS Vita and the PS3. For one price, you can get a game for both systems, starting with "PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale," "Sly Cooper: Thieves in … Read more

Google Play developer policy updated to fight spam

Google today issued a wide-ranging update to its Developer Program Policy, with the aim of making "Google Play a great community for developers and consumers."

The search giant zeroed in on two issues it's seeing across the Google Play landscape: "deceptive app names and spammy notifications." From now on, developers will not be allowed to use app names or icons that are deemed "confusingly similar to existing system apps," the company wrote in an e-mail viewed by CNET. Google didn't say what would make a respective application confusing.

On the spam front, … Read more

16GB Nexus 7 back on Google Play Store

Well, that was fast. Just one week after the 16GB-capacity Google Nexus 7 tablet suddenly ran out of stock, the higher-capacity version of Asus' critically acclaimed Android tablet is back in the Google Play Store, with a current delivery estimate of three to five business days.

That's the same estimated delivery time as the 8GB Nexus 7.

Since the 16GB version only costs $50 more to order, it feels like a logical step up for the versatile 7-inch tablet. While 8GB might be enough for some basic users, the Nexus 7 lacks an SD card slot or any other … Read more

Android comes under fire from game developers on piracy

Madfinger Games recently lowered the price of its Dead Trigger game from $0.99 to free on the Google Play Store. The reason, it announced, was because of the "unbelievably high" amount of illegal downloads on Google's Android devices despite the game's inexpensive price, according to the Guardian.

Here's what Madfinger Games said on its Dead Trigger Facebook page:

Regarding price drop. HERE is our statement. The main reason: piracy rate on Android devices, that was unbelievably high. At first we intend to make this game available for as many people as possible - that'… Read more