4.4 On The Nexus 7

After waiting patiently for the update to grace my tablet; I came home to find it waiting for me. It took a short bit to update before my device proudly displayed the new boot animation before me. At long last; KitKat was now a thing on my Nexus 7!

Android 4.4, otherwise known as the KitKat Update was announced in September and released alongside the Nexus 5 on Halloween (funny how an update named after a popular candy bar is announced on a day that involves eating candy) Lucky users like me who got their hands on the Nexus 5 were amazed by just how fast and snappy the update was; of course this treat was escalated with the Google Experience Launcher, which integrated Google's voice search helper "Google Now" into the homescreen; just by simply swiping to the right or by saying "Ok, Google"(For those who want to learn more about the new update; here's Google's official page for the new update). Of course, the Nexus 5 has some powerful specs to power this device so everything was faster than usual, but many Android users waited to try out the KitKat goodness on other devices, including the popular Nexus 7.

So the update came out for my device, and therefore I was eager to try it out! Once my device was updated, I sat down and gave it a spin!

The first thing that appeared was the homescreen, which unfortunately was not the Experience Launcher I had so come to enjoy on the Nexus 5. Fortunately with a bit of tinkering, I got the launcher "working" on my tablet; though there are still plenty of bugs to deal with and swiping to Google Now in landscape mode is a bit slow but manageable.

Besides that, everything about this update remained quite the same; which I'm glad is the case! 4.4 works beautifully on the Nexus 7: Quick, usable and very pleasing to digest! A transparent notification bar and Android function bar (Thanks to the launcher) was a nice touch along side the new colour change from a light navy blue, to a sleek white-ish grey.

One of the highlights of the 4.4 update is the introduction of a new runtime system known as ART, which apon playing it, speeds up the functions of the device in many areas. However, I've found that this experimental system slows down a few apps in loading time by a fraction of a second...but I hope that Google will eventually implement this new runtime to replace the old Dalvik runtime.

Another new feature that I'm fond of is the new full screen effect for certain apps; this means that I no longer have to see the status bar or the on screen Android keys if I don't want to in order to gain some screen space for watching media. Though some apps already could do this before the update, it's good to know that this is now a standard when it comes for apps that stream or playback content.

Android 4.4 is one of the most sweetest updates to the Android OS yet, and those there still remains some unfortunate users who haven't gotten the update yet for their device; I can only assume that by the end of the month, all selected devices will be able to munch on some KitKat deliciousness!

The Google+/Youtube integration is a good thing; now stop complaining!

This is pretty straight forward; I'm finding that people are missing the point regarding the integration of Google+ comments with YouTube which by itself represents a major improvement to what was the hellish system prior to this.

So why the hell is everyone suddenly up in arms about this?

Need I remind those people that now Google+ comments are being used, there will now be a better way to manage user comments and create more organization for YouTubers to manage their content and connect with their audience. Comments can now be moderated; curbing the need for other users to flag that comment multiple times in order for it to disappear. It's quite the joke that people think that this is the end of the world; it's the exact opposite in the fact that YouTube comments will now have some form of maturity. Sure, you will still have the occasional asshole whom is a total degenerate and makes a ridiculously bad comment, but now it's easier to simply censor that person and carry on with important things.

Let's not forget that Google+ is an amazing platform for sharing content with others...far better in my opinion than Facebook or Twitter; as G+ gives you more creative freedom and the ability to express that creativity on a large, social level. With this integration, we will be able to see a good chance in constructive comments and proper moderation that could give YouTube a second chance in social communication.

So sit back, relax a bit and let the real reality of the situation sink in. You might just like what comes out of this!

The Nexus 5; A quiet release from Google

I'm pretty sure we all had a wonderful Halloween; I spend the day touring the wonderful campus of Loyalist College in Belleville so I didn't have a chance to catch up on the news until later in the day.

So...it seems that the Nexus 5; the successor to the Nexus 4 was announced alongside Android 4.4.

At first I though there was some press conference video regarding this announcement, however the only thing that was available was a commercial. Then I though to myself "I was right all along.."

I made a G+ post in Android's Nexus community page, in which I proposed that Google would make a quiet release of the Nexus 5 (here). Turns out I called it.

Instead of spending alot of money on a major press conference, the Google team simply made a post on G+ that the Nexus 5 and Android 4.4 are official. Then, they begun to post various commercials about the device and updated their Nexus page to include the elusive device. No where was a press conference, nor was their a "Breakfast" event that we were treated with when the Nexus 7 and the Chromecast was announced.

So let me explain why Google did this; it's a thing of genius really.

Google purposely leaked images and content regarding the Nexus 5 (and Android 4.4) to cause a stir within the Nexus and Android community. These leaks cost Google nothing; that's the genius behind it all. The fact that Google didn't even need to spend too much on public press conferences and advertisements meant that they could focus their attention on other important events regarding Google Play and of course, Google+. 

The plan was well executed (if you count all the barbaric and quite repulsive comments made by Android fans to be part of the plan), and it represents a new way of marketing a product; one which social media was heavily used in order to get the word out about the Nexus 5 and create excitement about the product to promote sales. The idea that you can take a few pictures of a product, post it on the web and let the public have at it allows for that company to spend less on actually advertising the product all while answering the 4 P's of Marketing.

So kudo's to Google for a fantastic marketing plan! If only everyone else had your marketing genius!