Blinker

Here’s every Google app getting an Android tablet UI, and what updates are live [U: Play Store]

– Sep. 30th 2022 7:49 am PT

@technacity

At I/O 2022, Google announced that it will update over 20 of its first-party apps for large screens in a show of its commitment to the form factor. This will undoubtedly improve the experience for existing owners and is meant to encourage other developers to do the same. Here’s every Google app on Android that has a tablet update and what’s still to come.

Google apps with tablet UIs

Reverse chronological order, latest updates at the top

—Google Play Store
Update 9/30: Ahead of a broader redesign, Google has updated the Play Store with a navigation rail that is more compact than the previous drawer.

At the moment, this allows app icons to be larger but those carousels will soon make way for cards. Google Play has also tweaked the corner logo and search field to be more compact.

—Google Drive, Docs, Sheets, Slides
Update 9/17..

Here’s how much the Pixel Watch will allegedly cost in the UK and Europe

– Sep. 30th 2022 6:55 am PT

@NexusBen

The Pixel Watch is set to debut in less than a week, and we know it’s going to be a pricey option. Now, we’re getting a clearer picture as to what the Pixel Watch will cost in the UK and Europe, as price details surface.

To recap what we know so far, we first reported that the Pixel Watch’s cellular model would cost $399 in the US. Later, we further learned that the Bluetooth/Wi-Fi model would start at $349 in the US, as backed up by retail sources.

Now, Roland Quandt of WinFuture reports on Twitter that Pixel Watch prices in the UK will line up with what we’ve heard so far.

According to Quandt, the list price for the Pixel Watch in the UK is £339. From that, he claims that the price of the Pixel Watch in Europe will be €379 for the Bluetooth/Wi-Fi model and €419 for the cellular option. That’s pretty much what we expected, given the US pricing, but ..

Twitter for Android officially rolling out revamped UI for direct messages [U]

– Sep. 30th 2022 11:23 am PT

@NexusBen

If you send a direct message on Twitter for Android this week, you might see a new look.

As spotted by Max Jambor yesterday, Twitter seems to be testing out a new UI for direct messages in its Android app.

Update 9/30: Twitter has now officially confirmed this new redesign is rolling out widely. We’ve added further details to the post to reflect this, as well as more images from Twitter.

The new design puts the message text box in a row of its own, instead of being lumped in with the image attachment, GIF search, and send buttons. There’s also a rounded look to this box which feels much more in line with the design of Android in recent years.

Our Dylan Roussel was quick to point out that this new look comes as a result of the redesign using Google’s Jetpack Compose tools. He previously found the UI in development as early as June of this ye..

What’s the plan for Stadia exclusive games? Here’s what we know so far

– Sep. 30th 2022 9:58 am PT

@NexusBen

Google Stadia shuttered its first-party studios barely a year after it debuted, meaning no first-party exclusive games were ever announced, much less released. But there were several games that were released only on Stadia, and we don’t yet know what the future holds for these exclusives. Here’s what we know so far.

Stadia exclusives – What’s being lost, and what we know about the future
Related: Google Stadia is shutting down in January, all purchases will be refunded

Gylt
Released as one of Stadia’s first games, and its first true exclusive, Gylt is a horror title developed by Tequila Works. It’s been well-received on the whole but has never had plans to be released anywhere but Stadia.

So far, there’s no sign of Gylt being brought to other platforms.

Outcasters
One of our favorite games released on Stadia was the exclusive title Outcasters. Develop..

September’s Google Play system updates: Play Store redesign on Wear OS, new Wallet features [U]

– Sep. 30th 2022 11:15 am PT

@SkylledDev

Google has laid out some of what Android fans can expect from the September 2022 Google Play system updates, including improvements to Kids Space on tablets.

Update: This latest set of updates also includes new audio switching features for Wear OS and improvements to the Play Store.

A significant portion of what makes Android so useful is the way so many apps are integrated with Google Play Services. In recent months, Google has grouped together Play Services, the Play Store, and the “Google Play system updates” introduced in Android 10. Every month, the company lays out what changes to expect from this trio, which they’ve dubbed “Google System Updates,” and they steadily add more patch notes over the course of the month.

The easiest way to check whether you need to update Google Play Services on your phone is to follow a di..

Ubisoft will reimburse Stadia players with PC copies of its games

– Sep. 30th 2022 12:58 pm PT

@SkylledDev

Ahead of Google Stadia’s shutdown in January 2023, Ubisoft has announced that players will be able to claim free PC copies of their lost games.

As part of the company’s original announcement, Google shared that all Stadia hardware and software purchases — with a few key exceptions — will be refunded in full, with the majority of refunds being processed by mid January. Ideally, players who lose access to their game library would simply repurchase those games — perhaps even at a lower price — once Stadia’s refund comes through. Stadia game saves would even be able to carry over to PC in most cases.

Regardless of Google’s refunds, as an act of goodwill, Ubisoft has told The Verge that players will be able to claim PC copies of the publisher’s games in their Stadia library. The finer details of how this will work have not yet been ironed out, but the workflow..