Google has taken to stealth updating Search and Maps for Android while attention is squarely placed on CES this week. The updates for Maps for Android center on improved battery life with Latitude now featuring faster refreshes for locations and adds the ability to guess location based on vehicle speed if the GPS signal is lost during a drive and offers more public transportation route options for supported public transit systems.
Google has also updated its Search for Android to feature faster, smoother performance, with an updated and simplified user interface. Suggestions for search are now grouped by type, with web suggestions at the top as well as country-specific suggestions and search results for all countries with Google domains with long press capability added to remove history items.
Some additional tips from Google on the new Search for Android:
- Tap the arrow to the right of a search suggestion or history item to add it to your search term before searching.
- Get suggestions from other apps on your phone – check out searchable items in Search settings.
- Long press on home screen to add the Google Search widget, if you don’t have it already, to access search faster.
With the latest update to Maps, Google is seeking to address the biggest issue with the application in battery life compared to previous versions as well as adding additional features for users of public transport while Search being updated for Gingerbread and earlier versions for Android is Google’s attempt to continually maintain the Search app for those versions of Android while gradually transitioning to the newly merged Ice Cream Sandwich.
How exactly was this a stealth update? It was a normal Market update, with a change log on the both the Market & the blog! That’s pretty unstealthy in my book!
I believe the “stealthy” part is that Google automatically has Android Market auto-update Google apps, even without your consent.
If you have metered data, this can ruin your day. Google has made some steps in the right direction, you can now tell Market to only update apps over Wi-Fi, but still, Google should allow users to disable all auto-updates (primarily, their own).
It’s a bit antitrusty, as Google decided that their apps should get preferential treatment (forcing auto-update on their apps by default), despite claiming Android market is an open platform.
No. Google Market only auto-updates apps if you specifically turn it on at both the Market level *AND* per-app inside the Market. It’s definitely not out-of-the-box. Even so, the notification bar still tells you it updated, which is hardly stealth!
Uh, no. At least on my phone, when I do a master reset, it magically automatically updates Google’s apps. Tears through data on my AT&T GoPhone if I don’t shut it off. That wasn’t a manufacturer add, it was done by Google.
16 MB on a 2GB T-Mobile plan may not be a lot, but try it on Page Plus $29 plan… that’s 16% of my data plan!
[…] Google Updates Search and Maps for Android in the Middle of CES Google has taken to stealth updating Search and Maps for Android while attention is squarely placed on CES this week. The updates for Maps for Android center on improved battery life with Latitude now featuring faster refreshes for locations and adds the ability to guess location based on vehicle speed if the GPS signal is lost during a drive and offers more public transportation route options for supported public transit systems. PhoneNews […]