Google has been serving up Groupon-style deals through their Google Offers service for over a year. They offer city-specific deals in each area they support, and allow users to buy these offers, and use them later. For example, a user would spend $15 for a voucher that can be used to buy $30 worth of t-shirts.
Until today, these offers were delivered on the Google Offers website, by email to subscribers of a certain city, or via a Google Offers app for Android. Today, Google released a Google Offers iPhone app that will allow users to browse through and purchase offers. App users can see featured offers, browse through offers by category, check out offers in different cities, and view nearby offers on a map. The app makes purchasing an offer easy, and then lets you see your active offers, when they expire, and how far away they are.
Unfortunately, the Google Offers app is only available in the U.S., and Google only supports offers in selected areas. If Google does offer its deals in your city (click here for list), go ahead and download the app here.
Spotify, an online music streaming service that allows users to browse through a large catalog of music, and play any song on-demand, has announced today that it is getting the business of streaming radio. In the new Spotify iOS app, users will be able to choose a song, artist, album, or playlist, and Spotify will create a "radio" station based on that selection. The station will play songs that are similar to the selection made originally, and will alter its selections based on likes and dislikes users give to specific songs. This seems like an open attack at Pandora, which does exactly the same thing, and has been doing so for close to 6 years.
Spotify is free to use in the U.S., with premium subscriptions available, but the iOS app only offers limited features to non-paying customers. The new iOS app, which is out now, offers the new radio feature to all costumers, even non-paying ones, however, non-premium costumers will occasionally be interrupted by audio ads.
Spotify's radio service differs from Pandora is a few ways. For example, users can save songs played on the radio in one tap. They can also create new stations based on their friends shared playlists.
Radio on Spotify
This new Spotify feature can be found in their iOS app on both iPhone and iPad, which can be downloaded here.
Microsoft has always been a company devoted to creating great software. They are the makers of the Windows operating system, which runs on many devices, all manufactured by other companies. The company has announced today that it will no longer rely solely on partners to create the devices that run their operating system.
Microsoft announced a tablet today, that will run on the latest edition of Windows, Windows 8. This device will be manufactured directly by Microsoft. Windows 8 is thought to be the first version of the popular operating system that is really fit for tablet devices, and it seems to make sense that Microsoft would create a device that fit well with the new operating system.
Microsoft is calling this new tablet device Surface. The Surface tablet sports a 10.6 inch screen with a 16:9 ratio, a slick design and some unique features. The design clicks nicely with the look and feel of the operating system that runs on it. Windows 8 features a design mentality called metro, which features minimalistic fonts, colors and tiles. The minimalistic approach continues on the tablet itself. The device has a nice magnesium casing and a boxy but appealing design. It also sports a built in kickstand that allows it to stand upright.
Like the Apple iPad, the Surface tablet has a cover that attaches to the device magnetically. The thing that sets Surface's cover apart is that, when open, it doubles as a touch-sensitive keyboard and track-pad that will transform the Surface into a more laptop-like device. With the kickstand open, the device will sit on a table and be usable just like a laptop. Microsoft will also offer a higher-end keyboard cover that offers a more physical keyboard-like experience.
The Surface tablet will be available in two models. The first, and lower-end model, will run on the ARM processor, and will be called the Surface RT, as it runs on Windows RT, the only version of Windows 8 that will be compatible with ARM processors. This model will weigh in at 676g., and will be 9.3mm thick. It will sport a microSD slot, a full-size USB 2.0 port, and Micro HD video, and will be available in either 32 or 64 gigabyte versions.
The higher-end model will be called the Surface 8 Pro, and will run Windows 8 Pro, using an Intel processor. It will be a bit heavier and thicker than the RT version, at 903g. and 13.5mm. The 8 Pro version will sport a microSDXC, a full-size USB 3.0 port, and Mini DisplayPort video. The 8 Pro version will be available in 64 and 128 gigabyte versions. The 8 Pro version will also have a stylus for handwriting that will lock on to the device magnetically.
The announcement of this device seems to be a step in the right direction for Microsoft. It seems like they really got everything right this time. However, there is no pricing announced yet, and that may be a large factor in the success or failure of the Surface device. There was no word on when the Surface will be available, but it can be assumed that its launch will coincide with the launch of Windows 8.
The video below was created by Microsoft to showcase some of the features of the new tablet.
