Author Archives: Johnny Luu

Get Google Play Apps, Music and More by Answering Surveys


















Want to trade your opinion for the new Broods single?  Maybe you want to fill your armour slots on Minecraft, but would rather pay with your time instead of your money for new gear?  Answer quick surveys from researchers and earn Google Play credit with Google Opinion Rewards, an Android app now available on Google Play (goo.gl/BW2p4j) for users located in New Zealand.  

To get started, download the app from Google Play (goo.gl/BW2p4j). About once a week, you'll get a notification on your phone that a short and relevant survey is ready for you. Questions will range from “Which logo is best?” and “Which promotion is most compelling?” to “When do you plan on traveling next?”. After setting up their account, users will receive Google Play credit for completing surveys and earn up to $1.50 NZD for every survey they take.

How do I install Google Opinion Rewards?
+ Open the Google Play store
+ Search for “Google Opinion Rewards”
+ Click install

Explore four decades of Mardi Gras fabulousness

The Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras may have started life as a protest, but these days it’s a different kind of riot as hundreds of thousands of marchers and supporters annually make it one of the biggest and most fabulous LGBTQI celebrations anywhere in the world.
Campaign magazine, courtesy Australian Lesbian & Gay Archives1978-06-24
Now celebrating its 40th year, the Mardi Gras is one of the main annual celebrations for LGBTQI Australians and at Google it’s one of our favourite times of the year, when we get together to support equality, diversity and inclusion.
We’re proud to provide our support to the Mardi Gras through funding of the Community Parade Grants program.
Today, we are also thrilled to help the Mardi Gras tell the inspiring story of how it has evolved over the past four decades through the Google Arts & Culture platform. The interactive timeline of images and videos portrays decades of Mardi Gras love, protest, diversity, acceptance, activism, pride, family, passion, creativity, drama and satire.
The 40th anniversary of Mardi Gras makes me reflect on my own history with this iconic event. Being born and raised in Austria, I was on a holiday in Australia when I met my first girlfriend at Mardi Gras in 2005. You could say that, ultimately, Mardi Gras greatly contributed to me still being here almost 13 years later.
Strictly Mardi Gras Float Markham Lane, 2014-03-01 From the collection of Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras
I have marched three times in the parade, and I still feel goosebumps thinking about that very moment when your float turns onto Oxford St, the crowd roaring. Feeling like a rockstar, celebrated by thousands!
It’s been a long few months for the Australian LGBTQI community. I hope that we’ll be able to celebrate equality for all Australians when Mardi Gras comes around again next year.
Posted by by KJ Pittl, Gayglers Sydney lead, Google Australia

Upping digital skills in 35 degrees…Digital Garage arrives in Darwin

The Northern Territory is the third largest Australian jurisdiction, covering more than 1.3 million square kilometres, and with a sparsely distributed population in some of the most remote areas of the country, there’s a great opportunity for digitally savvy local businesses to connect with consumers from across the country and overseas.


More than 120 business owners came together in Darwin this week for a free digital skills training event hosted by Google Australia in partnership with the Northern Territory’s October Business Month.  

Full house at SkyCity when Digital Garage arrived in Darwin


As more than 90 per cent of Aussie small businesses are not taking full advantage of today’s digital tools, the workshop aimed to help small business owners gain new digital skills and make the most of the web by providing practical skills for improvement. Member for Fong Lim, Jeff Collins, joined the event and spoke about the great digital opportunity for businesses in the Northern Territory.

Guests also heard from local business owner, Damien Moriarty, Founder of Killarney Homes,  on how he uses Google tools to promote the home construction business. Operating for over 10 years, Damien highlighted how a significant amount their lead generation can be attributed back to the company’s digital presence on Google and YouTube. Prospective homeowners increasingly like to do their research online by viewing videos before taking the next step of meeting with a builder.
Jeff Collins MLA, Chair of the Small Business Round Tables


Every month, Google drives tens of millions of direct connections between businesses and their customers in Australia including calls, online reservations and direction requests.The opportunity for businesses in the Northern Territory and beyond is significant. Want to find out more about how to get your business online? Check out The Digital Garage online!

Posted by Richard Flanagan, Head of Business Marketing, Google Australia and New Zealand 

Investing even more in Australia’s future

Great innovations that improve the lives of millions usually have one thing in common: they are born from an obsession with solving a specific problem.
We take the same approach to our products and services at Google, focusing on the needs of our users and employing technology to make their lives easier. It’s that same fixation that also drives the ten nonprofit organisations that Google Australia supported a year ago when we announced $5 million in funding through the Google.org Impact Challenge.
Anna Marsden, managing director of the Great Barrier Reef Foundation, explains how they are helping to save the reef with autonomous robots. 
Nonprofits such as the George Institute for Global Health, which is creating an SMS-based support service to help people with chronic diseases lead healthier lives, or the Centre for Eye Research Australia, with an eyesight self-assessment system for Australians in remote areas. The Great Barrier Reef Foundation is protecting coral reef ecosystems though a low-cost, autonomous robot designed to monitor, map, manage and preserve coral reef ecosystems, while The Nature Conservancy Australia is deploying mobile technology to protect global fish stocks.

This week we celebrated the work of those ten organisations in the year since we announced their funding, hearing about their progress and the milestones they have achieved.
Today, we are thrilled to announce that next year we will invest even more to help tackle Australia’s toughest problems.
The Olga Tennison Autism Research Centre is working on an app to help parents detect autism in their children.
In 2018 we will hold Australia’s third Google Impact Challenge, with a minimum funding commitment of $5 million, inviting charities and nonprofits to propose technology-driven solutions to challenges facing our society. Working with prominent Australians to judge submissions, and inviting the public to vote on their favourite projects, we will select another 10 projects to support with funding and resources from Google.
This will be the third time we have run the Google.org Impact Challenge in Australia, making us the first country outside of America to do so. We started back in 2014, supporting nonprofits such as Infoxchange and AIME, which yesterday launched its game Second Chances, designed to encourage indigenous kids to engage more with maths and science.
Normally we only do an Impact Challenge once, but we have been impressed by the calibre of the ideas and the teams that came forward. The ideas in Australia are not only the best innovators all across Australia, but on par with any of the best innovation ideas we've seen globally.
We are excited to see the new ideas that will emerge through the 2018 Google Impact Challenge, and to assist organisations with visions to use technology in addressing important causes.
Representatives of the ten nonprofits that received funding in the 2016 Google.org Impact Challenge at the anniversary celebration held at Google's offices in Sydney.
Google has always worked best when it helped people work on big problems in new ways. Through Google.org, we rally our philanthropy, people, and products to support nonprofits making an impact in their communities.
In Australia, that commitment continues to grow. We aim to continue to assist all Australians in making creating a safer, more inclusive society for everyone.
Posted by Jason Pellegrino, managing director, Google Australia and New Zealand

Searching for news innovators

At Google News Lab, we believe technology can and should support the creation of quality journalism.
We know that the best journalistic innovations come from within the newsroom, when journalists and technologists work together at the centre of the action.
That's why we are thrilled to expand the Australia Google News Lab Fellowship in its second year, in partnership with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and the Walkley Foundation. Applications are now open.
We’re seeking Fellows to spend the 2017/18 summer embedded in the ABC newsroom, working on data journalism and product development projects that will help one of Australia’s largest newsrooms experiment and innovate with the latest storytelling technologies.
Google News Lab works with newsrooms, startups and journalism organisations around the world.
The Fellowship is open to anyone with technology skills that they’d like to apply to create new innovative forms of journalism, under the guidance of some of Australia’s most experienced journalists. Over the past two years we’ve steadily expanded the Google News Lab Fellowship program to help build the next generation of digital journalists across the world.
Last year we launched the program in Australia in partnership with Fairfax Media, placing Matthew Baker from the University of New South Wales inside the Sydney Morning Herald’s newsroom.
Australian News Lab Fellow Matt Baker (second from right) with other Fellows at Google headquarters last year.
Matthew worked on two main projects - a data-driven analysis of the late-night lockout laws in Sydney, and a recommendation tool designed to increase audience engagement.
We look forward to welcoming a new cohort of passionate Australian journalism innovators this year to expand and broaden the impact of the Fellowship program.
You can learn more about the fellowship program and our participating media organisations at the Walkley Foundation’s website. Applications are open until October 29.
Posted by Irene Jay Liu, Google News Lab Lead, APAC

Introducing Family Link to New Zealand

Young Kiwis, just like their counterparts in other countries, are highly connected.  The typical New Zealand household now owns an average of 10 connected devices*, with younger members likely to use them on a daily basis to watch videos, study for a school report, play games, and more.


Managing our children’s use of these devices, however, can be tricky.  Just as we want to look after our children in the physical world, we’re also concerned about stuff like the apps they’re using and how much time they’re spending on their devices. There’s always a balance to strike between giving our kids the freedom to explore the internet and helping guide their experience.  Starting this week, it will be easier for Kiwi parents to help manage their kid’s Android device and Google account with the launch of Family Link, which recently launched broadly in the US.  


Here’s how it works: First, your child will need a new or factory reset Android device (see which devices work with Family Link). When you're setting up your child's device, Google asks you to create an account. Enter your kid’s birthday, and if they’re under 13, you’ll be asked to provide consent to create the account. Enter your child’s birthday, and if they’re under 13, we’ll help you set up an account for them. Once that's done, Family Link will automatically be downloaded to your child's device, and you can choose the apps and settings that you want for them. After setting up your child’s device, download Family Link onto your device, and you can use it to do things like:


Manage the apps your child can use


Approve or block the apps your child wants to download from the Google Play Store.



Keep an eye on screen time


See how much time your child spends on their favorite apps with weekly or monthly activity reports, and set daily screen time limits for their device.







Set device bedtime


Remotely lock your child’s device when it’s time to play, study, or sleep.





As we continue to develop Family Link, we’d love to hear feedback from Kiwi kids and parents on how we can make the Family Link experience even better. If you have questions about setting up an account for your kid or using Family Link, check out our Help Center. To help your kid make smart choices when using their device, check out our tips for families, or information from our local partner Netsafe.

Charles Zaffaroni, Product Manager, Kids and Families

*Based on New Zealand census data

Switch on and take off… Aussie businesses seizing the digital opportunity

Can getting online really boost your business bottom line? Turns out that digitally engaged small businesses are more than 50 per cent more likely to be growing, according to a new study released today.

The 2017 Deloitte Connected Small Business report found Australian businesses are becoming increasingly tech savvy, with more adopting digital tools to help their business thrive.

And they’re seeing great results - SMBs with advanced levels of digital engagement are 8 times more likely to be creating jobs. They’re also 7 times more likely to be exporting, which is good news for those businesses and the Australian economy.



Small businesses make a big contribution, accounting for more than two-thirds of private sector employment in Australia. This means the opportunities are huge.

Wine retailer Vinomofo is a great example of a business using the web to grow. They now employ more than 100 staff and supply over 540,000 wine lovers across Australia, New Zealand and Singapore, and they're looking at expanding to other export destinations.

While digital engagement has increased, there is still huge untapped potential with the report finding 87 per cent of SMBs are not taking full advantage of digital tools. Small business operators identified a number of barriers to engagement, including a lack of digital skills. In fact, more than 60 per cent of businesses listed skills among the top 3 barriers to digital engagement.

We want all businesses to have the chance to succeed online, that’s why we created The Digital Garage, a free online digital skills training platform. You can also join one of our Digital Garage workshops - keep an eye out for events in your area (next stop Darwin)!

The online opportunity for small businesses is huge. Get the skills you need and help your business take off!

Posted by Richard Flanagan, Head of Business Marketing, Google Australia and New Zealand

Welcoming Mini to the Google Home Family



Today, we’re welcoming a new product to the Google Home family: Google Home Mini. Mini is a small and mighty device for hands-free help in every room, packed with the power of the Google Assistant.




Google Home Mini

Mini makes the Google Assistant more accessible than ever at home. We designed it to fit naturally in any room. It’s sleek and smooth, with no corners or edges, and about the size of a donut. Its fabric enclosure is durable, yet transparent enough to let through both light and sound. The LEDs under the fabric light up to show you when your Assistant hears you. And it projects 360-degree sound so you’ll never miss a beat. With far-field microphones, Mini can hear you even when there’s music playing or there’s other noise in the background. Mini comes in three colors—Chalk, Charcoal and Coral. At $79 (RRP), Google Home Mini works on its own or you can have a few around the house, giving you the power of Google anywhere in your home.






The Google Assistant

The entire Google Home family has the Google Assistant built-in, so you can get answers from Google, tackle your day, enjoy your entertainment, and control your smart home (with an internet connection).  Your Assistant is always getting better, and today we’re introducing a couple of new features:

Step-by-step recipes

We really have our hands full when we’re cooking. We have to prep ingredients, clean as we go – all while carefully following instructions. Unless you’re a seasoned chef, your favourite recipe book may end up covered in dough. To help with this, soon your Google Assistant will free up your hands, save you from mess and keep you focused with voice-activated recipe instructions. Just say “Ok Google, next step” to keep moving through the recipe.

Find your phone

Lost your Android phone? No big deal. Soon you’ll be able to ask your Assistant on Google Home to “find my phone” and hear it ring in its last location, even when it’s on vibrate!


Broadcast

Soon you’ll be able to broadcast a message to let the family know when it’s time to get a move on. Just say “Hey Google, broadcast it’s time to leave for footy training!” and it’ll play on the other Google Home devices around the house.

Apps for the Google Assistant

Last month, we enabled apps for the Google Assistant with the launch of our developer platform, Actions on Google in Australia. This means lots of your favourite brands can build for the Google Assistant and Aussies can enjoy easy and fast access to more services and content.  Just say "Ok Google, talk to..." and your Assistant will connect you with a range of apps, including Woolworths, eBay, NAB, Optus, Domain, AFL (by Telstra), Concrete Playground, Word Bubble (by 3P Learning) and more.

Availability


Google Home Mini will be available for $79 (RRP) later this month from JB Hi-Fi, Telstra, Harvey Norman, Officeworks, The Good Guys, David Jones and Google Store. And you’ll be able to pre-order today from select retailers so you don’t miss out.


Posted by Rishi Chandra, VP, Product Management, Google Home 

Ask more of your phone: The Google Pixel 2

Last year, we launched our first Pixel phone made by Google. We started on this journey by asking “What if smartphones were smarter and simpler?” We set out to make the smartphone experience better and bring the best of Google to the most important device in your life. With Pixel, we created the world’s best smartphone camera and the first phone with the Google Assistant. We were excited that so many of you liked it so much. So we didn’t stop there.



Today, along with a new family of hardware products, we’re excited to announce Google Pixel 2. With this launch, we want you to be able to ask even more from your phone—with the highest-rated camera in the world1 that helps you take great pictures and interact with the world around you, all-day battery life2 and an Assistant that understands you better and helps you get more done.



Pixel 2 is loaded with great features, so let me take you through a few of our favourite ones.



The best smartphone camera, again

Taking great photos and videos is one of the things you do most with your phone, so we set out to deliver the best photography experience. You get stunningly crisp, clear, and detailed photos in any light. You can also take high-quality portrait shots with the perfect background blurs, from both the front and back camera. New motion photos capture a few seconds of video around the shot so you can relive the moment around the picture. The Pixel 2 camera is powered by our computational photography and machine learning (ML) capabilities which make all these great features easy, fun and fast for you to use.





We’ve made video capture better too by combining both optical and electronic video stabilisation to give you remarkably smooth video, even when you’re on the move. All of these great features mean you can take the best photos and videos with Pixel 2. And don’t just take our word for it; independent camera experts, DxOMark, have rated the Pixel 2 camera as the best camera of any smartphone, with an unprecedented score of 98.1 To top it off, we’re once again providing free unlimited online storage for all of the photos and videos taken on your Pixel.4

Your camera will keep getting better over time. As just one example, coming soon and exclusive to Pixel, you’ll be able to play with Augmented Reality (AR) Stickers, so you can add playful emojis and virtual characters to your photos and videos and set the scene for your very own stories.



Search what you see

Pixel 2 owners will also get an exclusive preview of Google Lens — a new set of visual smarts that help you learn more about the world around you and get things done. It builds on Google’s advancements in computer vision and ML, combined with our Knowledge Graph which underpins Google Search. From day one, on your Pixel 2, you’ll be able to look up landmarks, books, music albums, movies, and artwork, by clicking on the Lens icon in Google Photos. You can also use Google Lens to copy URLs and contact info from a picture of a poster or business card. We’ll add capabilities on an ongoing basis, including to use of Lens in the Google Assistant.



The Google Assistant, built in

The Google Assistant makes many tasks—from sending a text or making a call, to finding an answer—faster, easier and hands-free.5 With Pixel 2, you can access your Google Assistant with a new feature called Active Edge. Just give the phone a quick squeeze—even when it’s in a case—and ask the Assistant for what you need.

Your Assistant now helps you manage more settings and apps on your phone. You can say “turn on do not disturb” on your way into the theater, instead of having to navigate through your settings.You can also control your music and find answers to pretty much anything. The Google Assistant on Pixel not only understands you better but can also be more personal to you, helping you get more done at any time.


Do more, worry less

We’ve all been caught with a dead battery, so we made sure the Pixel 2 has a battery that lasts all day.2 And if you ever need a quick boost, 15 minutes of charging gives you up to seven hours of usage.2 It’s also water- and dust- resistant to the IP67 standard3 and comes with important security features baked in. With monthly security updates from Google, your Pixel will always have the most advanced security precautions built in — no more worrying about updating or upgrading.

We’re also making it easy to switch to Pixel. Most people will be able to copy their contacts, apps, messages, photos, and even their iMessages from their old phones to Pixel in 10 minutes or less.6 It’s fast and painless.


Just give me the deets, already

Pixel 2 comes in two sizes, with the same great features in both. There’s the 5-inch Pixel 2 with a crystal-clear cinematic OLED display, which comes in Just Black, Clearly White and Kinda Blue. The 6-inch Pixel 2 XL has a razor-sharp pOLED 18:9 display which allows us to create a full screen, immersive viewing experience, and comes in Just Black and Black & White.

Both phones are powered by Android 8.0 Oreo and come with an always-on display which lets you see notifications at a glance on Pixel’s screen without having to touch the power button. The new Now Playing feature, exclusive to Pixel, shows you on the Always-On display what song is playing around you. With your permission it matches music to a database of thousands of songs that’s stored on your device, without sending any information to Google.

Alongside Pixel we’re launching new cases and accessories. That includes our customisable Google Live Cases, and a range of other cases, cables, headphones and more from over 25 partners in our “made for Google” program. The "made for" products will feature a badge on the packaging so you know they've been certified to meet Google's compatibility standards.

Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL will be available nationwide from Telstra, JB- HiFi and Google Store. You can register your interest for Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL today at the Google Store and Telstra, and pre-order from October 20 starting at RRP $1079.  


There's so much more to Pixel 2, but I'm sure I've already violated some blog post length rules. I hope you'll visit the Google Store to find out more.


Posted by Mario Queiroz, Vice President and General Manager for Phones, Google


1 Based on a September 2017 test from DxOMark Mobile.
2 Based on use of the included charger and a mix of talk, data, and standby use with always on display off.  Actual results may vary, see website for details.  
3Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL have a water protection rating of IP67 under IEC standard 60529. Charger and accessories are not water resistant.
4 Unlimited original-quality online storage for photos and videos taken on Pixel until Jan 15, 2021; unlimited high-quality online storage for photos taken on Pixel afterwards. Requires Google Account + internet connection
5 Requires internet connection and Google account.
6 Transfer time depends on data stored on your phone. Some third-party data may not be transferred automatically. Visit g.co/pixelcare for information. For information on transferring other content and data that isn’t stored on your old phone, visit the Google Customer Care Centre.

Pixel 2 and Daydream View: new experiences in AR and VR


Virtual and augmented reality have the potential to make computing more immersive, intuitive and powerful. With augmented reality, you can interact with digital objects that are integrated seamlessly in the real world around you. With virtual reality, you can experience what it’s like to go anywhere. We just announced the new Pixel 2, which gives you access to amazing smartphone AR and high-quality mobile VR in the same device.





AR: Have fun and get things done

Aside from taking great photos and videos, the Pixel 2’s camera is factory calibrated and optimized for augmented reality. It enables robust tracking, even in low-light conditions, and 60 frames per second rendering of AR objects. That means you’ll be able to have really engaging AR experiences.


Soon, we’re putting AR objects and characters at your fingertips in a new experience called AR Stickers. With it, you’ll be able to express yourself with playful emojis and set the scene for your very own stories. If you’re powering through an afternoon slump, you can take a picture with a tired cup of coffee from the Food-moji pack. Or, if you’re feeling festive, shoot a happy birthday video for your friend with lots of AR balloons. These stickers give you new ways to be creative and capture how you’re feeling, so you can share with the people in your life. It works right in the camera, and it’ll be exclusive to the Pixel.

We’ll release more new AR Sticker packs in the future, so keep your eyes peeled around the changing seasons, holidays and big pop culture moments. You’ll be able to interact with your favourite characters from “Stranger Things,” and be part of the scene as Eleven faces off against the Demogorgon. Team up with R2D2 to save the day with the Star Wars pack. Hang out with your favourite NBA Stars, and challenge Jimmy Fallon to a lip sync battle.

We’re previewing apps and experiences built by our partners with ARCore, the augmented reality SDK for Android. With Houzz, you’ll be able to bring the showroom into your living room and see how different furniture, accent pieces and more fit into your space. With Musical.ly, you can unleash your inner creative genius and pepper your video creations with awesome AR characters. Experience the real-time action of a League of Legends match through an augmented reality map, built by Grab Games. And with LEGO Brickheadz, have fun building virtual models in AR with characters that come to life, without fear of stepping on that last 2x4 brick.


AR Stickers and lots of other AR experiences will be available in the coming months.

VR: More immersive with an all-new Daydream View

We’re also announcing a new Google Daydream View headset, which you can pair with Pixel 2 or another Daydream-ready phone for great virtual reality. With this new headset, we kept the best parts of the original—it’s comfortable, easy to use and built with choice in mind—and made them even better. The new Daydream View has high performance lenses, which result in better image clarity and a wider field of view. It sports a premium two-tone fabric that makes the headset soft and light, and it’s coming to the Google Store in Fog, Coral and Charcoal, and to other retailers in select colours.  




There’s so much to experience on Daydream. Last year, we launched with 25 apps and games. Daydream now has more than 250 titles, so you’ll never run out of things to do. Over the last year, we’ve also seen how much people love watching immersive VR video on apps like YouTube VR. And no wonder: great VR video puts you in the center of the action. It’s a totally different experience from watching on a flat screen.


We’re bringing you more of these amazing, only-in-VR moments with a slate of new and exclusive premium content for Daydream. Get closer than front row seats with intimate performances from your favourite stars like Ed Sheeran in Austin City Limits Backstage. Hear personal confessions from huge comics like Trevor Noah in “The Confessional”, a YouTube VR original from Felix & Paul. Venture to all seven continents with Discovery’s TRVLR series, and blast off into space with IMAX in Google Play Movies.


Learn more and buy

With Google Pixel 2, you’ll have easy access to both AR and VR. We can’t wait for you to get your hands on it and start exploring. Learn more here.


The new Google Daydream View will be available later this year at Telstra, JB Hi-Fi and the Google Store for RRP $149.

Some apps / content require internet connection. Additional charges may apply.

Posted by Clay Bavor, VP of Virtual and Augmented Reality