Zadling's Google Blog

I just got Google TV for Christmas and the main reason was to stream Netflix. Netflix has made great strides to transition to more content available for streaming over the internet. Although there is a ton of content available, I’m still wishing there were a bit more TV shows, specifically Two and a Half Men. Although shows like The Office, 24, Dexter, Nip/Tuck, Law & Order, 30 Rock, Chappelle’s Show and Family Guy are available, shows such as Seinfeld, It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia, Two and a Half Men, and The Good Wife are not available on Netflix yet.

For subscribers using just Netflix streaming, the cost is $7.99.  If you want both mailed DVDs and steaming, the cost is $9.99. I was pleased with the quality of the video, but was left wondering, when will more streaming content be available to Netflix? I guess this all depends on how many licensing deals Netflix can close with the studios. Earlier this month, Netflix announced a deal with ABC which boosted their streaming content. Every episode of Lost is now available. Other shows available include Srubs, Ugly Betty, and Desperate Housewives.

What about more movies? I was also disappointed with the movie selection on Netflix. Netflix has inked deals with several movie studios such as Warner Brothers, Twentieth Century Fox, and Universal. They also inked a deal with Epix, a movie site owned by Paramount, Lionsgate, and MGM. However, Netflix didn’t have a few movies that I was searching for such as The Hangover, Avatar, Inglorious Basterds,  Apocalypto, Goodfellas, The Godfather, Boiler Room, and a few other titles.

So when will Netflix have more streaming content? That will all depend on how many licensing deals they can sign. Netflix streaming is still in its inphancy and it’s made great progress. Expect more to come. If you want these titles, you’ll just have to wait for them to come in the mail.

I use Google Calendar to schedule all of my appointments and thanks to Google Sync, my phone is automatically updated whenever I add events on my computer and my Google Calendar is automatically updated when I add events on my phone. However, I’ve been late to a meeting before because my calendar notifications weren’t properly setup. I added an appointment and the default notification was set to 10 minutes. Unfortunately, I needed 30 minutes notice to be on time and forgot to change the default.

Google Calendar gives you the option of setting email reminders, pop-up reminders, or both. I use pop-up reminders rather than email reminders because Blackberry will alert me when I have an upcoming appointment. The default reminder is 10 minutes in Google Calendar. That was a problem for me because what if you forget to set the reminder for the meeting and your meeting is a half hour away? I always like to give myself advance notice so I set my default notice to 1 hour.

In order to change your default notification settings, open Google Calendar, go to your Calendar Settings, and click the Calendars tab. Then click on Notifications. If you have your Blackberry, iPhone, and Android synced with Google Sync, the pop-up reminder should get the job done, but if you do not have Sync installed, you could opt for email reminders instead.

I hope you never miss an appointment or run late again.

People are going crazy trying to figure out the release date of the Chrome Netbook. The project was originally announced in July 7, 2009. I was getting pumped in December 2009 when I heard it was going to be released in mid-to-late 2010.  There was anticipation that it could be released in June 2010 or September 2010 or at least by December 2010.

Well, Chrome OS was at least unveiled on December 7, 2010, but it’s release date may not be mid-2011 rather than early-2011. I was hoping that PC manufacturers like HP, Dell, Acer, and ASUS would be shipping units as early as January and February, but we may now be looking at a June/July release.

At least Google is giving away beta notebooks which can be tested by select users prior to its release. Hopefully, I will be one of the ones chosen.

How would this affect me? My notebook would go from 5.8 pounds to 3.8 pounds, while I can squeeze out 5 extra hours of battery life and can connect to the internet from anywhere. If I have to buy it, it should only cost a mere $300 compared to $999 for the MacBook Air.

The new Chrome Notebook was revealed today. The beta design (CR-48) of the netbook is pictured. Pretty simple. PC manufacturers like Acer, ASUS, HP, and Dell will have their own models. This is just the beta which Google is giving out to test the operating system. Here are a some more Chrome Netbook pictures. It’s no MacBook Air, but people who will go with the Chome Netbook are looking for speed, convenience, and affordability.

In fact, Google is giving away several netbooks while they test them during a pilot. You can click here to apply. Google is accepting applications until December 21. I was debating purchasing the MacBook Air, but I didn’t want to spend a cool $1299 for a computer that I’m going to use just for the internet. Hopefully, I’ll be chosen for the pilot.

Weight and Screen Size: Other than cost, weight and screen size is the most important characteristic to me. The Chrome Netbook weighs in at 3.8 pounds with a 12″ screen while the MacBook Air weighs 2.3 pounds for the 11″ model and 2.9 pounds for the 13″ model.

Battery Life: The Chrome Netbook’s battery can last up to 8 hours for web use and a week of standby time, while the MacBook Air gets 5 hours for web use and 30 days of standby time.

Boot Time: The MacBook Air and the Google Netbook both boot up in under 10 seconds.

RAM: Both devices start with 2 GB of RAM. You can get up to 4 GB with the MacBook Air.

Hard Drive: Both devices can have up to 64 GB of storage.

3G: The Chrome Netbook will have Verizon 3G connectivity. Google’s Chrome OS website states that 100 MB of free data will be provided by Verizon and they will also have affordable data plans with no commitment.

Cost: The Chrome Netbook would be priced at $299 (especially if subsidized by a Verizon data plan) while the MacBook Air starts at $999.

Here is more in-depth Chrome Netbook demo. For more information, visit Google’s official Chrome OS website.

When Google Apps was first released, it contained Gmail, Google Docs, Google Calendar, and a few others. What many users wanted was the ability to use other Google services with their Google Apps log-in.

For example, if someone wanted to use Google AdSense, Google Voice, or Google Reader, users would have to use their personal @gmail.com address or sign up for the services individually with their Google Apps email. Google then expanded all of their different applications to Google Apps users.

The additions are available to all new users. Existing users will be migrated over the next few months. Existing users can also upgrade their account in their control panel. Administrators can also set which applications are and are not available to be used in the control panel.

The main benefit of Google Docs was its ability for users to access their documents from any computer simply by logging in with their username. This especially came in handy when you need to access a document on your mobile phone.  However, documents could only be viewed on your phone and couldn’t be edited, until now. Mobile editing will now work with iPhone and Android devices, as well as the iPad.

Google CEO Eric Schmidt is a huge proponent of the mobile-first philosophy. Schmidt has said that Google’s focus will be on the mobile web. In order to follow through with that vision, Google Docs has added mobile editing, which can update documents with collaborators working on the document in real time.

Here is a video demo of the new Google Docs mobile editing.

Google OS, which was originally announced in July 2009, will make its long-awaited debut on Tuesday, December 7th during a media event showcasing the web-based operating system. Invitations were recently sent out to San Fransisco press for the event.

During the fall of 2009, the debut was rumored to occur sometime in summer or fall of 2010, but the project has been delayed. What is Chrome OS all about? Chrome OS is designed for netbooks with all data stored on the internet. Google’s CEO Eric Schmidt went on record to say that Chrome OS is designed for keyboards while Android is designed for touch.

Chrome OS is pretty much just the Chrome browser with the addition of web-based application tabs. The user interface will look almost identical to Chrome. Chrome OS’s bootup time will be close to instantaneousness with a boot time the same as a TV. Only web-based apps will be supported and all data will exist in the cloud. Google Gears would be implemented to synchronize online and offline syncing. Chrome OS is also distinct from Android, but Sergey Brin hinted that the two may someday merge.

Why does Google think Chrome OS is a good idea? Check out their video on Chrome OS and the features demo.

Here is our second video using Xtranormal to educate people about the benefits of using Google Apps. I still hear from several people that they’re being attacked with spam emails despite setting up numerous filters and downloading expensive spam elimination software. With Google Apps, you won’t have to worry about spam emails and there is no cost to use it. If you’re getting tons of spam, it’s time to setup Google Apps.

I love all of the hilarious Xtranormal videos that I’ve come across so I created one dealing with Google Apps vs. Microsoft Exchange. Here is a hilarious video on someone debating whether to go to law school. Here is another debating the HTC Evo vs. iPhone 4.

Here is how the video plays out. A boss asks his employee to setup Microsoft Exchange until the employee tells his boss just how much it will cost. After informing him about Google Apps, the boss decides to go with Google it in order to save the company money and gives his brilliant employee a bonus for helping save the company money. To the video.

Is Google TV a DVR?

One of the things that many people are curious about is whether Google TV functions like a DVR. In other words, does it replace TiVo or having to pony up a monthly fee to your cable service provider to record your favorite television shows? The short answer is no.

Google TV does not have built-in DVR capabilities that can replace your cable-provider’s DVR. Google TV works with your cable-provider’s DVR which you can access from the Google TV interface. In other words, it “plays nice” with your cable DVR, but it does not replace it.

Google TV essentially acts as a search engine for TV content which you can use to record shows on your own DVR. Google TV’s ability to search your favorite shows is the key part of the package. For Dish Network subscribers, additional DVR features are built in which includes being able to record shows right from the search bar and being able to search all of your recordings.

I am pretty upset that Google TV doesn’t have a built-in hard drive to function as a DVR which you don’t have to pay a monthly fee to use (like Windows Media Center). That’s the only disappointment with Google TV that I can see, other than websites like Hulu blocking access to Google TV until a deal is reached for their premiere users. So if you’re interested in picking up Google TV hoping to ditch your monthly DVR bill, it doesn’t work like that. You’re going to have to continue paying the monthly DVR fee while Google TV is pretty much used to search for your favorite TV shows.