Google Play Music is finally Dead Globally

 Google that began shutting down its legacy streaming service Play in October has announced that it's now officially dead for all users.

Image Source: Google

Technology News/Google: Google that began shutting down its legacy streaming service Play in October has announced that it's now officially dead for all users. Visiting music.google.com or the Android and iOS app will direct a user to a "Google Play Music is no longer available" page.The main option is to "transfer your account and library, including playlists and uploads" to YouTube Music. "October and the end of this year, access to Google Play Music will be removed permanently," the company had said earlier.

Image Source: Google

"We know that you've spent time building your Google Play Music library, so we've made it easy to transfer your music library to YouTube Music with just one click, including playlists, uploads and recommendations".

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YouTube Music currently offers over 50 million official tracks, albums and high-quality audio, also as deep cuts, B-sides, live performances and remixes.

Users are going to be able to listen to their uploaded and purchased music from Google Play Music after the transfer or add up to 100,000 personal tracks to their library in YouTube Music, a rise of quite 50,000 compared to Google Play Music.

Paying members can download any song, playlist, music video, or let smart downloads (Android only for now) do it for you so you usually have something to listen to, even once you do not have service.

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The pricing will remain a similar for YouTube Music. Fans can stream the ad-supported version of YouTube Music for free of charge , or enjoy YouTube Music Premium, a paid membership that gives listeners background listening, downloads and an ad-free experience for Rs 99 a month.

Pixel 4a New Limited Edition Barely Blue Colour Variant: Price, Specifications

 Pixel 4a is powered by the octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 730G SoC and comes with 6GB of RAM.

Image Source: Google

Technology News/smartphone: Pixel 4a possesses a brand new limited edition colour variant called ‘Barely Blue' and is currently up available on the Google store within the US “while supplies last.” The new variant adds to the ‘Just Black' colour variant that's already on sale. As of now, the barely Blue variant isn't listed on Indian retailers and as per Google Pixel phone specifications page, is currently exclusive to the US market. The phone is priced the same as the Just Black variant and comes with a similar specifications also .

Pixel 4a Barely Blue price

The Google Pixel 4a is now available in just Black and a edition Barely Blue colour option in a single configuration – 6GB + 128GB priced at $349 (roughly Rs. 26,000). The new colour variant is currently available within the US till stocks last and as per the official Google Pixel specifications page, there's no information on if and when it'll be available in other regions.

In India, the Pixel 4a comes in the single Just Black colour variant that's priced at MRP Rs. 31,999.

Pixel 4a Barely Blue specifications

As mentioned earlier, the new variant of the Pixel 4a comes with a similar specifications. The Google Pixel 4a runs on Android 11 and features a 5.81-inch full-HD+ (1,080x2,340 pixels) OLED display with 19.5:9 aspect ratio and 443ppi of pixel density. The phone is powered by an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 730G SoC, paired with 6GB LPDDR4x RAM.

In terms of optics, the Pixel 4a features a 12-megapixel camera sensor at the back with an f/1.7 lens. there's also optical image stabilisation (OIS). For selfies, the phone has an 8-megapixel camera sensor at the front with an f/2.0 lens housed in a hole-punch cut out located at the top left corner of the screen.

The Google Pixel 4a has 128GB of onboard storage that's not expandable via microSD card. Connectivity options on the smartphone include 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11ac, Bluetooth v5.0, GPS/ A-GPS, NFC, USB Type-C, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. Sensors on the phone include an accelerometer, ambient light sensor, barometer, gyroscope, magnetometer, and a proximity sensor. there's also a fingerprint sensor at the back.

The phone is backed by a 3,140mAh battery that supports 18W fast charging. There also are stereo speakers and two microphones, together with noise suppression support. Lastly, the phone measures 144x69.4x8.2mm and weighs 143 grams.

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Google is going to Shut Your Gmail Account Next Year; Here's How You Can Keep it Active

The simplest way to keep your account active is to periodically visit Gmail, Drive, or Photos on the net or mobile, while signed in and connected to the web .

Image Source: Google

Technology News: If you've got an account on Google, then do not be shocked if it gets closed. Notably, the multinational tech giant is probably going to implement its new policy from 1 June 2021, following which speculations are rife that Google may shut the accounts of these users who are inactive for 2 years.

The company, however, will notify its users multiple times before attempting to remove any content.

The simplest way to keep your account active is to periodically visit Gmail, Drive, or Photos on the net or mobile, while signed in and connected to the web .

Issuing a press release , the company said, "The new policies are for consumer accounts that are either inactive or over their storage limit across Gmail, Drive (including Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, Drawings, Forms and Jamboard files) and/or Photos -- to better align with common practices across the industry."

"If you're over your storage limit for two years, Google may delete your content across Gmail, Drive and Photos," it stated further.

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Google Meet will no longer let users host meetings more than 60 minutes

Google Meet will no longer let users host meetings more than 60 minutes

 Google Meet has announced that the free version of the app will only let users host meetings for 60 minutes and less than that.

Image Source: Google

Video-conferencing app Google Meet has announced that the free version of the app will only let users host meetings for hour and less than that. However, this new rule would only be applicable from September 30.

Along with the cap on meetings, Google also will limit access to a number of the advanced G-Suite features like allowing over 250 participants, live streaming, and saving meeting recordings to Google Drive, The Verge report claims.

“We don’t have anything to communicate regarding changes to the promo and advanced features expiring. If this changes, we’ll be sure to let you know.” Google told The Verge.

However, the users who don't want to upgrade to the paid version can continue using the free version albeit with a limit on the meetings. it might not be hard to conclude a meeting in hour if the user isn't ready to buy more meetings.

Google Meet and other video conferencing platforms like Zoom are on high demand during the coronavirus pandemic. Google Meet and Zoom have crossed the 100 million mark in terms of daily participants.

Earlier, Google had launched a new feature in its Meet app where users can see up to 49 people at once. The 49 people view are often enabled in Tiled and Auto layouts. This feature is, however, available on the web.

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Paytm removed from Google Play Store

Google has taken down the Paytm app from the Play Store while other apps like Paytm for Business, Paytm mall, Paytm Money, and a couple of more are still available for download. 

Commenting on the matter Paytm states, “Paytm Android app is temporarily unavailable on Google’s Play Store for new downloads or updates.”

The company adds that the Paytm app “will be back very soon” on the Play Store. “All your money is completely safe, and you can continue to enjoy your Paytm app as normal,” Paytm highlights.

According to a report by TechCrunch, this decision has been taken by the web search company as Paytm app “repeatedly violated company’s policies.” The report cites two people familiar with the matter who said that Paytm has been removed from Play Store one day before Indian Premier League is scheduled to kickstart.

The Google Play Store listing of the Paytm app is currently showing an error that states, “We’re sorry, the requested URL was not found on this server.” this suggests Android users can no longer able to download the Paytm app. All existing users who have the app installed on their device can still use all services provided by the app.

Just today, in a blog post, Suzanne Frey Google’s vice president, Product, Android Security and Privacy said that it doesn’t allow online casinos or support any unregulated gambling apps that facilitate sports betting. “This includes if an app leads consumers to an external website that allows them to participate in paid tournaments to win real money or cash prizes, it is a violation of our policies,” said Frey in the blog.

“We have these policies to protect users from potential harm. When an app violates these policies, we notify the developer of the violation and remove the app from Google Play until the developer brings the app into compliance. And in the case where there are repeated policy violations, we may take more serious action which may include terminating Google Play Developer accounts. Our policies are applied and enforced on all developers consistently,” added Frey.

Commenting on this matter, Paytm tweeted: "Dear Paytm'ers, Paytm Android app is temporarily unavailable on Google's Play Store for new downloads or updates. it will be back very soon. all your money is completely safe, and you can continue to enjoy your Paytm app as normal."

Google hasn’t specifically revealed the reason behind taking down the Paytm app downloaded by many users with nearly 50 million monthly active users in India. But in a blog posted today the tech giant cites policy on gambling.

Google prohibits online casinos and other unregulated gambling apps that facilitate sports betting like Dream 11. in the contrary, Paytm promotes fantasy sports services within the application. For the exact same reason, Paytm’s fantasy sports service – Paytm First Games – has also been taken down from Play Store.

The tech giant also reveals that an app that leads consumers to an external site that permits them to participate in paid tournaments to real money clearly violates Play Store policies.

In the blog, Google’s Suzanne Frey, vice president, Product, Android Security and Privacy states, “We don’t allow online casinos or support any unregulated gambling apps that facilitate sports betting. This includes if an app leads consumers to an external website that permits them to participate in paid tournaments to win real money or cash prizes, it's a violation of our policies.”

This is the first time Google has removed the digital payments behemoth Paytm from the Play store. Meanwhile, Paytm is available for download on the Apple App Store.

Update: Paytm back again in Playstore after an hour of its removal.

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Google releases Mask Song : When in public, wear a mask,to make people aware

Among this novel coronavirus outbreak, Google has come up with a appealing mask song to spread awareness.

   Screenshot from the video posted on Instagram by Google.

Google has come up with a peppy and artistic song to spread awareness about wearing face masks amid the novel coronavirus outbreak.

As we still battle the pandemic, it's essential to wear a mask publicly . Face masks are among the foremost effective ways to stay the novel virus cornered . To impart an equivalent message, Google took to Instagram and shared a mask song. The tune of the song is analogous to the narrative Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.

The lyrics of the song go like, "When in public, wear a mask. Just a teeny-weeny task. It helps keep us safe and sound, health and care all around."

With the song, Google even told netizens the right way to wear a mask . "On your mouth and on your nose, good to cover both of those," the song continues.

View this post on Instagram

Sing along with Google Assistant. Just say, "#HeyGoogle, sing the mask song” to learn the new song.

A post shared by Google (@google) on Aug 24, 2020 at 2:11pm PDT

"Sing along with Google Assistant. Just say, "#HeyGoogle, sing the mask song" to learn the new song (sic)," Google wrote while sharing the clip.

Since being posted online, the Instagram reel video has garnered over 41k likes and received quite 600 comments.

The novel coronavirus, which was first reported last year in Wuhan, China, has infected over 3 million people in India. more than 59,000 people have lost their lives to Covid-19.

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