Microsoft Office Mobile for Android went completely FREE for home use today on the Play Store! You don't need to pay $10 a month subscription for the suite anymore.

 

There is a catch, though it only runs on smartphones. If the app detects you are working on a tablet it will refuse to install. That's unfortunate, because even 5 to 5.5-inch smartphone displays still feel somewhat small for comfortable document editing. But we assume owners of the Xperia Z Ultra and similar tablet-phones will be pretty happy with Office Mobile.

 

 

 

MS's mobile Office suite is integrated with OneDrive and SharePoint, supports editing of documents from e-mail attachments, and is designed to look as good as possible on small screens. A particularly nifty feature is Resume Reading - When opening a Word document from OneDrive or OneDrive for Business on your phone, it automatically resumes at the place where you left off reading, even if you last viewed the document on your PC or tablet. It's little gems like this that make Office work more comfortable than ever.

 

 

Google has just pushed an Update to the Play Store App on Android to Version 4.6.17 with UI changes, Security Password option, Batch Install for Apps and Self-check for Update, Here is the Complete list below.

 

 

What's New in v4.6.17?

• Tweaked GUI

• Play Store App self-update (Finally!)

• Batch install in "My apps -> All tab"

• Removing apps from "My apps -> All" no longer jumps to the top of the list

• New Require password option

• Settings and Help moved to slideout nav

• Confusing Auto-add widgets setting renamed

• IAPs now included in the App permissions screen

• Google+ +1 counts are now exact for large quantities

• Continuous security verification

 

 

Batch install - Enables you to Install more than one App at a time, just Touch & Hold to select any numbers of Apps then hit install button on the top right.

 

Require password option - This option will always require the account password for purchases not just once per 30 minutes. If you have kids, you should probably turn this on.

 

Play Store self-update - YES FINALLY! Play store App can check for update and update it self too directly from Google, What are you waiting for ? Download the APK below (APK Provided is the official APK signed by Google).

 

 

 

 

Google tweeted a very useful tip, Just tell your device "Ok, Google. play some music." and that's it... the tunes will flow.

 

 

Tell your #GoogleSearch app to “Play some music” for a surprise playlist just for you https://t.co/Qp2aJisWpY pic.twitter.com/AzRNBHDE0H

— A Googler (@google) March 21, 2014

 

 

This action immediately boots you into Google Play Music and starts I'm Feeling Lucky Radio. If you have All Access, that playlist will include a wide selection of content based on your listening habits. If not, it's just the music you've uploaded to Google Play Music.

 

 

 

 

As usual, ahead of the Google Developer Day at Game Developers Conference (March 18), Google posted and later pulled, a blog post about upcoming improvements to Google Play Games.

 

Google will let players send virtual in-game objects to people in their Google+ circles. Also, the Play Games app will support multiplayer invites and will feature 18 new game categories, which will make it easier for gamers to discover fellow players and new games.

 

 

Furthermore, Google will bring turn-based and real-time multiplayer capabilities to both Android and iOS, this means cross-platform multiplayer between users of different operating systems. Currently, this is only possible within select games (such as Minecraft) that support cross-platform multiplayer as a proprietary feature. The company will also facilitate cross-platform game development with a Play Games Unity Plug-in and an early Play Games C++ SDK.

Google Blog (cached)

 

Google Search for Android was has just been updated to version 3.3 today with some minor changes, focusing on traffic updates and "Hotword" support.

 

What's new in Version 3.3:

 

• Traffic incidents on your route.

• Support for cricket.

• Set reminders for chains.

• "Ok Google" hotword for German and French users.

 

Google search 3.3 will now toss up a card showing traffic incidents on your planned route. Also, German and French speakers should now find success uttering the "Ok Google" hotword (Screenshot above).