Google kicks off its I/O developers conference on Wednesday, where it's expected they will announce several big projects on both the hardware and software fronts.
Scroll down for the latest updates:
2:09 p.m.: Google voice search on a browser is pretty incredible. A demo shows a user searching for Santa Cruz Beach using only voice commands. "How far is it from here," says the Google rep running the demo, and Search quickly pulls up details.
2:06 p.m.: Singhal chatting about Google Now, which bolsters search results using Gmail and other Google services. Users will soon be able to set reminders that appear when needed, and cards for public transit, music, TV, books and video games.
2:04 p.m.: Singhal says the company will make improvements to the Knowledge Graph used to find answers for search queries. For example, when viewing the population of India, users can get comparisons to other countries like the U.S. and China. Singhal says Google will add conversational search to the Chrome browser(it's already available on iOS and Android).
1:58 p.m.: Amit Singhal is up next to discuss improvements to Search.
1:56 p.m.: There's also an "auto-awesome" feature that does everything from automatically create collages to create special motion galleries using a series of pics.
1:54 p.m.: Photo changes require simple button presses based on how users want to enhance their images. Uses can flip between the original and enhanced photo easily, too.
1:52 p.m.: The auto-enhance feature will include several options, such as Noise Reduction and Skin Softening.
1:49 p.m.: Gundotra says Google+ will add an "easy button" to auto-enhance photos.
1:47 p.m.: Google can search through photos and pick the best ones for Highlights, weeding out blurry photos, duplicates or images with bad exposure. It can even recognize landmarks in an image. They'll also recognize important people in your life, such as family members.
1:44 p.m.: Google will offer option where users can tie their camera to the cloud. Users can backup or highlight photos through the cloud. Users will have option to store up to 15 GB of full-size photos.
1:42 p.m.: Hangouts will also feature Group Video across all devices. Demo showing feature on smartphone. Gundotra now looking at upgrades to photos.
1:42 p.m.: New Hangouts app will be available today on the Web, Android and iOS devices.
1:41 p.m.: Users can view conversations, and can keep them going for as long as they choose. All information is stored, even when changing devices, and people can choose whether to track the history of a conversation or delete content.
1:39 p.m.: Gundotra moving on to Hangouts, focused on moving technology "out of the way." It will be available as a standalone app.
1:36 p.m.: Google+ will introduce related hashtags. The social network will analyze posts and automatically add hashtags. Users can click on hashtags and view content based on rank and location. It also performs image analysis and tags images. Very cool.
1:34 p.m.: He adds Google is trying to fix "flat" news feed that appear on other social networks, with an emphasis on depth. Stream of updates uses a multi-column design that changes based on the size of your screen. It features a combination of photos, updates and other content.
1:32 p.m.: Gundotra says Google will introduce 41 new features, including improvements to feeds, Hangouts and images.
1:30 p.m.: Vic Gundotra takes the stage to discuss the company's social network, Google+.
1:29 p.m.: For those curious about the Google Play Music: All Access service, you can join starting now.
1:26 p.m.: Yerga says Google Play for Education will launch this fall.
1:25 p.m.: One of service's cool features is the ability for a teach to automatically send an app to several students with mobile devices.
1:24 p.m.: Yerga returns to reveal Google Play for Education, focused specifically on schools. It looks like traditional Google Play store, but heavily focused on education apps. Users can break it down by subject or grade.
1:22 p.m.: Pichai discussing education and Google's suite of apps. He says company investing a lot on Android and education.
1:20 p.m.: Pichai is back to talk about the Chromebook Pixel, the Google laptop that runs on a Chrome operating system. Pichal says all the developers in attendance will get their own Pixel. Nice perk.
1:17 p.m.: The colorful racing title features tiny slot-car style vehicles players race around track by tapping button. All five smartphones and tablets are lined up, so the track spans across each device. Very cool.
1:15 p.m.: Upson showcasing browser-based game Racer, which will work across multiple devices. Demo features several tablets and smartphones.
1:12 p.m.: Chrome will add feature to simplify making purchases on any platform. Users can save billing and shipping information to Chrome, and it syncs across all devices.
1:09 p.m.: Upson points out another key benefit: bandwidth. The smaller file sizes mean saving the amount of data consumed by users.
1:08 p.m.: Upson talking about photos with smaller file sizes, using a WebP photo instead of JPEG images. So, a website with more photos should load faster when using the Chrome mobile browser and photo format. Upson says similar efforts are being made to improve video quality.
1:05 p.m.: Upson says mobile Chrome will focus on speed and security, the same as desktop. He says mobile browser speed compared to last year has improved by 57%.
1:04 p.m.: Linus Upson, the vice president of engineering for Chrome, up next to break down the next wave of updates.
1:02 p.m.: Pichai prepping a preview of updates to the mobile Web browser. The browser will run exactly the same on desktop as it will on mobile. Watching a game demo on a Nexus 10. Looks really sharp.
12:58 p.m.: Pichai returns to talk about Google Chrome. He says the browser has more than 750 million active users, up from 450 million at the time of last year's I/O event. Pichai says more users are launching Chrome through mobile devices.
12:56 p.m.: Checking out a Samsung Galaxy S4 running the latest Android mobile operating system, code-named Jelly Bean. Google will start selling unlocked version of S4 with Nexus interface for $649.
12:52 p.m.: All Access will cost $9.99 a month in the U.S., or try a 30-day free trial. It's available now. Users that join by June 30 can get All Access for $7.99 monthly.
12:51 p.m.: A search field will appear at the top of All Access. Users can search for an artist, then choose to add tracks to their library. There's also Listen Now, a mix of favorite artists, radio stations automatically created and recently played tracks. It will work on smartphones, tablets and Web browsers.
12:49 p.m.: Users can break down by music genre, too. Users can play a track, and choose to turn it into a radio station related to that song. Users can reorder tracks in their queue or easily remove songs with simple swipes.
12:47 p.m.: Yerga announces Google Play Music: All Access, their music subscription service. Users can explore music based on listening preferences, featured content and new releases.
12:46 p.m.: Yerga talking about music on Google Play. Is this leading to the reported subscription service?
12:45 p.m.: Play store gives recommended content more prominence, basing it on what friends pick. Users will also be able to search for apps "designed for tablets." Users can drill down further based on top paid or top free apps as well as new releases. The Web version of Google Play will be just as clean, with a colorful navigation bar on the left side to browse content by type.
12:42 p.m.: Android engineering director Chris Yerga on stage to disucss improvements to Google Play. Yerga showcasing the revamped design of the Play store on a Nexus tablet.
12:40 p.m.: Google introducing beta testing and staged rollouts, giving developers more control over the launch of their app. Again, more tools that will help consumers get better Android apps.
12:37 p.m.: Upcoming features for Google Play developers include professional app translation and the ability to track referrals to determine what attracts the most users. Developers will also have usage metrics to view the habits of app users.
12:33 p.m.: Android talk moves to important subject for app developers: how to get more users to see your app and earn money.
12:31 p.m.: Studio has lots of interesting features for developers, including the ability to view an app across multiple screen sizes. For Android device user, it means better apps in the future.
12:30 p.m.: Developers will have access to Android Studio, creating a faster and more productive experience for making games.
12:28 p.m.: Developers struggling to connect their multiplayer game, and Google moves on. So much for the demo.
12:25 p.m.: Game services will also add a multiplayer component to mobile titles. Players will be able to invite others or find friends through Google+. Watching a match of Riptide GP 2, a jet skiing game, that demonstrates the features.
12:24 p.m.: Google will also introduce Google Play game services, which sounds similar to Apple's GameCenter. Users can save games through the cloud, earn achievements and check leaderboards.
12:22 p.m.: Google Cloud Messaging will be expanding to Google Play, allowing developers to send data from their servers to users' Android devices. The messaging feature will also sync notifications. Judging by the applause, developers seemed very pleased.
12:19 p.m.: Google also going to introduce a cross-platform single sign-on for a variety of accounts. A sampling of this shows the creation of an account on Fancy. When the user logs in with their Google account, they can choose to install the app with that same info right to their smartphone or tablet.
12:17 p.m.: Developers will have access to a fused location provider, to make it easier for apps to determine a user's location. Also, Google will add activity recognition to determine when a user is walking, riding a bike or driving.
12:15 p.m.: Event focuses on updates to Google Play, specific to developers.
12:13 p.m.: More numbers: Google Play, the Android app store, has reached 48 billion app installs, 2.5 billion in the last month alone.
12:11 p.m.: Speaking of incredible growth, Pichai says Google has reached 900 million activations as of this year.
12:10 p.m.: Pichai praises developers for creating countless third-party apps to leverage Android and Chrome. Pichai says Google activated 400 million Android devices last year, up from 100 million in 2011. Incredible growth.
12:08 p.m.: Pichai shifts talk to Android, "the most popular mobile operating system in the world," and web browser Chrome, also tops in its genre.
12:07 p.m.: Pichai discusses how consumers are using many different types of computing devices, such as desktop computers, smartphones, watches and Google Glass. He says this is "one of the most important moments in computing."
12:05 p.m.: "We hope that the things you see at this conference will continue to inspire you," Gundotra tells the audience of developers and media. Sundar Pichai, who runs Android and related apps, is up next.
12:03 p.m.: Vic Gundotra, Google's senior vice president, takes the stage to kick off I/O. "I hope you are delighted by some of the surprises we have in store."
12:02 p.m.: Google video montage time. A review featuring a variety of Google and Android products and apps. Messages such as "imagine the possibilities," are scattered throughout.
Update at 12:00 p.m. ET: We've entered the countdown clock phase of the keynote (for those watching on the live stream available at the bottom of this page). We're about to start soon.
Original story
Google kicks off its I/O developers conference on Wednesday, where it's expected they will announce several big projects on both the hardware and software fronts.
USA TODAY will have live coverage of the I/O keynote, which starts at noon ET. So, what will Google unveil? Here's a look at what we could see revealed:
Google Glass. Google's wearable computing technology has generated plenty of buzz. The big question is what will we learn -- if anything -- from today's keynote. Do they share details on potential new partnerships and apps? How soon before consumers get their hands on Glass? For more on how Glass works, USA TODAY's Ed Baig has the details.
Will Google take on Spotify?According to The Verge, Google is going to announce a music subscription service now that it's locked out three of the four major publishing labels: Universal, Sony Music and Warner. The deals would apply to both video service YouTube and Android store Google Play. What's not clear is how much Google would charge for a music subscription.
Google Maps overhaul. The Android-focused site Droid Life says they spotted a Web page that has since been removed detailing big changes to Google's mapping application. Key features reportedly included Flight Search and increased integration with Google Earth.
We'll provide continuous updates throughout Google's keynote starting at noon ET. If you're on a Web browser, you can also watch the streaming video below: