Material

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418: Google Is A Soft Cheese Company Jun 29, 2023

Show notes

Andy mourns the loss of Google’s Iris smart glasses, because he knows so way much more than Google or Apple about VR and XR. Reviews of the Pixel Fold are in! It’s a jim-dandy phone except for what happens when you unfold it. And reading coverage of last week’s Vidcon helps Andy be less judgmental about The Avengers.

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Google killed Iris smart glasses, opts for Android OEM model for XR

Google execs hope new search feature will help amid Reddit blackouts

RIP to my Pixel Fold: Dead after four days | Ars Technica

A Tale of Two VidCons — The Information

417: It Prefers To Stay Inside The House Jun 22, 2023

Show notes

Reviews of the new Pixel Tablet are in, and it looks like maybe the world is about to fall slap-happy in love! (From a certain perspective, and placed in the correct context). Chromebooks are about to receive the X-gene, and Gannett Newspapers celebrates the first day of Summer with a beach clambake-slash-massive antitrust suit against Google.

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- Sleep as Android

Google Pixel Tablet review: the dock makes all the difference - The Verge

Gannett Sues Google, Accusing It of Dominating the Ad Market - The New York Times

416: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner In Bed Jun 15, 2023

Show notes

Why on Earth did Google release so many new features and updates on Flag Day? Well, Google bothered to create ‘em so Material is going to talk about ‘em...with the help of The Feature Roundup Dice. Oh, and also the EU is honking down Google’s snorkel about why it thinks it’s evil, and they want Google to knock that kind of stuff off.

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GitHub - dtinth/comic-mono-font: A legible monospace font... the very typeface you’ve been trained to recognize since childhood

Hands-free photos, SpO2 and more for the Pixel family

Google introduces new AI virtual try-on feature

Google Lens can identify rashes and other skin conditions

Commission sends Statement of Objections to Google

415: Super-Soakers Filled With Dysentery Jun 08, 2023

Show notes

All of this week’s stories come from Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference! But Andy swears it’s all relevant to Google. Apple’s Vision Pro headset offers discussion about VR versus AI. Apple announced that they’re addressing iPhone users’ complaints about green bubbles in group messages and they’re doing it in the most Apple way possible. And Apple’s figured out a new way to hurt Android users: by going after their friends and family!!! Zounds!

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Apple Vision Pro - Apple

iOS 17 will stop your Android friends from ruining your group texts with their green bubbles

Check-in is the best new iOS 17 feature for me, my family and my friends | iMore

414: Belief in a Higher Weirdo Jun 01, 2023

Show notes

Andy has access to the new AI-enhanced Google Search and is delighted to discover that he can now waste time on Reddit far more effectively. He also has access to a new web browser that’s so innovative and helpful that he’s compelled to give Chrome a lecture about Ambition that he may or may not have heard from his father when he was 14, 17, 22, 31, 37, and 46. And: thoughts on folding big things into smaller things.

This episode of Material is sponsored by:

ExpressVPN: High-Speed, Secure & Anonymous VPN Service. Get an extra three months free.

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How to use Google’s AI Search Generative Experience

Arc from The Browser Company

Arc Will Change the Way You Work on the Web - TidBITS

Google Chrome extensions can now create a side panel UI

How Google designed and built the Pixel Fold’s hinge

Thai Nguyen on Twitter: "Step aside Pixel Fold..."

Made by Google Podcast

413: Nickel-And-Diming My Attention Span May 26, 2023

Show notes

Andy comes right out and admits that his brain is like wet sand. All to make a larger point which may or may not land, because, as established, his brain is like wet sand. Then it’s time to talk about how Google is using AI as the spent uranium tip on new ads that will penetrate your cognitive shields. Also, there are cars and a sketchy analogy about whether or not Google and Samsung are happy in their relationship.

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Ulysses

Notion – Your wiki, docs & projects. Together.

Google Marketing Live 2023: Everything you need to know - Google Ads Help

YouTube is bringing unskippable 30-second ads to TV - The Verge

Google Is Spared a Search-Engine Switch by a Major Partner - WSJ

Waypoint - The official Waymo blog: Waymo and Uber partner to bring Waymo’s autonomous driving technology to the Uber platform

412: The Other Shoe May 18, 2023

Show notes

Andy has a peculiar theory about system administration. Then the episode goes back to Google I/O to pick up some news that Google didn’t have the common courtesy to reveal in time for last week’s show. A beloved children’s cereal mascot is made to suffer. And Google has a wonderful plan to make top-level-domains both goofy and radically dangerous.

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Day One Journal App | Your Journal For Life

Create world-scale augmented reality experiences in minutes with Google’s Geospatial Creator — Google for Developers Blog

Google to use new AI models for ads and to help YouTube creators

Google Project Gameface: A new hands-free AI-powered gaming mouse

Apple previews new accessibility features, including AI-generated voice clone – Six Colors

Google's .zip and .mov domains aren't the end of the world • The Register

411: The AI Message May 13, 2023

Show notes

It's all about Google I/O 2023! Andy and Flo talk about everything, from AI to Android to Pixel hardware. Flo also reviews the Pixel 7a.

This episode of Material is sponsored by:

ExpressVPN: High-Speed, Secure & Anonymous VPN Service. Get an extra three months free.

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410: Speaking Out May 05, 2023

Show notes

Andy's solo this week, starting with some prep on what to expect next week from Google I/O. Google's AI researcher quits the company just as everything is heating up. And what will an alliance between Google and Apple look like to cut down on stalking with Bluetooth trackers?

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409: Wouldn't It Be Nice? Apr 28, 2023

Show notes

Google's quarterly earnings are out this week. There's good news, and then there's some tepid numbers. Then, checking in with all those Chromebooks purchased at the height of the pandemic.