Google Play Music All Access: Android / US-only rollout is just the start

Nearly two years ago to the day, Google introduced Music Beta at I/O 2011. But in reality, it was little more than a gigantic cloud to store 20,000 of your favorite tracks. Despite a plethora of rumors that the search giant would beat Spotify to the punch by launching a subscription-based music service in the United States, we got a digital locker that has done little to distract most listeners from giving Rdio, Pandora, iTunes and other like services at least a piece of their heart. Fast forward to today, and Google's finally joining the bandwagon... in majorly limited fashion.

Google Music All Access is presently only available for mobile as an Android app, and only to users in the US. Moreover, it costs $9.99 -- the exact same sum as practically every one of its rivals. Rivals that have multi-year headstarts in terms of mind and market share. (Yes, it's $7.99 per month if you sign up prior to June 30th.) Google has landed deals with the same "major labels" as everyone else, but even product manager Paul Joyce affirmed to us here at I/O that All Access doesn't have access to any exclusives. In a post-keynote meeting with Joyce, he noted that this is only the start for the product. Naturally, Google's going to do its finest work on its own platform, but it's certainly odd to see iOS users left out in the cold given Google's acknowledgement of its importance just minutes earlier.

Google+ Games to go dark after June 30th

Sure, Mountain View may be bolstering its gaming efforts on mobile platforms and the web, but it's seen fit to give Google+ Games the pink slip. After June 30th, the game section on the titan's social network will go dark, but Page & Co. note that some titles will still be playable on other sites. Depending on developer support, folks who've turned hard-earned cash into in-game credits may still be able to spend unused coin during a grace period or when playing the same games through other websites. It's not entirely clear why Google is sunsetting the portal, but it could certainly be part of its grand plan to focus on fewer things.

Field Trip for Android gets updated with over 80 countries, auto-translation

Niantic Labs' Field Trip is a location-discovery app that runs in the background during your aimless wanderings, piping up when you stumble across something notable. Unfortunately, for software designed to help you travel, it'd only made the one journey itself -- to the UK, and no further. Fortunately, the Google-owned company has sent the Android version of the app truly global, helping you find attractions in over 80 countries. Niantic Labs has also jammed in 30 languages and auto-translation, so if you find a restaurant review in an unfamiliar tongue, you won't have to resort to negotiating with the locals.

ASUS Fonepad gets a spec boost: 1.6GHz Intel processor, 32GB storage

ASUS' Fonepad has been making its way around the world with a 1.2GHz Intel Atom Z2420 processor and 16GB of built-in storage, but apparently there's a need for covering one's face with a beefier version. Announced in Taiwan earlier today, the 7-inch tabletphone will be offered with a faster 1.6GHz Z2460 plus 32GB of memory (with microSD expansion as before). This new model will retail for NT$10,900 locally, which works out to be about US$360; whereas the original model will still be available for NT$8,990 or about US$300 (which is, by the way, a tad more expensive than the UK price). We'll let you know when ASUS comes back with more information regarding availability in other regions.

Windows Phone steals third place from BlackBerry in IDC smartphone ranking

First and second place in the smartphone OS wars is a foregone conclusion with Android and iOS (respectively) strongly entrenched, but the battle for third place is now full of intrigue. BlackBerry and Microsoft have each stepped up their games with their respective BB10 and WP8 OS's of late, but so far it's Redmond prevailing, having jumped two spots from last quarterto take third place, with a 3.2 percent share over BlackBerry's 2.9 percent. While those two are fighting for third place scraps, Android kicked up its smartphone OS dominance with 75 percent of the global market, which is a huge jump from last year, while iOS fell back slightly to a 17.3 percent share. Between them, those titans owned 92.3 percent of the pie, but it's arguably Windows Phone that has raised its game the most, with a senior IDC analyst claiming that this latest ranking "validates the direction taken by Microsoft and key partner Nokia."

China's MeituKiss phone boasts dual 8MP cameras, wants to be a girl's best friend Mobile

Today we have a message for Oppo, Zopo, Vivo and Spice: 5-megapixel front-facing cameras are so yesterday for phones. Launched by Meitu, the developer behind the popular Chinese camera app Meitu Xiuxiu, the MeituKiss phone challenges the aforementioned brands with not one but two 8-megapixel f/2.2 cameras -- one on each side of the phone. The company makes it rather obvious that this Android 4.2 device -- available in pink or white -- is solely targeted at ladies, who in the Far East have a habit of taking self-portrait shots on the regular. So naturally, the MeituKiss does face beautification as well.

For CN¥2,199 or about $360, the rest of the specs aren't too shabby, either. The 9.3mm-thick phone comes with a 4.5-inch, 720p gapless IPS display, a 1.2GHz quad-core MediaTek MT6589 SoC, a removable 1,800mAh battery, 8GB of built-in storage and microSD expansion. As for radios, you get the usual WiFi, GPS and Bluetooth 4.0, but there's only WCDMA 2100 for 3G. We're just as baffled by the fact that the MeituKiss can only capture video at up to 720p only, especially since each of the Sony sensors here has its own Fujitsu ISP. Regardless, pre-order starts today for the first lot of 18,888 units, followed by a full launch on June 6th should you miss the first round.

Nissan plans to make Leaf data available to app developers

Those of you familiar with the Nissan Leaf will know about its Carwings system, which lets you check the vehicle's charge, turn on the AC, rate your driving efficiency against others and even read RSS feeds out loud -- all over an always-on cellular data connection. In fact, the RSS functionality raised some privacy concerns when it was discovered that Carwings embeds location and other data in the URL it sends to public servers (something that can thankfully be disabled by the owner). Nissan announced today that it plans to make telemetry data from the Leaf available to third-party developers for a fee -- with the owner's consent, of course. The company already uses telemetry data for vehicle maintenance and products like Carwings, but it hopes to broaden the ecosystem with apps. Examples include smart-grid integration (supplying power to a building for a reduced parking fee) and location-based services (real-time coupons as you drive by restaurants). It'll be interesting to see if there's enough interest from both developers and Leaf owners for Nissan to successfully monetize this idea.

Archos launches ChefPad, a 9.7-inch Android tablet for your kitchen

Does your kitchen need a 9.7-inch Jelly Bean tablet to call its own? No, it certainly does not. But if your budget can accommodate such a device, it might look just like theArchos ChefPad, "the perfect tablet for the cooking enthusiast." Under the splash-resistant case, you'll find a standard suite of tablet specs. There's a 1.6GHz dual-core CPU, 1 gig of RAM, 8GB of internal storage, and front- and rear-facing 2-megapixel cameras, along with a pair of speakers and a built-in mic, making the device suitable for both playing back cooking lessons and recording your own. In addition to that red silicone case, you'll receive a dedicated stand to match -- both will ship in the box, along with the tablet, for just $210 this June.

Hipstamatic Oggl app coming to Windows Phone 8, launching with Nokia's Lumia 925

Hipstamatic's Oggl app and sharing service is coming to Windows Phone 8, we learned at Nokia's Lumia 925 launch event. We didn't get to play around in the app -- the WP8 UI we saw on stage was but a preview, as the native app (read: not a port) is still in development. We're assured Oggl will be ready by the time the new Lumia launches, but it won't be a Nokia exclusive, so anyone with a WP8 handset will be able to use the food filter and (over)share their lunch choice on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest orInstagram. We don't know whether the regular dollar-per-month (or $10 per year) service fee will apply, but we're told you'll be able to swap cash for more filters and effects on top of the base selection.

Nokia to launch Smart Camera app on all of its Windows Phone 8 devices in Amber software update

Jealous of the Lumia 925's flashy new imaging software? At Nokia's London event, Jo Harlow has promised that other Lumia owners won't be left out in the cold. The company will be pushing out "Amber," an update that'll bring Smart Cam, amongst other apps, to the company's wider range of Windows Phone 8 devices. There's no word on when Amber will actually arrive beyond a vague mention of "summer," but the company hopes it'll be ready in time for your next vacation.

Microsoft adds built-in Google Talk to Outlook.com and SkyDrive.com

Make no mistake, we don't just like Outlook.com; we love it. The problem with Microsoft's revamped email service, though, is that ditching Gmail can be a tough sell, as it's meant giving up features like built-in Gchat. At last, though, Microsoft is adding support for Google Talk, which means you can keep sending your friends dancing-parrot videos even after you make the switch. (Outlook.com still does Facebook andSkype chatting too.) What's more, you'll find Gchat baked into SkyDrive.com -- a handy tool if you happen to be collaborating with Google users. To clarify, this feature is only coming to the Outlook and SkyDrive websites for now -- Dharmesh Mehta, Sr. Director of Outlook.com, told us Microsoft is still considering how GTalk might fit into its mobile apps. In the meantime, though, you can load up Outlook in your browser if you want a peek. And don't worry if nothing shows up right away: the company is warning users that the roll-out could take several days.

Hamster wheel used to control human-sized treadmill (video)

Sure, your pet hamster's amazing leg strength may someday power a house, but can it beat you in a race? A pair of Chicago-based artists might be able to help you solve this mystery. The duo recently hooked up a homemade tachometer to a hamster's exercise wheel and mapped the data to a treadmill's motor. The fur ball's RPMs are transferred in real time, which gives it the ability to control its bipedal competitor's running speeds. The team cautions that no animals were harmed during this experiment, however a human ego may have been bruised after trying to keep up with a tireless rodent.