Chromecast to get a more personalized home screen?

Jacob Donley 2014-04-09T17:00:01Z22 hours ago

Jacob Donley

I'm not a developer or anything like that. I'm a consumer, just like you. I like to give my thoughts on Android products from the non-technical side. Yes, I do provide some of the technical specs and such, but really, I just want to give you the best news possible.

The Chromecast may be getting a home screen makeover. GigaOm reported that there could be weather based info and other improvements coming soon to the Chromecast home screen.

Will Chromecast get an updated home screen?   © Google

The source code for Chromecast apparently has information relating to weather updates on the home screen, including current weather and one day forecasts. While nothing is official, GigaOm stated that Google’s comment was that they are always experimenting but have nothing new to announce. The newest round of updates to the Chromecast fix volume leveling and other bugs. However, none of these new home screen features have made their way to the device yet.

The Chromecast recently gained support for Rhapsody, Napster, Rdio, and Crackle. News of more personalization to the home screen is a welcome addition. There also is mention that personal photos may be coming to the home screen. The Photowall application, an app to collect photos from whoever sends them to the Chromecast and creates a YouTube video when finished, was released on March 24.

The Chromecast team seems intent on expanding the usability of the streaming dongle. With the addition of Amazon Fire TV to the streaming video market, the Chromecast is going to need to create a niche for itself if it wants to remain relevant. Weather information and improved customization is a step in the right direction.

What features would you like to see come to the Chromecast? Is there a feature or function that you believe could make the Chromecast even better? Feel free to share them in the comments.

Via: Slash Gear Source: GigaOm

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Eyeview Brings Its Personalized Video Ads To Internet-Connected TVs

Personalized video advertising company Eyeview is announcing that its ads will now work on Internet-connected TVs, specifically those with Roku and Microsoft Xbox devices.

Eyeview’s technology allows ads to be customized using viewer data. For example, it allows a big chain to create a national ad that will include local stores and deals depending on where it’s is shown.

Co-founder and CEO Oren Harnevo already suggested that this was a likely direction for the company when he announced its Series C funding last year. He told me at the time that because the system works by creating “hundreds of thousands” of variations for each ad (rather than personalizing it by using a Flash overlay, like some competitors), Eyeview could bring its ads to other devices like connected TVs.

When discussing today’s announcement, Harnevo acknowledged that on TVs, smart or not, there are no cookies and therefore less data for Eyeview’s targeting and personalization. However, he suggested that the company will know the time of day, the location, and basic demographic information, which will allow it to deliver ads that are “a lot more relevant” than traditional TV campaigns.

Harnevo also acknowledged that the size of the current audience on smart TVs means that “the scale is not huge,” so it’s more likely that advertisers will see these ads as a “complementary” part of larger campaigns. That doesn’t mean it’s not valuable, though, and he argued that as audiences embrace the on-demand TV model and as companies like Eyeview enable this kind of advertising, “I think you’ll see the brand dollars shift very quickly.”

Eyeview says its ads can appear on “all broadcast and cable networks” on supported devices.

Google Keyboard gets a new update, brings personalized suggestions

It looks like Google Search isn’t the only Google app receiving an update this Wednesday. Google Keyboard has also a new update in store for us that brings a few bug fixes, a new settings icon when long-pressing the mic button and personalized suggestions.

Personalized Suggestions is without a doubt the most important change here. These new suggestions use data from other Google apps and services to improve the keyboard’s suggestions. In other words, it gauges the way you type throughout all your Google apps to provide the most accurate recommendations possible.

Although apps like SwiftKey already can learn your writing style by using Facebook, Gmail and other sources — it’s nice to see Google bring this functionality to the default keyboard. Don’t like the idea of Google collecting this data? Rest assured that everything is stored locally, and there is a way to disable the feature.

Keep in mind that, in usual Google fashion, the update is rolling out in stages and so it may not be available for your device just yet. To check for the update, you’ll want to head over to Google Play.

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