0 Instant Previews now available on mobile

By Unknown | At 08.47 | Label : Google Instant , Google Mobile Search , google search , google search for mobile , googlenew | 0 Comments

(Cross-posted from the Official Google Blog)

Instant Previews provides a fast and interactive way to evaluate search results. Starting today, Google Instant Previews is available on mobile for Android (2.2+) and iOS (4.0+) devices across 38 languages. Similar to the desktop version of Instant Previews, you can visually compare search results from webpage snapshots, making it easier to choose the right result faster, especially when you have an idea of the content you�d like to see.

For example, if you�re looking for a webpage that has both photos and descriptions, you can use Instant Previews to quickly identify these pages by navigating across the visual search results with a few swipes of your finger. Or perhaps you�re looking for an article, a step-by-step instructions list, or a product comparison chart�with Instant Previews, you can easily spot pages with the right content without having to navigate back and forth between websites and search results. And when the mobile version of a website is available, we�ll show you a preview of the mobile page.

To use Instant Previews on your mobile device, do a search on www.google.com and tap on the magnifying glass next to any search result. A side-by-side comparison view of the webpage previews for the first page of search results will appear. When you find a result you like, tap on the preview to go straight to the website. It�s as easy as finding a recipe for poaching an egg:

You can learn more about Instant Previews for mobile in our Help Center. We hope that you enjoy finding the right result faster with Instant Previews!

Posted by Brian Ngo, Software Engineer, Mobile Search team

0 Google Instant for mobile now available globally

By Unknown | At 11.05 | Label : Android , Google Instant , google search for mobile , iphone | 0 Comments

When we launched Google Instant for mobile in beta back in November, we announced that we would be supporting additional countries and languages, beyond just the U.S. in English. Today we�re happy to let you know that Google Instant for mobile is now available in 28 languages and 40 countries worldwide. If you have an Android 2.2+ or iOS4 device, just go to google.com in your mobile browser and you will be redirected to your local domain. Then, tap the Google Instant link beneath the search box to enable it.

Posted by Steve Kanefsky, Software Engineer

0 Google doodles for your phone

By Unknown | At 14.23 | Label : doodles , google search for mobile | 0 Comments

(Cross-posted on the Official Google Blog.)

While we�ve had oodles of Google doodles on our desktop homepage since Larry and Sergey created our very first in 1998, doodles on our mobile homepage have been few and far between. Today, we�re happy to announce that we�re bringing more doodles to your phone, beginning with Android 2.0+ and iOS 3+ devices worldwide. In fact, almost all of the doodles we show on our desktop homepage will now have corresponding mobile versions on these phones. When the doodles are available, just go to google.com in your mobile browser to see them.

Want your doodles within easy reach? You can get to google.com quickly by adding a shortcut to your home screen.

Posted by Steve Kanefsky, Software Engineer

0 The power of Google Instant, now in your pocket

By Unknown | At 13.01 | Label : Android , Google Instant , google search , google search for mobile , iphone | 0 Comments

(Cross-posted on the Official Google Blog.)

Google Instant makes search faster by displaying not just predictions but actual search results as you type. This saves valuable time on a desktop browser, but wouldn�t it be great to have Google Instant on mobile devices, where each keystroke and page load is much slower and you frequently have just a moment to find the information you need?

In September we announced that we were working to bring Google Instant to mobile, and today we�re making a beta version available to most iPhone and Android devices in the U.S. To try it out, go to google.com in your phone�s browser and tap the Google Instant �Turn on� link beneath the search box (if you don�t see the �Turn on� link, try waiting a moment and then refresh the page).

Like the desktop version of Google Instant, when you type on your mobile device you�ll see predictions of what you might be searching for. If you type [anse], for example, you should see [ansel adams] along with other predictions. Results for the first prediction appear automatically, and tapping on the other predictions will display those results. Pressing the enter key or the search button skips the predictions and will display results for exactly what you�ve typed. Check out our demo video:



With Google Instant on mobile, we�re pushing the limits of mobile browsers and wireless networks. You will probably notice a big improvement in speed when you search thanks to a new AJAX and HTML5 implementation for mobile that dynamically updates the page with new results and eliminates the need to load a new page for each query.

Google Instant for mobile works best on 3G and WiFi networks, but since the quality of any wireless connection can fluctuate, we�ve made it easy to enable or disable Google Instant without ever leaving the page. Just tap the �Turn on� or �Turn off� link.

We hope you�ll enjoy using Google Instant for mobile as much as we enjoyed making it. It�s currently available for Android 2.2 (�Froyo�) devices and iPhones and iPods running iOS 4 in the U.S. in English. We�re working to support additional countries and languages and more devices in the coming months, so stay tuned.

Posted by Steve Kanefsky, Software Engineer

0 Introducing the new Search History link on Google

By Unknown | At 15.37 | Label : Android , google search for mobile , history , iphone | 0 Comments

Have you ever tried to remember how to get back to a website that you found from a recent search? Today in the US, we�re launching a new search history feature which helps you quickly get back to sites you've been to and see items you have starred from your Android, iPhone, or desktop searches. Just sign in and then tap the history link at the bottom of the Google homepage.
If you�ve enabled search history in your account (tap �Settings� and select �Save Searches� under �Search History�, then tap �Save�), the history that you see is a combination of all your searches done while you are signed-in, whether you are searching from a laptop at home, your desktop computer at work, or your phone while on-the-go. Your mobile searches are marked with a little phone icon so you can tell them apart. For websites you�ve visited while searching on a desktop or laptop, you�ll see screenshot thumbnails that can help you recognize and return to the right sites quickly.
If you want to remove any history items, you can tap the "Edit" button at the top of the page and delete individual search queries. If you prefer to stop recording search history all together, choose the �Do not save searches� option under "Settings" on the home screen and tap �Save.�

At the top of the History page, you can also select your �Starred items,� which shows a list of search results you�ve starred on your computer or phone. Let�s say after researching places to snorkel in Hawaii, you found a website full of photos about Kealakekua Bay that you want to return to later. To star the Kealakekua Bay website, simply click on the star next to the Kealakekua Bay website on Google search results. Thereafter, whenever you want to return to the site, simply click on the �Starred items� option in history. This way, while you�re out with friends, you can easily get back to the website and show pictures of this magical cove right from your phone.
We hope you find the new History link useful!

Posted by Ran Liu, Software Engineer and Nick Fey, User Experience Designer, Google Mobile Team

0 Settle trivia debates anytime, anywhere

By Unknown | At 16.01 | Label : Android , google search for mobile , iphone , palm webos | 0 Comments

Last month we launched a way to provide short answers to search queries, and it's now available on your iPhone, Palm WebOS or Android-powered device in English. If you�re like us, you may sometimes engage in trivia matches with friends on topics as far ranging as, what continent is Turkey in?, Star Wars release date?, or Augustus� successor? Now you can settle that debate there and then by searching Google from your mobile; you can speak your question into Google Search on Android or Google Mobile App for iPhone, or you can visit google.com from your mobile browser to type your search.

If your friends challenge the answer provided in Google Search results, you can corroborate the information with a list of websites by clicking on the �Show sources� link. The source list includes the relevant text from each page so you can quickly verify whether Google interpreted the context of the answer correctly. You can also click through to the original website to get all the details.

We continue to work on providing short answers to more questions. Here are some additional examples to try:

• Who�s taller? [height of kobe bryant] or [height of paul pierce]
• Geography trivia? [capital of massachusetts], [language in netherlands]
• Literature trivia? [author of les miserables], [george eliot�s gender]
• Movie trivia? [release date of shrek], [director of harry potter 3]
• Music trivia? [composer of four seasons], [birthday of lady gaga]

Posted by Nick Fey, User Experience Designer and Mike Buchanan, Software Engineer, Google Mobile Team