Google Tackles Digital Addiction, Distraction

The next version of Google’s Android operating system, called Android P, will include features to help users, including students, address issues of digital distraction and smartphone addiction.

Google unveiled the features, which are in public beta but aren’t likely to show up as part of an Android update for months, last week at its I/O Silicon Valley developer conference.

Among the new features, placing your phone face-down on a flat surface will activate a Do Not Disturb mode that mutes calls and shuts down any visual notifications. Select VIP contacts can be tagged to allow them to break through DND mode.

A Family Link app will let parents monitor how often their kids access certain apps, block or approve app downloads, set limits on screen time, and, if necessary, remotely lock their offspring’s devices.

A dashboard will show when and how often you unlock your phone, and how long you spend with each app. There will be an option to set time limits on apps; once you hit the limit on an app, its icon will turn gray on your screen (but will still be usable).

Similarly, a wind-down mode will fade your screen to gray at a user-set bedtime as a reminder it’s time to stop for the day. The feature will also put the phone into Do Not Disturb mode.

It’s expected Apple will also announce options to deal with these same issues in an update to its iPhone iOS software in June at its Worldwide Developers Conference.

Datawind Builds a $20 Tablet Computer

Datawind, a British manufacturer producing wireless web-access products, has developed a new Android tablet computer that has reviewers buzzing. The Aakash 2 uses an LCD touchscreen display that can browse the web and hold up to video gaming.

By attaching a keyboard, it becomes a serviceable replacement for the traditional personal keyboard, at and a $20 per unit, it comes at a fraction of the cost.

Flurry report shows three million active users of iPhone e-book apps in July 2009

Flurry, a company that provides metrics for smartphone usage, has released a new report with some very interesting data. The report says the number of available apps in the Apple App Store has increased from 25,000 in January 2009 to 65,000 in July 2009. If the store experiences the same growth rate, it could have over 100,000 apps by December 2009. The report notes, “To put this in context, the App Store soon will carry more items than the world’s largest retailer, Wal-Mart, which merchandises about 100,000 items per store.” Flurry also tracks active user sessions of iPhone e-book applications and found that there were three million active users in July 2009, a 300% growth rate from April 2009. The e-book category of apps is now the second largest category representing 14% of the total apps.

In addition, Flurry tracks the number of “New Project Starts” to gauge developer interest for both iPhones and smartphones that include Google Android. According to the report, 18 new Android devices are scheduled to begin shipping this year and the growth rate of new Android projects increased 50% from June to July 2009. The iPhone still controls much of the developer interest, but interest in Google Android systems is increasing.