Google wants you to share calendar files via SMS.

Google, or someone at Google, thinks that Android users want to share calendar events via SMS. Yes via SMS. What a great useless idea. I never share calendar events and I doubt I'd do it via SMS, which I consider as obsolete in the age of WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and other cross-platform messaging apps.

Similar to Apple, Google believes you need that feature. You just don't know it yet. Now you have the ability to share calendar events via SMS with friends.

The update is rolling out now in Google Play Store. You have no choice but to download the update and move on.

Android Messages app gets dark theme; Messages Web gets GIF search and more stickers.

SMS is here to stay and no WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger will ever change that. That's the reason Google keeps updating Android's official app for texting and chat. Android Messages was recently updated with web support, allowing users to send and reply to messages on their computers without having to pick up their phones. A very handy feature that Google is improving furthermore with the last update. 

Android Messages is getting a new look. Not that Google entirely redesigned the app; it pretty much looks the same. But they added a dark theme and if you've been following Android news lately, dark theme is making the headlines as Google kind-of working, not to say struggling, at bringing a dark theme to Android. 

In addition to dark theme, Google is also giving some love to Messages web with the ability to search GIF and stickers. A great addition if you're fans of those.

Of course, this update includes the usual anonymous bug fixes and performance improvements. Android Messages is available for download in Google Play Store.

AirDroid lets you reply to messages directly in notification on Android devices running 7.0 & above.

Chances are that, like me, you use multiple screens at home – like your PC attached to a secondary screen. This comes in handy when multi-tasking. Today, thanks to apps like AirDroid, it is now possible to similarly use your Windows PC or Mac to interact with your Android phone or tablet. When paired with your Android device, AirDroid will mirror your calls, SMS and emails on the bigger screen so you won’t have to reach out for your phone. A great productivity feature as you’ll be able to use the full keyboard and mouse to interact with your Android device. And wirelessly transferring files between your PC and device is faster. Additionally, you can do this without spending a dim.

AirDroid has a whole lot of features. Besides notifications mirroring for replying to messages, AirDroid lets you backup photos and videos from the phone to the computer; manage phone contacts from the desktop; record screenshot; locate your phone when it’s lost and remotely access the phone cameras. The latter feature is available via AirDroid web client only. The latest update adds some more features.

Version v4.1.6.0 improves the reliability and smoothness of AirMirror. Users will also be able to reply to messages directly from the notification area on the phone provided you have Android 7.0 and above.

Here’s the rest of the change log:

·       Show touches in screen recording.

·       Improved device connection reliability.

·       Other bug fixes and improvements.

Like I said above, AirDroid is a free powerful tool I strongly recommend to access and manage your phone from your PC. Check it out in Google Play Store.

SMS in Android Messages can now be marked as read in notifications.

I still use SMS sometimes, but I've long transitioned to messaging apps like WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger. And for the rare times that I use it, it's good to see Google keeps adding new features to Android Messages.

The latest update allows users to mark a message as read right in the notification area. A feature that I find particularly useful. Before this update, 'Reply' was the only option available in the notification area and swiping the message away after reading did not remove the unread badge on the Android Messages icon. The 'Mark as read' option fixes that problem. So thanks for that Google, but there's another feature I think you could add up there: A delete button.

Many online services still sends out SMS messages with code for authentication and since messages can be read without opening the app, a delete button in the notification area would make perfect sense. 

Do you think a 'Delete' button in the messages notifications will be useful?

Grab the update in Google Play Store.

Pushbullet lets you send texts from your Android tablet.

Pushbullet has posted another update today that makes it possible to send and reply to SMSs on Android tablets. For this to work, SMS Sync must be enabled in Pushbullet on the phone. Launch Pushbullet on the tablet and tap SMS and your SMS threads will be displayed. Tap a SMS to open the conversation history and start typing and send your messages. Recipients won't know you're sending the SMS from a tablet. The app will sync your SMSs to your phone and the latter will then send the SMS. Pushbullet supports multiple phones. Simply select the phone you want to send from a selector within the app. 

This new feature is currently free, but, starting December 1st, unlimited texting will be available to Pro users only, while free accounts will be limited to 100 SMSs per month. Download the update Google Play and enjoy sending/receiving SMS on your tablet.

Contacts + saves typed numbers in dialer when switching apps.

Managing contacts can be tedious and apps like Contacts + makes it easier for us. Contacts + is more than just a phonebook, it also combines a dialer app along with caller ID, spam block and contacts backup - all in one place. If the default contacts app is not up to the task for you, I recommend you give Contacts + a try. The app just got updated today with the following new features:

• You can now choose the color of the conversation SMS bubble.
• Saving typed numbers in the dialer when switching apps.
• Bug fixes & performance improvements.

Check it out on Google Play.

Pushbullet now supports end-to-end encryption.

The folks behind Pushbullet do take privacy very seriously and the latest update proves just that. Up until today's update, Pushbullet kept users information private with https protocol. The data was indeed secure from prying eyes, but it was still visible to the Pushbullet folks. Hence today's update that brings end-to-end encryption to Pushbullet across all your devices.

After installing the update, End-to-end encryption will encrypt data "before it leaves your device, and isn't decrypted until it is received by another of your devices." Pushbullet said in a blog post that "setting up end-to-end encryption, you can be confident that your data is only readable when it's shown to you."

Setting up end-to-end encryption requires entering a password on each of your device. The password is not stored anywhere, not even on Pushbullet's servers, hence the manual operation on all the devices where Pushbullet is installed. This is done in the app settings, where a new setting labeled end-to-end encryption has been added.

Currently, end-to-end encryption is supported on Android, Chrome and Windows. Pushbullet announced that the update will also make its way to Opera, Safari and Firefox "after confirming things are working great in Chrome."

The update also brings some improvements to SMS. Version 16.5.4 also makes it possible to select and delete multiple pushes at once. A Clear History button has also been added in Settings. 

Read the blog post over at Pushbullet. Follow the link to Google Play Store to download the the update.

Pushbullet syncs SMS over WiFi only, consumes less juice.

Pushbullet was updated more than ten days ago with the ability to sync full SMS conversation on the computer. Since the team behind this must-have app has been hard at work improving this feature. The latest update contains the following new features:

• Better settings for mirroring and SMS sync!
• Sync SMS on Wifi only.
• SMS bug-fixes (less data, less battery :)

If you haven't downloaded Pushbullet yet, head over to Google Play store to get version 16.4.1 of the app and enjoy easy sharing of photos, songs, links etc between your devices, plus the ability to send and receive SMSs on your computer.

Pushbullet update makes it faster and less data-hungry.

It's only last Wednesday that Pushbullet updated their app to better handle SMS conversation on the computer. This feature was initially limited to one message and last week update enhanced this feature with the display of the entire SMS conversation on the computer, making it less likely for you to reach for your phone to keep tabs with the conversation.

Today, Pushbullet was updated again with some fixes and improvements. It brings some SMS improvement and the most interesting bit is the app app is now little bit faster and uses less of our precious data.

Here's what is new in Pushbullet 16.3.2:

• Many SMS improvements.
• App is now a bit faster and uses less data.
• Fixed bug that could lead to not getting notifications.

Download the update in Google Play store.

Pushbullet brings your phone's full SMS conversation on your computer.

Late last year, Pushbullet introduced a new feature which allowed users to send SMS on their Windows computer or through Chrome browser. The ability to chat is in fact handled by the phone and Pushbullet simply pushed the message to your computer in a way similar to Facebook chathead. While it was a very welcome feature, it had a limitation. The app was only capable of showing one message. Today, Pushbullet was updated to allow Android users to see the full SMS conversation, further reducing interaction with the phone while working on a computer.

The update, which raises the version number to 16.3 was published today in Google Play store and does not contain any other changes or fixes. 

Tutorial: How to send & receive SMS on your PC.

What a better day than Sunday to write a tutorial and I have the feeling that you are going to like it. It is about sending & receiving text messages, the oldest modern means of communicating with friends and family since the first mobile phone came to market.

In this tutorial, I'll show you how to send/receive SMS right on your desktop so you can put that phone aside while doing your work and still interact with the outside world. Consider yourself lucky to be living in a world where there's an app for everything. For this tutorial, we will need Pushbullet app for Android and Pushbullet extension for Chrome on your computer. Both are available free in the Play store and Chrome store. Once you have these setup on your phone and computer, you're pretty much done.

Pushbullet will actually send/receive SMS via your Android phone and will display your phone number. You recipients won't even know you're actually using a computer to chat with them. As you can see in the snapshot above, click the Pushbullet extension, then the SMS tab. The latter will automatically list your Android phone(s) in the first field.

The second field is where you type a phone number or select a name from your address book. Pushbullet is a smart app and includes a auto-complete feature. If you're concerned about privacy, you can disable the auto-complete feature in the settings of Pushbullet on your phone. Start typing and it will filter your contact list. A very convenient feature. Finally, type your message and click send. One thing to remember though, you are still limited to the 160 characters, exceeding that "historical" limit will split your messages.

When you receive a SMS, it will pop up like any Pushbullet notification in the bottom right corner of your computer. You will get to read, dismiss or reply to the message. Click Reply and the window in the screen shot below will pop up. 

It is that easy to send and receive SMS on your computer, thanks to Pushbullet. The extension works on Windows, Mac, Linux and Chromebooks. If you have suggestions, comments, join the Pushbullet subreddit. Hope you enjoyed this tutorial :-)