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Anybody with a mobile internet connection can check their schedule by visiting Google Calendar… but how about responding to invitations, changing event status, edit event details and adding/removing guests from events? You couldn’t do it… until now.
Google has just announced that all of the above features are now available (in English) on all Android-powered Phones with support for other languages rolling out in the coming weeks and months. Even if you don’t have an internet connection, you’ll be able to view your most recently accessed events. If you’re a Google Calendar user you’re probably excited about this – Google says it is the #1 complaint/suggestion they’ve been receiving on the Google Product Ideas site. It is also available on iPhones with OS 2.2.1+but we’re pretty sure that you don’t care, so shall we just pretend we didn’t inform you of that useless tidbit? Exactly…
To access the new Google Calendar visit:
For extra convenience, add Google Calendar to the homescreen of you Android Phone:
- In the browser, go to Google Calendar (be sure you’ve signed in)
- Press your device’s < Menu > button
- Select More
- Select Bookmark page and select OK
- Press your device’s < Home > button, then press the < Menu > button
- Select Add > Shortcut > Bookmark
- Find ‘Google Calendar’ and select it
- A new Google Calendar icon appears on your home screen
Whether you’re already an avid Google Calendar user or this post pushed you to try it out for the first time – let us know how you like it in the comments!
UPDATE: GMail has added features too – see video below!
So it’s not integrated with the application already on the Android phone? That is, for lack of a better word, Lame.
^^ thats exactly what i clicked through from the rss feed to say.
thanks but no thanks google. update your apps, not your web services.
I’m sure that sooner rather than later the Gmail and Calendar Android applications will be updated. For all we know, this mobile browser update is a sign that the next OS update is in throwing distance.
I know this is unrelated, but when can we see episode 5 of Phandroid.com podcast?
“So it’s not integrated with the application already on the Android phone? That is, for lack of a better word, Lame.”
I’m sorry, are you new? Seriously, did you just get on the Google Bus? Their services are web-based, they ALWAYS update the web versions FIRST. the apps will be updated whenever they make an update. Sheesh, impatient much?
Sorry, but I have to agree with Jake. These aren’t new features to Google calendar, they are new to the MOBILE version of calendar. I really have no desire to load a webpage when I have a native app that behaves much more nicely on my device. I would MUCH rather see these features in the app. I’m sure they’ll get there eventually. What people have to realize, though is that there’s not just 1 person at google working on calendar; I bet there’s not even 1 team. There’s probably the main team which is mostly unrelated to the mobile calendar team which is mostly unrelated to the Android calendar team. I’m not SURPRISED to see features in the mobile web version that haven’t made it to Android yet, just disappoitned. The way Google tries to remain platform agnostic, sometimes even neglecting their own OS (see Google Earth mobile; oh wait you CAN’T unless you have an iphone) reminds me of IBM and OS/2. They kept supporting windows instead of pushing their own platform, and look what happened to it.
WE THE PODCAST ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
So it’s not integrated with the application already on the Android phone? That is, for lack of a better word, Lame.
x2
The native gmail app is garbage… why can’t you delete text from fwd/replied emails? Why does it take 3 minutes to preview a picture from an email???
Is there a way to create an email list on the g1?
Why does my keyboard make a creaking noise when I type?
Where the hell is cupcake? Why is there no accelorameter yet? WTF does my battery die in 3 hours??? Do i seriously have to walk around with a charger in my jeans and whore every outlet I come across throughout the course of the day? Should I get a netbook and call it a day??
Is there gonna be a native visual voicemail?? Why does the aim still suck? That native app needs a ton of work. Why won’t facebook make a genuine app? When are they gonna fix the market clutter? Why is Solitaire my most used app??? Where’s the video recorder? Touchscreen without virtual keypad sucks!!! I got the G1 mainly because it has a keyboard, but having to twist the phone to type simple responses totally sucks… how cam I supposed to bs in meetings?
What’s google’s intent with this device? Is this some big mobile advertising platform or do they actually care to put out a functional product? Why does it have a usb headphone jack… seriously… who the fu<k was behind that??? Why didn’t my $200 come with a belt clip? Why can’t I get more info about apps online (app store)? Why do pictures disappear out of my Pictures app?
Where the eff is this flash player??????? WTF happened to cupcake????
Too much coffee, Jon?
@Jon – You have some serious anxiety issues…..
One of the most awesome things about Android is the open source nature of the platform. We have seen this in several of the apps that developers have published to the Android Market. I think this is why many of us actually have the G1. Why don’t you show some initiative and develop some solutions to your complaints? For the G1 being the first product of its kind, I think it is an awesome product. Are there problems and complaints? Sure. Are there solutions? Of course. You also have to remember that you are not just dealing with Google here. You have Google, HTC and TMO in the mix. You also have to be patient.
I must say, the majority of Jons comments are valid. I have had a play with the new Magic ROM on my G1 and about ahlf of his issues have been resolved. You can now Copy and paste text from GMAIL and the Web Browser. Google has conceded to market pressures with regard to multi touch and probably the headphone jack. Battery is a major issue also. I still wouldn’t go to the iphone, I value the freedom my G1 provides, with the DEV community providing fun mods and backups in case you screw your phone with a mod etc… The G1 is an infant and is growing fast.. I hope google keeps up the momentum of updates and doesnt leave us hanging with a dud OS
Jon: Go buy an iPhone then, just like everyone else in the world who wants to be “cool” instead of having a useful and productive device. For power users and devs, we have Android. Sure the G1 has some flaws and so does the OS, but what doesn’t? I’m pretty sure your battery dies in 3 hours because you listen to music on it all day. Could be wrong, though. Mine lasts the entire day (8AM-1AM) with hours to spare and I use it for phone calls, web browsing (3G or wireless), e-mail, texting, some games, and my to-do list.
As for Cupcake… I don’t know how in the world you interpret “in April” to mean “definitely before April 8th.” If you’re really so worked up over belt clips and flash player, go get a phone built for stupid people.
don’t get me wrong it’s a good improvement and step forward for the mobile browsing world. Currently it ONLY works on an iPhone or Android, which is kind of screwy, iPhone and Android users are those that want apps not an improved web experience. These phones are two of the best phone to create an application for! A better idea would of been to develop and app with the improved browsing features that would have been better received on other phones that aren’t very developer friendly and released them in conjunction.
So…back to the topic…
I’m excited about this update. I use a gmail account and a google apps account. I tried using the imap client for the apps account, but it’s awful. Kmail isn’t much better, so I’ve been using the web client (really not that bad, quit bitching). This new update let’s me manage both of my google identities with greater ease. Only one problem. It’s SLOW. I hope they get the speed up, because I’m waiting forever to get me inbox.
Also, if you want on screen keyboard for texting, get chompsms. If you want multitouch, flash your phon with the jf firmware. The solutions to your issues are already there, you have to do something instead of waiting for tmobile to hold your hand.
Matt… don’t be a queer… why is everyones response to g1 complaint, “go get an iphone”… do u guys really feel the iphone is better? i surely don’t… and I’m not a dev @ whoeva asked me 2 make a solution… why do i have to be a computer geek to do these basic thing son my phone (no offense to the devs)… i love my g1 despite my complaints, but i have to keep complaining b4, as sum1 else mentioned, the progress stops and we are left with a subpar piece of shit… and i dont listen to music on my g1 all day… i work 2 jobs and go to school full-time… i hadly use my g1… it drains seemingly while on standby… using edge!!!
these r things i would like to see changed… u dont have to tell me to switch to another fone, im grown dude
and i dont drink coffee O_o
wtf is jf firmware… chompsms is an iphone ripoff n the vkeyboard is way too small…
is there a site i can go where sum can provide step by step solutions on how to mod my fone to do shit it should have been doing out of the box????
any1 come across any paid apps worth the money yet???
(not trying to be anti-g1… just pro-progress… be nice, no fighting)
Always good to see progress. What i would really love to see in the calendar is a listed view. Anyone who’s checked out sweeter home may know what im talking about. It displays a list of all events on the calendar in a sequenced list starting with the current day. Its really nice for a quick view of more than just what i have to do today, so i can see that my electric bill (for example) is due tomorrow and pay it yesterday, without manually having to check day/week/month and tapping the individual events.
If any knows a way to do this outside of sweeter home (still a work in progress) please lemme know, ill be checkin back here.
@Jon
“as sum1 else mentioned, the progress stops and we are left with a subpar piece of shit”
What google are you using, cuz the one i know has been consistently progressing since day 1.
And yes, ‘subpar piece of shit’ is pretty anti.
Lastly, we are talking about ‘the google phone’ .. link in my name to one of your questions (id pick the second hit, and bricking it is on you)
Jon, if you want to be “no fighting” and “pro progress” then you probably shouldn’t be writing things like:
“The native gmail app is garbage”
and
“What’s google’s intent with this device? Is this some big mobile advertising platform or do they actually care to put out a functional product?”
and
“don’t be a queer”
But to answer a few your questions
If it takes 3 minutes to look at a picture attachment, you need to clear your cache(browser, sms), make sure you have a strong (wifi or 3g) connection, might need to restart your phone, or, or, there’s something wrong with your phone. My guess is the signal, or something wrong with your phone.
If your keyboard squeaks when you type it’s one of two things:
1 – You’re pressing too hard
2 – There’s something wrong with your phone
If pictures are disappearing from your phone there is DEFINITELY something wrong with your phone. A few apps have been blamed in the comments section of the market for this, but I don’t know if that’s legit. Either way, you have 3 problems that suggest you have a defective phone.
facebook is controlled by facebook, they will or won’t make apps depending on their own priority, that’s not a complaint to bring to android.
Flash is developed by Adobe, contact them about a flash player, they are the ONLY ones who can do ANYTHING about flash player and flash browser plugins. Android has ZERO responsibility for this.
I don’t recall a video recorder being advertised or promised, if one comes along, great, but nobody said there would be one.
Cupcake is a development branch, not an update.
http://source.android.com/roadmap/cupcake
Android has made no promises about releasing features from it, but there have been gobs of rumors.
native gmail app is garbage b… but im gonna send out for a new handset and see if any off my probs go away… if not i give it til june and if its still floppin i’ll switch to a diff fone… u guys can do wat u want but im not paying $35 a month for these bullshit apps in the market… i had a sidekick b4 this and i really dont see the diff so far… except the aim app is 1000000 times worst… potential of opensource means nada if the devs dont act on it
@jon – Dev’s have acted on it. Maybe your lack of technical understanding is the problem here. I will agree, there are plenty of BS apps on the market, but there are many, MANY, excellent and reliable apps. And, you are right, you don’t pay $35 a month for the apps in the market, you are paying for the data network and SMS. If you are so dissatisfied, why don’t you just go ahead and get a different phone. You apparently aren’t capable of understanding how to use the one you’ve got!
@jon – Oh, and I wouldn’t get an iPhone either. You would be better off sticking with the SideKick. If you think there is no difference between the G1 and your SideKick 4 then you are just an id10t! G1 and iPhone aren’t for you.
@ Anyone with the dying batt problem
my suggestion, change some settings… use 2g instead of 3g, lower the the background light. install widgets that allows u to control if ur wifi and gps are on or off (major batt eaters) get a taskkiller! great for identifying who the battery-eating culprits are…
calendar is great… can be improved… couldnt find what i wanted here… that’s my advise for the batt.
@JasonD:
Personally, I don’t give a rat’s ass whether Google’s services are web-based. Mobile devices are inherently difficult to use — they have slow processors, small screens, and highly error-prone input sources. The operating system and application stack must give the user every advantage.
As a user, I am unwilling to user a browser to access integral functions of the phone (such as the calendar). Moreover, even if a browser-based UI experience didn’t feel cheap and hard to use, it would still suffer from lack of functionality. How is a web page going to ping you in the middle of the day to remind you of your appointment?
I think Android has the potential to be very, very good. But I must say, Google does not have a very promising track record when it comes to producing and maintaining quality software products. Unfortunately, Google’s M.O. has always been to launch an innovative idea as a piece of buggy concept code, and then never update it. And even when updates *are* provided, they rarely address the deficiencies that users actually care about. (Want to know how many thousands of users have begged for the ability to perform a SORT operation in Gmail? Google isn’t stupid — it knows that sort and search aren’t interchangeable. It just doesn’t care about its users.)
phandroid.com: I think you should delete Jon’s Comment #15. He’s using a demographic category as a pejorative. phandroid, do you realize that if you allow such bigoted behavior on your site, you are condoning it? Allowing such comments makes this an unsafe place for people to visit. I don’t want to encounter bigotry when I’m trying to learn about technology.
The fact that calendar isn’t 100% integrated as an app will move me away from getting a google phone.
It seems recently that google is becoming very sloppy in it’s design. Buzz was lame, and there user interfaces aren’t polished in some apps. Apple really knows how to polish a product. Shame on google to be honest, for their calibre and size this should be a walk in the park… an open source team of 5 people could sort this out in weeks.
Maybe I will get an iPhone after all.
Its been nearly 2 years and no update to the apps, you still cannot invite/accept calendar events, and the lame “Guests” field in the app you have to manually add (type) email addresses, there is no option where you can click invite and choose from your list of contacts. This is like calendar event functionality 101 and they have FAILED MISERABLY – Google needs to get its act together as Blackberry users and many others are completely turned off to Android over this, I’ve even been in a Verizon store twice where reps sold Blackberrys over Androids by telling them Android had no invite/accept features in the calendar, sad sad sad.
It’s always interested to see what companies like Google add to their mobile calendars and applications.