Google is killing off Project Tango by March 2018

Google has always been unafraid to experiment on new, out-there ideas but the company isn’t afraid to kill off ideas when it looks like it isn’t working. The latest one to hit the chopping block is the company’s augmented reality program called Project Tango. It’s getting killed off pretty soon, too. According to the company, it’ll be killing off the program by March next year. This is going to be bad news for early adopters who bought phones like the Lenovo Phab 2 Pro and ASUS ZenFone AR but the idea isn’t fully dead.

The tech giant is concentrating on the software side of AR with ARcore, which seems to be a trend in the industry. Apple itself has ARkit, a software solution that managed to turn iOS into the biggest AR platform out there. ARcore will also be able to work on different devices without the need for expensive hardware so if Google develops this idea further, we might see it across Android. The latest implementation can be seen in AR Stickers available on the Pixel devices.

Source: GSMArena

Lenovo rumoured to be working on another Project Tango device

There’s a report coming from Ubergizmo that claims we haven’t seen the last Project Tango device from Lenovo. This Google Project introduced around two years ago makes use of special sensors embedded into mobile devices to map out 3D spaces for augmented reality purposes. Lenovo first introduced a Project Tango-enabled device called the Phab 2 Pro. And it seems that isn’t the last we’ve seen from Lenovo. According to Jeff Merideth, general manager of Android and Chrome at Lenovo, the company plans to launch new Project Tango devices next year. That would put Lenovo ahead of other manufacturers, since this will already be a second-generation device and other makers have yet to introduce their first version.

At the moment, there are only a few dozen apps available that take advantage of the depth-sensing capabilities of Project Tango. But perhaps with more devices coming out, we hope to see more apps.

Google’s accepting submissions from North American developers for its Indie Games Festival

Google hopes to get more indie game developers to create games for their platform by hosting a festival in San Francisco on September 24^th. Aptly called the Indie Games Festival, the event wants to host developers and feature some promising titles. Developers with a team of 15 or less can send in their games until August 14^th. Other conditions include that they aren’t a public company and the games must have been released sometime this year. Google isn’t limiting it to mobile games though, they want developers to submit titles for both Tango and Cardboard platforms, too.

Aside from being able to show off their games to the public (the event is open to all), Google is also offering prizes to the teams including Tango hardware, ad space in the Google Play Store, and tickets to next year’s Google I/O.

Source: The Verge

Google brings Project Tango development kit to Canada and South Korea

Google’s Project Tango hasn’t been making the news lately. But the company’s experiments with machine vision and sensing technology continue. In fact, the Project Tango development kit is out now for Canada and South Korea. The dev tablets now cost $512 (from the $1,024 at launch). It comes with a 7-inch display, 4GB of RAM, 128GB of storage, a Tegra K1 processor, and runs on Android 4.4 KitKat (but gets frequent updates to improve its unique software capabilities). What sets it apart is the depth-sensing cameras and orientations sensors that allow it to create a 3D map of a certain area.

By the end of the month, or on August 26^th to be exact, the tablet will also be available in Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. The device can be bought by anyone in the supported country, but, of course, it’s geared towards software developers.

Source: Google Developers | Via: Android Police