Google’s Unified Messaging Service Will Work Across Five Platforms

A new report from Droid-Life details Google’s upcoming Babble—or Babel, sources say— messaging service, and how it’ll unify across five different platforms. The platform is allegedly being tested internally by Google across Android, iOS, Chrome, Google+ and Gmail, and willsync across all five seamlessly in a conversation-based UI. If ever there was one, this is Google’s answer to BBM and iMessage.

Google is allegedly going to push these bullet points when the service officially launches (date is still unknown):

  • Access the same conversation list from anywhere
  • A new, conversation-based UI
  • Advanced group conversations
  • Ability to send pictures
  • Improved notifications across devices

If this new Babel service turns out to be legit, I’m already a fan. We currently use a few different methods to communicate at work, and it’ll be nice to have something that unifies across five separate platforms. Of course, this is still a rumor at this point, but many of them hammer around the same main points. If this is something Google has planned for I/O in May, we don’t have too much longer to wait.

[Source: TechnoBuffalo]

Could Google be working on a unified messaging platform?

The screenshot above, while not Android, is extremely interesting regardless because of what it may be showing off. Posted by developer François Beaufort, what's seen here is a Chrome OS desktop with both a new notifications system and more interestingly a new app icon that we've never seen out of Google before. The "rich notifications", which show messages, calls and Google+ activity all in-line and within one pane are displayed in a new Jelly Bean and Google Now design. The new icon, to the right of the Google Drive app in the dock, shows four cascading Google-themed chat boxes.

This screenshot raises a whole lot more questions than it answers, and instantly gets us speculating as to whether or not this new notification system and app are a sign of something bigger than just Chrome OS notifications. Could this finally be a unified messaging service from Google? This could quite easily be just Google+ notifications -- missed hangout calls, Google+ Messenger messages and picture shares -- but we surely hope it's more than that.

Now of course this isn't Android, but it could have a huge impact on Android users if this turns out to be a true unified messaging service from Google. A unified messaging system that brings together Google Voice, Talk, Google+ and others would be a huge step forward for the integration of Google's often-disjointed services.

[Source: AndroidCentral]

Samsung doubles down on its web-based messaging app with ChatON 2.0

If you like to let your fingers do the talking but basic text and smileys alone don't cut it, Samsung has just released version 2.0 of its ChatON internet-based messaging app. It works on Android, iOS, Blackberry, Bada and even web browsersto let you send missives to your besties -- alone or in groups -- with video, audio or images. The updated app / website works in over 200 countries and 60 languages, and now includes a multiscreen feature to let you chat with over five separate accounts at once along with the ability to conscript new chat-ees via Facebook or Twitter. You'll still be able to post messages to the "trunk" for friends to see before they hit social networks or create a personal profile with status updates -- so, hit the source for more info, social butterflies.

[Source: Engadget]