If you’re an Android user who also enjoys using the Google+ social media service, you may have been a bit miffed to see the iOS version of the G+ app get a big update a few weeks ago. Well don’t worry, your time has come.

That’s right, Google today took the wraps off a big update for the Android version of the Google+ app and with it has come several improvements to the UI including the big thing you may love or hate: giant pictures. The new app also makes starting a hangout with your pals possible from a mobiel device.

In addition, there’s also a new navigation ribbon on the left side, much like the desktop version, that features quick shortcuts to all the areas of Google+ you might need to go to. You also get some new transitions as you scroll through feeds, the ability to download pics as wallpaper, the ability to edit posts inline and more.

The new app is available through the Google Play store. So, what do we think?

As most of you probably know, the iPhone is an extremely popular smartphone which has been sold to millions of customers around the world. In fact, most of us here at The Flickcast use the iPhone on a daily basis as our smartphone of choice.

But just because the iPhone is popular and most of us use it, that doesn’t mean we don’t take a shine to other smartphones worth checking out. One such device coming soon is HTC’s Incredible 4G, which is headed to Verizon Wireless later this month.

Up until now, details on the new device have been relatively scarce. We do know it’s been approved by the FCC and is expected to be released soon. Fortunately, the folks over at Android Police have dug a little deeper and come up with even more info.

Not only do they have some new info on specs, they also managed to snag a few photos of the device as well. Regarding specs, the display will reportedly be 4″ in size and the device will be powered by a 1.2GHz dual-core Snapdragon processor.

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Much like death and taxes, another inevitable fact of life is change. When it comes to products and services, often change is for the better and helps a product or service improve and attract new customers while solving some of the complaints of existing ones.

That’s one of the things Google is trying to accomplish by giving its relatively new, yet successful with over 170 million users, social media service Google+ a facelift. The changes, announced late yesterday and rolling out for all users over the next few days, introduces a more “functional and flexible user experience.”

The new interface focuses largely on customization and Google’s Hangout video chatting service which gets new features to make it easier to discover conversations and new profile pages. There’s also a new navigation bar perched to the left of the screen.

This so-called “ribbon of applications” can be dragged, dropped and placed in any order. The new interface also features a Facebook-like chat bar on the right with a “Trending” widget to help users discover popular topics. There’s also a dedicated Hangout page which will help users by giving them quick access to popular hangouts, tips and live broadcast.

For more on the new design, click through to check out Google’s official video on the subject.

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You have to hand it to Google. Even though it’s a fight between their Android OS and Apple’s iOS for dominance of the smartphone, they do come up with the better names for their software releases.

Apple pretty much sticks to numbers, with iOS 5 being the latest, while Google is now at Android 4.0 — which has the much cooler name of Ice Cream Sandwich. It is about that very delicious-sounding Android release we are talking today.

HTC has announced via their Facebook page that an Ice Cream Sandwich update will be available for some of its devices by the end of March. First in line to get the update will reportedly be the Sensation, Sensation 4G and Sensation XE. Then, a little later, the Sensation XL.

The Rezound, Vivid, Amaze 4G, EVO 3D, EVO Design 4G, Incredible S, Desire S and Desire HD will all be updated “later this year.”

So HTC users, how does this make you feel? Are you excited for some Ice Cream Sandwich action?

For those of you loving Google’s Chrome Browser on your desktop or laptop computers and who also have an Android-powered phone, this is a great day. Why? Well, as you can probably guess from the headline above, Google has announced the first beta release of the Chrome Web browser for Android-powered smartphones and tablets.

“Like the desktop version, Chrome for Android Beta is focused on speed and simplicity, but it also features seamless sign-in and sync so you can take your personalized web browsing experience with you wherever you go, across devices,” Sundar Pichai, Google’s SVP of Chrome and Apps, wrote on the company’s blog.

Chrome for Android is available immediately as a free download in the Android Market. It is compatible with smartphones and tablets running Android 4.0 or later. As I user of Chrome on Mac OS X I can only hope they release a version of Chrome for the iPhone. Although, knowing Apple’s reluctance to share, I won’t hold my breath.

If you want to see the Chrome browser for Android in action before your decide to try it yourself, check out the video from Google after the break.

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If you’ve been paying attention you probably know that Google is in the process of revamping Gmail and its interface to offer new features and new looks. In fact, if you’ve looked at your Gmail today, you may already have the new look and features.

You may notice a button at the bottom right that will enable the new interface. Here’s some details on the new look.

Gmail’s conversation view has been streamlined and now includes photos of each contact. Additionally, it will automatically resize itself to look best depending on your screen size thanks to a new “elastic density feature.”

Themes now support HD images and there is a new “smarter navigation” panel on the left hand side of the display that is customizable. Google also added a drop-down search box for more accurate email searches.

Check out Google’s video that explains even further (with visuals!) after the break.

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Even with all the hype and attention Apple gets for its product launches (yes, we love the iPhone 4S and iOS 5), we can’t forget the other smartphones out there. In fact, one of the most popular “other” operating systems, besides Apple’s iOS, powering some of the most innovative smartphones is, of course, Google’s Android platform.

Now Google has taken the wraps of of its brand new version of Android, known as Android 4.0 or “Ice Cream Sandwich” during a press event in Hong Kong yesterday. The software was revealed next to the upcoming Samsung Galaxy Nexus, a smartphone we’re looking forward to checking out.

Android 4.0 combines many of the tablet features already available in Android 3.x (Honeycomb) with the smartphone features available in Android 2.3 (Gingerbread). It will power both tablets and smartphones, and it offers several enhancements.

Some of these include the ability to unlock an Ice Cream Sandwich device using face recognition. Android 4.0 also has a new cleaner “Roboto” typeface and an extensive UI makeover.

The lock screen in Android 4.0 can be used to quickly unlock the phone or launch the camera, and users can also access notifications directly. “Back,” “Home” and “Menu” are now part of the Android virtual user interface and hardware buttons are no longer needed.

We could go on about the new OS but instead, we’ve gonna let Google’s own video tell the story. Click through for it after the break.

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With the iPhone being so popular and all the speculation about the next gen iPhone 5 reaching fever pitch, it’s sometimes hard to keep in mind the other fine smartphones on the market or coming soon. One of these is the upcoming Motorola DROID Bionic from Verizon Wireless.

Even for fans of HTC devices (which many of us are), it’s easy to be impressed with Moto’s latest offering. With specs such as a dual-core 1GHz TI OMAP processor, 1GB of RAM a 4.3-inch qHD display, the Android 2.3.4 Gingerbread OS and, of course, compatibility with Verizon’s lightning fast 4G LTE network, this device looks poised to dominate Verizon’s 4G offerings.

And now, Verizon Wireless on Wednesday finally made the Motorola DROID BIONIC official and has released pricing and availability details. The new Android smartphone launches Thursday, September 8th, for $299.99 with a 2 year contract.

Check out all the info in the official press release after the break.

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Some days news from the tech world is pretty amazing. Today is one of those days. Why? Read on.

Today, Google announced that it will be acquiring Motorola Mobility for $12.5 Billion. Yes, you read that right. Google is buying Moto.

According to reports, this move from Google will hopefully allow it to better compete with Apple’s iPhone, which owned two-thirds of profits among the world’s top-8 smartphone vendors in the second quarter. A Google-owned hardware arm would give the company complete control over the device, software and services, resulting in an end-to-end user experience that is completely under Google’s command.

Much like Apple does with the iPhone. And you know how that turned out. The deal will also give Google control of Motorola’s patents, of which there are quite a few.

“Motorola Mobility’s total commitment to Android has created a natural fit for our two companies,” Google CEO Larry Page said in a statement. “Together, we will create amazing user experiences that supercharge the entire Android ecosystem for the benefit of consumers, partners and developers. I look forward to welcoming Motorolans to our family of Googlers.”

Very nice of him. Check out the full press release after the jump.

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It was only a matter of time I guess as Google has followed in the footsteps of Facebook and announced that it will be adding games to its Google+ social network. According to the search (and social) giant’s company blog:

“We want to bring the nuance and richness of real-life sharing to the web. “That means giving you control over when you see games, how you play them and with whom you share your experiences.”

Don’t worry, though, the addition of games to Google+ won’t mean constant invitations from your friends to play FarmVille or join their family in Mob Wars. “Games in Google+ are there when you want them and gone when you don’t,” the company said at the blog post. Wel, thank the gods for that.

In the near future you’ll see a new ‘Games’ button added to the top of your Google+ stream. This will allow you to go to the gaming page and add some fun games that you can play. Or, if you’re not interested in games, you never, ever have to click the button. It’s that simple. Seems like a much betteer way to go than the way Facebook is doing it.

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It’s another great day for those of you currently using Googles new Google+ service and also Apple’s iPad or iPod Touch. Why? Because it’s the day Google has finally released an update for the app for iOS and made it work with not only the iPhone but the iPad and iPod Touch too.

The new version of the app not only works with all iOS devices it also adds Huddle settings and aggregated circle add notifications, a nice couple of improvements. If you recall, Google first launched Google+ on Android and then a few weeks later for the iPhone. At that point, iPad and iPod Touch users were left wanting. No more.

If you haven’t had a chance to try Google+ yet, see if you can convince one of your friends already using it to send you an invite. Or, if you really want one, drop us a note in the comments and we’ll see what we can do.

If you’re already rocking Google+ and want to get the new, updated app, head on over to the iTunes Store. Oh, as a special bonus, we can also confirm that this version of the Google+ app now works with a certain Beta version of iOS that’s coming soon. But please, don’t tell Apple we said so.

It’s a great day for those of you currently using Googles new Google+ service and also Apple’s iPhone. Why? Because it’s the day Apple finally approved the Google+ app for the iPhone of course.

This has been a point of some contention among iPhone using Google+ testers and now it looks like Apple has heard their requests and let this one through. Of course, when the Google+ serrvice launched on June 28th there was an app for Android available immediately. Makes sense, right?

Now we’ve got the iOS version. Google+ for iOS is supported on the iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS and iPhone 4 as long as the device is running iOS version 3.1 or later.

Ready to get it? Head on over to the iTunes Store and go nuts!

UPDATE: As of a few minutes ago the app has been updated in the iTunes App Store. So, if you’re not using version 1.0.1.1809 (you can tell by touching the gear at the top left of your screen in the app) then you should uninstall the old version and then download and install the new one. You’re welcome.