Sunday, October 14, 2012

Google+ (iOS)

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  • Overall rating: 9.3
  • Installation and Setup: 10.0
  • Features and Support: 8.0
  • Interface: 10.0
  • Performance: 10.0
Review Date: 10/12/12 Average User Rating 0.0 stars No reviews. Write a review

The good: Google+ for iOS has a stunning visual interface. Features are almost on a par with the full Web version.

The bad: There is still no way to edit your profile from the app. There's no built-in button for sharing posts on Twitter and Facebook.

The bottom line: Whether you're a regular Google+ user or you're just interested in a few mobile features such as Instant Upload and Hangouts, Google+ for iOS is a must-have.

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Google+ for iOS is a clean and intuitive mobile app that has all of the powers of its desktop counterpart, save for the games and a few other minor features. The latest version has been updated to work with iOS 6 and the iPhone 5's taller screen, while the iPad gets Hangouts as well as a stunning, tiled Home screen.

Gone is the ugly dashboard of icons that once greeted you upon opening Google+ in earlier versions. Now, you can zip around this stunning mobile app via a nifty slide-out navigation window by hitting a button at the top left of the screen. This gives you easy access to your Home feed, Profile, Messenger, Hangouts, Photos, and Circles. Also, in the most recent update, the app now supports Google+ pages, which is a feature that has been highly requested by users.

Home What used to be called Stream is now simply your Google+ Home screen and is the lifeblood of Google+. With the little drop-down at the top, you can choose to show feeds from All Circles, Nearby, What's Hot (trending posts), or any of your individual circles. As of yet, though, you can't create a custom feed with more than one circle (Family & Friends, for instance). Icons are sleek and the large photos that bleed off the sides of the interface are eye-catching.

From your Home screen, you can do almost everything you can in the full desktop version of Google+. You can easily comment on, Reshare, and +1 items, and, of course, you can create and edit your own posts with pictures, videos, and location tags. What's missing are the Facebook and Twitter share buttons found on the full Web version. Still, the Home screen interface is attractive and incredibly well thought out.

Profile Here, you can see your Google+ public profile page, all of your posts, and all of your photos. Unfortunately, you can't edit any of your profile information (except for your photo) from the Google+ app, which is a minor letdown.

Google+ looks fantastic on iOS (pictures) 1-2 of 5 Scroll Left Scroll Right

Photos As expected, this is the hub for all of your photos and videos. It provides a simple interface for viewing and commenting on items from your circles, items you're tagged in, and, of course, all of your own album items. You can also share, add tags to, or download photos.

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