Microsoft Garage launches new Android apps

Microsoft Garage is a big change for the company,
especially the idea of employees being encouraged to
create cross-platform apps in their spare time. Other
companies have similar initiatives, including Google's 20
percent program that lets employees spend time working
on what they think will most benefit Google. "It does
represent a new direction for the company," admit Jeff
Ramos, the manager of Microsoft Garage. "We’re evolving
our culture, wanting to get better with experimentation."
That experimentation begins with Next Lock Screen,
Microsoft’s take at a better Android lock screen. It’s
available in the Google Play Store for free today, and it’s
largely designed to stick to Microsoft’s new guiding
principles, which focus on productivity. "It’s a time-
saver lock screen built for busy people," explains
Microsoft, and it does this by pulling in calendar items,
missed calls, emails, and text messages to the lock
screen interface. That alone isn’t unique compared to
many other alternatives, but Microsoft has added a
couple of interesting features: swipe dialing and quick
app launch. One-swipe dialing lets you dial into a
conference call from one of your calendar appointments
and have the PIN automatically entered, useful if you’re
dialing in from a car.
MICROSOFT'S TAKE ON ANDROID LOCK SCREENS
INVOLVES A BIT OF IOS
Quick app launch within Next Lock Screen is like an iOS
Control Center for Android. You can pin your favorite
apps and tools to it to quickly toggle Wi-Fi or a
flashlight and launch apps from the lock screen. There
are separate sections for work, home, and on the go,
providing a little bit of flexibility for different locations.
"We saw there were a number of lockscreen apps, but
none were focused on the productivity user," explains
Microsoft’s Lawrence Ripsher, who oversees product and
design for the company’s My Life & Work team. Microsoft
is trying to fill that gap with Next Lock Screen, despite
good alternatives like GO Locker, Cover Lock Screen, and
many more.
A second Android app, Journeys & Notes , is designed as
a way to keep a log of travel history. It’s similar to
Foursquare in the sense that you can access tips from
fellow travelers who have traveled the same route as
you. It’s really designed to be a new social app that’s
like leaving a trail of digital memories along your travel
route.
Microsoft is also turning its attention to Android Wear.
While its research arm recently released a keyboard that
lets you draw letters on Google’s smartwatches,
Microsoft’s new Torque app goes a step further. Torque
replaces the need to say "OK Google" with a twist of
your wrist to enable Bing search. Once activated, you
start speaking as you would normally and Bing searches
are performed instead of Google ones. It’s a cheeky
move to replace Google’s search engine on Android
Wear, but it might be a more natural way for some to
activate smartwatch functionality without having to
shout "OK Google" into your wrist.
Via : The Verge