Awesome Google

It’s no secret that Google has been working on autonomous cars for quite some time, but we were surprised to see this diminutive prototype, which has no steering wheel, accelerator or brake pedal, though it currently tops out at 25mph.

See what it’s like to be and to practice against the Maestro, thanks to Roger Federer, his coach Stefan Edberg and Google Glass. Imagine if you could livestream from a celebrity’s perspective. Oh wait.

Google Glass is still in beta, but on 4/15/14, any US resident over 18 years old will be able to purchase the wearable device. Sign up on the Glass website to get an email reminder and be back there on Tuesday to place your order.

Here’s one of the best reasons to use Google Chrome. Steven Frank’s Cloud to Butt is a Chrome extension that looks for the phrase “the cloud” in webpages and changes them into “my butt.” Check out more examples here.

Google combines its Street View with its search engine and a voiceover to take you on a guided tour of Marseille, France. The result is a lovely and educational trip that you can take at your own pace. Best experienced with headphones.

Not about to be outdone by their American counterparts, Google Japan joins in on April Fools’ Day with this technical joke: a mechanical hand that makes it easier to use touchscreen devices. Captions available.

Android Wear is Google’s upcoming operating system for smartwatches. It displays notifications based on time, location and your personal info. It also supports voice commands and third-party apps. More here.

Google presented a non-functioning prototype of the Project Ara modular smartphone at This Week in Startups. The bare bones model could cost as low as $50 and will come in three sizes. Skip to around 6:00 for the demo.

Google took its Street View cars to the Top Gear test track in the UK. Just head to Google Maps and you can take a tour of the famous track, with The Stig harassing escorting you until you go across the line.

You can worry less now about having your holiday spirit attacked thanks to an easter egg from Google. From any mobile device, simply type “let’s go caroling” into Google’s search box and karaoke versions of several classics pop up.

Google once again recounts significant events, viral moments, the highs, lows and other recent memories from the past year – based on search volume. We only wish they would make these clips longer. So much more happened than this.

(NSFW) With Google+ currently looking like yet another failed experiment, CollegeHumor decided it was time to go back to an old sketch that we truly and deeply hope stays as a joke. Because Mountain View has all of us by our balls.

Take a tour of Middle-earth and learn more about The Hobbit movie trilogy in this new Google Chrome experiment. You can view it from any Chrome browser, but it works best on desktop computers and high-end Android devices.

Google cuts out the middleman and the mid-range smartphone tier with the new Nexus 5. It has a 5″ 1080p screen, LTE, a quad-core 2.26GHz Snapdragon 800 CPU, 2GB RAM, 8mp camera and runs on the new Android 4.4 KitKat.

Lamborghini allowed Google Street View into its museum in Sant’Agata Bolognese, Italy. The 360º tour lets you check out Lambo’s supercars, one-off models, race cars and more. You can even zoom in to the interior of some of the cars.

An amazing interactive music video for Arcade Fire’s latest single, directed by Vincent Morisset. Uses Google Chrome and your webcam to turn your smartphone into a virtual mirror that controls portions of the video. More info here.

Visit one of the world’s most biodiverse locales thanks to Google Street View’s newly-released 360-degree POV maps and footage of the Galapagos Islands. View the amazing animals and vistas captured during their journey here.

Motorola promotes the Moto X’s exclusive voice-activated Touchless Control feature by portraying other smartphones as lazy and sleazy bros. We can’t see how the Moto X could’ve helped with the Sharon problem though.

The Nexus 7 gets updated with a 1920 x 1200 1080p IPS display, dual stereo speakers, a 1.5Ghz Snapdragon CPU and 2GB RAM. The tablet also now has a 5mp rear camera and runs Android 4.3. LTE variants coming soon.

The Chromecast is an HDMI dongle that lets you send online content from your mobile device or computer to your HDTV or monitor. It works with Netflix, YouTube, Google Play and the Chrome browser, with more compatible apps on the way.

Google Glass doesn’t have a lot of interactive features yet, but it may already have a killer app. Its voice search is so good it’s terrifying. It’s basically outsourced thinking. Memorization may soon be obsolete.

A fun (and addictive) use of Google Maps. You are stuck in Street View and must look for clues to find out where you are. To guess, drop a pin on the corresponding place in the world map. Made by Anton Wallén. (Thanks Calen!)

Playground Inc. presents its ideas for Google Glass apps. The company says that all of these can be made today, but they can’t be implemented with the current battery technology and the API for Glass. More here.