It wouldn’t be April 1 without April Fools’ Day pranks making their way around the Internet. And hijinx abound this year.
The usual suspects (Google, Google and more Google) are getting in on the fun, but we also found pranks from a few new companies we haven’t featured before. Of course, there are too many to find them all, but we’ll do our best and keep updating this slideshow throughout the day. If you come across a good one we missed, let us know in the comments.
Google Photos search by emoji
One of Google Photos’ most useful features is the ability to search based on terms like ‘Dad’s birthday’ or ‘Friends at the beach’. But all that typing was getting burdensome. So Photos is taking search even further, with their new feature allowing you to search by emoji alone. Put in the dog or cat emoji to find photos of your four-legged furry friends, the car emoji to find your roadtrip pics or the beach umbrella emoji for images of your summer vacation.
When words aren’t enough, search your photos by emoji.
Gmail Mic Drop
We’ve all been a part of those email chains that get out of hand. Sometimes, you need to send one last message that lets you have the final word in any conversation. With the introduction of Gmail Mic Drop, you never have to worry about anyone replying after you’re done with a conversation again.
When sending an e-mail, simply hit the orange Send + Mic Drop button (next to the regular send button) in your reply box. Mic Drop will automatically insert an explanatory image, just to make sure everyone understands. Gmail then prevents any responses from coming through to you – effectively muting the conversation.
Friends and family of the Gmail team have been testing Mic Drop for months, to amazing results. Some people have found it so effective, they have stopped talking to other people entirely! Then again, this is one prank that has gone too far, with work emails being circulated with a less-than-professional sign-off. Google have since backed off and issued a cringey mea culpa.
HubSpot’s PET Programme
HubSpot is known for having great employee perks, one of the most popular being the option to bring your dog into the office. Now HubSpot is taking it to the next level, with the Productive Employee Things (PET) Programe which allows people to not only bring their dogs to work, but any animal they might have at home.
The PET Program is the direct result of an undoubtedly very scientific research done on HubSpot’s dog policy that showed a 278% increase in employee satisfaction whenever someone was within 10 feet of a dog. Further research revealed this was true of all animals.
So bring that chicken, cat, goat, kangaroo or anaconda to work. After all, who doesn’t love a good squeeze now and then?
Google Cardboard Plastic
Google Cardboard took the world by storm when Google announced it at its 2014 developers conference. But something was always lacking, keeping the Cardboard experience from feeling, well, real.
All that changes with Google Cardboard Plastic. This revolutionary new product lets you see, hear, touch and smell the world just like you do in real life. It comes with 4D integrated perspective, 360° spatially accurate sound, 20/20 resolution and advanced haptics for realistic touch sensations. With Google Cardboard Plastic, we can replace virtual reality with actual reality.
YouTube’s SnoopaVision
For years, YouTube users have been asking for one thing above all else – the ability to watch videos in 360 degrees with Snoop Dogg, and YouTube has finally made that a reality with SnoopaVision.
Combining 360 immersive viewing with a pioneer is West Coast g-funk hiphop takes the experience to the next level. And Snoop was involved in every facet of the development process. Simply press the SnoopaVision icon on the lower right corner of your YouTube video, sit back, and enjoy.
Inbox emoji Smart Reply
Not every email requires a thoughful response – sometimes a quick, generic reply will do. Last year, Gmail’s Inbox e-mail client gave users a way to insert quick, ready-made responses into email with their Smart Reply feature. Using machine learning and the contents of the sender’s e-mail, Smart Reply suggests three responses that you can quickly pop into an e-mail.
Today, Smart Reply got a whole lot smarter. Since text replies can be boring, and a picture says a thousand words, Smart Reply is now suggesting emoji for your quick responses. In fact, soon after the emoji option was introduced to Smart Reply, Inbox’s deep neural network learned that when given a choice, users always pick emoji, so it is no longer suggesting text replies at all. The future is here, and it’s deserves a ?
Sony’s Proton Pack
It’s finally here. After 30 years of research and collaboration with Drs. Egon Spengler and Jillian Holtzmann, Sony has created the Proton Pack to capture content from parallel dimensions. Incorporating technology from other Sony products, such as its phones and cameras, the Proton Pack is both water and slime proof.
So let’s get moving. ‘Cause I ain’t afraid of no ghost.
ZipRecruiter’s Jobs for Babies
Most parents have thought at one time or another, “It’s time this kid starts earning his keep.” Today job search website ZipRecruiter is making that easier than ever with their new initiative, Jobs for Babies.
It is really a win-win, when you think about it. ZipRecruiter realised that a huge segment of the population was being overlooked, and it worked hard to remedy that. What baby out there doesn’t want more responsibility? It is time babies’ potential was tapped into.
It has long been known that babies learn at an unprecedented pace, are able to pick up new languages with ease and already stay up all hours, so why not capitalise on that? Jobs for babies is the natural progression for job placement firms – ZipRecruiter is just the first visionary take that next step.
Dating app Burrit-OH!
Dating apps are using ever more sophisticated algorithms and more specific information to help users make a match. Zoosk is today taking that to the next level with Burrit-OH!, the dating app that makes matches based on your burrito preferences.
It just makes sense. We’ve all been there – on a date with someone who seems fantastic until you find out they don’t like carne asada. Date over, just like that.
Burrit-OH! takes the guesswork out of the equation, because, after all, burritos = love. Find your burrito soulmate today.
Lexus’ V-LCRO technology
Luxury vehicle makers are always looking for the next big thing that is going to set their cars apart from the rest. Lexus has today announced V-LCRO seats, which uses velcro adhesives to bond drivers to their seats. It is sure to be the envy of all high-end car owners.
Drivers, who wear special shirts or jackets also outfitted with velcro, are held in the proper driving position even through aggressive driving manuvers, keeping them more in tune with the vehicle. Getting out of the car may be more difficult, sometimes even requiring the help of another person, but that is just the price you pay for the very best technology.
Wonder Workshop’s Wonder Paw
Canines are seriously underrepresented in the tech industry, making up a baffling 0% of computer science and engineering employees. Wonder Workshop is working to change all that with an innovative app called Wonder Paw, which teaches your dog to code.
Wonder Paw works with the way dogs learn. Dogs wil be able to see their code come to life right in front of their noses, and be delighted by robots Dot and Dash. Canines who were previously eating out of the trash are now interviewing at Google, Apple and NASA after using Wonder Paw. It’s truly a game changer.
Wrike is sending out 1 million CD-ROMs
Project management and collaboration company Wrike is already being used by big names in tech like Amazon, PayPal and Hootsuit, but it wants to expand its reach to everyone with project managment needs. To that end, Wrike is sending out 1 million CD-ROMs to get people started with their software.
Not since AOL sent out CD-ROMs in 1996 has such a huge campaign of this nature been taken on. And everyone in the office is involved, from putting labels on the CDs to envelope stuffing and addressing.
Once you receive your free CD-ROM from Wrike, just pop it in your computer’s CD-ROM drive (most computers from the 1990s and 2000s have them) and wait while it loads up. Then enjoy your two free weeks of Wrike software!
ThinkGeek’s Vertical Landing Mentos & Diet Coke Rocket
SpaceX has successfully created a rocket that can go into space and then return safely to Earth. Now, the cutting-edge company has teamed up with ThinkGeek so you can make your own at home.
By using just a Diet Coke bottle and some Mentos, your family can make a bottle rocket that will shoot 30 feet into the air before returning right to your backyard. Set up takes only five minutes; the results are out of the world.
Visit Funky Town with Google Maps
We all learned about a place called Funky Town in 1979, but how many of us have actually had an opportunity to go? Thanks to Google Maps, we all can.
So won’t you take me to Funky Town? Oh wait, I don’t need a ride. Google Maps can show me how to get there.
Adobe Lightroom’s Instant Ansel Adams
Lightroom is a great tool for organizing and editing images, and it just got a whole lot better. Now, in a few simple steps, you can make any picture you took look like an Ansel Adams original.
You start by converting your photo to black and white, then reducing the highlights and increasing the shadows. Then, after holding down a special combination of modifier keys on your computer’s keyboard, a secret Ansel-o-matic option becomes available. Click it, and your picture of your lunch becomes a gorgeous Ansel Adams landscape. What an improvement.
Get to the cloud with your own hot air balloon
The FOLO (Fast OnLine Option) product from Lirpa – sold in Ireland through distributor Commtech – is the ideal solution for uploading your data to the cloud. Unlike specific service provider constraints the data can be easily sent to any cloud. Designed with high reliability and ease of deployment in mind, the HLS (he-filled latex spheroid) data porting deice requires no system administrator to operate. Simply place the data into the HLS, secure the data entry port and release.
IDG News Service
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