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Wednesday, December 9, 2015

How to: Sign-Up for Google Play Music Family Plan

This morning, during Google’s announcement of their new Play Music family plan, they would only offer a launch date of in the “coming days.” However, with the press of a button or two, we seem to be able to sign-up today, as long as you have your Play Music Android app handy.

This is how we are doing it. 

To sign-up for a Google Play Music family plan, start by opening your Play Music Android app. Then, jump into Settings and look towards the top where all of your Account information is. If you aren’t a current subscriber, then click the “Start free trial” button and proceed to the next screen where you get to choose a plan. If you are a current subscriber, but aren’t seeing the option to “Upgrade to family plan,” tapping the “Refresh” button seems to make it instantly appear. Once you see it, tap “Upgrade to family plan.”

family plan12 family plan11

If you are a current subscriber and are upgrading, all you need to do now is follow the prompts to upgrade to the family plan. If you aren’t a current subscriber, then on the next screen, you’ll likely have to tap the “Other Plans” option when you see the orange screen below. Once you tap that, you should see a “Family” option on a blue screen, along with the individual plan. Tap “Family” and get to signing up!

family plan10 family plan2 family plan9

After choosing the “Family” option, you are then taken through the account setup portion. The first screen tells you that you are the family manager, which means you are in control of the payment method and who belongs in your family. The page after that allows you to invite up to 5 people to join your family, followed by another page that lets you select the members. Once you select members, a “Send” button then sends them an email invitation to join your group.

As you can see from the shots below, people don’t actually have to be in your immediate family. They just need to be 13 years or older, have a Google account, and live in the same country. They also can’t belong to another family on Google Play. More on those specifics here.

family plan8 family plan7 family plan6

Once you send off invitations, you are taken to a payment screen, where you tell Google Play how you plan to pay for your Play Music family plan. After that, feel free to go about enjoying your paid music subscription.

If you want, you can manage who is in your family through the settings section of Google Play Music (middle screenshot below). You can also control them from your Google Play account in the My Account tab of the slideout menu, because your family also gets to buy apps, games, movies, and other goodies through Google Play if you specify a family payment method. More on that here.

family plan4 family plan1 google play family2

And that’s it! That is how you get signed up today for Google Play Music’s family plan.

How to: Sign-Up for Google Play Music Family Plan is a post from: Droid Life



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Google Play Family Groups Arrive for Buying Apps and More With a Family Payment Method

Today’s big headline may have been that Google Play Music’s family plan would arrive this week, but behind the scenes, another big new feature has arrived in the form of Family groups on Google Play. With a “family” on Google Play, you will have the opportunity to setup a payment method for your family to use to purchase goods, like apps, games, and other offerings on Google Play. 

I first noticed the new feature when signing up for Google Play Music’s family plan. The screenshot at the top of this post showed up, which clearly states that a family on Google Play can “Purchase apps, movies, books, and music on Google Play with a family payment method.” And sure enough, if I open Google Play and go into the My Account section, I can see a new section called “My Family,” along with a “Change family payment method” option. That’s awesome news!

Here are some screenshots of this new section in Google Play:

google play family2 google play family3 google play family1

You can see there that you can have a total of six people in a family group, all of which can be maintained within the My Account section of Google Play. From there, you will also see an option to selection that family payment method that everyone can use, which includes a Google Wallet Card.

As of now, I was only able to initiate a family when I setup my Play Music family plan, but that could be changing shortly. Also, as we noted earlier, this all appears to only be available to personal Google accounts. I tried to add my Google for Work account to my family and it failed.

We’ve got more coming, including a quick tutorial on how to sign-up for the Google Play Music family plan.

Google Play Family Groups Arrive for Buying Apps and More With a Family Payment Method is a post from: Droid Life



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FYI: Google for Work Accounts Not Supported in Google Music’s Family Plan

So I just opened up my Google Play Music app and cruised into Settings to try to sign-up for the new family plan, but I can’t. Nope, I can’t. Because I use a Google for Work or (GApps) account, I am apparently barred from doing so. According to the screenshot above, you have to sign-up using a personal Google account only. 

That’s unfortunate for one major reason. My Google for Work account is the account I basically use for everything, including Google Play Music. I have all of my playlists and my library attached to this account. If I want to use Google’s new family plan, I now have to switch over to a personal account and basically start over from zero. That’s a whole bunch of years of work I don’t really want to get into, again. Ugh.

I guess…I’ll start getting to work on that personal account…see you in three years.

FYI: Google for Work Accounts Not Supported in Google Music’s Family Plan is a post from: Droid Life



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FYI: Chrome to Phone Won’t Work After March 31, 2016

For those among you still utilizing Google’s old Chrome to Phone application, you best find an alternative before March 31, 2016. As stated in the app’s description on Google Play, Google is shutting down the service entirely on March 31, laying the aging app to rest once and for all. 

Most, if not all of Chrome to Phone’s features are doable from the Chrome browser already, so this news should not sadden many. Sending directions to your phone is easy enough, as well as syncing tabs from the desktop to your phone’s Chrome app. Really, Chrome to Phone should have been removed long ago, but Google might be having a hard time letting go.

Chrome to Phone was launched in 2010 to help bridge your desktop and phone experience by making it easy to send Web links to your phone. Over the years, Google’s core products have evolved to be more integrated across different form factors. As of today, Chrome to Phone is deprecated. The app will continue to work until March 31st 2016 after which it will no longer work.

Until March 31, you can enjoy Chrome to Phone as you have for years, but on that day, it shuts down.

RIP, Chrome to Phone.

Play Link
Cheers Matt!

FYI: Chrome to Phone Won’t Work After March 31, 2016 is a post from: Droid Life



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Moto E (2nd Gen) Will Get Marshmallow After All! Just Not in the US…

Motorola caught a bunch of flack in October after they provided a list of devices that they planned to update to Android 6.0 Marshmallow. They pissed people off because the list didn’t include the Moto X (2nd gen) on Verizon or AT&T, which was a phone a year old, or the Moto E (2nd gen), an even newer phone.  Today, they brought some decent news surrounding the latter, though it still won’t please all. 

In an update to their original blog post about updates, Motorola has added the Moto E (2nd gen) to the list. Unfortunately, Motorola is leaving out the US and China, instead only offering the update to Canada, Latin America, Europe and parts of Asia. Mmmmhmm.

So the Moto X (2nd gen) on AT&T and Verizon is still left out, as is the Moto E (2nd gen) in this country.

Oh, but the Moto X Force, Turbo 2, and Maxx 2 were added to the list, if that matters.

Via:  Motorola

Moto E (2nd Gen) Will Get Marshmallow After All! Just Not in the US… is a post from: Droid Life



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DEAL: Nexus 7 (2013) WiFi Plus Travel Cover for $99

Look, this may seem like an odd deal to share, since the Nexus 7 (2013) is over two years old, but Google is still supporting it! This is one of the few tablets on the planet that is already running Android 6.0 Marshmallow. That’s a big deal, especially knowing you can pick one up for just $99 at Groupon.

Groupon is currently selling the device with 16GB of storage in “new” condition. They are also tossing in a travel cover in a variety of colors at no extra cost and providing free shipping. See, that’s a deal even on a 2-year old tablet.

As a recap, the Nexus 7 (2013) has a 7-inch 1920×1200 display, 1.5GHz Snapdragon S4 Pro processor, 2GB RAM, and both front and back cameras. It’s still very capable, should you be interested in a tablet without the high price.

Groupon Link

DEAL: Nexus 7 (2013) WiFi Plus Travel Cover for $99 is a post from: Droid Life



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New Yorkers, Visit the Nexus Studio Tonight at 5pm

Want to party with Google tonight at the Nexus Studio in New York City? Tonight at 5pm EST, the doors will open at 356 W 12th St in New York City, where you can go hands-on with interactive Nexus experiments, drink from the bar, and much more.  

According to a reader of ours who attended last night, Google had product engineers and managers on-hand to talk shop, there to answer any burning questions you might have. And the best part is, there is no invite required. However, do note, space is limited.

So, if you don’t have any plans, bring the kids to the Nexus Studio and have a bit of fun.

Via: @googlenexus
Cheers Sean!

New Yorkers, Visit the Nexus Studio Tonight at 5pm is a post from: Droid Life



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