14 DAY TRIAL // An all-new effort by Google to revitalize social networking, Google+ aims to attend to the most basic of human needs - to connect with others. The service, currently in beta, is already available as an Android app and, according to the search giant, it’s also coming to the iPhone in the form of a native application.
The folks at Google believe that with the likes of Facebook and Twitter around, “the connections between people increasingly happen online.”
However, even so, “the subtlety and substance of real-world interactions are lost in the rigidness of our online tools,” the Mountain View company says on its official blog.
Enter Google+, a new social platform that aims to “bring the nuance and richness of real-life sharing to software.”
Its flagship feature is Circles, described as an easy way to share stuff with college buddies, parents, etc.
“Circles makes it easy to put your friends from Saturday night in one circle, your parents in another, and your boss in a circle by himself, just like real life,” Google explains.
Another key feature is Sparks, which recommends stuff you may like (such as videos and articles), and then there’s Hangouts, which aims to replicate unplanned meet-ups like bumping into friends while you’re out.
Other features, like Instant Upload and Huddle, are also described on the Google+ Project website.
Google finally outlines the supported platforms which, for now, include app, web app, and basic web app.
As far as the Google+ app is concerned, Google lists the following (emphasis ours):
App Download the native Google+ app for Android (2.1+) from Android Market. (Coming soon) Native app for iPhone (iOS 4+).
iDevice owners can immediately access the web app at m.google.com/app/plus on their mobile web browser of choice as long as they’re running iOS 3.0 or later.
The search giant also says it hopes to develop tablet specific versions in the future.
Visit Google here to learn more about their new initiative. We have a feeling it’s going to work out better than Apple’s iTunes-bound Ping. Of course, Google+ is not just about music.