Google Shopper, a free download [1]  for the iPhone, was last updated on October 3 with minor tweaks. Though optimized for the iPhone 5, the search Goliath seems to have forgotten about shoppers looking to use the program to âbrowse for gift ideas, research products and locate great deals on the goâ using their iOS device. Howâs that?
Well, the Android version of Google Shopper was updated to version 3.0 on November 9 with attractive new features for holiday shopping. Meanwhile, Google Shopper for iOS remains stuck at version 2.6. Worse, it was last updated more than a month and half ago and contains none of the new features from Google Shopper 3.0 for Android. So, where does this leave folks who want to shop smarter with Shopper?
Ãlysse Betters of 9to5Google [2]  incorrectly reported on November 9 that âGoogle rolled out version 3.0 of Google Shopper for Android and iOS todayâ, linking the article to a post [3] over at the official Google Commerce blog which however makes no mention of the iOS version.
PCMag [4] and a number of other blogs made the same mistake assuming Google would update the iOS version alongside its Android counterpart.
âToday, with the launch of Google Shopper 3.0 for Android, you can easily browse for gift ideas, research products, and locate great deals on the goâ, Googleâs blog post reads.
The Android version was updated to version 3.0 on November 8 with these features:
â¢Â new UI with faster navigation and bigger images
â¢Â discover sales and special offers in your area from the new sales screen
â¢Â search for apparel and accessories more effectively with image-centric search results
â¢Â make more informed buying decisions with GoodGuide product ratings
â¢Â get great deals online with retail promotions
â¢Â find out about new features and content with push notifications
â¢Â 3.0.1: Fixed a bug that caused the app to crash at startup for some users
Here are some screenies.
The Home screen has larger photos and a bigger search box for easier navigation.
The new Sales section (left) highlights promotions and weekly circulars from nearby stores. GoodGuide ratings can be seen on the right.
And hereâs Google Shopper 2.6 for iOS, last updated on October 3.
â¢Â filter weekly sales at featured local stores by category so you can focus on your favorite deals
â¢Â browse visually similar products when searching for apparel
â¢Â improved performance and stability
The iOS version doesnât have the new Sales page or GoodGuide ratings, the interface still renders smaller product images, search isnât as powerful and so forth. In short, the iOS version isnât as compelling a  shopping companion to make it âeasier to find deals at local and online storesâ as the latest Android build.
Google launched Shopper for Android in 2010, bringing it to the iPhone a year later. This was Googleâs original promise to iPhone users.
While weâre at it, Google may want to update the Google Shopper web page [5] with new version numbers for mobile apps.
Oh, and one more thing: whatâs up with the native iPad version?
Surely Google realizes Apple users are big spenders.
Actually, the company indicates as much, noting in its blog post that âfour out of five mobile phone and tablet owners plan to use their device for holiday shopping â" for comparing prices, locating nearby stores, and searching for couponsâ.
Yet, as weâre heading into the holidays Google has left iOS users out in the cold.
How lame is that?
Links
- ^ free download (click.linksynergy.com)
- ^ 9to5Google (9to5google.com)
- ^ post (googlecommerce.blogspot.com)
- ^ PCMag (www.pcmag.com)
- ^ Google Shopper web page (www.google.com)
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