Download: Latest APKs of Google+, Play Music, Translate, Maps and Google Now update

BY Rajesh Pandey

Published 16 Aug 2013

Over the last couple of days, Google has released an update for nearly all of its apps on the Play Store. This includes the Google+ app, Google Translate, Google Now/Search, Play Music and Google Maps. Thanks to staged roll-out, the updates are going to roll out over the next few days to Android users worldwide. However, if you cannot wait for the updates to be available to your device, you can manually update to the latest version by downloading and installing the APK. 

Google+

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The Google+ app for Android got a major update to version 4.1 that includes five new major features, apart from some minor ones. The official change-log of the update is below -:

– View, edit, and share photos stored in Google Drive

– Pull to refresh content in the stream and notifications

– Locations improvements: Share your city-level location, control who is displayed on the map
– Easier switching between different accounts and pages
– Google Apps for Business support: restrict posts to the domain, domain icons to identify members
– Hangouts app replaces Messenger for messaging and video calls. Visit Google Takeout to download your Messenger data.
Another change is a dedicated G+ Photos shortcut in your App drawer. You can download the APK for the latest Google+ from here or here.
Google Play Music
The Google Play Music app is also getting a very minor update from v5.1.1107K to 5.1.1109K. The update does not add any new feature, and instead removes the hidden SD card support that was added in the previous update.
If you don’t mind losing the hidden SD card support, you can download and install the APK can be downloaded from here.
Google Translate
The Google Translate app got a major update today that adds Camera input support for a few additional languages, along with Handwriting input for Thai and Hindi languages.

• Handwriting input is now available for Hindi and Thai

• Camera input is now available for Afrikaans, Greek, Hebrew, and Serbian
The APK for the latest version of Google Translate can be downloaded from here.
Google Maps
Google Maps for Android also got its first update since its major re-designed version was released sometime last month. The change-log for the the new update (v7.1) is not yet out, so its anyone guess as to what all new features Google has included except for some bug-fixes.
Ron from Android Police has already done a tear-down of the latest version, and found some interesting stuff. This includes 3D Buildings like on Google Earth for limited places, and more. Do read his teardown for more information and to get an idea of what the future update of Maps will bring.
Since the APK for the Maps app varies from device to device and Android versions, make sure you download the one that is compatible with your Android device. Android 4.3+ Jelly Bean users need to download this APK, while Android 4.0.3+ users need to download the APK uploaded here.
Google Now
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Google also rolled out a major feature-rich update for one of its most popular and favorite apps among the Android community – Google Search a.k.a Google Now. The update adds quite a few features, which are sadly only available to people residing in the United States.
  • Flights: Ask Google “Is my flight on time?” to get info on your upcoming flights and live status on your current flights.

  • Reservations: Ask for “my reservations” to see your dining plans or “my hotel” to get your hotel name and address. With one tap, you can get driving or public transit directions straight there, saving you lots of steps.

  • Purchases: Ask for “my purchases,” and you’ll get the status of your current orders, so you know whether your mom’s birthday present will arrive on time.

  • Plans: Ask Google “What are my plans for tomorrow?” to see a summary of upcoming flights, hotels, restaurant reservations and events—very useful when you’re traveling.

  • Photos: Say “Show me my photos from Thailand” to see the photos you uploaded to Google+. You can also ask for “my photos of sunsets” if you want to show off the shots you’ve taken over the year; Google will try to automatically recognize the type of photo you’re asking for.

Sadly, no APK is available for this update since all the changes are server side from Google. You will just have to wait patiently until Google flips the switch for you!

Credits to the folks over at Android Police for the APKs and teardowns!