Google was rather busy during the first day of its annual Google IO conference, announcing not just new music and game services for Google Play, but also shocking everyone with the reveal of a brand new Samsung Galaxy S4.

Though Samsung has been rather pivotal in making Android the most successful and widely adopted operating system in use around the world, the version available on smartphones like the Galaxy S4 isn't as pure as that found on Google's own devices like the Nexus 4.

That's something Google is hoping to rectify with this new version of Samsung's flagship phone, which will be completely unlocked running a stock version of Android 4.2: Jelly Bean.

Google takes Android back

While we certainly sang a lot of praises for the Galaxy S4 in our review, we found the additional features added to the core Android experience by Samsung "flawed or overly complex."

Google is attempting to alleviate that issue by providing a more pure Android experience along the lines of its Nexus devices.

Gone will be the added Air Gestures and Smart Scroll and Samsung's TouchWiz interface, all of which will be replaced with the core Nexus experience as delivered by Android 4.2.

Additionally, the Google Galaxy S4 will include a fully unlocked bootloader, which bodes well for Android modders or developers keen to customize as much of the experience as they possibly can.

Even more important, with the core version of Android, users will be able to upgrade to each new version with ease.

That should come in handy considering it's widely expected Android 4.3 will make its debut during this week's Google IO (though this morning's keynote would have been prime time to roll it out).

Mirror Galaxy

Based on what we know from Google's presentation, the foundation of the Galaxy S4's hardware will remain intact and unchanged.

The Google Galaxy S4 should still get a massive 5-inch Super AMOLED HD display, backed by the 1.9Ghz quad-core Qualcomm 600 processor.

The 13MP rear camera doesn't appear to be going anywhere either, and the same can be said for the phone's 16GB of internal storage.

That said, the standard version of the Galaxy S4 loses a lot of that storage space to all the extra features included by Samsung.

With Google stripping the smartphone of all the non-essential bells and whistles, it would appear its version of the Galaxy S4 will start off with much more than 9GB of free space out of the package.

Google's version of the Galaxy S4 will also still support 4G LTE, as well as NFC, Bluetooth, GPS and Wi-Fi, and will still include the solid 2600mAh battery.

You've got to pay to Play

The Play Store will be the only place you can purchase the new Galaxy S4, though the phone will be completely unlocked, and usable at both AT&T and T-Mobile in the U.S.

Sadly, Verizon subscribers will be left in the cold when it comes to Google's own phones, even though the carrier is getting the Galaxy S4 later this May.

Unlike the Nexus 4, which also came completely unlocked, the Galaxy S4 will unfortunately not be quite as affordable.

Beginning on June 26, Americans will be able to get their hands on the exclusive phone for $649 with no contract, which is $10 more than AT&T and $20 more than T-Mobile is charging for the Galaxy S4 outright. The price converts to AU$657 and UK£426.

Part of what made the Nexus 4 so appealing, despite its lack of 4G, was the $299 (UK£239, AU$499) price tag, which without a contract, made it rather comparable to most competitor phones purchased through a specific carrier on contract.

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Google has taken its Nexus wand and waved it over Samsung's flagship phone, creating a stock Android 4.2 Galaxy S4 device it plans to sell unlocked for $649 on U.S. carriers T-Mobile and AT&T.

The question is: Will Google do the same to other Android devices?

One manufacturer has already answered the question for us.

"HTC is not currently planning a 'Nexus Edition' of the HTC One," Jeff Gordon, senior global online communications manager at the phone maker told TechRadar.

Only one

The Nexus 4-influenced Galaxy S4 was the lone hardware announcement to come out of this year's Google IO keynote, and it looks like it will be the lone phone to strip the manufacturer's skin in favor of Google's Nexus.

We can't imagine the S4 will be charting this territory alone for long, however, and will keep our ears open for phones that jump into the Nexus-ized S4's waters.

Check out the latest from Google's developer conference through our comprehensive hub page.

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As well as announcing the budget Q5 BlackBerry 10 handset at the BlackBerry Live conference this week, the company is also updating its management features for businesses – for its own and other smartphones.

So not only will the BBM messaging service be available for iOS and Android this summer - initially for text messages, photos and the new branded channels that businesses can use to reach customers - but with BBM voice and video features promised in the future. That could be useful within a business because it allows the sender to see when a message has been delivered and if it's been read yet.

But if your business uses Microsoft Lync or IBM's Sametime instant messaging, you can now get encrypted instant messages on BlackBerry 10 handsets.

You can see who else is available on IM, see new messages in the BlackBerry Hub, send individual and group messages or switch from a text chat to a voice call. And if you're using BlackBerry Balance to separate personal apps and work information, secure IM can be managed inside the work perimeter of Balance.

Secure Work Space

The free BlackBerry Enterprise IM 3.0 app is available on the BlackBerry site now, but the Secure Work Space apps for iOS and Android that BlackBerry showed in March is still in beta testing with selected partners. Secure Work Spaces will need an update to the BlackBerry Enterprise Service that will be available at the end of June.

It's scheduled to ship by the end of August through the Apple App Store and Google Play. Both versions will include email, contacts, calendar, tasks and file access, a secure browser for looking at intranet sites, and allow admins to package up apps to run inside the BlackBerry-protected workspace.

"What we're focusing on is data level protection," Jeff Holleran, Senior Director of Enterprise Product Management, told TechRadar Pro. "It's about protecting data on the device rather than the ability to control the complete device.

"We use the right levels of data protection so we don't have the concern of attack vector going against the data, because it's just those fully authenticated apps from the business that have the ability to go across the secure connection to the firewall. You can think of it as extending the firewall to cover the apps on the device."

Not only is that easier than trying to build an app that uses a VPN, but it's also better for battery life. Because a VPN connection will time out if it's not being used, other tools for connecting to business data have to keep the connection alive. This involves turning on the phone radio, which reduces battery life and uses up a data plan.

BlackBerry isn't yet looking at Windows Phone or any other platforms.

Feedback factor

"Our customers have asked us to support iOS and Android," Holleran said. "If there is feedback from them, we will add additional platforms when it makes sense to do so."

That's over and above the BES 10 version 10.1 update that's available this week, which allows admins to apply the same kind of policies to BlackBerry 10 handsets as they could with BlackBerry 7 devices, like turning off the camera or blocking personal apps and files.

It's aimed at primarily government departments and heavily regulated industries that need to strictly control what employees can do with phones. But smaller businesses will also be interested in the new version of BES because it's significantly easier to install, as well as showing more information about the phones – BlackBerry, iOS and Android - that you're managing.

The new dashboard will show how many devices are being managed, what mobile network they're on, what OS they're running, what apps are installed and whether they're complying with your policies.

"We got a lot of user feedback," Holleran told us. "We listened to the feedback and we've simplified it a lot."

For example, BES 10 had multiple installers, all with different requirements, and you had to run them in the right order.

"We consolidated the installers so it's going to lay down the components you need in the right order. We do port checking to make sure there are no conflicts. We made sure it became a very seamless installation."

Firewall options

The June BES update will also make managing iOS and Android devices easier by simplifying firewall options.

"The number one complaint we had was all those ports you had to open on the firewall to Apple and Google for managing devices," Holleran said. "Now we route that through the BlackBerry secure infrastructure so you don't have to open extra ports."

BES 10 version 10.1 is a free download and BlackBerry is continuing the offer of free upgrades for BES 5 users until the end of December 2013. After that licences will cost $59 (£39) per year per device.

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If you’re a Verizon Galaxy S III user, then the carrier has the perfect holiday gift for you: the latest version of Android.

Galaxy S III smartphones on Verizon will be upgraded to Android 4.1 Jelly Bean Friday.

Jelly Bean brings a number of new features to the Galaxy S III including Google Now, Google’s built-in digital assistant resembling Apple’s Siri. Jelly Bean also updates notifications on the phone, allowing you to return missed calls and email from directly within the notifications window.

With Jelly Bean the camera on your Galaxy S III will also see an upgrade, adding a number of built-in Instagram-like filters to the camera app. Videos you record with your phone can be started and stopped as well, allowing you to create one continuous video clip with several different shots.

The Jelly Bean software upgrade will start being pushed to phones Friday. Customers will also be able to manually download the upgrade through the settings menu on their handset next week Read more….

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Google updated its calendar app for Android Wednesday, bringing with it one of the most requested features for the app: the ability to customize event and calendar colors.Read more…

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It can be tough to keep up with all the new apps released every week. But you're in luck — Mashable takes care of that for you, creating a roundup each weekend of our favorite new and updated apps.

This week Flickr got a whole new look on the web as well as on Android. A new app brought Instagram-like features to editing mobile video, and several popular apps got even better.

Check out the gallery above for a look at this week's highlights.

Still looking for more? Take a look at last week's Apps You Don't Want to Miss for more great apps worth a download.

Think we left one off the list? Let us know in the comments below about your own app highlights from this week.

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