Google has announced a new social media service for all their users, which is Google Buzz, and it would be integrated right into your Gmail account, so you can keep up with the activities of your friends on social media while checking your Emails.

The Google buzz integrates with Flickr, Picassa, Google Reader, Twitter and with some other services to provide one-click sharing capability to its users. The content from all these websites would be then viewable on a single page, which would be a part of your Gmail account.

Main Features of Google Buzz

• Public and private sharing
• Twitter, Picassa and Flickr Integration
• Auto-following
• Inbox Integration
• Fast and Multi-network sharing
• Comments Follow up
• Custom Photo Viewer
• Group integration support
• Limited API support
• Compatible on Android, iPhone and Symbian OS
• Just the Good Stuff

Features Explained in Detail

• Google Buzz shows thumbnails when linked to photos from sites like Picasa and Flickr. Clicking on an image will blow up the images to almost the entire browser, making them easier to see.
• Google Buzz uses the same keyboard shortcuts as Gmail. This makes sense. Hitting “R” allows you to comment/reply to a buzz post, for example.
• There are public and private settings for different posts
• Google wants to make sure you don’t miss comments, so it has a system to send you an e-mail letting you know about updates. However, the e-mail will actually show you the Buzz you’ve created and all of the comments and images associated with it.
• Comments update in real time
• @replies are supported, just like Twitter. If you @reply someone, it will send a buzz toward an individual’s inbox.
• Google Buzz has a “recommended” feature that will show buzzes from people you don’t follow if your friends are sharing or commenting on that person’s buzz. You can remove it or change this in settings.
• In the mobile interface, you can click “nearby” and see what people are saying nearby. NIFTY, if I say so myself.
• You can layer Google Maps with Buzz. You can also associate pictures with buzz within Google Maps.
• Conversation bubbles will appear on your Google Maps. They are geotagged buzz posts, which lets you see what people are saying nearby.

[via Mashable]