All the Software Google Announced at I/O 2022: Android 13, Search, RCS

Rate this post


Google started its annual I / O developer conference on Wednesday. As usual, the company took the opportunity to announce a lot of new hardware products and software updates.

While the shiny new devices may have stolen the show (you may know the Pixel Watch, the new Pixel phones, and other objects that were announced in our separate story), I / O is still primarily a software issue. To that end, Google used its main event to detail a dizzying array of new features for Android, Search, Maps, and Google Voice Assistant services.

Here are the most important updates that Google announced.

Android 13

We have some more details on the next version of Android, Google’s mobile operating system. When Android 13 arrives this fall, it will introduce some updates that will make your operating system more secure and more interoperable with other devices around you. Google Messaging will extend support for the RCS text messaging standard by providing end-to-end encryption to text groups. Multilingual users will be able to set up specific applications to use specific languages, so you can search in English and tweet in German. Support for quick pairing with devices using the Matter smart home standard will be added, and it will be easier to stream videos or photos to more TVs, screens, and other screens in your home with additional support for more smart home products. manufacturers.

We’ll take a closer look at Android 13 as it gets closer to the end of the year.

Google found its portfolio

The company has revived its previously abandoned Google Wallet name and brand, and the updated app will become Android’s default digital currency container. Wallet will hang on your device and contain all of your credit cards, traffic cards, vaccine checks, and even your Disney World park pass. If you’re thinking, “Wait, this sounds exactly like Google Pay, something that already exists,” because you’re right. Wallet is basically the same as Google Pay, except that Google says its Wallet app will also soon support digital IDs, including driver’s licenses. Google has a habit of frequently removing its own services, so we’ll see how long these two options last.

New security features

Google also introduced a variety of new additions to its software platforms designed to protect against cyberattacks. It is improving its two-factor authentication system and enabling it by default in Google Accounts. Fisheries protection is being transferred from Gmail to the Google Office suite (Documents, Spreadsheets and Presentations). It will also mark when account settings can be changed to better protect your privacy.

A new feature called Virtual Cards aims to keep your credit card information private while you shop. When you automatically fill in your credit card information, Virtual Cards will generate a random card number and prevent you from manually entering sensitive information in a potentially suspicious storefront.

Read Lily Newman’s WIRED story about all of Google’s new security features.

Welcome to Multisearch

Google MultiSearch

Courtesy of Google

Last month, Google launched a feature called Multisearch. Allows you to combine items in a single search query, such as using a photo and text at the same time. Multisearch will receive a new setting soon. Called Near Me, the feature allows you to track your location while searching multiple times, helping you spot local restaurants or shops from photos and text. Multisearch Near Me will be available worldwide later this year, although it is currently only available in English.

Mapped dive

A feature close to Google Maps is something Google calls Immersive View. It’s a kind of tricky Street View that lets you slide to move in a 3D space rendered in CGI. It can simulate entire cities, and even the interior of offices and restaurants. You won’t see a 100 percent accurate representation, because much of it is based on user photos and then filled in with an algorithm. Google says the feature will work on any smartphone and is being rolled out to “selected cities” this year.

Natural act

Google has made moves to help its voice assistant understand more nuanced conversations and react accordingly. A new feature called Look and Talk, which is available exclusively at Nest Hub Max, aims to make talking to a voice assistant less like calling on a concrete slab. You no longer have to say “OK Google,” because the system is designed to recognize you when you ask a question. To do this, the Nest Hub Max uses its built-in camera to monitor how far away you are from the device, how you turn your head, and where your gaze is directed. Therefore, it can detect whether you are looking at the device and waiting for a response.

The Wizard also allows you to pause a query, in case you need a second to gather your thoughts. How to talk to a person! The company did not say whether Google Assistant will ever be able to estimate.



Source link

Leave a Comment