The latest update to Google’s Home companion app is rolling out on Android and iOS this morning. Besides Home 2.34 adding support for the 2nd-gen Nest Hub, the Google/Nest Wifi experience gets a big update with network usage graphs.
Expand Expanding Close
Google announced today that it will be reducing the commission it takes from Android developers that distribute paid applications and offer in-app purchases through the Play Store. The service fee on the first $1 million (USD) in revenue every year will be lowered from 30% to 15%.
Expand Expanding Close
With screen usage increasing in the past year due to distance learning and the need for alternative entertainment, Google is updating Family Link with more tools that tell parents “how kids use devices.”
Expand Expanding Close
Google is introducing a “new way to view and manage notifications” related to your Drive files. The hope is that users with this new notifications feed will spend less time switching between Google Drive for Android and an email app.
Expand Expanding Close
The presenter bar in Google Slides is getting redesigned to offer a “less intrusive experience” for presenters and viewers alike. Overall, the new toolbar is more hidden and not as distracting.
Expand Expanding Close
Last year, Google’s video calling app gained an improved desktop layout to help you see everyone in large meetings. The Google Meet tile view is now coming to the mobile apps, starting with iOS.
Expand Expanding Close
Alongside web articles, YouTube videos, and Web Stories, advertising frequently appears in the Google feed available to the left of most Android homescreens. Google Discover is now getting a new ads slideshow format that automatically moves you to the next image.
Expand Expanding Close
Chrome is perennially criticized for its memory usage, and Google has been working to address those complaints in recent browser releases for Mac, Windows, and Android.
Expand Expanding Close
Despite being the dominant streaming platform on the entire internet, YouTube is taking on TikTok directly with its own Shorts videos.
Expand Expanding Close
Google is introducing a new way for Maps users to contribute without having to leave a review. Google Maps photo updates will be available in the coming weeks, while a “Local Love” challenge is kicking off.
Expand Expanding Close
Crowdsourcing plays a big role in keeping Google Maps accurate and current. Google is introducing a more immersive desktop tool to edit roads in Maps over the coming months.
Expand Expanding Close
The last major update to mobile Chrome introduced a grid layout for tabs and the ability to group them. A more minor Chrome addition on Android today lets you preview a page before fully opening it.
Expand Expanding Close
Google offers a dedicated Finance portal that shows you news in addition to charts and other trend data. That said, most users make do with entering ticker symbols in Search to find the price of stocks, with Google recently revamping the desktop experience.
Expand Expanding Close
Following last year’s big Android and iOS revamp, Google Photos on the web is getting a matching “Explore” tab and “Favorites” shortcut.
Expand Expanding Close
Back in February, Google announced that Fit for Android can measure heart and respiratory rate using just your phone. These new Google Fit camera tracking capabilities will start rolling out to Pixel phones on Monday.
Expand Expanding Close
Back in May, chat.google.com received a Progressive Web App to replace the previous desktop client. The Google Chat Electron app will stop working at the end of March with users encouraged to upgrade now.
Expand Expanding Close
Last month, Google started rolling out a free version of Google Chat ahead of classic Hangouts going away. The “early preview” of Google’s latest consumer messaging service is now widely appearing for more users.
Expand Expanding Close
Over the past month, Google has announced a slew of upcoming video calling features for education and enterprise customers. Some of them are now rolling out, including the ability to set up Google Meet breakout rooms in advance using Calendar.
Expand Expanding Close
Internet quality can greatly vary around the world, with Google hoping to expand who can participate in video calls with a Meet Global Dialing subscription.
Expand Expanding Close
Last week, Google’s latest payment service left “early access” for those in the US. Besides being more easily downloadable, exiting beta means that users can leave public ratings. However, the Play Store is not currently letting users review the new Google Pay.
Expand Expanding Close
The big revamp of Google News in 2018 introduced a “Full Coverage” feature that brings together context and other perspectives for major stories in one feed, and it’s now coming to Search.
Expand Expanding Close
The latest update to the Pixel series Google Camera app, version 8.2, has begun rolling out, bringing an improved experience for taking videos with a long-press of the shutter button.
Expand Expanding Close
From channels to flags and A/B tests, Google has a whole host of ways to test new Chrome features before they launch for all users. Chrome is now getting an “Experiments” pane, marked by a new beaker icon, right in the main UI to make it easier to test new features and send feedback.
Expand Expanding Close
Google has historically released new versions of Chrome every six weeks with smaller patches rolled out in between. In a big change, Google Chrome is moving to a four-week update cycle this year.
Expand Expanding Close