The Experiments with Google site brings together various projects built with the company’s core platforms and new technologies. The latest collection from Google highlights WebXR Experiments that bring AR and VR experiences online.
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On iOS, Fi subscribers can check their voicemail through the companion app. An update to Google Fi earlier this week introduces a new “Privacy Screen” feature to lock those messages and other sensitive information with Face or Touch ID.
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Back in November, Google announced that Docs, Sheets, Slides, and other Workspace files will count toward storage caps. This is set to start for personal accounts on June 1, but Workspace users will be given an extension into 2022.
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In August of last year, Google announced that it would allow more kinds of Android Auto apps on the Play Store. Developers can now publicly release new navigation, parking, and charging apps for Android Auto.
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With the last major overhaul in 2019, Google simplified the Home app to have two primary screens from four. Google Home now has settings to customize the “Feed” tab to “choose the types of events” that can appear.
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One way Google has been working to improve the smart home experience is with seamless device setup. The Google Home app recommends users to connect nearby devices, though an error today sees some users getting promoted to “Connect SimpliSafe.”
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YouTube TV will now surface and let you watch the movies you’ve purchased across all Google services in its interface. Besides access, you can also search and buy/rent from one entertainment app.
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Amid distance learning, many educators have turned to using Google Forms for tests, quizzes, and other assignments. Google is soon adding the ability for Forms to automatically save draft progress in case users can’t complete in one sitting.
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Back in October, Google detailed how it would move users of its previous messaging app to alternate services in 2021. As part of the migration, Google has shut down classic Hangouts integration with both Google Voice and Fi.
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The Google Admin console is how administrators manage Google services for people in their organization, and a redesign is rolling out over the coming weeks to help modernize it.
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Last year, Docs added a built-in citations tool, and Google is now updating the capability with more source types to join the existing five.
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The criticism of YouTube Music, especially from Google Play Music users, is that it bizarrely lacks basic features. One of those is the ability to repeat songs while Casting, though that has finally just been added to YouTube Music on Android.
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Google introduced Play Pass in 2019 as a subscription service for Android apps and games. As of the last update, users now have access to more than 800 titles as part of the $4.99 monthly membership.
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With News Showcase now six months old and live in five countries, Google is detailing the initial progress of its $1 billion plan to pay publishers for a new content card format that appears in News and Discover. Meanwhile, Google News Showcase launched in Italy today.
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Google announced the Privacy Sandbox in 2019 to build a more private web through open standards. The most ambitious aspect is phasing out support for third-party cookies, with Google Chrome now starting a developer test of Federated Learning of Cohorts (FLoC).
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Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Google has been rapidly iterating on Meet, given the demand for enterprise video conferencing. The company also made Google Meet free for personal Gmail accounts, and is now extending the availability of longer calls to June 2021.
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YouTube is always running several tests, and the latest sees it hide the public dislike count in response to creator feedback. It follows how the Google video site has publicly obscured subscriber totals for some time now.
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The latest launch from Google’s internal Area 120 incubator is smaller in scale than a messaging or virtual events tool but even more useful. Google this week released “Stacks” as a “PDF Scanner + Document Organizer” for Android.
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Last May, Google released an app for creating one-tap Assistant shortcuts on Android homescreens. An update today adds Action Blocks backup and restore when moving to new devices, as well as other small tweaks.
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With Discover, Google wants to “help you uncover fresh and interesting content about things that matter to you.” Something appears to have recently changed with Google Discover as more than a few users are increasingly being served old news and more evergreen articles.
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Over the past week, Google Discover has made two tweaks to the feed’s design. The first sees Posts on Google get a more prominent Discover layout, while sports carousels have been removed to improve usability.
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With Chrome 89 at the start of this month, Google introduced a built-in tool that lets you quickly save articles and other links for later. Users that have no need for it or don’t like losing bookmark bar space can remove the Chrome Reading List.
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Following a brief test earlier this week on the main website, YouTube Music for Android is now beginning to more widely see outline-style icons.
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A large number of Android users over the past few hours have been encountering continuous Gmail and other app shutdowns, with some finding that uninstalling Android System WebView will stop the crashing.
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