As 2020 comes to a close, Google has now confirmed the shortlist for the Users’ Choice Awards for movies, books, games, and apps.
Expand Expanding CloseGoogle Play Users’ Choice 2020: Hands-on with all the nominated apps [Video]
Latest
Gmail on the web now lets you pin Google Chat conversations
In the integrated Gmail experience available to Workspace customers, classic Hangouts has already been swapped out. Google Chat is in its place, with conversations now able to be pinned for consistent Gmail sidebar access.
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Google Chat adds Calendar shortcut for fast event creation
After announcing new unthreaded rooms last week, Google Chat is now adding Calendar integration for streamlined event creation.
Expand Expanding Close[Update: Rolled out] YouTube for Android, iOS adds big ‘create’ button to bottom bar
For most, YouTube — especially on mobile — is primarily for content consumption. The app can also be used to upload video or go live, and Google is now better emphasizing that with a giant “create” button in YouTube for Android and later iOS.
Expand Expanding Close[Update: Back again] Compact Google Assistant on Android seeing wider rollout
Last July, Google started testing a redesign of Assistant that partially launched with the Pixel 4. This compact Google Assistant is now appearing for several Google app beta users in its widest — but still not complete — rollout yet.
Expand Expanding CloseYouTube Music is readying a ‘Year in Review’ playlist of your top songs
YouTube Music looks to be joining its competitors in offering a “Year in Review” playlist to “relive the top songs you listened to.”
Expand Expanding CloseYouTube Music might soon let you share songs as Instagram and Snapchat stories
As Play Music nears deprecation, Google continues to update its successor with more and more features. YouTube Music is now working on Snapchat and Instagram story sharing, but the functionality is not yet live.
Expand Expanding CloseAndroid 11’s work profile adds support for showing personal Google Calendar events
Android users today can enter a “work profile” that partitions personal apps and those required by their job. Google, starting with Calendar, is making the experience less disjointed on Android 11 by surfacing both personal and work data.
Expand Expanding CloseGoogle Docs, Sheets, and Slides will count toward storage caps, new auto-delete policies announced
In addition to Photos ending unlimited free backup, Google is making a change to how Docs, Sheets, Slides, and other similar files are stored. The company also announced new auto-delete polices for inactive and full accounts.
Expand Expanding CloseGoogle Photos ending unlimited free backup next year, cites ‘growing demand for storage’
Google Photos launched in 2015 with unlimited backup at a reduced but good enough quality for most users. The company announced today that it’s ending this practice next year, though existing uploads will not be affected.
Expand Expanding Close[Update: Shutting down] ‘Demand’ is a live music data analytics platform from Google’s Area 120
Area 120 is Google’s internal incubator for experiments, and its latest project is called Demand. This data analytics platform hopes to provide artists, venue managers, promoters, and others in the live music industry actionable insights.
Latest Gboard beta asking users for screenshots to ‘help improve Autofill’
The latest preview of Google’s Android keyboard briefly tested a new Assistant-powered voice typing experience last week. That has since disappeared, but Gboard is now asking beta users to screenshot their current screen to “help improve Autofill.”
Expand Expanding CloseGoogle Maps Timeline adding dedicated ‘Trips’ view and coming to Google Photos
For users that have Location History enabled, the Timeline view in Google Maps provides a nice visualization of where they’ve been. The Timeline is soon coming to Google Photos, and will be augmented by a “Trips” view in Maps.
Expand Expanding CloseYouTube tests new ‘Video quality preferences’ where you don’t directly set the resolution
Compared to most other video players, Google is relatively unique for letting users set the specific playback resolution. YouTube is now testing “Video quality preferences” that simplify the selection.
Expand Expanding CloseGoogle Photos integrates crowdsourcing tool to help improve machine learning
Object, person, and pet recognition is one of Google Photos’ best features. Google is now inviting Android users to help improve the service’s machine learning technology through a built-in crowdsourcing tool.
Expand Expanding CloseYouTube Music adds ‘activity bar’ to customize homepage, rolls out personalized ‘My Mixes’
With the Play Music deprecation underway, YouTube Music continues its onslaught of new features. YouTube Music today is rolling out high-level filters that let you customize the homepage, as well as six “My Mixes.”
Expand Expanding CloseYouTube adds ‘Your Premium benefits’ page with video watching and Music listening stats
YouTube’s Premium and Music Premium subscriptions continue to add more members, and the Google company now has an interesting “Your Premium benefits” page with stats to quantify your usage.
Expand Expanding Close[Update: Explained] Google Pay (Tez) gets new multi-colored logo in India
Back in September, Google Pay (Tez) received a Flutter rewrite that will serve as the service’s global foundation and expansion moving forward. Google is now introducing a new logo for the Pay app in India.
Expand Expanding Close[Update: Explanation] Google’s ‘Device Lock Controller’ app lets creditors manage financed phones
Earlier this year, Google quietly published a “Device Lock Controller” app to the Play Store. It’s a way for credit providers to curtail the functionality of a phone that’s being financed if payments are missed.
Expand Expanding CloseGoogle Chat adding support for rooms with unthreaded conversations
Since launch, rooms in Google Chat have had conversations grouped into threads. This approach made sense for some, but was a barrier to high-volume teams and contrasted with Slack. Google is now adding the ability to have unthreaded Chat rooms.
Expand Expanding Close[Update: Rolling out] YouTube for Android gets new sheet-based UI for video descriptions
While you’re primarily on YouTube for videos, some creators put a lot of additional information in the Description. YouTube is now testing a new fullscreen Descriptions interface on Android.
Expand Expanding CloseGoogle Keep Chrome app will stop working next year, including Chrome OS lockscreen integration
Earlier this year, Google set a final deprecation timeline for Chrome Apps. Ahead of that, the Google Keep Chrome app will stop working in February.
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[Update: Shutting down April 2021] Pre-orders open for Funko Pop skinned Gears of War on Android, iOS
One of the most popular Xbox exclusives in the form of Gears of War is heading to Android and iOS devices later this year courtesy of Gears POP!
Expand Expanding CloseGoogle Play Store preps settings redesign that avoids long lists, multiple pages
Long settings pages — no matter how necessary each option is — can be intimidating to users. The Google Play Store is now readying a new settings page that offers an alternate design on Android.
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