After rolling out to Android, Mac, Windows, and Linux, version 81 of Chrome OS is now available. The most notable feature in Chrome OS 81 is new gesture navigation for touchscreen devices.
After a coronavirus-related delay, Google is rolling out the latest version of Chrome for Mac, Windows, and Linux today. Chrome 81 more widely introduces Tab Groups as a way to manage what you have open.
In 2018, Google Fit received a big redesign that introduced Move Minutes and Heart Points as an easy to digest health metric. After coming to iOS last year, the mobile and Wear OS apps are getting a redesign today that emphasizes step count.
With search queries about COVID-19 surpassing even those for weather and the news, Google in recent weeks has worked to compile that information together. In Google News, there is a new COVID-19 hub, while Assistant and Podcasts have similar experiences.
From today’s Doodle to PSAs and Knowledge Panels, Google Search is home to a number of resources about COVID-19. In recent weeks, the company has provided ways for important sites to surface related information. The latest effort will see Google directly highlight announcements from health agencies and other government sites.
Google Assistant’s predecessor was generically known as “voice search” and activated with the “Ok Google” hotword. Despite being several years old, the capability still exists today in the Google app on Android. However, the most recent beta removes that old voice search UI.
There are a lot of different ways to enjoy your favorite podcasts including Google’s own experience. A unique option, though, is called Breaker, a social podcast app that recently updated its Android app with some useful improvements.
The last major addition to Keep’s online client was a dark mode last July. A tweak sees a new docked sidebar for Google Keep that’s always visible on the web and works like Gmail’s.
In February, Google Assistant began testing revamped notification settings for Android devices. These unified controls for the sprawling number of alerts that Assistant sends to phones and tablets is now rolling out.
For the past several weeks, Google has been leveraging all of its platforms to provide quick access to information about the coronavirus. The latest sees Assistant’s new Snapshot feed gain a “COVID-19 alert” card with some useful tips.
If you’ve ever looked for a good weather app, Dark Sky was probably on the list of recommendations. That’s well-deserved as the app was well built on both Android and iOS with a clean design, great features, and excellent weather forecasts too. Now, Apple has acquired Dark Sky and killed off the Android app. If, like me, that’s left you wondering what to move on to, here are the best weather apps for Android.
Compared to the main site, YouTube Music lacks social features like comments and offers more of an individual experience. That said, it still has public, shareable playlists and Google looks to be ramping up that capability with user channel pages in YouTube Music.
Back in February, the Google app beta started testing a Lab that brings Doodles to the homescreen of non-Pixel devices. In a sign that this delightful customization is exiting preview soon for all Android phones, there is now a “Show Doodles on search widget” setting.
Users on the web interact with checkboxes, dropdown menus, and other UI elements on a regular basis. Google is now redesigning these HTML form controls in Chrome to improve touch-friendliness and accessibility.
Last year, the Play Store underwent a full revamp and later gained a dark mode. The latest tweak to help conform the Android app to Google’s latest look is a Material Theme account switcher.
As we all work together to practice safe social distancing, we’re finding and adapting ways to replace that personal connection between friends, family, and co-workers, especially through video calling. To help more of us stay connected, Google Duo is expanding its group calling capabilities to allow up to 12 people into a single group call.
Last August, Google announced that it’s testing a new organization concept in Drive to cut down on the need for creating file copies. Drive shortcuts are now generally available for both personal Google and G Suite accounts.
Last week, Google announced that it was pausing browser releases in light of the coronavirus. The company now has a revised update schedule, with the next major version of Chrome and Chrome OS coming in two weeks.
Besides ratings, download counts are a good indicator when deciding whether to install an app. Google Play now includes that metric directly in the list view of search results.
Back in 2018, Google added a “visual experience” to Assistant on Android and iOS that was inspired by Smart Displays. That “Updates” feed in recent weeks has seen a big redesign, and it’s now official for Google Assistant on iOS as “Snapshot.”
Earlier this week, Google during its quarterly earnings call revealed that YouTube Premium and Music has 20 million paying subscribers. YouTube Music is now beginning to roll out built-in lyrics on Android.
The entire travel industry is facing a downturn due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Given an uptick in searches about travel advisories and trip cancellation policies, Google’s travel offerings are directly integrating coronavirus-related information.
Last year, the Google Home app was redesigned to only feature two main sections, including a centralized “Feed” that highlights important changes. Google is now rolling out Nest Cam events to the Home app and an improved Lights quick action.