Google Photos Colorize feature is still in the works, beta ‘coming soon’
Back at I/O 2018, Google teased the seriously impressive Google Photos feature Colorize, which has the ability to add color to black and white photos.
Google I/O 2018 May 10, 2019
Google I/O 2018 May 16, 2018
Google’s official I/O 2018 Highlights reel also demos VR180 video
The week before I/O, Google launched the first point-and-shoot camera to support its VR180 format that captures a more realistic sense of depth than traditional 360 video. Now, an official highlight reel for the 2018 developer conference shows off the new format’s advantages.
Google I/O 2018 May 14, 2018
In the days since I/O 2018, critique has primarily been lobbied against Google Duplex. There are problems with the feature, but to me — at least — it’s clear that the company thought about some of the societal impacts associated with a nearly indistinguishable human voice out in the world.
However, I think another feature Google announced deserves a similar level of criticism due to its broad impact. Enter John Legend.
Google I/O 2018 May 11, 2018
Updates are easily the biggest problem facing the Android ecosystem, and Google is working hard to fix that. Project Treble has proven that it’s capable of making updates easier, and now Google is stepping up requirements for OEMs when it comes to security patches.
Google I/O 2018 May 10, 2018
Android apps on Chrome OS have taken off within in the last year. At I/O 2018, Google recapped and announced features coming to the operating system that benefit Android developers and end users alike, including Gboard and app shortcuts this year, as well as more features with Android P.
Google I/O 2018 May 9, 2018
Just like every I/O, Google kicked off this year’s developer conference with a keynote address that lasted multiple hours. If you missed it or just don’t have time to watch the entire thing, the Google Developers YouTube channel has trimmed the whole keynote down to a 10-minute video. Watch it below.
Google officially unveiled Material Themes at I/O 2018 after weeks of various Android and web apps slowly revealing new aspects. During the keynotes, first-party apps, like Photos, showed off the new design and now Google is revealing “partner studies” that explore how others could adopt it.
The Wear OS rebrand in March simply gave Google’s wearable platform a new name. With the Android P Developer Preview later that month, Google introduced a system dark theme and smart battery saving features. At I/O 2018, Google is further refining the latter aspect with an enhanced battery saver mode.
Google unveiled six new voices, Continued Conversation, and Multiple Actions for Assistant at I/O 2018 yesterday. The company also quietly announced that Custom Routines are rolling out, while the Explore tab is also gaining new Editorial Picks for Actions.
Google has announced a ton of new stuff this week at I/O 2018, but some of the most interesting announcements have come outside of the main keynote. Yesterday, the company revealed on its blog that it is making some big updates to ARCore.
Google announced on Monday that Android Things is finally ready for production, and to back that up they’re sending all Google I/O attendees home with a nifty dev kit to get started. Google also sent the press home with the same kit for us to check out and tinker with, and tinker we did. We put it together, booted it up, and took some shots so you can see everything in the box…
Android P DP2: Pixel Launcher has a new wallpaper/widget picker, adds popup menu for settings access
In previous versions of Android, when you held down on an empty portion of a homescreen, the Pixel Launcher would load a shelf with options for the Home settings, Widgets, and Wallpapers. That has changed with Android P DP2.
Google I/O 2018 May 8, 2018
Day one of Google I/O is coming to a close right now and it has been one busy day full of announcements. We saw the release of the Android P Beta Program which includes a bunch of changes to the mobile OS, new Google Assistant features, and much more.
Android TV has been around for quite a while, but until recently, the platform hadn’t really been all that popular. In just the past year, Google has seen a lot of growth, but that hasn’t come directly from consumers. Aside from a massive lack of hardware offerings, that’s been due to Google’s apparent lack of interest in the platform. Now, though, Google is giving Android TV a “renewed focus.”
Android P DP2 factory and OTA images for Pixel, Pixel 2 now available for download
Following the initial launch in March, Android P is hitting beta at Google I/O 2018. Developer Preview 2 includes a number of the new features announced earlier in the keynote and is the first version available as an OTA from the Android Beta Program.
Leading up to I/O ’18, we saw Google revamp a lot of its apps and services with an updated Material Design. We’ve been hearing about something called “Material Design 2” for quite some time, so we assumed that would be the gist of Google’s announcement at I/O.
But instead, Google has today announced something called Material Theme Engine, which is basically a plugin to help designers implement Material Design in their apps.
Since the rebrand in February, Google Pay has been adding new features like Assistant integration and rolling out to the web and other platforms. At I/O 2018, Google unveiled an expansion of Pay’s ticketing capabilities beyond transit passes.
At I/O 2018’s “What’s new in Android TV” session, Google unveiled Android P for the large screened and set-top box operating system. This update improves the performance of the platform on low-end devices with improved setup especially on mobile and redesigned settings.
During the I/O 2018 Developer Keynote, Google announced a successor to the APK format that will bring wild new features and improvements to the Android ecosystem.
With the second Developer Preview of Android P, Google introduced a new horizontal recent apps menu that flows better with the gesture navigation controls. But with this, Google has removed the Clear All button and added several handy features.
Just before I/O 2018, Chrome OS gained support for Linux apps in the experimental Canary channel. At the Developer Keynote today, Google officially framed the decision as allowing for Android and web development right on the devices that have long and increasingly begun to run these apps.
Numbers from Google I/O 2018: 500 millions Assistant devices, 5 billion photos viewed daily
Google I/O is well underway today, and in the company’s keynote to kick off the annual event, CEO Sundar Pichai discussed how things have progressed over the past year. So, let’s take a look at some of the numbers he talked about.
Announced last year at I/O, Google is announcing a number of new capabilities during this year’s keynote. The visual search feature is getting a new look and being integrated with third-party camera apps from OEMs. Meanwhile, it is adding three new features, the most notable being real-time answers.
Google Maps is adding a new “For you” section, but more broadly it is making the service more personal with machine learning to serve better recommendations. The service wants to let users make “better decisions on the go and experience the world in new ways.”
During the I/O 2018 Keynote, Dave Burke unveiled ML Kit, Google’s new tool to let mobile developers experiment with machine learning.
After a preview earlier this year, Google today announced a lot more information about Android P in the new Android P Beta…
Google’s Digital Wellbeing will help you understand smartphone habits, view usage, focus on the important things
With how dependent people have gotten on technology, the amount of screen-time can get concerning. Announced at I/O 2018, Google’s Digital Wellbeing initiative should help you curb your usage.
How to enroll in the Android P Beta Program
At I/O 2018, Google announced that it would be rolling out the second Developer Preview build of Android P and along with it, the P Beta Program. Just like with Android Oreo’s Beta Program, you enroll in the program online and shortly after, Google will send an OTA update to your registered device. Here’s the how to enroll and unenroll in that program…
Google announces Android P w/ gesture navigation, adaptive battery/brightness, and digital wellbeing
The first release of Android P in March focused on announcing new features specifically for developers. At I/O 2018, Google is detailing more user-facing features like Android P’s new gesture navigation, adaptive battery that uses AI to optimize usage, and digital wellbeing features. Intelligence, simplicity, digital wellbeing are the focus of this release.
Keeping up with the news is a big part of our day, and since its inception nearly two decades ago, Google News has been a place for anyone to find what they’re looking for. Now, Google is giving it a makeover.
Google Maps navigation is getting Google Assistant integration ‘this summer’
Google has announced today that Google Assistant is coming to Google Maps “this summer.”
More details to come.
Updating…
Google Assistant gets refreshed smartphone UI, integrates Google Now-esque features
Google Assistant first debuted on the company’s Pixel smartphones back in 2016, and today at Google I/O, the company is giving it a visual refresh, as well as integrating some long-missed features.
In the future, Google Assistant is gaining a wild futuristic feature where it can make phone calls to restaurants and hair salons, for example. In essence, users can have Assistant make a call on their behalf that sounds natural and understands nuance, while being able to fail gracefully if it cannot handle the call.
Google introduces TPU v3.0, the next generation of machine-learning processors
During the I/O 2018 Keynote, Google announced the release of its new TPU 3.0 chip.
Google took the stage at I/O 2018 and announced that it will be adding new AI and automated suggestions for editing backed up images. These new recommendations are called Suggested Actions…
Google Assistant smart displays launching in July w/ YouTube & YouTube TV app
At I/O 2018, Google announced that the first Assistant smart displays are launching in July. Meanwhile, the company detailed features like a YouTube TV app, cooking features, and more.
Google is rolling out a ton of new features to its products today at I/O, and for Google Assistant, we’re getting the reveal of a few new voices, including a celebrity guest.
Google adds morse code as input method in Gboard w/ predictive word suggestions
Google I/O is here, and to kick off the presentation today Google’s own Sundar Pichai got on stage to talk about AI. In that, he debuted a video which introduces a new input method in Gboard — morse code.
Following a big revamp to Gmail last month, Google is adding a new machine learning feature this month. Smart Compose is similar to Smart Reply, but takes it a step further by allowing users to autocomplete the body of an email.
Google I/O 2018 kicks off today, and we’re here on the ground in Mountain View, California at the Shoreline Amphitheatre. First on the ever-growing list of Googley festivities of the week is the keynote, and you can tune in live right here!
Google I/O 2018 May 7, 2018
Alongside other machine learning products and developments at last year’s I/O, Sundar Pichai announced Google.ai to bring together the company’s artificial intelligence efforts. On the eve of 2018’s keynote, Google is launching a more encompassing company-wide initiative called “Google AI.”
Tomorrow officially marks the first day of Google I/O 2018. If you weren’t able to get a ticket to the developer conference, don’t fret as Google will be livestreaming its keynote address as well as almost every technical session. Here’s the lowdown on where and when to watch it all.
In a departure from previous years, the Google Play Awards were unveiled on the eve of I/O 2018. With nominees first announced late last month, these are the top Android apps and games as chosen by Google employees throughout the company.
Google I/O 2018 kicks off tomorrow morning, and while we are counting down the minutes until Sundar Pichai’s keynote address, we already have a good idea what some of the search giant’s significant announcements will be.
What Google I/O announcements are you looking forward to the most?
Federated learning is not a new concept in the tech industry with Google exploring it for Gboard last year. However, ahead of I/O, the company has published a new video that provides a good recap of its benefits, possibly suggesting a broader push at tomorrow’s keynote.
The overwhelming theme of last year’s Google I/O keynote was machine learning. While Sundar Pichai and company will continue to tout AI advancements this year, the company is also focusing on “responsibility,” with Android adding new time management controls.
Android Things is an operating system for smart devices that leverages the vast existing pool of developers already versed in Android. Beginning with version 1.0 today, Google is handling the “heavy lifting” of maintaining an IoT platform so that developers can just focus on products.
In the past year, Android TV gained a new home screen interface with Oreo that prioritizes content, as well as the Assistant for commands and managing smart home devices. When connected to a sound system, this latter feature essentially makes Android TV a smart speaker. Google is now embracing this convergence with a series of hybrid Assistant and Android TV devices.
