Google Assistant

While Duplex is most known for calling on your behalf using a human-like voice to make appointments, the technology is also being used to speed up online interactions. Some Google Assistant users are now seeing Duplex on the Web help with “Fast checkout” when shopping.

Back in March, Google made Assistant generally available for all enterprise accounts on Android. Workspace users will soon be able to use Google Assistant on the Nest Hub Max and other dedicated devices.

As summers just keep getting hotter, most of us are looking for ways to cool down our homes conveniently. While you could pick up something like a Nest Thermostat or Ecobee to do that job, sometimes something as simple as a standing fan does the job. I’ll raise you one better, though. How about a standing fan that you can control with Google Assistant and use with battery power?

Over the past few weeks, Google has introduced standalone preference pages for various Assistant features. The latest sees Google Assistant settings for the Android “Lock screen.”

Google Assistant is capable of controlling literally hundreds of different kinds of devices, but some can get fairly expensive. Smart curtains and blinds, for example, can cost hundreds of dollars and require new hardware to install. SwitchBot, though, has a clever solution to Google Assistant-controlled curtains that’s at least relatively affordable.

One of the key aspects of the Pixel Launcher experience is “At A Glance,” which has seen a handful of weather-related tweaks in recent months. Google is now planning to overhaul the capability into “Live Space” and better integrate it on with Assistant on Pixel phones running Android 12.

With Android 12 Beta 2, the Google Assistant has learned how to open the power menu on your phone, in return for taking over the power button.

For some users, Assistant has a tendency to pick up “Hey Google” and answer on the wrong Smart Display/speaker. Google is now soliciting feedback when the wrong Home activates with a “Which device did you expect to respond?” notification.

The last visual revamp for Assistant in late 2020 saw the light bar come to all Android devices. Google is now working on what looks to be a new design that takes advantage of dropdown menus to show more information, while Assistant is getting new microphone sounds.

On your phone, responses to most Assistant commands return web results, various cards, or directly open an app. Some Google Assistant responses that include text replies have now been tweaked so that the font is much larger to aid visibility.

With Android 12, the Google Assistant gained the ability to be invoked by long-pressing the power button, which normally opens Android’s power menu. In turn, the Google Assistant is gaining the ability to power your phone off with your voice.

Widgets are already getting a big visual revamp as part of Material You and Android 12. Google is now bringing widgets to Assistant and considering driving-optimized ones for Android Auto.

In Android 12, the power button now acts as a shortcut to Google Assistant. Google may have pitched this as a handy shortcut, but let’s be honest, this is just copying a trend Apple started. Regardless of how you feel about that, there’s a very unfortunate side effect. At the moment, this change cuts off access to the traditional power menu.

With Duplex, Google wants to handle tedious, multi-step tasks on your behalf. The most famous example is making a phone reservation, but the Assistant-adjacent technology is also used for walking through online forms. Google Assistant and Duplex can now help you change stolen passwords step-by-step in Chrome.

Google Assistant is pretty much the name of the game when it comes to understanding natural language, and if Google’s latest breakthrough is any indication, the future is even brighter, thanks to “LaMDA.”

Security cameras around your home are a no-brainer way to feel a bit safer, but having them indoors is something that some users may not feel comfortable with. As has been a trend on webcams in recent years, Arlo is solving that privacy concern by putting a physical cover over its $99 Nest Cam competitor, the Arlo Essential Indoor.