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Google CEO Sundar Pichai
delivers his keynote address during the Google I/O 2016 developers
conference in Mountain View, California.
(STEPHEN LAM/REUTERS) |
Google held its annual I/O event on Wednesday to show fans and developers alike what it's been up to in the last year.
During the event, Google announced new updates and improvements to its existing products and services, and introduced brand new ones.
Here's everything Google announced at I/O 2016.
Google Assistant
Google Assistant is basically a way to use Google as if it was a personal assistant.
Leveraging the power of artificial intelligence and Google search,
you can ask questions, give commands, and basically have a
conversation.
Part of what makes it look exciting is that it can understand your
natural conversational way of speaking. That means you don't need to
learn a new set of commands to make it do what you want it to.
The search giant insists its assistant is smarter than others because
it’s built atop Google’s work organizing information online and
processing natural language. “Every single day, people say ‘OK Google’
and ask us questions that we help them with,” said CEO Sundar Pichai.
“We started becoming truly conversational because of our strengths in
natural language.”
Google Home
You've probably heard of the Amazon Echo. Well, meet its competitor:
the Google Home. This product is a stationary hub powered by the Google
Assistant that can answer questions, control other smart devices and
help complete tasks.
Google Home will also be able to play users' music and other types of
entertainment. You can sync it to your TV, ask it to play a specific
YouTube video and the Home will automatically play it on the big screen.
Aside from connecting to smart TVs, the Home can connect to other
Google smart devices such as the Nest thermostat.
The Home will be available later this year — no exact release date was
announced. However, those interested can sign up for alerts on the
product's website.
Google unveiled a new messaging app called Allo.
Google is making
a new AI-powered foray into messaging with Allo.
It’s a mobile-only app that you sign up for with your phone number and
have the option of connecting to your Google account. It has the usual
messaging features, including emoji, some custom stickers, and the
ability to draw on photos. It also has the ability to control the font
size of your messages.
One of Allo’s distinguishing features is
the Google Assistant. There’s more on that below, but users will be able
to call on the Assistant for information and automatically generated
replies.
Google also stressed the privacy aspects to Allo. All
messages in Allo are encrypted, but Allo also has an incognito mode,
encrypting messages end-to-end. It also has private notifications and
expiring messages.
Duo
A companion to Allo, Duo is essentially Google's own version of Apple's FaceTime app for video calling.
One of its interesting features is that it shows a live video preview
of the person calling you before you even pick up the video call, a
feature Google calls "Knock Knock.
New Android features
Google is working on its next OS, but there's just one problem — it doesn't have a name. Google is asking people to
go online and name the next build, which starts with an 'N.'
In the past, Android has named all of its software after sweets. Some
examples include Marshmallow, Donut, Lollipop, etc. A great suggestion
for the next build is probably Nutella or Nutter Butter.
Google said Android N will have better graphics (Vulkan API) and runtime — at least 75% faster than the current software. The software update
will also come with new emoji featuring skin tone variations and female
options. The new emoji will also look more human.
The biggest addition to Android N, though, will be VR support.
Android N will be available later this summer, but a beta quality version is available for download today.
Google has a new VR platform called "Daydream."
Google was one of the first to jump on the virtual reality bandwagon,
but after having major success with its Cardboard, the company is ready
to roll out a bigger platform.
Daydream is the latest VR headset and platform to hit the market, but
it's not meant to be a competitor to the HTC Vive or the Oculus Rift.
Daydream is simply an enhanced version of the Cardboard that comes with a
motion controller.
The new headset will offer more realistic experiences and support
Google's native apps such as Street View, YouTube and Google Photos.
Companies such as HBO, NBA and Ubisoft are also creating apps for the
Daydream platform.
Unlike the Cardboard, Daydream will only work with specific phones that
are "Daydream ready." Those smartphones will be produced by HTC,
Huawei, ASUS, Xiamoi, Alcatel, Samsung and LG.
There are still a lot of things unclear about the Daydream such as a
price or exact release date, but Google said it'll become available
sometime this fall.
Android Wear 2.0
The new updated version of Android Wear doesn't actually look
all that different to the first, but now it'll show you data from any
app right on the watch face. It might not seem like much, but it's
filling a huge gap that was missing from the first version.
Google also added the ability for you to write a short reply to a
message with your finger. And strangely, it also added a keyboard
you can use, which seems like a crazy thing to put on a smartwatch's
screen.
Android Instant Apps
With Instant Apps on Android phones and tablets, you can basically benefit from efficient, better-looking, personalized Android apps without ever having to downloading them.
Instead of downloading an app, Android phones will be able to
selectively download only the code that’s necessary to view a certain
video, ecommerce item, or other piece of content. Instant Apps work by
allowing developers to slice their apps into modular chunks, which
Google Play fetches and runs in a screen.
The release will be available in the fall and will be compatible with
Android operating system versions dating back to 2012. “It’s a big
change in how we think about apps, and we want to get it right,” said
Ellie Powers, Google’s lead product manager. “That will take some time.”
Mobile analytics
Firebase, a backend developer service Google
acquired in 2014, is getting more robust. Using Google Analytics as a
foundation, Firebase now includes mobile analytics. Developers will also
be to group users based on criteria they care about and target them
with notifications and campaigns. “Firebase is the most comprehensive
developer offering we have done to date and I’m glad it’s available
today,” said Pichai.
The cloud
Google has been investing heavily in its cloud
platform to compete against Amazon and Microsoft. Pichai had told
investors in the past that it hopes to differentiate its cloud services
with machine learning and artificial intelligence. He said that
developers who use Google’s cloud will have access to the company’s
computer vision, speech, and translation APIs. “When you use Google
Cloud Platform, not only do you get access to the great software we use
internally, you also get access to specialized hardware we use
internally,” he said
Big publishers are coming to Daydream
NetEase is one of the first major game companies to commit to supporting
Google’s new virtual reality initiative. The Chinese publisher and
developer announced that it is making a game for Daydream, the new
mobile VR platform. The title is Twilight Pioneers, an action
role-playing game with a fantasy setting.
New Play store features for devs
Google rolled out new Google Play store features for developers
today. Ellie Powers, Google Play’s lead product manager, showed off
improvements to how beta programs work, benchmarks, a new pre-launch
report, and a slew of minor improvements.
Google Play has over 1 billion monthly active users now,
which the company argues makes it “the world’s largest app distribution
platform.” Last year, Google Play users installed apps 65 billion
times. That number is up from 50 billion in 2014, or a 30 percent
increase.
Android Studio 2.2 preview
Android Studio 2.2 preview is the latest version of Android’s integrated
development environment (IDE). You can download the new version for
Windows, Mac, and Linux now directly from the Canary page. If you are already using Android Studio, you can check for Canary updates in the navigation menu.
Google Photos hits 200 million active users
Google’s photo app appears to be a hit: CEO Sundar Pichai said today that the
Photos service now has 200 million active users every month.
25 million Chromecasts sold since 2013
Google says it has sold 25 million
Chromecasts, the
company’s cheap streaming dongles that let you send music, photos, and
videos from your phone to a TV or an external speaker.
We last heard about Chromecast in September, when Google announced it
had sold 20 million units and unveiled its first major updates to the
product line: Chromecast 2 and Chromecast Audio.
Universal App Campaigns for iOS
Universal App Campaigns for iOS are now available in beta and will
roll out to all developers “in the near future.” Additionally, Google
has made it easier to target “high-value users.”
Google also revealed that over the past year, it has more than
doubled the volume of app installs driven by ads. Specifically, the
company has delivered over 2 billion app downloads to developers.
New Android TV partners
Google today
introduced the latest generation of
Android TV partnerships. The connected television platform will be
integrated into Sony’s and Sharp’s next product lines, specifically the
2016 Bravia and Sharp Net Player, continuing a long relationship between
the companies. In addition, Google has struck a partnership with RCA,
which will produce its first Android TV, and Xiaomi, which will make its
4K set-top box.
