Tag: Google

As a Google Photos Top Contributor, there are a few feature requests that I hear pretty regularly.  One of those is now off the list:  Albums in search results.  The latest update to the Photos app now shows you albums in your search results when you are looking for a photo (or in this case a set of photos) within the app.  It is a small feature mind you and frankly, should have been there a while ago.  But it is there now and it is a good proof point that Google does take user feedback seriously.  With any Google app, if there is a feature you want to see, use the Feedback feature to get that to Google.  It really does work.

With orders now starting to arrive to those who ordered the new Google Pixel or Pixel XL, Google has posted both the factory images and the OTA updates for both phones on the Android Developer website.  This follows the trend that the company has had the last two device rounds (Nexus 5X/6P and Marshmallow & Nexus 6/Lollipop).  This means that, like the Nexus lineup before it, the Pixel lineup will have images that those who want to manually update their devices can use as soon as the images are released instead of waiting for the standard over-the-air updates.

Google and other developers continue to update their apps to support multi-window views in Android Nougat and the latest to get the treatment is Google Calculator.  Now let’s be honest, calculator apps aren’t exactly exciting.  The principles of mathematics haven’t changed and frankly, no app is going to make it really exciting.  It is utilitarian. But, that said, having the ability to have the calculator on one pane while say in Sheets or Excel in the other?  That can be really handy.

The updated build is version 7.1.1 for those keeping score at home and the update is available now in the Play Store.  If you have the app already installed, you should see the OTA update for it over the course of the next few days.  Don’t expect to see a lot of changes.  It is a calculator.  But it is a calculator that you can now run in parallel on your screen with another app which can be quite handy.

For those who don’t remember how to get to multi-window in Nougat, have at least two apps open and then tap-and-hold the Recents button.  You will then be able to select the app you want at the bottom (or right in landscape mode) on your screen.  Tap it and you have two apps visible.  You can then use the bar between the two apps to resize one window to make it larger depending on your needs.

The Android team at Google has released the first Developer Preview of Android Nougat and with it comes a host of changes and improvements.  The version is indicated as Nougat 7.1.1 with a build number of NFP10C and right now it is only available for the Nexus 5X, Nexus 6P and the Pixel C.  As you know, Nougat 7.1.1 will be shipping on the Google Pixel devices so this is very much a catch-up build for the Nexus devices and Pixel C.  The good news is that there are a lot of changes and improvements in this build of Nougat.  While Nexus devices won’t get the Pixel Launcher – for now at least – the changes that are in 7.1.1 do bring some of the Pixel features to these devices and it is well worth considering joining the beta program so you can get a sneak peak.

That said, it is beta.  That means that you could run into issues with apps or other things with your phone if you do decide to install it.  I’m far more comfortable in recommending this install however because it is an evolution of Nougat, not the wholesale version change from Marshmallow to Nougat.  I’ve been running it on my Nexus 6P for about 24 hours now and haven’t run into any issues.  If you decide to install it, the download is about 1.3GB so you’ll for sure want to make sure you are on Wi-Fi to avoid data usage.

A pretty nice little feature has been turned on in Google Search for Android, mini widgets.  These new semi-transparent widgets appear just below the search bar to give you quick information like weather, commute information, local information and so forth.  As I have been traveling this week and have enabled this feature, it is actually very handy and I’d encourage readers to enable it on their phones.  Keep in mind it doesn’t show up all the time so even if you have it enabled, you may not see it immediately.

It has taken a while but Google’s MVNO, Project Fi, has finally added group plans to the service.  Now you can add lines to a Fi user’s account for $15 per month and use a shared pool of data that will all be on one bill.  To this point, if multiple family members wanted to use Fi, each one had to sign up for their own account.  The good thing is that fundamentally, the service isn’t changing for this new option.  You can still add and remove members of the plan at any time without penalty and your data is still billed at $10 per Gigabit.