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Grammarly expands generative AI capabilities to improve your writing even more
Grammarly has announced the general availability of its expanded generative AI features such as the Improve It prompt and Knowledge Share.
Generative AI (GAI) is all the rage these days with tech companies investing a significant amount of time and money in the development of general purpose large language models (LLMs), chatbots, and AI copilots. One key area in this domain is text generation, and Grammarly is looking to further capitalize on its previous AI efforts to expand its GAI capabilities.
Here's a look at the Assistant weather widget in the Google App
Ahead of the Android 12 public release, we have spotted evidence of a brand new Assistant weather widget. Here's what it looks like.
After years of neglect, widgets will finally be getting the much-needed overhaul in Android 12. Google showed off the redesigned widgets coming to Android 12 at Google I/O 2021. Over the past couple of months, we have seen many of these widgets going live in Android 12 beta releases. The last Android 12 Beta 5 that rolled out last week brought the revamped clock widgets along with a "Paint Chips" widget and partially working "Live Space" widget. Now ahead of the Android 12 public release, we have spotted evidence of a brand-new Assistant weather widget.
Google Search and Assistant gain new back-to-school features
Google today announced some new features for Google Search and Assistant such as Family Bell checklists, a new way to trigger daily routines, and more.
To make the transition to post-pandemic life easier for kids and families, Google today announced some new features for Google Search and Assistant. The new features include Family Bell checklists, a new way to trigger your daily routine, new stories and puzzles for Google Nest Hub, and more.
Gboard prepares a Google Lens shortcut, dark/light themes that follow system, and Google Assistant dictation support
Google to add a Google Lens shortcut, Assistant powered dictation, and automatic switching between light and dark themes based on the system in Gboard.
Google's Gboard is among the most popular keyboard apps and is constantly updated with new features. Recently, Google added support for Android 11's emojis on Gboard, just a week after activating Smart Compose predictions messaging apps. Now, Google is preparing to add a Google Lens shortcut, Google Assistant dictation, and support for automatic switching between light and dark themes on Gboard.
Google is making it easier for developers to build Google Assistant voice actions
Today, Google is announcing several improvements to make it easier for developers to build new experiences with Assistant.
Google Assistant is a very powerful tool by itself, but it gets even better when you use it with other apps and services. Today at Voice Global 2020, a conference for voice tech, Google is announcing several improvements to make it easier for developers to build new experiences with Assistant. At the forefront of this effort is the new web-based Actions Builder IDE, but that's just the start.
Google brings more Assistant features to Sonos and Bose smart speakers
Sonos and Bose Google Assistant speakers are finally getting a few more features to bring them up to par with Google's own products.
When most people think about Google Assistant smart speakers and displays, they think of Google's own devices. There's no question that Google's Nest Mini and Nest Hub are hot-sellers, but there are also many non-Google-made Assistant devices out there as well. These devices have typically lagged a bit behind in getting the same features as Google's products. Today, Google has announced that Sonos and Bose smart speakers with Google Assistant built-in are getting some of these features.
Google tests voice confirmation for some purchases made through Google Assistant
Google Assistant will soon let you use voice confirmation to authorize some kinds of payments, including in-app purchases and restaurant orders.
Google Assistant has been getting a lot of useful features as of late. Just a few days ago on Global Accessibility Awareness Day, the company released an app called Action Blocks that lets you setup easy-to-access Assistant shortcuts alongside other accessibility-based features in a few Google apps. The company is now testing a voice confirmation feature for some purchases made through Google Assistant. The feature toggle is already available for a small percentage of users, including me.
[Update: Fully Rolling Out] Dark theme rolling out for the Google App and Google Assistant once again
Google can once again be seen rolling out a dark theme for the Google app and this time the Assistant is also getting the new theme.
With the first stable release of Android 10 for the Pixel devices last week, the dark theme graduated as an easily accessible feature. Even before that, while showcasing developer previews, Google rolled out individual dark theme toggles for many of its apps such as Google Keep, Files, Photos, Fit, and many more Google apps. Back in June, Google had also started rolling out a dark theme for the Google app for certain users but at that time, the theme appeared to be partially applied and limited to only a few screens of the Google app – and only to a few users. Now, reports of complete dark theme have started to surface, with the feature now rolling out to Google Assistant as well.
Google Assistant gets a phone line in India, new Indic languages now supported across Google apps
Google Assistant is now available via phone line in India while Google Search, Discover, and Lens get support for Indic languages.
The count of smartphone users in India stands at 400 million and it's growing at an enormous rate - in fact, it is the only growing smartphone market globally. This makes India not only a market full of opportunities for smartphone companies but also for software giants such as Google. Today, at the 5th edition of the Google For India, the tech giant has some India-specific announcements. We're seeing announcements for the Google app including results in three more Indic languages and new languages for the Discover tab. There are several new updates for the Google Assistant and the Google Pay platforms.
You will soon be able to turn off speech output for Google Assistant on your phone
The new hands-free mode in Google Assistant completely mutes your experience with the Assistant so your phone isn't making noise.
Google Assistant is undoubtedly one of the most useful applications out there. It helps navigate in unknown places, gives quick answers to questions, plays music via smart devices, and so on. Though, its loudness, especially on phones, has always annoyed me. There are times when the Assistant starts being chatty even when it is asked basic questions. It looks like Google itself has identified this annoyance as they are now offering a new way to interact with the Assistant. The new hands-free mode in Google Assistant completely mutes your experience with the Assistant.
Scrypted is a home automation Android app that integrates with Google Assistant
Scrypted is an Android app that lets you connect your Google Home, Apple HomeKit, and Amazon Alexa devices and control them with Google Assistant.
Smart home devices are getting more and more popular as big companies and indie developers are constantly releasing new services that integrate with them. Some of them offer cross-platform capabilities to connect products from different manufacturers. Scrypted is a new Android app that does exactly that. It lets you connect your Google Home, Apple HomeKit, and Amazon Alexa devices and control them with your voice via Google Assistant. The application is written by a popular Android developer Koush, who is known for his work for ClockworkMod.
Insignia Smart Speaker gets Speaker Pairing like the Google Home Max
The Insignia Smart Speaker now has the ability do "speaker pairing" with other smart speakers, which was previously limited to only the Google Home Max.
The Google Home line of devices is Google's own Assistant-enabled smart speakers. However, they are not the only Google Assistant-enabled speakers on the market. Insignia, which is Best Buy's in-house brand, has an affordable speaker/alarm clock with Assistant built-in. The device now has the ability to pair with other smart speakers, which was previously limited to only the Google Home Max.
Download: Google Home app with new Material Theme redesign
The latest app to get the Material Theme redesign is Google Home, and it also comes with a complete reorganization of the app for smart home devices.
We've been closely following Google's rollout of the new Material Theme UI. So far, it has been added to a plethora of Google apps, including Android Messages, Calendar, Google Photos, and more. The latest app to get this redesign is Google Home, and it also comes with a complete reorganization of the app for smart home devices. This new focus on smart home control goes along with new features on the recently announced Google Home Hub.
Download Pixel Launcher with Assistant on search bar (as seen on Pixel 3)
As seen on the leaked Google Pixel 3 renders, there's a new Google Pixel Launcher version with the Google Assistant icon on the search bar.
Shortly after the release of Android Pie for the Google Pixel series, we discovered that Google was testing a newer version of the Pixel Launcher on an unexpected device: the Android Studio emulator. While the Pixel Launcher found in Android P DP5 and the subsequent Android Pie releases lack a voice search shortcut in the search bar, the Android Studio emulator's launcher had a Google Assistant shortcut on the search bar. Since we first discovered this updated launcher version, press renders for the Google Pixel 3 have shown this same Assistant shortcut on the search bar. Now, you can download the latest Pixel Launcher version with the same Google Assistant shortcut.
Remap the Google Assistant Shortcut with Assistant Shortcuts
What if you could make the Google Assistant button do other things? Like open the notifications or switch to the previous app?
As Google Assistant continues to grow in popularity we're seeing more devices launch with dedicated Assistant buttons. The LG G7 ThinQ was one of the first, but others have followed, and OnePlus even added the ability to the power button in the latest OxygenOS Open Beta 3 for the OnePlus 6. So clearly this is a trend we should see going forward.
Sony Xperia XZ3 joins the LG G7 in getting special Google Assistant commands
Sony Mobile has officially announced that the Xperia XZ3 will come with Google Assistant voice commands that will not be available on other devices.
We have been learning a lot about the Sony Xperia XZ3 as of late. While some rumors turned out to be false, we do know that it will launch with an OLED screen and have Android 9 Pie on board. The company had only just finished launching the Xperia XZ2 Premium a couple of months ago, but they are ready to move on and their new device has a surprise for those who are fans of Google Assistant. Sony Mobile has officially announced that the Xperia XZ3 will come with Google Assistant voice commands that will not be available on other devices.
Google Assistant multi-language support rolls out for 6 languages
Now, you can select two languages and Google Assistant will automatically detect the language you are speaking with and use that to respond.
So far, we've seen a lot of great devices at IFA 2018. The Sony Xperia XZ3, BlackBerry KEY2 LE, ZTE Axon 9, and Honor Play, to name a few. But Google doesn't want to be forgotten. The company has announced a big new feature for Google Assistant that makes it possible to understand multiple languages at once.
Google fixes Play Music library issues in Google Assistant
Google has finally fixed the Google Assistant so that it can play purchased and uploaded music from your Google Play Music library on Google Home.
Google has finally fixed one of the biggest annoyances with the Google Assistant in recent months. For whatever reason, while the Google Assistant (and the Google Home) could play music, you couldn't play your uploaded or purchased songs on Google Play Music. It's a huge issue for those with devices that portray themselves as home entertainment devices such as the Google Home Max. Not being able to play your own music is a pretty big issue, but Google has finally fixed it. Previously, it was very limited in terms of what you could actually listen to as a free user of Google Play Music.
Turning off/on lights via Google Home now only controls lights in the same room as the speaker
Previously, if you said "turn off lights," it would turn off all the lights. Now it will only control lights in the same room as the Google Home.
Home automation doesn't require smart speakers, just like smart speakers are useful for more than home automation. But the two make a great combination. It's super handy to be able to control things around your house with your voice. One of the most basic functions is turning lights on and off. Google Home can, of course, do this, but now it works a little differently.
Alexa Cast is Amazon's answer to the Chromecast Audio, but it only works with Amazon Music
Alexa Cast is Amazon's answer to Chromecast Audio, but there's a catch - in its current state, it only works with Amazon Music.
One of the many great features you get with owning a Chromecast is the ability to cast pretty much any media you want. You can stream Netflix, YouTube, Spotify - even Amazon Music - directly to it. You can use an Amazon Alexa device as an audio-based Chromecast, but there's a catch - it only works with Amazon Music. That means you can't stream any of your favorite music services directly to your Echo device and you're locked into Amazon's offerings. What's more, you need a subscription which Amazon Music to do that. It's called Alexa Cast, and it's rolling out now.