latest
Android Auto rolls out to 6 more European countries
Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal and Sweden, since you asked
Read update
Although a bunch of cars now come with advanced navigation systems, these can rarely beat the simplicity and expansibility of Android Auto. Sadly, though, Google's in-car service isn't globally available, leaving many users unable to properly use their favorite services from their ride's dashboard. Thankfully, Android Auto is expanding to 36 more countries, making it seamless to get directions, play music, and interact with Assistant, thanks to native integration with your car's infotainment system.
Samsung's watches now support ECG monitoring in 32 more countries
It still requires a paired Samsung phone
Samsung's Galaxy Watch3 and Watch Active2 both have hardware support for ECG monitoring, but it is taking a long time to show up for everyone, since the feature has to be approved by each country's health agencies. It was exclusive to South Korea until September of last year, when it was enabled for use in the United States, and now it's coming to 32 more countries.
When it comes to watching YouTube Kids you'll need to be in one of the countries officially supported by the app. That's because if you download while in an unsupported nation, the app will disable itself and keep you from watching. Today there's good news for six new countries in Europe who don't have to worry about that anymore, as YouTube Kids has expanded again, bringing the total number of countries covered up to 53.
We spend a lot of time here on Android Police talking about features that are exclusive/limited to some countries, and two of those are the ability for a developer to register to sell apps on the Play Store, and for users to buy gift cards and Google Play balance. The former is expanding to three countries, while the latter is launching in a new one.
There are many digital ways to consume our photos and memories these days — browsing on our phones, casting to a large TV, showcasing on a Smart Display like the Google Home Hub — but if you want physical copies of your pics to flip through and enjoy, you will need to print them. Google Photos offers a photo book service in several countries, and now it's expanding to 14 more in Europe.
Google Play carrier billing is expanding to more carriers around the world, as per an update to the support page. Some of the newly listed carriers may have been offering the option for a while (but weren't mentioned in the page), others may be about to add it soon, but the official word is out now.
Play Movies is hardly a one-stop-shop for all of your video consuming needs on a mobile device, but that doesn't mean it's not a convenient option to have around. People throughout nine countries predominantly concentrated in Europe can now choose to turn to Google to rent or purchase certain films. The service has expanded to new countries, many of which also recently received Play Music.