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We've known for a few months now that Google planned to add a Lens shortcut to the search bar in the Pixel Launcher, but it was unclear when or even if the icon would make its way to all users. It seems like it might be timed with the upcoming release of Android 12, as new sightings of the logo within the widget are starting to pour in.
Powerful new Google Photos video editor starts to roll out
A small video editing suite for your clips
Google is in the process of aggressively monetizing its Photos service, asking users to pay for storage starting in June and hiding a few editing tools behind a paywall right now already. But there are also some free perks everyone gets to enjoy, like a revamped video editor Google teased back in February that's now finally starting to roll out to everyone using a recent version of Photos.
Google Maps dark theme is finally rolling out, more than a year after it was first teased
And it's beautiful
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Google has been teasing a dark theme for Maps for over a year now, and it even briefly rolled out to a few people, but it was never properly formalized or acknowledged officially. That changed last month when Google finally announced that dark mode is coming, and now, it's starting to roll out more widely.
Scheduling texts in Google Messages is officially rolling out for everyone
In case you don't want to wake friends with the latest meme in the middle of the night
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You can already schedule messages in Gmail and Telegram (among others), and now Google Messages is joining the club. The functionality showed up for a few people as part of an a/b test back in November 2020, and today, Google has announced that the feature will come to everyone using Messages on Android 7 and higher. The option replaces the long-press shortcut for sending an MMS with a subject.
Spotify finally lets you edit playlist details and artworks on Android
The options are starting to pop up on a few phones
When Spotify isn't busy adding things no one asked for, such as Instagram-like stories or exclusive podcasts, the company sometimes improves existing features. It looks like revamped playlist editing for Android is up next. A few people on the Spotify subreddit report that they can now tweak their playlists' cover arts and subtitles on top of being able to change the title and song order.
Google Photos introduces new doodle-y collage designs for showing off your pics
Populating your Recent Highlights
Google Photos is full of great memories constantly resurfacing in the Instagram Stories-like Recent Highlights that show up in the carousel at the top of your photos. The company has decided to tweak the collages consisting of multiple pictures that show up there with doodled backgrounds, making them more shareable on social media without further effort on your part.
Following half a year of limited a/b testing, Twitter has just formally announced its own version of Snapchat Stories called "Fleets" — because these days, any reputable social media platform needs a Stories copy of its own. The feature is starting to roll out internationally today.
Instagram revamps its bottom bar, putting Reels and Shop front and center
It also tweaked icons and layouts while it was at it
After successfully cloning Snapchat's Stories, Instagram is pushing hard to break into the next market. Not too long ago, it introduced its TikTok copy Reels, which is currently rolling out to users worldwide. To put the new format front and center, Instagram has formally announced that it will now get a fixed place in the bottom bar along with a new Shop section.
Telegram and Signal have had disappearing messages for a long time, and even Facebook's own Messenger lets you set delete timers on messages in secrets chats. Now WhatsApp has announced that it's joining its competitors — ephemeral messages are rolling out to the stable version of WhatsApp today.
Gboard is rolling back Assistant-powered voice dictation for many
Only briefly available on the Pixel 5, 4a (5G), and 4
The new Google Assistant on the Pixel 4, 4a, and 5 is much faster and more capable than the regular voice control interface on other Android phones. It's tightly integrated with system functions, allowing you to use it to reply to messages and interact with apps without ever touching your screen. We also covered that the advanced Assistant can even power voice typing in Gboard. After a brief period of a wider rollout, it appears that Google is halting the update again and reverting back to the old voice typing experience for many.
You can finally hide liked YouTube videos in YouTube Music
Liked songs still show up in YouTube and the watch/listen history is still partially interlinked, though
YouTube Music and YouTube are too interlinked for many people's tastes, and it appears that Google is finally taking more steps to decouple the services. The YouTube Music app has widely rolled out a (previously spotted) option that lets you hide liked music videos from YouTube (as noticed on Reddit). Unfortunately, the setting doesn't apply to liked songs in the video streaming service, and recommendations and the watch history are still sometimes bleeding over from one platform to the other.
Instagram is rolling out app shortcuts, only a full year after we first spotted them
There are also improvements to the archive
Android has supported app shortcuts since 2016, but some popular apps still haven't implemented the feature yet. We found evidence that Instagram was about to change that in October 2019, though it took the company until now to finally roll out shortcuts widely. Most people should now be able to tap and hold the Instagram icon on their home screen to quickly access the camera, create a new post, view their activity, and open direct messages. Additionally, Instagram has quietly reworked the Stories archive, which is now organized in three sections.
YouTube no longer lets you tap the seek bar to skip
It looks like it's an intended change to reduce accidental skips
A few years ago, a YouTube update changed the video player's progress bar, extending it over the full width of the display. Ever since, it's been easy to miss the fullscreen button and hit the end of the seek bar just below it instead, often making for a frustrating experience. A YouTube app update tries to remedy that problem by preventing the bar from responding to single taps at all — you now need to hold and slide your finger to seek.
New Google Assistant shortcuts let you quickly add a note or shopping item
But they don't really work with Keep yet
Adding new items to your shopping list or creating small notes are two of my most-used Google Assistant features. It's so convenient to say "Hey Google, add onions to my shopping list," and not have to worry about it until I open my list before heading to the supermarket. Now, Assistant is adding a shortcut to make this action easier if you prefer to type instead of talking.
Google Photos only recently got an improved custom share sheet, and Twitter is testing a better implementation of its solution as well. YouTube apparently didn't want to be left out as some people report that they're seeing a new share sheet in the app, too. In contrast to the other two, the video service's solution is a drastic regression in function, making me wonder if it's a bug that passed testing.
How to use Netflix 'screen lock' mode to keep your Ozark binges uninterrupted
The new "screen lock" feature makes accidental presses a thing of the past
We've all been there: you're watching your favorite show on your smartphone, and you go to rebalance it in your hand and accidentally hit pause or next episode. It's not the end of the world, but it is annoying, and it's probably something you wish you could fix. Now, in Netflix, you can. With the new new Screen Lock button, Netflix can be told to safely ignore your errant grasps and pokes, keeping the content front and center.
Netflix starts showing top 10 charts of its most popular content
The streaming service is being more transparent about its most viewed movies and series
Netflix has long shown you lists of popular content on its app's home screen, but so far, you could never see how exactly titles in those ranked. The company is looking to change that as it has announced that it's starting to roll out top 10 lists of most popular series and movies across all platforms and form factors.
Gboard has a long history at Google with its root in the AOSP keyboard that's still standard with pure Android builds. In contrast to that, Gboard adds a whole bunch of features, making typing on your phone a rich experience: You get a number of themes to choose from, advanced text correction, emojis, GIFs, web search within the keyboard, a better integration of voice typing, and the option to sync your dictionary across devices. The latter option, however, has disappeared for many users.
Android's check for update button must be one of the most loved and hated interface elements on the platform. When it works correctly, it brings you a new update with better security and some/many new features (some bugs too, possibly). But more often than not, it doesn't. Google seems to have fixed it now, but just in case you're stuck checking for an update for the umpteenth time, crossing your fingers and hoping for the best, you may see a new animation.
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The refreshed Material look, also known as Material theme or Material Design 2 in our circles, continues its march toward Google service domination. We've already seen it hit several apps on our phones, and its web expansion has been surprisingly rapid too. After Gmail, Google News, the Google support pages and personal account page, Android Messages, Hangouts Chat, and even the Chrome web store, now's the time for us to have a glimpse at what Translate would look like in this new design.