Category: Google

Google has released the first beta of Android Nougat 7.1.2, the next maintenance release for the latest version of Android.  The build became available today for those in the Android Beta program with the final release expected to be “in a few months”.  If you have a Nexus 6P, Nexus 5X, Pixel, Pixel XL, or Pixel C tablet, you can download the beta through the program.  Like any beta release, it will have bugs and other issues so it is probably not best to load it up on your main phone at this point.

Of note is that the Nexus 6 and the Nexus 9 are not in the list of devices that will be getting the 7.1.2 update.  The Nexus 6 just received the 7.1.1 update earlier this month while the Nexus 9 got the update when it was available for the Nexus 6P and 5x.  All indications are that these devices will not be getting the .2 update.  Google specifically left them out of the announcement around the beta.

The Google Opinion Rewards app for Android has had a small but nice update to it this weekend.  The update expands the free Play Store cash app to Austria and Switzerland firstly, allowing Android users in those countries to fill out surveys and get Play Store credit in return to spend on whatever they want in the Store.  This brings the app to 17 different countries globally.

If you aren’t familiar with the app, it is pretty simple.  You are sent survey’s periodically to fill out and get anywhere from a few cents (or your local currency) up to $1.00 for completing them.  They are sent to you at random and as you fill them out, you get these credits to spend in the Play Store.  You can always check out which countries are eligible and added at this link.

Google Contacts for the web has a new preview mode available that gives you a chance to try out the upcoming redesign of the site.  The option to view the new look is available in the menu pane when you navigate to contacts.google.com.  Just click on the preview link and you will be taken to the new look.  For those of you who use Google Contacts on your Android devices, this is going to look very familiar.

Gone is the spreadsheet-like list of contacts and it is replaced with a new Material Design with round avatars for your contacts.  This looks identical to the Android app and functionally, is the same.

Google Hangouts has an update rolling out for Android that is probably best described as a house cleaning release.  The update takes the messaging app to version 16 and cleans up contact lists and improves search within the app.  Contact lists in this update are more streamlined with the Contacts option in the menu now gone.  It has been removed from this part of the app as it was redundant to the Floating Action Button in your chat lists.  You can use that FAB to add a chat with any contact(s) so they are effectively listed there for you.

Search within Hangouts has also been improved around contacts.  Now when you tap the FAB to start a new conversation, when you start to type in the name of a contact, you will see four different lists:  Frequent, On Hangouts, Your Groups and Not on Hangouts.  The idea here is to quickly identify what communication paths are open for a contact so you can chose the best one for them.  For those who are not on Hangouts, you will see an “Invite” link by their name.

Google Maps has rolled out a new feature that gives you an idea of how difficult parking will be once you get to your destination.  The new feature is a behind-the-scenes update so if you have the latest build of the Maps apps installed, the new feature will appear in the metro areas in which it is enabled.

Factoring in time for parking can make or break a night out, let alone making it to that big meeting on time. So in 25 metro areas throughout the U.S., we’ve introduced a new parking difficulty icon in Google Maps for Android that’ll give you a heads up on what kind of parking crunch to prepare for when you’re on the go.

This should make sure that you are on time to that dinner reservation or meeting as it builds in some time for you to go park your vehicle.

Google Translate has an update rolling out for Android that brings instant translation to and from Japanese to English.  Now you can point your phone’s camera to a book, sign or other text in English and it will instantly translate it to Japanese on your phone or vise versa.  It brings the total number of instant translation languages to 30 in the app of the 103 languages available.

Instant translations come into play best when you are in a country with a supported language and need help with signs as you navigate around a city.  Depending on the country, like Japan where the dialect is vastly different than English, that can be challenging which is where Google Translate really shines.