GOOGLE has revealed a selection of free updates rolling out to your Android phone.
They are adding new artificial intelligence functionand even help you identify spam phone calls.
The upgrades are coming specifically to Google’s Pixel devices.
These are Google’s own branded smartphones powered by Android.
PIXEL UPDATE
First on the list is the introduction Gemini Nano on Google’s Pixel 8 and Pixel 8a.
Google explains: “Gemini Nano is Google’s most powerful AI model built for on-device tasks.
“And starting today, you can use Pixel 8 and Pixel 8a to access Gemini Nano as a developer option. You can enable developer options in your Pixel’s settings.”
Second, Google Recorder’s Summarize feature is now used by Gemini on the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8a, allowing it to provide “more detailed and downloadable summaries.”
“It is able to detect and include the names of the speakers, so conversational transcriptions are improved,” Google said.
“And with the ability to export transcripts to text files or Google Docs, track things like conversations and class lectures are easy.’
With the Pixel 8a, Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro, you can now view content on larger screens.
Just connect the monitor via USB-C.
Find My Device now lets you locate your phone when it’s turned off—even when the battery is dead.
There’s a new Pixel camera feature that automatically identifies the “best moment in your photo” in HDR+, making it easier to get a photo where you’re in focus and smiling.
If you don’t recognize a phone number, you can now look it up directly from the call log.
Finally, it’s now possible to manually select the camera lens you want to use when shooting.
Google says this gives you “more control” to get the perfect shot.
FAN FAVORITES
The fans responded very positively to it news.
In fact, this blog post received hundreds of upvotes on the official Android subreddit.
One Pixel owner wrote: “The lens selection is huge for me.
“It’s sometimes so difficult to start the telephoto lens, even when there’s enough light.
“Also, looking up numbers will save me a few taps. I’m looking forward too.”
Google Pixel Battery Tips – The Official Guide
Here’s Google’s official advice for Pixel owners on how to boost battery life…
Tip 1: Let your phone close apps you’re not using.
Tip 2: Keep your phone and apps up to date. Apps become more battery efficient with each new iteration, fixing bugs and glitches that use up unnecessary power.
Tip 3: Lower the brightness. Save your eyes by reducing the brightness of your phone while saving battery. You can also set your phone to a dark theme, which will change the background to black. It uses less energy and also relieves some strain on your eyes.
Tip 4: Find out which apps and activities are energy intensive. Pixel users should be aware of what activities drain their batteries the most. Video calling and gaming are at the top of the list. Users should also turn off apps they have open but not using.
Another replied: “YES! We recently got a small aquarium.
“And when you have a macro shot, the camera software is CONSTANTLY switching between a good lens and a less-than-decent lens for that detail.
“And somehow it always picks the worse lens when I’m actually shooting.
“I feel like we just got a feature drop or something. But honestly, solid stuff. I like the manual lens features,” said another.