A “recent” new coloration for the Pixel 8 collection isn’t the one factor Google is asserting at present. The corporate can be detailing its newest characteristic drop, which brings the brand-new Circle to Search characteristic — first seen on Samsung’s Galaxy S24 — to each the Pixel 8 and eight Professional. Google says Circle to Search will go stay on January thirty first, which simply so occurs to be the discharge date for Samsung’s S24 lineup. With an extended press of the house button or navigation bar, you’ll have the ability to circle something in your telephone display screen, and Google will serve up extra details about the highlighted content material.
This characteristic drop additionally makes the built-in thermometer on the Pixel 8 Professional a minimum of a little extra helpful: now you can use it to take your personal (or another person’s) physique temperature. Google describes this characteristic as “medical-grade,” so it appears all however sure that the corporate obtained some degree of FDA clearance to make use of the thermometer on this approach. It’s nonetheless puzzling to me that Google determined to construct a thermometer into the telephone to start with, however now you’ve acquired a sensible use for it as a substitute of checking the temperature of your espresso or one thing foolish.
Older Pixels are getting some new tips, too: Google says the Pixel 6 and newer will have the ability to use Magic Compose to “rewrite a drafted message in several kinds” with the assistance of AI. That processing occurs on-device within the case of the Pixel 8 Professional, however Google’s different telephones will have the ability to leverage the cloud to offer their messages knowledgeable tone or make them extra concise.
This characteristic drop additionally modifications what was beforehand Close by Share to the simplified Fast Share branding now shared by Google and Samsung. The performance continues to be the identical: Fast Share enables you to ship content material to close by Android, ChromeOS, and Home windows units that assist the characteristic.
Rounding out the newest replace, Google says computerized audio switching is coming to the Pixel Watch. “You’ll be able to change your Pixel Buds Professional out of your Pixel Watch to any variety of Pixel telephones or Pixel Pill and get useful notifications about the place your audio is switching to,” the corporate wrote in its weblog submit. And at last, Google is bringing “Photomoji” to its Messages app:
Wish to react to a message with a cutout of you or your four-legged finest pal? Photomoji on Google Messages lets you remodel your favourite photographs into reactions with the assistance of on-device Google AI. Merely choose the photograph, assessment the item you’d prefer to react with and hit ship. Your creations will probably be saved in a particular tab for reuse, and, as a bonus, your pals in group chats can use your despatched photomoji.
As at all times with these characteristic drops, they’ll start rolling out to some Pixel {hardware} homeowners as early as Thursday, with others following “over the following few weeks.”