Android and Wear OS: Google has unveiled a variety and new functions that are available for Android, Chromebook, and Wear OS, designed to increase accessibility, productivity and connectivity. The announcement was scheduled in time to be in conjunction with Mobile World Congress (MWC) that is set to begin today in Barcelona today. The most notable new feature is the upcoming Fast Pair support on Chromebook, Google Keep shortcuts for your smartwatch and phone, and new accessibility options to Wear OS.
The company has announced it Fast Pair will soon be equipped to connect the latest Bluetooth headphones to the Chromebook in a matter of a click. If the user has connected headphones to an Android phone, then their Chromebook will connect automatically to them too. Google did not provide any specific details regarding a time frame for the release of this update, but it did mention that it’s due to roll in “soon.”
Another audio enhancement was announced today. will bring Google Meet soon offering noise cancellation on a variety of Android smartphones to block out background noises during a conference.
Google new features on Android and Wear OS.
The company also announced that users will soon be able easily to expand the size of the content on Chrome such as video, text, and images as much as 300% while preserving the layout of the page. Users can set the size they prefer for their content as the default size so that they won’t need to alter the size every time they start the browser. The update will be available today within Chrome Beta and will be rolling out for all Chrome users.
The company also plans to roll out a Google Keep single note widget which will allow users to quickly organize their notes and cross off their to-do list on their home screen. The widget will show the colors of reminders, background colors, and images that are added to notes in the Keep app, and will also sync using your smartphone. Google Keep will also be rolling out two new shortcuts that allow you to make notes and to-do lists by tapping on the watch’s face.
Google has announced a new productivity tool that lets people draw with a pen or simply tap the screen to mark up PDFs using the Google Drive application for Android. It is possible to play using various ink strokes to create remarks or notes, and you can use an outlining tool for saving important text onto your smartphone or tablet. After that, you can either hide and undo or delete the text, or save a copy of your annotations. Annotate your documents with freehand on Google Drive for Android is now available.
Additionally, Wear OS is getting two brand new display and sound modes specifically designed to make the watch more accessible. The users will soon be able to switch to the mono-audio mode in order to minimize the disorientation caused by split audio. New grayscale and color correction modes will offer users the option of a more diverse display.
The company has also launched new emojis in Emoji Kitchen, which is an option on Gboard which lets users create merged or remixed versions of Google’s emojis. There are basketball teams and spring designs that users can experiment with, and then send to friends.
Another exciting new feature will be the launch of the new tap-to-pay animations available in Google Wallet to help confirm your transactions in-store. Google announced that its users will be able to see “cheerful penguins” and other characters next week.
