Yesterday the Google I/O 2022 began, an event focused on developers where Google takes the opportunity to show us its latest news in hardware, software and tools. And, at Google I/O 2022 of course there has been no lack of news.
Google has surprised us with a flood of new and upcoming Pixel devices, while presenting us with the second beta of Android 13, new features in its applications and services and much, much more. Here you have everything that Google has presented at I/O 2022.
Android 13 Beta 2
The Google I/O is not an Android-only event, but it is undeniable that the robot’s operating system is the main protagonist. During the event, Google took the opportunity to announce Android 13 Beta 2 and reintroduce us with some news of the new version. Some of them we already knew from previous betas -such as changing the language of an app to something other than the system language- while others we did not.
Android 13 begins to settle as the betas progress, so the changes are fewer in number. In this beta Google presents us with a more private photo selector, a renewed privacy panel and Changes in Material Themingwhich will apply your custom icons to all apps, not just Google apps.
In addition, we have learned that they will join the Android 13 mobile beta program from other brands, that is, not just Google Pixel. The specific list of models is not yet final, but the Android 13 beta will have representatives from Asus, Lenovo, Nokia, OnePlus, OPPO, Realme, Sharp, Tecno, Vivo, Xiaomi and ZTE.
The Google Pixel 6a is official
The second star of the first day of Google I/O without a doubt was the Google Pixel 6a, Google’s new cheap mobile that had been leaking for some time. The Google Pixel 6a inherits the pTensor processor typical of the normal model and its iconic design, while lowering some specifications in order to lower its price. It costs 459 euros and will be sold in “summer”.
Now yes, the Google Pixel 6a launches globally like a new mobile with a 6.1-inch AMOLED screen at 60 Hz, a 12-megapixel dual camera with the magic of Google built-in as standard, a 4,410 mAh battery with fast charge and Android 12.1 under the arm.
The Google Pixel 7, for later
Google has wanted to maintain interest in its series of own phones letting us see the Google Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro ahead of time, with a similar design, although somewhat different from the previous Google Pixel 6.
The Google Pixel 7 they’re not ready yet, so your presentation will come later. For now we have this first glimpse that tells us that the Pro model will gain one more lens and the fact that they will have a Tensor processor and that the metal camera module is made of a single piece of aluminum, with 100% recycled materials. And with Android 13, of course.
Google Pixel Buds Pro
A hardware novelty more within our reach in terms of availability are the new google headphones, the Pixel Buds Pro. Like the Google Pixel 6a, they have been released globally. In Spain, its price is 219 euros and can be purchased “soon”.
The Google Pixel Buds Pro are Google’s first TWS headphones with active noise cancellation and they promise to incorporate spatial audio later, after receiving an OTA. Their autonomy reaches up to 11 hours by themselves and up to 31 hours with the additional charge provided by the case.
The Pixel Watch exists, but it is not yet sold
We were quite convinced that Google was going to take advantage of this Google I/O to officially present the Pixel Watch that has been leaked so much and finally the reality has been somewhat different: Google has confirmed the design and some details of the Pixel Watch, but its launch will come in the fall.
If you have followed the leaks of the Pixel Watch, what Google has done is basically confirm them. A smartwatch with circular Wear OS, with a curved screen, minimalist design and that will integrate FitBit services. To know more and be able to get one we will still have to wait.
Google prepares a tablet and… new Glasses?
In case we did not have enough hardware, Google has left us with honey on our lips by letting us see a corner of the Pixel Tablet, which would be the first Google tablet for many years. Google is building its portfolio of Pixel devices and part of it will be a tablet of which we have only been able to see a corner. At the moment we don’t know much more, although Google is already preparing Android and its apps for tablets.
On the other hand, Google left us a bit with the cliffhanger of augmented reality glasses that show how the translation of the Google assistant could be applied in this type of device, but we should not have too many illusions about a successor to Google Glasses for the masses, since the company explains that “it showed a prototype of what happens when we join technologies of transcription and translation at your sight”.
Wear OS is in fashion
Google already announced Wear OS 3 last year, and while the Pixel Watch is supposed to come with Wear OS 3.1 inside, Google hasn’t told us more about it so far. Even so, we have known some news of a Wear OS that will be soon in new releases from Samsung, Fossil and Mont Blanc.
A Wear OS will come the app of personal safety to use in an emergency and to the Samsung Galaxy Watch, now the Google Assistant will arrive, confirmed by Google. For developers, Google announced the beta of Jetpack Compose for Wear OS and the Health Connect API, which makes it easy and secure to share health data between apps.
Google Wallet is back
Google Wallet wasn’t dead, it was out on the town. And now come back for replace the Google Pay app. Google Wallet wants to be more than Google Pay to catch up with its namesake at Apple.
The change makes sense, because in a way it did not make sense to save the COVID Certificate in a payment application, but in a “wallet”. Google Wallet wants to store everything: payment cards, passes, boarding passes, loyalty cards, vaccination passport, car keys, hotel keys, passports, driver’s license and much more.
Immersive mode in Google Maps
Google is preparing one of the most impressive updates to Google Maps to date with the new immersive mode that recreate cities in 3D relying on the data it has from satellite, Street View and photos.
Immersive mode is coming to Google Maps in a handful of cities: Los Angeles, London, New York, San Francisco and Tokyo They will be the first. This immersive mode of Google Maps will also allow us to check the local weather, in case we are considering taking a trip, and even the traffic on it. On the other hand, Google announced that ecological routes -which use less fuel- will be available to users in Europe before the end of the year.
Privacy News
In addition to the privacy news included in Android 13, Google took advantage of the event to show us some new tools that it is preparing. To begin with, it will soon be possible delete Google results that include your phone number or direction in a simple way, with a new tool.
In addition, Google introduced a new tool called my ad center (My Ad Center), where users can choose the categories and brands from which they prefer to receive ads, in addition to restricting ads from sensitive categories.
Search improvements
Google has taken advantage of the I/O to present us with some novelties for its searches. Specifically, for searches that are done using the camera, with Google Lens. Without many promises, Google tells us about a future where camera search takes into account the context of the entire sceneafter scanning with the mobile.
Also, the multiple search combining images and text that we learned about last month can filter searches to find results near you. For example, you can take a photo of a t-shirt and see which stores nearby sell it.
Smart Speaker Enhancements
Google has not presented us with any Nest Hub devices at this I/O, but we do know of news that will come to these smart devices. For example, Google Assistant will improve pause detection while speakingso as not to jump into the fray before we have finished our sentence.
Google’s biggest change for smart devices is look and talk, by which the Assistant will know that you are talking to it if you look at its screen (and if it has a camera, of course). It is an optional function that will be processed entirely on the device.
matter, in autumn
Matter is a protocol for the connected home that is supported by more than 180 companies, including Google, Apple and Amazon and that seeks unify all kinds of smart devices under the same standard. Google has confirmed once again that its launch is still planned for October this year.
To prepare the ground, Google has announced an SDK for Matter (coming in June) and Matter support for Nest Thermostats, as well as announcing that many Nest devices will become controllers of Mattercontrol panels with which you can control local and remote devices from the Google Home app.
Flutter 3.0
Google has announced Flutter version 3.0, Google’s framework for building cross-platform applications relatively easily. With Flutter 3.0 it is possible to create applications for six platforms with the same code, after support for macOS and Linux is officially and stable added.
More languages for the translator
Google has taken advantage of the I/O event to announce the support for 24 new languages in your translator, including American Indian languages and new dialects. With these additions, Google Translate now supports 133 languages in total.
