June Pixel Drop: Connect, create, and capture like never before

Transcript - Season 7 Episode 5 - June Pixel Drop

Aisha 00:00:00 We were really trying to combat loneliness. There's some staff that 50% of the time that people spend on their phone, it's on social media apps or messaging apps, but there is still a huge percentage of people who've reported feeling lonely.

Voiceover 00:00:15 Welcome to the Made By Google podcast, where we meet the people who work on the Google products you love. Here's your host, Rachid Finge.

Rachid 00:00:23 Your Pixel is getting better all the time. Thanks to our Pixel drops, we just launched a new drop alongside the beautiful Android 16 and to learn all about it, we're talking to Pixel Product Manager, Aisha Sharif.

Voiceover 00:00:35 This is the Made by Google podcast,

Rachid 00:00:37 Aisha, the Pixel drop launches alongside Android 16 with its beautiful new Material 3 Expressive design. You've seen that probably much sooner than most of us. I'm just curious, what were your first feelings when you saw the new design?

Aisha 00:00:51 It truly feels so delightful. It's fun from just being able to unlock my phone, explore around the design is amazing and I'm excited to see that come out with Android 16.

Rachid 00:01:01 Now we have a separate episode about Android 16 and Material 3 Expressive. Today we're talking about the latest Pixel Drop, the June version, which you've been working on. You know, any new Pixel drop is exciting. What makes this one special you feel?

Aisha 00:01:16 I mean, this one is incredible because it's built on Android 16, our newest OS. We also see Android 16 coming in June, which is unprecedented, at least for the last few years. So it's fun to have this come at a new time and have our June drop really elevated by that. And releasing them together is a huge milestone that allows us to deliver a really polished and powerful experience.

Rachid 00:01:36 So we have a lot of new features and I only have a list of features. I don't really know what's what, so it's great that you're here to tell us more. And the one that caught my eye first was Pixel VIPs. So what is it? Pixel VIP.

Aisha 00:01:51 So with Pixel VIPs you're elevating your favorites to VIPs. And so it's for those moments that you share with your closest family and friends where you can bring everything in one place. So you'll see things like your last call or your last message with them. Even from WhatsApp, you can see their location if they share it with you. Birthday reminders. It's really an incredible place to just stay on top of everything about, again, the people who matter most to you or VIPs in this case. And great part is your VIPs can actually bypass do not disturb, so you never miss a moment from them.

Rachid 00:02:27 Cool. And where do I see the Pixel VIPs? Where do I see them on my screen? Sort of?

Aisha 00:02:30 So it's actually the contacts widget. Oh right. You can either add this through the contacts app or you can add the contacts widget to your home screen. You'll see now in the options there's a new VIPs widget that enables this for you.

Rachid 00:02:43 So what's the origin story of Pixel VIP? How did you come up with the idea to build this?

Aisha 00:02:49 We were really trying to combat loneliness. There's some staff that 50% of the time that people spend on their phone, it's on social media apps or messaging apps, but there is still a huge percentage of people who've reported feeling lonely and who report actively feeling lonely. And so we wanted to see how we could help our users make more personal, more meaningful connections with those people who matter most to them.

Rachid 00:03:14 What kind of information can I add to a Pixel VIP?

Aisha 00:03:18 We do enable you to see your last call and your last message from Google Messages or from WhatsApp, which is an incredible way to just stay on top of both of those. You can also add birthdays and anniversaries and you'll get reminders about those. And we even do show some activity suggestions where adding preferences helps a ton in being able to get more tailored suggestions to the things that you and your VIPs like to do together.

Rachid 00:03:43 Wow. What's an example of that? What would that look like?

Aisha 00:03:46 So I have an extreme sweet tooth and my best friend and I really like to watch horror movies together. So in that overlay I've said we like to watch horror movies and we like to go to different dessert places. And so in there I'll get recommendations of like ice cream spots nearby or I'll also get a ton of recommendations for different horror movies that are streaming. The idea is that I can watch it, we can watch it together or we can also watch it if we are far away and talk about it later. Or I've found from working on this that I'm the only person who likes to share screen and watch movies literally with my VIPs that are far away. But another way that those suggestions help.

Rachid 00:04:27 Amazing. So great, we all get our hands on it very soon. Now, next on my list, custom stickers. So I guess I get to make my own stickers now.

Aisha 00:04:35 Yes. They're so much fun. So powered by Pixel Studio, you can now use generative AI right in Gboard to send those stickers. I've been playing around with this a ton and it's fun. You can try so many things like type in excited jelly avocado, pick an emotion and it's ready to send. And you can also make stickers from your own photos. So AI automatically removes the background and it's a seamless part of making the conversations more you. I have so many random Pixel studio stickers that I have created and I have way too much fun with it.

Rachid 00:05:07 Amazing. And that is on Pixel 9 in English, Japanese and German, if I'm right.

Aisha 00:05:12 That is correct.

Rachid 00:05:14 All right. Next on my list is something I'm betting many people are looking forward to smarter notifications. Everyone wants smarter notifications, right? So what are the smarter notifications coming with this Pixel drop?

Aisha 00:05:25 A key part of being helpful is reducing clutter. And so this drop thanks to Android 16, you're getting smarter notifications where we're force grouping notifications from a single app to keep things more organized. We're also enabling live updates for things like ride shares or food delivery. So you get real time info without having to constantly check the app. I'm on a business trip right now. It's been so helpful 'cause I've been Uber using more than I, more than I'd like to

Rachid 00:05:49 Admit. that you would usually right. and I guess this would only be helpful if you know I use the always on display on Pixel. Will it appear there as well then?

Aisha 00:05:58 Yes, it will.

Rachid 00:05:59 That is really useful. I think every Pixel drop so far had updates for connectivity and security. I'm sure that's not different with this Pixel Drop.

Aisha 00:06:08 That is exactly right. We're expanding Satellite OS to Australia so you can contact emergency services even without a cellular signal. And for security, this drop introduces the ability to activate advanced protection. This is Google's strongest suite of mobile security and equal by Android 16. That protects you from online attacks, harmful apps and more. And it's for anyone who wants the ultimate peace of mind. There are also new Bluetooth audio features that work with hearing aids. If you're on Pixel 9 and newer, this makes it easy for you to take calls on the go and access your hearing aid presets as well as change your ambient volume through your Pixel phone settings.

Rachid 00:06:45 Now Pixel of course, known for its AI so there must be some AI in this Pixel Drop. You mentioned it when it came to the custom stickers. Are there any other new AI features in the Pixel drop?

Aisha 00:06:54 Yes, as always it's woven throughout the experience. There's Expressive Captions which now understands even more nuanced like elongated words and it's available in more countries. The Recorder app is also getting AI generated summaries in French and German and we're bringing clear voice to Pixel 8 Plus you can get ready for even more powerful AI power suggestions and tools that are coming soon to Google photos.

Rachid 00:07:18 Ooh, so more coming up. That is really nice. Now, Expressive Captions, if I'm not mistaken, that is if I am watching a football or soccer match and the commentator gets really wild because someone scores the goal, um, my captions will probably have elongated letters in the word goal, maybe change into uh, all caps. Is that what it is?

Aisha 00:07:38 That is true. And you can see it where it would be like go like a, a lot of o's and expression in the way that it's pronounced when you're, when you're reading it as well.

Rachid 00:07:47 That is amazing. That is indeed very expressive. That's really cool. And then I'm curious to find out what new question mark icon is that we are seeing in Pixel camera. What is that for?

Aisha 00:07:59 Ooh, that's a fun one that we've been, we've been working on for a while. In the Pixel camera, there's a new education hub that gives you visual inspiration and instructions to help you master each feature. So you can actually have a gallery of photos that are all from photos and videos that users have submitted and get inspiration on how to use camera and in similar ways and make the most of it. So I'll use it myself as an example. I hate to admit it, I'm, I'm actually quite horrible at taking photos. I've tried to get better but it's still rough. And so when I click on that question mark icon, I can learn more about the features that are there in camera because usually I double tap the power button. I open up camera, I snap a photo and I'm not going to any of the modes, right? But now as I navigate through different modes, I click on the question mark, I can see this gallery of beautiful photos that other users have taken and get inspiration for my own photography. So it helps me learn about it. I can also swipe and see the tip that actually gives me step by step on how to use the feature as well.

Rachid 00:08:56 I think I'm like you and I'm gonna tap that uh, question mark like icon a lot in the next few weeks. Hopefully it will make a difference. Now Aisha, this has been a fantastic overview of the new Pixel Drop as always. And you know best, we love to give our listeners a top tip. So what do you think, what is maybe your favorite feature? I know it's hard to choose in this Pixel drop. What is the thing they should try when they get it on their Pixel device?

Aisha 00:09:19 Maybe I can slide you two. One is in Pixel VIPs in the memo section. I have found it so helpful. A lot of times my friends will mention different things that they want in passing. Like my best friend told me needed a new yoga mat and so I took a note of that, wrote it in the memo section so I could keep track when his birthday rolled around. And I was like, okay, I have the gift idea ready. So that was super helpful. And the other one I would recommend, I mean again, I said I've had so much fun creating custom stickers and keyboard. So think of the most creative, funny, random thing that you can type it as a prompt and see what Pixel AI comes up with because it's a really fun and personal way to experience the magic in this new drop.

Rachid 00:09:58 I think I've found my new favorite place to store sort of birthday gift ideas because Pixel VIPs will tell me when the birthday is and in the meantime, hopefully throughout the year I've left some memos there, which I presume are only visible to me, right. So yes, so I can just safely store them there and then uh, have that great gift idea ready when it time rolls around. That is great. Aisha, thank you so much for walking us through this Pixel Drop. I'm sure we're gonna see you around at the next one probably in the next few months. Thank you so much for joining the podcast.

Aisha 00:10:29 Thank you for having me.

Voiceover 00:10:31 Thank you for listening to the Made by Google podcast. Don't miss out on new episodes. Subscribe now wherever you get your podcasts to be the first to listen.