Today Google Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) is updating Android’s app Hangouts by bringing some major changes to it. This was declared by Bradley Horowitz, the VP of Google.
Horowitz revealed this at LeWeb Conference that was being held in Paris this morning. Some of the changes include fun features while other features make it easier to use the services and at the same time prepare the customers for Google’s future plans regarding its services. This update is very important for Google’s Hangout Apps for Android and Google is doing its best to make the customers happy with it.
Among the fun features added to the Hangouts are 16 new sticker pages as well as some Easter eggs. Android users after updating their phones just have to type either “woot” or “happy birthday” into their chat windows to see all the new available options. People love to express themselves using stickers and Google is providing its users with 100’s of stickers to choose from. Some of these stickers will be static while others will be slightly animated; users can explore all the options and find great ones with time. The stickers will make chatting through messages more fun and interactive for the users.
Another feature added to the update that allows the users to express themselves is the video filter effects. People will now be able to add real time effects to their videos like adding black and white or sepia tone and making their videos more appealing.
Stickers and Video Filters add expression to conversations and we already know how popular that is among users. Instagram is one example where adding expression on photographs has been a popular feature and picking on that Google made visual affects a major part of its Hangouts update.
While these changes are more on the fun side Google has also taken some smarter steps in its updated Hangout app by adding features which lets users reveal their location with more precision and accuracy than ever. If someone were to ask Android users about their location by saying, “where are you?” Then this app not only understands the question but allows the user to answer by giving him choices through which he can reply with customised precision. In order to tell someone your location all you will have to do is to drop a pin on the map and you can be as accurate or as vague as you want to be.
Another feature added to this update is the “last seen” option. You will now be able to see when the other person last checked his or her phone and will show whether they are online or not. The new version of Hangouts also allows importing all the phone numbers.
Generally one would imagine that having all the features in one App would affect the functionality of the Phone by making it cluttered and slow but Google has tried its best to make it user friendly. Google Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) believes that eventually people will get the hang of the talk feature and it will be easy for them to shift from one place to another.
