Google, back at IFA 2019, had announced a special Ambient Mode coming to Android devices that would make it easier for users to access features such calendar, reminders and notification through their phone’s lockscreen. Now, nearly two months after the announcement, Google is finally bringing the Ambient Mode to its Google Assistant.
The news comes as a courtesy of a video featuring Google Assistant product manager, Arvind Chandrababu, shared by the company on YouTube wherein it gives detailed information as to how the new Ambient Mode works in the Android phones. So what does the Ambient Mode do? Well, the answer is quite simple. It turns the screens of the Andriod phones into a digital photo frame and controller for other smart home devices, all while the phone’s screen is locked or connected to a charger allowing users to make the most of their phones.
“The ultimate goal for proactive Assistant is to help you get things done faster, anticipate your needs, and accomplish your tasks as quickly and as easily as possible. It’s fundamentally about moving from an app-based way of doing things to an intent-based way of doing things,” Arvind Chandrababu said in the video.
According to Ars Technica’s Ron Amadeo, Google started rolling out this feature on to smartphones by Nokia and Xiaomi last week and it will be available on smartphones by Sony next week. It will also be available on Lenovo Smart Tab M8 HD and the Yoga Smart Tab. He also noted that this feature will not be available on Pixel smartphones.
As mentioned before, the new Ambient Mode allows users to perform a variety of tasks such as set an alarm, check a notification, check weather conditions, and control smart lights, thermostat and other smart home device simply by tapping on the lockscreen of the phone. What’s more? When users are not using any of these features, the Ambient Mode turns the phone’s display into a digital photo frame taking images from Google Photos. This feature is available for select Android phones running on Android 8.0 Oreo and above.
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