Google's June Feature Drop brings Gemini Nano to Pixel 8 and 8a devices
Google's latest Feature Drop brings Gemini Nano to Pixel 8 and 8a phones as a developer option, enabling enhanced transcription capabilities in the Recorder app. The June Feature Drop also introduces Car Crash Detection on Pixel Watch 2 and delivers smart home control upgrades across Pixel devices.
The on-device availability of Gemini Nano, one of the most expected features for the Pixel 8 and 8a devices, has finally arrived in Google's latest Feature Drop. Starting June 11, Gemini Nano is accessible on Pixel 8 and 8a devices as a developer option. Gemini Nano powers the Summarization features in the Recorder app, and the capability to identify speaker names to improve the quality of the transcripts which can then be exported as text files or Google Docs.
Interestingly, the June Feature Drop announcement does not include further details on the features users can expect once they can access Gemini Nano on-device. Other notable features that Pixel phones will get include Display Port support via the USB-C cable to enable Pixel 8, 8a, and 8 Pro devices to display content on larger screens, reverse phone lookup from the call log, the capability to use the Find My Device even when the phone is turned off or the battery dead, manual camera lens picking to compose the perfect shot, and automatic focus and face detection in HDR+ mode.
Besides Gemini Nano being available on Pixel 8 devices, the other notable announcement is the upcoming car crash detection feature for Pixel Watch. If the Pixel Watch detects that its user has been involved in a severe car accident, it can check in to ensure the user is okay. Suppose users require help or do not respond to the watch's check-in. In that case, the watch dials emergency services and activates its Emergency Contacts integration to notify and deliver the user's real-time location to their emergency contacts. Enhancements to Fall Detection make the feature better at detecting bicycle falls.
Wear OS 3 and onwards is also getting a redesigned Home app to improve access to smart home devices from the Pixel Watch. The update lets users add their favorite device shortcuts to the watch face. Additionally, the Pixel Tablet is getting enhanced doorbell notifications that enable new ways to interact with people at the front door, while devices running Android 12 or newer can access the public preview for the Google Home Favorites widget, which enables users to control their frequently used devices with a few taps.
