Google’s annual developer conference, Google I/O is scheduled for tonight i.e. May 17, 2017, at 10.30 PM IST. The event will be held in San Francisco at their HQ and will be personally addressed by CEO Sundar Pichai. We bring you our predictions of what to expect from this year’s I/O.
Android O
Android O isn’t a secret, there is a Beta build for nexus devices already out there and we know a lot already but the main thing to expect from the I/O will be more details about the 8th iteration of the popular operating system on the Android mobiles.
What we already know about the OS is that it’ll improve battery life on older devices, add PIP capabilities to Android TV products and Individual notification snoozing for 15 minutes, 30 minutes or an hour.
We also don’t know the official name for the OS, going by the alphabetical naming scheme Google uses we are sure that the name will start with ‘O’ and we also know it’ll be a dessert treat, maybe Oreo? We all love Oreos, don’t we? It’ll be seen later tonight what the official name is until then keep guessing.
Android VR
Last time around, we saw the Day Dream VR Headset from Google which was seen as a push to mobile VR and continuing with the push we expect Google to launch a new VR device may be a headset with better quality somewhat like the galaxy VR or maybe new software for using VR content.
If speculations are to be believed, Android O would bring more features to the Daydream VR and Google may announce new partnerships too on both hardware and software side. Some information regarding project Tango too is expected at the event.
Google Assistant
Sundar Pichai is almost always seen boasting Artificial intelligence, from integrations in search results to chat apps and intelligent home automation devices too. We can probably expect Google assistant for the iPhones as a standalone app and maybe even 3rd party integrations of the Google Home with smart home automation devices.
Chrome Updates
When chrome was launched to the public it was just a small component in the Google ecosystem but today it is one of the most popular product by the company and is used by a majority of internet users. It has grown leaps and bounds in numbers partly due to the chrome OS and partly due to its versatile functionalities.
We expect Google to give us some news regarding Chrome OS and its capabilities to run Android apps, the expectation by a lot of people have been that Google will merge Chrome and Android together to form Andromeda which will be a hybrid between both the operating systems.
Some rumours regarding the standalone Chrome browser suggest that Google will add an ad block software baked in the browser itself which although seems counterintuitive may work well in Google’s favour in the long run.
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Project Tango
Last year we saw Project Tango from Google, it was essentially a technology that allowed phones to map the surrounding and move through it using 3D sensors and cameras, in essence, Augmented reality or AR something similar to what we saw with Pokémon Go.
Last year Google partnered with Lenovo and produced its Lenovo Phab 2 Pro which was a Project Tango phone, the aim was to showcase the growth of VR and AR in mobile devices.
Android Wear
Although we recently received Android Wear 2.0 from Google which was launched a few new features along with new hardware, the experts all over the internet expect some new development in the Android wear segment.
Android Pay
While virtual payment solutions like Apple Pay and Samsung Pay have been gaining traction in the global markets Android Pay’s growth has become somewhat stagnant and to counter this we expect some new strategies and rollout to some new markets to capture some market share from Apple and Samsung.
Android Auto
Android Auto Google’s in-car software system is also expected to receive some development and new integration with car manufacturers and hopefully some information regarding the autonomous self-driving car project but this one is a long shot.
Google Home
With the growth of AI-powered smart home speakers from Amazon and Microsoft, we expect Google to address this threat and launch a new Google home speaker which will replace the late generation of the Google home. Apple is also reported to have started testing of speakers Powered by Siri.