In terms of communication applications, today we have proof that the Google is shooting all over the place. In the opening keynote of Google I / O 2016, the Mountain View giant presented at one, but two (!) New apps in the segment.
Their names are Allo and Duo, and they'll hit each other face to face with iMessage and FaceTime, respectively.
Another feature very emphasized by Google is that Smart Reply (smart answer), which basically takes something that already exists mainly in smartwatches and takes it to the next level: an algorithm analyzes previous messages and ready-made answer options, based on the user's typing history, which leaves the whole thing less "Robotics". The cat's jump here is that technology also works with photos, using the company's image recognition, that is, if someone sends you a picture of a cute kitten, the first response option there will be “what a cute kitten!”.
Also included are some other funny features, like the WhisperShout, which is nothing more than the possibility of increasing or decreasing the size of the text in the message to be sent (sliding the send button up or down), and a tool called Ink, which allows you to scribble over images before sending them. Oh, Google Assistant also offers some games with emojis, like “@google, let's play guessing the movie through Emojis”. It looks like fun.
https://www.youtube/watch?v=CIeMysX76pM
Meanwhile, the Duo It is an application with a clear objective: making video calls in the simplest way possible. Kind of like FaceTime, the app opens with the front camera already on; from there, just select a contact on the bottom panel, wait for the other person to answer, and that's it, the two are talking. It is possible to turn the camera or cancel the audio, but even that and group video calls are not possible (yet).
The only “cute thing” that the Duo allows himself to show is a preview of the video of the person who calls the receiver of the call even before it is accepted which, in my humble opinion, can generate many misunderstandings and bad games, but who am I to say, no. In addition, a very simple app, whose maximum focus is simplicity and lightness; to give you an idea, the Android version takes up less than 5MB. It was also a focus of Google to minimize data requirements for video transmission as much as possible: according to the developers, calls will work well even on unstable connections, and a very interesting feature is the ability to move between Wi-Fi and cellular networks without losing the transmission.
· · ·
The two new applications will be exclusive for smartphones (iOS or Android), since in both, the accounts will be linked to a cell phone number, more or less as WhatsApp does not even need to sign in with a Google account.
Both will be launched until the end of the summer in the northern hemisphere, which means, for us, until the end of September.
