Tag Archives: GOOGLE

Editorial

Interview: Getting to Know Google’s New My Ads Center

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This is an interview transcription. It is intended as a companion piece to our Deep Dive into Google’s My Ad Center editorial.

With the release of Google’s My Ad Center, we had a few questions that we needed to be answered. So, we sat down with a Google Spokesperson who graciously answered them and gave us further insight into the new customizations and how they would impact Google’s products.

Google My Ad Center Feature png

Q: We all know by now that Google abides by a certain code when it comes to handling user data. For the benefit of those of us that may not be aware, what are these rules and how does Google implement it in-house?

Google Spokesperson:

We build privacy that works for everyone. Protecting our users’ privacy and security is a responsibility that comes with creating products and services that are free of cost and accessible for all. This is especially important as technology progresses and safety needs evolve. We look to a set of core principles to guide our products, our processes and our people in keeping our users’ data private, safe and secure.

  • Respect our users, respect their privacy. We believe that these ideas are inseparable. Together, they represent a single, core belief that has influenced everything that we’ve made since day one, and everything that we’ll make moving forward. When people use our products, they trust us with their information, and it’s our job to do right by them. This means always being thoughtful about what data we use, how we use it and how we protect it.
  • Never sell our users’ personal information to anyone. We use data to make Google products such as Search and Maps as useful as possible. We also use data to serve more relevant ads. While these ads help fund our services and make them free of charge for everyone, it’s important to clarify that our users’ personal information is simply not for sale.
  • Make it easy for people to control their privacy. When it comes to privacy, we know that one size doesn’t fit all. Every Google Account is built with on/off data controls, so our users can choose the privacy settings that are right for them. And as technology evolves, our privacy controls evolve as well, ensuring that privacy is always an individual choice that belongs to the user.

Q: With the launch of the My Ad Center, Google is giving a degree of granular control to users when it comes to seeing ads. How will these controls impact user privacy?

Google Spokesperson:

My Ad Center builds on our commitments to privacy by giving you the ability to control what information is used to personalize the ads you see. And if you’re not sure what you’re sharing, it’s easy to quickly see what information we use, and control it based on your preferences.

You can decide what types of your activity are used to make Google products work for you — independent of the ads you’re shown. In the past, if your YouTube History was on, it automatically informed how your ads were personalized. Now, if you don’t want your YouTube History to be used for ads personalization, you can turn it off in My Ad Center, without impacting relevant recommendations in your feed.

You may also see ads meant for certain audiences based on your Google activity – categories such as education, relationship status or the industry you work in. Now you’ll be able to choose and adjust how categories inform your ads, or turn them off completely. This way, you can more easily choose the ad experience that’s right for you. 

In addition, users have the ability to see fewer ads in five sensitive categories, including alcohol, dating, gambling, pregnancy and parenting, and weight loss. Before, this feature affected ads shown on YouTube and Display. Now, it expands to ads shown on Search and Discover.

Q: How does Google My Ad Center impact user experience with Google’s other products like Android, Chrome and Workspaces? Considering on Android, ads pushed via Chrome and Workspace e.g. Gmail are also based on user preferences.

Google Spokesperson:

My Ad Center gives you control over the kinds of ads you see across Google’s surfaces including YouTube, Search and Discover – in fact, when you’re signed into Google, you can access My Ad Center directly from ads appearing on these three platforms, allowing you to manage your ad preferences without interrupting what you’re doing online. 

(Background: My Ad Center will not affect the user experience of Android, Chrome and Workspace. My Ad Center provides control over the ads that user sees on Google’s properties such as Search display ads and YouTube, but does not alter the user experience of those properties itself)

Q: My Ad Center brings in a new dimension of personalisation when it comes to ads. How will this data be used by Google when it comes to serving ads to individuals who utilize the dashboard? Will it impact the ads being served to those that don’t use My Ad Center?

Google Spokesperson:

My Ad Center starts with an entirely new, friendly and clear experience that offers more granular and flexible controls as well as visibility into which ads and categories are used to serve ads. For the first time, users will be able to tell us what they want in addition to what they don’t want when it comes to ads – in the ads themselves. My Ads Center is the complementary Google content experience, where users tune the ads they see by choosing both what types of ads they want to see and what information is used to power them. We’ve also kept the option to turn off ads personalisation and feature it prominently across the product experience.

Q: In My Ad Center, users are able to select ads they wish to see from brands and companies they like. They are also given the ability to remove ads from those they don’t. These personalisations could possibly create a potent echo chamber that can falsely affirm dangerous ideologies. What has Google done to ensure that these personalisations don’t hinder open discourse or cause the spread of misinformation?

Google Spokesperson:

Google have long since prioritised transparency, choice and control when it comes to the ad experience for users. My Ad Center offers more granular and flexible controls as well as visibility into which ads and categories are used to serve ads. 

In this regard, users will be able to choose which topics they want to see more or fewer ads about. Users can only choose to block ads for select sensitive categories such as alcohol, gambling, weight loss, dating and parenting. 

All Google ads must abide by our advertising policies.

Q: In countries like the United States and Canada, it’s common to be inundated with political ads. In other parts of the world, we may see ads from organisations like the UN. How is Google addressing the potential bias that personalisations on My Ad Center can influence the outcomes of grassroots initiatives and potentially a nation’s political landscape?

Google Spokesperson:

See response above

Q: Google My Ad Center also brings up concerns with advertisers when it comes to advertising on Google’s platforms – particularly with distribution, CPM and CTRs. What measures is Google taking to make sure that these personalisations don’t negatively impact advertisers?

Google Spokesperson:

The My Ad Center features are to provide users with more transparency, choice and controls. There is no plan to change how advertisers can target their campaigns in our ad products. However, where we see the advantage for advertisers is their ads being seen and engaged with by users who are genuinely interested in their products and their brand topics.

Q: What should advertisers be aware of in the first few months after the rollout of My Ad Center? How can they factor this major change into their advertising plans?

Google Spokesperson:

The choices users make will be automatically incorporated into the signals we use to personalise ads. There is no action needed from advertisers that want to serve ads to users who are interested in their brand or topic.

Editorial

Taking Control of Your Privacy – Diving into Google My Ad Center

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Our online experience has largely been determined by our preferences and interests. However, since the introduction of online advertising, we’ve been inundated with advertising on every page. Since then, we’ve been exposed to more ads in a more personal way. Many a time we’ve been faced with ads which have taken cues from our browsing, conversations and even social media – whether we like it or not.

That’s about to change as Google’s recently announced My Ad Center. The new dashboard empowers users – like you and me – to take charge of our online experiences by customizing what and how we see in online ads. It even gives us the option to turn off ad personalization altogether. However, when it came to the announcement, a few questions emerged when it came to how this would work. So, we’re doing a deep dive with Google to explore how My Ad Center affects the big picture.

Putting User Privacy in the Forefront

When it comes down to it, Google’s simple-to-use interface is driven by a philosophy that puts privacy first with accessibility in mind. In the words of the Google Spokesperson, “ We built privacy that works for everyone”. While we were sceptical as Google is a big data and search company, what we learnt from their explanations let us realize the complexity that comes with the business of data.

That said, Google works by a set of core principles when it comes to handling user data in its processes, product development and services. First and foremost is respect for the user and privacy. Two ideas that the spokesperson calls “inseparable”. It’s lauded as a core principle that has guided the company since day one. In fact, Google takes ownership of the need to respect and protect the data they collect from users.

Screenshot 2022 11 22 at 13 47 40 My Ad Center

The second principle would surprise anyone – Never sell our users’ personal information to anyone. It’s a long-held conception that Google, like other data companies, uses user data and personal information to generate revenue. However, the company affirms that it uses the data only to inform the personalization and develop products internally. They also use the data to push personalized ads to users which is where they make the bulk of their revenue.

The third principle is the inherent need to make controls and personalization simple and accessible. They are wholly aware of the nuances that come with designing products and features including controls for that privacy. This nuance informs the development of products and options that are becoming increasingly accessible and simple to understand. In fact, My Ad Center embodies this with its approach.

An Easy-to-Use Experience to Take Charge of Your Ads Experience

My Ad Center is the epitome of the simplicity and accessibility that comes with the third principle. Google’s approach when it comes to taking charge of ads and personalization on My Ad Center is very “what you see is what you get”. The interface is simple and, most importantly, easy to navigate and understand. It’s one of the simplest interfaces with all available options front and centre. You don’t have to dig into menus to get to your settings. In fact, Google has put the option to turn off personalization as the first option you see on the top right. Within the interface, Google has used simple, easy-to-understand prompts and choices to allow everyone the ease of customizing their experience

Screenshot 2022 11 22 at 13 46 53 My Ad Center

However, design is only the first step. Google isn’t just allowing users to control how they experience ads. We’re also empowered to choose whether data collected from platforms like YouTube, maps and web activity influence our experience on ads. With a simple click of a button, we can enable or disable these data sources. This would mean that young parents who have Coco melon and other kid-centric content on their YouTube accounts can emancipate their ads experience from their YouTube recommendations.

In addition, users are also given options to prioritize, deprioritize and remove brands and topics according to their preferences. Google has also outlined some sensitive topics including dating, gambling and weight loss that users can remove altogether. These customizations not only allow users to complement and control their experiences across Google’s platforms. It also allows us to avoid triggers online and also stay true to our stances when it comes to supporting brand advertising on Google.

Screenshot 2022 11 22 at 13 47 30 My Ad Center

While it may seem like we will eventually create an echo chamber of our own ideas and ideologies. The approach to giving granular controls remains true to Google’s priorities in providing a transparent and user-centric ad experience for users. However, even with the control, these controls and the ads served on the platforms are governed by Google’s advertising policies.

Preserving Creator Revenue & Advertiser Investments

Of course, when it comes to advertising – the biggest question that comes to mind is how it will affect YouTube creator revenue and advertising investments. The long and short of it is that nothing is going to change. The freedom to customize and personalize the ads experience will not have a foreseeable impact on advertising or creator revenue. Google hasn’t officially stated anything in this regard, but their spokesperson has reassured us that revenue-wise, creators can rest at ease. However, it is worth noting that it is still early with My Ad Center only being around for a month.

Screenshot 2022 11 22 at 13 47 25 My Ad Center

On the flip side, for advertisers, with the increased personalization, advertisers can expect to see more users engaging with their ads. While this may seem counterintuitive, the increased personalization and control will also mean that targeting for ads will be more effective. With more and more users opting to see and engage with ads from certain brands even with the drop off from those who opt to blacklist brands and topics.

More Control, More You

All in all, the personalization and customizations that My Ad Center provides allow users to control their ads experience in a more granular way. They will allow more effective control of privacy but they also have the potential to become a double-edged sword. Users who chose to turn off personalizations completely will experience more general, non-specific ads while those who fine-tune their options will have better, more relevant ones.

That said, this granular control will not affect all of Google’s products. Experiences on Chrome, Android, Android TV and Google TV will remain the same. We will continue to see ads in spaces like Gmail and YouTube but they will be ads that you want from brands and topics that you have chosen to see.  Essentially, you are creating an experience that is uniquely yours which is hoped to be a safer space overall.

News

Undi Negaraku launched to educate voters, combat misinformation

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Malaysian youth movement Undi18, in collaboration with Google, has launched the Undi Negaraku website just in time for GE15. The website aims to be a one-stop resource center to help prepare first time voters and to combat misinformation.

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Undi Negaraku has resources for first-time voters and seasoned voters alike.

Undi Negaraku aims to prepare both first-time and seasoned voters alike come General Election 15 (GE15) on November 19th. The website is poignant since GE15 is the first election where the youth will make up more than 50% of the electorate.

As GE15 is expected to have 5.8 million first-time voters, the website will have a guide for first-time voters. It includes a summary on key information such as how to cast your vote and polling day practices. There are also detailed information on the election process as a whole and the various parties and coalitions involved.

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Undi Negaraku educates voters to discern misinformation

Undi Negaraku also provides resources on tackling misinformation, a big detriment to the election process. There are resources to help voters identify misinformation and what to do when encountering them. To help with this, the website also provides material on fact checking methods and links to useful tools such as Google Fact Check Explorer.

Going forward, the website will continue to serve as a repository for voter education material. It also provides links to initiatives for those who want a more active role in the democratic process of voting. The first, Undi Negaraku, is a non-partisan youth movement comprising of local youth movements, aiming to produce future leaders and changemakers. The second is PACA, which actively recruits volunteers to be polling or counting agents during elections.

News

Google Launches Google Wallet in Malaysia

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eWallets and digital payments have become a norm nowadays. We’re paying for things using apps and smartphones with increasing frequency; even things like boarding passes and tickets are increasingly digital. Wouldn’t it be nice if all these items were stored in a single app or platform? That’s exactly what Google is offering with their Google Wallet app.

Google Wallet was announced at Google I/O 2022 back in May. While you may be wondering – didn’t Google Wallet already exist? The simple answer is yes. However,, Google has reworked the platform from the ground up to support more than digital wallets. The app now houses not only your credit and debit cards, it can support loyalty cards and even your boarding passes for travel.

Google Wallet GIF EN Landscape

The best part? Google Wallet is now available in Malaysia. Users in Malaysia will be able to add their credit cards from CIMB, Hong Leong Bank, Hong Leong Islamic Bank, and Public Bank o Google Wallet. HSBC and HSBC Amanah will be joining the fray soon with their credit card offerings. The same can be done with a majority of debit cards as well. These cards can then be used to pay for online purchases on platforms like Shopee with a single click. In addition, users will be able to add their boarding passes for AirAsia flights at launch with Malaysia Airlines to follow suit.

Adding items like credit cards and debit cards to Google Wallet is simple. If you already have eligible cards attached to your Google account, these cards will be automatically imported to Google Wallet. Users will just need to enable contactless payment for these card on the app. Otherwise, all you have to do is click the “add card” option and follow the steps on screen after which the card will be added and tokenized for use. Cards attached to Google Wallet will be verified by the issuing bank before it can be used on the app.

  • 06 TNP UI1
  • 06 TNP UI
  • 09 Boarding pass detail view
  • 01 Home Screen1
  • 01 Home Screen
  • 04 Contextual notif flight delay1
  • 04 Contextual notif flight delay
  • 05 alt 1P integrations Transaction details1
  • 05 alt 1P integrations Transaction details

Adding your flight boarding passes is equally as easy. With the airasia SuperApp, it’s as simple as clicking the “add to Google Wallet” option when you book tickets on the app. When you do, you’ll be able to see your ticket in Google Wallet.

Transactions done on Google Wallet are secured using industry standard tokenization. This means that every transaction done with a card on Google Wallet will be completed by a unique, device specific alternate card number which is associated with a dynamic security code that changes with each transaction.

This works on top of Android’s native security features such as its lock screen passcode and biometric verification. Using these features, you will be able to prevent unauthorised access. If you lose or misplace your android phone, you will be able to remotely lock or wipe it from Find My Device.

Users in Malaysia can download Google Wallet from the Google Play Store today.

Compatible Cards are listed below:

BankDebit CardCredit Card
CIMBN/AMastercard
Hong Leong BankMastercardVisa
Hong Leong Islamic BankMastercardN/A
Public BankVisaVisa
HSBC*N/AMastercard
HSBC Amanah*N/AVisa & Mastercards
*coming soon
Business, News

Customize Your Ad Experience with Google’s My Ads Center

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Google is taking steps to enhance privacy protections and personalisation when it comes to the ad experience on their platforms. Yes – it’s not everyday that you see these two things in the same sentence but Google is trying to make them go hand in hand with their new My Ads Center.

The new My Ads Center will be rolling out to users around the world today. With Google’s new My Ads Center, users will be given more control of their ads experience on Google platforms than ever before. In fact, Google is providing the option to remove ad personalisations all together. However, they note that this option will not turn off ads, it will just serve less relevant ads.

  • MyAdCenter Hub Home 01
  • MyAdCenter Hub Home 02
  • MyAdCenter Hub Customization Sensitive 01
  • MyAdCenter Hub Customization Sensitive 02
  • MyAdCenter Hub Privacy Areas
  • MyAdCenter Hub Privacy Web App

So, how does My Ads Center affect user experience moving forward? It’s pretty simple, you will see ads that are relevant to you on your terms. At least that’s what Google is working towards. You will be able to remove ad categories that are irrelevant to you or that can potentially be emotional triggers. This includes categories like child bearing, weight loss and more. This also applies to brands. You’ll be able to remove brands that you don’t want to engage with.

My Ads Center also allows you to decouple your experience on Search, YouTube and more. This allows you essentially remove a dimension of information that Google’s algorithm uses to personalise your ads. Let’s say you don’t want YouTube to feed into your ad personalisations, you will be able to simply remove your YouTube History from your personalisation. This also applies to categories like relationship status and more.

MyAdCenter all features
My Ads Center on mobile. (Source: Google)

Users will be able to access My Ads Center in the Ads Settings menu in their Google account. Inside, you will have multiple options to customise your experience including ad categories, brands and your recent ads. Using these, you will be able to start customising your ads across all of Google’s platforms.

Guaranteeing Privacy with Personalisation

Google is reiterating its commitment to protecting user privacy. The company is reiterating that they “follow a set of core privacy principles that guide what information we do and don’t collect. We never sell your personal information to anyone, and we never use the content you store in apps like Gmail, Photos and Drive for ads purposes. And we never use sensitive information to personalize ads — like health, race, religion or sexual orientation.”

The new My Ads Center is, according to Google, a step further in fulfilling its commitments to protecting user privacy. It is – to date – one of the most transparent experiences when it comes to showing users what data are being collected and how it is being used; at least when it comes to ads.

Lifestyle, News

Google Finally Looks At Optimising the Play Store for Wear OS

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Google seems to be taking its own OS for wearables seriously – FINALLY. With Samsung on the board with Wear OS, it would seem like Google finally deems it worthy of proper attention. Of course, the upcoming Pixel Watch could also be the impetus behind the company’s sudden commitment to the platform.

Screenshot 2022 08 22 at 19 52 39 Samsung Galaxy Unpacked August 2022 Official Replay
Source: Google at Samsung Unpacked (YouTube)

At the recent Samsung Unpacked event, Google was given a small segment to discuss Wear OS. Google noted that the with the release of the Galaxy Watch 4 and the latest iteration of the OS, the number of users on Wear OS has more than tripled. Of course, to-date, the Samsung Galaxy Watch4 series is one of the only smartwatches with Google’s OS. So, it’s pretty evident that Samsung’s adoption of the platform is doing it some good.

Screenshot 2022 08 22 at 19 52 52 Samsung Galaxy Unpacked August 2022 Official Replay
Source: Google at Samsung Unpacked (YouTube)

However, Google hasn’t done much in the years since it launched Android Wear back in 2014. That’s about to change with Google committing to revamp and optimise the Google Play Store. The revamp will put compatible apps front and center especially if you’re browsing the Google Play Store on your smartwatch. This will undoubtedly change the user experience on compatible devices.

Screenshot 2022 08 22 at 19 52 01 Samsung Galaxy Unpacked August 2022 Official Replay
Source: Google at Samsung Unpacked (YouTube)

In addition to the optimised Play Store, Google is also bringing offline navigation to Wear OS. The new feature of the Google Maps app will allow users to use turn by turn navigation from their smartwatch without being tethered to a smartphone. The current version of Google Maps on Wear OS is pretty much useless without a smartphone. This functionality is slated for “later this year”. It wouldn’t surprise us if Google launches this together with the upcoming Pixel Watch.

Google’s Wear OS 3 is slated to arrive on more devices soon. Currently, Samsung has the Galaxy Watch4 series and the recently announced Galaxy Watch5 series on the market. Mont Blanc and Tag Heuer also have more premium smartwatches running Wear OS 3 available on the market as well.

Business, News

Google Cloud Planning Expansion in Asia Pacific Bringing New Regions in Malaysia, Thailand & New Zealand

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Google Cloud is stepping up its services for Malaysia with plans to roll out a new region in the country. The new region joins Thailand and New Zealand as Google Cloud continues its expansion throughout the Asia Pacific Region. With the addition of the three new regions, Google Cloud expands its total regions to 14 within the Asia Pacific region and 37 globally.

Google Cloud Malaysia Thailand Region
Source: Twitter (@RumaBala)

The rollout of the Malaysia region will bolster the government’s plans to accelerate the country’s digital economy to contribute 25.5% of the national GDP by 2025. According to reserach by AlphaBeta that was commissioned by Google, the country is poised to reap the benefits of an MYR257.2 billion (USD 61.3 billion) annual economic value by 2030 if digital transformation is properly leveraged.

The rollout of these regions will bring world class connectivity and compute to the quickly expanding number of ccompanies depending on the cloud. In addition to access to high performance compute and access to Google’s Tensor capabilities, better latency will help accelerate workflows. Google’s new Cloud Region will also be complemented by the existing Dedicated Cloud Interconnect locations. In Malaysia, these are located in Cyberjaya and Kuala Lumpur. Organisation on Google Cloud will be able to leverage interconnectivity and access on-premises and through direct connections via Google Cloud.

Google Cloud Regions highlight Malaysia
Source: Gooogle Cloud

Being one of the foremost in the industry, data security, data soverignty and privacy is paramount when it comes to rolling out new regions for Google Cloud. When asked about data privacy and sovereignty when it comes to rolling out a new Region in Malaysia, Google Cloud Managing Director for Southeast Asia, Ruma Balasubramaniam, had this to say, “We will work with local customers to ensure that each local cloud region, including the one that’s coming soon to Malaysia, fits their specific needs. Our aim is to provide solutions that help customers meet their local requirements for data security, privacy, and sovereignty – without compromising on considerations like functionality, cost, and the developer experience. The Malaysia cloud region will ultimately give local organizations more options regarding where they would like to run their workloads and store their data, whether this is in-country in the Malaysia cloud region or in another cloud region that is part of our global network. Ultimately, it is solely up to the Google Cloud customer to choose where they would like to run their workloads and store their data.“

In addition, she emphasized Google’s commitments to data security and privacy even internally. Google Cloud has ensured that all data on their service is securely encrypted and that no Google employee will be able to acceess it. They also have strict guidelines and tools for customers to ensure data security including preventing Google decryption access. This includes government requested access which require valid legal processes. Government requests for data is also reported in their transparency report.

Google Cloud hasn’t announced any timelines just yet when it comes to the rollout and availability. The new regions will join Google Cloud’s 11 existing regions across Asia Pacific and Japan including ones in Jakarta and Singapore. In total, Google Cloud currently has 34 regions and 103 zones worldwide. The company has been working public sector agencies, large corporations and even small and medium entrerprises across the world. In Malaysia alone, Google Cloud is working with Capital A (Airasia Aviation and airasia Super App), Hong Leong Bank, JB Cocoa, KPJ Healthcare, Malaysia Airlines, Mass Rapid Transit Corporation, Maxis and Media Prima.

Android, Business, Computers, iOS, Lifestyle, Mobile, News

Google Duo Meets Google Meet 

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Google is rather funny, if not indecisive. If you remembered, Google launched a few of their own services that seemed like a great idea. Google+ for example, seemed like a good idea for a Google social media platform. It failed miserably though, even though it comes with Google account as standard. Then there is Google Workspace, which was a rather great implementation of a collaboration platform that is like Trello. They axed the project a little later though.  

A little while ago, Google had something called Hangouts, a video calling platform available to users for free. It is now known as Google Meet, but there is also a separate app called Google Chats as well. But there is also another video calling app from Google called Google Duo. Google Duo did not really take off though, despite being a mobile first app. It will also be known as Google Meet soon. 

In some sense, you can say that this is Google consolidating their video calling apps into one. In the coming months, Google’s blue coloured Duo icon will replaced by the colourful Google Meet logo. Which also means that you might have two Google Meet on your smartphone in the future.  

The Google Duo app will still be constantly updated for the time being, which means you should not be too alarmed about not being able to enjoy the Google Duo app any longer. New users should be downloading the new Google Meet app with Duo integrated into the app though. There is a possibility of an app overlap, in this case, but you may not have to worry about that entirely with the new updates. 

The move to integrate Duo into Meet is not a surprise move by Google. Google has announced that their Google Duo app is meant to be integrated into Google Meet in the coming months since June 2022. Consolidating these apps are essentially the best way for Google to single-handedly manage their apps. Managing a single app will also proof much more viable and straightforward for Google. Users can expect to see their Google Duo app turn intot Google Meet in September 2022.  

Android, Lifestyle, Mobile, News

Audio Switching on Android, Coming Soon by Google 

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Bluetooth, we think, is a gift to the world. It is the alternative to Wi-Fi. In its current Bluetooth 5.0 generation, the technology is better than it has even been. Over a short distance, it is one of the best ways to transfer large amounts of data. It allows multiple devices to be connected simultaneously. It is also the most stable type of short-range connection you can get in your mobile devices today at ultra-low latency. 

That is why it is the preferred connection when it comes to your portable and wireless audio gear. Microsoft and Google have made it a point to allow for certified Bluetooth devices to connect to their devices much quicker and easier. The Quick Pair and Fast Pair functions saves us users a lot of time in connecting our Bluetooth gear. 

There is a problem with all these conveniences however, or rather, an inconvenience. Especially since multi-device connectivity is available on Bluetooth earphones, getting your devices or audio coming out from the right devices seems to be an issue today. For you to switch audio input from one device to the other is still a manual labour, no more inconvenient that just completely switching your Bluetooth earphone’s input source.  

Google Audio Switching 

According to Google’s blog post, their audio switching technology works on top of their Fast Pair algorithm. That also means that you do need to have a Bluetooth device that supports Google Fast Pair for it to work. Most new Bluetooth enabled wireless headphones today, save for Apple’s offerings, features Fast Pair anyway. 

They explained that using contextual information on what you are listening to, the algorithm automatically switches your audio input based on your actions. The algorithm is also highly dependent on audio prioritization to determine which audio source should be prioritized over which. For example, if your headset is connected to both your tablet and your smartphone and you are listening to music on your tablet and you received a simple notification on your smartphone, your gear should not be switching sources. When you get a call on your phone, for example, only then your audio source should prioritize the phone call and switch its source to your smartphone immediately. 

While there is a default priority setting to what your Bluetooth device prioritizes, Google is also giving users the ability to select and customize the experience on their own. At the same time, the experience will not only be limited to Fast Pair enabled Bluetooth audio gear connected to Android or Google devices only. The feature will also be available for all devices that support Bluetooth multipoint connection allowing you to have the convenience of quickly switching audio sources from your smartphone to your Windows laptop and vice versa.  

Currently, Google will be rolling out the new feature update to their own Pixel Buds Pro first. They say that they are rolling out the updates to their manufacturing partners like Sony and JBL over the next few weeks. From then on it is just a matter of time before the current line-up of Sony and JBL Bluetooth headsets get the update from the manufacturer’s end. You do not necessarily need an app to toggle audio switching as well, you just need to head into ‘Device details’ in the general Bluetooth settings page.  

Health, Lifestyle, Mobile, News

Mobvoi’s Next Flagship Could be a Wear OS 3 Device

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Google, at least as of the last Google I/O they had, has a renewed commitment to their Wear OS platform in partnership with Samsung. In that sense, you can expect Samsung to be one of those watchmakers that would be making flagship watches that Google can be proud of. They are not exclusive Wear OS device makers though. The source code for Wear OS is still an open one and currently Tag Heuer and Fossil are on the Google Wear OS boat.

There are plenty of smartwatch makers out in the market. The problem is, every one of them offers a slightly different take on what smartwatches should look like. They all feature different proprietary interfaces with their own OS. Samsung, one of the most successful makers in the wearable space, was working with their own Tizen OS before making the switch to Google.

Then there is Mobvoi. Mobvoi is not new, really. They have existed for a while, and they have been focused on making wearables. They have also been on the Wear OS bandwagon for a while now. The only issue is that their current flagship, the Ticwatch Pro 3 Ultra is still running on an older Wear OS firmware. Solution? Launch a new watch.

Except, it is not that simple. When you are a smaller company like Mobvoi, things do not usually come easily. They need product testers. Where do they go? They email their customers or known reviewers to be a part of the process. So, they did.

They emailed a Reddit user, which in turn leaked it to Reddit, about them looking for reviewers or testers for their new TicWatch that is apparently coming soon. The leak also suggested that there are a few main features on the new flagship TicWatch. One of it is, obviously, flagship. Together with Flagship, Mobvoi also says that it has improved premium design.

There are a few more things that Mobvoi teased about the new TicWatch too. They highlighted that it would have long duration battery, NFC payment compatible with Google Pay, IP68 waterproofing alongside a GPS tracker, speaker, and microphone, and lastly it will have IHB/ AFiB detection and fatigue assessment. Its compatibility with Google Pay via NFC should be clue enough that the upcoming TicWatch will be a Wear OS device.

Currently, Mobvoi’s latest flagship is the TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra GPS. It will set you back MYR 1,399. For that money, you get Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 4100 system on a chip (SoC) for wearables. It also features a large 1.4-inch AMOLED display with up to 45 days battery life. You can expect the next flagship TicWatch to set you back around the same price with even more features than before.

Source: 9to5Google