At the recently concluded Google I/O 2016 event, the internet giant once again pulled another cloning experiment with the announcement of two new communication apps: Allo and Duo. Both apps are being described as a “fresh look at how people connect” by Google. These were preceded about a day earlier with another new group sharing platform called Spaces. While Spaces is already open to the public and is available on both Android and iOS devices, Allo and Duo are only up for pre-registration at the moment on Android.
Google Allo
This so called smart messaging app has been designed to help make messaging and in essence conversations easier and more expressive. Similar to such established apps such as WhatsApp, Viber, and Telegram, Allo will be using a phone number to get registered and will use its access to the phonebook to connect to other Allo users. This is a different approach to what Google did with Google Talk and subsequently Hangouts, and in that sense, should appeal to users who prefer not to share their email addresses.
Combining machine learning with options such as emojis, stickers, Ink, and Whisper Shout, Allo’s smart features allow users to stay in touch even when they have their hands full. The last part, in particular, has been given a fair amount of consideration and is probably the reason behind Google’s features such as Smart Reply and Google Assistant.
An example of Smart Reply in action can be seen within Google’s Inbox app, where users can respond to messages by just selecting, a scarily accurate, pre-determined response that pops up when reading the email. These responses are picked by Google’s machine learning/deep neural network servers once they’ve ‘sampled’ and understood first the incoming email/message. Scary? Yes. Creepy? You ‘betcha’!
Smart Reply has the ability to learn over time and has been designed to also show suggestions that are more of how the user would respond; it will be able to determine if “haha” or “lol” would be the response of choice. In essence, not only will Allo be able to respond to your incoming messages with an appropriate reply, but it can also do it like how you would.
Google also pointed out that Smart Reply works with photos too, and will be able to intelligently suggest replies that correspond with what’s being shown in the image. Allo is claimed to be able to pick up a taco from a received message and respond with “yummy” or “I love tacos”.
With Google Assistant on the other hand, Allo users will be able to use it to find useful information, get things done, or simply to have fun. The feature allows for one-on-one chat with the assistant making it the perfect companion for those who are ‘forever alone’, or to be pulled up for searches, to include Maps, to share YouTube videos, or even to Translate while in a group-chat with friends. With it, Google believes that users would not have to switch to another app to do things like reserving a dinner table with friends, get sports score, as well as to play a game. Google Assistant can also be used to check for calendar events/agendas, details of flights/hotel bookings, or to simply pull up photos from storage. As it also understands natural language, queries such as “Is my flight delayed?” will bring up the flight status.
As for privacy, Allo comes with an Incognito mode as well. Chats under this mode will have end-to-end encryption, discreet notification, and many new additions to follow. The encryption itself (called Signal Protocol) has been provided by none other than Open Whisper Systems, the same folks behind WhatsApp’s recent push for end-to-end encryption.
Google Duo
Duo is a video calling app that is also based on the user’s phone number and will allow for one-to-one video calling from anywhere around the world, even between iOS and Android (although, only the Android app is available for registration now).
One of the app’s highlights is the Knock Knock feature that shows the incoming video call as a live preview even before it is answered. This give the recipient and idea of what’s to be expected when a call comes in, and invites the recipient into the moment that the caller is experiencing. Once answered, user will be connected to the caller and Duo minimalist interface will fade into the background, leaving only a minute portion that shows a live feed from the user’s own camera.
Calls can go up to HD quality video (720p) and audio, and has been optimised to work in areas with less than favourable connections. Duo will adjust its video quality accordingly to match the connection, and can also seamlessly transition between cellular and Wi-Fi.
Just like Allo, Duo has also been built with privacy and security in mind and as such, it comes with end-to-end encryption.
Google Spaces
Google Spaces service allows users within certain groups who are interested in a particular topic to share any and all content pertaining to the topic within a single shared space. But, unlike Allo and Duo, Spaces requires a Gmail account to get started. On the plus side though, the service is available now on apps (Android, iOS) as well as through browsers (desktop and mobile). Spaces can be created with just a single tap for any topic at all, and invitations can be sent out via just about any sharing options that are currently available, including messaging, email, and social networks.
As with Allo, Spaces allows participants to find/share articles, videos, and images without having to leave the group as Search , YouTube, and Chrome are baked right into the app. When something gets shared, the conversational view lets users to jump straight into the conversation and if anyone wants to find something that was shared earlier, a quick search is all that’s needed to pull it up.
Closing
I understand that Google is always trying to find the best solution that combines form and function but the introduction of these new apps appears to me as if they’re having another go at insanity; which has been described as doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Hangouts is an excellent app for calls, video, and messaging but it has been losing out to other because of the lack of new options within the service. What’s even worse is that Hangouts could have been the number one messaging app of choice as it comes pre-installed in almost all Android devices, which in turn holds at least 82% of the market share for smartphone OS worldwide, as of Q2 2015.
In any case, it’s apparent to us (well, at least to me) that it’s best not to depend on Google’s applications, as one will never know when they’ll pull the plug on their product and replace it with another, if we’re lucky. In the meantime, it’s best to stick with companies that are truly invested in the services and the apps that they produce.
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