This June’s Pixel Feature Drop revealed that Gemini Nano, Google’s latest AI model optimized for on-device tasks, is now available as a developer option on Pixel 8 and 8a.

June Pixel Feature Drop brings a wealth of enhancements across Pixel phones, watches, and tablets, further solidifying their position as versatile and innovative tools.

What’s in Pixel Feature Drop?

While Gemini Nano takes the spotlight, the June Feature Drop extends beyond AI capabilities. Pixel phones now offer enhanced Recorder transcripts with speaker identification and downloadable summaries. This feature proves invaluable for students, professionals, and anyone who needs to capture and organize information from meetings or lectures.

Pixel 8a, 8, and 8 Pro users can enjoy their content on larger screens by connecting their phones to a computer monitor via USB-C. This simple yet impactful upgrade transforms your phone into a portable entertainment hub. Additionally, Find My Device receives a significant upgrade, allowing you to locate your phone even when it’s powered off or the battery is depleted.

Pixel Camera: Smart and user-friendly

The Pixel camera gets smarter with automatic selection of the best moment from HDR+ photos, ensuring your portraits are always in focus with a smile. A convenient reverse phone number lookup feature has been added to the call log, helping you identify unknown callers. Google Wallet expands to India, offering secure storage for boarding passes, loyalty cards, and other essentials. Additionally, manual camera lens selection gives you more control over your photography.

Pixel Watch 2: Safety and convenience

The Pixel Watch 2 introduces Car Crash Detection, a new safety feature that can automatically contact emergency services in case of a severe car accident. Fall Detection has also been improved to detect falls from bicycles, enhancing overall safety.

PayPal integration with Google Wallet on Pixel Watch allows for convenient payments without needing your physical wallet. The revamped Google Home app provides faster access to smart home devices directly from your wrist, making managing your home a breeze.

Pixel Tablet: Enhancing your smart home

Pixel Tablet users can now enjoy richer doorbell notifications when the tablet is docked in hub mode. This feature includes snapshots of visitors and the option for two-way talk or Quick Responses. The new Google Home Favorites widget offers quick access to compatible smart home devices from your home screen, simplifying your daily routines.

What is Gemini Nano?

So what is Gemini Nano and why all the hype?

Gemini Nano is Google’s most efficient AI model designed for on-device tasks. It allows your Pixel device to perform various AI functions without relying on an internet connection. In this June Feature Drop, Gemini Nano is introduced as a developer option for Pixel 8 and 8a, paving the way for a new wave of on-device AI capabilities.

• On-device AI: Performs AI tasks without needing an internet connection.
• Enhanced Recorder app:
  • Generates detailed summaries of recordings.
  • Identifies speakers in recordings.
  • Allows for exporting transcripts to text files or Google Docs.
• Future potential: Gemini Nano is a developer option, suggesting more features may be coming in the future.

How to enable developer options in Pixel 8

To enable developer options on your Pixel 8:

1. Go to Settings.
2. Scroll down and tap on About phone.
3. Scroll down again and tap on Build number seven times.
4. You will see a message that says “You are now a developer!”.
5. Go back to the main Settings menu.
6. You should now see System listed. Tap on it.
7. Tap on Developer options.

You can now access and modify the developer options on your Pixel 8.

Gemini Nano’s debut on Pixel 8 and 8a opens up exciting possibilities for AI-powered features, while enhancements across the Pixel portfolio cater to a wide range of user needs. Whether you’re a professional, a student, or simply someone who appreciates cutting-edge technology, Pixel devices have something to offer.

Featured image credit: Made by Google/YouTube

Remember the days when web browsing meant simply navigating text and images? The internet since then has evolved tremendously, transforming into a dynamic platform for communication, entertainment, and commerce. Google Chrome, the dominant web browser, has been at the forefront of this transformation, constantly innovating to enhance the user experience.

Now, with the introduction of Gemini Nano, Chrome is set to take another leap by integrating a lightweight AI assistant directly within the browser.

This development signifies a significant shift in how users interact with Chrome. Gemini Nano, the smallest version of Google’s Generative AI models, promises to empower users with on-device AI capabilities. While the specifics of its functionalities are still emerging, Google has hinted at exciting possibilities.

What is Gemini Nano?

So, what exactly is Gemini Nano? It’s the smallest version of Google’s Generative AI models, designed to operate directly on your computer. Unlike traditional AI that relies on remote servers, Gemini Nano processes information locally.

This translates to faster response times and potentially enhances user privacy by keeping your data on your device.

Compared to its larger counterparts like Gemini Pro 1.5, Nano is a lightweight model. This translates to lower computational demands, making it suitable for running on devices with limited processing power.

On-device processing offers a few advantages. First, it can lead to faster response times since data doesn’t need to travel to and from remote servers. Second, it has the potential to improve user privacy by keeping your data and browsing activity on your device.

Gemini Pro 1.5 vs Gemini Nano

While both Gemini Nano and Gemini Pro 1.5 are Generative AI models from Google, they cater to different needs:

• Focus: Gemini Pro 1.5 is a powerful AI model designed for cloud-based tasks requiring significant processing power. It likely offers a wider range of functionalities compared to the more limited feature set anticipated for Gemini Nano.

• Processing power: Due to its larger size and focus on cloud processing, Gemini Pro 1.5 likely delivers more complex outputs and handles computationally expensive tasks better than Gemini Nano.

• Applications: Given its on-device processing and potentially limited features, Gemini Nano might be suitable for real-time tasks like content creation assistance within Chrome. On the other hand, Gemini Pro 1.5, with its broader functionalities, might be more suited for applications that require high processing power or access to vast amounts of data stored in the cloud.

Here’s a table summarizing the key differences between Gemini Nano and Gemini Pro 1.5:

How will Gemini Nano power Google Chrome?

Beyond the technical aspects, Gemini Nano’s integration with Chrome opens doors for a more interactive and personalized browsing experience. Here are a few potential applications:

• Content creation made easy: Struggling to craft the perfect caption for your Instagram post? Gemini Nano could analyze the photo and suggest relevant and engaging captions. Similarly, it might help you write comprehensive product reviews by summarizing key features and user experiences.
• Enhanced writing tools: Imagine having a real-time grammar and style checker readily available while composing emails or writing online documents. Gemini Nano could analyze your writing, identify areas for improvement, and suggest alternative phrasing or sentence structures.
• Streamlined research and learning: Researching a complex topic online can be overwhelming. Gemini Nano might act as a virtual research assistant, summarizing key points from various sources and presenting them in an easily digestible format.

These are just a few examples of how Gemini Nano could transform the way we interact with Chrome. As developers explore the potential of this on-device AI model, we can expect even more innovative features and functionalities to emerge in the future.

While the technology is in its early stages, it holds the potential to transform how we interact with the web. As development progresses and users experiment with its capabilities, the future of web browsing promises to be more exciting than ever.

Featured image credit: Google