Today Google announced its very well known Nexus 5 handset, as well as Android 4.4 KitKat, the OS update we’ve been waiting for so anxiously. This update allows users, among others to just say “OK Google” to start voice commands.
That applies from both the device’s home screen and from Google Now. This allows you to start playing a song or start a search for example. KitKat will show full screen album art for songs and movie art as well. KitKat brings a new Immersive mode, that will hide the status bar and other notifications icons when reading an ebook, watching a movie or having fun with media.
All you need is a swipe to the edge of the display and they will appear again. Under the hood Google has made some modifications, so Android 4.4 will run even on devices with as little as 512 MB of RAM. KitKat optimizes a device’s memory and improves touchscreen responsiveness, allowing folks to listen to music while surfing the web easily or navigating via Google Maps with ease while doing something else. There’s also a step counter included here, for developers to mess with, as shown above.
We’ve got a brand new phone app, a Caller ID that will look for matches from local businesses based on Google Maps listings. The Hangouts app includes SMS and MMS support now and mobile printing and Google Drive have been integrated deeper into the experience. By the way, NFC payment now supports more platforms.
Finally, Google introduced a translucent system UI, with a notification bar that’s now completely transparent. So, what do you think of KitKat?
