Key Points
- Remix in Google Messages lets users edit photos directly in chat using the Gemini image model.
- Scam detection adds a “Likely scam” label to suspicious messages and expands call‑scam protection to the UK, Ireland, India, Australia and Canada.
- Notification summaries condense long conversations for quick viewing on Pixel 9 and later devices.
- Pixel VIP contacts receive priority notifications and a new crisis badge.
- New “Wicked” theme packs offer three style options with wallpapers, icons, sounds and GIFs.
- Google Photos now supports specific edits like removing sunglasses or making subjects smile.
- Maps power‑saving mode on Pixel 10 adds up to four extra hours of battery life during navigation.
- Call notes using Gemini Nano can record, transcribe and summarize calls in several countries.
- Magic Cue improves contextual suggestions via Private AI Compute, first on Pixel 10‑series.
AI‑Driven Photo Remixing in Google Messages
The headline feature of the November update is Remix in Google Messages. Powered by Google’s Gemini image model, Remix lets users edit and reimagine any photo directly within a chat. The tool works across Android devices and supports group chats even when not all participants have a Pixel. When both parties use Google Messages with RCS, the same image can be remixed back and forth without leaving the app.
Enhanced Scam Protection
Google is expanding its scam‑detection capabilities. In the United States, Messages now display a “Likely scam” label for suspicious chat notifications. Phone‑call scam detection, previously limited to the U.S., is extending to Pixel 9‑series users in the United Kingdom, Ireland, India, Australia and Canada. The detection runs on‑device, using AI to spot common scam call patterns in real time.
Notification Summaries and VIP Prioritization
New notification summaries condense long group chats and messages into quick, readable recaps, allowing users to catch up at a glance. These summaries appear on Pixel 9 and later models (excluding the Pixel 9A). Pixel VIP contacts—formerly starred contacts—receive priority treatment, ensuring messages from close friends and family stay on top. VIP contacts also gain a crisis badge in the Contacts widget for rapid access to critical alerts.
“Wicked” Theme Packs
Fans of the film “Wicked” can personalize their phones with new theme packs that include wallpapers, icons, sounds and GIFs inspired by the movie. Pixel owners can switch among three styles—For Good, Glinda and Elphaba—to give their device a magical makeover.
Improvements to Google Photos, Maps and Call Notes
Google Photos now lets users request specific edits such as removing sunglasses, making a subject smile, or opening eyes, using other images in the gallery for realistic fixes. In Google Maps, a power‑saving mode on Pixel 10 models offers a pared‑down navigation view that can add up to four extra hours of battery life on long drives. Call notes are expanding to users in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland and Japan, where Gemini Nano on‑device can record calls, generate transcripts, summaries and action items. This feature is available on Pixel 9 and later (excluding the Pixel 9A).
Magic Cue and Private AI Compute
Magic Cue, Google’s contextual suggestion engine, receives more timely nudges thanks to Private AI Compute, a cloud‑based platform that delivers the speed of large Gemini models while maintaining on‑device privacy protections. The Magic Cue enhancements roll out first to Pixel 10‑series devices in select countries and languages.
Source: cnet.com