Google Phone

The Google Phone app doesn’t often receive huge updates, but a new change to the incoming call UI appears to be in the works.

As announced with the June Pixel Feature Drop yesterday, Phone by Google is rolling out its reverse number “Lookup” shortcut.

As Android encourages apps to go edge-to-edge, Phone by Google has been updated with a transparent status bar. 

Audio Emoji was officially announced with the Pixel 8a, and it’s now seeing wide availability in the Phone app on Google devices.

The Google Phone app is picking up a new trick, with the app now rolling out “Audio Emoji” to some users.

As previewed in early February, the Google Phone dialer app has removed the Nearby places search feature on Android.

The Google Phone app appears to be testing out support for showing calls from WhatsApp, as well as making it easier to start a video call with someone.

The Phone by Google (as it’s officially named) app is losing a “Nearby Places” feature that “allowed business name search queries entered into the Phone app to provide local business phone number results beyond just your personal contacts.” 

As was first announced at the Made by Google event at the beginning of the month, you can now use the Google Assistant to ask if an incoming call from a contact is urgent.

Pixel Call Assist is one of Google’s differentiating phone features and the company is actively beta testing new Call Screen capabilities.

Phone calling is one of the biggest areas where Google uses AI to differentiate the Pixel experience. More advanced Pixel Call Screen capabilities that take advantage of conversational AI are now being teased.

Back in September, the Google Phone app started testing a new calling screen, and the bottom sheet redesign is now seeing wider availability. 

With Android 13, Google began work on a predictive back gesture to “let users preview the destination or other result of a back gesture before fully completing it,” and you can now preview it with the Phone app on Pixel.

In addition to introducing a handful of Messages features, Google is rolling out new icons for the SMS/RCS app, as well as Phone and Contacts.

Google’s Wear OS revival comes to a head with the launch of the company’s own Pixel Watch, and with the boost that’s come from the Galaxy Watch’s success, Wear OS has seen much more interest when it comes to apps. Today, Google has released a redesigned version of its Phone app for Wear OS.

The Google Phone app that handles calls and the dialer for Pixel phones appears to be testing a redesigned in-call UI that has a sort of “bottom bar” interface.

It was only a couple of months ago that the Google Phone app was spotted preparing a revamped dialer design with some Material You flare. Now, the update is officially starting to roll out.

In response to a research paper outlining the data collected by Google’s Phone and Messages apps, including call and text records, the company has updated both apps to better respect privacy.

Material You elements quickly took over various Google apps in the lead-up and following the rollout of Android 12, but it seems Google isn’t done. Hidden in the latest Google Phone update is a new dialer design that has some familiar Material You elements.

With the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro, Google is following up last year’s “Hold for Me” with new “Direct My Call” and “Wait Times” capabilities in the Phone dialer app.

Google Phone is the latest app to get a Material You makeover ahead of Android 12’s release later this year.

Update: Within days of the Material You design rolling out, Google Phone has gained the dynamic colors to match, for some.