Inside Search
The official Google Search blog
Two new Translate features coming your way
October 14, 2015
We’re all about breaking language barriers, whatever language you speak or device you use. So with that in mind, over the next week, we’ll be rolling out two new Google Translate app features— instantly translating both English and German to Arabic and easier multitasking for iPad users.
See the world in a new language with instant visual translation
You can already have bilingual conversations from English or German to Arabic thanks to the conversation mode or text input in the Google Translate app. Today, we’re also adding the ability to translate printed text instantly between these languages.
To use instant visual translation, just open the app, click on the camera, and point it at the text you need to translate. You’ll see the text transform from one language to another in real-time on your screen. And the best part? There’s no Internet connection or cell phone data needed.
To try out Arabic with either English or German you'll be prompted to download a small (~2 MB) language pack.
Split View translations with the newest iPads
Starting today, customers using iPads supporting Split View will be able to use Google Translate along with the new feature. So if you’re sending an email or text and need to translate, you can see both apps at the same time. And it even works with text from online books or websites.
Whether you’re starting a new bi-lingual conversation on your iPad or using instant visual translation to find your way, Google Translate helps you see the world in your language. With today’s updates, we hope that we’re able to continue to help and give more translation options to the 500 million people using Google Translate to see over 100 billion words a day in their language.
Posted by Barak Turovsky, Product Lead, Google Translate
Accelerated Mobile Pages in Search
October 7, 2015
People are consuming more content on their mobile phones than ever before. We read, listen, watch, play, and buy from our phones while we’re out, at home, on the bus, and with our friends. Google Search aims to show you the best answers for all of life’s contexts, and we want to
help you explore and discover great content on the web
. Today, Google Search is excited to share a preview of how
Accelerated Mobile Pages
are helping us create a fast and beautiful content browsing experience for mobile web.
Whether you want to find out the latest
[news]
or the next
[recipes]
to try in the kitchen, Search brings you fresh, high-quality content from around the web. Accelerated Mobile Pages are specially formatted web pages that enable Search to display this content extremely fast, while ensuring that publishers control the way their content looks and feels.
This
demo
of Accelerated Mobile Pages in Search utilizes content from a limited set of participating publishers and is accessible through the below links. We hope that it provides a glimpse of how fast the mobile web can become, and how Search is committed to making results fresher and browsing faster.
Explore and search within
g.co/ampdemo
in your mobile browser or follow the links below:
[fashion]
[mars]
[syria]
[nytimes]
Learn more about the Accelerated Mobile Pages Project at
ampproject.org
.
Posted by Daniel Rocha, Software Engineer
Translate text within apps thanks to the latest Android update
October 6, 2015
We face communication barriers every day. Switching back and forth between apps and screens to translate shouldn’t be another one. We’ve heard your feedback, and have worked with the Android team to make translating text, chats, and other app content a whole lot easier.
Beginning this week, you’ll be able to translate in 90 languages right from within some of your favorite apps like TripAdvisor, WhatsApp and LinkedIn.
Translating a TripAdvisor review from Portuguese
Composing a WhatsApp message in Russian
This update works on any device running the newest version of Android’s operating system (Android 6.0, Marshmallow). To get started, you first need to have
the Translate app
downloaded on your Android phone. From there, just go to an app, like TripAdvisor or LinkedIn, and highlight and select the text you want to translate. This feature is already enabled in apps that use Android
text selection
behavior. Developers who created custom text selection behavior can also
easily add
the new feature.
More than 500 million people translate over
100 billion words a day
on Google Translate. With updates like this one, plus features like
conversation mode
and
instant camera translation
, we’re making Translate available anywhere you need it. So when you’re chatting with a new colleague from halfway around the world, conversation mode is perfect. Wondering which subway sign says “exit” on your next global adventure? Instant camera translation has your back. And now, when you’re sending messages or checking out reviews on your phone, you can translate right from within the apps you’re using.
Posted by Barak Turovsky, Product Lead, Google Translate
Got a Nexus phone? Look out for Now on Tap
October 5, 2015
It’s Friday night and your friend just texted: “Hey, want to go see The Martian this weekend and then grab dinner at The Slanted Door?” Chances are you need to jump through a lot of hoops on your phone to get enough info so you can respond: you may want to find out what the movie’s about and who’s in it, what time it’s playing, where The Slanted Door is, if they serve any vegetarian dishes and whether you can get a reservation.
We built
Now on Tap
as a step toward taking the hassle out of these types of situations and get you help quickly. We first talked about this new feature at Google I/O, and now it’s here—rolling out over the next few days to Nexus phones and other devices running Marshmallow over time.
So—back to your Friday night plans. With Now on Tap, if you tap and hold down the home button of your Android phone, Google Now will show you quick info about the movie and restaurant and help you jump into the right apps to read reviews, see the menu, and reserve a table. Once you’re done, the back button will take you right back to your messaging app so you can respond to your friend.
Helping you with Friday night plans isn’t the only way Now on Tap can assist you right in the moment, anywhere on your phone. Here are a few other examples:
As you read about the 2016 US elections or Elon Musk’s plans for Mars, simply tap and hold down the home button on your phone: Now on Tap will show you quick facts, and with just a tap you can jump straight to social media or the latest news articles.
When a playlist or station in Google Play Music, Pandora or another music app surprises you with a new song, Now on Tap can give you more info about the artist or band.
Once your phone is updated to Android Marshmallow, just tap and hold down the home button to give Now on Tap a whirl. It’s available in English starting today and we’ll be adding more languages — and more ways for Now on Tap to help you — in the coming months. When a tap-and-hold doesn’t give you what you want, you can easily send feedback and help us improve this feature.
It’s early days but we’re excited about taking another step towards making your smartphone even smarter, by assisting you: getting you straight to the answer you need or the next step of what you’re doing.
Posted by Aparna Chennapragada, Director of Product Management and Behshad Behzadi, Principal Engineer
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