Google I/O 2017 Day 1 Wrap Up: Android O Beta, Google Lens, & More

The first day of Google I/O 2017 is over and with it likely the biggest announcements. The most notable of all of the stuff that Google had to unveil today could very well be the Android O Beta Program, though that probably depends on how you look at it as some users could be more interested in other things that Google was introducing for the first time to the public. Nevertheless the Android O Beta Program is definitely one of the biggest announcements of the day and is sure to be one of the biggest announcements of the conference,as most everything that needs to be announced happens during the Keynote and during Day one.

In addition to the Android O Beta Program officially being announced, which is also available today to opt into for anyone with a compatible device, Google also introduced Google Lens which for the user, is essentially a visual search tool that utilizes the rear-facing camera of a smartphone to help users “take action.” Aside from Google Lens and the Android O Beta Program, Google announced other things as well, like Google Home heading to Canada and other regions. Users of Google Home will eventually be able to utilize the smart speaker powered by Google Assistant to make voice calls hands-free so they won’t have to reply on using their smartphone for communication, and this feature will support multiple users thanks to Google Home supporting multiple users.

Rumor had it that Google was planning on unveiling a new VR headset today that would be running on their Daydream platform, and while they didn’t actually unveil a new headset, they did confirm that new Daydream hardware was coming and what’s more is that it will be in the form of two headsets that are standalone models, with one coming from HTC’s Vive team and the other being built by Lenovo. There was no mention of a release date for either headset but since they’ll both be standalone anyone who picks one of these up won’t need to have a Daydream compatible phone. Of course, we can’t talk about Daydream without mentioning that Google confirmed both the Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus will be gaining Daydream support through a software update later this year, which helps to expand the potential adoption of the Daydream platform by consumers even further. There was lots more to hear about from Google I/O today, and if you happened to miss any of it you can find everything in the links down below.

Keynote Speech