Google announced today that it is rolling out some new features for Pixel users. In particular, the tech giant announced that Pixel 8 Pro users will be able to use the phone’s thermometer app to measure their temperature, or the temperature of another person, by scanning the forehead. You can save the reading to your Fitbit profile to get a deeper understanding of your health.
When Google first announced the Thermometer app, the tech giant said you could use it to measure the temperature of things like your baby’s milk bottle or your coffee. Now, the company says users can use the app to check their body temperature. Google previously indicated that the US Food and Drug Administration was reviewing the app’s ability to measure body temperatures, and that it would roll it out once it was approved.
Google also announced that it will launch “Circle to Search,” a feature it unveiled last week, for Pixel 8 and 8 Pro users. This feature allows you to search from anywhere on your phone using gestures like circle, highlight, scribble, or tap. The company says the new feature is designed to make interacting with Google Search more natural when questions come to mind, such as when you’re watching a video or looking at a photo on a social app.
For example, if you’re watching a food video featuring a Korean corn dog, you could circle the corn dog and ask, “Why are these foods so popular?”
With Circle to Search, you’ll be able to access search from any app, which means you no longer have to stop what you’re doing to start searching in your browser or take a screenshot to remind yourself to search for something later. It is worth noting that this feature is also coming to the new Galaxy S24 series smartphones on January 31.
Google is also bringing its generative AI Magic Compose technology to the Pixel 8 and 8 Pro devices. This feature can do things like help you rewrite a draft of a message in different styles or make you look more professional and concise.
Additionally, Google is bringing its Photomoji feature to the Pixel 3a and all newer Pixel phones launched since. Photomoji allows users to turn their favorite photos into reactions using artificial intelligence. Users can choose any photo and create a “photomoji” from it to use in their conversations.
Google says all of these new features will start rolling out today.