12 ANDROID ADVISOR • ISSUE 68
are surely coming down the pike, but as it stands,
Motion Sense is extremely limited and not very
useful – a neat trick in search of a party.
Still, Google deserves points for developing a
system that actually works. Where Air Motion on
the LG G8 is a finicky experience that requires more
precision and patience than most people would
be willing to extend, Motion Sense works the first
time (nearly) every time. So there’s definitely a
solid foundation to work with.
New Assistant
The Pixel 4 XL is also the showcase for the ‘new’
Google Assistant (currently US-only), which is a
streamlined interface and a faster response time. I
didn’t get anywhere near the rapid-fire speed that was
demoed at Google I/O, but it’s definitely improved.
The new Assistant interface is the bigger story, and
it’s vastly better than any other AI chatbot, including
Assistant on other devices. Instead of a window
that takes over part (or all) of your screen, Assistant
occupies a tiny space at the bottom of the display that
will only expand to show you what you need to see.
With Continued Conversation enabled, you’ll be able
to ask follow-up questions in quick succession, and I
didn’t experience any issues with it understanding me
(though issues are rare with the old Assistant too).
Google hasn’t indicated when or if the new
Assistant will be arriving in the UK, though we’re
hoping it won’t be too long. Before that happens,
however, a few things will need to be cleared up. For
one, the new Assistant only works if you have gesture
