JANUARY 2020 PCWorld 17Portrait Blur lets you produce blurred-background
shots.soon get the new Google Assistant (go.
pcworld.com/nwas), though it will still only
work in English.
Additionally, Google says all Pixel devices
will also receive an update to its memory
management in the feature drop, a long-
standing issue with Pixel phones. Google says
phones will now “proactively [compress]
cached applications so that users can run
multiple applications at the same time—like
games, streaming content and more.”
It sounds like this is the start of a new update
cycle for the Pixel, as Google looks to further
differentiate its own phones from the rest off the
Android landscape. In fact, it’s unclear whether
these features will eventually be rolling out to all
Android phones at all, so for now you’ll need a
Pixel phone to take advantage of them.December security update that began rolling
out last week (and has yet to hit the Pixel 4) or
a newer Android 10.1 update, but it should
reach all Pixel phones “in the coming weeks.”
Here are the new features coming as part
of the feature drop:
Google Photos: Portrait Blur will let you
create blurred-background portrait shots on
regular photos.
Call Screen (Pixel 4, U.S. only): Google
Assistant will now automatically screen
unknown callers and filter out detected
robocalls.
Google Duo (Pixel 4, U.S. only): Auto-
framing will keep your face centered during
video calls and adjust accordingly if someone
else joins. Audio will also be enhanced during
bad connections as a machine learning model
predicts the likely next sound.
Google Duo (Pixel 2, 3, 4): You can blur
the background during video calls.
Also coming to the Pixel 2, 3, and 3a:
- The Recorder app (go.pcworld.com/
rcap) is now available on older generations
of the Pixel. - Pixel 3 and 3a users will get Live Caption
(go.pcworld.com/lvcp). - Focus mode (go.pcworld.com/fcmd) is
rolling out to help you stay productive and
minimize distractions by easily pausing apps. - You’ll be able to flip your phone to
silence it on the Pixel 2 and 2 XL. - If you use a Pixel 4 in the UK, Canada,
Ireland, Singapore and Australia, you’ll