Google I/O 2023: The major announcements from the tech giant

Google uses Google I/O to reveal its upcoming projects and plans every year. Tech enthusiasts and supporters of the Google ecosystem will no doubt be buzzing with excitement after this year's event, which featured many exciting announcements. Google has a tonne of new products and updates in store for us, from foldable smartphones to new AI-powered features.

Google Pixel Fold

The eagerly anticipated Google Pixel Fold foldable smartphone has finally been unveiled. It folds like a book, similar to the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4. It resembles the Samsung foldable phones in many ways, but with the distinctive styling we've come to expect from the most recent Pixel line.

The now iconic Pixel camera bar is present on the rear, while the front of the phone looks quite similar to the Pixel 7 Pro, with slim bezels and a centrally placed hole-punch selfie camera. The full HD+ 5.8-inch OLED external display on the Google Pixel Fold has a 17.4:9 aspect ratio, a resolution of 2092 x 1080 pixels, and a refresh rate of up to 120 Hz. While there are visibly chunky forehead and chin bezels, they'll be useful for holding the phone while in the unfolded mode.

Three cameras are located in a bar on the device's back: a 48-megapixel primary camera, a 10.8-megapixel ultrawide camera, and a 10.8-megapixel telephoto camera with a 5x optical zoom and 20x Super Res Zoom. In contrast, the front-facing camera has 9.5 megapixels.

The Tensor G2 chip used in the Pixel Fold and the Pixel 7 range is the same. It will be interesting to see how well it holds up when placed in the much larger Pixel Fold. Storage options include 256 GB and 512 GB, and the battery has a negligibly small capacity of 4,821mAh. 

Google Pixel 7a 

The Google Pixel 7a, has now been made public. It's a slightly scaled-down version of the flagship Pixel 7, as was to be expected, but it doesn't sacrifice processing speed or camera quality. The Google Tensor G2 processor in the Pixel 7a is identical to that in its flagship cousins.

Though there are a few significant visual differences, the Pixel 7a and Pixel 7 look very similar. There is no wireless charging, the display has a slightly lower resolution, and the rear camera module is smaller. The Pixel 7a does, however, have a few benefits over the flagship model. It has a headphone jack, a slightly bigger 6.2-inch display, and a bigger battery.

Google Pixel Tablet

The Google Pixel Tablet is a new addition to the Google Pixel lineup of devices. It's a 10.95-inch LCD display tablet with a 2560 x 1600 resolution that is optimised for multimedia content. With four speakers, users can enjoy a surround sound experience while watching movies or TV shows. The tablet is also designed to be easy to hold, thanks to its nano-ceramic coating.

The device has a USB-C port for charging and data transfer, as well as a headphone jack for a more personal audio experience. It also has a 12-megapixel camera on the back and an 8-megapixel camera on the front.

AI in Gmail

Google is always pushing the boundaries of AI and machine learning, and AI was the big theme at I/O this year. One of the most significant announcements was the update to Gmail's AI features. Gmail has always been on the cutting edge of AI, with suggestions and Smart Replies leading the way. But now, with the new Help Me Write feature, Gmail will be able to create entire replies for users.

Help Me Write works by analysing the content of an email and suggesting responses based on that content. Users can then select a response and send it without ever having to type a single word. 

The feature is particularly useful for customer service emails, where users often have to provide detailed information about an issue. Help Me Write can scan previous emails to provide important context and order information, making it easier to resolve customer issues quickly.

Workspace

In order to make Google's Workspace suite smarter, automatic table generation (but not formula generation) in Sheets and image creation in Slides and Meet have both been added. You can now type in the kind of visualisation you're looking for and the AI will generate it, using the new features for Slides and Meet. This specifically refers to custom backgrounds for Google Meet. 

Google Maps

Google Maps is another Google app that is receiving significant AI updates. At Google I/O 2023, the company announced Immersive View for routes, a new feature that allows users to see their routes in 3D.

Users in select cities will be able to zoom along a 3D-generated simulation of their route allowing them to see landmarks along the way from a bird's-eye view. Immersive View will even generate traffic amounts depending on how busy it expects the route to be at that time and insert the correct weather.

Immersive View for routes will be rolled out later this year to 15 cities, including New York, San Francisco, London, and Tokyo. This new feature will give users a unique and immersive way to explore their city and plan their routes, making it a great addition to the already impressive Google Maps app.

Text-to-music

A new AI tool called MusicLM can convert text descriptions into music. Users can type in prompts like "create an industrial techno sound that is hypnotic" or "create soulful jazz for a dinner party" to use MusicLM, which is available in the AI Test Kitchen app on the web, Android, or iOS.

As they hone their MusicLM-generated works, users can specify the instruments they want to use, such as "classical" or "electronic," as well as the "vibe, mood, or emotion" they want to convey.

Magic Editor

Google Photos is also getting a significant AI-powered update with the new Magic Editor feature. Magic Editor is essentially a supercharged version of the Magic Eraser tool that allows users to remove unwanted objects from their photos. 

With the power of AI, Magic Editor can do much more than just erase objects. It can also recreate elements that have been cropped out of the original photo, making it easier to edit photos without compromising the composition.

The most impressive example of Magic Editor's capabilities showed the tool recreate a missing person in a photo using AI. With this new feature, users can expect more seamless photo editing capabilities than ever before.

Bard

You'll soon be able to communicate with Google's AI and won't have gated access anymore. Google Bard is now accessible in Japanese and Korean, with 40 additional languages following soon.

Bard is also getting some additional helpful new features. Soon, you'll be able to instruct Bard to create a spreadsheet based on a set of criteria, export that spreadsheet directly into Google Sheets for your personal use, and then import it back into Bard.

AI-generated images are something we've seen before, but Google is taking things to the next level with Bard's new ability to generate images, thanks to Adobe. With the power of Adobe Sensei, Bard can generate high-quality images that look like they were created by a human artist. This opens up a world of possibilities for content creators and businesses who need high-quality, customised images quickly and easily.

Google I/O 2023 was packed with exciting announcements from Google. From the long-awaited Pixel Fold to the new Pixel Tablet, Google is continuing to push the boundaries of what's possible with technology. And with updates to AI features in Gmail, Maps, and Photos, as well as the exciting news about Bard's new capabilities, it's clear that Google is committed to making our lives easier and more connected through technology.