Google showcases India specific mobile-first products

The constant rise in the number of internet users on cellphones, the gadget has become a tool that all businesses want to explore to the maximum. Even search giant Google is right there to win over the users with its language-specific localized apps.

As Sandeep Menon, Google country marketing director explains, “Indians are coming online from mobile devices at an incredibly rapid rate — six to seven million new mobile internet users every month.”

While showcasing some Google features on the phone, he said, “Google can help keep you connected to the people and information that you care about.”

At Google House organized in Bengaluru, the company showcased the latest product innovations for India’s ‘mobile first’ world. That included Google Maps, which now has English to Hindi real-time translation.

“Today’s event is about showcasing how we’re working to make our products relevant and useful for India, and how smartphones have evolved to become the best personal assistant you’ve never had. Whether you need to get directions 10 minutes before your next meeting, a step by step recipe to make an impression, or a way to never be late to the airport again, Google can help keep you connected to the people and information that you care about,” he said.

Google Photos

With people around the world uploading 1.8 billion photos every day, taking 93 million selfies and more photos being taken every two minutes than the whole of humanity took in the 1800s, the new Google Photos app offers unlimited, free storage by automatically backing up photos and videos.

Celebrity photographer Dabboo Ratnani, Bollywood is where home is and photography a way of life. ”While photography is a way of life for me, what’s also important is making sure my clientele has easy and early access to the photos I take of them. I’m always on the move so it is important for me to have access to a good photo editor and for me to be able to search through and find a particular photo shoot quickly enough. Google Photos has both of these features easily available to access in terms of a great editor and the cool new Assistant feature. These have become my favourites today!”

Anushka Menon, one of India’s most iconic fashion and beauty photographers, said “Photography is adding a humanistic, versatile & colourful touch to make my work both modern and fresh. I always try to combine aesthetics that combine Indian culture and western fashion codes. My favourite feature is being able to store multiple pictures and not worry about running out of space. I also love that they are chronologically arranged and each of my photo shoot appears as a beautiful Story that I can go back and share with my friends and family.”

Google Now

Commenting on his use of Google Search, celebrated chef Kunal Kapur says: ““I travel the world meeting new people, experiencing new cultures and of course, searching for new ingredients and culinary experiences. Sometimes when I travel I don’t even know the name of the ingredients I see in the local markets and Google Image search helps me find out what it is exactly.”

“I use Google Now to keep everything organized. It has become my constant companion and has made managing a multi time-zone life much easier while Google Photos helps me archive and share my experiences instantly,” he says.

YouTube Offline

As well as an overview of recent offline features, like the ability to save Maps for times when you might not have a connection. Or YouTube Offline, which gives you a way to watch videos without chewing through all your data — even when you don’t have a connection.

As YouTube funny man Kanan Gill explains:”It’s great to have Google as a partner. They’ve worked hard to make it easy for everyone to access my videos and all of the weird things people like to watch on YouTube. Now with offline people can even take those videos with them and watch them where they may not have good connectivity. Everyone wins!”

Voice search

Voice Search updates to the Google app which has been optimised for English in the Indian accent and in Hindi to make finding answers to your questions faster, easier and more local. As well as some of the latest Google Now updates, which bring you information when and where you want it, before you even have to ask — like a personal assistant.