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Google Pixel's Phone app now available as a beta for other Android phones

By Liu Hongzuo - on 12 Aug 2020, 12:37pm

Google Pixel's Phone app now available as a beta for other Android phones

The Phone app by Google.

Ever wondered what's so amazing about the Google Pixel smartphones? Well, one of its vaunted features is its default, pre-installed Phone app by Google, which comes with a host of tools that make generic caller-and-dialler apps seem pale in comparison. Folks using other Android smartphones can now have a taste of the Phone app's capabilities since Google made the software available to other devices via its beta testing programme.

To give the Phone app a whirl, you'll need to sign up for the beta with your Google Account here (preferably, the one you use for your smartphones). The landing page will ask if you wish to be a tester for the specific app. Confirmation should immediate, and it will prompt you to download the unlisted beta off the Google Play Store. The following page also gives you the option to exit the beta.

Since it's a beta version for non-Pixel, Android smartphones, different phone brands and models may experience one or more missing features. Various reports (9to5GoogleXDA Developers) stated that certain features like Call Screen are not available on non-Pixel devices. Phones, as recent as the Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra, do not support certain softer features like the built-in Google Duo button within the Phone app.

You can learn about the full set of Phone's features via the app listing in the Play Store, but here's a quick rundown on what the app can do (on a Pixel device):

  • Call Screen, that comes with real-time transcription and the ability to block unwanted callers
  • Google Duo video calling, in essence, video calls with your contacts
  • Spam Protection and Caller ID, which comes with warnings contributed by the community for numbers you don't know
  • Visual Voicemail, basically voicemail managed as though they are regular audio recordings
  • Mini Call View, which allows a user to multi-task on the phone while in a call

Source: Android Authority

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