Ever have one of those moments where you see some new tech twist — an app, a feature, an idea of some sort — and you just stop in your tracks and think: “Whoa. Now, that’s clever”?
I won’t lie: Those moments come up far less frequently for me than they once did. By and large lately, we just haven’t been seeing the same sort of awe-inspiring advancements in the mobile-tech arena that we did a decade ago. And most companies — Google very much included — are currently obsessed with chasing a very specific flavor of AI that’s overhyped, frequently impractical, and awkwardly out of place in its present implementation.
You know what, though? If anything, that only makes those genuine “whoa” moments even more meaningful, when they do arrive — because they truly are a special surprise.
My friend, I had one of those moments this week. It brought me back to an era of Android when things were moving in an incredible direction and the future felt rich with real-world, life-enhancing technological intelligence.
This time, the moment didn’t come from Google. But it did come from a developer who’s been a part of the broader Android ecosystem for ages now — and it feels like it’s picking up on a brilliant but ultimately abandoned idea Google gave us many moons ago.
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Google Now — and then
Before we dig into the present, we need to take a quick trip to the past. (It’ll be fast. I promise!)
If you’ve been loitering around these Android-tinted lands for long, you no doubt remember: Back in 2012, Google gave us something that really felt like the future.
It was