June Feature Drop Brings Upgrades Across the Pixel Family

Google is starting to roll out its June Feature Drop for Pixel, with Gemini Nano for Pixel 8 and Pixel 8a, Car Crash Detection on Pixel Watch 2, and more.

“Our latest Feature Drop is here, and it’s packed with incredible new capabilities for your device, including Gemini Nano coming to Pixel 8 and Pixel 8a as a developer option, and Car Crash Detection to Pixel Watch 2, plus so much more,” the Google announcement notes. “These features begin rolling out to devices today and will continue over the next few weeks.”

Here’s what’s new.

Gemini Nano on Pixel 8 and 8a. Google’s most efficient AI model is now available on Pixel 8/8a phones as a developer option. You can learn how to enable this feature on Google Support.

Summarize in Recorder improvements. This on-device Gemini Nano-powered feature for Pixel 8 Pro/8/8a now provides more detailed summaries with speaker detection and the ability to export to text files or Google Docs.

External display support. Pixel 8 Pro/8/8a can now display content on an external display over USB-C.

Find My Device improvements. You can now use Find My Device to find your phone even when it’s off or the battery is dead (for up to 23 hours after the battery dies). Your location data is still encrypted and private from Google.

Pixel Camera app improvements. On Pixel 6 and newer phones, Pixel Fold, and Pixel Tablet, the Camera app will automatically select the best moment in HDR+ with a single tab of the shutter button. You can also manually pick which camera lens you want to use while taking photos, on Pixel 6 Pro, 7 Pro, 8 Pro, and Fold.

Reverse phone number search. When you receive a call from a phone number you don’t recognize on Pixel 6 or newer phones or Pixel Fold, you can now perform a reverse phone number search from the call log.

Google Wallet improvements. Google Wallet is now available in India. And you can link PayPal to Google Wallet in the US and Germany.

Car crash detection. Pixel Watch 2 now supports Car Crash Detection with integrated Emergency Sharing. If you’re in an accident, Watch 2 will check in to make sure you’re OK, and if you don’t respond, it will automatically dial emergency services. (Fall Detection has also been improved to work better with bicycle falls.)

Google Home improvements on Watch. The Google Home app for Pixel Watch has received some UX enhancements to make it easier to use.

Doorbell notifications improvements. Pixel Tablet will now display richer doorbell notifications when docked in hub mode. You can talk to whoever is there using two-way talk or send a Quick Response. This requires newer Nest doorbells.

Google Home Favorites widget. This new widget works on phones and tablets (not just Pixel) and provides quicker access to compatible smart home devices.