What you need to know
- The Google Photos app for Android may soon get a new "Memories" homescreen widget.
- It will allow users to "rediscover moments from Google Photos."
- Google added a similar widget to the Photos app on iOS last year.
Google rolled out a bunch of new widgets for iOS in October last year — including a Google Photos widget that cycles through the 'Memories' albums to allow users to relive their best moments right on the homescreen. A teardown of the latest Google Photos update by XDA Developers has now revealed that a similar widget could soon be released for Android users.
Version 5.49 of the app includes references to a new "Google Photos widget" that will let users "rediscover moments from Google Photos." Unlike the iOS Google Photos widget, however, it looks like the Android widget will only show you photos from "this week last year."
Unsurprisingly, the widget cannot be added to the homescreen right now, even if you have the latest Google Photos version installed on your phone. The feature will likely be enabled via a server-side switch sometime in the coming weeks. We expect the widget to be compatible with most Android phones — including the best cheap Android phones.
As revealed earlier this week, Google is also working on a new "quick action search widget" for Chrome on Android. The widget will be similar in design to the two-tile search widget that was released for Chrome on iOS in May. In addition to a search bar, the widget could include shortcuts to open a new incognito window, voice search, QR code scanner, and the Chrome Dino game. The widget is currently in development, so it may take a while before it becomes available for everyone.
Additionally, Google is working on a Material You-inspired Google Photos redesign with larger text in the image gallery and some other minor tweaks. The redesign is expected to begin rolling out to the best Android phones sometime later this year.
