Apps

Google’s newest product is a photo album

Published

May 18, 2017

Isa Rodriguez

Google unveiled a number of cool new things at its annual developers conference Google I/O. Among the many things they announced (which included Android O features, Google Home and Google Assistant updates, and even YouTube upgrades), what interested me most were the new features on Google Photos.

Now, like any self-respecting girl in the age of social media, my photo roll is chock-filled with random photos that never see the light of day (cue 254 photos I took at that party to find the perfect one for Instagram), so curation and sharing of these mementos has always been an issue.

It seems Google had been appraised of my millennial girl problems and sought to find solutions.

A smarter library

Never hesitate to send that cute photo of your crush you took at that party you both went to, because now Google will actually prompt you to send it to him! These smart suggestions do not stop there; Google will also be prompting your crush to share said photos to other suggested people.

New functions also include smarter photo searches (even without tags) and impressive photo-editing capabilities.

A shared library

Google also announced Shared Libraries that will allow you to share albums with others! This seems to be a very convenient function, although the idea of a collaborative album isn’t new. Apple and Facebook already have these album-sharing functions, but it’s better late than never, yeah?

Photo sharing is already a thing on Apple ?

The difference here is that this shared library will be integrated into your photo roll. Google also claims that its smart photo functions will apply to these shared libraries. This also allows for an automatic sharing option that updates with your new photos in real time — which frankly scares me more than it excites me. (I mean, do you really want to see everything on my photo roll?)

A printed library?

The biggest news (at least to us girls in the GadgetMatch office) that came from yesterday’s announcements was Google’s Photo Book which was basically, well, a non-digital photo album.

Yes, finally, you can touch and feel your photos — except again, this isn’t the newest idea.

Apple has a printing option, too.

Google’s Photo Book offer starts at $9.99 for 20 pages of 7-inch square photos while Apple’s already existing printing service offers the same number of pages for the same but in a different size (8 x 6 inches).

Although the Google I/O announcements come with a lot of improvements for Google Photos, there really wasn’t anything new or groundbreaking — unless you think unlimited photo storage is still its best feature. Because really, the best photo library is simply the one you can put most photos in.

[irp posts=”14211″ name=”Google Assistant is now on iPhones, but it’s worse than Siri”]

Apps

YouTube makes picture-in-picture mode free for everyone globally

The update is rolling out globally now.

Published

April 30, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

Picture-in-picture (or PiP) mode is a godsend for multitaskers. The feature lets users watch videos in a tiny floating window while doing other tasks. However, the feature isn’t readily available for all users. Or wasn’t, at least. YouTube is now rolling out PiP mode for free globally.

Previously, PiP mode was exclusive to YouTube users who pay for Premium or Premium Lite. It was also exclusive to the United States.

Now, YouTube is making the feature completely free for users all over the globe. It will be available for both iOS and Android versions of the app.

There’s still a catch, though. The free version is available only for “longform, non-music content.” The same goes for Premium Lite subscribers. Music is still an exclusive feature for those who pay for the regular version of Premium. Basically, there is no change for paying users or users in the United States.

Using PiP mode is simple. All you need to do is load up a video you want to watch in the background. Then, just exit the YouTube app and go about your other tasks. The video will be inside a floating, resizable window while you look at other things.

There’s no timeline on when the update will reach your device. However, YouTube has promised that it will roll out globally within the coming months.

Apps

Google might be moving away from flat design

Bye bye, Material Design.

Published

April 27, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

It’s time to kindly shove off, flat design. After over a decade of Google’s Material Design, Android is finally showing signs of ditching flat, monotonous colors. In a series of logo redesigns, Google is reportedly trying out gradients as its latest reinvention.

As spotted by 9to5Google, Google is moving forward with incorporating gradients into its designs. Previously, the company started changing the icons of a few first-party apps including Photos and Maps. Now, it seems that the new design philosophy will reach the rest of Google’s suite.

In the obtained designs, the rest of Google’s plethora of apps will no longer look static. The splash of gradient adds the feeling of layering without losing the company’s roots in flat design. Docs and Sheets, for example, look like a light shining on pieces of paper.

Image source: 9to5Google

It’s unknown when Google plans to incorporate the new philosophy. However, with Google I/O coming fast, it’s fair to bet that an update might come out around that time, especially since that event’s logo already has gradients.

Google’s evolution is not without its precedent. Besides the company’s small trial previously, Apple’s iOS has also made inroads into more three-dimensional designs with the new Liquid Glass. However, unlike Apple, Google’s newest design is a far cry from the former’s return to Windows Vista aesthetics.

Personally, I don’t mind the transition to 3D, as long as it’s done well. Though still visually pleasing, flat design has started overstaying its welcome. It’s time to try something new.

Apps

Significantly better ChatGPT Images 2.0 launches

Stronger creative reasoning, better design output, more formats, improved overall experience

Published

April 22, 2026

GadgetMatch

OpenAI has launched ChatGPT Images 2.0. This updated image generation model has a meaningful jump over competitors and its current ImageGen 1.5.

Now available across ChatGPT, Codex and the API, Images 2.0 delivers stronger creative reasoning, better design output, more flexible formats, and a faster, more intuitive user experience.

Paid users (Plus, Pro, Business, and Enterprise) will benefit from a more advanced image experience (ImageGen Thinking 2.0). The state-of-the-art model can take on complex visual tasks and produce precise and immediately usable visuals.

ChatGPT Images 2.0 is likewise better for creative and professional use cases. It has a significantly better performance at producing text-heavy assets, infographics, product mockups, UI concepts, and more structured visuals.

Moreover, users can generate images in a wider range of aspect ratios. The outputs are limitless, from posters to comics or anime to detailed infographics to simple images. API users, on the other hand, will also have access to 4K resolution.

To try the upgraded image generation model, simply head to ChatGPT and select “Images” in the sidebar.

Users will be able to see the top five prompts as well, curated by OpenAI, for them to try. This is to highlight the capabilities of the new model.

Overall, ChatGPT Images 2.0 offers a more seamless experience on mobile, web, and desktop. The intuitive user experience includes improved prompt suggestions, loading states, editing features, and multi-output views.