Google Pixel smartphones are selling like hot cakes in the United States. To everybody’s surprise, the blue variant of the Pixel and all variants of Pixel XL are already out of stock on the Google Store. Devices like Nexus brought Android from Google in its purest form. And when it comes to pure Android, Google Pixel and Pixel XL phone don’t disappoint either. The latest from Google Pixel and Pixel XL is in the form of an update for the Google Phone app.
The update – Google Phone 5.1 – is compatible with all Android devices running Marshmallow 6.0 and above. From an initial glance, it looks like nothing much has changed in Google Phone 5.1. The user interface is more or less the same, although there is a noticeable difference in the color palette. The new update continues to uphold the ‘Keep It Simple’ rule by featuring the usual three tabs – history, contacts, and favorites. While the whole UI may sport a noticeable color change, the three tabs continue to sport the same color.
The obvious question then is “Why update Google Phone at all?”. The reason becomes obvious when you take a look at the UI for making and receiving calls. With various UI tweaks and changes, the new dialer app does look sophisticated. Bored of the plain phone UI symbol that flashes and prompts you to either accept or reject the call? Well, the new update shows the caller’s contact photo as the answer/reject UI button. As always, you can now swipe left or right to accept or reject calls. And it looks like the app developer has paid attention to details – the button shakes up and down in sync with your device vibration when ringing.
Specifically, the update gives a new look to the on-call outgoing and incoming screens. The screens now feature a blue background and are translucent in the sense that you can see the home screen wallpaper from the on-call screens. While these changes may not classify as very significant, they are indeed changes that make UI experience better and smoother.
Known Issues
The new Google Phone app isn’t free of bugs. There are a few known issues with the update, which are reportedly being fixed –
- App hangs when interacting with settings
- Caller ID non-functional
- Issues with deleting calls from call log
Make The New Update The Default Caller App
To always use the new updated Google Phone app, you must set it as the default caller app. You can do this by heading to Settings -> Apps and then making this app as the default phone app.
APK Download Links
Use these links to download the APK. To be able to install these APKs, you must head to settings and allow installation of apps from unknown sources.
Download: Pixel Dialer for Nexus Phones
Download: Pixel Dialer for other Android Devices (Google drive file courtesy: PhoneArena)