It’s no secret that Google Glass is a game changer when it comes to increasing productivity. I can barely walk out my door without having my schedule posted in Google Now. Google aims to help us manage our busy lives with their latest XE11 upgrade. For those who are new to Android Headlines, Google Glass gets a monthly upgrade within the first few weeks of each month.
Before I get to the feature list, Google did choose to remove one feature, calling it a mistake: The ability to Long Tap on the touchpad to immediately launch a Google search. I am personally saddened to see this go as I found it useful.
The overall theme of XE11 is Lifehacks. Lifehacks are simple tips and tricks to make your life easier. Glass introduces a few new shortcuts that should appease the most demanding user schedules.
Personalized Calendar Search
This is one of my favorite things about Google’s desktop search, you can not only search the internet but events in your Google Calendar. This feature is coming to Glass. You may now say things like:
Ok Glass, Google, What is my schedule next week?
Ok Glass, Google my agenda
Each of these phrases will return a card showing your schedule. You MUST enable “Private Search” in your Google Search Preferences. Sadly there is no way to schedule events from Glass… yet.
Work and Home Directions
This is one of those features that should have existed in Glass when it launched. You can now say “Ok Glass, get directions to home” or “Ok Glass, get directions to work”. The addresses must be stored in Google Now on your Android Phone or in the web based version of Google Maps.
New Setup Process
I will admit that the initial setup of Glass could be a little intimidating for the average consumer. Google has added a new setup wizard to XE11 to guide the user through the initial setup of Glass. Existing glass users can test this by performing the upgrade and performing a factory reset of their Glass unit. This is yet another reason to suspect that a consumer release of Glass may be coming soon.
Shortcut to Screencast
Taking advantage of the powerful Android Notification system that many of us love, Glass owners can now start a screencast by simply expanding the MyGlass notification area. This simplifies the existing process of starting a Screencast.
That’s all for now, Google is known for sneaking a few surprise features into Glass with each update and we will report back if we find one in XE11. If you are a Glass owner, plug in your Glass unit to the wall and connect over WiFi to perform the upgrade. You can read the full changelog on Google’s Help Page.