Google, in general, is always coming up with some neat features to improve the end-user experience. None more so than the Google voice command and action service, known more commonly as “OK Google“. This is fast becoming one of the most well-known features on an android device and with good reason too. As “OK Google” ages, there has been a number of features added which improve not just the user experience but also how intelligent the feature actually is. Now, a new feature seems to be being added which might come in handy to a number of users.
The feature is known as ‘Preferred apps’ and as the name suggests, the feature will learn and remember the apps you normally use for a voice command on an android device. So for instance, after activating “OK Google”, the new preferred apps feature kicks in after the user has been prompted to choose the app they want to open the command with. So if you say “OK Google, open email”, or “OK Google, play Sam Smith” the feature will offer you the various apps which can play Sam Smith or are email orientated. The clever bit is that once you select one, “OK Google” will remember the one you have selected and use it to open the same command on all other occasions. If you are thinking, well I don’t want it to remember, as sometimes I like to open music on Play Music and at other times, Spotify, then that is fine too. First up, the feature is learned and therefore, will take a few goes before OK Google understands this is the app you tend to always open. Secondly, at any point, once the command is spoken, you can tell Google to forget your preferred app. When the feature prompts you to use the app, you can just X it out and it will forget your preference.
If you have yet to see the new feature active in your Google app, then you might need to make sure your app is updated. Not to mention you will need to make sure that ‘Web & App Activity’ is enabled in the app settings. It is also worth pointing out that Google’s support page (source link below) that the function is only currently available in the U.S., UK, Australia, Canada, India, Ireland, Singapore, and South Africa. To read more about the feature, you can hit the source link below and then just click on Android followed by More apps that work with “Ok Google”.