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Gemini may soon let you make calls and send texts on locked devices (APK teardown)
- Gemini could soon handle calls and messages while the phone is locked.
- Gemini’s floating overlay is now more minimal and expands vertically as you input text.
- Gemini extensions have been separated into different categories.
Last week, we reported that Gemini would no longer force generated images to be square. But it looks like that’s not the only change in store for Gemini. A new APK teardown shows that Gemini could soon handle calls and messages, even if the phone is locked.
An APK teardown helps predict features that may arrive on a service in the future based on work-in-progress code. However, it is possible that such predicted features may not make it to a public release.
Whether you’re using Google Assistant or Gemini as your virtual assistant, you can say “Hey Google” to make calls or send texts. However, only Google Assistant has the capability to make calls or send messages when your device is locked. However, that may be changing in the future.
In our APK teardown of the Google app (version 15.42.30.28.arm64 beta), we discovered that Google is working on adding new lock screen functionality for Gemini. A new on/off toggle will allow users to choose if they want Gemini to make calls and send messages while their device is locked. Even if you toggle the feature on, note that Google says “Gemini will still ask you to unlock when a response contains personal content, such as your Gmail messages, from apps you use.”
While we were digging around, we also noticed there could be some UI changes as well. One of the two changes, as seen in the screenshots above, makes the floating Gemini overlay more minimal than ever. As you input text into the box, it will expand vertically so that all of the text is visible.
The second change neatly separates all of your Gemini extensions into different categories. In the examples above, you can see categories like Communication, Device Control, Travel, Media, and Productivity. Something else that sticks out is that the number of example commands has been reduced from three to one.
As with any APK teardown, keep in mind that there’s no guarantee that these features or cosmetic changes will go live.