New Google Duo Update Brings Family Mode, Filters, and More

May. 20, 2020

Following Google’sannouncement of several feature additionsto its video calling platform Duo last week, the company has now started rolling out an update that brings these features. As reported byAndroid Police, Google Duo version 87 addssupport for email addresses,family mode, andnew filters.

The latest update lets you use the service with your email address. You can enable the feature from Settings-> Account by switching the‘Reachable with email address’ toggle.

You can see the email addresses of contacts who have this feature turned on. For now, Duo doesn’t merge similar contacts and hence,you might be seeing some duplicate entriesin the list.

That said, it is worth keeping in mind that Duo still requires your phone number while creating the account. In addition,Android Policepoints out thatyou can’t disable calls to your contact number.

Family mode is also live on the app now. For the uninitiated, the feature lets participants doodle on video calls, along with several effects and masks. To get started with Family mode,start a video call, press the menu icon, and choose Family. As Google mentioned during its announcement, buttons will be automatically hidden while you’re in the family mode to avoid accidental mutes or hang-ups.Image: Google

The update alsobrings a graduation filterto the video calls, as a positive gesture to felicitate all the college grads who missed a proper graduation ceremony this year due to the ongoing pandemic situation. There is also a sunflower filter that has been live since Mother’s Day.

These new features are rolling out to Google Duo right now so make sure you have updated the app on your phone.

Subin writes about consumer tech, software, and security. He secretly misses the headphone jack while pretending he’s better off with the wireless freedom.