Google Wednesday showcased the next version of its operating system for mobile devices called Android 4.1 or Jelly Bean.
Jelly Bean includes performance improvements and a new search tool, called Google Now, to help you get the right information at the right time on your mobile device. Jelly Bean will be available in mid-July. Some devices, including the Galaxy Nexus, Motorola Xoom and Nexus S will get the upgrade automatically over the air.
With Google Now, if you say "traffic," for example, it will look at your usual commute to work and show you alternative routes if there's a lot of traffic. It will tell you the scores of your favourite sports teams automatically, and it will keep you up to date on flight statuses if you are flying somewhere. You'll have to activate Google Now to start using it.
Google Inc. said the Google Now feature will get smarter as you use it more.
The feature bears resemblance to the Siri virtual assistant on Apple's iPhone.
Jelly Bean will also come with the ability to share photos by tapping two phones together, using an emerging wireless technology called near-field communications.
Google said there are a million new Android devices activated daily, up from 400,000 a year ago. Google says there's particularly fast growth in emerging markets such as Brazil and India. Android is now the chief rival to the mobile software running Apple's iPhone and iPad.
With inputs from Associated Press