Google announced Android Oreo Go, Google Maps’ two-wheeler mode, and a bunch of other India-focused features. Android enthusiast Aditya Shenoy and games editor Rishi Alwani join host Pranay Parab to discuss. We begin by mentioning Google removing YouTube from Amazon devices, before moving on to Google's recent announcements.
Then we talk about Google Maps’ two-wheeler mode, our Google Maps wish list, and whether this two-wheeler mode has any big downsides. We mention the incident when a Gadgets 360 staff member got lost thanks to Google Maps, and whether the situation has improved since then. Aditya shares his experience with using Google Maps while riding a bike and highlights the things you need to know if you're planning to do that.
Then we talk about the launch of Google Go, Files Go, and Android Oreo Go. Here we mention the Reliance Jio effect, who the new Google products are for, and some of the details of Android Go that you may not be aware of.
We also discuss 'Lite' Android apps for entry-level phones and the compromises involved with those, before talking about Google’s Project Treble and how manufacturers may not even support it. Finally, we discuss Google Assistant coming to Jio Phone and Google Tez, whose initial success is encouraging for the future of online payments in India. Google Assistant may be a good addition to Jio Phone, but do people really need it? Rishi and Aditya give us the low down.
That's all for this week's episode of Orbital, which you can subscribe to via Apple Podcasts or RSS, or just hit the play button below.
Catch the latest from the Consumer Electronics Show on Gadgets 360, at our CES 2026 hub.