tablets Archives - Shapiro Consultants

Microsoft continues to shove Copilot down our throats, this time on our tablets

April 11, 2024
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If you’re a Windows user, you’ve probably been embracing (or running away from) Microsoft Copilot being integrated into your operating system. The AI-powered tool has been added to Microsoft Edge, Microsoft 365, and the Windows 11 taskbar. Now, it seems like the AI companion is making its debut on Windows tablets – in the most annoying way possible.

Zac Bowden from Windows Central discovered that swiping from the right on your tablet now opens Copilot instead of your notification center – disrupting a core gesture that users have grown accustomed to. Bowden posted a video on Twitter (sorry, X) showing this change in action, swiping to open notifications and instead being greeted by an unwelcome Copilot.

Huh, the swipe gesture to open notifications now opens Copilot instead on Windows 11 build 26100 pic.twitter.com/ymcUCPef9cApril 3, 2024

Bowden also adds that the notification panel has apparently simply disappeared. You would think that if Copilot had been moved to the right, the notification panel would have been relocated, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. Now, it seems that if you miss a notification it’s simply gone with the wind – you have nowhere to catch up on anything you miss.

Give it back!

Almost all modern devices have some kind of notification center that’s easily accessible. iPhone and Android mobiles have the swipe down from the top gesture, which is also translated to larger touchscreen devices like iPads or Galaxy tablets. Even your Windows PC has a notification center on the right side of your taskbar. So, it’s incredibly peculiar for Windows tablets to have that crucial feature removed.

If you’re worried about your tablet being affected, don’t panic – so far this change has only been implemented on tablets that are running on the latest Windows 11 version (24H2). It was first spotted in Microsoft Windows Insider Dev and Canary channel and now seems to have broken out to a wider array of devices – so if you want to avoid this, just hold off on updating to version 24H2 for now.

Hopefully, this is a temporary change that’ll be reversed soon. While Microsoft’s Copilot is an objectively impressive tool, there’s no doubt that not everyone will be happy to have these changes shoved in their faces like this. Especially if you’re not a big fan of AI chatbots in the first place – I’d be pretty upset if I lost access to my notifications for something I’d never use.

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TechRadar – All the latest technology news

March 27, 2024
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Google’s new generative AI model, Gemini, is coming to Android tablets. Gemini AI has been observed running on a Google Pixel Tablet, confirming that Gemini can exist on a device alongside Google Assistant… for the time being, at least. Currently, Google Gemini is available to run on Android phones, and it’s expected that it will eventually replace Google Assistant, Google’s current virtual assistant that’s used for voice commands.

When Gemini is installed on Android phones, users would be prompted to choose between using Gemini and Google Assistant. It’s unknown if this restriction will apply to tablets when Gemini finally arrives for them – though at the moment it appears not.

Man sitting at a table working on a laptop — (Image credit: Shutterstock/GaudiLab)

A discovery in Google Search's code

The news was brought to us via 9to5Google, which did an in-depth report on the latest beta version (15.12) of the Google Search app in the Google Play Store and discovered it contains code referring to using Gemini AI on a “tablet,” and would offer the following features:

The code also shows that the Google app will host Gemini AI on tablets, instead of a standalone app that currently exists for Android phones. Google might be planning on a separate Gemini app for tablets and possibly other devices, especially if its plans to phase out Google Assistant are still in place.

9to5Google also warns that this is still as it’s still a beta version of the Google Search app, Google can still change its mind and not roll out these features.

A woman using an Android phone. — (Image credit: Shutterstock/brizmaker)

Where does Google Assistant stand?

When 9to5Google activated Gemini on a Pixel Tablet, it found that Google Assistant and Gemini would function simultaneously. Gemini for Android tablets is yet to be finalized, so Google might implement a similar restriction that prevents both Gemini and Google Assistant running at the same time on tablets. When both were installed and activated, and the voice command “Hey Google” was used, Google Assistant was brought up instead of Gemini.

This in turn contradicted screenshots of the setup screen showing that Gemini will take precedence over Google Assistant if users choose to use it.

The two digital assistants don’t have the same features yet and we know that the Pixel Tablet was designed to act as a smart display that uses Google Assistant when docked. Because Google Assistant will be used when someone asks Gemini to do something it’s unable to do, we may see the two assistants running in parallel for the time being, until Gemini has all of Google Assistant's capabilities, such as smart home features.

Meanwhile, Android Authority reports that the Gemini experience on the Pixel Tablet is akin to the Pixel Fold and predicts that Google’s tablets will be the first Android to gain Gemini capabilities. This makes sense, as Google may want to use Gemini exclusivity to encourage more people to buy Pixel tablets in the future. The Android tablet market is a highly competitive one, and advanced AI capabilities may help Pixel tablets stand out.

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