Google Play Services 8.1 SDK is ready, brings Maps ambient mode and other new tools
Google’s Magnus Hyttsten took to YouTube for another zany video that outlines the new tricks. While Play Services 8.1 has been rolling out for a while, Google typically gives more details about what’s new when the rollout is complete and all the new APIs are ready.
With Ambient Mode, Google Maps will be able to render in a simple, low-color version on your Android Wear watch, much like some ambient watch faces.
The app invites tool will allow you to tap into your Google contacts to invite others to check out the app via email or SMS. Developers will need to enable this before you see it in any of the Android apps on your device.
Play Games lets developers personalize the gaming experience a bit more. For example, you may see a welcome back message and reward when returning to a game that you’ve ignored for a while.
You can get the full rundown of what’s new and exciting from the Android Developers Blog.
The impact on you: Android updates may take forever, but new features actually roll out pretty quickly thanks to Google Play Services. If you’re not up-to-speed on a lot of the technical details, the takeaway is that Play Services gives developers new tools whenever Google updates it, so they don’t need to wait for new versions of Android to slow through the ecosystem.