An ever-growing app ecosystem will eventually suffer from bloat. So, Google is introducing several Play Store changes that bring relevant app information to the surface and grant users more control over app recommendations.
The most notable part of this update is Google Play’s new Collections home screen widget, which shows new and relevant information from different apps in your library. If you regularly watch someone on YouTube or listen to someone on Spotify, for example, their newly published content may appear in the Collections widget. It’s not all that different from Google TV’s home screen UI, which highlights new content based on user activity.
Collections is split into several categories, including Shop, Watch, Listed, Read, Games, and Food. These categories will be loosely represented on your home screen depending on your app usage, though you can get a deeper look at each category by tapping one of the icons in the Collections widget’s sidebar.
To add a Collections widget to your home screen, simply press and hold on the Play Store app icon. You can prevent certain apps from utilizing personalized information in Collections by adjusting your “Personalization in Play” settings. A more customizable version of Collections that focuses on specific apps or app categories (kind of like Smart Stack on iOS) is currently in the works, according to Google.
In addition to the Collections widget, Google Play is now offering an AI-powered app comparison feature. There are also new “curated spaces” in Google Play that focus on specific content or workflows—an early example of curated spaces that focuses on cricket (the sport) debuted in India earlier this year.
Gamers also get some love in this Play Store update. In the past, Google insisted on guessing what games you might be interested in—a flawed approach that led to poor recommendations. Finally, the Play Store will straight up ask you what genres you enjoy. Open the “Games” tab at the bottom of the Play Store, tell Google what kind of games you like, and enjoy recommendations that are based on good old-fashioned user-defined preferences.
Speaking of games, Google Play Pass is currently 80% off. And Google Play Games, which lets you run Android games on a PC, has added the option to open four game windows simultaneously (you might leave a passive game open while playing something more active, for example).
Plus, Google is preparing to roll out weekly Play Points raffles that reward users with free hardware, such as Pixel smartphones or game controllers. And a new “Comics” section is set to arrive on the Play Store at some point in the future, though I should point out that you can already buy comics, graphic novels, and manga from the “Books” section of the Play Store.
These Google Play improvements, minus the Play Points raffles and the “Comics” section, are rolling out today. Some improvements may take up to a week to reach all users.
Source: Google
