Skip to main content

Google Photos just got even better with new auto white balance feature

Using Google Photos album.
Image used with permission by copyright holder
Google Photos is only getting better. The much-loved service has been updated regularly since its release a few years ago, but the latest update may be one of the most helpful yet. That’s because Google Photos just got auto white balance adjustment, which is now added to the growing list of the settings that are tweaked in Photos’ Auto mode.

The new feature, which is arguably a long overdue update, will make its way to the Android version of Photos first, after which it will most likely make its way to iOS. It’s also now rolling out to the Google Photos web apps.

Recommended Videos

So what does auto white balance do? The white balance tool on a camera is used to render colors correctly. If you take a photo of something being lit by an orange light, then the photo can turn out to look a little orange. When the white balance is corrected, it can help the photos look much more natural.

Other features that were recently added include the integration of a feature called “smart albums” and PhotoScan, which can be used to automatically create albums. Google Photos, however, is perhaps best known for using artificial intelligence to augment its search feature. Using search in Google Photos, you can look for photos based on things like date and time, but you can also search for specific objects.

Photos itself fast became one of Google’s most popular products. The service actually originated in Google+, and was one of the more liked features of the failed social media network — to the extent that Google eventually decided to spin it out as its own service. Now, the Google Photos app is a staple on many Android phones, and is highly downloaded on iOS, too.

Christian de Looper
Christian de Looper is a long-time freelance writer who has covered every facet of the consumer tech and electric vehicle…
The Google Home app is getting a long-overdue feature
The Google Home logo on a Pixel phone.

According to the sleuths over at Android Authority, the Google Home app is about to get a much-needed feature that I'm honestly shocked hasn't been added yet: a search bar.

If you've never used the Google Home app before, it's sort of the command center for all things smart home in the Google smart home ecosystem. If you only have a few smart home devices, it's easy enough to navigate — but if you have an extensive smart home setup, you could have upwards of 50 devices listed in the app. If you don't take time to organize and label them, it gets unwieldy fast.

Read more
The Apple Watch Ultra 2 just got a stunning new color
Apple Watch Ultra 2 in Satin Black.

It's Glowtime! Apple has kicked off its biggest event of the year, where it unveils a myriad new devices. Although the 10th anniversary Apple Watch is the star among wearables being unveiled today, the Watch Ultra is getting some attention in the form of a new Satin Black finish without many internal changes. That means, there's no actual update besides the new finish, but Apple has a lot to back it up.

The new Satin Black Apple Watch Ultra 2 is also made with Grade-5 recycled titanium. Apple says the finish has been achieved through a blasting process. To match the new finish, Apple is betting on a dark zirconia crystal for the underside. The orange accents remain unchanged from previous generations.

Read more
You can now try one of the best new Google Photos features in years
Pixel 9 Pro in Rose Quartz showing Google Photos.

If you have a lot of photos, you know that searching through them can be a bit of a daunting task. Thankfully, if you use Google Photos, searching your photo library is now easier than ever thanks to some search improvements and Ask Photos with Gemini. Both of these features are rolling out today, though the Ask Photos feature is only available to select users through Google Labs.

What exactly is Ask Photos? It goes a step beyond the standard search experience in Google Photos by using the most recent Gemini models to understand your photo gallery. This means the most important people in your life, your hobbies, favorite foods, and more. With this data, Ask Photos can pull out relevant details in your photos to help you find those specific memories that you’re looking for, as well as help uncover information about your life as a whole.

Read more