Google’s plans haven’t worked out how they were supposed to.
Last week, we covered the news of Google rolling out its news feed on both web and mobile platforms, supposedly to counter competition from other services including Facebook and Twitter. The roll out which was supposed to be immediate still hasn’t got the expected start, though.
The Irony
That’s because of a slightly unconventional issue related to the homepage orientation on Google’s own Android smartphones, which is ironic to say the least. A lot of phones now have the option to access the feed by swiping right on their homepages, which is a convenient shortcut. Unfortunately, it doesn’t load up the feed just yet.
This is not an issue on the iPhone, as they don’t have the fancy homescreen feature, and can only access the feed the old-school way by clicking on the Google icon.
Fragmented Android Ecosystem
Google’s more closely-tied products such as the Pixel line seems to be getting along well too, which again sheds light on the enormous, fragmented Android ecosystem.
The rollout to devices where the feed is launched from the home screen will take slightly longer due to technical aspects of the deep integration to the system.” Google’s statement to Recode
The New Google Feed
Google’s news feed features a slightly unconventional take on news feeds compared to its rivals, in that it is devised from your past search activity and interests, paying just as much attention to those topics as it does to breaking stories.
It also features fact-checking coupled with the ability to follow several news outlets for varied opinions and responses, as well as the ability to follow even more topics directly through search results.
There are also a few interface changes, such as the new Home button which takes you back to your feed from search results. With the culprit for the delay identified, expect the update to hit your phones anytime now.
Via Recode
