Hands On: Google Now for iOS Goes Live for iPhone, iPad [PICS]

Last month an alleged Google Now for iOS trailer leaked and later on Google’s executive chairman Eric Schmidt said Google Now was in the hands of Apple. Well, as of this morning Google Now has mades its way onto iOS for the iPhone and iPad, as an update to the existing Google Search for iOS app.

What’s New in Version 3.0.0
Get just the right information at just the right time with Google Now.
• weather and traffic conditions before you start your day
• updates on your favorite sports teams and breaking news stories as they happen

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So what is Google Now? As the company explains this morning:

Google Now is about giving you just the right information at just the right time. It can show you the day’s weather as you get dressed in the morning, or alert you that there’s heavy traffic between you and your butterfly-inducing date—so you’d better leave now! It can also share news updates on a story you’ve been following, remind you to leave for the airport so you can make your flight and much more. There’s no digging required: cards appear at the moment you need them most—and the more you use Google Now, the more you get out of it.

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It sounds creepy and in order for Google Now to work effectively your search history should be enabled.

We have been testing Google Now for iOS this morning and our brief hands-on experience with the app has been interesting. There’s a quick overview once you launch the app for the first time. Cards appear at the bottom of the search window and you swipe up to see them and swipe away to get rid of them. There are no push notifications available for Google Now for iOS, unlike the service for Android.

I did some test searches based on my location and some interests. No cards appeared. I then enabled my search history and within minutes, new cards appeared instantly. What popped up? Driving directions and also the score of last night’s Lakers game, two searches immediately related to what I had looked for earlier. Google owns us all.

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As I continue to use Google Search, Google Now will continue to bring up cards. It’s a handy feature that appears to work as advertised. I look forward to seeing other cards pop up based on my search history.

Check out the video below to learn more about Google Now for iOS:

YouTube video

Click here to download Google Now for iOS (it’s an update to Google Search for iOS)–it’s free.

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