Google Hangouts is, without a doubt, a very popular app thanks to the fact that it comes preinstalled on all Android devices.
Given that one must have a Gmail account in order to download and install apps from the Google Play Store, Google Hangouts seems to be unavoidable. In fact, the app also comes integrated into Gmail for desktop, offering users chat services for free.
Other than being a dominant force on Android, the Hangouts app is also available for those using iOS devices. iOS users have something to smile about as the latest version of the chat app adds some amazing features and much-needed capabilities to the app.
This update has been around for at least a week now and with it, users of Google Hangouts on iPhones and iPads will now be able to share content with no need of being inside the app. To activate the new share extension in Hangouts, tap on the share/action button when inside an app and hit the More option. Proceed by toggling Hangouts on and place it where you feel like.
Whenever you tap on this new extension, you will be able to share various content with your friends on Google Hangouts, be it notes, videos, photos or even URLs from other platforms such as Chrome, Safari, Photos and so on, just like you would with other apps. The extension even goes further and pops up a menu where one can easily confirm the account from which to send the content as well as the contacts that the content will be shared with.
In addition to coming in with a new share extension option, the latest Google Hangouts, which is version 9.0.0, also brings a new Low Power Mode feature. With this mode, anything to do with video sharing is halted whenever one is making a Hangouts call and the iPhone switches to the Low Power Mode.
There is no doubt that the updates are being pushed to align the app with the new iOS 9. However, there is still one core iOS 9 feature missing in this new version of Hangouts. The much talked-about Split View is missing and so is the Slide Over feature. Still, the new share extension and Low Power Mode are big enough updates worthy of updating your installed Google Hangouts app to the latest version 9. The updated version can be downloaded from the official iTunes App Store.