Google's Android 4.1 Jelly Bean is Here

Android 4.1, aka Jelly Bean, gets a more responsive user interface, a much more interactactive notification system, better voice transcription, overhauled search, and a major new feature called Google Now that tries to anticipate what a person needs to know at any given moment. Android has exploded in popularity, but the OS takes a lot of heat for allegedly being an Apple iOS copycat. Google is clearly trying to vault over that issue with new features detailed at its at its Google I/O show.

Google Now, triggered by swiping from the bottom of the screen, draws on calendar, location, and search history to automatically present what a device thinks is information a person needs to know, said Hugo Barra, director of product management, at the show's opening keynote. "Google Now gets you just the right information at just the right time, and all of it happens at the right time," Barra said. For example, "Google Now figures out when you commute from home to work and back, tells you how long your commute takes usually, and give you a faster route if there's lot of traffic. On public transit, if you're on the platform at a subway, Google tells you wen the next bus or train will arrive."