By 
Google Hangouts has just received a very nice update with features we have been begging for since Google Talk was axed! We haven’t been this excited for a Hangouts update in a while, but why exactly is this? Well, it’s the little things that make a huge difference. This update brings us the little things we miss and some many didn’t even know they wanted!
Google Hangouts features
Online status details are back!
This is by far the biggest feature we have all been begging for. Google Talk used to organize contacts by online status, putting online users on top and letting you know if they were available or not. This feature disappeared after Hangouts took over Talk, something many of us have been quite upset about.
Online status is back! You can now see who is reachable by going to new hangout window. Online users will be marked with a green Hangouts icon while offline users will carry a gray one.
I, for one, am very happy to see this feature coming back. It’s really hard to try to message friends and family without even knowing if they are online (or if they EVER sign on, for that matter).
Contact and Hangouts organization
Contacts are now a bit more organized. You will be able to see your contacts separated in three categories: People you Hangout with, Suggested People, and Other Contacts. It is also easier to find your Hangout invites, as they are placed above your other conversations.
If that wasn’t enough, you can also simplify your contact list. You can hide contacts! Just press and hold on your contact and you will be prompted to hide him/her.
Download it and check it out!
I am honestly in love with this new update. It’s everything I have been asking Google for, and more. I have already received the update to version 1.2.016, but we know many of you haven’t gotten it yet. You can either wait the “few days” Google says it will take for them to roll out the update completely (Play Store link), or you can get the APK file from us!
The only thing missing is SMS/MMS Integration. But it makes me wonder if I have this both on my phone AND tablet, then how will I read an incoming SMS to my phone, on my tablet?
same here, really hope they do text message integration
What happen to making call from hang out?
IT FINALLY CAME!!! CANT WAIT FOR THIS UPDATE TO BE ON MY PHONEE!!!!!
Can I still remain invisible?
How is Rob online and offline at the same time? Also, does anyone know why people show up twice?
People with different Google accounts show up twice. Once for each account.
HaX0r
Schrodinger’s Rob
It’s about time we could pinch/zoom pictures I’m hangouts. Not everyone has tablet sized screens.
can i have invisible mode and voice call netween hangouts and no video
For the second part you can disable video once the hangout is set up
it’s useless to me until SMS integration, none of my friends will switch to it
SMS u kiddin me?
IKR!? It’ll need more than SMS. I have friends using Go SMS and Handcent because of the extra features it brings like emoticons and message pop up. They’ve just stuck with it.
If Hangouts can compete against services like that, then I can see people switching to it.
its cuz I want to be able to use the app even if my friends don’t. and if its not only hangout convos on there, they might be more inclined to get it
i need something that is multi-platform. SMS is not.
Finally!
would be great if they just integrated sms and your address book phone contacts. really should just merge and sync phone contact address book with all apps and be able to organize, etc.
In due time young one.
Excellent… Most excellent…
They should have status indicators for existing hangouts, not just the front page. I rarely go to the new hangout page
It would also be great if you could sort the contact list by people actually online.
The only thing that will make this app usable is full SMS and MMS integration. Yawn. Wake me when Hangouts catches up with iMessage or even Facebook Messenger. I hate Apple but there is no excuse why Google hasn’t figured this one out yet.
iMessage doesn’t work from a PC/Mac (FAIL), and Facebook Messenger PC app blows in comparison to Hangouts (or classic Talk). Also, FBmessenger kills your battery life on a phone (in my experience).
I personally don’t care for sms integration, as i don’t pay for unlimited texts (just the minimum for 250). Google Voice or Hangouts works for me, and for the purists I have Whatsapp for those that really want an sms-replacement (I’ve found it to be very popular outside the USA).
Maybe it’s just that the official JB ROM for the Bionic is terrible but hangouts is still so slow it’s unusable. These changes make things better…but still not great. Rolling back to Gtalk…again
Two flaws. The first is one that still will keep me from using it.
1. You can’t see chat status while you are IN a hangout. So, if someone you were chatting with turns their phone off or logs out, you have no way of knowing….seems like an oversight by the development team.
2. At least on the tablet version (I won’t install it on my phone until it 100% replaces what TALK can do) there is no intuitive way to jump from one hangout to a list of your existing contacts. The only way to get back to your contacts list is to pres the + button as if you were going to start a new hangout. The back button exits the app and their is no slideout menu to work with.
The dl file isn’t parsed… Can’t install
Got the download to work. This download looks NOTHING like the photos. There’s no buddy list that shows online or off.
S
M
S
Seriously. Just do it already.