Google News and Weather update finally brings the app out of the stone ages
Google has just updated their News and Weather app in the Google Play Store after a rather long period of dormancy. The app has finally been brought into modern times as it has gotten a full redesign that’s akin to the Material Design language Google showed off at IO earlier this year. It takes full advantage of Google’s cards layout that has gotten so popular as of late.
Overall functionality is still quite similar to before. News is different depending on which country you select, you can easily switch between different topics, and the weather (which is one of the first things you’ll see when opening the app) can be set manually or by location. News is directly mirrored from Google News on the web so if you are a fan of that service then this is basically a much better way to access it on the go.
I’m having a bit of difficulty determining whether there’s still a place for this app. We have Newsstand now, and Google Now helps fill in the gaps and provide automatic weather updates right to your notification bar. But if for whatever reason you don’t fancy those alternatives and prefer a no-frills way to get a quick dosage of news then rejoice and head to Google Play for the download.