Google Rolls Out Audio Emoji For Phone Calls, Including Pooping Noises
Illustration 268806329 © Kateryna Lytvynenko | Dreamstime.com
Emojis have become an essential part of communication, offering a way to express emotions and reactions digitally. Expanding on this concept, Google is taking this lexicon into the auditory realm with Audio Emoji.
Similar to how emojis enhance text messages, Audio Emoji allows users to send brief sound effects during phone conversations, ranging from applause and laughter to the, ahem, poop emoji sound. This move can be seen as a natural evolution of emoji use, which has blossomed from rudimentary ASCII text to a vast library of thousands of visual symbols.
Audio Emoji is currently rolling out to users enrolled in the Google Phone beta program, with version 128 being the update that delivers the feature. Participants can access them either under the overflow menu in the Google Phone app, or via a dedicated chip that appears directly on the main calling interface.
Google Phone app introduces Audio Emoji feature, allowing users to play sounds like ðŸ‘, 😂, 🎉,😢,💩,🥠during calls. The corresponding animations will also appear on-screen. Easily accessible above the call toolbar, can be turned off in Settings. #GooglePhone #AudioEmoji pic.twitter.com/xRrw4qW4iK
— Peer Mohammed Makrani (@speccheck101) April 30, 2024
However, there’s a wise limit placed on how often you can use these sound effects. A short “cooldown” period, as noted by 9to5Google, prevents users from playing them back-to-back, likely sparing recipients from an audio barrage (especially in the case of the more… enthusiastic options).
You can expect a wider release for all users in the coming weeks, allowing everyone to experiment with this new way to enhance—or potentially disrupt—their phone calls.
[via 9to5Google, PhoneArena, Android Authority, images via various sources]
