Google has announced on Twitter overnight that it has released a couple of updates for its Allo messenger app, including the ability to quick-reply from the notification (as shown above), and chatting in split-screen using the new multi-tasking feature found in Android Nougat.
While there isn’t a lot of info on either of these at the moment — they’re not enabled in Allo on my device just yet — the two features seem fairly sensible and intuitive. The ability to quick-reply from notifications has been around in other apps for a little while now, including Google’s own SMS app Messenger, and Ausdroid’s messenger of choice, Telegram. Basically, as you can see in the demo screenshot above, you tap the ‘Reply’ button in your Allo notification, and you can type right into it. The reply will then be sent to your recipient without even having to open the app.
Of course, by replying in this manner, you lose some of Allo’s cool features, like the ability to change the font-size of your reply, or send stickers etc, but you can still send emoji using a compatible keyboard.
The ability to use Allo in a split-screen environment will be far more useful on a larger phone (e.g. the Pixel XL) or on a tablet, but it makes the offering just that little bit more appealing.
Keep an eye on the Play Store for an update to Allo to enable these new features.
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