Nestled between two conference halls at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona is a pathway lined with Google’s latest tech — and its cutest robot figures. Here, spectators can step inside homey, wood-paneled booths and try out features across Pixel, Android XR and Search. Welcome to Android Avenue.
I swung by Google’s setup to check out demos for its latest products and features. Greeting me at the entrance and setting the scene was an adorably colorful Android statue waving hello.
CNET’s Tara Brown and I hold up our access stickers in front of a matching Android.
In one booth, I tried on the Android XR smart glasses prototype for the first time and explored some promising use cases. I saw and heard real-time, AI-powered translations through the glasses as a Google employee spoke to me in Spanish. I also followed a Google Maps overlay that guided me along my route without obstructing my vision, thanks to the display projected onto the right lens.
Android XR glasses tap the Gemini AI assistant.
Hot off the heels of Samsung’s S26 launch, Google demoed a new Gemini capability that takes on a more assistive role. You can long-press the power button and ask Gemini to plan a vegetarian tapas tour, for instance, then have it drop that information in a Google Keep note, all through voice command.
Other use cases include having Gemini book an Uber for you, which it’ll do in the background so you can keep using other apps on your Galaxy S26 phone.
Gemini handles tasks like calling an Uber or helping to plan and jot down an excursion.
In another booth, I toyed around with an update to Google’s Circle to Search that’ll simultaneously find all the pieces of an outfit on your screen, then let you try them on virtually.
After long-pressing the home button and circling a picture of an ensemble I liked, Google showed a list of product results for each element. Tapping “try it on” generated a lifelike image of me wearing the orange-red pants I was eyeing.
Amusingly, the AI took the liberty of replacing my real-life dress and jacket with a black T-shirt. It’s not the first time Gemini has decided to play around with the parameters of my modest clothing, but hopefully it’ll get better at avoiding those gaffes with time.
The Circle to Search update is rolling out on the Galaxy S26 series and Pixel 10 devices.
Those arms are AI-generated — as is the whole outfit.
Circle to Search may have done a better job with Patrick Holland’s ensemble.
One of my favorite Pixel features lets you use Apple’s AirDrop and Android’s Quick Share across both ecosystems. With a couple of taps, I sent an image from a Pixel 10 phone to an iPhone, and also received one in return. The feature is also available on Pixel 9 devices.
Quick Share/AirDrop compatibility makes it easier to transfer media between newer Pixel phones and iPhones.
Seeing new tech is always neat, but what I really loved were these Android figurines that appeared to be cleaning a demo booth window. Such diligent little workers.
I can’t get enough of these little guys.
And that wrapped up my tour of the block. At a tech conference largely dominated by monotonous booths, it was nice to get some fresh air, explore a few demos and, primarily, fawn over cute statues big and small.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(471x244:473x246)/CNN-New-Years-Eve-with-Anderson-Cooper-123124-9952e5f00fc1425f87113ba2bfb97b29.jpg "Anderson Cooper Says He Once ‘Hated’ New Year’s Eve While Co-Hosting CNN Broadcast")
