Following the mustaches and creepy masks which debuted in Google+ Hangouts over the past year, Google has just added yet another source of entertainment: sound effects.
As teased by Google’s own Amit Fulay, there’s now a dozen different sound effects built right into Hangouts — expect everything from cheesy applause and laugh tracks to chirping, gongs, snare drums and ticking clocks. Your conversations will never be the same.
Additionally, thanks to the Google+ API which was introduced back in March, developers can also include sound effects into their own apps with v1.2 of the Hangouts API. Right now, we can’t tell if Google will eventually allow developers to create their own sound effects, but that could be interesting for live shows and classes.
To use the new effects, start a Hangout in G+ and click on the “Google Effects” tab shown below.
Fulay notes that in order to take advantage of this new feature, users will have to make sure they’re updated to the latest version of the Hangouts Plugin: v3.6. It should update automatically, but if you’re having any issues, you can download the plugin here.
These effects are vapid and whimsical, but sure to appeal to a certain set of Google’s userbase. What do you think of them?
Image Credit: AFP/Stringer / Getty Images
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