5 things Google got rid of you didn't even know existed
28.7.2021
Translation: Eva Francis
Google has a habit of simply switching features off. Many of them are unknown – before and after they vanish.
Ever heard of Google Poly? No? Well, you’ll never get to know it either. Google took the 3D object sharing platform offline on 30 June 2021. The platform had been around for three years and was unknown to most. Poly isn’t the only example of this. Let's take a look at things Google got rid of you didn't even know existed.
The website KilledByGoogle.com has collected all the things Google once had and then removed. It might include things you know and use. For instance, the AngularJS tool, a JavaScript web framework for building single-page web applications, which will cease to be in December 2021.
#5: Google Bookmarks (2005 - 2021)
Google Bookmarks saved your favourites on the Internet – long before Chrome synced your bookmarks and saved locations in Google Maps between devices. After almost 16 years of operation, it was switched off. Why? The functions were integrated into other products, which meant the dedicated bookmark service was simply no longer needed.
#4: Google Science Journal (2016 - 2020)
The app that let you perform science experiments with your smartphone sounded strange. And it was strange, too. So after four years, the app, which used your smartphone's sensors to accurately collect and analyse data, was removed in autumn 2020.
It’s still available in third-party app stores, but probably doesn’t work well or not at all on some devices.
#3: Google Pigeon Transit (2018 - ~2020)
Switzerland only gets to see the results of the Google Pigeon Transit experiment. That's because the app, which isn't even archived in third-party app stores, encouraged its users to report specific incidents such as delays in public transportation. Other users would see this on their smartphones, which helped them plan their commute.
The feature sounds familiar, as Google Maps has introduced very similar functions. But once Google Maps' big sibling took over, the little app by the «in-house incubator» Google Area 120 wasn’t needed any more.
The end of the app must have come sometime in 2020. In early winter 2019, five more cities had been added to the service.
#2: Google Shoelace (2019 - 2020)
Events, concerts, meetings – all happening in your neighbourhood and put together by real people. That was the promise of Google Shoelace.
But the app by Area 120 studio didn’t even survive a year. However, it looks like the Shoelace experiment led to Google Maps getting more social media features.
#1: YouTube Messages (2017 - 2019)
YouTube used to offer the possibility to chat with users directly or in groups. It’s obvious that this can become inconvenient, especially in large channels. Therefore, after two years, this feature ceased to be.
As 9to5Google reports, Google wants users to have conversations in public. YouTube Stories is a kind of public newsfeed with text posts and images.
Users have to chat elsewhere. Except with Google Allo, as Google got rid of that in 2019.
Journalist. Author. Hacker. A storyteller searching for boundaries, secrets and taboos – putting the world to paper. Not because I can but because I can’t not.
